The Worlds Most Expensive Panadapter

Tom--W4FAS

After almost two years of playing with my 6500, I looked up and noticed my elecraft k-1 sitting on the shelf. I could not resist the temptation to turn it on. It still works fine. I hate to admit it, but I suddenly discovered I have become addicted to a Panadapter. With the k-1 I felt like I was feeling around in the dark trying to find a station to play with. The solution of course was to turn on my 6500, select a band, and it made finding a station to play with so much easier. I did not activate any receivers. And the 6500 and k-1 were hooked to different antennas. I sent a dit wth the k-1 and there it was just beautiful on the Panadapter. My question is "If I limit the k-1 power to 8 watts can I play using this set up without damaging my flex"? If your question is "why would anyone with a 6500 play with a k-1?". The answer is "Just for the fun of it". Man is not a rational animal.

DrTeeth

"Just for the fun of it" works for me in so many areas, hi hi.

DH2ID

Tom, I have and use a KX3, a really good TRX with 10 watts output. I'm not going to take my Flex-6500 on my mountain walks or on holidays. I routinely test my TRX with a spectrum analyzer or with my Flex-6500 and have not damaged it. All my antenna outputs go through Alpha-Delta switches where all unused jacks are grounded. The signal is still strong enough to show on the screen. 73, Alex DH2ID

Tim - W4TME

Tom - I highly recommend you review the section in the SmartSDR Software User's Guide related to operating in Full Duplex mode (FDX).  This discuss how to calculate the RF energy the SCU is exposed to so that you do not damage it.

Tom--W4FAS

Hi Tim, Thanks for your rapid reply and recommendation. I will do some reading as you suggested before I fry my SCU while trying to feed my Panadapter addiction. Again thanks for your quick reply.

Tim - W4TME

Frying it is not easy, but not impossible.  There is an overload protection relay that will disconnect the SCU from the RX signal path if the input signal is too high, but I don't recommend testing it out. ;-)