[GreenKeys] ST-8000A Price War Continues on eBay!

[Dino Papas]

Disclaimer -- I have NO connection with any of the sellers, however  
the seller referenced  in the item identified below is the one I  
bought my unit for (for more $$, nuts should have waited!).  But  
since several guys have purchased these units recently I thought  
others might be interested as well.  For me I just couldn't pass one  
up at the price they're going for (love those flashing lights!)

That said, the price war continues....just noticed that one seller  
has the NOS, still in the Mavel Seal, units now offered for $249.99  
plus $1.99 shipping.  The item number is 130284268961.

The good news about these units is that they are in fact NOS, have  
the manual ($50 from Hal) and the complete set of Bendix circular  
connectors required to interface to the rear panel (expensive!).

Now the bad news....anyone purchasing one should know that they  
really aren't as suitable for ham use as their predecessor the  
ST-8000 which has become rare as hen's teeth on eBay these days.   
 From a previous note I sent to the group here's what you should  
consider to be a informed buyer:

-----------------------

(1) Already owning two ST-8000's I'd say that the older 8000's are in  
several ways more versatile in the ham shack.  The 8000A lacks the  
tuning CRT that is an integral part of the 8000....the LEDs that  
display the strength of the Mark and Space tones are harder to use  
with any accuracy.  To use the 8000A here I've connected it to my  
Kenwood SM-220 scope used in the RTTY configuration to give you the  
crossed ellipses for tuning.

(2) The 8000A doesn't have the front-panel memories switch accessible  
(the 8000 has eight); the 8000A and in some ways is really more  
suited to use with a computer terminal to do parameter controlling  
via the remote connection.  If you're only going to do 45 Baud 170Hz  
shift then that's really not a big deal.  Don't get me wrong, the  
front panel is very versatile however.

(3) On the plus side, the 8000A doesn't use the NVRAM Dallas 1220Y  
chip to maintain the memories parameter settings.  These chips have  
an internal lithium battery that lasts about 10 years and the 8000's  
are now well past that age.  If anyone is in need of replacing that  
chip in their 8000 contact me directly for more info.

(4) If you still want to get one of these units (I just couldn't  
resist, especially for the prices they're going for -- Hal still  
sells them for >$5K!!!) make sure you get one of the NOS (new old  
stock) units.  These come in the original sealed packaging along with  
the full set of Bendix circular connectors that are needed to make up  
all your hook ups to the back panel.  I used the connectors to create  
a set of "dongles" that then attach to more common connectors.  It  
also comes with a copy of the manual which you really need and will  
cost you $50 from Hal.  I'd strongly recommend you only buy one in  
this condition.  Just to get the connectors and manual separately are  
probably going to cost you quite a bit.....this is the biggest  
consideration in my opinion.....note you'll see several units  
advertised that are obviously from DRMO surplus sales; one seller  
notes that his comes with a "rare connector" which simply looks like  
the power cord.  Caveat Emptor on those.

(5) These original units probably come with an older firmware chip  
that you may want to consider updating - the latest firmware V1.9 is  
also available from Hal for $50.

(6) If you're going to use the 8000A (or the 8000 for that matter) in  
a standalone configuration you will need the software to control it.   
No software comes with any of the units.  The good news is that Hal  
still sells the "DSRTTY-Win" program ($100 is a little steep but it's  
the only game in town) available which does a pretty good job.  There  
is also an older DSRTTY program available for DOS for those who need  
real legacy software.  Bertrand's note just popped up as I've been  
typing this so checking out his TTYterm program may be worth taking a  
look at.

(7) An alternative application is to use the 8000/8000A as a "front- 
end" for a old TNC.  I use my 8000 in front of a PK-232 in a receive  
only application.  In that way you get the benefits of the 8000's  
filtering and the ability to use your software to control the TNC and  
you retain the ability to use other modes like PACTOR.

ST-8000's have become pretty rare on eBay and the current "pricing  
war" among several sellers makes the ST-8000A almost too good to pass  
up (more toys to play with in the shack!).

Mark Prather WB9HFK (mprather at halcomm.com) at Hal Communications is a  
good POC to work with if you have technical questions, hardware  
needs, etc.  Joe Witmer K9SZ (jwittmer at halcomm.com) is their software  
guru and was also very helpful to me as I was getting my unit up and  
running.

Hope this helps....let me know if I can answer any other questions on  
my experience.

-----------------

For those interested, the way I understand why there is an abundance  
of these things around is that the government bought a bunch of them,  
put about half into service and then stored the rest.  They are still  
in use but many of the used units have made their way into the DRMO  
channels and are the ones you'll see on eBay without cables, manuals,  
have the yellow DRMO sticker attached etc.  The new ones that were  
stored were sold off at auction and are now being sold as  
well....again, my recommendation, especially at these prices!

73 -- Dino KL0S