[TenTec] Orion II

Thu Jul 21 11:39:04 EDT 2005

OK - I've read all the commentary through the night and will address some of
the various points brought up in emails I've read.  I'm sure this isn't the 
end of
the discussion yet....

Regarding parts obsolescense:  There is no 'checking the lifetime' of a 
component
like the DragonBall processor.  No electronic manufacturer provides a life
expectancy for any particular component.  The assumption made by all of us
(rightly so) in the electronics industry is that the component 
manufacturing side
of the business will continue to develop and offer new products - and we 
(companies
that build equipment) use what meet our needs at present and then adjust to
whatever the component suppliers offer for use when changes are made to
their product lines.  That's just a fact of life:  new components are released,
one ones obsoleted.   We weren't 'duped' by Freescale - the expectation is that
parts come and go and we adjust to it when needed.

For each component, 3 or 4 months before its demise, an EOL (End-Of-Life)
noticed is issued, notifying manufacturers that a given part is going away 
- and to
make a final purchase based on needs for the future.  This does NOT mean needs
for production for the future, necessarily.  It is not practical for a 
company like
Ten-Tec to stock a lifetime supply for production and repair of any part, 
at any
time.  For production, we buy parts as needed.  When a part is obsoleted, that
is an indicaton to a manufacturer than engineering time needs to be expended to
identify a solution for a given product using this part, and to make 
provisions to
buy parts for final production runs and future repair purposes.

The DragonBall was EOLed some time ago.  When we began design work on
the Orion in 2001, that was the "part du jour".  It now is discontinued and 
has a
replacement - the DragonBall Super VZ.   We have repair parts available for
the original processor.

Skip to the next part:  What, then, are the options 
available?  Resdesigning the
logic board in the Orion to accomodate the Super VZ chip, and then raising the
price of the transceiver to cover the costs, and then watching as the Orion
matured was one option.  The other option was if the control processor is going
to have to be changed, then this is the correct time for us to make 
additions or
changes to the transceiver at the same time.   Which is what has been done.

DSP code non-release:  DSP code is the heart of every product that we and
other companies build and to make it available to everyone, including companies
that compete with us, is not practical.  There is a serious investment made in
developing it - and it cannot be given away.

The DragonBall processor in the original Orion is up to the task of 
accomodating
all the functionality of the transceiver itself.  I got a private email 
yesterday that
included the comment that "Ten-Tec has never admitted that the DragonBall
is underpowered..." - there is nothing to admit.  The "DragonBall is 
underpowered"
discussion started as rumor grist mill on chatter on the Internet and has 
continued
to this day.  What I have said before - and will say again, is that perhaps we
haven't used the DragonBall to its full capability...hence the v2.0 of the 
firmware.

I don't think the announcement we made yesterday was completely understood,
so I'll repeat it word for word again:

New 32-bit control processor using the latest generation Freescale 
DragonBall Super VZ chip. Provides faster front panel control response and 
accelerated remote operation via RS-232. This new processor also provides 
the horsepower for a future planned "HIGH SPEED SWEEP" accessory. Features, 
price and availability of accessory to be determined.

All-new firmware from the ground up. DSP code is refined, crafted and 
compacted to levels unimaginable even two years ago. Provides faster 
(stock) sweep with finer resolution, enhanced DSP automatic notch and DSP 
noise reduction.

The Super VZ processor only buys a little bit faster response time off of
the front panel and via RS-232.  Of the myriad of things that have been
discussed about the Orion over the past two years, speed of response from
controls on the rig and how fast the RS-232 interface runs are not something
that has come up time and again to be discussed.  That's what the Super VZ
buys you over the original DragonBall.  No improved receiver performance,
radio performance, etc.

The faster sweep scope and DSP enhancements are firmware.  I've been
alpha testing the v2.0 of the original Orion code - the sweep scope is 
definitely
faster than in the original version of the transceiver.

The gist of it is this:  The color screen aside, this is an incremental 
upgrade in
rigs from the Orion to the Orion II.  Nothing earth-shattering....no paradigm
shift.  The basic performance - specs - of the transceiver are essentially
unchanged.

-------

Next:

There was little advance announcement of the Orion II.  This is in character
with previous announcements about new products from Ten-Tec.  What was
out of character for us was to have announced the coming of the original
Orion nearly a year before we were shipping them.  This, frankly, was a mistake
because much time was expended explaining features and functionality and
possible delivery of a transceiver that didn't even exist at the time it was
announced.   It taxed the resources of the customer service operation at
Ten-Tec greatly and we agreed in the aftermath that we would have to go back
to what we'd done previously:  no announcements of new products well in
advance of an anticipated delivery date.

--------

Next:

Trade-in values presently are $2200 for the 565, $2500 for the 565AT.

--------

Next:

8 pin mic connector.  We have discussed off and on for years going to an 8 pin
microphone connector to standardize with the other manufacturers in Amateur
Radio.  We've stuck with the 4 pin mic connector for no other reason than 
allowing
current Ten-Tec owners to be able to continue to use their current microphones.
Unfortunately, there is no standardization to the wiring of 8 pin mic 
connectors
in current ham rigs so we had to pick a configuration - the Orion II mic 
jack will
use the same pin out as current Yaesu transceivers.  No plans to add functions
like UP/DOWN through the mic jack.  Adaptors to adapt a 4 pin mic to the 8 pin
jack will be available from us.

--------

Continuing to watch the discussion.

Thanks

Scott Robbins W4PA
Amateur Radio Product Manager, Ten-Tec, Inc.

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