When the AA-54 arrived I immediately took it out of the box and out to my truck.  I have a multi-band HF antenna that has been giving me trouble, and the first job for the AA-54 was to help me get that antenna as close to resonant as possible.

The AA-54 did not disappoint me at all.  At first, the menu structure was a bit cumbersome, but once I got the hang of pressing the menu number instead of trying to navigate with the arrows, it was smooth sailing.

As soon as I hooked up the antenna and turned on the AA-54 I was able to begin checking the SWR.  I started by checking the SWR for a single band, but then switched to the multi-band SWR check.  This features allows you to display 5 bands and see how adjusting for one band will affect the others.   For a mobile installation, this is perfect.

I then connected the AA-54 to my G5RV for my shack.  In less than 5 minutes I had checked the SWR on the antenna, made a slight adjustment, and brought my antenna into resonance on the band I use most.

Not only is the AA-54 great for adjusting antennas, but it is great for checking out coax for problems.  I connected a 50 foot length of coax that had been giving me trouble and the AA-54 told me approximately where the problem was so I was could fix the problem and make the coax useful again.

I was impressed with the easy-to-read backlit screen, and the well-organized menus.  Once I got used to maneuvering through the menus, finding what I needed was a breeze.  The AA-54 is lightweight and packs easily in a go-bag.

Here is a list of features that most people will find extremely useful:

• Check an antenna quickly for any issues
• USB interface to connect to a computer and software for viewing data
• User configurable, multi-band SWR checking of an antenna
• Compare antenna stats before and after certain events or changes (rain, coax lengthening or shortening, antenna relocation, etc.)
• Check for the location of a fault in coax
• Lightweight and easy to carry with you.