Hi Mike
I love the PGXL
AFAIK it's one of the only (or the only) SS amp that does true SO2R in 1
box.
The amp doesn't care what you do on either antenna port, they act
independently through high speed switching..
I have used it in 2BSIQ mode in many contests during the last 5 years since
I bought it , without skipping a beat.
I also take it with me to V47T, as it is just under 50lbs in a suitcase. No
greater test than that.
It has a robust ALC circuit that should handle your ICOM overshoot problem.
The most important thing is you must tell it what band you are on as the
frequency sensing is not fast enough for true SO2R.
It has a BCD input for band decoding.
I use Elecraft BCD in parallel with the band decoders driving my antenna
switch. That works perfectly.
There is also a CAT input for radio frequency information. That should work
in your case, but I have never used it.
The manual says for ICOMs you must connect the CAT by a F-F DB9 cable, and
another cable for PTT.
PTT is very important as there must be key down about 12ms or longer before
RF is applied.
There is also a LAN interface.that you can monitor the status and controls
on the PC.
If you get the K3 it is very easy to get BCD from the ACC output. You may
need an N6TV Y box if something else needs the ACC output as well.
For the ICOMs, they may have a BCD output but I don't know for sure. IIRC
there is a DIN plug with BCD data for other accessories.
That is in case you can't get the CAT input to work.
I think you will be very happy if you buy one.
I have recommended it to a few others and not heard a single complaint.
It runs 1500W on most bands with 45-50w drive, but maybe a bit less output
on 15m.. Not sure why but they all seem to be that way.
Hope that helps.
73, Andy N2NT
On Mon, Jan 13, 2025 at 3:40 PM Mike Smith VE9AA <ve9aa@nbnet.nb.ca> wrote:
> (K7BV(sk) content at the bottom of this message)
>
> Anyone here using a PGXL as their only SO2R amplifier?
>
> I have what I think are a couple of fairly unique questions I can't find
> answers to via Google or the user manual.
>
> IE: I run a pair of IC-7410 Icoms (currently, someday I'll upgrade,
> probably
> to original K3's(non-S's)) and these 7410's are known to have a small
> amount
> of initial overshoot. How bad, I don't know. It's no longer fixable by
> Icom.
> (related) : TX delay is NOT adjustable like in most modern transceivers.(I
> use N1MM&YCCC SO2R+ to do the TX delay)?
>
> Second question. Is it possible to connect radio "A" to an antenna switch
> to feed 6 various antennas, but radio "B" only gets a single antenna or is
> there any kind of funny antenna swapping done inside the PGXL like another
> popular SS amplifier which won't work for me because of this quirky
> feature?
>
>
> SO2R is not really discussed in the manual. I am not clear on how the
> radio(s) and the PGXL would share the same com port, say to N1MMLogger+ for
> example?
>
> They're a lot of money to a Canadian, so I want to be sure before I finish
> saving up $$ and purchase one, it's what will work here, otherwise, I'll
> just stick to a pair of smaller amps for the time being.
>
> Thanks to all you "contesting piggies" and before I sign off...RIP Dennis,
> K7BV(sk). We'll miss you.
>
> K7BV, VE1PZ and VE9AA were CY9AA 1997
> https://www.uksmg.org/content/cy9.htm
> if you want to read Dennis' writeup of the experience. He was a great
> member
> of our little team and ran endless pileups seemingly fueled by Island
> coffee
> alone....btw I found Dennis' on this very reflector in 1997 and what a
> great
> choice he was. Dude, I hope you're running pileups up there right now.<sk>
>
> Mike VE9AA - Keswick Ridge, NB, Canada
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> CQ-Contest mailing list
> CQ-Contest@contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>
_______________________________________________
CQ-Contest mailing list
CQ-Contest@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
|