In article , "JET" lifehelth at
comcast dot net wrote:

After helping sell the mobile units for a friend of mine that is a SK, I am
thinking of getting back into the hobby again.
What are some suggestions for a base rig, used under $800.. I have had
Kenwood and Yaesu in the past, but have not kept up with everything. I have
seen Kenwood 930/40 on ebay but seem to remember problems with those units..

Jet-

I have an old Kenwood TS-690SAT which is the same as the TS-450SAT except
it has Six Meters. One of either in good condition would make a nice
rig. The only thing I don't like is that on FM, the optional tone encoder
uses dip-switches to set frequency. Optional filters should still be
available for narrow sideband and CW.

A slightly newer rig that I haven't used, is the TS-570. It is available
in two versions, one with Six Meters. I think the TS-570S is the one with
Six, but I'm not sure. I think it uses the same filters as the TS-450.

I now use the TS-480 mobile with the built-in antenna tuner. It is also
available with twice the power but no tuner. Mine works OK, but it is a
bit big for a mobile rig, and you have to purchase the "mobile shelf"
separately if you don't want to remotely mount it. It might be a good rig
for you if you can find one in your price range. It is one of the newer
models and uses digital signal processing (DSP).

Personally, I'd look for a bargain on a new-old-stock TS-570 if I needed
an inexpensive rig.

73, Fred, K4DII