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Reviews For: Tokyo Hy-Power HL-1.1Kfx

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

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Review Summary For : Tokyo Hy-Power HL-1.1Kfx
Reviews: 8MSRP: $2400
Description:
600 watt Solid State HF Amplifier
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.tokyohypower.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0085
UA9CDC Rating: 2016-01-12
Very reliable Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I got this amp used 3 years ago. It is fool proof and very reliable. Can be easyly modified for automatic band switching since switching is done with relays. I simply did not bother to do that because this amp is my back up for Expert 1.3K-FA.
W6GX Rating: 2012-10-06
Three year update Time Owned: more than 12 months.
It's been three years since my last review on this little beauty. The amp. continues to impress. Everything works the way it should. No complaints on its performance whatsoever. The amp. has been 100% reliable with no issues at all. I've moved to a new QTH and I have it hooked up to a dedicated 220v circuit. It worked fine on 120v at my prior QTH.

I have have a few suggestions to THP to improve upon what's already an excellent product.

- The fan could be perceived as loud in a quiet environment. I wished THP could have put some intelligence in the fan's circuit such that it would be off when the amp. is turned on but not transmitting.
- Make the four resting 'feet' on the side optional. This is purely a cosmetic nit pick.
- An auto bandswitch is perhaps necessary to compete with other SS amps. Occasionally I still forget to set the correct band.
- Price. The current price of $3k on the 1.1 replacement is kinda expensive. I paid a lot less when I purchased it new three years ago.

Currently I'm more serious in DX'ing and at times I wished I had a legal limit amplifier. I'm considering of upgrading it to a 2.5.

73,
Jonathan Woo W6GX
VA7OJ Rating: 2011-03-13
Excellent, lightweight amplifier Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I recently acquired my HL-1.1Kfx used, from a good friend. It looks like new.

On connecting it to my IC-7700 and calibrating the ALC, I found that the little amp delivers 600W effortlessly with ~ 60W drive. The amp is powered from 240V mains. It runs cool and the fan is acceptably quiet, though a little noisier than the fans in my Yaesu Quadra. The fan runs continuously when the unit is powered up.

I tested the HL-1.1Kfx on the air in SSB mode, and received very good reports. I plan to run a 2-tone IMD test soon.

The light weight (9.5 kg) and compact, self-contained packaging make for excellent portability, which is very practical in many situations. The switch-mode PSU helps a lot here. I did not observe any EMC/EMI issues attributable to the PSU.

The new HL-550, which replaces the now-discontinued HL-1.1Kfx, is the same size and weight, but covers 6m as well as all HF bands.
GM0GAV Rating: 2010-04-03
Great amplifier Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
This amp now has nearly 50k qso's on the clock - ZK2V, 6W/GM4FDM and just returned from S79GM. Easy to use, well protected, well designed and cooled. At S79GM we used it for a full day at 400w of RTTY, in a shack about 34 degrees C. The amplifier was no warmer than normal. It's compact and at 9.5Kg you can carry it on to an aircraft in a shoulder bag.

I will also make a good amplifier for home use, although quite expensive I suspect it will retain it's value over the longer term.

DM5TI Rating: 2009-12-09
Reliable amplifier Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
In preparation of our DXpedition to VK9X I bought the amplifier on October 2009.
Now we are back from Christmas Island VK9X and the result is more than satisfied. Absolutely we had ZERRO problems with our amplfier under tropical conditions. The amplifier was running 14 days round the clock without any failures and made more than 17k Qs.
THP did a great job, amplifier is very light ... we carried the amp as hand-luggage. The protection against operation errors is very reliable ...
With intention I did some errors ( w/o antenna, w/o cooling, wrong band section, 100W input power and so on ). Protection switched off the amplifier all the time very fast. Nothing happened.

I'm very satisfied with my THP HL 1.1kfx. Maybe I buy a second one.

Some measurements.

75W in 600W out ( SSB/CW )
50W in 400W out ( RTTY )

More power isn`t availabe because the inside switch mode powersupply has no more capacity.

73 Harry DM5TI



W2IL Rating: 2009-05-02
Fantastic AMP Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Purchased HL-1.1KFX from HRO in Atlanta. It came double boxed in perfect condition.
It is a beautifully made solid piece of equipment. It runs very quiet and cool.
The Tech Rep. for Tokyo, Tom Rum W5RUM is very helpful answering any questions regarding hook up etc.
I am driving it with the Yeasu FT-950 and use a Palstar AT2K antenna tuner. It's an great combination. For the first time, I'm breaking the pile-ups for that rare DX.
I did much research before purchase and I am pleased with my decision to buy. It costs a bit more but I'm sure it will be worth the extra bucks.
W6DXK Rating: 2009-03-14
Solid performer Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Bought the HL-1.1Kfx from Array Solutions and received it just before the ARRL 2009 DX Contest. Exercised the amp for 150 contacts on a combination of 75, 40, 20 and 15, and it performed flawlessly.

Tests on those bands plus 10M before and after the contest showed it delivered the promised 600W with anywhere from 65-100W drive from my K3, band dependent. When compared to an Array Solutions Power Master, the internal meter read anywhere from exactly accurate to 10% low. For example on 20M with 75W drive the amp displayed 600W DC and the Power Master reported 656W output. On 40M, 85W drive showed 600W on the internal meter and 665W on the Power Master. Conclusion is that it delivers the promised 600W DC, or better.

Had no problems running the 1.1 into a 1.6:1 VSWR on 75M and 10M. That was the worst case on my Steppir BigIR vertical. All other bands were under 1.1 at resonance. IF you overdrive it, it will shutdown and you have a 5 minute re-start penalty. Likewise if you don't set the amp on the right band, it will shut down instantly, but that's good news!

I'm running the amp on 115VAC, with a ham radio equipment dedicated line servicing the K3 and the 1.1 only. Under full load line voltage is 116VAC.

I wish it had auto band switching, but otherwise the small size, light weight, and functionality is unbeatable. I do not use the ALC interconnect between the K3 and the 1.1. As the guys at Elecraft point out, it's just not necessary. I have received excellent signal reports and given the chance to buy this or another amp, I'd buy this again in a heartbeat.
K9EL Rating: 2008-12-23
Excellent! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just got the new HL1.1Kfx. At only 22 pounds including power supply, this is light enough and small enough to easily fit in a carry-on suitcase for DX-pedition use. It uses the same output devices as some of the other higher power amplifiers, so getting 600 watts out on all bands was no problem. Some bands output was 800w. I set the ALC to limit the output to 600w. At 600w, it seems to loaf - very little heat generated. I suspect this will be a very popular amplifier due to its small size and weight, yet easily does 600watts. Only downside is no auto band switching.