[Elecraft] [K3] K3: SWR meter adjustment
N0SA
I just noticed that the SWR meter readings on my K3 do not match my IC-7000
or my Palstar antenna analyzer. The Icom and the Palstar both read the same
but the K3 reads lower.
The K3 reads 1.0:1 the others read 1.5:1.
Is there an adjustment for the K3, or am I just being too critical here?
Larry
N0SA
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Ron D'Eau Claire
How long is the coaxial cable between the K3 and the external meter?
Both of those things will have a pronounced effect on the SWR. Even though
the K3 has found a 1.0:1 match, that says nothing about the SWR on the
coaxial line. The readings you see on an external SWR meter may vary widely
if the system is not terminated in a 50-ohm non-reactive load. An antenna
seldom presents a 50 ohm non-reactive load.
First put a known good dummy load on the rig. That will keep the SWR on the
coax low. Now compare your external meters with the K3 using a very short
piece of coax (a few inches) and do the comparison at a fairly low frequency
- 160 or 80 meters - to reduce the effects of any remaining stray reactance.
Check one meter at a time since the SWR meter itself adds a little
reactance. They should agree fairly well under those conditions. A range of
0.2 is pretty common (i.e. 1.0:1 and 1.2:1), but I'd start to question the
meter if one read 1.5:1 and the other 1.0:1 under those conditions.
Ron AC7AC
-----Original Message-----
I just noticed that the SWR meter readings on my K3 do not match my IC-7000
or my Palstar antenna analyzer. The Icom and the Palstar both read the same
but the K3 reads lower.
The K3 reads 1.0:1 the others read 1.5:1.
Is there an adjustment for the K3, or am I just being too critical here?
Larry
N0SA
--
______________________________________________________________
ab2tc
Hi,
Do you have the internal antenna tuner option installed?
AB2TC - Knut
N0SA wrote:
>
> I just noticed that the SWR meter readings on my K3 do not match my
> IC-7000 or my Palstar antenna analyzer. The Icom and the Palstar both read
> the same but the K3 reads lower.
> The K3 reads 1.0:1 the others read 1.5:1.
> Is there an adjustment for the K3, or am I just being too critical here?
> Larry
> N0SA
>
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N0SA
Here are the results on three bands:
Each radio or antenna analyzer is connected to the exact same coax, there
are
no added switches or connections, the coax goes straight to the antenna.
K3 IC-7000 Palstar Antenna analyzer
40M 1.1:1 1.5:1 1.6:1
30M 1.2:1 1.5:1 1.6:1
20M 1.1:1 1.5:1 1.4:1
Sure looks like the K3 is off to me comparedf to the other two
Larry
N0SA
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Ron D'Eau Claire
the other possibilities for error first.
If you have a KAT3 it must be in BYPASS. If you need it to obtain the match
at the K3 the K3 SWR reading will not indicate the actual SWR on the coax,
only the SWR the K3 "sees" through the tuner.
If you don't have a 1:1 match with the KAT3 in BYPASS, you'll need a good 50
ohm dummy load to compare meters.
If you're still concerned, post a query to K3support at elecraft dot com.
You'll find a wealth of help from the Elecraft technical team, including the
engineers themselves.
Ron AC7AC
-----Original Message-----
Here are the results on three bands:
Each radio or antenna analyzer is connected to the exact same coax, there
are
no added switches or connections, the coax goes straight to the antenna.
K3 IC-7000 Palstar Antenna analyzer
40M 1.1:1 1.5:1 1.6:1
30M 1.2:1 1.5:1 1.6:1
20M 1.1:1 1.5:1 1.4:1
Sure looks like the K3 is off to me comparedf to the other two
Larry
N0SA
______________________________________________________________
N0SA
NO
From: ab2tc [via Elecraft] [mailto:ml-node+41287...@n2.nabble.com]
Sent: Monday, December 07, 2009 3:57 PM
To: N0SA
Subject: Re: K3: SWR meter adjustment
Hi,
Do you have the internal antenna tuner option installed?
AB2TC - Knut
N0SA wrote:
I just noticed that the SWR meter readings on my K3 do not match my IC-7000
or my Palstar antenna analyzer. The Icom and the Palstar both read the same
but the K3 reads lower.
The K3 reads 1.0:1 the others read 1.5:1.
Is there an adjustment for the K3, or am I just being too critical here?
Larry
N0SA
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N0SA
I have contacted Elecraft support to see what they have to say.
My radio has no internal tuner and I move the coax from device to device so
there is no difference in connections or coax lengths. The coax goes
straight out to the antenna which is a ground mounted vertical fed at the
base with an SGC autotuner.
On all three bands the SWR readings are very close and low on the K3, the
Icom and Palstar analyzer both read about .5 higher and match closely to
each other.
Larry
N0SA
Hi,
Do you have the internal antenna tuner option installed?
AB2TC - Knut
N0SA wrote:
I just noticed that the SWR meter readings on my K3 do not match my IC-7000
or my Palstar antenna analyzer. The Icom and the Palstar both read the same
but the K3 reads lower.
The K3 reads 1.0:1 the others read 1.5:1.
Is there an adjustment for the K3, or am I just being too critical here?
Larry
N0SA
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