jotis wrote:
Hello-

After a hiatus of about 25 years or so, I recently got back into ham radio.
I bought an IC 706MkII G rig, an antenna tuner, an audio filter, and an
artificial ground. I quite like the 706, but I have the feeling that it is
just an "OK rig". I mostly operate CW (with only modest success) - very
often,

SNIP

Joe, the 706MKIIg is an excellent mobile/portable rig. It's bandwidth is
factory set for SSB at approximately 2.7 KHz at -6 dB on the filter
curve. It opens up to approximately 6.0 KHz at -60 dB. A poor set up for
CW to be sure!

You could add the FL-100, a 500 Hz filter, for fair CW. Then the 3rd
order performance will limit performance.

Moving on to the IC-746, not PRO, I use the FL-100 for CW and find it
entirely adequate. The 3rd order performance was tested by ARRL and
determined to be 99 dB at 20 KHz at 14.02 MHz. That corresponds to an
adjacent signal at +50 over S9 at 20 KHz from the receive frequency with
a bandwidth of 500 Hz producing a barely discernible change in the
minimum detectable signal level.

This is about average to average plus for a $1200 - $1400 rig.

With the APF function I can DSP the bandwidth down to almost 100 Hz or
slightly below.

I own both the 706 MKIIg and the 746 [non-PRO] models.

The IC-756PRO has a better receiver than the 746.

I'll let the YAESU users comment on the performance of that line of
equipment.

Deacon Dave, W1MCE