Jeffrey Maass wrote:
>
> I am attempting to select between the Alpha 89 and the
> Alpha 91B and would appreciate the advice of the experts
> here assembled. I don't require automatic bandswitching.
I am not an expert but just bought a 91B and it arrived last week. So
far I think this is a great amp, easy to tune, very nice in appearance.
> I value equipment that will chug along at legal limit for
> the contest period without problems to distract me from the
> operation at hand. It will be used with my C-Line and
> FT-1000MP.
The WP3X team for the last cq ww wpx had one of the 91B's and they were
unofficialy number one in the world last week. I was told by a team
member that the amp performed beautifuly.
> 1) Early 91B production was plagued with heat-related problems,
> and at some point they replaced the Bulgarian blower with the
> same blower used in the 87A. (The reporter said that this is a
> different blower than that in the 89: true?) The cause of the
> heat problems was later traced to the bias circuit and solved,
> but the blower was not switched back.
The blower sure appears to be heavy duty.
> 3) The 91B is reportedly louder in operation (ignoring for the moment
> the sound of the vacuum relay. I presume that this is the noise
> of teh blower and (possibly) transformer hum. How significant is
> the difference?
Not very loud. The relay is not noisy at all.
> 5) Is the auxilliary fan a good idea for someone who will be making
> contest use of one of these models? How much noise does it add?
I have this option, it is very nice. Also, it is more quiet than my
computer.
I also would add that the staff at Alpha/Power are most helpful as I had
many questions regarding their products. Delivery is fast, but prices
are going up 10% or more by June 15th.
73
Bob N8WFL rhill@htonline.com
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