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| Reviews Summary for A&A Engineering Smart Chargers |
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Reviews: 13
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Average rating: 4.9/5
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MSRP: $$79.95 for 1A version, $139,95 f
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Description: Three-stage chargers that will not overcharge lead acid batteries, even when left connected.
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More info: http://www.a-aengineering.com
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You can
write your own review of the A&A Engineering Smart Chargers.
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W6GJI
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 5, 2008 10:08
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Excellent charger, great service.
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've owned the 5 amp version for 6 years. It has worked perfectly until recently, when the fan started to get noisy. A quick call to Stas and a new fan was received a few days later (no charge). I will gladly do business with A & A Engineering in the future.
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WB2FTX
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 7, 2008 07:55
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Good deal
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have the 5 amp model connected to a 75 amp-hr gel cell used to power a 25 watt two meter repeater... Works as it should, keeps the battery up to charge and had never failed me in over 5 years of service... No problem with bringing the battery back up to capacity after the AC power fails... This repeater has no separate AC power supply, just the A&A charger and the battery. Easily powers the repeater and then tops off the battery charge.. Quiet, have never even heard the fan running.. Plan to buy another one for a different installation
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HK3PZ
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 1, 2008 07:06
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You do not notice it, but it is there, doing its job...
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had one of the first 5 Amperes units built, for very close to 10 years, I believe. It keeps a 105 Amperes Lifeline Deep Cycle battery, which is permanently connected to my equipment, in good shape. Only once did I require a spare IC, for the original was burnt by an EMI discharge in my QTH's vecinity, and the service I received from Stas was top notch. Highly recommended.
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K0HPS
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 19, 2007 14:39
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Try it, you'll like it! I have both QRP & 5-Amp versions.
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I got one of A&A's QRP charger kits for Christmas and really liked it so when my old, surplus, Lambda "swap meet special" power supply gave up the ghost and would no longer keep a float charge on my 255 A-Hr Concorde Sun Extender battery I decided to get a real charger and bought one of A&A's 5-Amp models. I hooked it up last night and it took a few hours to go through the three stages and reach float status but it performed just as described. I made a few QSOs this morning and the charger switched to bulk mode and then back to float a few minutes after I finished, again just as described.
A&A's Stas Andrzejewski (W6UCM) was very helpful and patient in answering my technical questions, definitely going above and beyond the level of service I've come to expect from typical equipment manufacturers.
I own a number of power supplies, used in a variety of applications, but for powering a typical 50 or 100-Watt rig in the shack I don't think you can beat the combination of a deep cycle battery and one of A&A's 5-Amp chargers. Having an emergency source of power for our gear is a very real part of this hobby and I just found out that the charger even has auxiliary DC input pads on the PCB that can be used to connect a solar module. I need to find out more about that feature but it looks like the charger can perform double duty as a solar charge controller.
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HK3PZ
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Rating: 5/5
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May 3, 2006 15:05
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Install and forget about
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had a 5A unit for, I believe, 7 or 8 years, may be more, without anything to complain about. It is permanently connected to a 108 AH Lifeline deep cycle battery and to an Icom IC-706MkIIG transceiver. Only once did I need something from A&A, a replacement for the IC, which was damaged by lightning, and I received prompt and effective help from Stas. This charger is really one of those things you install and forget about. Highly recommended. Alberto Ospina, HK3PZ
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W5EZY
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 10, 2006 06:15
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Best Power Setup
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I totally agree with AB0RE. I have had the 1A model for almost a year now, and I wouldn't have it any other way. No problems, and I have plenty of emergency power for my hf and vhf radios. I only have about $130 in the charger and deep cycle battery from Walmart. I built the kit version and it went together well. I doubt I will ever go to a power supply setup again. If you try it, I think you will feel the same way.
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AB0RE
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 9, 2006 23:14
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Very happy with 5A Version
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I purchased a deep cycle and floated it on a power supply for a while. Then I decided I wanted a real charger for the battery... a set-up in which I would not have to worry about over-charging or under-charging the deep cycle.
I've owned the 5A version for a year and a half now and have been very happy with it. It has been hooked up to the deep cycle battery in my shack and I have been using it to power my HF and VHF/UHF radios.
The outside of the charger is very attractive and does not look like a D-I-Y hack-job. The ammeter and charging stage LEDs on the front of the unit always let you know exactly what the charger is doing. (This is a quality three-stage charger.) Both the input (AC) and output (DC-to-battery) of the 5A charger are fused - the panel mount fuse holders can be found on the back of the unit. All these features give me additional peace of mind that I won't burn the house down by improperly charging a battery.
Build quality on the inside of the unit appears to be good as well. The inside of the unit basically reminds me of a 7A power supply with a brain. At first I was asking "okay, so why $150?" but after using the charger for a while I feel it's worth every penny. The charger is designed to draw next to no current from the battery if AC power is removed so if you have a power outage you don't have to worry about coming back to a dead battery.
It's also worth noting that the service I've received from Stas has been second to none. When I got the unit the fan was noisy (I could hear it over my CPU). After fiddling around with the fan (mounting it differently, etc) I finally contacted A&A Engineering about a month ago. Stas sent a replacement fan out at no cost. Now, the fan is so quiet I have to actively listen for it to be able to hear it. Stas has also answered numerous other questions about the charger for me. I wish all ham radio suppliers were this in-tune with their customers.
What are my nitpicks?
- It'd be nice to have a "back of unit" set of outputs as well, which would eliminate the need to have cables at the front of your shack's shelf.
- I'd prefer to have powerpoles as the output connector instead of binding posts. However, since hams aren't the only guys buying this charger (boaters, RVrs, etc, also are) this may be a tough idea for A&A to implement. I'm toying with the idea of putting a set of powerpoles on the back of the unit.
- It'd be nice if the major ham stores would get on board and carry this charger so we didn't have to order direct from A&A and deal with the wait time, shipping charges, etc.
Overall, I'd say but it and you won't regret it. For a little over $200 you can get this charger and a deep cycle battery. This costs just a bit more than a quality power supply, but this configuration is much more useful to have in the event of an emergency power outage.
73,
Dan / ab0re
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W2XS
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 18, 2004 22:17
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Seems to work well
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I just finished buiding the 1A kit. It came with the white output cord, and a black AC cord with attached plug. There were extra holes on the rear panel, so I mounted a toggle switch there and made it a switchable 1A/250mA unit. I also mounted a coaxial power socket on the back panel instead of using the white output cable. This way, I can use the same power cord and connectors that I use to power the QRP rigs.
The email support from Stas W6UCM was very good and he answered my questions promptly.
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W2VD
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Rating: 4/5
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Aug 3, 2003 20:22
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Good Charger
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I bought the 1A kit. It was missing one resistor, but this wasn't a big problem. I had a replacement in my junk box. It took about an hour and a half to build (including scrounging for the missing resistor), taking my time.
I use it to charge 5 Ah batteries. I have it configured for the 1/2 A charge rate. I'll be adding a switch for either a 1/2A or 1A charge rate, so that I can charge bigger capacity batteries. The charger works just fine, and I am happy with its performance.
Even though this is a nice charger, I am left wondering about several things:
1. Why does A&A supply white zip cord for both the AC input power cord, as well as the DC charge output cord? A&A could have supplied a 1 foot piece of black and red power cord for the DC charge output cord. Black and red are pretty much the universal colors for DC power cables in the amateur world. Although A&A does supply red and black insulated aligator clips for the white DC charge cord, red and black wires would have been nice.
2. No 120v AC plug is supplied with the kit. This is the 120v AC powered kit, so where is the AC plug?
In any case, this is a good product, and I am happy with it.
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K6SDW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 20, 2003 17:38
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Excellent
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've had mine for nearly 8 years keeping a 12v, 80-amp hour deep cycle battery running my shack and it works outstanding!
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