Radio Recomendations

[Cnynrat]

I'm (finally) looking at getting a 2m rig for my FJ, and would like some opinions from more experienced users here. Without having the background of experience I'm finding it difficult to assess what features are going to be really important to me, what are going to be nice to have, and what are really not that important. So let's start by talking about requirements:

1. Frequency range: Obviously, 2M is a must have. 70 cm I put in the nice to have category, but it seems as though other requirements will put me into a dual band radio anyway. I don't think I care about wider band receive capability than that, but like dual band it probably will come anyway based on other requirements.

2. Detachable face plate - Installation limitations in the FJ make this a must have requirement. As an aside, I think this requirement puts me into a dual band radio.

3. I want to support an installation where the mike is easily usable by either driver or passenger. I'm encouraging Jodi to get her license, and even if that doesn't happen for a while sometimes she's the driver and I'm the passenger. Having the mike attach to the main unit seems to make meeting this objective a bit easier than if the mike attaches to the faceplate (I'm expecting the main unit will be mounted under one of the front seats).

4. Computer Interface/SW Programmable - I'm leaning towards making this a must have requirement based on conversations with a number of experienced hams. Any reasonable use of the extensive memory banks found in most of these radios would be a lot easier to set up on a PC and simply download to the radio. We usually travel with a rugged laptop in the FJ, so the PC would be there as well. Feedback on this thought would be welcome.

5. User Interface - This is an area where preference can come into play. I'm leaning towards making backlit buttons a must have requirement. It just seems as though a radio without that would be really difficult to use at night. Button size and usability is going to be a subjective judgement, but I'd lean towards larger buttons.

6. Dual Receive/Cross Band Repeat - This requirement would really narrow down the field, but I'm having difficulty deciding whether this is a must have, or just nice to have. Most experienced hams I've talked to tell me this is very important, but without the benefit of experience it's really hard for me to judge how much I would actually use this feature. People talk about being away from their vehicle with their HT and using their mobile unit as a repeater. There are some instances where I could see doing this, but if we were going to be away from the vehicle on a long hike for example, I'm not sure I'd leave the mobile on for 8-10 hours. I can also think of some situations where I might want to monitor a couple channels, for example at a big event where there might be a channel for the run I am on, plus a channel for the event overall. I'd really like some feedback on how much this capability should weigh in my decision.

7. Radio Quality - Let's not forget that one - good radio performance and a reliable unit are definitely a must have. At the moment I'm kind of treating the well known brands (Yaesu, Icom, Kenwood) as equal in terms of the basic performance of the radio itself, and in terms of quality and reliability. I'd appreciate feedback on radio performance and overall quality levels for products from these three companies.

So that covers most of what I'm considering to be the important requirements that drive the decision. If anyone has any feedback on the list and how they should be prioritized I'd love to hear it.

To further confuse the issue, let's talk about some specific radios.

If I put cross band repeat in the must have category, I'm leaning towards the Kenwood TM-V71A, or possibly the ICOM IC-2820H. I'd really like some feedback on Kenwood radio quality, reliability, etc, either generally or specifically on this radio. I know the Icom 2820 is way more radio than I need, and pretty expensive as a result. I'd be more inclined to spend the dough if I was convinced DSTARS will become a must have feature for me in the future, but I think it's a little early to place that bet. Any comments on that question?

If cross band repeat is just a nice to have I'm probably leaning towards the Yaesu FT-7800R or the Icom IC208H.

Feedback on any of these models would be apprciated. Also, is there some other model I should be considering?

Thanks.

[sdnative]

I'm (finally) looking at getting a 2m rig for my FJ, and would like some opinions from more experienced users here

Congratulations! While I wouldn't consider myself experienced, I do have a dual bander and would be happy to share some of my experiences. I have the Yaesu FT-8800R

3. I want to support an installation where the mike is easily usable by either driver or passenger.

Depends on where you mount the face unit. I have mine mounted down by by the shifter and is easily accessable by both the driver and the passenger. The mic does mount to the face on this unit.

4. Computer Interface/SW Programmable - I'm leaning towards making this a must have requirement based on conversations with a number of experienced hams. Any reasonable use of the extensive memory banks found in most of these radios would be a lot easier to set up on a PC and simply download to the radio. We usually travel with a rugged laptop in the FJ, so the PC would be there as well. Feedback on this thought would be welcome.

Yes, this is a good feature. Unfortunately, yaesu is not very user friendly in this area. It would be great to just be able to plug in a serial connection (whether usb or db9) and transfer the configuration as ASCII text. Yeasu uses binary files and a ttl level converter. You have to buy a special cable and use one of their programs (either RT systems or FTB8800). FTB8800 is rated very well, but after going through the huge fiasco trying to buy the software, I just threw up my hands and walked away. I still have the usb to data post cable, but no software.

5. User Interface - This is an area where preference can come into play. I'm leaning towards making backlit buttons a must have requirement. It just seems as though a radio without that would be really difficult to use at night. Button size and usability is going to be a subjective judgement, but I'd lean towards larger buttons.

This is about user preference. The backlighting on my unit is excellent. Button size is ok. One problem with the layout, and I haven't seen anyone mention this: The A channel tuning knob is in a very bad location. With the face unit mounted in your dash horizontally, your hand blocks the display while turning the knob. You cant see what memory/frequency you're on! This probably isn't an issue if you have it mounted vertically or are using the mic to change fequencies.

7. Radio Quality - Let's not forget that one - good radio performance and a reliable unit are definitely a must have. At the moment I'm kind of treating the well known brands (Yaesu, Icom, Kenwood) as equal in terms of the basic performance of the radio itself, and in terms of quality and reliability. I'd appreciate feedback on radio performance and overall quality levels for products from these three companies.

I've had some problems with mine, and I could just have is setup wrong. I have it wired right to battery going through a fuse block. When I have my radio on with my engine shut off, and then turn on the engine, the radio will shut off (probably normal operation). Sometimes it will turn back on, and sometimes it will stay off. A couple times now, I have turned it back on to find all of my memory channels have been wiped out (makes having a computer interface handy to reprogram). Also, some of the setting get changed at random (the other day I noticed a new icon on the display, and after consulting the manual, found that the auto-power off had been changed from off to 6 minutes).

I'm sure all of the modern radios are similar, but I need to keep the manual handy. There are so many settings, I can't keep them all straight.

If I had to do it again, I probaly would consider a differnt radio. Don't get me wrong, I like the yeasu, but I have had some problems with it.

Like I said, I'm no expert. I just wanted to share my limited experience with one particualar radio. Good luck!

[Cnynrat]

SDNative - Thanks for your thoughts and advice.

[OLLIE]

Dave,

IMHO just spend the extra $$$ for the dualbander. Once you start to play around with ham radio you'll want to upgrade anyway. The price difference isn't much when you get down to it. I have had both the FT-7800 and FT-8800. After using the VX-7R as my Mobile HT for awhile I got hooked on being ale to monitor two frequencies simultaneously so I switched from the 7800 to the 8800. The 7800 had buttons on the faceplate that light up. The 8800 buttons on the faceplate do not kight up. However, if the radio doen't come with one already, you will want to by a DTMF microphone and the buttons on it light up. I highly recommend getting to know how to control your radio through the mic. It allows you to focus on the road better.

[Cnynrat]

Dave,

IMHO just spend the extra $$$ for the dualbander. Once you start to play around with ham radio you'll want to upgrade anyway. The price difference isn't much when you get down to it. I have had both the FT-7800 and FT-8800. After using the VX-7R as my Mobile HT for awhile I got hooked on being ale to monitor two frequencies simultaneously so I switched from the 7800 to the 8800. The 7800 had buttons on the faceplate that light up. The 8800 buttons on the faceplate do not kight up. However, if the radio doen't come with one already, you will want to by a DTMF microphone and the buttons on it light up. I highly recommend getting to know how to control your radio through the mic. It allows you to focus on the road better.

Ollie -

I've pretty muched reached the conclusion to put dual recieve & cross band repeat on the "must have" list. Unless I learn something new I'm probably going to go for the Kenwood TM-V71A. Supports those capabilities and has some of the other user interface and installation related features I'm looking for.

Of course, one of my friends here at work is pushing me to go for the ICOM 706. He's convinced I won't be happy in the long run without HF in the rig.