[Elecraft] External speakers for K3?
Bill Maddock
Thanks and 73,
Bill N4ZI K3 #1059 & K3 #2914
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Peter Howson
I use two small black communications speakers, designed for vehicle mounting and
optimised for voice and are only 3-4 mm taller than the K3 -- one either side.
Really does enhance AFX on SSB and they look good too..... And they were less
than GBP 7 each!
Peter
GM8GAX
------------------------------------------------------------
mzi...@verizon.net
Steve Ellington
Speaker characteristics for SSB and CW may differ. The best overall
compromise I've found over the past 45 years is the Heathkit HS-1661. It is
very efficient, as in LOUD, has a thick aluminum cabinet with no vibration
or peaky resonance. Radio Shack sells a replacement speaker that fits
perfectly if needed.
For CW only, the MFJ ClearTone, MFJ-281 is hard to beat. It peaks strongly
at 700 Hz and is very sensitive. Cost about $12.
The HS-1661 shows up on Ebay occasionally and usually sells for about $30 or
so. I painted mine black.
Modern stereo speakers will work but they usually have higher power ratings
and require more power. Amplified speakers will also work well but could be
affected by RFI depending on brand and model.
Steve Ellington
N4...@carolina.rr.com
Ken Kopp
speaker jack. Audio output IC failure will likely occur,
as a mono plug shorts one half of the IC.
73! Ken Kopp - k0pp
wayne burdick
> Caution! Do -not- plug a mono plug into the external
> speaker jack. Audio output IC failure will likely occur,
> as a mono plug shorts one half of the IC.
This can only happen if you have CONFIG:SPKRS set to 2. If you set it
to 1, the right speaker channel is turned off, so a mono plug can be
safely used.
In addition to this, an upcoming beta firmware release detects the case
where SPKRS is set to 2, a mono plug is inserted, and speaker volume is
set to a moderate or high level. (The firmware looks for excess
receive-mode current drain due to the AF amp IC going into thermal
shutdown.) If this happens, the K3 will automatically set SPKRS to 1,
reminding you with a brief flashed message.
73,
Wayne
N6KR
---
Joe Planisky
intended to prevent the IC failure if a mono plug was used? Did it
not work as well as expected? Or is the firmware detection just "belt
and suspenders" protection in case someone didn't do the hardware mod?
73
--
Joe KB8AP
On May 11, 2009, at 11:30 AM, wayne burdick wrote:
>
> This can only happen if you have CONFIG:SPKRS set to 2. If you set it
> to 1, the right speaker channel is turned off, so a mono plug can be
> safely used.
>
wayne burdick
On May 11, 2009, at 12:10 PM, Joe Planisky wrote:
> Wasn't the mod described at
> http://www.elecraft.com/K3/mods/AF_Output_Mod_Rev_C.pdf intended to
> prevent the IC failure if a mono plug was used?
The bleeder resistor modification helps prevent an instantaneous
current surge when an mono plug is inserted, and is definitely
recommended. It has already been phased into production.
The new firmware provides protection in the case where high
right-channel speaker volume, in conjunction with the insertion of a
mono plug, results in extended high current drain at the AF amp chip.
73,
Wayne
N6KR
---
______________________________________________________________
Brendan Minish
> I would like to find or build an external speaker for my K3. I want
> something that sounds good,will match closely and is realitively
> efficent like 92 db @ 1 watt/meter! -What is everyone using? Thanks
> and 73,
For general communications use I am very fond indeed of the speakers
Motorola made for their various mobile rigs over the years, They are
very cheap, efficient and sound great for good quality communications
audio. These are not Hifi speakers but for speech / CW they do a superb job.
Mostly they seem to be a pretty close match in size and colour for the
K3 too.
Some of them are 2 Ohm though, The ones I use with My K3 at the moment
are 2 Ohm ones, Since I do not know for sure if the AF amp in the K3 is
happy driving an impedance this low I stuck a 2Ohm 2W resistor in series
with each speaker and still have more than enough audio in my shack.
I have seen these available in 4Ohm and amplified variants too. Pretty
much every radio in the shack is connected to a Moto speaker and I still
buy them at rallies, collecting stuff I might need someday must be habit
Anyone know if the can K3 drive a 2Ohm speaker without bad stuff
happening ?
73
Brendan EI6IZ
Tom Hammond
>For general communications use I am very fond indeed of the speakers
>Motorola made for their various mobile rigs over the years, They are
>very cheap, efficient and sound great for good quality communications
>audio. These are not Hifi speakers but for speech / CW they do a superb job.
>
>Mostly they seem to be a pretty close match in size and colour for the
>K3 too.
I agree completely.
>Some of them are 2 Ohm though, The ones I use with My K3 at the moment
>are 2 Ohm ones, Since I do not know for sure if the AF amp in the K3 is
>happy driving an impedance this low I stuck a 2Ohm 2W resistor in series
>with each speaker and still have more than enough audio in my shack.
>
>I have seen these available in 4-Ohm and amplified variants too. Pretty
>much every radio in the shack is connected to a Moto speaker and I still
>buy them at rallies, collecting stuff I might need someday must be habit
>
>Anyone know if the can K3 drive a 2Ohm speaker without bad stuff
>happening ?
In a recent e-mail from Lyle Johnson, KK7P, he stated that, while not
'designed' to drive 2-Ohm loads, the K3s AF amp should "probably" work
OK BUT that if one attempted to drive the speakers too hard, and the AF
amp attempted to draw excessive current (and starts to overheat), the amp
would go into a protective shut-down mode, rather than risk damaging itself.
For what it's worth, MOST (possibly all nowadays) of the newer, plastic-cased,
Motorola NON-amplified speakers are now 8-Ohms... there may be some 4-Ohm
speakers in the newer-style plastic ('fitted back') cases, but I suspect that
almost all have now been switched to 8-Ohm speakers.
I'm using a pair of 8-Ohm Motorola speakers on my K3 and it sounds just fine.
Cheers,
Tom Hammond N0SS
John Wiener
a subwoofer , so I also use them at the computer for iTunes, etc.
Joe Subich, W4TV
I would not use any speaker less than 8 Ohms with the K3.
The audio amplifier draws more current and distortion increases
as the load impedance decreases. Best case THD+N vs. frequency
for the audio amplifier is three times WORSE with 4 Ohm loads
compared with 8 Ohm loads.
2 Ohm loads are not even spec'd.
73,
... Joe, W4TV
wayne burdick
> I would not use any speaker less than 8 Ohms with the K3.
Hi Joe,
I've used 4-ohm speakers with the K3 for over two years and have yet to
hear any distortion at moderate speaker volume. As long as the RFC47
modification has been made on the RF board, the AF amp chip can easily
source the peak current needed for 4-ohm loads. It's true that in any
AF amp, distortion increases as load Z goes down, but this is a floor
effect compared to other factors usually present (atmospheric and pulse
noise, AGC dynamics, transmitter IMD, etc.).
The only problem we've had is with mono speaker plugs in conjunction
with a setting of SPKRS=2, which can result in excessive AF amp
current. But this situation is detected and corrected in the latest
field-test firmware revision. I'll be releasing it to beta shortly.
73,
Wayne
N6KR
---
______________________________________________________________
Wes Stewart
I'm using a pair of Optimus Pro 7AV. These are heavy metal-cased units that look really nice with the K3. They look like the first ones in this link, except they have a textured black finish.
http://www.angelfire.com/vt/audio/minimus.html
I have a spare pair for sale if anyone is interested.
Wes N7WS
Dr. Werner Furlan
Wes Stewart schrieb am 12 May 2009 um 9:20:
>
> I'm using a pair of Optimus Pro 7AV. These are heavy metal-cased units
> that look really nice with the K3. They look like the first ones in this
> link, except they have a textured black finish.
>
> http://www.angelfire.com/vt/audio/minimus.html
>
> I have a spare pair for sale if anyone is interested.
I use a pair of Behringer MS20. This is an active monitor speaker with two
analog and one digital input. I did not use the digital input but I use the
speakers also for my PC sound.
73! de Werner OE9FWV
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Wes Stewart
Sold.
--- On Tue, 5/12/09, Wes Stewart <n7...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> From: Wes Stewart <n7...@yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] External speakers for K3?
> To: elec...@mailman.qth.net
> Date: Tuesday, May 12, 2009, 10:20 AM
> I'm using a pair of Optimus Pro
> 7AV. These are heavy metal-cased units that look
> really nice with the K3. They look like the first ones in
> this link, except they have a textured black finish.
>
> http://www.angelfire.com/vt/audio/minimus.html
>
> I have a spare pair for sale if anyone is interested.
>
> Wes N7WS
JIM DAVIS
Bill Maddock <n4z...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I would like to find or build an external speaker for my K3. I want something that sounds
>good,will match closely and is realitively efficent like 92 db @ 1 watt/meter! -What is everyone
>using?
> Thanks and 73,
>
> Bill N4ZI K3 #1059 & K3 #2914
> ______________________________________________________________
Dear Bill,
In my own "humble-opinion" the BEST ext. spkr for the K3 is one made by "SOUNDS SWEET" (Google
it!)
It may be a TAD larger than some would want by their rig BUT I assure you that the resulting audio
to the "Human hard-drive" will be very sweet indeed!!! As I recall the retail price is now
$109USD
but well worth the investment!!!!!! Though it is a tad larger than most and heavier it's resulting
audio output is FANTASTIC!!!
Jim/nn6ee
Concord, CA (Left-Coast!)
Bruce McLaughlin
bought from RadioShack for about $20. It is slightly less than 1 foot high
and perhaps 8 inches wide. It carries the brand name RCA on it. It's
probably made somewhere in China. However, it does sound pretty good. On
CW, I tend to use earphones as I like the closer coupling you can get. I'm
sure there are many more "hi-fi" options available but honestly this speaker
I have appears to reproduce most of the audio spectrum coming from the K-3.
Bruce-W8FU
-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of JIM DAVIS
Sent: Monday, May 11, 2009 6:13 PM
To: Bill Maddock; elec...@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] External speakers for K3?
Bill Maddock
Bruce,
I just ordered a set of 3 speakers on Ebay - They are Cobra
HG-S100 - I am hoping That they will be good - My K3 is only 4"
high - these are 5 inches high and have a 4" speaker. I will
let everyone know how it turns out and compare them to my
current Kenwood SP31. The HG-S100 look good in the pics.
Price was right at 41.50 or so for all 3 shipped to my door!
They offered HG-S300 and HG-S500 with some kind of noise reduction.
I figure I'll let the K3 handle that - for that price I can find
something to go in the 3 cases if I don't like the sound!
73 de Bill N4ZI K3's #1059 & #2914
--- On Tue, 5/19/09, Bruce McLaughlin <bmcl...@bex.net> wrote: