On Thu, 12 Apr 2012 02:54:38 +0000, Channel Jumper wrote:


Native Terran;789413 Wrote:
On Tue, 10 Apr 2012 07:28:34 -0700, wrote:
-
On Mon, 09 Apr 2012 22:16:42 -0400, Native Terran
wrote:
-


I'm looking at the FT-950 from Yaesu or Kenwood TS-590 and Icom
IC-7200.




But other than that, I'm open minded.

But let me add that the radio is for base operations. I have a capable
radio (FT 897) for mobile use. I like it allot. However I'm open to other opinions..

Perhaps someone has used two from my list and can offer a comparison of
those two radios. I'm not an
experienced user but this isn't my first day either. Say top of the
newbee level or the bottom of
the intermediate level. Plenty of things to learn.

Not an unlimited budget, around $2000. I'm 60 and I am thinking about a
radio that will last me the
rest of my days.

Jim KC8UGV



What can't you understand?

Call Bob at Ham Radio Outlet in Delaware.
Unless you have $3300 + for a Ten Tec - the only other transceiver you
can afford that does it all well is the Kenwood TS 590S....

Dealers may be bias towards a more profitable model. Not all of 'em perhaps.



Most hams wouldn't waste their money on two relatively new rigs at the
same time unless they had a unlimited budget or had a problem with the
one or the other.

I was unaware of the short time the Kenwood (590) had been in the market. However soliciting
opinions on various models of radios isn't a waste of time. Maybe I should have listed the Kenwood
2000 as an option.

And I am not aware of any supplier that would just
take the one back - USED and replace it with another new transceiver of
a different manufacturer.


Prolly pretty uncommon. That's why I didn't think of it.



Your best bet is to drive to a ham radio store and look at them before
you buy them.
My experience came from buying a transceiver sight unseen - by
reputation and a recommendation only.



An expensive school...



No one can hold your hand and no one can tell you what to buy.


I was only asking for opinions. My hand-holding days are far behind me. I'm prepared to live by
whatever choice I make. But if I can avoid an obvious land mine, why not.


Regardless of what they tell you - if you look hard enough, with a
electron microscope - you will eventually find something wrong with all
of them.


I'm not looking for the perfect radio (for me) I don't know enough about ham radio to do that sort
of checking - to find every defect.


So, after reading your message (several times) I can't find your ideas on my request for info. Did I
miss them/it?

--
We live in a society exquisitely dependent
on science and technology,
in which hardly anyone knows anything about
science and technology.
Carl Sagan

The reason I recommended BOB @ Ham Radio Outlet is because I have dealt with BOB personally and he has never screwed me.
I'm not completely sure about his bio - but I believe that he has been a ham 40 - 50 years, the same as many of my friends who recommended the TS 590 to me.

On the other hand - you asked about the Kenwood TS 2000 - and I do have experience with the TS 2000.
The TS 2000 is a very old design - I have QST magazines here from 1999 that has that model advertised, it is a very old design.
I would put it in the same class as the ICOM 746 Pro - a lot to go wrong in a little box. http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/1249

Nobody is going to buy one if they hear that it sucks and is not a very good transceiver.
Most people that does buy one does not have anything else of comparative value to compare it to.
Like making chicken soup out of chicken poop.
Kenwood does a very good job of hiding the fact that the TS 2000 is a compromise between a good HF transceiver and a fairly good VHF / UHF transceiver.
Only, when you combine the two - you have to give up something to get something.
Like buying a 1985 Z/28 - IROC Z/28 Camaro and finding out that the factory stock tires are no good in the rain and the car doesn't go anywhere in the snow. On dry / hot pavement - it is a good performer - period...

Another factor in the 2000 that I do not like is the fact that when it breaks you are not only out a HF radio, but also your primary VHF and UHF radio....

Its much easier to purchase the 590 and a inexpensive mobile such as the Yaesu 8800 or 8900 and have multiband coverage and the opportunity to cross repeat in a emergency then to have a single band VHF transceiver which might be cheaper - but doesn't do anything else such as APRS or UHF or cross repeat.....

If money is an issue, you could purchase the Kenwood TS 480 SAT and still have the autotuner feature and the capability of working mobile.
Although the 590 also makes a pretty good mobile itself...

Like the robot on Lost in Space , I will tell you - warning, warning, danger, danger -- do not buy the ICOM Will Robinson...
Let them make a bunch of them and then let someone else see if they are any good before you plunk down your hard earned cabbage on one...

The FT 950 is another outdated transceiver with it's own set of issues.
The one my friend had, which I used a couple of times was a piece of junk.
When he died, it was arcing inside of the microphone - with no amplifier connected and sitting side by side - comparing it against the Icom 746 pro with 100 watts on the same antenna 10 miles apart.
The guys with the Icoms were checking into the nets on 160 meters and the guy with the Yaesu wasn't being heard....
And the guys with the Icom's were down in the valley and the guy with the Yaesu was on top of a large hill - where he could talk 2 meters for 70 miles the way you would talk with your walkie talkie to the local repeaters...

Like I said before, I had several opportunities to buy it, even for $700.00 and did not and it was only 9 months old when they sold it.

On Thu, 12 Apr 2012 17:36:45 +0000 "Channel Jumper"
wrote in article


The reason I recommended BOB @ Ham Radio Outlet is because I have dealt
with BOB personally and he has never screwed me.
I'm not completely sure about his bio - but I believe that he has been a
ham 40 - 50 years, the same as many of my friends who recommended the TS
590 to me.

On the other hand - you asked about the Kenwood TS 2000 - and I do have
experience with the TS 2000.
The TS 2000 is a very old design - I have QST magazines here from 1999
that has that model advertised, it is a very old design.
I would put it in the same class as the ICOM 746 Pro - a lot to go wrong
in a little box. http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/1249

Nobody is going to buy one if they hear that it sucks and is not a very
good transceiver.
Most people that does buy one does not have anything else of comparative
value to compare it to.
Like making chicken soup out of chicken poop.
Kenwood does a very good job of hiding the fact that the TS 2000 is a
compromise between a good HF transceiver and a fairly good VHF / UHF
transceiver.
Only, when you combine the two - you have to give up something to get
something.
Like buying a 1985 Z/28 - IROC Z/28 Camaro and finding out that the
factory stock tires are no good in the rain and the car doesn't go
anywhere in the snow. On dry / hot pavement - it is a good performer -
period...

Another factor in the 2000 that I do not like is the fact that when it
breaks you are not only out a HF radio, but also your primary VHF and
UHF radio....

Its much easier to purchase the 590 and a inexpensive mobile such as the
Yaesu 8800 or 8900 and have multiband coverage and the opportunity to
cross repeat in a emergency then to have a single band VHF transceiver
which might be cheaper - but doesn't do anything else such as APRS or
UHF or cross repeat.....

If money is an issue, you could purchase the Kenwood TS 480 SAT and
still have the autotuner feature and the capability of working mobile.
Although the 590 also makes a pretty good mobile itself...

Like the robot on Lost in Space , I will tell you - warning, warning,
danger, danger -- do not buy the ICOM Will Robinson...
Let them make a bunch of them and then let someone else see if they are
any good before you plunk down your hard earned cabbage on one...

The FT 950 is another outdated transceiver with it's own set of issues.
The one my friend had, which I used a couple of times was a piece of

....then there's the ad in the QST I received today for a new Kenwood
transceiver to be announced @ Dayton next month. I had several Kenwood
xceivers - a 520 then an 820 and an 870 - and was happy with all of them.
But Kenwood seems to have skipped the dance recently - twice at least!
It'll be interesting to see what they roll out. Being potentially a newer
design than the competition... who knows?

Jason
WA2LJW