|
Kenwood TS-520, 520S & 520SE
I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in
maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Hi,
?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Hi,
?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
I am not sure what the previous post is talking about, but...The TS520S is
the best one. The 520 is the original, and does not have 160...but it does have the dc-dc converter built in...if you want to use it mobile (??) The SE was the last version, but I am not sure what were the diff's there. I don't think it had the heater switch.... I have a 520S, and it will go down as a classic. Still has better sounding SSB than say a 756PRO!! .....Dave "Thierry" To answer me in private use http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/post.htm wrote in message ... Hi, ?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
I am not sure what the previous post is talking about, but...The TS520S is
the best one. The 520 is the original, and does not have 160...but it does have the dc-dc converter built in...if you want to use it mobile (??) The SE was the last version, but I am not sure what were the diff's there. I don't think it had the heater switch.... I have a 520S, and it will go down as a classic. Still has better sounding SSB than say a 756PRO!! .....Dave "Thierry" To answer me in private use http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/post.htm wrote in message ... Hi, ?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
David,
The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
David,
The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Thanks for the reply and all the valuable information.
David "Dave Edwards" wrote in message ... I am not sure what the previous post is talking about, but...The TS520S is the best one. The 520 is the original, and does not have 160...but it does have the dc-dc converter built in...if you want to use it mobile (??) The SE was the last version, but I am not sure what were the diff's there. I don't think it had the heater switch.... I have a 520S, and it will go down as a classic. Still has better sounding SSB than say a 756PRO!! ....Dave "Thierry" To answer me in private use http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/post.htm wrote in message ... Hi, ?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Thanks for the reply and all the valuable information.
David "Dave Edwards" wrote in message ... I am not sure what the previous post is talking about, but...The TS520S is the best one. The 520 is the original, and does not have 160...but it does have the dc-dc converter built in...if you want to use it mobile (??) The SE was the last version, but I am not sure what were the diff's there. I don't think it had the heater switch.... I have a 520S, and it will go down as a classic. Still has better sounding SSB than say a 756PRO!! ....Dave "Thierry" To answer me in private use http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/post.htm wrote in message ... Hi, ?? never heard that they doesn't work on 160m... Other proof, the antenna tuner is preset to match 18 sub-bands between 1.8 and 28 MHz Of course they work on 160 meters, as any good RTX ! but maybe not your antenna... Hi ! Review of TS-570D and others : http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/qsl-ts570.htm Other models not reviewed : TS-570MG : 50W, and VG : 10W, 50 MHz 20W. Thierry, ON4SKY "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Thanks for the reply and info. I'll look at those also.
David "Steve" wrote in message ... David, The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
Thanks for the reply and info. I'll look at those also.
David "Steve" wrote in message ... David, The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
A word of warning. Actually 2.
The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
A word of warning. Actually 2.
The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
yes, 820s also triple conversion I remember.
gus Steve wrote: David, The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
yes, 820s also triple conversion I remember.
gus Steve wrote: David, The 520S is supposed to be the best one. For a few more bucks, get a TS-820S. I've got one and I really like it. 160-10 with DC or 110VAC built in. Variable speech processor, 6146 finals. If you want the WARC bands, get a TS-830S. This rig has a few more bells and whistles. All of these rigs are basically the same. Very solid, reliable rigs with excellent performance (IMO). Steve W6SSP David 01 wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
A big thanks for the info.
David "Clif Holland" wrote in message ... A word of warning. Actually 2. The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
A big thanks for the info.
David "Clif Holland" wrote in message ... A word of warning. Actually 2. The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
I had a 520 SE (520 S Economy) for 14 years.
520 was 5 band and 120 vac or 12 vdc 520 S had 160 meters 520 SE had 160, did not have 12 volt. It did not have the 12 volt input, so it did not need a heater switch. In place of the heater switch was a wide / narrow switch to let you run the ssb or cw filter when in the cw position. ( I rewired mine to allow either filter in any mode, and used the cw filter for rtty). It did have four fixed crystal postions, I put in two crystals for Packet Radio frequencies. KA9CAR John "David 01" wrote in message ... A big thanks for the info. David "Clif Holland" wrote in message ... A word of warning. Actually 2. The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
I had a 520 SE (520 S Economy) for 14 years.
520 was 5 band and 120 vac or 12 vdc 520 S had 160 meters 520 SE had 160, did not have 12 volt. It did not have the 12 volt input, so it did not need a heater switch. In place of the heater switch was a wide / narrow switch to let you run the ssb or cw filter when in the cw position. ( I rewired mine to allow either filter in any mode, and used the cw filter for rtty). It did have four fixed crystal postions, I put in two crystals for Packet Radio frequencies. KA9CAR John "David 01" wrote in message ... A big thanks for the info. David "Clif Holland" wrote in message ... A word of warning. Actually 2. The coils in the bottom are a tinkerers delight and many radios have broken cores. The coils are not available. The most tinkered with was the 10m coil. If it is broken the rest of the coils will not align correctly. Also the 2 relays used in it are NLA. Other than that great radios. The SE was a 120v only version and didn't have the fixed freq xtal positions. There are a couple of other differences but they don't come to mind at the moment. -- Clif Holland, KA5IPF AVVid Authorized Kenwood and Icom Service Center 816 W Shady Grove Rd Irving, TX 75060 www.avvid.com 1-800-214-5779 972-870-0630 (local) "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David |
I got the TS520S it works on Top Band but is restricted to 10 watts. If you
try to turn up the juice more than that, it might burn the ceramic base, wire wound choke, that sits in between the 2 B6146 valves (well it did on mine) I tuned it for top band, wanged up the audio, and a puff of smoke came out of the finals box. I read the book, rewound the choke, and asked a few questions. I was advised that the set was governed some how on top band, as there was a power restriction on part of the band when the set was built. (Still is on parts) Mine tunes up a treat on all other frequencies, its just restricted on 160. |
I got the TS520S it works on Top Band but is restricted to 10 watts. If you
try to turn up the juice more than that, it might burn the ceramic base, wire wound choke, that sits in between the 2 B6146 valves (well it did on mine) I tuned it for top band, wanged up the audio, and a puff of smoke came out of the finals box. I read the book, rewound the choke, and asked a few questions. I was advised that the set was governed some how on top band, as there was a power restriction on part of the band when the set was built. (Still is on parts) Mine tunes up a treat on all other frequencies, its just restricted on 160. |
"David 01" wrote in message ...
I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David I guess they listed most of the differences... In theory, the 520S was the best. The SE was the economy model, and the 520 was the first, and yes, no 160m. I've had and worked on them all. They all work well, but to me, the original 520 had the smoothest audio of the ones I tried. The 530 series was a later digital readout version of this line. The 820 and 830 are also closely related, but each was the top of the line rig at the time they were built. IE: the 820 was top dog at the time the 520's were coming out. The 530 looks nearly the same as an 830, "the 830 came out first", but has a few less toys. The 830 is the best of the bunch hands down as far as the receiver goodies. Also the 830 has true rf speech compression which is very good. I still have a TS-830 and VFO-230. Sold the last 520 about three years ago though..It was a 520 original I bought as a basket case for $100. It had silky smooth audio after I fixed and re-aligned it. Really clean sounding. Probably better than the 830 I have. I had a 520SE in the shack at the same time that I was working on for someone else, and compared the two. The 520 was definitely cleaner as far as audio quality, but I'm not sure why...Both were aligned straight up as per manual as well as could be aligned, "dang near perfect" so it wasn't that. But the older one was cleaner and smoother sounding to my ears. I had a 520S in the late 70's when it was nearly new. At that time, it was like a cadillac compared to the old junk I had been using previous. Really seemed modern at that time... That shows you how far we've some since the late 70's...:/ If I were to buy a hybrid kenwood, just to buy a hybrid kenwood, I'd get a 830. It's the best. "I am biased though..." If not that, a 530. The reason? You can use the ultra stable VFO-230 with those two. Won't work with any of the others..But I guess any of them are ok if you can live with some temp drift. The 520 I had drifted up and down 40 cycles with the ac cycling off and on...That drives me nuts...The VF0-230 doesn't budge. It makes the 830 feel like a 930 as far as stability...:) MK |
"David 01" wrote in message ...
I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David I guess they listed most of the differences... In theory, the 520S was the best. The SE was the economy model, and the 520 was the first, and yes, no 160m. I've had and worked on them all. They all work well, but to me, the original 520 had the smoothest audio of the ones I tried. The 530 series was a later digital readout version of this line. The 820 and 830 are also closely related, but each was the top of the line rig at the time they were built. IE: the 820 was top dog at the time the 520's were coming out. The 530 looks nearly the same as an 830, "the 830 came out first", but has a few less toys. The 830 is the best of the bunch hands down as far as the receiver goodies. Also the 830 has true rf speech compression which is very good. I still have a TS-830 and VFO-230. Sold the last 520 about three years ago though..It was a 520 original I bought as a basket case for $100. It had silky smooth audio after I fixed and re-aligned it. Really clean sounding. Probably better than the 830 I have. I had a 520SE in the shack at the same time that I was working on for someone else, and compared the two. The 520 was definitely cleaner as far as audio quality, but I'm not sure why...Both were aligned straight up as per manual as well as could be aligned, "dang near perfect" so it wasn't that. But the older one was cleaner and smoother sounding to my ears. I had a 520S in the late 70's when it was nearly new. At that time, it was like a cadillac compared to the old junk I had been using previous. Really seemed modern at that time... That shows you how far we've some since the late 70's...:/ If I were to buy a hybrid kenwood, just to buy a hybrid kenwood, I'd get a 830. It's the best. "I am biased though..." If not that, a 530. The reason? You can use the ultra stable VFO-230 with those two. Won't work with any of the others..But I guess any of them are ok if you can live with some temp drift. The 520 I had drifted up and down 40 cycles with the ac cycling off and on...That drives me nuts...The VF0-230 doesn't budge. It makes the 830 feel like a 930 as far as stability...:) MK |
On Fri, 26 Mar 2004 01:52:31 -0000, "cabbanis"
wrote: I got the TS520S it works on Top Band but is restricted to 10 watts. If you try to turn up the juice more than that, it might burn the ceramic base, wire wound choke, that sits in between the 2 B6146 valves (well it did on mine) Strange that... I bought a brand new one in New Zealand in 1977 and it gave 100W output on 160m from the start. Maybe the UK version had the 10W limit factory fitted, I dont know. I'm surprised you had trouble with the RF choke as I would have thought the components would have been the same for both power levels, the power reduction being made by reducing voltages on the PA. Peter, G3PHO (ex ZL2LA) |
On Fri, 26 Mar 2004 01:52:31 -0000, "cabbanis"
wrote: I got the TS520S it works on Top Band but is restricted to 10 watts. If you try to turn up the juice more than that, it might burn the ceramic base, wire wound choke, that sits in between the 2 B6146 valves (well it did on mine) Strange that... I bought a brand new one in New Zealand in 1977 and it gave 100W output on 160m from the start. Maybe the UK version had the 10W limit factory fitted, I dont know. I'm surprised you had trouble with the RF choke as I would have thought the components would have been the same for both power levels, the power reduction being made by reducing voltages on the PA. Peter, G3PHO (ex ZL2LA) |
Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative.
David "Mark Keith" wrote in message om... "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David I guess they listed most of the differences... In theory, the 520S was the best. The SE was the economy model, and the 520 was the first, and yes, no 160m. I've had and worked on them all. They all work well, but to me, the original 520 had the smoothest audio of the ones I tried. The 530 series was a later digital readout version of this line. The 820 and 830 are also closely related, but each was the top of the line rig at the time they were built. IE: the 820 was top dog at the time the 520's were coming out. The 530 looks nearly the same as an 830, "the 830 came out first", but has a few less toys. The 830 is the best of the bunch hands down as far as the receiver goodies. Also the 830 has true rf speech compression which is very good. I still have a TS-830 and VFO-230. Sold the last 520 about three years ago though..It was a 520 original I bought as a basket case for $100. It had silky smooth audio after I fixed and re-aligned it. Really clean sounding. Probably better than the 830 I have. I had a 520SE in the shack at the same time that I was working on for someone else, and compared the two. The 520 was definitely cleaner as far as audio quality, but I'm not sure why...Both were aligned straight up as per manual as well as could be aligned, "dang near perfect" so it wasn't that. But the older one was cleaner and smoother sounding to my ears. I had a 520S in the late 70's when it was nearly new. At that time, it was like a cadillac compared to the old junk I had been using previous. Really seemed modern at that time... That shows you how far we've some since the late 70's...:/ If I were to buy a hybrid kenwood, just to buy a hybrid kenwood, I'd get a 830. It's the best. "I am biased though..." If not that, a 530. The reason? You can use the ultra stable VFO-230 with those two. Won't work with any of the others..But I guess any of them are ok if you can live with some temp drift. The 520 I had drifted up and down 40 cycles with the ac cycling off and on...That drives me nuts...The VF0-230 doesn't budge. It makes the 830 feel like a 930 as far as stability...:) MK |
Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative.
David "Mark Keith" wrote in message om... "David 01" wrote in message ... I've seen some of these (only on the net) and have become interested in maybe purchasing one in the future. My question is: which model is the best? Other than the fact that the 520 has no 160m band (I believe this is correct), what are other differences? Thanks! David I guess they listed most of the differences... In theory, the 520S was the best. The SE was the economy model, and the 520 was the first, and yes, no 160m. I've had and worked on them all. They all work well, but to me, the original 520 had the smoothest audio of the ones I tried. The 530 series was a later digital readout version of this line. The 820 and 830 are also closely related, but each was the top of the line rig at the time they were built. IE: the 820 was top dog at the time the 520's were coming out. The 530 looks nearly the same as an 830, "the 830 came out first", but has a few less toys. The 830 is the best of the bunch hands down as far as the receiver goodies. Also the 830 has true rf speech compression which is very good. I still have a TS-830 and VFO-230. Sold the last 520 about three years ago though..It was a 520 original I bought as a basket case for $100. It had silky smooth audio after I fixed and re-aligned it. Really clean sounding. Probably better than the 830 I have. I had a 520SE in the shack at the same time that I was working on for someone else, and compared the two. The 520 was definitely cleaner as far as audio quality, but I'm not sure why...Both were aligned straight up as per manual as well as could be aligned, "dang near perfect" so it wasn't that. But the older one was cleaner and smoother sounding to my ears. I had a 520S in the late 70's when it was nearly new. At that time, it was like a cadillac compared to the old junk I had been using previous. Really seemed modern at that time... That shows you how far we've some since the late 70's...:/ If I were to buy a hybrid kenwood, just to buy a hybrid kenwood, I'd get a 830. It's the best. "I am biased though..." If not that, a 530. The reason? You can use the ultra stable VFO-230 with those two. Won't work with any of the others..But I guess any of them are ok if you can live with some temp drift. The 520 I had drifted up and down 40 cycles with the ac cycling off and on...That drives me nuts...The VF0-230 doesn't budge. It makes the 830 feel like a 930 as far as stability...:) MK |
"David 01" wrote in message ...
Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative. David I like the old radios...:) All those older hybrid kenwoods will go down as some of the best ham rigs ever made. Real reliable workhorses, and the audio quality was real good. I mentioned the audio on the original 520... I've heard stories that when they first designed the 520, and maybe some of the other first kenwoods, they actually borrowed the same audio engineers that designed the high end stereo stuff to design the audio circuits on those radios. May explain why I thought that first model sounded so good. They may have "dumbed" it down a bit on later versions due to circuit changes...Who knows...Kenwood has made a lot of good radios. The 430 is another reliable workhorse that will enter the same museum...:) Of course, it was one of the first all solid state. "The 180 was the first I think". The 930 and 940 were super radios in my opinion. But some had some problems that show up in later years, that is hard to fix without parts. The 930 had a common problem with the power supply solder joints, or something along that line...Cliff could probably better fill you in on those...But when a 930 or 940 is working right, it's hard to beat for an all around radio. A friend of mine had a 930 when it was fairly new. It always worked perfectly then of course...I always thought it was one of the best all around radios I ever used. The 940 good too. Better in theory, but either is good. Like Cliff mentioned, many of the older radios use parts that are getting hard to get. Luckily, for the hybrids , it's mainly the relays, etc..There are mods you can do to extend the life of them. I've got a nice icom 730 that is collecting dust, because I can't find one lousy 9 pin transformer for the display board. I'll have to raid a junker some day to fix it...The IC-730 was one of icoms better 1980's radios...:) Really solid. The 735 was good too. I bought a 706mk2g to replace the 730 after I couldn't get the part...So far after three years, it's been good. Knock on wood...But I'll fix the 730 some day. ...Great easy to use mobile rig...Mines got the desirable passband tuning filter in it. The 730 has a quad conversion receiver, believe it or not...It's pretty good. MK |
"David 01" wrote in message ...
Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative. David I like the old radios...:) All those older hybrid kenwoods will go down as some of the best ham rigs ever made. Real reliable workhorses, and the audio quality was real good. I mentioned the audio on the original 520... I've heard stories that when they first designed the 520, and maybe some of the other first kenwoods, they actually borrowed the same audio engineers that designed the high end stereo stuff to design the audio circuits on those radios. May explain why I thought that first model sounded so good. They may have "dumbed" it down a bit on later versions due to circuit changes...Who knows...Kenwood has made a lot of good radios. The 430 is another reliable workhorse that will enter the same museum...:) Of course, it was one of the first all solid state. "The 180 was the first I think". The 930 and 940 were super radios in my opinion. But some had some problems that show up in later years, that is hard to fix without parts. The 930 had a common problem with the power supply solder joints, or something along that line...Cliff could probably better fill you in on those...But when a 930 or 940 is working right, it's hard to beat for an all around radio. A friend of mine had a 930 when it was fairly new. It always worked perfectly then of course...I always thought it was one of the best all around radios I ever used. The 940 good too. Better in theory, but either is good. Like Cliff mentioned, many of the older radios use parts that are getting hard to get. Luckily, for the hybrids , it's mainly the relays, etc..There are mods you can do to extend the life of them. I've got a nice icom 730 that is collecting dust, because I can't find one lousy 9 pin transformer for the display board. I'll have to raid a junker some day to fix it...The IC-730 was one of icoms better 1980's radios...:) Really solid. The 735 was good too. I bought a 706mk2g to replace the 730 after I couldn't get the part...So far after three years, it's been good. Knock on wood...But I'll fix the 730 some day. ...Great easy to use mobile rig...Mines got the desirable passband tuning filter in it. The 730 has a quad conversion receiver, believe it or not...It's pretty good. MK |
I think I'd like the old hf's. Hopefully I can pick up some oldies this
spring or summer to play with. Good luck on the repairs. Thanks, David "Mark Keith" wrote in message om... "David 01" wrote in message ... Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative. David I like the old radios...:) All those older hybrid kenwoods will go down as some of the best ham rigs ever made. Real reliable workhorses, and the audio quality was real good. I mentioned the audio on the original 520... I've heard stories that when they first designed the 520, and maybe some of the other first kenwoods, they actually borrowed the same audio engineers that designed the high end stereo stuff to design the audio circuits on those radios. May explain why I thought that first model sounded so good. They may have "dumbed" it down a bit on later versions due to circuit changes...Who knows...Kenwood has made a lot of good radios. The 430 is another reliable workhorse that will enter the same museum...:) Of course, it was one of the first all solid state. "The 180 was the first I think". The 930 and 940 were super radios in my opinion. But some had some problems that show up in later years, that is hard to fix without parts. The 930 had a common problem with the power supply solder joints, or something along that line...Cliff could probably better fill you in on those...But when a 930 or 940 is working right, it's hard to beat for an all around radio. A friend of mine had a 930 when it was fairly new. It always worked perfectly then of course...I always thought it was one of the best all around radios I ever used. The 940 good too. Better in theory, but either is good. Like Cliff mentioned, many of the older radios use parts that are getting hard to get. Luckily, for the hybrids , it's mainly the relays, etc..There are mods you can do to extend the life of them. I've got a nice icom 730 that is collecting dust, because I can't find one lousy 9 pin transformer for the display board. I'll have to raid a junker some day to fix it...The IC-730 was one of icoms better 1980's radios...:) Really solid. The 735 was good too. I bought a 706mk2g to replace the 730 after I couldn't get the part...So far after three years, it's been good. Knock on wood...But I'll fix the 730 some day. ...Great easy to use mobile rig...Mines got the desirable passband tuning filter in it. The 730 has a quad conversion receiver, believe it or not...It's pretty good. MK |
I think I'd like the old hf's. Hopefully I can pick up some oldies this
spring or summer to play with. Good luck on the repairs. Thanks, David "Mark Keith" wrote in message om... "David 01" wrote in message ... Thanks for the info. It's very interesting and informative. David I like the old radios...:) All those older hybrid kenwoods will go down as some of the best ham rigs ever made. Real reliable workhorses, and the audio quality was real good. I mentioned the audio on the original 520... I've heard stories that when they first designed the 520, and maybe some of the other first kenwoods, they actually borrowed the same audio engineers that designed the high end stereo stuff to design the audio circuits on those radios. May explain why I thought that first model sounded so good. They may have "dumbed" it down a bit on later versions due to circuit changes...Who knows...Kenwood has made a lot of good radios. The 430 is another reliable workhorse that will enter the same museum...:) Of course, it was one of the first all solid state. "The 180 was the first I think". The 930 and 940 were super radios in my opinion. But some had some problems that show up in later years, that is hard to fix without parts. The 930 had a common problem with the power supply solder joints, or something along that line...Cliff could probably better fill you in on those...But when a 930 or 940 is working right, it's hard to beat for an all around radio. A friend of mine had a 930 when it was fairly new. It always worked perfectly then of course...I always thought it was one of the best all around radios I ever used. The 940 good too. Better in theory, but either is good. Like Cliff mentioned, many of the older radios use parts that are getting hard to get. Luckily, for the hybrids , it's mainly the relays, etc..There are mods you can do to extend the life of them. I've got a nice icom 730 that is collecting dust, because I can't find one lousy 9 pin transformer for the display board. I'll have to raid a junker some day to fix it...The IC-730 was one of icoms better 1980's radios...:) Really solid. The 735 was good too. I bought a 706mk2g to replace the 730 after I couldn't get the part...So far after three years, it's been good. Knock on wood...But I'll fix the 730 some day. ...Great easy to use mobile rig...Mines got the desirable passband tuning filter in it. The 730 has a quad conversion receiver, believe it or not...It's pretty good. MK |
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