[TenTec] IRF gain, IF gain or AF gain?

[Barry N1EU]

On Thu, Feb 23, 2012 at 12:21 AM, Martin Sole <hs0zed at csloxinfo.com> wrote:

> I find the use of RF gain as an audio level control rather counter
> intuitive, but workable however it renders the Orion as a radio with
> essentially no S meter and ties up the multi knob that is used for
> everything else leaving the AF gain virtually unused.
>
> If this is really the best way to extract maximum weak signal performance
> from the Orion, and enough people do seem to think it does, then it also
> seems reasonable to look at a way to either reverse the controls, having
> the
> AF control operate RF gain full time and change the soft key RF gain to AF
> gain and further, to remove the S meter from the loop that is affected by
> the RF gain control.
>

I think that's a brilliant suggestion - to reverse the AF and RF Gain
controls.

In terms of the s-meter, v1.373 managed to preserve full scale s-meter
action at reduced RF Gain.  It's unfortunate that ability was lost later in
the firmware development cycle.  I sorely miss it.



> Whilst I think I understand that the Orion RF gain is acting to reduce
> overload of the succeeding analog to digital conversion process there seems
> to be a difference between how Orion achieves this and how almost every
> other design does it, I've not heard mention of the need for this approach
> on other IF dsp radios.
>

The Elecraft K3 must be approached in an identical fashion.

73,
Barry N1EU