Purchased new Texas Star DX1600X

[Road Squawker]

I just looked at this unit on Coppers site. Why is it a violation to use on amature radio? Sorry for the noob question. Im studying for my ticket and thought 1500 was the max for certain bands/freqs.

Short answer, Copper doesn't know what the regulations are.
It is legal for an Amateur to operate this equipment. Any illegal actions revolve around importing and selling as new equipment.

Bearing that in mind, this IS a POS amp. It could be "cleaned up" and perhaps be almost acceptable for Amateur use, but only after major changes.

Bottom line: IMO, it belongs in the scrap barrel after it has been parted out.

 

[old goat 321]

Thank you Sonar. Licensing exams were cancelled on the 12th due to a snow storm. Rescheduled for March 12th. Right now im like a sponge reading everything i can about amature radio. i have a base ssb cb and a 980 uniden with a little 203 amp in my pickup. I was going to focus on my cb setup but i am going to give ham radio a shot.

 

[old goat 321]

Short answer, Copper doesn't know what the regulations are.
It is legal for an Amateur to operate this equipment. Any illegal actions revolve around importing and selling as new equipment.

Short answer, Copper doesn't know what the regulations are.
It is legal for an Amateur to operate this equipment. Any illegal actions revolve around importing and selling as new equipment.

Thank you Road Squawker. Thats the answer i was looking for. The website didnt make sense to me.

 

[old goat 321]

Short answer, Copper doesn't know what the regulations are.
It is legal for an Amateur to operate this equipment. Any illegal actions revolve around importing and selling as new equipment.

Bearing that in mind, this IS a POS amp. It could be "cleaned up" and perhaps be almost acceptable for Amateur use, but only after major changes.

Bottom line: IMO, it belongs in the scrap barrel after it has been parted out.

Thats the answer i was looking for
Thank you very much for the explanation .

 

[kopcicle]

but does the fcc care?

[DickMode]
What the Federal Clown Commission cares or doesn't care about is immaterial. I don't want to have to listen to it.
One wonders these days what the status of FCC enforcement is. Although evident in selective cases other obvious infractions are not even investigated. In this one particular case the in band inter-modulation distortion let alone the harmonic spurs ruin it for everyone. Not just the near field but when propagation takes hold, the whole world. I have plenty of man made noise here because of lax regulation and enforcement without having to contend with the world's second worst source of radio interference.
[/DickMode]

I see from other posts you already get the idea. Just in $$ alone it doesn't make sense.

Now onto your station .
An antenna(s)
https://www.w8ji.com/windom_off_center_fed.htm
https://sites.google.com/view/kn9b/guanella-current-balun
Just one of many ideas.
Radio.
You don't need the latest greatest but the farther back you reach the more knowledge you need, the more experience you need, the more hard to find parts you need. I'm now on the edge of not recommending the Kenwood hybrids to a new amateur. Although the three tubes are still inexpensive and available the rest of the radio is showing it's age. Better to find a solid state rig with all that you need to get started rather than all you want.
Amplifier.
With an effective antenna system the want for an amplifier diminishes somewhat. Eventually though an amplifier becomes a priority after others are met.
The AL 811 in any of it's iterations is a beast all to its own.
https://www.w8ji.com/al811h_schematic.htm
This is the gospel according to the man that designed it. Deviate from his experience and advice at your own peril.
Heath SB-200.
Better for it's 572B's but still read W8JI on the 572's
AL-80(b)
A real transmitting tube at last. A step up but still adhere to the limitations.
Heath SB-220.
If one 500z is good (AL-80) , two is better , right ?
Ceramic/Metal transmitting tubes.
Open your wallet, build your own, or both. At this point you know enough to not electrocute yourself or destroy a tube on contact.
Wild card. LDMOS
There are many suppliers of complete amplifiers and kits. Do your homework. The advantage here is that although you may have around 110 Amps of 48 volt DC on the desk you don't have to contend with 3500 volts DC @ 2 Amps.

Best wishes on your coming exam. Study as hard for the General as your Tech. Hope to put you in the log one day .

 

[Sonar]

Thank you Sonar. Licensing exams were cancelled on the 12th due to a snow storm. Rescheduled for March 12th. Right now im like a sponge reading everything i can about amature radio. i have a base ssb cb and a 980 uniden with a little 203 amp in my pickup. I was going to focus on my cb setup but i am going to give ham radio a shot.

For a first HF is seriously to consider the ftdx 1200 by yeasu. mint condition in double boxed and styrofoam inserts can be had for approximately $600 on eBay. One step above is the ftdx3000 which can also be had for a very fair price of approximately $1,200. These of course are both second-hand. They contain all the bells and whistles of the higher-end transceivers. DSP, 3 band parametric equalizer. And best of all for the beginner very easy to operate. In my opinion you can't go wrong. 100 Watts of clean power and an array of receiving options that will bring in the station's you want to hear by removing qrm. I also like the icon pro series but they're much older and some are prone to screen problems. A second hand ftdx 1200 along with a. Second hand ameritron 811 (also around $600) some good coax and a decent antenna well have you operating on your first license allocated operating bands. Which I believe is 10 m. Maybe even 12. Both those transceivers have a built-in antenna tuner and once again in my opinion for the price cannot be beat for a first HF transceiver. Good luck my friend. We all could use a little bit of that now and then. I certainly could myself. LOL 73's

 

[Sonar]

Short answer, Copper doesn't know what the regulations are.
It is legal for an Amateur to operate this equipment. Any illegal actions revolve around importing and selling as new equipment.

Bearing that in mind, this IS a POS amp. It could be "cleaned up" and perhaps be almost acceptable for Amateur use, but only after major changes.

Bottom line: IMO, it belongs in the scrap barrel after it has been parted out.

Cooper definitely knows the FCC rules. If the FCC doesn't send them a cease-and-desist letter from selling these types of amplifiers why should they do so? They sell them because CB radio operators buy them. no respectable ticket holder that has the least bit of knowledge would ever consider purchasing such an "amplifier". There are so many good FCC classified for use on amateur band amplifiers available on eBay. Mostly ameritrans. in my opinion there's nothing wrong with the ameritron amplifier. So many people own them. And continue to buy them in droves on a daily basis. Brand new and used. For someone who's new two amateur radio a 25 or 35 year old sb220 would be a bad choice. Only someone with the knowledge to operate and repair that particular Heathkit should ever own one. Not to mention all the chicken banders who've had their fingers in those sb-220 s before they ever made it to eBay. They're so popular with 11-meter users I never consider buying one unless the seller explicitly ads to his selling description this amplifier will only be sold to a ham radio operator who holds a FCC license. That kind of let's one know that the owner most likely took care of his sb-220 and it hasn't been in the hands of a CB operator. And if has been in the future that ham operator selling it on eBay has certainly undone the mess that a golden screwdriver most likely caused to it prior to him operating it and then selling it after enjoying it for probably years and years.

 

[Mustang 131]

If they built them right, everyone here would be bitching about the price.

 

[old goat 321]

Thank you Kopcicle, thank you Sonar. A lot to digest. I understand the importance of good coax and antennas. This will not be skimped on. Right now, temporarily, i have a A-99 up and operating. I also have a spt-500 and 40' of tower, plus 100' lmr400 ready for the spring. Nothing written in stone yet, many choices to consider before the tower goes up. Maybe a yagi? Plus i have lots of room to string up wire. But once again, thank you all for taking your time to answer my questions.

 

[Sonar]

Thank you Kopcicle, thank you Sonar. A lot to digest. I understand the importance of good coax and antennas. This will not be skimped on. Right now, temporarily, i have a A-99 up and operating. I also have a spt-500 and 40' of tower, plus 100' lmr400 ready for the spring. Nothing written in stone yet, many choices to consider before the tower goes up. Maybe a yagi? Plus i have lots of room to string up wire. But once again, thank you all for taking your time to answer my questions.

Before checking out a yagi look into the vector 4000. X Shady tree music mechanic 808 about the one he installed. If you have plenty of room 4 dipoles horizontal a beam might becumbersome. They're not only difficult to put up but very difficult to maintain. Especially for born with little experience. The vector 4000 is an incredible antenna. Just throwing it out there. Either way good luck once again 73's PS enjoy your posting tremendously. Jojo

 

[drgrant]

If ones purchasing a Texas star and is a ticket holder and plans on using the amp on ham band (and or even 11 with the mars mod) you need to go back to school. NO INSULT INTENDED. Why would an amateur radio operator want a Texas star?

Because there are no large (over a few hundred watts) mass produced mobile HF amps on the market that are worth a shit, the only one left that's commonly available is the ALS-500M which is basically a W8JI garbage pile that a bunch of hams dance around because of all the filtering in it as if that somehow automatically makes it redeeming. Things like the Henry SS750 are pretty hard to come by so we have to make due with what we can get our hands on. This means "build something" or "take some other product and rework/use/operate to purpose".

 

[Shadetree Mechanic]

Just read all this again. Bump for 1600 info.

 

[W4KVW]

Because there are no large (over a few hundred watts) mass produced mobile HF amps on the market that are worth a shit, the only one left that's commonly available is the ALS-500M which is basically a W8JI garbage pile that a bunch of hams dance around because of all the filtering in it as if that somehow automatically makes it redeeming. Things like the Henry SS750 are pretty hard to come by so we have to make due with what we can get our hands on. This means "build something" or "take some other product and rework/use/operate to purpose".

SGC makes a great 500 watt mobile amplifier & has for many years.It is a much better built amp than the Ameritron. https://www.sgcworld.com/ampProductPage.html

SIX-SHOOTER

 

[kopcicle]

SGC makes a great 500 watt mobile amplifier & has for many years.It is a much better built amp than the Ameritron. https://www.sgcworld.com/ampProductPage.html

SG-500 SmartPowerCube™
CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE

...and has been unavailable for several years due to lack of suitable output transistors.
BTW , SGC is local and I stay in touch regularly.

 

[AudioShockwav]

SG-500 SmartPowerCube™
CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE

...and has been unavailable for several years due to lack of suitable output transistors.
BTW , SGC is local and I stay in touch regularly.

I doubt you will ever see one again.
If you do it will be a different design.

73
Jeff