Hello Herb and the group,
I received my new Alpha 87A directly from Alpha ithis past Summer
(mid-July'97) and its performance and craftsmanship are superb. I've owed
many linear amps over the last 35 years, but few have even come close to
Alpha in quality. Today's 87A appears to be as well built as any produced
in previous years (I've compared it to several other 87A's owned by close
friends)....quality components used throughout...with obvious care and
attention to details used in its construction. "A thing of beauty"...as
one friend calls it. ;)
To say that the 87A is a pleasure to use would be an understatement. There
is no way to describe the shear convenience of its auto-tune feature...its
ability to change frequency automatically (follows the transceiver)...just
fantastic! I use my Alpha 87A with my ICOM 781 or 775DSP transceivers and
can instantly change bands with the press of a single button...and the 87A
follows (retunes automatically in less than a second)...set it and forget
it. I almost forget it's there. It also has more than enough
power...appears to coast along at full legal output without any strain or
pain. Another benefit of its design (and similar amps made by others) is
the exceptional low power required to drive it to full legal power...allows
my transceivers to coast along at very low power while driving the Alpha 87A.
Is it perfect? Probably not, but it comes close. The only negative
comment I can make about using the 87A is having to wait the 3+ minutes for
the amp to "warm up" before use. Obviously a requirement of the RF tubes
Alpha used in its design, but certainly not unique to Alpha. There is
something to be said for amps like my Collins 30L-1 which are "instant on"
and ready to go immediately (uses 811A tubes). Some consider the price
another negative, but I think you get what you pay for. Adding processor
control to the 87A for full automatic switching/tuning adds cost, but I
think it's worth it.
Finally, I've always been impressed with Alpha's (Dick Ehrhorn's)
commitment to quality and superior customer service...and the 4 year Alpha
warranty doesn't hurt either. I hope this helps Herb...you can't go wrong
buying an Alpha 87A.
73 --sandy
sandy@sandy.com
kw6kw
At 07:51 PM 11/15/97 -0800, you wrote:
>
>Following my recent posting here for the "Best HF Amplifier", I received
>a number of responses from people. My original posting indicated that I
>was leaning towards buying an Alpha 87A, but wanted to get the opinions of
>the guys on the reflector as to what currently is considered to be the
>"best"..
--
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