Posted by
N2EY on
Jul 13, 2007; 11:36am
URL: http://elecraft.85.s1.nabble.com/Solid-State-Amps-tp448434p448435.html
In a message dated 7/12/07 11:06:46 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[hidden email]
writes:
> On Jun 1, 2007, at 10:01 AM, Lee Buller wrote:
>
> > I thought that these amps were...well...not as efficient as tube
> > amps thus not being attractive to hams.
>
> I think this is true. It's still cheaper to produce several hundred
> watts with an old tube design than to do so with solid state devices.
> Although that may not continue for long, as certain tubes become
> unobtainium, and solid state devices slowly get cheaper.
That's part of it. Another part is that power level measurement has changed
from the old power-input measure to the "new" power output measure, so
efficiency doesn't matter as much as it used to.
>
> > So,
> > what has changed? Have the SS Amps gotten more efficient?
>
> I think the price point for this type of equipment has shifted upward
> to the point that solid state amplifiers are practical in the market.
>
> There's also the general amateur acceptance of no-tuneup transmitters. While
> it is possible to build tube rigs with no tuneup controls (the CE 100V, 200V
> and 600L did it in the 1950s!), it's arguably easier to do with SS.
The big item, I think, is the cost and availability of the different designs.
Not just the tubes but all the other parts, many of which would have to be
custom made. The total price of a conventional tube amp and power supply, with
tuning controls and QSK, really starts to climb when you're getting a lot of
parts custom-made.
That situation is complicated by the used-equipment market. If you want to
run, say, a pair of 3-500Zs, and are willing to do your own tuning, a Drake L4
or Heath SB-220/221 can do the job. Even if you have to put fixup into one and
retube it, such amps are pretty price-competitive to a new pair-of-3-500Zs
amp.
There's also the danger of creating an amp whose tubes become unobtanium. You
can get a really good deal on the Heath SB-630 amp, because its
conduction-cooled tube is very expensive to replace.
Elecraft has built itself on the idea of offering products that are *not*
exactly like everything else on the market, but rather go off in new and exciting
directions. On FD I spent some time with a KX1 - the thing is simply
incredible, but also, there's nothing on the market quite like it.
The Elecraft amps show that trend as well.
73 de Jim, N2EY
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