[Icom_IC-7100] Low power output on ssb

A number of users have commented that the average power output of the IC-7100 on SSB, as measured on a moving coil power meter appears low compared with other transceivers. Having made some bench measurements it would appear that this is not so much a fault but rather a result of the very effective ALC on the radio that prevents it being overdriven. A correctly driven SSB transmitter should show the following approx power measurements :
                         Measured on moving coil meter              Measured on PEP reading meter                   Measured on Oscilloscope

Single Tone input                                   100W                        100W                              100W (peak)
Two tone input                                        40W                         100W                              100W (peak)
Speech input                                       12-20W                        100W                              100W (peak)

The reason for the lower reading on the moving coil meter is due to a number of factors including the inherent inability of this type of meter to follow a rapidly changing speech waveform.

Only a true PEP meter or oscilloscope will give a true indication of PEP, cheap wattmeters with a supposed PEP indication often have no more than a capacitor switched across the meter which again will not give a correct power indication.