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I'm looking for a recommendation for a power supply for my 110 Watt UHF remote mount Spectra. I just removed it from my vehicle ( being replaced with an XTL5000 ) and I plan on using the Spectra as a base station for local GMRS repeaters on my desk at home. Any good power supply ( and while I'm at it, any good external antenna recommendations as well ? ) recommendations ?
I want to put this thing to use and not have it sitting around collecting dust
Astron RS-35 or 35M (only difference is the 35M has meters). AVOID switching power supplies.
I've had the same two Astro power supplies for 20 years. they never get turned off. They are as dependable as they come. They are not the cheapest, but they are the best. Made in USA too.
The views here are my own and do not represent those of anyone else or the company, the boss, his wife, his dog or distant relatives.
Why? Most of the supplies Moto sells are switchers. I've got several Astron switchers and have had zero problems with them.
That is a Hams old wifes tail and most Hams can not get with the future which concerning power supplies is with switching supplies
and are state of the art these days. Try looking at the IOTA Engineering DLS series and are among the most outstanding supplies
made today and are just about bullet proof electronicly. I have one at a site that receives so many power hits each year and it
handles them with no problem and keep working flawlessly. Been working 24x7 365 since 2002.
Why? Most of the supplies Moto sells are switchers. I've got several Astron switchers and have had zero problems with them.
That is a Hams old wifes tail and most Hams can not get with the future which concerning power supplies is with switching supplies
and are state of the art these days. Try looking at the IOTA Engineering DLS series and are among the most outstanding supplies
made today and are just about bullet proof electronicly. I have one at a site that receives so many power hits each year and it
handles them with no problem and keep working flawlessly. Been working 24x7 365 since 2002.
+1 for Iota Engineering. My radio rack at the house runs off a DLS-45. Quiet, efficient, and you can float a battery bank with them. I've used it to power 110W Spectras for alignment (read: long keying cycles) and can positively verify that it's up to the task.
Not even a glitch with one of the Astron SS-30M switching I've forgot how long I've had it. Besides, its only weighs 5 pounds if that, cant complain about that. But still gives the old crabs something to complain about, most of them refusing to operating appliances any newer than 25+ yrs ago
Motorola says people have to buy SMPS in accordance with California law. No need to waste that expensive solar & wind energy to vampires, emiryt?
Dealers were still ordering the standard power supplies and not paying the $5 premium, so Motorola canceled out most of the regular PS and replaced them with SMPS, A few stragglers still exist.
SMPS are superior in the sense that they accept quite a wide range of input voltages. Hence the 90-240VAC inputs for many Motorola PS nowadays. For what it's worth the XTS Impres chargers have had a SMPS integrated since day one.
Those 100 watt Spectra's can draw 30 amps. The Astron RS35M is rated at 25 amps continuous. While it's fine to use one with 100 watt HF rig which can draw 20 amps on peaks in SSB, I would get the Astron 50 amp model for that 100 watt Spectra. It is well known that if Astron had spent an extra $2 per unit they could have used higher rated caps, & transistors, allowing a higher continuous output. So whenever I need to buy a heavy Astron PS, I go 1 step higher than I would think I needed. By the way, I have a few SS 30's that have been on 24/7 for the last 10 years. The only thing I had to do was install a 100 ohm resistor to slow down the cooling fan to lower the noise. GARY
Another way to do it for a high power application is to use a large (100 AH) Gel/AGM battery and a proper battery charger. You probably only need a 10-amp charger as the battery will supply the surge current on TX and the charger will provide recovery on RX.
