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Reviews For: Yaesu FL-2100B/Z

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

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Review Summary For : Yaesu FL-2100B/Z
Reviews: 57MSRP: 2000.00
Description:
fl2100b
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.foxtango.org
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00574.7
OE3JTB Rating: 2004-09-06
Well done Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Good amplifier, my one works 3 years an heavy duty with new tubes from RF PARTS, missing only the WARC bands, if anyone has a WARC tuning kit, let me know.
TG9AKH Rating: 2004-06-25
Great value for money Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought this rig a couple of months ago for about US$350. This is my first linear amp, so I am unable to compare its performance with other amps. Nevertheless, I have the impression that this is a very well built piece of equipment. The amp is producing up to 700W PEP out (measured using Palstar WM150 meter).

My only problem was interfacing with more modern rigs which I own. This was resolved by installing an Ameritron ARB-704 interface. For safety and to extend tube life, I also start the FL-2100B using one of Ameritron's step-start switches.

If you can find an FL-2100B in good condition, get it!
LU5DDX Rating: 2004-06-22
great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
yo tengo dos amplificadores un fl 2100b and un fl2100z y realmente los dos andan a la perfeccion
600 watts en las bandas bajas y 400 watts en 10 mts es la potencia promedio y realmente se nota en condiciones marginales de propagacion
la construccion exelente pero necesita 100 o 110 watts de exitacion para full power output
saludos desde bs as jorge
PA7TWO Rating: 2004-04-30
Good AMP, but.....some items need replacement? Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought my Yaesu FL2100B just a few months ago, unit must be over 20 years old I guess.
When I opened the AMP the first time, I saw that the HS choke had a few burned turns, resistors in anti-oscillation circuit were burned out and the original Cetron tubes were old and needed replacement as well. (Unit still produced 450 watts CW output power!)

Most modifications, as can be found at www.mods.dk were done, also the mod from Yaesu, originally intended to be for the Svetlana tubes, is actually a very good mod for all brands! (Why does Yaesu tell us to set the amp to 30ma idle current after the mod??? Svetlana specs tell us very clearly to use 90ma by two tubes!)

First job for me on the amp was to replace the HV 500volt - 100uf caps, these were FAR too old to be reliable & save. Replaced them with 8 x 400 volt 470uf caps on new ‘home brew’ mounting PCBs.
(Diodes have no problem with the higher rush-in current).

I ordered a ‘matched’ pair of Taylors 572Bs but when unpacked I noticed one tube had an ‘air bubble’ in the glass’ neck and the maximum idle current was only 60 ma by –0.01 volt, which is too low.
The HAM shop replaced the Taylors with another set of Taylors, this time I got to totally different set of tubes, not even they used different currents while idle, (one tube was far more Red than the other with PTT switch activated and no input power applied) also the shape of the tube itself was different! I have sent back these tubes as well and got my money back.

A good friend offered me a new ‘matched’ pair of National’s 572B tubes, which do the job perfectly, 85 ma –1volt while idle-ling. (Anton, thanks!)

Having these National 572Bs installed, a few hours of operation ended in a loud BANG.
I investigated the AMP very closely and found the chokes’ RDA30 HS 1000pf 3KV doorknob capacitor broken! VERY tiny little cracks in the paint while being in the circuit but one side fell of the cap while removing the other parts connected. Furthermore, VHF oscillations were noticed as well on a spectrum-analyzer.

I ordered this cap by a local HAM store and guess what, they had ONE sample for me in stock for the last 15 years, boy I was lucky!
New HV cap installed, re-wire-red the HS choke myself and AMP is working fine up to now (2 weeks).

So, installing a couple of ‘matched pair’ (NOT) 572B tubes before finding appropriate ones, modified the idle current circuit, replacement of the HV cap, to re-wire the HV choke, resistor replacements (hard to get are these composite coal resistors in PA land!) etc was not an easy task, but he what can you expect from a 25 years old piece of equipment…!

On a real watt meter, I get 550 watts on ALL bands using 90 watts of CW as input. Perhaps does SSB slightly more output in the peaks, but this was not noticed in my radio shack.


C. van Zuilen – pa7two.
PA3HGT Rating: 2003-12-20
Very nice amplifier Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I enjoy this very nice amplifier with the original tubes in it for 3 months.Outputpower was 600 watts PEP.
I also looked to Ameritron and Kenwood but Ameritron is bad and wimpy stuff and the tubes that are used in the Kenwood are very expensive so this is one of the ideal amplifiers if you can buy one for a nice price.
If you work with this nice amplifier ... treat this old lady with respect and you will enjoy this amplifier for a long time.
This amplifier was connected to a Icom IC756PROII and i made several improvements in the FL2100Z that you can find on my qslnet-website and on mods.dk .
I cleaned the relay-contacts and changed 2 coaxcables because the swr was in the beginning not so great.
The amplifier is reliable,well build,quiet,easy to use and do his job with great performance ,that is why i rate this amplifier 5 out 5.
W6PMR2 Rating: 2003-05-08
OK but not great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Built well and looks good but,...bandswitch is wimpy, burns out. The amp gets REAL hot, you need to bolt on a extra fan, it helps a lot.
The Ameritron 811 goes for about the same money and is a little less problematic.
Bottom line on these things, they are a cheap way into ampland.
K9FE Rating: 2003-05-08
Like a comfortable pair of pants Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I got my first FL-2100b in the late 70's. The one I have now I traded for last winter. Thought it would be a nice piece to have in the shack just to remind me of the younger days. I started using the amp once in a while. Now it a common occurance to see the amp on, especially on 40m. Mine puts out 700 watts on 20m and almost 750 on 40m with 100 watts in. Never run it that way however. Usually find that 400-500 is plenty (especially on 110vac). Drive at that power is usually between 35 and 50 watts watts. Even at that power level you can cook a frozen dinner in just a 5 minute keydown on SSB. The design is good with a fan for each tube, but the transformer needs one also. Picked up a 2300 rpm computer fan and clipped it to the case to blow into the back of the unit onto the transformer. Really helps. Speaking of cases, the FL-2100/b/z is not a simple "shear and brake" creation. Nicely built and straight forward. Another drawback is the rotary switch contacts. They should have been twice the mass. Just not enough metal to hold up under heavy use. If you can find a clean one with good contacts for under $300 it is a winner. All in all, the perfect HAM amp since it is not an appliance, you can actually fix it with a Simpson Voltmeter.
The reason for giving it a 5 is that it is just fun to use, quiet and does what it promises. Not a BMW more like a Volkswagen Beetle (the original).
73 de K9FE Mike
DU1UTD Rating: 2003-05-07
great for the money Time Owned: N.A.
Purchased mine used at $300. I have the FL-2100Z and still puts out 500 watts on all bands.Indispensable for my DX works calling CQ and also busting thru the pileups.Do not need more power as I usually get heard at 300 watts output. Built like a tank and easy to use.
KD0QO Rating: 2002-12-29
Excellent if you can find one! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
After passing on a FL-2100Z a few years ago, I promised myself that I would someday have one of these very nice amplifiers. The 'zed' is a real treat as it covers 160 through 10 meters *and* the WARC bands. It wasn't offered for sale in the US and so they come up for sale in the US quite rarely. In the last 10 years, I've only seen two offered for sale. I bought mine through an online ad for about $600 and I couldn't be more pleased with it. I can easily get 500 watts output with about 40 to 50 watts of drive and it is a very nice addition to the shack. More power can be had with more drive, but.... why? I have reached 700 watts, but it's hardly any better than 500 for reaching out there, and a pair of 572B's aren't really breathing hard at the 500 watt power level.

Re-tubing this amp with newer tubes is best left to Taylor brand. Svetlana made 572's will require a very minor circuit patch but I prefer to keep my amplifier stock. Cetron's are the ones you want if you can find them.

Internally, this is a very nicely built amplifier. Solid mechanical construction and conservative electrical design should allow these amps many years of service. Reairs should be quite easily made should the need ever arise.

All in all this is a highly desireable medium power tube amp that works very well and compliments any Yaesu collection.
G4REK Rating: 2002-11-08
very good Time Owned: more than 12 months.
HAD MY 2100B FOR 6 YEARS NOW. BOUGHT IT SECOND HAND, IT STILL PUTS OUT 600 WATTS WHEN DRIVEN WITH 125W ON INPUT. NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS AT ALL, AND THE 572B VALVES ARE MUCH CHEAPER NOW THAT MOST OPERATORS WANT SOLID STATE AMPS.
IF ANY PROBLEMS ITS SO EASY TO WORK ON, IT JUST GOES ON AND ON LIKE ME.

JIM G4REK................