Looking to replace a aging Icom ht radio maybe the Yaesu FT-817ND would do a good job. Anybody got the pros and cons about this rig? 73’s KF4SWS
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6 comments:
I can not give a detailed account - I borrowed one for field day (2B - battery/solar panel op) and was very comfortable with the rig - however much of that comfort has to do with the fact that I use an FT-857D which has a lot of similarities. It's nice having 2M and 440 in the same rig that you use for HF - eliminates the need for a second repeater rig.
It is a nice rig - You probably have already read the comments on eham.
I own one, my biggest problem is that it doesn't have a built in tuner. (That would have probably made the radio twice the size it is now so you give a little to get a little) And having DSP would be nice as well.. Those two features IMHO would turn a good radio into a great radio.
I would replace the stock antenna as soon as possable as well, not that is a complaint just a comment.
I guess - another CON would be the controls for various features take some getting use to lots of functions, but the menus are a little confusing. I found to did make it much easier to program and use after I got a CAT cable and used Ham Radio Deluxe -
I got the radio to use it portable, and honestly have never taken out side (maybe once) -
It is still my plans to use it portable, but...well..
For a QRP rig it is very nice, I don't really have any major complaints about it - I'd give it a 4.7 out of 5 (and only discounted from a 5 because of the all of the menus)...get use to that and well!
Get the filters for it thou, I bought mine used it had the filters already in it, I was told they make a world of difference I have never taken mine out.
so can't comment on that.
LeRoy, KD8BXP
Thanks...
I've got a Yaesu FT-817ND and I'm getting to know it, but definitely not very efficient with it at all yet! I've had several Kenwood radios and love them, able to navigate the menus quickly, everything makes sense to me, their abbreviations, manu structure, etc.
Now with this radio... I have been completely lost half the time I use it :-) But it is starting to make more sense.
I went with this radio because I have the habit of monitoring a lot more than I transmit, and really liked the field capability of it (battery/solar) as well as 2M/440 with it as well.
I bought the DinKEY for it:
http://geocities.com/micro-wave/dinkey.html
And bought an End-Fedz 10-20-40 antenna:
http://parelectronics.com/end_fedz.htm
I also built my own wire antenna for it. For the long wire antenna I built up an Elecraft T1 tuner for it:
http://elecraft.com/T1/T1.htm
Hope that helps, let me know if you have any specific questions. My next investment or construction project will be a stand for it for easier desktop operation. The screen is difficult to see if the unit is laying flat on a table... kind of wish they had a screen with an adjustable angle on it!
I've got one for 2 years.
PROs
- It's fine to have all in one box
- Can be on the air on PSK with a netbook (eeePC)
- CW filter in option
CONs
- very poor receiver
- only 2 W on battery should be not enough in portable condx (low and short antennas, etc.)
- not so easy to use if (you must push buttons/ select menus to access usual parameters - not possible during transmission).
- very poor receiver (yes, I've already said this, but it's the real problem: during my last trip in St Maarteen Island as FS/F5IYJ, no qso was done from FT-819 + buddipole due to S9 noise on the bands. I've just plugged my Elecraft KX-1 and made 60+ qso with the same antenna. Noise was reduced to S3-4).
My suggestion:
- for a CW operator: Elecraft KX-1 + real handy 2m/70cm TRX
- for phone, switch to Elecraft K2/10w
--- In BMHA@yahoogroups.com, "BrassRat77" ks1g04@... wrote:
>
> --- In BMHA@yahoogroups.com, "Andy" ajeshadow@gmail.com wrote:
> >
> > OK maybe I should ask which dual band rig is best for backpacking and cycling need to replace poor cell phone coverage. KF4SWS Andy
>
> How far out in the boonies? Any particular bands or modes? How important to you are ease of use, antennas, operating time, power source, etc?
>
> By "dual band", do you mean a VHF/UHF HT? Your communications may be limited by distance, terrain, and sparse ham populations away from cities. Although high elevation and a decent whip, external roll-up j-pole hung from a tree, or a small collapsible hand-held beam like the Arrow Antenna can make up for much of that. I really like my Yaesu VX5 HT (I use it for bike mobile sometimes with either a light whip or a bike flagpole antenna) and the new VX8 with GPS and APRS is VERY tempting.
>
> The serious QRP backpackers swear by little Altoids tin-size HF CW rigs and either tuned wire antennas or random wires and a small tuner - check the QRP-L archives and the Adventure Radio Society for ideas. When I went on a bike trip with son's Scout troop (C&O Canal, so no elevation and near civilization), I tried a few evening SSB QSOs with an FT817 and a 12' MFJ telescoping whip and counterpoise + the Elecraft auto-tuner. I was more successful keeping people awake than making contacts! My VX5 came in handy a few nights to get NOAA weather alerts and monitor a wide-area Skywarn net. I didn't rely on it as a cell-phone backup and would have hated to need it for that. If I wanted a good HF self-contained radio and was willing to stick with CW, I'd look at the Elecraft K1 with internal batteries and tuner or the KX1. Hope this helps
>
> 73, Steve KS1G
>
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