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write your own review of the Tokyo Hy-Power HL2.5FX.
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N4JA
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 8, 2009 13:54
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great amp great service
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I had an unfortunate experience with the HL-2.5kfx. I had a loose connector on the input to my remote antenna switch. The connector was finger tight, but after some time the connection became intermittent. The amp worked perfectly for 4 months and blew the finals while I was experimenting with the grounding of the amp. The intermittent faulting I was having on 10 meters was said by Tom Rum to be an rf ground problem. He also said the amp was bullet-proof. If you have an intermittent coax connector, you should check all connections before using this amp. I had assumed my connections were good because I had been using this antenna set-up for 5 or more years with no problem. All my tube amps worked fine with this condition because applying power to the switch caused the connector to arc and temporary weld the connection. I gave this amp a poor rating in a previous review and I hope this rating will fix that poor rating. Would I recommend this amp and would I buy another one? The answer is yes,but I will recommend you use a pair of pliers to tighten all PL-259's before you turn it on. Don't accept finger tight PL-259's because those connections eventually oxidize and become intermittent. I later discovered the intermittent connection because my SWR would be good one time on my SteppIR and the next time I used it the SWR would be high. I have proved you can blow up an HL-2.5Kfx.
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AB2CD
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 10, 2009 23:43
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Superb Amplifier
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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This is an update of an earlier review I posted 05/13/2009.
I can’t say enough good things about this amplifier. Tokyo Hy-Power makes superb equipment and the HL 2.5Kfx is a rock solid HF amplifier. As a former broadcast engineer, I am inclined to describe this amplifier as “commercial grade” rather than amateur. Rated at legal limit, the 2.5 has headroom galore and can easily do 2 kW without breaking a sweat.
This is not my first Tokyo. I was one of the first hams to take delivery of the 1.5Kfx over 2.5 years ago. Both amps perform flawlessly. My only word of caution is to remind the user that this is not a tube amplifier, and although it has ample protection circuits, care must be taken to avoid stressing the finals. One sure way to stress the finals would be to continue to operate the amp after repetitive protection alarms. I suggest using resonant antennas fed with high quality coax terminated with professionally installed connectors. You will also need a dedicated 15 amp 240 volt circuit to power the amp as it will not operate on 120.
One of the great features of this amp is its ability to automatically change bands by connecting a data cable between your rig and the amp. Tokyo provides band data cables for Icom, Kenwood and Yasue radios. I use mine with a Flex 5000A and understand that they can easily be adapted to work with Elecraft and Ten Tec radios as well.
Nobuki Wakabayashi, JA1DJW, the company’s president, is an excellent engineer and a man of upmost integrity. Tom Rum, Tokyo’s US representative, is very knowledgeable and is very responsive to your needs. He represents the company very well.
I purchased my 2.5 from Array Solutions and I am very pleased to recommend them. In my opinion, both Jay and Bob are the tops. If you have any questions about the amp or my experience with Array Solutions, please feel free to contact me directly. Again, I can’t say enough good things about this amplifier and everyone connected with it.
73’s and God bless
Jim & Shelly
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KE5VXJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 16, 2009 18:41
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5/5
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I bought the Amp and the 1.5 K auto tuner at Dayton, in May of this year, so, I've operated the equipment for only about three months... my first Amplifier!
I was intimidated setting them up for the first time. A couple of the amateur radio operators who had written reviews on this amplifier (on this web site) also graciously volunteered to help answer some of my questions. But, after a couple of e-mails with Array Solutions and Tokyo HyPower, and talking with Tom, there was absolutely no problem.
The Amp is enormously powerful and has many safety features. I am extremely pleased with both the equipment and the service, and I would repeat the purchase if it were to do again. The Amp has performed without a single flaw. I have never reached a heat sink temp of over 60 degees and have not triggered a protection error. Auto Band switching is instantaneous and done perfectly.
The duo works wonderfully!
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K0ZGG
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 7, 2009 11:11
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Excellent Quality and Performance
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I was introduced to the Tokyo Hy-Power HL-2.5Kfx linear amplifier at the 2008 Dayton Hamvention. After spending a lot of time talking to the THP people, and looking at the Instruction Manual, reading the Operational Hints and Tips, and reviewing the Theory of Operation, I new that I had to have this amplifier.
The amplifier consists of a pair of ARF1500 MOSFET (yes, only two) in a class AB push/pull configuration. The input of the amplifier is a bridged L/C network used as a input equalizer, and the output is a eight band-division low pass filter. Both input equalizer and filter output are selected by relays of the respective bands.
When I got home from Dayton I sold my Icom PW1 and purchased the HL-2.5Kfx. I've had the amplifier since August, 2008 (8 months) and it has been in use every day.
The amplifier has PERFORMED FLAWLESSLY...
The HL-2.5Kfx setup and interconnect went smoothly, and Yes, all band Data cables, ALC, Control, and power cable are provided. The AC plug (not included) must be provided by you. To many variations world wide.
As for the amplifier itself, it blends seamlessly with my IC7800. Just set the CI-V address of the IC7800 to (5Ch) and the amplifier will auto band switch with the transceiver. The set up for the Power Transformer Taps for my line voltage (208) only took about five minutes. You may NOT have to retap the transformer at your QTH. The factory preset is at 240v AC.
The amplifier is well protected against self damage. (this is good for hams like me that forget to switch things from time to time).
Now, the bottom line! This AMPLIFIER WORKS GREAT. When on the air with this amplifier I have had NO reports of SPLATTER or output CLIPPING at full legal limit. And it has never tripped out with any fault like some amplifier do.
I would recommend the Tokyo Hy-Power HL2.5Kfx to anyone.
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K3OYH
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 26, 2008 19:58
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Excellent legal limit solid state amp
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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TOKYO HY-POWER HL-2.5KFX HF Linear Amplifier Review by K3OYH
After reviewing the QEX Sep/Oct 2006 article “Get 1.5kW from a New RF MOSFET: A Legal Limit HF Linear, Tokyo Style” by Toshiaki Ohsawa, JE1BLI, and Nobuki Wakabayashi, JA1DJW; and announcement from HRO late last year, I figured this was just what I had been looking for that would be a good addition to the shack. With a size of a FT2000 minus 3” in width, it is a very compact unit that does indeed get you to legal limit and tracks the rig’s band changes. I had been using an AL-1500, SG-500 and ALS-500.
Since I was lucky enough to be the first in the country to receive the HL-2.5KFX (SN: 073002) after my purchase in mid September, followed by a long wait with delivery on January 30th, all I can say is the wait was well worth it! It is a nice fit for my FT-2000 & FT1000D and drives to full 1500W SSB PEP or CW output with less than 80W in on all but 10 meters where the output is slightly less. For long duty cycle modes such as RTTY they recommend reducing the drive by 30%.
The amp comes set for 240vac and includes band control cables for the ICOM CI-V, Yaesu and Kenwood RS-232C radios. Using the Yaesu cable with the FT1000D required a jumper between pin 8 & 3 which will be corrected in next production run. I designed a switch and cabling that allows switching the band control lines, ALC and buffered keying lines between the two rigs. I made full use of the ALC feedback to the rigs as it can easily exceed 2kW out if you accidentally drive it with more than 80W. Maximum drive is specified at 100W.
The T/R relays are spec’d at 3ms pick and 5ms release which works well with full break-in and VOX operation although they are a little noisy after using amps with PIN diode switches (that I installed).
It is well protected with many processor controlled sensing and protection functions as well as a variable speed fan control. You can barely hear the fan most of the time when using SSB. The front panel, containing 2 lighted analog meters and LCD status panel, keeps you well informed on operational status. SWR protection is set to trip at 1.8:1– so you need a well matched antenna or a tuner.
The proof-of-the-pudding is on the air operation. I have gotten good SSB audio reports on the bands with no signs of splatter, or output clipping at legal limit when monitored on my wattmeter, oscilloscope and spectrum analyzer. Although the amp seems a bit pricy, it is a very well designed and packaged unit that I would recommend to anyone wanting legal limit transceiver functionality.
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