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Alpha 10 Max AM-1000 Overview
- Thread starter cbradiomagazine.com
- Start date
The problem now seems to be resolved. I have a normal Anytone 5555 and it suffers and this one and the modded Anytone seems to be ok.:redface:
Something I discovered today about the rf gain on this radio. The rf gain knob twists round from 7'oclock to 5'oclock. I have listened to many stations on FM and SSB over the past few days and on my radio there is absolutely no gain at all from 1'clock to 5'oclock. None at all.
There is however something that appears between 1'clock and 5'oclock - distortion of both the audio and the signal meter.
I don't know jack about radio's I will admit, but in this case it seems to me that this variable isn't supposed to go around that far or it is set up inside the radio so that the variable is over stretching without achieving any more gain.
Just a thought.
There is however something that appears between 1'clock and 5'oclock - distortion of both the audio and the signal meter.
I don't know jack about radio's I will admit, but in this case it seems to me that this variable isn't supposed to go around that far or it is set up inside the radio so that the variable is over stretching without achieving any more gain.
Just a thought.
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I want one of these damn radios but have to hold myself back until all these bugs are worked out and I appreciate you guys for replying to this thread so other consumers are up to speed on whats happening with these radios. Ill keep watching and when I here the all clear siren Ill dive into one of these rigs.
Im sure it wont be long before theres a new batch thats reworked and ready to be fired up on the air. I am gunshy after the headaches I obtained with the Cobra 200GTL.
Im sure it wont be long before theres a new batch thats reworked and ready to be fired up on the air. I am gunshy after the headaches I obtained with the Cobra 200GTL.
nice to hear that simon the ssb receive problem been solved..can you make a video with the radio working ssb simon.. i would like to notice the difference compared to my unmodded one....nav2010 is right if you use the rf gain it makes the locals stations sound better..but still doesent sound great though.. 
nice to hear that simon the ssb receive problem been solved..can you make a video with the radio working ssb simon.. i would like to notice the difference compared to my unmodded one....nav2010 is right if you use the rf gain it makes the locals stations sound better..but still doesent sound great though..
Just as soon as anything more than zzzzzzzzzz and snow sure will make it for you
Alpha 10 Max
I've had one for about a month and love it's sideband operation. I just got done with a 1600 mile road trip and had this hooked up in my mobile. Great recieve, no white noise like the RCI's have. Even in direct sunlight you can see the display very good. All around good radio now if it had a little more output that would be nice but why put the heat in the radio, if you need more power just hook up a small amp and away you go. The audio of the stock mic stinks, I had a Turner Road King 60 on it with an adapter 4 to 4 with the #4 pin wire removed, works great.
I've had one for about a month and love it's sideband operation. I just got done with a 1600 mile road trip and had this hooked up in my mobile. Great recieve, no white noise like the RCI's have. Even in direct sunlight you can see the display very good. All around good radio now if it had a little more output that would be nice but why put the heat in the radio, if you need more power just hook up a small amp and away you go. The audio of the stock mic stinks, I had a Turner Road King 60 on it with an adapter 4 to 4 with the #4 pin wire removed, works great.
A known deficiency with this version of radio is the mic cartridge. I have changed out several for the Heil HC4/HC5 which is much superior with excellent audio.
Alpha 10 Max has released their Version 3.2 radio which has 50W output and some other enhancements.
Thanks for the info I am sure the one I have is one of the first because it has the RF Rain control on the front LOL. Funny you say that about the mic cartridge I did buy one to try to see if it would work better and ended up with an old coffin style stock mic that works very well. Same mic I use on my Magnum S9, says American Electronics on the front, sounds great on my mic tester and my radio buddies also said it sounded very good.
:laugh: Hang on to that "RF Rain" model, it's sure to be a collector's item! Yes, I completely forget! The factory, "Qixiang Telecom Co." also known as the "Any Tone" factory has changed the labeling of the "RF Rain" control to the more prosaic "RF Gain".
I have to say really that radio does work very well and I have tired almost all of them after getting back into radio after a 10 year layoff. I tried all the RCI radios, 2950 2-2950DX, 2970DX and a 2985Dx all with the same crummy white noise, not real bad just annoying, did the Galaxy ones but got tired of the drifting, ended up with a few Magnums, S9, Delta Force, 257HP and a new Omega Force, they seem to all work as designed, no complaints about them at all. Sold the 257 just because I wasn't using it after getting the Omega Force, great stability, great recieve just an all around good bunch of radios, after seeing the Alpha 10 Max CB Radio Magizine video I just had to have one and like it a lot also
Not being too familiar with the RCI series of radios - 2950 2-2950DX, 2970DX and a 2985Dx - I can't comment on the "white noise". I suspect it's just noise out of the audio stage. As far as the Galaxy series, (Galaxy, General, Superstar 158EDX, etc., etc.,) these all use the superannuated EPT6900/EPT3900/EPT0696 series of chassis which have known drift problems. These chassis designs are already close to 15 years old. The drift comes from A) insufficient chassis power supply leaving poor regulation, B) Poor components in the clarifier circuit. The problem compounds when you have both poor regulation (leaving a sloppy voltage to the clarifier circuit,) and poor choice of varactors and associated components. It all depends on the production batch. My own SS158EDX does not drift, but my General Grant does. Same exact chassis, (except for the added amp in the GG). I suspect that the GG can't quite handle the power requirements nor the added heat from the overloaded power supply.
The Magnums, S9, Delta Force, 257HP and a new Omega Force, all use uP's for frequency generation and more contemporary components and design. They are rock solid.
Ed I understand that but please answer me this question why did the older SSB radios not do that a few that I have or had, Cobra 148GTL side mic, Grant XL, Johnson 4740, Realistic trc-449, heck even my old Lafayette SSB-140 stays where ever it is when turned on, was it a quality of parts or quailty of who ever manfactured the chassis for them. Both my Cobra and Grant will be just a tick off when first turned on but get on within 5 minutes and stay there all day. I had a Ranger 6900F, great recieving radio but I always had to play with the fine tune all day long to keep it on freq, that was a shame, one of the best radios I have ever had but the drifting made me nuts so I sold that too.
An excellent question!
All those radios you just described were basic 40 channel SSB/AM radios, which were designed precisely for that function. Once you expand the frequencies beyond about 120 channels, you need to broad-band the radio. In many cases, broad-banding compromises some stability. Broad-banding a circuit mean less stability since that circuit must now perform over a wider range. The other aspect is adding a second final means you have now added more current consumption to the existing voltage regulators. Since a CB radio is designed to a price point, you necessarily choose the cheapest pars and the cheapest design. This means hat a standard 40-channel SSB radio is already operating at it's design limits.
Adding another final, or demanding more swing from a clarifier puts more strain on the original, and unimproved power supplies. Demanding more swing or demanding that the clarifier work in TX puts additional strain on the power supply, and the varactors and capacitors in the clarifier circuit. . At some point, the voltage regulators are overstressed and lose regulation somewhat. The regulators, working harder, generate more heat. All these phenomena cause instability. That's the problem - those original 40 channel SSB chassis were never designed for "export" service. The CB manufacturers aren't interested in adding more costly parts, or even costlier engineering.
I have successfully modified an export radio to higher stability, but that required work on the radio's power supply, and clarifier circuits. Some still drifted, but not as bad. Some stopped drifting altogether. It all depends on the manufacturing batch for that chassis and what parts they used for that batch. Some parts are better than others.
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