Hello and welcome to the newly re-organized Alpha Amplifier facility. This is the new sign over our door. Ten Tec isn’t officially affiliated with Alpha Amplifiers any more, but it is a separate company with some common ownership so we left the orange dot up there.
Welcome to the Longmont Facility
As most people are aware the world famous Alpha product line has been acquired by Mike Dishop N8WFF of Dishtronix and Ten Tec, and two private amateur radio investors. The new company is called Alpha RF Systems, LLC or ARFSL for short. Dishtronix is manufacturing the circuit boards in Ohio with final assembly being done in Longmont on the same premises that RKR occupied. We have hired some of the people who were originally building the Alpha product line before the RF Concepts takeover. So unlike the previous business that desired to outsource everything we are building everything we can under our own umbrella. We do not make sheet metal in house but we do assemble circuit boards, fabricate some components, CNC machine certain parts, etc.
Carol KD0VCT and Glenn AE0Q with first ARFSL 8410 Produced in House October 06, 2016
Carol KD0VCT and Tom W2CO pose with the first new A9500 produced entirely in house at ARFSL.
If you are shopping for the highest quality vacuum tube amplifier that money can buy, and things like technical support, made in America, ready access to parts and service are important to you, then you are in the right place. We are working very hard to make the company better by building the products better and refining the product one step at a time. Rome wasn’t built in a day and every single one of us at Alpha appreciate and value your business, because without you we don’t have a business. When you purchase an Alpha you help support and maintain a product tradition that has been synonymous with quality for nearly fifty years. We know there are other products you can buy that are cheaper. What we would ask you to do is simply look at the company history of innovation and remember who it was who introduced the brick on the key performance, and who it was who introduced the no tune and auto tune tube amplifiers. The premium you pay when you purchase and Alpha amplifier helps fund our research into the next great product, and we do have several in store for you. But we will never get there without your support today. Won’t you stand behind us so we can be here to stand behind you as we have since 1970? We are still fixing every amplifier we ever made IF we can get the parts. When you buy an Alpha amplifier you are helping American Amateur Radio families just like yours. If you’ve never had an Alpha, perhaps this is the time to really step up and find out why our customers love us. If you’ve had an Alpha and weren’t sure what all transpired behind the scenes we understand and we’d like you to know that the company is 100% back in ham hands and that this is where it is going to stay. At age 53, Mike N8WFF has worked incredibly hard to get to this point and has stated this is his last stop before the grave so don’t expect any more changes in ownership soon. Instead you can expect that some new and innovative products are going to be available to you. We hope you will be patient with us as we are just today officially at our sixth month of operation and during that time we have shifted production in house for our amplifiers and repaired almost every amplifier that we received from RKR customers. Our repair department is doing a great job and turning stuff around sometimes in a week or two
Below we have posted some pictures that we hope you will enjoy.
8410s under production in October 2016 at ARFSL.
Coils and Baluns Under Fabrication October 2016 at ARFSL
Carol KD0VCT and Mary Building Tank Coils at ARFSL
First Batch of Tank Coils Wound at ARFSL
Tank Coil with Freshly Soldered Taps Under Fabrication at ARFSL
Finished Coil After Silver Plating
Can you say CRAFTSMANSHIP? These ladies are the BEST. There is no telling how many tank coils and band switches they have made in their careers. It is THOUSANDS. That kind of consistency and loyalty doesn’t just grow on trees, and WE have them!
Tom, W2CO bringing up a new 9500 at ARFSL.
Glenn AE0Q in the Service Department
These gentlemen do a great job of getting amps built, repaired and out the door every day in addition to helping customers get parts and advice on service issues. Talk about experience! Glenn has been with us 19 years and like the rest of us has no plans on leaving anytime soon! Talk about a great place to work and a great bunch of people. This team deserves a lot of credit.
We hope you enjoyed a sneek peek inside just a few of the things we do each day at ARFSL in beautiful Longmont Colorado just north of Denver. We are going to post more stories and news here as time permits.
73 ES VY QRO DE MIKE N8WFF