VS: VS: [TenTec] Orion and PTT

[Bill Tippett]

OH3LX wrote:
Bill , If you set off internal keyer , you can key Orion from
Front panel paddle connector.
It works like PTT.
I do not know what says factory of this ?

         Yes, but that is what is normally called Semi-Breakin for
keying the amplifier, and is exactly what I am doing now but
using the back panel AUX I/O PTT input instead of the front panel
KEY input.  You hit the paddle, Orion's TX relay closes and also
sends a signal to the amplifier relay.  I also adjust the TX
EXT T/R Delay to 90% to give the amplifier relay time to close.
My main amp uses a vacuum relay but my backup amp is a frame
relay so I chose a long delay in case I need to switch quickly
between amps.

         What I mean by PTT for CW is the following:

1.  I depress my footswitch.
2.  Orion's TX relay closes and stays closed until footswitch released.
3.  The amplifier relay closes and stays closed until released.

This is EXACTLY how Orion operates in SSB, but in CW, Orion
opens and closes its internal TX relay for each dot or dash.
Of course this gives you QSK, but I don't like this for several
reasons:

1.  You must adjust the delay to take into account the speed of your
amplifier TX relay (vacuum relays are fast but frame relays are slow)
to avoid hot-switching the amplifier relay (which can cause reliability
problems in addition to clicks).

2.  I don't like the idea of Orion's TX relay unnecessarily opening
and closing for each element being sent.  Why?  Because reed relays,
which is what Orion's TX relay sounds like, have a finite number of
closures because they are mechanical.  In my former life I worked as
GM of an HP division that used many reed relays in switch matrices for
automatic board testing, data acquisition, etc.  We did extensive
life tests of reed relays and I recall them being in the order of 1M
closures.  I don't know about the rest of you but 1M closures does
not sound like a lot to me (assume an average of 3 elements per character, 
5 characters per word, 30 WPM, 10% transmit cycle, 48 hour
contest, 6 contests per year, and you get to ~.75M cycles per year,
not counting normal DX-ing, rag-chewing, etc.)

3.  In defense of Ten-Tec, I have my original 1984 vintage TS-930S
which still has it's original TX reed relay (it even sounds identical
to Orion's).  However, Kenwood allowed you to choose whether to use
QSK or PTT, and I seldom used QSK ( which may be why the relay still
works FB!)

         Anyhow, I was told several times that PTT CW in Orion was
"impossible"...but as we all know, nothing is impossible!  Time will
tell...  So far the most elegant solution to this issue is to PTT
the amplifier directly and let Orion run in its normal QSK mode, even
though I still have the concerns stated above about Orion's relay
lifetime.  I have a 2-year warranty so I'm OK for at least the next
2 years.

                                         73,  Bill  W4ZV