[TenTec] amp

[Jim Brown K9YC]

On Fri, 11 Apr 2008 19:42:54 -0400, John wrote:

>how about a solid state amp of around 600 watts

The Herc II is a very nice amp, and has the major advantage of 
running on 13.8VDC. I strongly recommend it. It runs 500-600 watts, 
and needs to see a 50 ohm load. 

The Herc I is OK if it works for you, but has several problems. 
First, its output devices are unobtainium, having been discontinued 
only a year or so after Ten Tec started selling the amp. Second, the 
power supply has a temperature regulation problem that Ten Tec 
service told me they had no fix for. That problem causes the power 
supply voltage to rise out of tolerance and the amp to go into 
protect as the power supply warms up. Third, the keying is quite 
different from other Ten Tec rigs, and requires a "pre-key" line. I 
modded an Omni V and a couple of other rigs to work with it. 

73,

Jim K9YC