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write your own review of the Ameritron AWM-30 Peak Reading SWR/Wattmeter.
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JUNKMAN
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Rating: 4/5
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Mar 25, 2009 22:05
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Real good meter for the money
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This a a real nice meter and works very well for the price. Build quality is typical Ameritron so it should hold up pretty well. Compared to my Lab Grade LP-100A the meter readings on the 3000 watt scale were reading low a few hundred watts but after a calibration it now shows the correct reading across the entire scale. The 300 watt scale was fairly close right out of the box. Meter response time is very good and the decay has been decreased from a few years ago when I complained to Ameritron that the meter decay time was way too slow. Looks like they did address this and this one works great. Peak and average show the exact same readings on a steady carrier as it should be unlike alot of the other meters I've owned. Coupler can be remoted about 4 feet away from the main display unit by seperating the coupler from the main unit. The cable is coiled up inside the unit untill needed. Overall this is a very good meter and I'm pleased with the operation of mine.
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MI0LLL
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Rating: 4/5
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Feb 24, 2008 11:43
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Very Good
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This is a very good meter for the money and never give any problems, i was always concerned about the accuracy, i have since purchased a power master by array solutions and can say now that the readings from both meters are close and obviously believe the latter meter is the correct reading.
73!
Chris
http://www.MI0LLL.com
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K2FDR
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Rating: 3/5
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Aug 21, 2007 16:15
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Better the Second Time Around
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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My AWM-30 wattmeter died just a few days after arrival from Ameritron. It would not read Forward Power. I returned the meter, and they ultimately, after 30 days decided it was unrepairable and replaced it with a new one.
All is well, for now.
Thank you to Bill at Omega Amplifiers for helping Ameritron get things moving.....
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K4XZ
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Rating: 4/5
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Jul 23, 2007 16:30
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Does the job
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I bought one of these to help with my AL-811.It has always worked fine and has consistant accuracy.The one problem I had was the meter lights kept burning out. I called ameritron and they sent me 4 lamps and a resister.I installed them and once again a burn out.I then went to RS and got 2 old syle screw in type lamp sockets and 2 14.4 volt bulbs.I put these in and it's been fine.Since the next meter I would consider purchasing is the Array Soulutions Power master @ $400.00 The AWM-30 gets my vote.
73 Joe Patrick K4XZ
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KC9ERB
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Rating: 3/5
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Jul 23, 2007 13:17
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OK
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I'm giving an OK because even though it appears to be all that the previous reviewers say it is, mine did not respond when I first applied power. I thought I had finally been bitten by the MFJ bug. I opened the housing and saw that the meter contacts on both sides (forward and reverse) were pushed up against the internal housing and shorting out. I moved them back with knife and then the meter worked fine. It also works without activating the on/off switch (good or bad?). Also, I see no evidence of a remote sensor in the packaging or instructions. So, congratulations on your 35th anniversary, Martin F. Jue, but you still have a lot to learn about quality control.
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N4JA
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 13, 2007 11:02
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No better meter for the price
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have tested the AWM-30 and it is great for the price. There are better wattmeters but you would have to pay $400 or more. The greatest limitation of this meter is it's "precision". Don't confuse precision with accuracy. They are two different things. Precision refers to the smallest number you can read from the meter scale. Accuracy refers to how close the meter reading is to the real wattage. This meter is exceptionly accurate, but you have to interpolate the reading between marks on the meter scale. It would be more precise if the meter scale was larger and the meter scale had more divisions on it. Peak reading accuracy is right on the mark with the average reading. The meter is accurate and precise enough to let you know if you are exceeding 1500 Watts on both the average and peak readings. Read my reviews on both the Palstar and Diawa wattmeters. This meter is better than either.
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KK4DW
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Rating: 4/5
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Feb 23, 2006 11:57
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RECONSIDERING
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Gotta be fair. My AWM-30 had an intermittent forward power. I gave it my "bad" but after contacting Rob at Ameritron and sending it back for a looksee, it has come back all well now and
I feel compelled to cut Ameritron some slack. I still wish it had more full scale settings besides jumping from 300W to 3000W in just two settings.
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KG4USN
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 25, 2005 16:47
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Works geat for me
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Matches the readings in my IC 756 exactly. Peak function works well. Paid $82 on ebay. This is my first wattmeter.73 to all
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KG4VBR
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 12, 2004 09:42
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Works well for me
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've had this meter for just over 1 year.It does everthing it claims to do with no problems.Construction is good,and seems to be accurate against my Drake.I bought this to tune my AL-811(which I'm also quite happy with).About a month ago the meter lamp went out.So I called Ameritron to get a replacement.When I went to give him a cc# he told don't need it and shipped 3 bulbs and a resister for longer bulb life.I'd buy another if needed best bang for the buck.
73 Joe K4XZ
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N4KZ
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Rating: 4/5
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Jun 11, 2004 16:30
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Really measures PEP
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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At Dayton, I bought a Daiwa meter thinking it would measure peak envelope power. Wrong! It didn't.
Fortunately, the vendor let me exchange it for an Ameritron AWM-30 which really does measure PEP. So far, I think this meter is fine electrically. But its appearance -- fit and finish -- isn't as good as the Daiwa's was. On the other hand, now my new wattmeter matches my Ameritron amplifier. The AWM-30 is a keeper.
If you're looking to buy a wattmeter, if it doesn't require external power, then it won't measure peak envelope power! This one comes with a wall wart or it can be powered by a 9-volt battery.
But one thing really puzzles me though. The HRO catalog, for example, advertises that this meter has a remote sensor. I also read about this feature from online comments about it. But you would never know it from the 4-page instruction "booklet" that comes with the meter -- instructions with such a terrible print job that are barely legible.
There's no mention at all in the Ameritron instructions that you can remove the screws and remove a remote sensor from inside the cabinet or that it has about 2 feet of cable allowing you to place the meter where it's convenient while tapping into your coax in a convenient spot too.
Am a missing something here? Why doesn't Ameritron mention this in the instructions? Personally, it doesn't matter to me because I am not using the remote sensor. But I would think that could be a real selling point to some people.
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