Evaluate the amp draw of a rig Posted on Saturday, 4/19/2008
You might think, if I draw 15a at 100w RF output, then I should draw
7a at50w. Well, think agn! I hooked up both my Icom 718 and 706 to
an analog amp meter and measured the draw of both at various RF output
levels. If you are getting revved up for Field Day or Picnic Portable or
other portable ops and are planning on running off of battery, I suggest
you do a similar exercise prior to deployment to see what you draw so
you can calculate how long you can operate off the battery you are
running!
A basic setup for generating a table of amp draw and
RF output power.
For a "real world" evaluation, I hooked everything up as if it were to be operated in
a portable environment.
Here are the results I had:
Icom 706 "Classic"
Set
RF
Amp
L
5
5
1
6
6
2
9
8
3
12
9
4
25
9
5
50
10
6
60
10
7
80
11
8
100
11
9
105
12
H
110
12
Icom 718
Set
RF
Amp
18
5
5
26
10
6
47
25
9
67
50
10
79
75
11
H
100
12
From looking at the tables, you can see that what you would think would
happen, does not. Using common sense logic does not apply here, make a table
of the rig's output power and draw so you can be accurate.
