Now that Tokyo Hi-Power has a 1.5 kw s.s. amp on the market for around $5500
(American street price) the high end price ceiling for a s.s. legal limit
amp has been broken and any well-heeled ham would be, IMO, unwise to spend
multi-thousands on a tube amp. Oh sure if you're a prol. like I am you'll
go get an AL-82 or 80B and call it a day but the days of these big gold
plated automated tube amps from outfits like Alpha and Acom are numbered.
If I were them I'd have a 1.5 kw s.s. amp on the drawing board and if I were
a customer I'd be looking closely at the Tokyo Hi-Power 2.5. These
automatic no-tune tube amps have mostly been bought by competitive hams
looking for any edge they can get such as quick QSY. S.S. amsp have all of
that without the motors, and high voltage, but have the reliability you have
gotten over the years with your s.s. exciter.
Alpha has a choice of four options:
1. Go solid state
2. Go out of business
3. Start making reasonable tube amps for the Ameritron crowd
4. Make platinum plated silver wire tube amps studded with diamonds for the
3 or 4 hams who have a lot more money than brains.
73,
rob / k5uj
<<<
Another BTW, Alpha's price on the new 8410 is...........$5195 + shipping and
handling!!!
After June 1st, it goes up to ..........$5395 also + S&H.
Since this is a new model, why did they even bother with the intro price?
For a manual tune amp using a tube that has been around for at least 20 +
years surely they could have priced it more reasonably. It doesn't have a
PD plate transformer in it, just some other no name transformer wrapped in
what looks like old fashion black duct tape.
FYI, the 9500 has an 8% price increase effective June 1. $9650 + S&H.
>>>
_______________________________________________
Amps mailing list
Amps@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/amps
|