What transceiver are you using it with and how do you have the keying
hooked up? If you are using a Ten-Tec transceiver (most models) and have
the full keying loop connected and enabled, it would be normal for there
to be a vacuum relay that clicks following every dit and dah.
I have both a Hercules II and a Titan. The vacuum relays appear to be
identical, yet the Hercules is much quieter. On the Titan, I replaced
the neoprene rubber grommets used in the vacuum relay mounting. The old
ones were hard and brittle from age. I also replaced all of the solid
wires connecting to the vacuum relay with multi stranded braid, using
hemostats to prevent wicking of solder into the braid beyond where the
solder needs to be for the connection. The Titan's vacuum relay noise is
now less than it had been, not being as efficiently coupled into the
rest of the chassis, yet it is still noisier than the Hercules II.
I recommend that you check the grommets (I've never seen inside a
Centaur, so it is only a guess that grommets are used similarly to the
Titan) used in the relay mounting and see whether they are soft and
pliable, versus hard and brittle. New ones may quiet it down.
DE N6KB
Centaur amp has a very loud and distracting relay "clacking" that tries to
follow each dit and dah at lower speeds but holds in with short drop out
delay at 35 to 40 wpm. Has anyone had any luck isolating this relay from the
circuit board to prevent acoustically coupling, to soften the noise?
Would appreciate any constructive input. Thanks. Mike/K4KJC.
|