++++++++++++++++++ Date: Sun, 12 Jan 2003 10:40:20 -0600 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net From: Tom Hammond =?iso-8859-1?Q?N=D8SS?= Subject: [Elecraft] A couple items of possible interest... The Infamous "Phantom" LED on Some Pictures of the K2 Front Panel About a week ago, I responded to a note asking about the "Phantom" LED which appeared on a few pictures of K2 front panels, just above the LOCK button. Some of the original K2 pictures posted to the web by Elecraft did include an LED at this location, but it was a prototype front panel design which never made it into production. HOWEVER... About a month or so ago, Wayne asked me to look into implementing a circuit design and code change he had made to the K2 firmware with the intent of providing a better indicator of those times when you have your SPLIT, RIT, or XIT modes enabled and might need a little more 'visible' indication than merely the blinking chevron on the LCD display. I can recall numerous times when, as the result of a previous SPLIT QSO, I've called a station in vain, only to find that my (SPLIT) TX frequency was still several tens of kHz below where the station was listening. The firmware change which Wayne has provided, if I understand it correctly, holds the SRDOUT (CTRL U3-3) line low when either the SPLIT, RIT or XIT modes have been enabled and there is no AUXBUS traffic. This allows the user to connect a Hi-Efficiency (e.g. low current) LED between this line and the line which controls the brightness of the LCD display and will illuminate an auxiliary LED any time any of the three 'split' modes have been enabled. Additionally, the brightness of this LED will change, depending upon whether you have selected DISP DAY or DISP NITE. Finally, any data being passed via the SRDOUT line will cause the LED to flicker, another 'attention getter' to remind you that you are in a 'split frequency' operating mode. With Wayne's assistance, I was able to get this option added to my K2, with a (yellow) LED located on a line directly above the LOCK button and horizontally centered on the RIT/PF1 button. The mod uses three (3) components (LED, 1 resistor, and a small electrolytic cap), and it requires only two wires to be connected to pads on the BACK side of the K2 FP PC board. It requires NO cutting on the PC board itself. The PC board mounts using the right hand screw used to attach the FC board to the CTRL board. There is however one 0.075" (1.9 mm) to 0.1" (2.5 mm) diameter hole which must be drilled into the Front Panel to allow viewing of the LED. This mod is NOT currently in production. And its final implementation may depend upon user demand. In order that you might see what the mod looks like, I have placed some information on my web site at: http://www.qsl.net/n0ss If you are interested, you might want to take a look. 73, Tom Hammond N0SS ++++++++++++++++ Reply-To: From: "Ron D'Eau Claire" To: Subject: RE: [Elecraft] A couple items of possible interest... Date: Sun, 12 Jan 2003 10:55:42 -0800 What I'd like is a "beep" (or a string of "beeps") in the phones or speaker if I hit A=B with SPLIT OFF! Sort of a way for the K2 to politely tell me "Hey, Dummy! The SPLIT mode is off and this isn't going to do anything!" After almost 3 years of using my K2 in SPLIT mode ALL of the time, my biggest problem is when I turn the SPLIT off for some reason, and then "twiddle" with the main tuning knob during a QSO. Talk about the other guy noticing some "drift"! I like to change the beat note a bit (within the filter passband, of course, but I tend to use the widest passband QRM will allow because I like the sound of sigs better that way). I've have a few ops come back saying "Ur K2 snds FB hr, but you seem to have shifted freq a bit. Almost lost U then..." Then I have to explain that it was "Operator Drift" and not "Oscillator "Drift" that was causing the problem . I had adjusted the tuning a bit forgetting that SPLIT was OFF! I like the SPLIT mode because it lets me use the big main tuning knob for everything; I don't have to mess with the dinky RIT knob. Also it emulates how I've operated rigs for most of the years that I've been on the bands. In the past using a separate transmitter and receiver, I'd tune around with the receiver, find a frequency where a station was who I wanted to call or a frequency where I wanted to call CQ, then I'd move the transmitter to that frequency and make the call. With the K2 in SPLIT, moving the transmitter to the receive frequency is done by just hitting A=B and I'm done! Then I can tune the receiver around all I want using the MAIN tuning control and the transmit frequency stays put. I don't have to mess with the tiny little RIT knob. I get to use the main tuning for ALL of my tuning adjustments. As I said, the trouble is that if hit A=B and the SPLIT mode is off, it doesn't do anything! I'm automatically transmitting on whatever frequency the main tuning is sitting on, and if I mess with the main tuning while receiving.... So that's when it'd be nice to be told that I'm not paying attention. Ron AC7AC K2 # 1289 The Infamous "Phantom" LED on Some Pictures of the K2 Front Panel About a month or so ago, Wayne asked me to look into implementing a circuit design and code change he had made to the K2 firmware with the intent of providing a better indicator of those times when you have your SPLIT, RIT, or XIT modes enabled and might need a little more 'visible' indication than merely the blinking chevron on the LCD display. I can recall numerous times when, as the result of a previous SPLIT QSO, I've called a station in vain, only to find that my (SPLIT) TX frequency was still several tens of kHz below where the station was listening.... 73, Tom Hammond N0SS ++++++++++++++++++ To: rondec@easystreet.com, elecraft@mailman.qth.net Date: Sun, 12 Jan 2003 11:13:52 -0800 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] A couple items of possible interest... From: k6se@juno.com Ron, AC7AC wrote: "With the K2 in SPLIT, moving the transmitter to the receive frequency is done by just hitting A=B and I'm done! Then I can tune the receiver around all I want using the MAIN tuning control and the transmit frequency stays put. I don't have to mess with the tiny little RIT knob." ========== This is the way I always do it on any rig when CQing in a contest, because not everybody seems to know how to zero beat and it's far easier to tune with the VFO knob to find callers than with the RIT knob. Good info, Ron! 73, de Earl, K6SE +++++++++++++++++++