| EI3GSB |
Rating:  |
2008-08-06 | |
| LP-100A the ONLY meter you'll ever need |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I got my LP-100A in June and I'm delighted with the meter. The obvious advantage of using this type of meter is that you always have a visual presentation of your SWR and power output and the inclusion of an SWR alarm (which is user configurable) is, although not a new idea, a great addition to the meter.
Since I've had mine I've barely used it other than a power/SWR meter but I know it's capable of much more. When the VHF coupler is available I'll get that too.
All in all the LP-100A is a great addition to the shack and offers peace of mind when monitoring your SWR and output levels. |
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| K4TJ |
Rating: |
2008-07-24 | |
| Excellent |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Accurate, well built, easy to use, good looking. One dit gives accurate peak measurement, worth the money on saved TX tubes alone. Valued addition to this shack |
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| W0JX |
Rating: |
2008-07-03 | |
| A Superb Tool |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I bought the LP-100A at Dayton 2008 and purchased the assembled and calibrated unit. It was shipped within three weeks and came with the prepunched holes in the back for the second RF coupler. So far, I am extremely pleased with my choice.
My first use was for a QRP experiment where I was able to crank the 100 watt exciter output down to 100 milliwatts! It also revealed that my old Mirage MP-1 was reading about 250 watts low on the 2 KW scale. I recalibrated all three MP-1 scales to the LP-100A. I also have used it to measure feedline loss accurately of some older coax at 50 Mhz.
My most recent tests were to measure SWR changes of my 5 element, 6 meter beam as I experimented with element placement. I took the LP-100A up on the roof and powered it with a small 12 volt lead-acid cell.
The LP-100A has many more useful functions that I have yet to use. If you want an accurate, multi-function wattmeter and SWR bridge with impedance and phase readout, buy this unit. You won't be disappointed! |
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| WD5EAE |
Rating: |
2008-05-05 | |
| Well built; Handy; Easy to Use |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I've had my LP-100 for almost 1 1/2 years now and it is one the of best investments I've made. It is well built, always handy for testing various projects and equipment, and accurate. The software is easy to use and the support is second to none with very fast replies from Larry. Highly recommended. |
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| JUNKMAN |
Rating: |
2008-03-07 | |
| Absolutely THE Best Wattmeter on the market today |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| If you are looking for a top of the line,professional grade wattmeter and buy anything other than the LP-100A you have no one to blame but yourself. I've owned them all,from the Alpha and Array Solutions all the way down thru the mid and cheap range meters and I'll assure you that the LP-100A IS the best wattmeter on the market today,bar none. Nothing else even comes close to the build quality and the precision accuracy that this meter offers. The bright Graphic VFD display is stunning and very easy to read. Many user customizable menu options let you setup the meter to your liking. Firmware can be user upgraded via downloads from the N8LP web site so adding new features as Larry developes them is a breeze. This is my second LP-100 so I know first hand that Larry is a super guy to deal with and does not hesitate to answer any questions or offer help should you have a problem with his product. I have been very impressed with both the original LP-100 and now the newer LP-100A and these will be the only meters that sit on my desk from now on. |
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| K2UM |
Rating: |
2008-02-01 | |
| Outstanding |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
As an owner of several Watt/SWR meters and antenna analyzers, my experiences and impressions of the LP-100A are based upon comparing the performance and capabilities of the instruments/devices I currently own. I think this a good way to review equipment – not based upon advertising, published specifications or my memory of “how something worked that I used to own.”
Let me start by saying that the LP-100A is so good and so accurate and so full of features that it is a definite 5 out of 5. Larry Phipps, N8LP has done an exceptional job of designing what, for me, is a superb accessory or, should I say, necessity, for my station.
I own an Array Solutions PowerMaster, a Bird 43, a Bird 43P and a Palstar Antenna Analyzer (ZM-30) as well as a Timewave AntennaSmith (TZ-900). The LP-100A does everything the Bird meters and the PowerMaster do but does them better by providing much more information, greater accuracy, and many customization possibilities.
The LP-100A can serve as an antenna (load) analyzer when operated in the Vector mode (one of five modes of operation). The LP-100A can eliminate the job of hooking up a separate antenna analyzer at the station end to monitor load complexities when, with the push of a button, it is put into Vector mode. Yes, I actually do this each time I operate my station since I fell victim, many years ago, to equipment failures because of my own stupidity and assumptions about the condition of feed lines or antennas. Just because all was well yesterday, it does not mean all is fine today. My ZM-30 and TZ-900 are now relegated to their storage cases and used for antenna building and outdoor antenna tweaking projects rather than using them to check my antenna status while I am at my operating position – something I do often, as I noted, to check the status of my various antennas.
But there is much more. The flexibility and operational capabilities of the LP-100A are fantastic.
The LP-100A has five operation/display modes: Normal (SWR and Power out). Besides “Normal” operating mode, the LP-100A has four other extremely useful modes of operation -- Vector; dBm; Field Strength (field strength measurements for assessing antenna radiation patterns); and, Peak-to-Average (which can be used to measure the effectiveness of speech processing, for example).
Further, the LP-100A, due to its very high sampling rate, can display true PEP and the LP-100A measurements matched the values I obtained for my current transceivers when I used lab grade testing equipment to measure their PEP. The LP-100A measurements were dead on the money. The Vector mode (as noted above) displays magnitude and phase of acomplex impedance as well as the resistive and reactive components. Software from N8LP interfaces with the LP-10OA unit and can give additional information regarding measurements made by the LP-100A. But, I will not go into all of that here. Detailed information is available on Larry’s (N8LP) web site and can be found at: http://www.telepostinc.com/
This is the very best Watt/SWR/Antenna metering system (note the word “system”) I have ever used in all of my years of ham radio operation. I love its very high sampling rate; customization opportunities; ability to act as an SWR sentinel to kill the PTT to an amp should a pre-determined mismatch occur; the software user interface program; and its highly accurate PEP measurements. These are just a few of the things I love most about the LP-100A. However, its capabilities extend way past the things I have mentioned here.
After using my PowerMaster (which I have had since they were introduced) and my LP-100A for a month, side by side, and comparing them with regard to their accuracy and capabilities, I took the Array Solutions PowerMaster (a very good device) out of service and replaced it with the LP-100A and bought a second LP-100A. Now, both of my main operating stations have their own, dedicated LP-100A.
A couple of notes … the LP-100A can be purchased as a kit or assembled and calibrated. I purchased the assembled and calibrated version. Larry is considering, at the time of this review, a daughterboard that will permit the addition of a second coupler to a single LP-100A display head. The LP-100A firmware can be updated from the Telepost, Inc. web site. Finally, Larry’s customer support is solid, unbelievably fast and is second to none.
Without reservation, the LP-100A is genuine 5 out of 5. Yep, for me, it is simply perfect.
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| KD8FJA |
Rating: |
2008-01-27 | |
| Well worth the price |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| I'm fairly new to Ham radio and have a shack full of boat anchors. I love my old Heathkit SB series equipment but this state of the art Digital Vector Wattmeter blows me away. I purchased it preassembled and have been very impressed with the construction and performance of the unit. I have barely scratched the surface of the capabilities of the unit and I am sure it will be a key part of my shack. I was having an issue with the computer interface and wrote to Larry about the problem. The answer was back almost before I sent the E-mail. WOW! The unit is easy to use and make tune up a breeze. Unbelievable good services and great product. Thank Larry. |
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| Francisco Martinez |
Rating: |
2008-01-04 | |
| Best of the best, Top of the line. |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
I was looking for a good meter in Dayton ,I looked to all possible option, The LP-100 was my choice, having other good meters, I found the Larry's LP-100 meter superior in all respect.
I got more than I pay for it.
Great service too.
tnx Larry.
frank. |
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| KB9MIE |
Rating: |
2007-11-26 | |
| A fine instrument. |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I can only echo all of the good things other reviewers have said about this meter and Larry's prompt response to questions.
An aspect of this meter not generally discussed is its ability to measure and plot complex impedances. I checked this by measuring the impedance at the input of a 25 foot length of LD4-50 terminated with a good 25 ohm dummy load. The resistive and reactive measurements were within one to two ohms of theoretical over the range 2 to 50 MHz. Considering the variation in impedance of coaxial cable, even from the same run, I judge the agreement to be very good.
Larry has done a fine job in integrating rig control software and the computer interfacing of the LP-100 to produce the ability to plot impedance vs. frequency. Using the free Ham Radio Deluxe program and Larry's LP-100_Plot program it was easy to plot the impedance of my Mystery Antenna at the meter in a short time over each separate ham band. Hopefully Larry will incorporate within the LP-100_Plot program the ability to plot the impedance at the antenna by plugging in the length and type of coax feeding the antenna.
One extra comment, the plot program requires a computer with two serial ports, mine has one. The Y-105 USB to serial converter Larry mentions did not initially work for me using the driver provided, loading the driver for Windows XP ,ICUSB232, available on the Internet solved the problem. |
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| GI4SJQ |
Rating: |
2007-11-26 | |
| Cool meter that does a lot |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I bought this as a kit back in October. After the usual wait. UK customs can take a while, the kit arrived. A couple of nights later and the meter was ready for calibration. The manual is well laid out and its very easy to get it set up.
The components are to a very high standard and the PCBs’ are very well made. The wattmeter works very well and is very accurate. The ability to plug it into the PC is a very big bonus. It’s great for checking the bandwidth of antennas. Kit wise I think it’s in the same league as the Elecraft gear. I am very pleased with the meter.
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