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Reviews For: Rigexpert AA-600 antenna analyzer

Category: Antenna Analyzers

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Review Summary For : Rigexpert AA-600 antenna analyzer
Reviews: 36MSRP: 600
Description:
Portable handheld analyzer will cover HF through 600Mhz, will integrate with computer and also do time-domain testing.
Product is in production
More Info: https://rigexpert.com/products/antenna-analyzers/aa-600/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00364.7
WA7KGX Rating: 2014-03-20
Interesting device Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Except for the battery related issues, this is a great device. Ham Radio Outlet is selling the 600 MHz unit at a modest discount.

Mine came with Varta NiMh batteries, a Konnoc charger, a cord with a 220 volt European plug, and an adapter for US wall sockets. The charger runs on 110 to 240 vac. Unfortunately, the supplied power cord doesn't quite fit the battery charger. The adapter does fit the power cord, but it does not fit tightly and you will soon lose it. Not a show stopper for me as I had a spare cord laying around that fits the charger and my wall sockets nicely.

I wouldn't worry about the physical durability of the device. Worry instead about zapping the RF section with wayward RF.

You have to read the manual to find some of the subtle things you can do with this device.

When attached to a computer it appears as another serial port. It has a simple protocol that can be used to record SWR scans with many points, way way more than the default 80. I did one scan with 1000 points.

The signal level used is lower than with some other analyzers. This may cause problems in urban areas with lots of strong TV, FM, and other signals floating around.

The unit is pricey, but several hams or a club could share one as it would not be needed constantly.
KE5JL Rating: 2014-02-21
First use, solved a major problem. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Since I virtually agree with previous reviews - including battery compartment weaknesses - so I'll skip the technical goodies.

My first adventure with the AA-600 was to try to tune my home made, inductively shortened dipole. SWR readings were all over the place. Major disappointment... My AA-600 however was telling me something important but I wasn't listening!

Next day after taking the balun out of the system I was getting great SWR readings. The light bulb went off and I opened the balun case to find a broken solder joint. A quick repair and now I have a nicely tuned short dipole in my cramped attic, thanks to the AA-600.

I have never tried other analyzers but have a hard time imagining one easier to use and interpret.
KC0KW Rating: 2014-01-24
Amazing unit, very accurate Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Wow if you can afford it or do a lot of antenna work this is a wonderful unit. I have checked it with some very expensive lab gear and it is a very precise piece of test gear. For me the best feature is how easy it is to use. I also like the ability to save a file for latter reference. This is a very nice unit and makes analyzing an antenna system easy.
JBAR Rating: 2014-01-23
First Impressions: A Great Analyzer Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just got this yesterday. Very intuitive for SWR and impedance. Beyond that, interpreting the results requires knowledge and studying a book like ARRL's "Understanding your Antenna Analyzer" or checking the web.

Love the color LCD. Well worth the under $600 price because it supports HF all the way up to 70cm and beyond. Definitely get rechargeable NiMh batteries because it will drain Alkaline batteries pretty fast. Also, note that the unit comes with N connector and not SO-259.
AE7ZL Rating: 2013-12-06
Lovin' it Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Got this unit after having a poor experience with a CAA-500. It's great. I am in telecomm and have done commercial radio for thirty years and I regret not having this all that time. It worked great out of the box, intuitive for me at least there is nothing I wanted to do that it hasn't done yet. And it does things so nicely I just might sit down and see how it all works.

The display is very good in bright light and low light levels. The controls are tactile and the response is very fast.

So far I love the TDR and the SWR sweeps. Changing the frequency and range of the sweeps is fast and easy. I havn't even played with the software but I have examined and tuned every antenna I have and I am soliciting to help other hams with their antennas.

I'm just wondering how I'm going to justify getting the AA-1000 to the wife.

WA8ALQ Rating: 2013-08-21
Great Tool Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I did a lot of comparison shopping before I bought the AA-600 analyzer... It has exceeded my expectations... Its ability to check 440 mhz antennas is very handy. Especially since most mobile antennas that cover 2 meters also cover 440 mhz... I love the SWR graphing feature most of all... I was able to fine tune my dipoles quickly... I even constucted a shortened 75 meter dipole use loading coils I wound myself. What fun! There was no guesswork involved... Just look at the graphs and adjust accordingly... Sure, it cost more than the MFJ's but you get what you pay for... Oh, and it only uses 3 AA rechageable batteries (included) that seem to be lasting forever... My only complaint was that the battery charger came with a European style wallwort. But, I replaced it with a USA style without any problems... My biggest regret is that after being a ham for over 50 years, I didn't get one of these years ago... P.S. I'm using a home brew multiband dipole antenna. The AA-600 easily measures SWR on all 5 bands of interest simultaneously in real time. You can't do that with the other brands of analyzers..