The latest 2008 post production manual and brochure versions for the
Icom IC-7700 can be found at:
brochure
http://www.icomcanada.com/products/a...00/IC-7700.pdf

manual
http://www.icom.co.jp/manual/externa...rs/IC-7700.pdf
SW4ever said the manual was 150 pages - no it's not, it is actually
216
pages.

Also a very nice 15 minute video:
http://www.icom.co.jp:80/world/topic...vie/index.html

As to the sensitivity specs, both documents list Icom's figures for
the
radio on the MW band as:
AM 6.3 uV
SSB 0.5 uV
both with preamp 1 ON.

Since I only DX on MW in SSB this is more than adequate.
Based on my experience with the IC-756PROIII the preamp 1 is supremely
quiet
and can be used for very faint DX. I expect the 7700 to be even
better. OTOH
my old Drake R8B had a preamp that was so noisy it was quite useless
on MW
DX, so I never switched it on (far too noisy).

It is also true that the noise floor on the MW band is usually quite
high,
even on a quiet winters night here it exceeds S1, but before sunset
and
after sunrise that is a different matter altogether, as at our prime
DX
sites the atmospherics fall away completely and it is possible to get
recordable DX with the "S" meter on zero and not even flicking. Here a
sensitivity of 0.5 uV is vital for good DX on the MW band for those
rare
faint signals.

Pete says his R75 is not too good on audio sound, and indeed it is
true that
the older Icom radio's were not known for good audio quality. but the
latest
offerings like my Icom IC-756PROIII has superb sound, possibly even
better
than my R8B and as good as a AOR7030.

Then there is the question of what will a 7700 get in rare DX that an
R8B
won't? The answer is as little as only 1 out of 100 signals, but that
1% is
vital to a fella like me who has been DXing for over 40 years. If I
get one
more signal like my last CFUN Vancouver Canada, over 10,000miles/
16,000 km's
away on MW, then the purchase is justified. However, it is also about
how
you get there, and the 7700 has features that make it exceedingly easy
and
convenient, like the difference between driving a budget auto or a top
of
the line Caddie.

Then there is also the question of what a**hole would spend $6300 on
such a
high priced radio. Well there are those who have the money and simply
want
the best, like a South African who has both an Icom IC-7800 AND a
Icom
IC-R9500, and old fart's like me who really don't have the money, but
also
want the best. In my case I decided to spend the children's
inheritance -
what the hell, they don't really need it.

Lastly I am still waiting with foetid breath for mine. It is now
being
listed as exstock in America and Europe but my dealer says the Icom
IC-7700
is "in transit on the way", However Icom Japan have issued a delivery
embargo that the radio must not be delivered to customers yet,
indicating
that there is some sort of problem to be resolved before delivery.

John Plimmer, Montagu, Western Cape Province, South Africa
South 33 d 47 m 32 s, East 20 d 07 m 32 s
RX Icom IC-756 PRO III with MW mods
Drake SW8 & ERGO software
Sony 7600D, GE SRIII, Redsun RP2100
BW XCR 30, Sangean 803A.
Antenna's RF Systems DX 1 Pro Mk II, Datong AD-270
Kiwa MW Loop, PAORDT Roelof mini-whip
http://www.dxing.info/about/dxers/plimmer.dx