Elecraft, Inc. is an American manufacturer of

amateur radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency radio spectrum, spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emer ...

equipment and kits based in

Watsonville, California Watsonville is a city in Santa Cruz County, California, in the Monterey Bay Area of the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. The population was 52,590 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Predominantly Latino and ...

. It was founded in 1998 by Wayne Burdick and Eric Swartz. The company's first product was the K2 transceiver, first prototyped in October 1997.

Products

The company is known for the Elecraft K3 high-performance HF

transceiver In radio communication, a transceiver is an electronic device which is a combination of a radio ''trans''mitter and a re''ceiver'', hence the name. It can both transmit and receive radio waves using an antenna, for communication purposes. The ...

, a 32-bit DSP based radio covering HF plus the 6-

meter The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...

VHF band and the 160-meter MF band, introduced in 2008. The K3 was well-received by the amateur radio community. At the time of its introduction, the K3 ranked highest in Sherwood Engineering's receiver tests. Elecraft's product lineup includes QRP CW transceivers, the K2 and K3 all-mode 100 W transceivers, KX2 (80m-10m) and KX3 (160m–2m) portable transceivers, linear power amplifiers, panadapters, and accessories including antenna tuners and

signal generator A signal generator is one of a class of Electronics, electronic devices that generates electrical signals with set properties of amplitude, frequency, and wave shape. These generated signals are used as a stimulus for electronic measurements, typ ...

s. Elecraft introduced "mechanical assembly only" (or " no solder") kits with the K3 line of products, allowing enthusiasts to add new electronic elements to preassembled

printed circuit boards A printed circuit board (PCB), also called printed wiring board (PWB), is a laminated sandwich structure of conductive and insulating layers, each with a pattern of traces, planes and other features (similar to wires on a flat surface) ...

, although kit construction remained complex. Prior to the K3, models were available as solder-needed assembly kits. The KX3 transceiver is a portable

software-defined radio Software-defined radio (SDR) is a radio communication system where components that conventionally have been implemented in analog hardware (e.g. mixers, filters, amplifiers, modulators/ demodulators, detectors, etc.) are instead implemented ...

(SDR) transceiver with a full-featured knob-and-button interface. Although it is an SDR transceiver, it does not require a computer connection for operation. The company's "K-Line" includes the K3 transceiver, the KPA500 500W solid-state power amplifier, the KAT500 automatic antenna tuner, and the P3 panadapter. The P3SVGA add-on for the P3 displays panadapter data on a large screen, and the W2 HF/VHF/UHF wattmeter are sometimes considered part of the K-Line. Elecraft has also introduced the "KX-Line" consisting of the KX2 and KX3 transceivers, the PX3 panadapter, and the KXPA100 100W power amplifier. In 2015, Elecraft introduced the K3S Transceiver to replace the K3 Transceiver. The K3S features new or upgraded components, most of which can be retrofitted to older K3 models. The K3S is currently ranked 4th in overall performance by Sherwood Engineering company. In 2017 Elecraft introduced the KPA1500, a 1500 watt (full legal limit) amplifier. The KPA1500 covers the 160 through 6 meter bands. Its key feature is a built-in wide-range antenna tuning unit (ATU). The amplifier's power supply is housed in a separate enclosure, resulting in a relatively compact RF deck/control unit. The K4 transceiver, successor to the K3, was first publicly displayed in 2019. Shipment was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic but began in early 2021. At launch, some functions were not fully implemented, and

firmware In computing Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computer, computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and the development of both computer hardware, h ...

updates were frequent. The K4 offers improved sound quality compared to the K3. The K4 features redesigned controls for band and mode settings, an integrated multi-band panning module (Panadapter), and touchscreen functionality.

References

External links

www.elecraft.com
nbsp;— Elecraft Inc. site
www.arrl.org/qst
nbsp;— QST magazine site
www.arrl.org
nbsp;— American Radio Relay League {{Commons category Amateur radio companies Electronics companies of the United States Technology companies established in 1998 1998 establishments in California American brands Radio manufacturers