LDG AT-600ProII 600W Automatic Antenna Tuner
Contents
1. ILI JL 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Function Mode On PAGE 10 Function mode times out after few seconds if no other button is pushed Alternately function mode can be cancelled by pressing the Func button again In either case when Function mode is exited down arrow is displayed on the LED display 10 25 50 100200300450 600 LILILIG LIC U 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Function Mode Off Peak Mode On Off The Power display on the LED bargraph can display either average power or peak forward power in watts Average mode is suitable for 100 duty cycle modes such as FM RTTY or PSK Peak mode is more useful on modes with varying duty cycle such as SSB or AM The factory default is average mode To toggle between power display modes press Func gt C Up Press and release Func then press and release C Up Peak mode is indicated by a falling meter display with the highest power shown as a steady LED while the remaining LEDs fall back to zero Average mode shows the same display but without the steady LED showing Press Func gt C Up repeatedly to toggle between Peak and Average modes 10 25 50 100 200300450 600 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Peak Mode PAGE 11 Wattmeter Scale The Power LED bargraph displays either 0 to 60 watts or 0 to 600 watts full scale To toggle between these two scales press Func gt L Up The2. Ant 2 Ant 1 GND TX Hee pago Radio LDG Electronics Inc CE 1445 Parran Road LDO i Leonard MD 20685 v Made in Taiwan 410 586 2177 citeTROweS Ant 1 Connect a 50 ohm antenna coax feedline to this SO 239 connector This jack is automatically disconnected when the AT 600ProlII is turned off Ant 2 Connect a second 50 ohm antenna coax feedline to this SO 239 connector This is the antenna jack that is active when the ANT 2 LED is lit on the front panel Also this jack is active when the AT 600ProllI is turned off Gnd wing nut Connect to the antenna system ground Tx Connect 50 ohm jumper coax from this jack to ANT jack on the rear of the amplifier Ext Meter Connect LDG M 600 External Meter to this jack or use for remote control via PC Radio optional Connect the optional IC PAC Icom Y ACC Yaesu IC 2000 Yaesu FT 2000 or AL PAC Alinco radio interface cable Power Connect the supplied DC coaxial power cable to this connector and connect to a source of 11 16 VDC IA Center pin is positive PAGE 6 INSTALLATION The AT 600Proll is intended for indoor use only it is not water resistant If you use it outdoors Field Day for example you must protect it from rain The AT 600ProlII is designed for use with coax fed antennas If use with longwires or ladder line fed antennas is desired an external balun rated to 600 wat
3. JU LI J JNE ILIC 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Long Press gt 2 5 sec If you are using one of the optional radio interface cables the radio will automatically reduce power switch to CW mode and begin transmitting while the full tuning cycle is in progress If not key the radio Talk into the mic on SSB or AM close the key on CW until the tuning cycle is complete As with the memory tuning cycle when the tuning cycle is complete the LEDs will scan inward to indicate a successful tune 3 An SWR rollback circuit automatically reduces the output power level when high SWR is present Check your radio s manual to see if your radio uses a rollback circuit PAGE 15 Bypass Mode The AT 600Proll may be placed in Bypass Mode by pressing the Tune button momentarily less than 0 5 second Bypass places the tuner in a pass thru configuration where the tuner behaves like a coax Jumper not affecting the antenna match When placed in Bypass Mode the Bypass LED will light and the 600 is automatically put into Semi Automatic Tuning Mode Bypass may be useful for comparing the effect of the AT 600Proll s tuning versus the unmatched antenna system Pressing Tune momentarily again will take the unit out of Bypass Mode the LED will no longer be lit and the relay settings of the previous match will be restored The tuner will still be in Semi Automatic Tuning Mode unit you reset it to Automatic Tuning mode When
4. microprocessor controlled and as such generates a small amount of RF noise when the processor is active Normally the processor is only active during transmit operation so the noise is not normally heard however if Peak mode is selected the processor remains active for a moment after key up to allow the LEDs to settle back down to zero You may briefly hear some noise in your receiver during this time This is normal and is noticeable the most when using CW in full break in with Peak mode selected In practice this should not be much of a problem as Peak mode is not very useful when using CW MARS CAP Coverage The AT 600Proll provides continuous tuning coverage from 1 8 MHz to 54 0 MHz not just inside the ham bands This makes it useful for MARS or CAP operation or any other legal HF operation PAGE 20 Operation with LDG Electronics 600 External Meter The AT 600Proll has an external meter jack on the rear panel which supports use of the M 600 External Meter The M 600 External Meter is an optional accessory for the AT 600Proll that provides a large analog meter movement and can be used to display Forward Power Reflected Power and SWR Be sure to turn off your AT 600Proll before plugging in or unplugging the M 600 External Meter The metered parameter displayed on the external meter need not be the same as the parameter selected for viewing on the AT 600ProlII s built in LED bargraphs so it is possible to watch t
5. specifications or by not following good Amateur practice OUT OF WARRANTY SERVICE If a product fails after the warranty period LDG wants to help you get it fixed Send the product to us for repair any time you like We will determine what needs to be done and based on your instructions either contact you with an estimate or fix it and contact you with a request to pay any repair charges RETURNING YOUR PRODUCT FOR SERVICE Returning a product to LDG is easy We do not require a return merchandise authorization and there is no need to contact LDG to return your product Visit the LDG web site and download the LDG Product Repair Form On the Repair Form tell the LDG technicians exactly what happened or didn t happen and why you believe the product needs servicing The technician attempts to duplicate the problem s you had based on how well you describe it so take the time to be accurate and complete Ask your shipper for a tracking number or a delivery verification receipt This way you know the product arrived safely at LDG Be sure to give us your email address so our shipper can alert PAGE 27 you online when your product is en route back to you Please be assured that our staff makes every effort to complete repairs ahead of our published wait time Your patience is appreciated Repairs can take six to eight weeks but are usually faster The most recent information on returning products for service is found on the LDG website u
6. the tuner is placed in Bypass mode it will remain in bypass mode until either a You re enable Full Automatic Tuning mode b You manually increment or decrement the inductor capacitor settings If an ICOM radio and interface cable is used the 600 may also be bypassed by pressing the TUNER CALL button momentarily On some models of ICOM radios changing bands will also automatically bypass the tuner Error Indication When performing a tuning cycle there are several conditions that may occur that cause the tune to fail All are reported as an error via blinking the front panel LEDs in a particular fashion The following errors are reported e ERR_NO_MATCH Unable to find a suitable match Upon completing an entire full tuning cycle no combination of inductors and capacitors was able to bring the SWR below 3 5 1 e ERR_NO_RF No RF power was present at the beginning of a tuning cycle In other words the Tune button was pressed to request a tune cycle but the transmitter was not keyed up e ERR_LOST_RF RF power disappeared before the tuning cycle completed You must continue to key the radio until the tuning cycle completes e ERR_NO_FREQ Unable to determine operating frequency In order to store a memory match the frequency of the transmitted RF must be known e ERR_OVER_PWR ERR_SWR_PWR Relay protection activated Because the relays may be damaged if they are switching during high power operation software pr
7. transmitter consists of inductors and capacitors usually in a series parallel configuration called a pi network The transmission line can be thought of as a long string of capacitors and inductors in series parallel and the antenna is a kind of resonant circuit At any given RF frequency each of these can exhibit resistance and impedance in the form of capacitive or inductive reactance t Capacitive Reactance Inductive Reactance Voltage Current Current Voltage l Transmitters transmission lines antennas and impedance The output circuit of a transmitter the transmission line and the antenna all have a characteristic impedance For reasons beyond the scope of this document the standard impedance is nominally 50 ohms resistive with zero capacitive and zero inductive components When all three parts of the system have the same impedance the system is said to be matched and maximum transfer of power from the transmitter to the antenna occurs While the transmitter output circuit and transmission line are of fixed carefully designed impedance the antenna presents 50 ohm non reactive load only at its natural resonant frequencies At other frequencies it will exhibit capacitive or inductive reactance causing it to have an impedance other than 50 ohms When the impedance of the antenna is different from that of the transmitter and transmission line a mismatch is said to exist In this case so
8. when transmitting with lower power levels For many transceivers this is a simple matter of switching the radio to AM or RTTY mode and keying the mic THEORY OF OPERATION Some basic ideas about impedance The theory underlying antennas and transmission lines is fairly complex and in fact employs a mathematical notation called complex numbers that have real and imaginary parts It is beyond the scope of this manual to present a tutorial on this subject but a little background will help in understanding what the 600 is doing and how it does it 4 For a very complete treatment of this subject see any edition of the ARRL Handbook for Radio Communications previously the Handbook For Radio Amateurs PAGE 21 In simple DC circuits the wire resists current flow converting some of it into heat The relationship between voltage current and resistance is described by the elegant and well known Ohm s Law named for Georg Simon Ohm of Germany who first discovered the principle in 1826 In RF circuits an analogous but more complicated relationship exists RF circuits also resist the flow of electricity However the presence of capacitive and inductive elements causes the voltage to lead or lag the current respectively In RF circuits this resistance to the flow of electricity is called impedance and can include all three elements resistive capacitive and inductive The output circuit of a
9. 1 3 and 1 5 1 No LEDs lit means the SWR is less than 1 1 1 The Bypass LED lights any time that all the internal relays are in their de energized state meaning that no inductance or capacitance is being added to the antenna system by the tuner PAGE 13 TUNING Basic Tuning Operation A tuning cycle on the AT 600Proll is initiated from either the Tune button on the front of the AT 600Proll an over SWR condition when in fully automatic tuning mode or from pressing the TUNER CALL button on the front of an ICOM radio connected using the ICOM interface cable Two types of tuning cycles are available A memory tuning cycle attempts to tune quickly based on having previously tuned on the present frequency selection If the tuner previously was successful in tuning on the currently selected frequency the settings from that match will be loaded into the tuner relays and checked to see if an acceptable SWR level is found using these memorized settings Memory frequency step sizes vary with the selected band Steps are very close together on the lower bands to accommodate the typically higher Q antennas for those bands while step size is somewhat larger on the higher 17 meters and up bands where antenna Q is typically lower A full tuning cycle starts from scratch and begins a fixed tuning sequence where the AT 600Proll rapidly tries varying combinations of inductance and capacitance values and then zeroes in on the best match p
10. 8 AT 600PROII OPERATIONS MANUAL MANUAL REV LDG 600 600W Automatic Antenna Tuner LDG ELECTRONICS LDG Electronics 1445 Parran Road St Leonard MD 20685 2903 USA Phone 410 586 2177 Fax 410 586 8475 Idg ldgelectronics com www ldgelectronics com Table Of Contents Introduction Jumpstart or Real hams don t read manuals Specifications An Important Word About Power Levels Important Safety Warning Getting to know your AT 600Proll Front Panel Back Panel Installation Basic Operation Using the Front Panel Buttons User Configuration Options Transmitting and Receiving Tuning Basic Tuning Operation Manual Memory Tune Manual Full Tune Bypass Mode Error Indication Advanced Operation Manual Inductor Capacitor Adjustments High Low Relay Adjustment Manual Memory Store Status Check Application Notes Mobile Operation Internally Generated RF Noise MARS CAP Coverage Operation with LDG Electronics M 600 External Meter Tuning Hints Theory of Operation Some basic ideas about impedance Transmitters transmission lines antennas and impedance The LDG AT 600Proll A Word About Tuning Etiquette Care and Maintenance Quick Reference Technical Support Two Year Transferrable Warranty Out Of Warranty Service Returning Your Product For Service Product Feedback N N N NM NM N N N N N N l l INJ NADAANAN NANNY IY SSIS OISE ER JSS ONDRAR G N 2 INTRODUCTION LDG
11. LED marked 50 or 600 will light momentarily to indicate the newly selected scale 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 LI J BEE EEE 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 60 Watt Scale 600 Watt Scale Automatic Tuning Mode The AT 600ProII may be set for either semi automatic tuning fully automatic tuning In semi automatic tuning mode a tuning cycle will not begin unless specifically requested by pressing the Tune button In fully automatic tuning mode a tuning cycle will begin any time there is RF present and the SWR exceeds a pre set level The default setting is fully automatic tuning mode To toggle between semi and fully automatic modes press Func gt C Dn The LED display will show one of the two patterns to indicate which mode has been selected 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 LI J gt J J 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Auto Mode Semi Mode Automatic Tune SWR Threshold When the AT 600Proll is in fully automatic tuning mode an automatic tuning cycle will begin any time RF is present and the SWR has exceeded a set threshold This threshold is user programmable to any value between 1 7 1 and 3 0 1 To set the automatic tune SWR threshold press Func gt L Dn repeat
12. WR tuning threshold ANT HiLoZ Display High Low Impedance PAGE 19 APPLICATION NOTES Mobile Operation The AT 600Proll is perfectly suited to mobile operation It can be installed under the dashboard along with the transceiver or mounted remotely The only requirements are that the tuner remains dry and that the power source is fused appropriately A 2 amp fast blow fuse is recommended If the ICOM or Yaesu radio interface cable is needed for a remote installation the optional cables can be extended in two ways The original cable can be cut and jumper wires soldered between all the connections or new connectors can be purchased and a pair of homebrew extender cables made with the new connectors Mouser P N 17PP004 EX __ 1 7 Mouser P N Mouser P N 1710 0725 163 0303 Mouser P N 16PJ106 EX DC Power Extender Radio Interface Extender Cable For ICOM Interface With the 600 mounted for example in the trunk simply set the AT 600ProlII for fully automatic mode It will automatically tune any time the SWR exceeds the preprogrammed threshold Although the LED display will not be visible in the trunk of the car your transceiver s built in SWR meter will show the tuner s progress Remember to keep your eyes on the road however In most cases a match will be recalled from memory so the SWR will snap to a low value as soon as you begin to transmit Internally Generated RF Noise The AT 600Proll is
13. cales and three indicator LEDs 10 25 50 100 200 300 450 600 O C C C C ma n Tune Dau S ESTO ew 11 13 15 17 20 25 3 0 Over HilLoZ Thresh O Bypass Ant2 amp AT 600Proll Autotuner e Power Turns the unit on or off The Power LED glows when the power is on e Func Activates secondary function of other buttons Ant Selects the active antenna port C Up Manually increase capacitance C Dn Manually decrease capacitance L Up Manually increase inductance L Dn Manually decrease inductance Tune Initiates memory or full tuning cycle Momentary push places tuner in bypass e PWR Meter Bargraph display indicates forward power in 0 60 and 0 600 watt ranges e SWR Meter Bargraph display indicates SWR during tuning or transmission Bypass LED Indicates Bypass mode is active ANT 2 LED Lights when Antenna 2 is selected Off when Antenna is selected Each of the pushbuttons has the primary function listed above when pushed Additionally pressing the FUNC button before pressing any other button will activate that button s secondary function The power button on the AT 600ProlII actually places the tuner in bypass and enters a low power sleep mode rather than turning the unit fully off Press the Power button for 1 second to turn off or momentarily to turn on PAGE 5 Back Panel The rear panel of the AT 600Proll has seven Jacks
14. capacitor and inductor banks seeking the lowest possible SWR The tuner 18 Switched L network consisting of series inductors and parallel capacitors LDG chose the L network for its minimum number of parts and its ability to tune unbalanced loads such as coax fed dipoles verticals Yagis and in fact virtually any coax fed antenna The series inductors are switched in and out of the circuit and the parallel capacitors are switched to ground under microprocessor control The high low impedance relay switches the capacitor bank either to the transmitter side of the inductor bank or to the antenna side This allows the AT 600ProlII to handle loads that are either greater than or less than 50 ohms All relays are sized to carry 600 watts PEP The SWR sensor is a variation of the Bruene circuit This SWR measuring technique is used in most dual meter and direct reading SWR meters Slight modifications were made to the circuit to provide voltages instead of currents for the analog to digital converters that provide signals proportional to the forward and reflected power levels The single lead primary through the center of the sensor transformer provides RF current sampling Diodes rectify the sample and provide a DC voltage proportional to RF power These two voltages are read by the ADCs in the microprocessor and are used to compute SWR in real time Although the microprocessor s oscillator runs at 32 MHz which allows the main tuning r
15. edly press Func then L Dn Func then L Dn and so on to cycle through all the options The SWR threshold will be displayed on the SWR scale momentarily PAGE 12 The default value of SWR threshold is 2 0 1 The following example shows setting SWR threshold to 1 7 1 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 H H H H H HI 1 _ 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Auto Threshold Antenna Selection Press the Ant button momentarily to toggle which antenna port is currently active The ANT 2 LED will light when Antenna 2 is selected and is off when Antenna 1 is selected When toggling the antenna selection the previous tuning settings for the newly selected antenna are also recalled This is useful when comparing antenna performance on the same frequency Transmitting and Receiving During receive operation only the antenna and bypass indicator LEDs are lit on the AT 600Proll During transmit the forward RF power level is displayed on the PWR bargraph and the SWR is displayed on the SWR bargraph Each PWR bargraph LED lights from halfway between the previous value and the next higher value For example the 100W LED lights from 75 watts to 150 watts If the power is 151 watts then the 200W LED lights as well When reading the SWR bargraph an illuminated LED on the graph means The SWR is at least this much In other words if the 1 3 LED is lit it means that the SWR is between
16. er tip is positive Power up the transceiver and select the desired operating frequency and mode Bypass the amplifier Make sure Antenna 1 is selected ANT 2 LED is off Press ANT to toggle Begin transmitting any mode Ue When the tuning cycle completes activate the amplifier and you re ready to operate Note With the amplifier active it is suggested to place the AT 600Proll in semi automatic tuning mode to avoid re tuning at high power levels 1 In SSB mode simply speak into the microphone while transmitting Tuning may be performed at up to 125 watts of input power provided that the transceiver employs a roll back circuit to protect it from high SWR For transceivers without roll back circuits power should be limited to 25 watts when tuning to avoid damage to the transmitter or tuner PAGE 3 SPECIFICATIONS 1 to 600 watt power range SSB and CW 250 watts PSK and digital modes and 250 watts on 6 meters Silver teflon SO 239 connectors Over 4 000 memories for instantaneous band changing e Built in 2 port antenna switch with 2 000 memories each Tuning time 0 2 to 15 seconds full tune 0 2 seconds memory tune 1 8 to 54 0 MHz coverage Built in frequency sensor Tunes 6 to 1 000 ohm loads 16 to 150 on LED bargraph displays power level SWR and status Antenna Indicator LED shows the currently selected antenna Bypass LED shows whe
17. events the relays from toggling under certain conditions Relays will not toggle if the SWR is over 3 0 1 and the power is over 100 watts and will not toggle if the power is over 150 watts regardless of the SWR The diagrams on the next page show what the various error indications look like PAGE 16 10 25 50 100200300450600 10 25 50 100200300450600 LT TT LET ua z u ua za 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over ERR_NO_MATCH SWR ERR_NO_FREQ All LEDs LEDs blink twice blink twice 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 lU IML JL JU JO 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over ERR_NO_RF Blink once ERR_OVER_PWR ERR_LOST_FF Blink twice Center LEDs toggle 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over ERR_SWR_PWR Outer LEDs toggle Additionally if the forward power exceeds the maximum value selected for the meter scale the PWR LEDs will blink an over range condition The four right most LEDs of the PWR bargraph will cycle during over range 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 LILILILICICICICI 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Meter Over scale Rightmost 4 LEDs toggle PAGE 17 ADVANCED OPERATION Manual Inductor Capacitor Adjustments In some rare cases after tuning it may be desirable t
18. gh there are a total of eight buttons on the front panel there are more than eight functions that can be carried out on the AT 600ProlI In order to accommodate the many functions of AT 600 the operation performed by pressing a particular button is determined by the manner in which the button is pressed and no operation begins until the button is actually released The various types of button presses are described here Momentary or short press The button is pressed and released immediately Medium Press The button is held for one half to 2 5 seconds and then released Long Press The button is held for more than 2 5 seconds and then is released FUNC gt Button The FUNC button is pressed first and then the button is pressed momentarily and released e g FUNC gt Ant means Press the Func button and release and then press the Ant button and release User Configuration Options The AT 600Proll offers several user settable options that allow the behavior of the tuner to adapt to many different operating circumstances Most of these options are accessed by placing the tuner in Function mode which is done by pressing and releasing the Func button and then pressing the desired button to activate the particular configuration option while in function mode To confirm entry into Function mode the AT 600ProlII will flash an up arrow on the LED display after the Func button is pressed 10 25 50 100200300 450 600
19. he LED display will show one of two patterns to confirm the setting 10 25 50 100 200300 450 600 10 25 50 100 200300 450 600 LE IL IL ILI 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Low Impedance High Impedance Manual Memory Store Once manual adjustments are complete press Func gt Tune that is press Func momentarily then Tune momentarily to store the current relay settings in the memory associated with the frequency last transmitted upon PAGE 18 Status Check The status of most user settings can be checked by pushing and holding the Func button while pressing the relevant button for that setting For example to check to see what the current SWR threshold value is without changing the value press and hold the Func button and while still holding the Func button press the L Dn Thresh button The display will show the currently selected SWR threshold value While holding the Func button the bargraph display will show the following pattern to indicate that the 600 is waiting for you to push a button to check its status 10 25 50 100 200300450 600 JNE l U 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 39 0Over Function Hold The following status items can be checked C Up Peak Display Peak Avg setting C Dn Auto Display Auto Semi setting L Up Scale Display Power meter scale L Dn Thresh Display S
20. he antenna and vice versa Simple tuners use variable capacitors and inductors the e Seo operator adjusts them by hand while a zs 1460 660 sa arzi 421 observing reflected power on the aol I oo 719 5 83 5 00 444 SWR meter until a minimum SWR ozs is reached The LDG Electronics a ssso 1292 865 674 5 65 494 AT 600Proll automates this a 4798 1508 9ss 7 27 602 5 22 process e 1750 sooo rer onal No tuner will fix a bad antenna E T If the antenna is far from resonance the inefficiencies inherent in such operation are inescapable it s simple physics Much of the transmitted power may be dissipated in the tuner as heat never reaching the antenna at all A tuner simply fools the transmitter into behaving as though the antenna were resonant avoiding any damage that might otherwise be caused by high reflected power For best performance the antenna used should always be as close to resonance as is practical PAGE 23 THE LDG AT 600PROII In 1995 LDG Electronics pioneered a new type of automatic antenna tuner The LDG design uses banks of fixed capacitors and inductors switched in and out of the circuit by relays under microprocessor control An additional relay switches between high and low impedance ranges built in SWR sensor provides feedback the microprocessor searches the
21. me of the RF energy from the transmitter is reflected from the antenna back down the transmission line and into the transmitter If this reflected energy is strong enough it can damage the transmitter s output circuits The ratio of transmitted to reflected energy is called the standing wave ratio or SWR An SWR of 1 sometimes written 1 1 indicates a perfect match As more energy is reflected the SWR increases to 2 3 or higher As a general rule modern solid state transmitters must operate with an SWR of 2 or less Tube exciters are somewhat more tolerant of high SWR If a 50 ohm antenna is resonant at the operating frequency it will show an SWR close to 1 However this is PAGE 22 usually not case operators often need to transmit at frequencies other than resonance resulting in a reactive antenna and a higher SWR IR SWR a j E where F Forward power watts R Reflected power watts mg SWR is measured using a device called an SWR bridge inserted in the transmission line between the transmitter and the antenna This circuit measures forward and reflected power from which SWR may be calculated some meters calculate SWR for you More advanced units can measure forward and reflected power simultaneously and show these values and SWR at the same time An antenna tuner is a device used to cancel out the effects of antenna reactance Tuners add capacitance to cancel out inductive reactance in t
22. missions CARE AND MAINTENANCE The AT 600Proll tuner is essentially maintenance free Power limits in this manual should be strictly adhered to The outer case may be cleaned as needed with a soft cloth slightly dampened with household cleaning solution As with any modern electronic device the AT 600 can be damaged by temperature extremes water impact or static discharge LDG strongly recommends the use of a good quality properly installed lightning arrestor in the antenna lead PAGE 25 QUICK REFERENCE Button Primary Func gt Button Status Check Function Func Hold Button Full Tune Long Press Memory Tune Medium Press Manually Store Tuning Bypass Short Parameters Display Relay Settings Toggle Display High Low High Low Impedance Impedance Toggle Antenna Selection Increase Toggle Peak Display PWR Capacitance Average Power Meter Mode Decrease Toggle Auto Display Auto Capacitance Semi Mode Semi Selection Increase Set PWR Meter Display PWR Inductance Scale Meter Scale Display Auto Tuning SWR Threshold Decrease Set Auto Tuning Inductance SWR Threshold Select Secondary Button Functions PAGE 26 TECHNICAL SUPPORT The LDG customer support staff is ready to answer your product question by telephone and by e mail We know that you will enjoy your product even more knowing LDG is ready to answer your questions as the need arises LDG regularly updates o
23. n line information so the best on line support information is available all day and every day The LDG website provides links to product manuals just in case you lose this one When you are thinking about the purchase of other LDG products our website also has complete product specifications and photographs you can use to help make your purchase decision Don t forget the links to all of the quality LDG Dealers also ready to help you make that purchase decision TWO YEAR TRANSFERRABLE WARRANTY Your product is warranted against manufacturer defects in parts and labor for two full years from the date of purchase This two year warranty is also transferable When you sell or give away your LDG product give the new owner a copy of the original sales receipt and the two year warranty goes with the new owner There is no need to complete a warranty card or to register an LDG product Your product receipt establishes eligibility for warranty service so save that receipt Send your receipt with the product whenever you send your product to LDG for repair Products sent to LDG without a receipt are considered requests for out of warranty repair LDG does not warranty against product damage or abuse This means that a product failure as determined by LDG to be caused by the customer or by other natural calamity e g lightning is not covered under the two year warranty Damage can be caused by failure to heed the product s published limitations and
24. n tuner is in pass thru User selectable operating parameters Auto Semi mode 600W 60W scale and more Optional radio interface cables available See web site for details Optional large display external analog panel meter Power requirements 11 to 16 VDC 1A max 7mA when idle e Dimensions 10 5 L x 8 5 x 2 75H Weight 3 pounds 6 oz AN IMPORTANT WORD ABOUT POWER LEVELS The AT 600Proll is rated at 700 watts maximum power input at most Many amplifiers output well over 750 watts Power levels that significantly exceed specifications will definitely damage or destroy your AT 600ProlI If the tuner fails during overload it could also damage your transmitter amplifier or transceiver Be sure to observe the specified power limitations IMPORTANT SAFETY WARNING Never install antennas or transmission lines over or near power lines You can be seriously injured or killed if any part of the antenna support or transmission line touches a power line Always follow this antenna safety rule The distance to the nearest power line should be at least twice the length of the longest antenna transmission line or support dimension PAGE 4 GETTING KNOW YOUR AT 600PROII Your AT 600Proll is a quality precision instrument that will give you many years of outstanding service take a few minutes to get to know it Front Panel The front panel of the AT 600Proll features eight pushbuttons two LED bargraph s
25. nd then will return to the previous operating mode and power level when done If you are not using the optional ICOM or Yaesu radio interface cable you will need to key the radio manually in AM SSB or CW mode Note that if your radio does not incorporate an SWR rollback circuit you will first need to reduce power to 25 watts or less In no case should you transmit more than 150 watts during tuning If the memory tune is not successful the AT 600Proll falls through to full tuning cycle At the end of a tuning cycle the LEDs cycle inwards to indicate a successful tune You may then activate the amplifier and begin transmitting If using the 600 with ICOM transceiver connected with the ICOM interface cable pressing the TUNER CALL button on the transceiver initiates a memory tuning cycle Again bypass the amplifier while tuning The AT 600Proll will not tune if the transmit power is over 150 watts or if the transmit power exceeds 100 watts during high SWR conditions in order to protect the switching relays Manual Full Tune As with the memory tuning cycle if your radio is not equipped with a rollback circuit reduce power to 25 watts or less before tuning To explicitly initiate a full tuning cycle press and hold the Tune button on the 600 front panel for more than 2 5 seconds The LEDs will display the following pattern to confirm a full tuning cycle is requested 10 25 50 100 200300 450 600 LI JER l
26. nder Support then Tech Support Send your carefully packaged unit with the Repair Form to LDG Electronics Inc Attn Repair Department 1445 Parran Rd St Leonard MD 20685 PRODUCT FEEDBACK We encourage product feedback Tell us what you really think of your LDG product In a card letter or email preferred tell us how you used the product and how well it worked in your application Send along a photo or even a schematic or drawing to illustrate your narrative We like to share your comments with our staff our dealers and even other customers at the LDG website http www ldgelectronics com C PAGE 28
27. o adjust the inductance and capacitance settings that the AT 600ProlII came up with during the tuning process This is more likely to occur when attempting to tune an antenna far from its resonant frequency The C Up C Dn L Up and L Dn buttons may be used to increase or decrease the amount of capacitance or inductance respectively A momentary press of any of these buttons increases or decreases the value by one unit and displays the resulting value on the bargraph meter Capacitance value is displayed on the SWR bargraph and inductance on the PWR bargraph These values are displayed in binary left justified The lowest order relay is displayed on the leftmost LED The rightmost LED on the PWR bargraph displays the state of the High Low Impedance relay Repeatedly press one of these buttons to increase or decrease multiple times or simply hold the button and the button will auto repeat You may also transmit while increasing or decreasing so that the SWR value is displayed but the capacitor and inductor values will not be displayed during transmit instead the power and SWR levels are displayed High Low Relay Adjustment In addition to being able to manually control the inductor and capacitor value of the AT 600Proll it is also possible to manually set the high low impedance relay which determines whether the tuner is an L C configuration or a C L configuration To toggle the state of the high low impedance relay press Func gt Ant T
28. ossible When the tuning cycle is complete if an acceptable match was found the inductance and capacitance settings are saved in a memory associated with the selected frequency and antenna so that they may be recalled quickly in the future via a memory tuning cycle In this manner the AT 600Proll learns the longer you use it the more closely it adapts itself to the bands and frequencies you use Most users will probably use memory tuning most of the time it takes advantage of any saved tuning settings but automatically defaults to a full tuning cycle if no stored data is available Manual Memory Tune To initiate a memory tuning cycle at any time first bypass the amplifier Press and hold the Tune button for 0 5 to 2 5 seconds medium button press and release The LED bargraph display will show the following pattern to indicate a memory tune cycle is selected 10 25 50 100200300 450 600 E O 1 1 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0Over Medium Press gt 0 5 sec 2 Note that while the AT 600ProlI employs software that prevents it from tuning while transmitting over 150 watts it is still a good idea to bypass your amplifier while tuning as further protection against damage to the tuner PAGE 14 If you using optional ICOM or Yaesu interface cable your radio will automatically reduce power switch to CW mode and transmit for as long as is needed to complete the tuning cycle a
29. outine to execute in only a few milliseconds the relays require several milliseconds of settling time for every combination of inductors and capacitors Thus it may take several seconds before all relay combinations are exhausted in the case of a difficult tune The tuning routine uses an algorithm to minimize the number of tuner adjustments The routine first de energizes the high low impedance relay if necessary and then individually steps through the inductors to find a coarse match With the best inductor selected the tuner then steps through the individual capacitors to find the best coarse match If no match is found the routine repeats the coarse tuning with the high low impedance relay energized The routine then fine tunes the inductors and capacitors The program checks LC combinations to see if a 1 5 1 or lower SWR can be obtained and stops when it finds a good match The microprocessor runs a fine tune routine just after the tuner finds a match of 1 5 1 or less This fine tune routine now tries to make the SWR as low as possible not just to 1 5 it takes about half a second to run PAGE 24 WORD ABOUT TUNING ETIQUETTE Be sure to use a vacant frequency when tuning With today s crowded ham bands this is often difficult However causing interference to other hams should be avoided as much as possible The AT 600ProlII s very short tuning cycle as little as a fraction of a second minimizes the impact of tuning trans
30. pioneered the automatic wide range switched L tuner in 1995 From its laboratories in St Leonard Maryland LDG continues to define the state of the art in this field with innovative automatic tuners and related products for every amateur need Congratulations on selecting LDG Electronics 600 600 watt automatic tuner The 600 provides fully and semi automatic antenna tuning across the entire HF spectrum plus 6 meters at power levels up to 600 watts 250W on 6m It will tune dipoles verticals Yagis or virtually any coax fed antenna It will match an amazing range of antennas and impedances far greater than some tuners you may have considered including the built in tuners on many transceivers The AT 600Proll is designed to handle 600 watts of output power and is ideal for use with small outboard linear amplifiers rated up to 600 watts or even newer high power transceivers JUMPSTART OR REAL HAMS DON T READ MANUALS Ok but at least read this one section before operating the AT 600Proll 1 Connect a 50 ohm coax jumper cable from the antenna jack on your amplifier to the TX jack the back of the AT 600Proll This cable must be rated to 600 watts 2 Connect your antenna s 50 ohm coax feedline to the ANT 1 jack on the rear of the AT 600Proll 3 Connect the supplied DC coax cable to the jack marked 12 VDC Connect this cable to a DC source between 11 and 16 volts DC 1000 mA The jack cent
31. r s ACC port Plug the black end of the Y ACC cable into the jack marked Radio on the rear of the AT 600ProlI Unless the AT 600ProlII is being powered by the ICOM radio interface cable as above you ll also need to plug in the supplied DC coaxial power cable This cable has a 2 5x5 5mm coaxial plug on the end Plug the coaxial plug into the 12V DC Power jack on the rear of the AT 600Proll and connect the other end to a DC power source between 11 and 16 volts DC capable of supplying up to 1A Grounding the 600 tuner will enhance its performance and safety LDG recommends that you connect your tuner to a suitable ground A common ground rod connected to buried radials is ideal but a single ground rod can provide a serviceable ground LDG strongly recommends the use of a properly installed high quality lightning arrestor on all antenna cables PAGE 7 TXGND Ant2 5 Transcelver Linear Amplifier J MOd JGA ZL AT 600Proll Typical Installation Tuner ANT eee Linear Transceiver Amplitier AT 600Proll ICOM Installation PAGE 8 Yaesu Interface Cable Linear Amplitier AT 600Proll FT 857 897 Installation Note Optional Y ACC cable has a red plug on the radio end of the cable and a black plug on the tuner end PAGE 9 BASIC OPERATION Using the Front Panel Buttons All operations of the AT 600Proll are controlled via the front panel buttons Althou
32. ts is required Place the AT 600Proll in a convenient location near the transceiver and amplifier Always turn_your radio and amplifier off before plugging or unplugging anything The radio may be damaged if cables are connected or disconnected while the power is on Connect the HF antenna jack on the amplifier to the TX jack on the back of the AT 600Proll using a 50 ohm coax cable rated 600 watts or higher Connect a 50 ohm antenna feedline coax to the ANT 2 jack on the back of the AT 600Proll and optionally connect a second antenna feedline to the ANT 1 jack NOTE ANT 2 is automatically selected when no DC power is present This way if you only have one antenna it is automatically disconnected from your radio when the power is off The AT 600Proll is designed to interface directly with many popular ICOM and Yaesu transceivers enabling one button tuning In the case of ICOM radios the supplied interface cable also powers the tuner For ICOM radios supporting the AH 3 or AH 4 external tuner connect the 4 pin Molex connector of the optional IC PAC ICOM interface cable to the radio s Tuner port Then connect the 1 8 stereo plug on the other end of the ICOM interface cable to the jack marked Radio on the rear of the 600 Connect the coaxial DC power plug of the ICOM interface cable to the 12V DC Power jack For Yaesu FT 857 and FT 897 use the optional Y ACC cable and plug the red end marked Radio into the transceive
33. wo parameters at once Consult the M 600 External Meter user manual for more details Tuning Hints 1 The AT 600Proll is designed to allow fully automatic tuning which causes a tuning cycle to begin any time the SWR exceeds the user selected threshold However tuning is not allowed when the forward power exceeds a level that could damage the relays If the AT 600ProlI is left in fully automatic mode with the amplifier active it is possible to begin a tuning cycle while transmitting high power in some circumstances such as SSB transmission where the power level begins at a low level and then increases with voice peaks Once the power level exceeds the relay protection threshold the tuning cycle will stop leaving the tuner in an un tuned state Because of this LDG recommends switching the amplifier off before tuning and then once tuning is complete the 600 should be switched to semi automatic mode FUNC gt Auto for as long as the amplifier is active to prevent re tuning under high power 2 Some transceivers employ a fairly aggressive SWR roll back circuit which reduces transmit power under high SWR conditions It is possible on a particularly mismatched antenna for the transmit power of the transceiver to be reduced so low that the frequency counter circuitry of the AT 600ProlII does not provide accurate information For this reason LDG suggests that you tune with 20 to 50 watts of transmit power if tuning seems erratic
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search