No control over K3 via internet

[Mel KJ9C]

Fired up the remote K3 for Stew Perry contest. It worked fine so I tried to to get TR4W CAT interface (COM0) as I usually do. When I changed the local PC COM port to the 1258, the K3 froze up. I could still hear and send CW via paddle or TR4W, but none of the controls on the control K3 here changed anything remotely... no volume control, mode, VFO, RIT, nothing.... The display stops loading when it gets to TERM..... So I am stuck on one frequency and made one QSO.... No idea what freq I am on... Turned off the TR4W interface.... Reset both 1258 units and the K3 power many times.... (I can access the remote site via TeamViewer where I can control KAT500 tuner and KPA500 Amp)..... those units work OK, and the KPA will switch the K3 band, but only to the last frequency it was on.
Any clues?
Mel KJ9C

[dj0qn]

Mel,

Assuming that you using the K3 in Twin mode, then you should use COM1 for CAT after changing
both RRC's COM1 to mode-7. COM0 should never be used, so maybe that is causing your lock-up.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[Mel KJ9C]

Mitch.... Slept on it and figured out the problem. While trying to get TR4W to read the remote K3 freq/mode, I must have touched the RS232 setting on the remote K3 and changed it from 38400 to something else (most likely 19200, as the K3 would stop communicating at that instant). Because CW and audio come to me via the RRC and not direct from the remote K3, that explains why I still had CW input and audio output.
So I changed the control K3 to 19200, as well as both RRCs (radio and serial) via internet to 19200, and connected successfully to the remote K3. Seems to work a bit better than it did at 38400, but not sure why, unless the remote Internet (UVerse) was choking. Had many issues with it in January, and AT&T did slow down my rate then to make connection more reliable. (We were trying to push a very long cable too fast)
The next step is to reset the remote K3 to 38400, immediately losing contact with it, and then repeat the process for the control K3 and RRCs.
I am already using Mode 7 for K3 twin, and have in the past successfully read the remote mode/freq with COM0 mirroring COM2. Will see what happens when I fiddle with COM0 as you suggest.
Thanks.... Mel KJ9C

[dj0qn]

Hi Mel,

Glad you got it working. I has assumed that no baud rates were changed by accident.

I didn't say fiddle with COM0, I just said not to use it for CAT.

COM0 and COM2 should be the same and = RS232 setting in both K3's.

COM1 should be set to mode-7 on both RRC's and can be different than COM0 and COM2.

Elecraft's default is 38400 baud. However, I use my systems at 9600 (i.e. COM0, COM2, both K3 ends' RS232 setting)
for bandwidth reasons. If you are using a P3, you are however forced to stray at 38400.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX