CAD.THOMAS@MCC.ARPA (07/30/85)
I am looking for a new way to spend money and need some advice. (The XYL is not available on technical matters.) I want to upgrade my 2m mobile capabilities from the present Kenwood TR2400 handheld to a real mobile transceiver, and am shocked at the bewildering array of choices. Any advice, comments, biases, prejudices, you have to offer would be gladly accepted. Regards, Jim WA5OYF -------
jhs%Mitre-Bedford@d3unix.UUCP (07/30/85)
Re: ways to spend money: Send some of it out here and I'll take care of the problem for you. Re: 2m transceivers: From what I have heard, the Kenwood 7950 is about as nice a rig as is currently available. I know a number of owners, and I have heard NOT ONE WORD of complaint, only praise for the unit. Another possibility is to buy an amplifier for the HT. That's especially useful if you travel a lot and want a little more "oomph" than an HT gives when on a trip. I have been very happy with the DAIWA 30-watt amplifier. Mirage makes a couple of nice ones too. Eh, live it up and buy one of each. After all, it's only money! -John S., W3IKG Incidentally, has anyone had experience with the effect of the Mirage amplifiers with RECEIVE PREAMPS on INTERMOD performance? I theorize that a good receive preamp with some selectivity in the front end could actually improve intermod immunity. If so, this would be the type of amplifier to buy for your HT.
roode@uci-icsa (Dana Roode) (07/31/85)
I purchased an ICOM IC27A late last year. For the features, it is the best deal for the money (at least compared to the rigs available to me at the time). I wanted memories I could scan by pressing the up and down buttons on the microphone, which the IC27a has. It is the only radio I know of that has builtin front panel dialable PL. The Yaesu FT270RH looks quite nice, but it is more expensive initially and you must pay for PL (which I believe then becomes front panel dialable). But - the IC27a isnt perfect. I am very dissappointed with the audio - in my truck its difficult to hear it at times, even with the audio all the way up. My old Kenwood TR7730 had excellent audio. My unit also had an intermittent develop in the signal strength display. For some strange reason the speaker I had on the TR7730 does not work with the IC27a external speaker jack - there is a ripple present whenever I try to use it. The same speaker still works great with any other radio I try with it, and other speakers work with the IC27a. Very strange. Dana Roode, WA6NGO roode@uci-icsa.arpa
parnass@ihu1h.UUCP (Bob Parnass, AJ9S) (08/02/85)
x
Jim:
My response to your query about 2m fm transceivers was
rejected by the 'seismo' postmaster.
Try the Kenwood TR7930 or TR7950. The guts are an
improved version of the TR7800, which I used for years
and enjoyed. I've recommended the TR7930 to W9MAF and
KC2KO, both of whom are satisfied with the radio.
The audio amplifier/speaker combination in the ICOM
IC27 series doesn't seem to be loud enough for mobile
use, and I know 2 ICOM owners who had their audio
stages fail.
--
===============================================================================
Bob Parnass, Bell Telephone Laboratories - ihnp4!ihu1h!parnass - (312)979-5414john@anasazi.UUCP (John Moore) (08/04/85)
In article <314@brl-tgr.ARPA> jhs%Mitre-Bedford@d3unix.UUCP writes: >Re: ways to spend money: Send some of it out here and I'll take care of the >problem for you. I have a Kenwood TW4000, which not only gives you 25 watts on 2 meters, but also on 440-450. Works quite well... you might consider it. >Incidentally, has anyone had experience with the effect of the Mirage >amplifiers with RECEIVE PREAMPS on INTERMOD performance? I theorize that >a good receive preamp with some selectivity in the front end could actually >improve intermod immunity. If so, this would be the type of amplifier to >buy for your HT. It is unlikely that the pre-amp will improve selectivity unless it is very "stiff". There is no reason to believe that the selectivity in a preamp will be any better than that in the receiver it is connected to. I have a Mirage amp with pre-amp that I bought for contacting Challenger (successfully!), and I haven't noticed any intermod here in Phoenix with it. On the other hand, none of my rigs hear intermod here except the Bearcat 20/20 scanner. John Moore NJ7E
jhs%Mitre-Bedford@d3unix.UUCP (08/06/85)
Yeah, it was probably wishful thinking (to expect a Mirage preamp to cure an intermod problem). Still, they MIGHT tune it up for just the 2-meter band, whereas some of these walkies cover 140-170 or so and keep us in the ham band only by grace of the synthesizer. Here in the Boston area, some hams have solved a particular intermod problem Telco repeater around 151 MHz) with a simple filter made out of a coax stub and an inductor. I haven't tried it but the word is that it works quite well. A construction article is available but you will have to beg and plead and send an SASE for it. -John S., W3IKG