| KE7VG |
Rating:      |
2003-12-17 | |
| They've done it again! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| This rig presents one of the most well executed combinations of technology and ergonomics I've seen in a long time. It's a well balanced marriage of form and function in a unique package. The KX1 clearly fits a niche market, but does it so well as to set a new standard. Even if it were not offered as a kit, it would still possess that rare "cool" factor that only ocassionally generates radio lust. Wayne and Eric should be rightfully proud of this latest product of their collective fertile minds! |
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| KG4VCG |
Rating:      |
2003-12-09 | |
| Radio dynamite in a small package |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
To me, building a K2 product is like reading a great book. As in the completion of a great book, I almost feel an inexplicable twinge of sadness when I’ve soldered the last joint. I’m overjoyed when it works, but somewhat letdown when the job is completed. However, the big difference between finishing a great book and an Elecraft radio, is that the enjoyment springs-off to another level and continues for as long as one owns the product. The remarkable designs and service by Elecraft have become legendary in its four year existence. The company deserves an award of excellence from whoever gives such awards. What sets Elecraft apart from most manufacturers, and not just radio manufacturers, is that it listens to its customers and reacts, constantly implementing changes and modifications that do not render the basic product obsolete. There is no arrogant “take it or leave” it posture when a shortcoming is noticed and reported. Instead, radio owners hear “we’ll see what we can do.” Change appears to be made for improvement and not simply to churn dollars in a saturated market. Major developments have been implemented through designs and modifications initiated by customers. For example, the DSP filter for the K2 was the brain child of Lyle Johnson, an Elecraft customer. Elecraft’s online reflector is populated with many knowledgeable experts who offer troubleshooting aid to anyone humble enough to ask. When customers and reflector contributors like Tom Hammond and Don Wilhelm (among many others too numerous to mention) offer opinions, I sit up and take note. Elecraft took special notice of one contributor, Gary Surrency, and to the benefit of future customers, hired Gary to offer online support apart from the reflector and “on hands” repairs for those unable to solve the problem. Elecraft must have also noticed the friendly, well-written and easy to follow suggestions of another customer and reflector contributor, Ron D’Eau Claire. After his construction and field testing of the radio, Ron primarily authored the KX1 manual. Elecraft manuals have long been recognized as well-written manuals, capable of spoon-feeding beginners through completion of its high performance radios. The KX1 manual is even better than its predecessors.
Some have stated that the spacing of parts on a KX1 may give beginners problems. I don’t think this is a serious issue for beginners. The parts are no more cramped together than a Small Wonder Labs Rock Mite or SW + series Transceiver. The KX1’s manual’s repetition and redundancy of information is not overdone or condescending. As a result, there is no game of “hide-and-seek” in looking for board holes or ambiguous choices to make. One is told exactly where the holes are by board measurements in many cases. If one can read, follow instructions and reasonably solder, a beginner should be able to complete the kit. Should a rank beginner tackle a KX1? It would be my recommendation to start with either a Rock Mite or SW+ kit from Dave Benson to learn soldering and parts recognition and placement. The learning curve is fast on Dave’s kits; kit costs are comparatively small, but with high quality boards and instructions. The time to completion is relatively short, and one will have a fine monoband transceiver when finished. With this foundation complete, most should have no trouble with any of the Elecraft kits, not just the KX1.
Since building my KX1 a couple of weeks ago, its big brother K2 has mostly sat silent on its tilt stand haunches. There is a hard to describe-fascination with using such a small package that is capable of reaching out to the world with a self-contained 3-band ham station, no bigger or heavier than a medium-sized paperback novel. Some may balk at the price with all options, it is not cheap. However, when one considers its full band coverage in 40, 30, 20 with ample SWL listening outside of the ham bands, the fact that the total package has a self-contained atu, batteries and paddle, the price differential, if any, between it and three separate monobander rigs, external paddle, and atu, shrinks or disappears. Given its convenience, quality and range, the price is a bargain. What other pint-sized QRP rig can work three bands on self-contained batteries, atu, and paddle and then tune in on Tuesday, Arnie Coro’s DXers Unlimited on Radio Havana or the BBC?
73/Gil NN4CW K2 #3104; KX1 #53
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| K4TLS |
Rating:      |
2003-12-08 | |
| Insanely Great |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
One word: Awesome.
Can't add anything to the previous reviews. It's fun and only slightly challenging to put together. Worked the first time, and the documentation is superb. Support is insanely great. I love this rig!
PS: Buy the 30M module and the ATU.
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| K8EAB |
Rating:      |
2003-12-03 | |
| Small Package, Big Performance |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I won't try to embellish the detailed KX1 reviews already posted here ... It took me a bit longer to assemble than others have indicated because I do one component at a time, trim the leads, then check one more time to make sure I have installed the right part at the right location and in the correct orientation (if applicable) ... I'm writing to tell readers that QRP operating, and in particular, the building of QRP equipment designed by Elecraft, is what has re-kindled the excitement of Ham Radio for me ... I really enjoyed putting together the Heathkits of 40 and 30 years ago, and now the fun of building and operating radio equipment is back ... although I am not a hiker or back-packer, I frequently operate from week-end rental cabins, hotel rooms, and other locations away from home ... I have adapted a Pelican 1120 case for carrying and protecting my KX1 (s/n 104) ... pictures and a zip file can be found at
http://weywalker.home.mindspring.com/
Pelican cases & prices (I have no affiliation) can be viewed at
http://www.all-pelican-cases-4-less.com/
I cannot imagine that any Ham who hikes or back-packs and wants to take a radio along for portable & trail ops would not look seriously at the KX1 ... in my opinion, there simply is no other QRP radio with as much performance and as many features in such a small and light-weight package for the cost ... I am now wondering what the gang at Elecraft will come up with next, and frankly, I can't wait see it! ... 72/3, K8EAB in Gerogia |
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| K4PED |
Rating:      |
2003-12-01 | |
| Outstanding Kit! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I recently purchased and assembled the KX1 with paddles, 30 meter, and ATU. What a wonderful kit building experience. Thsi rig is really amazing in what it is able to do in such a small package.
I highly recomend the lithium batteries as they have WAY outlasted the first set of alkaline ones.
I have not used CW at all since passing the 5 wpm test to upgrade to general a year ago. I practiced a bit and tried calling CQ yesterday on a 24 foot piece of wire thrown into the tree near my back porch, and had a response fairly quickly. I sure appreciated the patience that the other operator showed me as my sending was not too great. I was copying him fairly well until he passed on his congrats on my first CW contact, at which point I became flustered enough that I was only able to copy 1 in 3 letters. Practice will cure this I'm sure. All in all a great little portable rig. I'm anxious to improve my skills and work more in this mode.
Thanks Elecraft. |
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| N7CEE |
Rating:      |
2003-11-06 | |
| Backpacker's dream rig |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I have a KX1 with the optional ATU, paddles, and 30 meter module. I've set up the rig several times on day hikes, and I really look forward to taking it backpacking. Elecraft couldn't have done a better job of designing a radio for my needs (several week+plus backpack trips per year, and several shorter trips) if they'd asked me.
The internal ATU is well worth buying as it is lighter than any external tuner and also saves having to carry feedline. I've loaded various end fed wires directly from the KX1, including 28, 42, and 82 feet.
I used the KX1 in the November 2003 Spartan Sprint. Although I only managed 10 contacts (1 on 20, the rest on 40), using a full size 40 meter vertical on the roof, conditions were rough. Everyone including the :big guns" was right down in the noise. The variable crystal filter worked well to cut QRM, and I found the control layout and menus easy to use and intuitive.I really like the KX1 paddle as well.
I did some A/B tests with the KX1 and a K1 on the same antenna and found that the KX1 receiver holds its own with the K1. Even the K2 on a slightly better antenna heard very few signals that the KX1 missed. The noise floor on the K2 was noticebly lower on weekend signals, but comparing the KX1 with the K2 is not fair.
In summary, I would strongly recommend the KX1 with the optional ATU, paddles, and 30 meter module to anyone who wants a superb backpacking/ultraportable HF transceiver. |
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| N2XE |
Rating:      |
2003-11-04 | |
| Great Trail-Friendly Radio |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
What a fun radio! The KX-1 is really a marvel with 3 bands, batteries, ATU and DDS all shoe-horned into a tiny package. It's fun to build but beware, it's more challenging than the K1--mostly due to tighter spacing and my fear of burning something up with a soldering iron mishap.
I don't think it's possible to design a more compact 3 band rig with pin-through-hole components (although the oscillator and DDS chip are pre-mounted SMT components so you don't have to struggle with that).
It's performance is great for what it is. I find the receiver performance to be par with a lot of other SA602 based rigs. There is a little audio pop and scratch on the TX/RX transistion but it's mild. The KX1 receive is not as good as the K1 but it's a very acceptable design trade-off for an extremely capable trail-friendly rig.
What really shines is the mechanical design and ergonomics. Elecraft has always used high quality components and hardware--the KX1 is no exception. Every cubic centimeter is accounted for if you install the 30 meter and ATU options. The Elecraft brain-trust must have spent thousands of hours finding a way to make it all fit. It is truly miraculous!
That's not to say that the electrical performance isn't good--it is. But don't expect it to perform like a K2 or Ten-Tec Orion--it won't.
Speaking of the ATU, when you build it you can't help but wonder if this cute little toy-like thing will work. But it does and pretty darn well. While it doesn't have huge range, it will match a 25 foot wire on all three bands.
The control layout makes the KX-1 perfect for camping, backpacking and general Adventure Radio activities. Everything is on the top so you don't have to tilt or prop anything up. It also has a built-in "map light"--a super bright white LED so you can illuminate you note pad while ragchewing in the tent at night. In addition, it has three rubber bumpers in a tripod-like arrangement on the bottom so it always sits rock steady on a log or rock. A simple but extremely important design feature for a radio that will spend time out-of-doors.
In summary, it's a fun radio that's designed to get the most function is a tiny package.
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| KQ9L |
Rating:      |
2003-10-31 | |
| Awesome!! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Well, Elecraft has done it again. Not only is this a great and fun/easy kit to build, but the rig truly is a high performance QRP radio. The building experience was very pleasurable with no problems encountered during the assembly. Total time for my KX1, tuner, paddles and 30m board was about 10hrs.
As far as performance, my KX1 can hold it's own when put up against it older siblings the K2 and K1. It's receiver is as good as the K1 and the transmitter puts out about 3-4w when feed by an external PS or 2w with internal alkalines. The feature list will astound you when you think about its size 3x5x1.5in. In that package, you get a three band DDS transceiver, memory keyer, auto tuner, SW receiver, and auxiliary light!! Furthermore, features are not added at the expense of practicality and ease of use. The ergonomics of the rig are better than any other QRP radio I know of. With the controls on top and key on the front, it is a dream to operate while sitting at a desk, lying on your bed or lounging on a chaise.
I guess one of the most attactive feature about the radio (aside from the coolness factor) is its portability. I'll never leave home on business or otherwise without this rig. As I sit here writting this review, the KX1 is next to me in my hotel room attached to a 25ft wire antenna and 16ft counterpoise ready to go. The form factor is so small and bitesize, that I barely noticed the added weight/bulk in my laptop bag which I carried on to the plane this AM.
One final thing which sets this rig apart from the other excellent portable QRP rigs on the market is is ability to tune outside of the ham bands. I can now listen to the BBC on 5.975 and make contacts all with one box. Talk about keeping busy and entertained when away from home!
I can't say enough good things about the rig, but in closing, I do want to mention that I find myself smiling ear to ear when I play with the KX1. It is really a fun rig to use and once again Elecraft has raised the bar by which all portable QRP transceivers will be judged! Fantastic work Wayne and Eric!!
Rich
KQ9L |
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| W6LAW |
Rating:      |
2003-10-23 | |
| Fun to build-works great! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I love to build kits. I have built Elecraft's larger rig, the K-2 and love it. Now they offer a backpacking, self contained, less than a pound CW tranceiver covering 40, 30, and 20 meters. It has an autotuner and works well with 25 feet of tiny wire thrown into a tree and 16 foot "poise.
Ten times less power than would light a nightlight and it gets out well. I even climbed up a tree and then put up the antenna and got out.
I am 61 years old and it took this rig to get me up a tree. The K-2 is fantastic, the KX1 is too!
It is in a fanny pack and goes everywhere with me.
http://www.elecraft.com |
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| K9YEQ |
Rating:      |
2003-10-20 | |
| Excellent QRP Portable |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
The prior reviews do great justice to this new radio. I takes approximately 12-15 hours to build for someone with moderate soldering ability. The basic kit with the tuner and keyer would definitely be within the ability of someone with moderate soldering/building experience. All you need is a grounded solder iron (Radio Shack has a 15 watt $9.95 unit), flush cut pliers, DMM, dummy load, small magnifying lens to read some of the part labels and some fine solder.
Once the kit is assembled it becomes an incredibly compact package, full of control options and easy to use interface. I love the sound of the tiny latching relays while tuning up.
Because the xcvr is totally self contained, the opportunites to go portable are incredible... I have some crazy ideas as to where I will be operating. If you are familiar with the K2, then you will experience the same excellent design, layout, instruction and operation as the earlier radio. I am thrilled with the result.
With the tuner, you will not have to go through the tedium of hauling along an outboard tuner exactly cut antenna, etc. I hooked mine up while yet out of the case and made two quick CW contacts. I had been absent from CW for a very long time. My last CW contact was on 1/7/2001! (At one time I believe I operated at 19 WPM, but forget that now.) I hadn't forgotten the code and the two contacts were slow speed and the operators very tolerant of my speed and ability.
The two quick contacts were on opposites coasts which was great for this middle western cheese head. There was plenty of action on DX but not for this guy... a slow goer when it comes to code.
I have plenty of experience operating from motel rooms using a Norcal 40A and the 38 special, both earlier excellent QRP radios which I had previously owned and loved operating. The new KX1 rises to the next level. While the two earlier radios were quicker to build, the KX1 is more involved. While more expensive (with the complete kit) the operation is definitely a significant step up and so much easier to haul around. The new top-side controls are quite a clever design innovation and makes use a pleasant experience for portable operation.
The Radio is DDS controlled so not quite the same experience as an analog tuned radio. But the quality, stability, ease of operation, digital display, options make this quite the radio to build and own.
Well, off to the park for some operating! Plenty of open picnic tables in Door County, WI this time of the year now that the leaf peeping is coming to an end. |
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