Or so it appears, as there’s no bulky chassis. Fortunately, my good buddy, Dave Anderson (K4SV), was among the first purchasers of the KX3, and he was generous enough (and trusted me enough!) to let me borrow it.Īt first glance, the KX3 resembles just the faceplate of a tabletop radio: it has a large tuning knob, wide, clear amber backlit display, and a traditional set of function buttons and multi-function knobs…but not much else. Though the KX3 was introduced in the summer of 2011, it didn’t start shipping until a few months later, and there was a backlog of orders for it.
I just had to get my hands on one to find out.
#KX3 MORSE DECODER KITS PORTABLE#
If this was true, with a KX3, I could have a full-featured QRP transceiver and a shortwave receiver in one…and a portable one at that.
Perhaps the KX3 would suit both purposes? I was hopeful. Why? I love to travel and take radio along, but I’ve always had to haul separate transceivers and receivers for my separate-but-related hobbies: 1) ham radio and 2) SWLing. That was enough for me: more than ever, I simply couldn’t wait to get within reach of a KX3. That morning at the Hamvention, I quickly made my way to one of Elecraft’s owners, Wayne Burdick, to ask him,“Would the KX3 make for a good shortwave radio receiver?” Wayne’s prompt response: “Yes.”
#KX3 MORSE DECODER KITS FULL#
A ham transceiver with “general coverage,” incidentally, means that its receiver is not limited to the ham bands only these receivers typically receive between 100 kHz and 30 MHz (i.e., the full shortwave radio spectrum). I was there, and like others in the crowds around the Elecraft booth, I was eager to try out this full-featured transceiver, especially upon learning that even the basic, no-options model has a general coverage receiver. At the Dayton Hamvention, the KX3 instantly drew crowds, as it was unlike any other transceiver on the market. In 2011, Elecraft introduced the KX3–a portable SDR transceiver with a full-featured knob-and-button user interface that doesn’t require connection to a computer to operate.
Their K3, introduced in 2008, became a benchmark transceiver and still tops the charts in performance it’s truly a choice DXpeditioner’s radio. Their K1, KX1 and K2 transceivers are legendary, and I’ve had the good fortune to own them all at some point along the way. Elecraft started life as a kit manufacturer, focusing on QRP ham-band-only radio transceivers that were effective, affordable, and maintained a very high level of performance. First of all, note that “US-based” adjective: this is an increasingly rare phenomenon in the world of radio production, and it deserves a word of praise up front. But if you’re not a ham, you may not be familiar with the innovative, US-based radio designer and manufacturer, Elecraft. For those of us who still have an appreciation for the traditional front panel, tuning knob, and portability of an all-in-one tabletop receiver, perhaps we should look to the active ham radio transceiver market.īesides being an avid SWLer (ShortWave Listener, for the newbies out there), I’m also a ham radio operator (callsign: K4SWL). Most of the receivers in production, meanwhile, are quite mature, having been in production for years.
#KX3 MORSE DECODER KITS SOFTWARE#
You may have noticed that in the past few years, while more and more software defined radios (SDRs) are appearing on the market, fewer and fewer traditional tabletop shortwave receivers are being introduced. The Elecraft KX3 Transceiver (Click to enlarge)
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