ALS606 power connector
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- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- This is a potential user safety issue with the MFJ/Ameritron ALS-606 amplifier. It is also a good idea to check this in other amplifiers.
The reported score on this so far at 12 hours is:
2018 (2)
2017 (1)
Just checked my ALS-606 by using and ohmmeter to that pin to the chassis and it was a dead short. So I pulled the cover and sure enough it had the connection to chassis ground. I just snipped it out and replaced the cover and very glad I saw this video. Many thanks Tom !
Don't mind my anti-spam name. :) This is Tom.
What serial number and date is your amplifier? I'm trying to get an idea of when they made this change, how many amplifiers have this problem, and if they blow up if wired for 240Vac!!! This will also potentially damage the power supply. This factory screw-up has a very complicated field result!
There was a time when they added an illuminated off-on switch. I'm not sure if they made this change at that time or at some other time.
Incidentally, there were conversations where I warned their local staff the switching supplies were not 240Vac compatible with the ALS-600 and the 120V fan unless a small step-down transformer was added. I'm thinking someone went rogue on that and used the power line safety ground pin as a fan and a switch light return. I have not had occasion to look at that yet, but I always wondered how they got the switch light to work.
This is a real surprise to me. Powerline safety is critical. This can hurt people.
The serial number sticker on this one is unreadable, but the QC stickers inside all read 2017. I got this one used from someone that didn't need to own an amplifier and basically beat it to death. I spent a couple of hours beating dents out of the case cover just to get it looking halfway decent, and several days reconnecting wires that had been torn loose and replacing the 9 pin remote control socket. Luckily, when I finished, the thing did work and has been working great for over a year now! I did have to replace the relays in it too.
Thanks for posting this Tom. I wish my ALS-600 was a 606 for the 6 meter function.
I must say that it has been working very well. Only have to blow the dust out of it and about ever 6 months gently clean the relay contacts to keep them from sticking. I just use air to blow away any particles, and use a thin strip of heavier standard printer paper across the contacts and its read to rock n roll again.
Great to hear from you Tom.
Stay safe and stay blessed.
Greg
KT4RAM
Thank you, Tom!
Thank you Tom!
My 606 was also shorted. QAed by "KA" on 10/17. Thanks Tom!
Shezzz! I'll pass this around.
Thanks,
De K4WRF
Hi Tom,
Bought an ALS-606S late April 2023. Worked OK on 120VAC, but when configured for 240VAC would blow the fuse on the white wire. Contacted Ameritron and had to send it back mid May at a cost of $120. When it was returned it did work on 240VAC and the service report mentioned that the installed fan was for 120VAC and should have been a 12VDC. I did the test mentioned in this video and did not see any connection to the round plug pin. There was a connection from the white wire to the round plug pin when it was setup for either 120VAC or 240VAC before the amp was sent back for repair. 73 WJ3U
I have found several amplifiers wired this way. Grounding the neutral to the chassis is both illegal (against national electrical codes) and unsafe in any amplifier.
In the ALS600 analog supply that pin ties to one side of a transformer primary. If they are going to have a universal supply that works with the 600 amplifier and its 120Vac fan, that neutral pin has to float in all the other amplifiers.