Current KPA1500 Production Firmware

MCU 02.67 11/8/2023

All KPA1500 amplifiers ordered today will have Product Firmware loaded as they come out of the box. Monitor the Elecraft Email Reflector where announcements are made when new releases become available. 

Elecraft delivers new features in firmware. As a result, you should consider the Release Notes as an extension of the Owners Manual. Documentation for the new features will be found there and will not appear in the Owner’s Manual until the next major manual revision is released.

Current Production Firmware Release Notes

02.67 11/8/2023

• Poll serial radios with IF;FT;FA;FB; TS-890S and TS-990S respond differently when in split and TX than other Kenwoods.
• See KPA1500 Firmware Release Notes  for a complete revision history
• Download the latest KPA1500 Firmware.

Important - Please read before installing the latest Production Firmware

Production Firmware Installation Instructions are found in the Utility

• All Production Firmware is loaded with the KPA1500 Utility. It will take care of the download and installing Production Firmware
• Before loading Production Firmware, please ensure you have installed the latest version of the KPA1500 Utility.
• See the Help → Getting Started pull-down menu in the KPA1500 Utility for the steps to install firmware in your KPA1500.

 

Download and Install the KPA1500 Utility for your Operating System Follow the links below to download and install the latest version of the Utility for your Operating System. You will be using the USB A-to-B cable that was shipped with the KPA1500.   Minimum Operating System Requirements for Elecraft Utilities Microsoft Windows: XP Service Pack 3 or later, including Vista, 7, 8, and 8.1 and 10. Apple Mac: OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) or later x86 Linux: 64-bit or later    Windows KPA1500 Utility (Windows Version 1.22.12.27)  January 11, 2023 Macintosh KPA1500 Utility (MAC Version 1.22.9.15) October 12, 2019 X86 Linux KPA1500 Utility (Linux Version 1.22.9.15) October 12, 2019 Installing the FTDI driver Follow this link to the FTDI Site for drivers: http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm Depending on the Operating System you have, the driver needed for the Utility to communicate with the KPA1500 will need to be loaded. All Elecraft products in production use the FTDI chipset for this function. The FTDI driver allows your computer to create a virtual COM port so that the Utility can communicate with the Elecraft product.

 

Beta Firmware Installation and Release Notes

Beta Firmware Release Notes

BETA 03.03 6/18/2024

03.03 6/11/2024

^EM command accepts lower case "ab" for all band ATU memory erase.

03.02 6/3/2024

• Set SWR bypass from most recently loaded ATU setting in recall tunes
• Fix HiSWR retune regression introduced in 2.64
• Add ^ON/; toggle. If power is on, ^ON/; turns power off. If power is off, ^ON/; turns power on. 

03.01 10/26/2023

• Display LCD antenna change message only if any of ANT3 thru ANT32 are enabled on theCURRENT band.
• Extend transient LCD message display time from 1.5 to 2.5 seconds.

03.00 9/26/2023

• Save your existing version 2.xx configuration before installing this firmware, and restore that saved configuration should you revert to an earlier firmware version.
• The existing amplifier configuration is reset on first start after installing this firmware version. ATU settings are preserved. Use the KPA1500 Utility Configuration tab, Edit Configuration to review your configuration.
• Extend antenna numbering up to 32 antennas on each band. An external device may be used to inform KPA1500 of antenna changes by sending an ^AN command, or press the KPA1500 front panel ANTENNA button to advance through enabled antennas. ATU settings are stored and recalled by antenna number 1 through 32. Antennas 3 through 32 are routed through KPA1500 rear-panel "connector" ANT 1 or ANT 2. See ^AE (Antenna Enable) in the new KPA1500 V3 Programming Reference for details.
• The KPA1500 Utility configuration tab has not yet been extended to support these new antenna numbers; use the Utility command tester tab and KPA1500 V3 Programming Reference to enter new forms of ^AE (antenna enable), ^AM (ATU Mode), ^AN (change antenna), ^AP (preferred antenna), and ^EM (erase ATU settings).
• Extend ANTENNA PREFER and ATU MEM ERASE menu items; select the appropriate antenna by advancing through enabled antennas with the front panel ANTENNA button.
• A new LCD status page shows the currently selected antenna number, band, and antenna connector. If Antenna number 3-32 is selected, the ANT LEDs also show the antenna connector being used.
• Change the ANTENNA ENABLE menu item to ANT ENABL and show the antennas enabled on the current band (all those that fit within 16 characters).
• Each "bin" (frequency segment) now has room for 32 ATU settings. Use ^AB (ATU settings per bin) to limit the number of settings used for each antenna number. For example, if you have 8 enabled antenna numbers on a given band, it might be helpful to limit each antenna to use 2 or 4 ATU settings in each bin.
• Show antenna number in a transient LCD display on antenna changes, including connector number if antenna number 3 through 32 is selected. This display is not shown if antenna 3 through 32 are disabled on all bands; the ANT 1 and ANT 2 LEDs suffice.
• ^DF command response now shows number of unused ATU settings
• Resequence FAN SPEED DWELL menu item after FAN SPEED

 

Beta Test Firmware Installation Procedures

NOTE: Beta test firmware may have new issues that we haven't caught during field testing. Please report them to support@elecraft.com.

A little more detail

We make it a little harder to load Beta firmware mainly because we want you to be sure you want to do this. Beta firmware means that, while the KPA1500 engineering team has fully tested the firmware, it has not yet been deemed ready for Production status. You can always return to the last firmware you have downloaded by following the steps in the KPA1500 Utility’s Help section.

To load Beta Firmware, follow the steps below:

1. Create a new folder for the beta firmware on your Desktop or some other easily found location. Use the a different folder than the default folder found in the Firmware tab of the KPA1500 Utility. In this way, you can revert to the last Production firmware easily.
2. Now, we will download the firmware in Zip file format. In a web browser, type in this URL: https://ftp.elecraft.com/KPA1500/firmware/beta
If you do not see the correct version of the zip file, press the RELOAD/REFRESH button on your browser to update your browser cache.

3. Right-click on the .zip file containing the beta firmware (e.g. KPA1500fwXrYZ.zip for revision MCU X.YZ and all associated files). Save the file to your beta folder you just created.
4. Unzip the files into the beta folder.
5. Enter the path to the beta folder in KPA1500 Utility → Firmware tab → "Local folder for firmware files".
6. After you have made the change in Step 5, make sure you *DO NOT* check the KPA1500 Utility box titled "Copy new files from Elecraft server". This will overwrite the Beta firmware if clicked.
7. Connect the KPA1500 to your computer and be sure it is turned on. Select the Firmware tab and Click on "Check versions now" button.
8. Review the release notes. To find them, select the "Help" pull-down menu.
9. Click "Send all firmware to KPA1500." This will cause the firmware to be sent to the KPA1500. You will see that the KPA1500 appears to restart itself. Monitor the Activity Log until it is complete.
10. After completing a new software download to your product, please power cycle the KPA1500 OFF and then back ON before using it.

Please report any new firmware issues to support@elecraft.com.