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Reviews For: Kantronics/Amp Supply/Tokyo Hy-Power monobanders

Category: Transceivers: HF Amateur HF+6M+VHF+UHF models - non QRP <5W

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Review Summary For : Kantronics/Amp Supply/Tokyo Hy-Power monobanders
Reviews: 5MSRP:
Description:
20 watt monoband HF transceivers
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.netferrets.net/thp
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0054.8
M5TAW Rating: 2007-04-27
Good radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned a couple of 20m versions and one 80m radio - all secondhand. They sell for approx £100 in the UK and are great value for money. I operate predominantly SSB and have been impressed with the audio output and drive, I receive good audio reports and have made a number of good DX contacts. The receiver section is good, no complaints there and the analogue signal meter is good too. My only criticism is that the frequency always defaults back to .000 when you turn off power - less of an issue if you operate in the CW portion of the band i imagine.
Quite hard to come by, but definately worth a look if you want a simple monoband low power transceiver.
AA6CK Rating: 2005-08-21
Excellent transceivers. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have the Amp Supply TR-110 & TR-180 and they've been rugged and reliable. Just found a new Kantronics KT-110 from a distributor, and it's excellent. It came in the sealed original package, just the way it left the factory. The KT-110 did not come with a manual, but rather a detailed schematic diagram. These transceivers are a good choice for solid, no frills performance on one band.
K7VO Rating: 2003-08-30
Great, very inexpensive way to go mobile on HF Time Owned: more than 12 months.
An update to the original review of these rigs: I've now owned the 6, 10, 15, 30, and 40 meter versions. All are excellent and I now run a Kantronics KT-115 mobile. The noise blanker does work very well indeed. Sadly, the board is no longer available from Tokyo Hy-Power. I feel fortunate to have the HN-100 boards in my radios, as well as the HBK-100 mounting bracket. It does fit nicely in my Honda Civic.

Obviously, if you run one of these mobile you only get one band, but with the radios now often showing up for $75-$125 on the used market the THP or Kantronics monobanders are a very good, very inexpensive way to have some HF mobile capability. Add an inexpensive Hamstick-type antenna (Valor, Workman, Opek, Antron, Lakeview, etc...) and you will have lots of fun on the band of your choice. You certainly will be getting a newer, more stable, and more reliable radio than, say, an old Atlas. Factory service is still available for these rigs, too.

I added a small MFJ SBF-2 external SSB filter to fight adjacent channel QRM and it did make a difference. It's a pity THP didn't have something like that built in.

Overall, at the price you can now find these for, the Tokyo Hy-Power, Kantronics, or Amp Supply monobanders are unbeatable.
KB8DNS Rating: 2001-03-24
Great little monobanders! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I can only add to the last review as he summed up the design well.
I have had two of these rigs, the Tokyo High-Power HT-106 and the Amp Supply
10 meter. the HT-106 was purchased in 1993 at a HAM fest in Duluth, Mn.
I paid alot for it but it was my first SSB/CW 6 meter. Works very well and the few who I loaned it out to were pleased with the radio.
The Amp Supply 10 meter was won in an auction
on EBAY and that is where the jpg came from. Sorry to say but the rig was damaged in
transit so I had no chance to use it. I will look for another that is on some band.
KU4QD Rating: 2000-04-13
Neat little monoband rigs. Time Owned: unknown months.
Tokyo Hy-Power made a series of seven virtually identical monobanders for 6, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, and 80 meters in the mid and late '80s. The "Series 100" was first brought into the U.S. by Amp Supply Company around 1986, and they sold the 10 and 80 meter versions under their own name. The Amp Supply rigs are dark gray with a red LED display, so they look a little different than the others. The 10 meter TR-110 sold quite well, I think. After Amp Supply went out of business, Kantronics sold the entire line, with the exception of the six meter version, in North America under their name. Kantronics models are number KT-1xx, while Tokyo Hy-Power models are HT-1xx. The rigs are a little bigger than a Ten Tec Scout, and weight about seven pounds, so they are like a small base rig or an oversized mobile. They have a bright yellow/green LED display, which is easy to read on the base. I haven't tried one of these mobile. Each rig (except the HT-106) puts out 20 watts SSB/CW. I've owned the 6, 10, and 15 meter versions, and still have the HT-106. I regret selling the others, and will buy them again as I find them. The rigs have hot little receivers, and outstanding transmit audio with lots of punch, so working DX really is no problem, even at 20 watts. Unlike many of the 10 meter monobanders on the market, these are not warmed over CBs, but were designed as ham rigs from the start. The only QRM fighting tool is an RIT control, unfortunately, and this is the only drawback to the rig. The stock SSB filter is excellent, but CW through it is way too wide. If you pick up any of these rigs for CW, try to find one with the optional 250hz narrow CW filter. An optional noise blanker (model HN-100) is available for them and is quite effective, and Tokyo Hy-Power still has some in stock. I had no problem importing one for my HT-106. The mounting bracket was also optional, as were matching amplifiers and a power supply/speaker. If you use the internal speaker, which is on te bottom, a wire stand lifts the rig to make it easy to hear. These are very simple, basic rigs, yet they seem to still be in demand and hold their value reasonably well. If you are looking for good little monoband rigs, these are probably the best. For example, I'd rate the Kantronics KT-115 I owned as even better than my NCG 15M.