[Elecraft] KPA500 #156

[David Yarnes]

Hi All,

My KPA500 is up and running!  I'm sort of a neophyte when it comes to amps, 
but this has to be one of the very best.  It is very quiet, and pumps out 
500 watts with very little drive--about 30 watts or a bit less.

It's very simple to operate.  The auto-bandswitching works great, and you 
can monitor all sorts of things while operating.  I watch the PA temperature 
mostly.  You can tell when the fan kicks on, but you don't really hear it 
unless you put your ear right next to it.

I thought I might have a problem running it on 120 volts, but no problem. 
I've tried other amps that way, and been disappointed.  I think this amp 
must be very efficient, because the circuit I'm running it on isn't that 
husky, and another amp I have tended to throw the GFI breaker on occasion. 
I wish I had 240 volts, but it just isn't practical right now.

The QSK is excellent--and quiet.  I don't recall what the upper limit is 
speed wise, but it won't be a problem for me.  At 25 to 30 wpm it just hums 
right along.

Any rig can be used with this amp, but when married to a K3 it makes a 
superb combo.  I know a lot of folks think 500 watts isn't enough, but a 10 
DB boost, more or less, is pretty nice when things are a little dicey 
condition wise.  Obviously, for me, a bigger amp would present lots of 
problems without a 240 volt line.  Besides, I still plan to run 100 watts 
(or less) most of the time.

The fact that Elecraft was able to pack all of this in the same size cabinet 
as my K3 is something of a marvel in my view.  Everything fits neatly 
inside, but there isn't much room to spare.  I suspect this will become a 
very popular amp for DXpeditions.  An amp you can carry with one hand is 
hard to find!

Congratulations to the Elecraft team for another superb product.

Dave W7AQK








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