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Heathkit Kilowatt Mobile Amplifier

The SB-200 in 2 boxes


HA-14 Kompact Kilowatt

The Heathkit HA-14 Kompact Kilowatt or KW Kompact amplifer was released in 1965 to a surprised and delighted market. (A year after the highly popular SB-200 from which it derived.) Like the game changing HW "Hot Water" 200 watt SSB monobanders released earlier, it was a model of simple elegance both circuit wise and in appearance. Carefully targeted to a narrow but enthusiastic audience, it did not try to be all things to all hams. It was simply a small, affordable, one Kilowatt SSB-only linear amplifier for the car and home.

The HA-14 is an SB-200 in 2 boxes. Their parts lists are nearly identical aside from the cases, but the HA-14 power supplies stand apart separately. This makes the HA-14 easier to carry and move around and switch from mobile to fixed. It also reduces the amplifier desktop footprint.

Like the matching HW-12/22/32 monobanders the HA-14 came with optional mobile and base power supplies. The size, color and shape even matched the monobanders for easy stacking. Being for SSB operation only, the power supplies and cooling were designed to match. Neither the HA-14 nor the HW monobanders were intended for AM or CW or other high duty cycle modes at full power.

I remember those exciting days and the surprises that came with each new Heathkit catalog. In time I came to own all of the HA-14s and monobanders, and for many years ran most of them both mobile and fixed ('68 VW Beetle and '69 Chrysler T&C). They fulfilled their promise and were great fun both to build and operate!


Over the years the HA-14 has developed a reputation as a powerful and reliable mobile SSB Kilowatt when operated as intended. Since it has fixed loading with a 50 ohm output it is meant to feed an antenna correctly tuned to the 50-75 ohm impedance range. The built-in SWR bridge and meter make for easy monitoring.

The HA-14 amplifier uses two 572B power tubes in parallel in a traditional grounded grid configuration. The matching power supplies are solid state.

The amplifier is a small and affordable home KW that works very well in fixed station service. Perhaps more of them are used fixed than mobile. I ran one as a base station every day for years while feeding dipoles and a cubical quad antenna, driven by a variety of Heathkit HW(A version) monobanders and SB- transceivers. They worked the world!

In fixed service, where ragchewing or contesting may be more intense, it is advisable to supplement the tube cooling, especially if the amplifier is in an enclosed space. Adequate cooling is easily achieved by laying a large slow moving 'muffin fan' on top of the case above the tubes. To minimize air leaks between the fan housing and the amplifier case it's easy to build a simple 'gasket' between them using weather stripping. To keep any fan noise low, a resistor can be placed in the fan lead to slow it down.

It doesn't take much extra airflow to keep the HA-14 noticeably cooler. Some users mount a small fan or two on the backside but they need to run faster and I've found them to be too noisy. Since the 572B's are 'instant on' tubes, further cooling is achieved by switching them off when not needed.

Kompact Kilowatt's have been a bit difficult to find for years, especially the power supplies. But they do appear from time to time. Good luck, and ENJOY!



On the following pages, photos and information from over a dozen different Kompact Kilowatt systems are shown; the GOOD, the BAD and the UGLY. May it enhance your understanding and enjoyment of the system.                    

                                Click Here for HA-14 Linear Amplifier       

Click Here for HP-14 DC Power Supply

Click Here for HP-24 AC Power Supply       

Click Here for the Cables/Connectors   

Restoration, mods, cautions, misc...

If it Ain't Broke, don't fix it.

eHam Kompact Kilowatt review

Modifying The Heath HA-14 For 6 Meters - by W7MY

EXCELLENT HA-14 Kompact Kilowatt review by AF6C

 


 

Please send your Kompact Kilowatt comments, photos, schematics, hints, articles, stories and links to:

Dave      [email protected]      Vancouver, WA

 

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