Here is MY Dayton experience...
The two display booths were situated fairly close to each other. The
Alpha display had a TenTec radio sitting by each Alpha amplifier and
they were all turned on using some little adapter plug to make it appear
the rigs/amps were transmitting. There were signs indicating the
merger, like the banners you see on the Alpha web pages.
Kewl.
I found the new TenTec Sales and Marketing manager, John Coultas, NR04,
hovering around the Alpha Amplifier display. He hails from, and says he
will work out of, his Texas home. He was plenty chatty.
Kewl.
The Alpha Amp contingent, comprised of at least one management figure
(Ken I think... cannot remember now) and at at least two engineering
guys, all of whom focused on promoting the new Alpha auto tuner, which
they claim has been redesigned, again, but will not say when it will be
available for sale or what the price tag will say.
Kewl.
I tried like heck to congratulate the management figure on the merger,
and express my enthusiasm for the future of the enterprise, but on
Friday, he snubbed me multiple times to talk to others who had come
along after I did, and on Saturday finally deigned to press my hand and
move on before I could ask or say anything substantial. Looking for the
silver lining, I will assume he was just busy and I was just a casualty
of the hurly–burly nature of trade shows. I guess. My friend was not
impressed.
Not as Kewl as we would have liked.
My friend, a commercial radio engineer for 50 years, found the two Alpha
engineers helpful, polite, competent and enthusiastic, giving really
good answers to his technical questions. He was impressed with them, so
I am, also.
Very Kewl.
At the TenTec display, John Henry was, as usual, gracious and warmly
welcomed my friend and me, giving us a brief, but insightful, summary of
things to come, expressing confident enthusiasm for the future, and
showing off the new Patriot.
The machine shop will go. Both John Henry and new Sales and Marketing
Manager, John Coultas, NR02, said TT will remain in the Seveirville
area. Engineering from RF Concepts (Alpha Amps) will move to a new Tenn
location. TT will no longer make cabinets, metal stuff, or even its own
radio cases, and become just a radio engineering company. The separate
TT and Alpha brand names will continue.
Really Kewl.
This will enable TT to focus on radio design - for example, programmers
will no longer have to take time out to program CNC machines for the
metal works - this means more time to design new radios and free from
competition for resources and time to do or make other stuff.
VERY Kewl
The new Sales and Marketing Manager delivered a running monolog, saying
TT will focus on Facebook and Twitter feeds ... er... um ... as if that
is a fresh, innovative approach. He offered no other answer or approach
when asked about it, saying one could receive as many as 4 Tweets a
day! Now, I don't do Facebook or Twitter, and I doubt getting 4 tweets
a day from could induce me to buy anything from anyone; more likely it
would chase me off completely.
Oh well. I continue to hope for the best. Maybe younger hams will
like that approach, but it falls flat on me. Mr. Coultas said before he
came along, TT had something like 25 Facebook "Likes" - and he has
already doubled that number! Yeah... that should do it; we are moving
now!
Mr Coultas was totally disinterested in my reaction, unable or unwilling
to even feign otherwise - I suppose the good news is he knows it all,
and will not be distracted by customer input.
Not as Kewl as I would have liked. But I remain optimistic.
Overall, however, a good showing for both Alpha
and TenTec and the fact there is such serious
movement, change, and investment - all bode
well for the future of TenTec radios and Alpha
amplifiers.
* No question there is a whole lot of shaking going on. *
That is just MY take... your mileage may differ.
===================== K8JHR ===================
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