RadioBanter - PING: Dave R. Elecraft K3

On Mar 9, 11:09*am, dave wrote:
bpnjensen wrote:
On Mar 9, 8:50 am, *wrote:
Steve wrote:
On Mar 8, 12:37 pm, * *wrote:
On Mar 8, 9:23 am, * *wrote:

bpnjensen wrote:
On Mar 8, 9:04 am, * *wrote:
bpnjensen wrote:
Hey, Dave, thanks for bringing up the Elecraft K3 (I'm sure my wife
will thank you as well ;-) *I just read the Receiver Topics section of
the page, and I can hardly believe my eyes. *It looks like a RX dream
come true, even the XMTR notwithstanding.

I just have two questions - As I understand it, once in awhile it is
desirable to download improved software and programming from
Elecraft. *Does this radio need to be always connected to a PC
otherwise, or is it perfectly fucntional as a stand-alone unit?

And, as configured in basic format, will it receive and properly
filter AM, or is that an add-on?

Save your money. Buy yourself a nice used Drake receiver.

Your wife may still love you.

OK. *Why?

I'm searching for the right words. Perhaps D. Peter might help.

At any rate, one can spend just so much, and after one reaches a certain
point, it ain't gonna help.

It has to do I think with the 'law' of diminishing returns, or something like
that.

dxAce
Michigan
USA- Hide quoted text -

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Well, that's easy to enough to understand...that is EXACTLY how I felt
(and still feel) about my Kiwa-modded Icom R75. *For 50% more *at the
time*, I could have gotten 5% more performance. *But based on what
I've seen for prices, the law of diminishing returns does not apply
here in a straightforward manner. *Good older radios like Drakes and
the better JRCs don't seem to lose any value at all, and in many cases
cost more than when they were new as collectibles.

OK - So I buy a used Drake R7 or R8B *for $1,400, or a new K3 for
$1,400.

Or an NRD-515 and a Sherwood SE-3 for $1,800 or any other decent but
old radio for the same price range.

Unless I can find a place to dependably buy something of this calibre
for much less than $1,500, why should I not get the newer one with
better specs and modern features and upgradeable software/firmware?
The Elecraft, in my estimation, is a significant improvement over the
R75. *The others I mention above, for the same price, are not.

Don't get me wrong - I'd love a Drake. *But penny for penny, I think
the Elecraft would be a better choice.

Bruce

The K3 has a better receiver than the R75, but the fact that it has
better receiver specs than the R75 does not imply that it would be a
better radio *for you* than the R75. The K3 is is a contest rig,
designed for use in extremely crowded, contest-type band conditions
and deep CW pileups. This is why it's a favorite on DXpeditions when
people know there'll be hundreds of people calling them
simultaneously. If you spend a signficant amount of time operating
under these conditions, then you should definitely get the K3. On the
other hand, if you're more interested in DXing utility stations and
that kind of thing, then you might never hear anything on the K3 that
you could not hear on the R75. Spending your money on new antennas,
phasing units or other odds and ends might give you more bang for your
buck in that case.

I have both. *The K3 hears more than the R75. *You'll need to spend
extra for SWL/ute monitoring as there is another set of (non ham band)
switched bandpass filters for the front end required, as well as a hi-fi
roofing filter. *But you'd then have one of the better SWL receivers
ever made for about 2 grand.- Hide quoted text -

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Oh, well - $2k is too much. *Maybe some day they'll make a receiver.

Half the price of a Watkins Johnson or a Ten-Tec, with better
performance. *I'm going to ask on the Elecraft reflector if they'd
consider an SWL/BCB RX only version.- Hide quoted text -

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Thanks, Dave - I would consider it a kind favor.