SB-401 low audio problem

[Schichler, Alfred]

I was wondering if SB-401's normally have fairly low audio, or if I have a
problem somewhere in the audio or ALC section.
I have tried three microphones (all high impedance), and I always have to
turn the mic gain all the way up to get much of a reading on the relative
power meter. Also, the ALC meter never goes anywhere close to the maximum
area. In fact, it actually goes a little to the left if I talk real loud.
This problem might have existed for a few years since I have not been very
active for a while.

I did an on-the-air test last night, and I was told my ssb signal didn't
read on the s-meter at all, while the cw signal read about s3. That sounds a
little low to me.

I didn't get a chance to check the tubes, so I might have some weak ones.
This was a transmitter I picked up from a hamfest some years ago cheap, and
it was dead when I first tried it, so it took a lot of fixing. I might have
missed something, but I would like to get the rig working the way it is
supposed to. I only have a rough copy of the manual, so some of the
circuitry is a little hard to follow, but I will try to download a better
schematic.

Thanks for any help in advance,
Al, NE2D

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