ANYONE KNOW WHO BUILT THE TX-600 LINEARS ?

[555]

and theres another amp brand name that looks just like that cant recall off the top of my head but it will come to me when i get to looking around the shop shelves and i find it

 

[555]

I found it
LA

 

[Bionic Chicken]

LA 900 I bet. The guy who built these amps got busted along about the same time that Texas Star did. When he started building amps again he changed the name from TX to LA. Also he stacked a few more silver micas on the in/out combiners and doubled the capactance of the electrolytics. The first 1X4's were called TX600, second version was TX800, and the last was the LA900.
All were great amps. Low and medium power was all that was needed to be used with them in my opinion. Very reliable and tough.

 

[unit_399]

BC -

He also made an amp called a TX250 with a pair of 2879s. Overall, it was the best 2-pill amp I've ever seen. Same construction as the 600. Heat sink on top, overheat monitor, etc. Kick-ass and totally bullet-proof.

- 399

 

[Bionic Chicken]

Also there was a TX 350 with a pair of 2879's and a driver built in it. Don't remember the trannies he used for the driver but is was setup with a predriver and driver in front of the 2879's. Later he changed the amp to a TX425 and had a MRF 455 driver instead of the others. Like 399 said, "Kick-ass and totally bullet-proof".
One thing I almost forgot is if you see any amps called a "Blue Jay 250" they are the same as the TX250. A deceased friend of mine who bought amps from him had the faceplates made up and they were put on the amps. He sold cases of the TX's every week.

BC

 

[Bionic Chicken]

OOpp's. Reread my last post. The Blue Jay 250 was the same as the TX200 amps he built, not the TX250. It had a pair of MRF 455's and also had the added silver micas on the in and out transformers and larger electrolytics.

"Of all the things I miss in life, I miss my mind the most".

 

[steved]

I had a TX...can't remember if it was a TX400 or TX600. I never had it apart because it was pop-riveted together (case to the heat sink). Very durable amp...had lots of talk time on it. It had three power levels, the first was 10/120, the second was 50/600, and the final was 250/600...I always assumed after the fact that it was a 1x2.

I traded it and regretted doing so ever since.

 

[kdrury70]

i think he made a la225 to. It had two 1446's in it. black face plate. WW use to know jay real good and sold bunch's of them.

 

[Bionic Chicken]

Yep. WW got everything from JK's shop after he passed away. I had known JK since before he started working on radios......long before he had a shop. I met him in 1977 in Pearl at Baker Electronics and bought a SBE Sidebander II from him. Him and Miss Mary were good people.
I know that Steve made a TX 200. That was the one that JK had the faceplates made for and sold them under the name "Blue Jay 250".
From what I hear Steve is still around but not making any amps at this time.

BC

 

[kdrury70]

yeah. he made a 8 pill one for ww. they got in down here and could not get it to work right it look like a doudle-wide LA900. i think it had swr problems in that white chevy.

 

[Bionic Chicken]

Actually Steve made several of the 8 pill amps. They were pretty much made at order and not a stock production amp. Most of the 800's had some SWR issues internally. This could be corrected by changing and adding silver mica on the input and output transformers. The 800's also were real finicky about the jumper length. A 9' jumper worked out great for the most part on them. Any different length and the output wattage just was not there, whether into a dummy load or antenna. One thing for sure is that either low or med power is all that was needed. Very seldom have I ever used hi power.........really didn't need it and basically all you got was a higher dead key.
I've got a LA900 that JK set up for me bypassing the driver and stacking silver micas, etc. It was set to be driven with a Blue Jay 250 on low side. It has held its own against 6 and 8 pill amps. I've used it like this for over 15 years without a problem.

BC

yeah. he made a 8 pill one for ww. they got in down here and could not get it to work right it look like a doudle-wide LA900. i think it had swr problems in that white chevy.

 

[kdrury70]

i had a tx800 that jk or someone had worked on it would do 1200 watts on a dosy. it had a 2sc2879 as the driver.

 

[me999]

I have two of Steve's boxes and never a problem.If I remember right he was making some A/B class amps right before he bowed out.I think they were called a Cobra or Super Cobra with a cool purple paint job.

Those are some good boxes I had the very 1st 2 outlaws that Steve built.. One was a 2x6 (mobile) with a variable and the other was an 8 pill base with a matching 200 amp power supply.. My buddy has the 2x6 now and it's still going strong..

What size is your Outlaw amp and power supply ? Looking at the variable I would say 2x6 ?

I had several of his Pirates before that and all were good boxes.. I got one of his Blue Face Pirate 4 pill base boxes that has not had a problem in 15 years.

You are correct about the purple boxes being called Super Cobras.

 

[skybolt58]

TX EIGHT HUNDRED

Hello ALL, I see this is a old thread , but I figured I would try? Does anyone know what transistors are for the TX and pre amp. I need to get them back in mine, they were missing when I got it.

 

[psycho]

I have a TX-600 linear amp, and I need to get in touch with the guy who made it. It is NOT a Texas Star. It's a 1 x 4 and the transistors are marked "RF100" (driver) and "RF150" (output). I bought it new in 1989 when I lived In Southern Calif. The guy who built it, named Steve I think, lived in Riverside. CA. Supposedly the transistors were mil spec. All I know is that it's the most kickass linear I have ever owned. 590 dead-key - about 1300 PEP with a 5 watt drive. I will post a picture soon. I need to contact the builder because it fried two capacitors, and I can't read the values. Of course...no schematic. Help Please.

- 399

You are getting 1300 watts peak out of a 1x4? Your wattmeter sure isn't mil spec. 800 watts peak is the best it gets with the LA series 4 pill amps.