[Amps] Ameritron amp purchase decision questions

[Jim Brown]

On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 21:24:48 -0700 (PDT), R Atkins wrote:

>I'm sure I'm overlooking something here, but not sure what.

Rusty,

You've gotten some great answers already. I'll add this. 

This "headroom" issue is a lot more important than you might 
realize. If an amp is rated 1,000 watts and you run it at 1,000 
watts all the time, you're more likely to make something break 
sooner than if your amp is rated 2.5 kW and you run it at legal 
power. I own three TenTec Titans, all of which came to me used, 
all with Eimac 3CX800A7's. All of those tubes were OLD, and all of 
them had a LOT of life left in them. That amp easily does legal 
power, but 3CX800A7's don't like a lot of grid current. My rule 
is, 30 mA max (combined for two of them). As a result, my tubes 
last a long time. 

As rabid CW op, I demand that my power amp have good QSK. As a 
serious contester and occasional DXer, I appreciate an amp that 
tunes up quickly (or even automatically) as I change bands. Some 
of the more expensive (and more modern) amps do that, and a few 
even have antenna tuners (with memories) built in. That, in 
addition to build quality, is why brands like Alpha, Tokyo, and 
ACOM amps carry the price premium that they do. And it's why I'm 
seriously thinking about replacing my Titans. :) 

73,

Jim Brown K9YC