Installation and review of the Ameritron RCS-8V remote coax switch

This project is about optimizing my coax cable with the Ameritron RCS-8V remote coax switch.




73
Pascal VA2PV
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Pascal, I've been researching the RCS 8 v. With your very positive and supportive videos I've made my decision! Thanks 73 ka9gdw

 

I had one of these RCS 8,but the relays are very small and they did not survive much,what I did was to use the control box changed the transformer to 24 volts and used 30 amp DPDT surplus relays on a new plastic box with 24 VDC coils mounted on my tower!

 

Was it an older version RCS-8 or it's a RCS-8V ? I have a few friends that have been using this type of switch and I got only good comments about it. 73

 

I was very lucky to pick one up for $5 in a Hamfest here in Perth Western Australia. It looked aweful, but when I opened it up at home it was just like new Anyway I have it installed with my 3 HF antennas feeding an Alpha Delta Delta 4 manual switch and I can select any of 5 antennas to any of 4 radios, excellent. Best $5 I ever spent

 

I am using 2 RCS-8V for years now and they work fine for me, also the Rcs-4 with no problems.

 

Forget this junk.. The Array Solutions Rat-Pak is a solid performer and wont disappear in a cloud of smoke.

 

This does have the (seemingly rare) option of having non-selected antennas grounded, instead of being open. Many older manual switches switches did this, but as far as I can tell, few of the newer remote switches (the rat pak is an exception in that it does ground unused antennas) do that. Why would you not want them grounded?

Thx
mike

 

Nice review, Pascal. I have the RCS-4 switch and it works well, with one coax line coming into my house. No issues, and handles 600 watts so far. It's rated for use 30mhz and below, but I get excellent results on 6 meters with my 40 meter OCF dipole - which, by the way, has very nice lobes with gain in certain directions on 50mhz.
Cheers & beers,
John

 

Have had one of these for a while and it works great !! Picked it up when I noticed it was priced the same as the 5 port model..(mis-priced ?). It's nice to only have one HF coax going out through my window to feed multiple HF antennas.. only 3 so far, but I have plans for more in my small yard ... I Agree the unselected ports should be grounded... this should be the default for safety reasons if nothing else..
73 de K9PLG

 

I have been using them since the early 90's. I have used it with 1200-1500w with no problem. I did get hit my lightning in 7/2015 and replaced my unit. The original had an internal power supply so you could actually turn off the power when you turned off the front switch. The newer units use a wall wart where power is consumed even though the switch is off. I am currently modifying mine so it automatically chooses the correct antenna when the radio changes bands.

Note I would also advise you to put a 6 cond connector on the cable going to the console as you should remove the control cable from the console when storms are imminent. During my last hit, lightning blew out the cable insulation every ft or so all the way down to the shack. JMHO.

 

The original RCS-4 was a poorly designed POJ with very low port to port isolation and would pick up all sorts of strange signals. The redesigned version uses the RCS-8V relays and a better PC board layout. If buying used be sure what you are getting.

 

THIS SWITCH IS HOLDING UP BETTER THAN ONE I BOUGHT WHICH COST TWICE AS MUCH ! It seems to be that if you bolt this to your tower,
and your tower is grounded, than that grounds the remote box....

 

We have had several locals have stuff go up in smoke with the Four antenna version so I think it's a no brainer for me.I'll stay far far away because I like my gear operational just as it is & those extra feed lines are already there & paid for.Must be those MFJ genes crossing over badly?

Clayton
W4KVW