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Reviews For: ACOM 1000

Category: Amplifiers: RF Power - HF & HF+6M

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Review Summary For : ACOM 1000
Reviews: 198MSRP: 3250 USD
Description:
HF+6M Linear Amplifier

The ACOM 1000 HF Linear Amplifier is the world's best value in an amateur HF amplifier. The ACOM 1000 gives you a comfortable 1000 watts output on all amateur bands from 160 through 6 meters.
Power Output: 1000W PEP or continuous carrier, no mode limit. Uses single 4CX800A (GU74B)
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.acom-bg.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
151984.9
F6BLP Rating: 2012-04-28
Life of HV transformer .. no more than 5 years ! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I am not agree with ACOM.

The HV transformer is out and I spend 500 euros for repair.

My 25 years old TL922 is always in life. Before YAESU 2277Z, and before FL2500. No problem with, only I changed 2 time 3-500Z with TL922, 1 time 572b with Yaesu. In the same shack of ACOM 1000 now.

I know that many others people have problem with the transformer. I received other mail for that. Vince in England know also the problem.

I am not a contester and never replace the original tube. I think that there is a big problem with the production of this transformer and his fiability.

It means that a transformer need to be remplaced every 5 years !

See the mail from ACOM service :

" According to us, the product defects appear before the first year to expire.
We provide two calendar years warranty. Francis, you have used this transformer
3 and half times longer. Consequently, we think that this fault is a result from
operating conditions - increased humidity, increased ambient temperature,
increased mains voltage, any power supply over voltage, etc."

I am in France and my shack is in my house. All the conditions are good to use an amplifier. So this reply is not good.

Sorry for that because ACOM 1000 is a very good amplifier, very quiet and very nice to operate. But ACOM service is very bad. Not ready to buy the new ACOM 1500 !

Please tell me if you have also the same problem.

Best regards

Francis **F6BLP**



----------------------
Earlier 1-star review posted by F6BLP on 2011-10-24

The AC power transformer of my ACOM 1000 is out of order ! Isolation default of high voltage ! Autoprotection:PN007

I am very surprise because it is the principal piece of an amplifier who need to be very solid. I am not a contester and don't use the amplifier in bad condition. Is there a manufacturing fault ?

I think that this repair of transformer is not normal and the cost of this transformer is too expensive : it is 1/4 of the price of the amplifier !!!
I had a TL922 kenwood for 20 years without any problem. Never change the transformer ! only a pair of 3-500Z in 20 years ! and my ACOM 1000 only 6 years old with this big problem of transformer, never remplace the tube.It is the original. I think of product default of this transformer. The fiability of ACOM products is not so impressive and the repair service in Bulgaria is not what we expected when the cost of some piece like this transformert is too expensive.

Reply of ACOM Bulgaria :
" you might agree that the transformer's fault is definitely not a
product default, having in mind that it worked flawless more than 6 years "

I don't consider that 6 Years of life for a transformer is normal.

It is a very good and quite amplifier and I give note 5. But ACOM service is very poor !I give note 1
K1YXP Rating: 2012-03-13
THE BEST 1 KW TUBE AMP. ON THE MARKET Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
After doing much research,over 2 months worth of talking to every person possible,and reading every review available, I decided on the Acom 1000 1KW single tube amp. I was convinced this was the best choice. This is my first amplifier and I did not want to make a mistake. My research showed that there are other choices that cost less. I was not interested in cold solder joints and loose parts etc. The saying you get what you pay for does sometimes apply. The Acom 1000 has a backlight display that has a wealth of information available to the operator. 14 points of info I believe. You WILL fault the amp. I was very careful and still faulted the unit. It did not call me a dummy and displayed my error. It is so easy to tune. I tune in 10 seconds. The unit is very quiet. I do not consider the 2.5 min. warm-up a negative. I consider it a positive. It takes me time just to get organized. The unit is sold by Array Solutions. The support is excellent. I have called with questions before my purchase and after my purchase and Bob has always been there with the answers. I do believe that anyone who purchases the Acom 1000 will be totally satisfied. Feel free to email me at: nhmatthew4@hotmail.com if more detail is wanted. so in summary...Quiet, has 6 meters, easy hook up, RF in, RF out, 1 RCA cable, forgiving, easy to tune, high quality, support, and user friendly. 73 K1YXP
ON4VP Rating: 2012-01-14
On of the finest amps on the planet Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had my first Acom 1000 back in 2001. Although I had minor issues with the first amplifier, Ron from Vine UK sent me a second unit and I've been using that Acom 1000 for several years to my satisfaction.

Last year, in 2011, I was looking at another Acom 1000 but I bought a second hand Expert 1K-FA instead. Although I think it is a nice piece of engineering when using the 1K-FA for extended periods of time I could not stand the noise of the seven fans running at high speed. To much noise in the shack for me. And then there were the messages that over 80 users out of 1500 pieces sold had troubles with failing relais.

It took me not that much of time to realise that I was missing my beloved Acom amplifier so much. I sold the Expert, didn't look back and I asked Ron at Vine UK to send me a second Acom 1000. I'm so glad I did.

As for all the previous reviewers, I only can add that this is one of the most quiet amplifiers on the market. You just can't hear it working. It just sits there putting out an easy 1000 watts with no effort driving it around 55 watts from the exiter (FT-950).

I specially like the TRI (tuning aid). Tuning the amp takes me only between 5 to 10 seconds. Okay the 1K-FA had 4 outputs and no heating time, true, but the headroom of the Acom is a lot larger and the noise in the shack is gone. I can live with the 150 sec warming up time. I get myself a cold beer in the kitchen, go upstairs and enter the shack with an Acom 1000 waiting to punch out 1KW all day long while keep running cool.

I also like the LCD display. It's not that big but far large enough to provide me with all kind of info. Last but not least Acom's choice using the 4CX800 tetrode tube is great. Lot's of power, clean signal and less heat produced. Also the price of this tube is 3 times less than the competition.

Why is the Acom 1000 first choice:

- Reliable amplifier
- Very good value for money
- lot's of power
- runs cool and silent
- nice finish
- quality materials used
- lot's of headroom
- less expensive tube (GU74B)
- LCD display with handy info

Perhaps nice when new Acom 1000 arrives:

- 2 or more antenna inputs

Final word:

Buying an Acom is great but buying it at Vine UK makes it special. Ron's advice is very professional. His service is second to none. The best I've ever experienced.

In 2002 I published a review on eham (second page of this item) but this review seems to be deleted on the eham server? I can't find it no more. I hope my 2012 review reaches the public.

I recommend Acom Products and Vine UK !

N4JA Rating: 2011-12-01
good at any price Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I am getting old and have been a ham 53 years(since) 1958. As I get older I get forgetful about switching an amp to the right antenna and putting the bandswitch to the right position. I have arced the plate tuning capacitors on several Ameritron amps. One arc and they arc forever if you don't replace the capacitor. I've put tags on the shelves saying check antenna switch, check bandswitch and check tuner. First of all, I ran all kinds of amps earlier: SB220's, homebrew amps, Heathkit Warriors, BTI LK2000HD, and I never arced a plate tuning capacitor before I bought an Ameritron.
Before I bought this amp, I did a lot of research to find an amp that was well protected and had a plate tuning capacitor with spacing between plates wide enough to prevent arcing. I wanted an amp that was well protected and would tolerate an occasional mistake. My choices were a Ten-Tec Centurion and the Acom 1000. The Ten-Tec Centurion's base price was $55 cheaper than the Acom 1000. No shipping costs on the Acom and I didn't find out if Ten-Tec charged for shipping.
The Acom works on 6M and the Centurion doesn't. The Acom power output is a little less than the Centurion, about a dB or so. But the Acom will put out power reliably with an SWR of 3:1. It doesn't fault until the SWR reaches 4.5:1. So it shuts itself down at that level without doing harm to the amp. None of the Ameritrons will.
I run the TS-2000 and when I tried to drive the Acom on 6M, nothing happened. Then I remembered somthing about the 2000. You have to go to Menu 28B and turn the 50 mHz linear keying on. After I did that, the amp could be driven on 6M. I tuned it up with 50 watts drive and when I did it gave me a plate current warning. I had to reduce drive to 40 watts to get it to quit faulting. At that level of drive I got over 900W output on 6M. What I like about this amp is it is so well protected that an old dummy like me can't hurt it.
Tune-up is simple. Go to the Array Solutions web site, get to their linear page and there will be a YouTube video link showing a ham in Sweden tuning up the Acom 1000. It takes less than 10 seconds to tune up. It will also put out full power of 1000W for 15 minutes continously followed by a 3 minute cooldown.
No more plate tuning capacitor arcing. The 1000 has the same plate tuning capacitor as the Acom 2000 which puts out more than 2000 W if you drive it that hard.
The book also states that if you drive it into an open load it will show 500W forward and 500W reflected, with no power out.
I built over 10 linear amps using the following tubes: 813's, 4-400's, 811A's, 4CX250B's and I always used over-sized tank circuit components with never a failure. I think the Acom 1000 does the same.
73 and see you in the pile-ups and rag-chewing on 3773 in the AM and 3661 in the PM.
Jim N4JA
S57CW Rating: 2011-11-09
Excellent ! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Great engineering & quality (I was using Drake before and some professional equipment at job I really mean it!), silent as night, forgiving on SWR, covering 6m, I was only missing integrated antenna switch. Excellent value, never had problem with it, quickly sellable if you decide to upgrade.
If in EMEA check Vine Antennas in UK as supplier, they have offered good advice/support with competative prices to me.
KJ5XF Rating: 2011-10-03
Easy to tune and Whisper Quiet!! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I used to own a solid state amp and even though
it worked well, I just could NOT stand the fan noise anymore.
After reading the reviews of the ACOM-1000 where everyone commented on:

a) Easy to tune
b) Very quiet

I decided to take the plunge. Long story short,
I should have bought this amp years ago....
I bought mine from Array Solutions and Bob was VERY patient and helpful.....

G7TPL Rating: 2011-08-20
outstanding. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
bought brand new from the UK supplier, with excellent communication throughout.
smashed the ST0R pile-up with my first transmission!
only one issue, I would like to see 2 selectable antenna's, HF and 6m, selectable from the front panel, perhaps via the band selector, as an option.
K2FCL Rating: 2011-08-05
Undeniably one of the best Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Like so many others here, I've tried dozens of different amps over the years and have to admit this Acom is one of the finest. It's VERY quiet, tunes easily, and is built to high standards. It just may be the last amp I'll have to buy. It's rare to find a used one for sale, but if you do, don't hesitate to buy it. With the cost of 3cx800a7's & 8877's going through the roof you can still buy the 4cx800's for a reasonable price. I highly recommend the Acom 1000 !!!
KF6A Rating: 2011-07-28
quality amplifier Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased my amp from Array Solutions a few months ago and the amp shipped quickly and was packed very well. I had a few questions about the amp prior to purchasing it and my emails were replied to promptly with all questions answered satisfactorily. I've purchased other products from them and their service has always been excellent.

When I placed the order I was asked if I wanted it wired for 120VAC or 240VAC and I chose 240V. The amp came wired as I ordered it and that's great as it is just one less thing I have to do.

Currently I only have a 6m yagi up. The Acom 1000 tunes up just dandy on 6m, the load and tune controls are slightly sensitive to tuning on 6m but still simpler and quicker than other manual tune amps, and on 6m 42w drive does 1000w. Very cool. The relay in the amplifier is quieter than the relay in my FT5000. I ran the amp QSK in the 2011 CQWW VHF contest and you couldn't even tell it was there. It is a very quiet amp that just plain works.

The Acom 1000 has a quality look and feel to it that I have never experienced before with the numerous Ameritron amplifiers I've owned in the past. I should have purchased an Acom amplifier a long time ago instead of stepping up through the different models of Ameritron amps but live and learn. The Acom 1000 is a keeper.
G0UWK Rating: 2011-05-04
Highly recommended Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Have owned my Acom 1000 for 1 year now,
It has been 100% reliable in that time, tuning is fast thanks to the innovative TRI method integrated into the amplifier.

As many others have stated it is quiet, perhaps a little too quiet and I do wonder sometimes if the cooling is a little on the conservative side (I’m use to large blowers on VHF/UHF amps) nevertheless It copes admirably with my casual SSB use.

Having owned FL2100z, LA Hunter, SB200, and Ameritron AL811 the Acom is by far the easiest to use.

It is in my opinion the definitive UK legal limit amplifier giving a super clean 26dbw effortlessly allowing the exciter to run at low comfortable levels well within ALC range ultimately resulting in a very clean signal (apply class A into it from one of the appropriate Yaesu transceivers and you’ll have one of the cleanest signals on the bands today)

At the time I thought it was expensive for what it was, however having seen the prices of equipment sore over the past 12 months I’m now of the opinion it was well worth the outlay.
If you are fed up with your noisy difficult to tune 811A with its creaking valves ticking away like a time bomb treat yourself to an Acom 1000, it’s so good you forget it’s in line.

I have used many pieces of equipment over the last 25 years but nothing has the feel of quality quite like an Acom amp.