HELP WITH A Galaxy 225

[HITEK-REDNEK]

Hey whats going on with my fellow cbers,I have recently got my first leg warmer and it works great other than the automatic ssb switching when on am after I unkey it takes about 1.5-2.5 seconds for it to return to normal mode I guess thats the best way to explain it I dont use ssb hardly at all is there any way to make this amp switchable from ssb to am any help would be great thanks to all that help in advance. p.s. if any of you guys have a solution to my issue please give step by step instructions as I dont want to mess this amp up once again thanks.

 

[Kruser]

Amp holding key too long

They only thing that will hold in the relay after you un-key the mic is an eletrolytic capacitor. They are the small can type objects. They function just like a battery that charges up when you key the mic, then when you un-key the mic, the charge they received reverses and is enough to hold the magnetic relay in for a few seconds. The more uf or micro-farads the capacitor is, the longer the hold time. It sounds as if someone may have installed a capacitor with too many micro-farads. You said the amp is automatic sideband so I assume it does not have a SSB switch. If you do find the capacitor that is holding the relay in, you can break one side of its connection with the board and run it through a switch. Any kind of small SPST switch will do as the voltage and current will be low.
Kruser

 

[Toll_Free]

As the other gentleman said, there is a cap that will be causing a delay.

Their are MANY revisions of the 225 series of amplifiers, but only a couple electrolytics in each one.

Usually, you find 2 to 3. 1 or 2 of them will be across the 12 volt input wires. They are their to keep LOW freq oscillations out of the power wires, and to keep high freq bleed to a more limited extent, from making it to the power wires. LEAVE THESE ALONE!!!! You will know you have found them because it will go from the red leads (positive) to the ground leads. Period.

THEN, near one of the relays (usually the one by the input side), you will find ANOTHER blue capacitor, standing up 9 out of ten times. THAT'S your SSB delay cap.

Don't use SSB, clip it out. Use it infrequently, clip one side, install a switch in series, and that becomes your SSB / AM switch.

RECENTLY, on the 225 and 300 boards, I've noticed a spot on the front for a SSB delay switch. Check near the wiring for the other two switches, you might find a couple solder pads marked SSB or DELAY. Their will be a jumper across them. Delete this jumper. That kills SSB delay. Install a switch, that gives you AM/SSB.


Hard to give real step by steps without pictures, considering their has been probably 15 revisions of that amplifier since it appeared in the early 90s... As well as having boards mfg'ed in 5 or 6 different countries. BUT, these generics should get you where you need to be... If not, then get your hands out of the amp.

--Toll_Free


--Toll_Free

 

[HITEK-REDNEK]

Thanks so much for the help (Toll free-Kruser)I think this will solve my issue I will just put a switch on it incase I do want to talk ssb I will also try to get some pics on here this weekend so check back probably Sun. one more thing does it matter what end I snip to put a switch in? when you say in series you mean come off the capacitor to the switch back to the board right I'm not gonna get a chance to do this till this weekend so if this is correct pm me and let me know please once again thank you so much.

 

[Kruser]

You are on the right track

Yes, what you said about coming off one pin of the capacitor with a wire to the switch and then going back to the board where the cap was lifted with a wire from the other switch post is exactly right. You can lift either pin of the capacitor, however, personally I like to use the negative side when running to a switch like that due to the fact that running wires without voltage on them is safer from the shorting out standpoint than running a wire with voltage that may break and cause something to burn up. Only if the wire coming from the negative part of the board falls onto a part that contains voltage will something bad happen. Also should the switch short out, the only thing that will happen is the relay will hold in like the switch was on alerting you that something is not right. You are on the right track so just warm up the ole iron and go at it.
Kruser

 

[TonyV225]

In the mid 1990s There was a batch of these that were made this way so it WAS NOT ALTERED!!! I also had 2 of them that did this otherwise they were great amplifiers. If you were a strict AM user you could clip one leg of the Capacitor but then SSB would chatter the relay so it wasnt a simple fix for me being a SSB user. Its been awhile but if im remebering correctly with the amplifier upside down and the plastic bottom popped off the electrolytic cap was on the leftside towards the back.

Like I said clipping one leg made AM delay better but SSB was then a problem. I know there was a group of us that bought these in the mid 1990 and we all complained about this and some got rid of the amplifier because the delay drove them insane when people wouldnt wait before keying up and you would miss the beginning of what they said because of the delay.

Some of the guys clipped on leg of the Cap. It actually p!$$ed me off at first aswell that they did this but soon after there was a new batch available and they didnt do this. I would imagine that is an older one you have aswell unless they actually did this again. I dont mind it because it is supposed to keep people from being Roy Rogers (quick) on the trigger or key hence the name (SSB DELAY).

The problem is you can tell people over and over to take a breath or take a few seconds before keying and they dont grasp it and key as soon as you unkey making your conversation or contact just shy of being one sided.

 

[9C1Driver]

The Galaxy 225 blue face was my first amp back in 1996. Great little amp for the money. I have grown to prefer switched SSB delays these days in my amplifiers. Once you get that fixed up you should be happy.

 

[blaine]

I have the exact same amp,with the exact same issue,the cap that controls the delay in mine was a 22uf 50 volt,I changed it to a 10uf 50 volt and it works perfectly.Hope this helps.

Blaine

 

[Kruser]

HI-TEK, when you do take the capacitor out of line on AM, if you discover that your relays chatter then I would suggest that you try what Blaine did or maybe put a few more key watts into the linear if your radio has variable power out. It is always best to run low key watts from your radio to your amplifier and then let your modulation make the swing to higher power. I try to key with only 1 to 1 and 1/2 watts if I can. Then with a peaked up radio that will do 20 to 25 watts of swing, going into your amp, you will be a loud Sunny Beach. AM mean "Amplitude Modulation" therefore the more peak amplitude you can provide (up to a point) the more modulation you will have. You may hear someone say doing all this causes spurs, hash, and trash on the band and bleedover, and yes it may do so, but you will just blend in with the crowd where you are going to use this. :blush:
Kruser

 

[HITEK-REDNEK]

pics of my galaxy 225

I think I might have them on here now