[Amps] *** PGXL Questions on CW Operation

[Manfred Mornhinweg]

Jim,

> ##  Manfred,  I think the idea  with QSK is to get just enough of the
> other fellows transmissions, delayed or otherwise,  so that you know
> you are  ...doubling  with him.

That makes sense.

Anyway I see two requirements for speed: One is to hear between dits, or 
at least between letters or even words, or between phrases in voice 
mode, even if it's a delayed signal, for the purpose of avoiding 
doubling. And the other speed requirement is short enough total RX plus 
TX signal path delay, to avoid "coming late" in time-critical operation 
such as contesting or nets.

> ##  $7K  US funds  translates into one helluva lot more in any
> country outside the USA.

I can second that. In Chile it's $7k plus shipping (easily several 
hundred dollars for an amp), plus import tax (6% on the 7k plus the 
shipping and insurance), plus VAT (19% on the previous total), and if 
it's shipped by a company like Fedex, DHL, or such, they will add a 
handling fee that can amount to another several hundred dollars!

Then add the credit card company's fee for foreign purchases, and the 
money conversion fee.

After all that, typically something that's $7k in the USA is $11k to 
$12k in Chile.

Of course that's just if I buy it from an US dealer and have it shipped 
here. If I buy it from a dealer in Chile, it will be $14k, to cover the 
dealer's margin.

 > Thats  a lotta money  for no qsk, no
> pin  diodes,  or  vac relays..and no schematics.

To me, the use of low cost but decent quality relays is fine. No QSK is 
fine for me, too. No schematics is bad. But what's specially bad is the 
$7k price tag! I see no reason for such a high price, nor do I think 
that a 10dB increase in output power is worth $7k, let alone $12k.

Let's keep in mind that a large LDMOSFET, of which such an amp would use 
one or two, costs around $200, that a suitable power supply is $30 as 
surplus and probably not above $200 new, that relays are $3, and most 
other parts are dirt cheap. Mainstream RF-power-capable capacitors are 
expensive, though, but still not enough to justify $7k.

A simple but entirely workable legal limit amp might cost $1k in parts. 
A CPU and a touch display adds relatively little cost. If a manufacturer 
asks $2k, to cover engineering and manufacturing costs, that seems fair 
to me, but $7k doesn't.

Of course, this is fortunately still a reasonably free world. 
Manufacturers can ask whatever price they fancy. And consumers are free 
to take it or leave it. Some will take it, while most of us will leave it.

Manfred



========================
Visit my hobby homepage!
http://ludens.cl
========================