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Magnum 257

tvrc18

Active Member
May 1, 2011
178
5
28
Does the regular 257 not the HP model have a white noise problem on the receive? Are they worth buying or would another $200 radio be a better choice? I will be using it as a base on 10 meters. I had one years ago when they first came out and they did pick up alot of ignition noise when I used it mobile.
 

I can't answer your question because I never had one but if you are going to be using it as a base and not mobile why buy an export rig? For $200 and maybe a bit more you can easily get into a Yaesu 101 or a Kenwood 520. They make outboard digital displays for those.
 
I really don't want an old tube radio that is 30 years old. Anything half way modern in the ham world is 450 to 500 bucks.
 
I had two of the original orange faced 257's. I used them both as a base, but one did duty in my Jeep Cherokee. I remember all the mobile noise complaints back then. I don't recall 'white noise' being an issue.

I really liked both of them as a base though. I wish I still had one of them. I have owned two of the HP models. Both of them spent more time on the mail truck getting repaired, than on my bench.
 
I think they both have very sensitive recieve so you will have some noise mobile. The HP and regular 257 are so close in price, it makes sense to get the HP. Overall I think it is a very good radio for the price, but it just wasn't the right radio for me.
 
Magnum 257 radio's have never had the "RCI White Noise" issue. They have however had such a hot receive they pull in more noise then say a cb set. The only thing I can say is with each improvement over the years the receive had gotten better and better.

As an example I have a 2nd generation Delta Force and a newer 257HP, both processor controlled. The new 257HP is much quieter. I would buy the radio from a shop that does good tech work, this way the radio can get a proper tune & alignment before they send it out.
 
I am not sure on the HP model from all the crap I have heard about them I am not wanting to ship it back and forth trying to fix the problems. I have a Cobra xl350 if I need more power.
 
I've had very good luck with my 257HP. No issues, and it gets very good reports. I use it as my travel radio, and I fly and rent cars a lot. With a Wilson 500, it works great. I normally use the noise blanker/anl and that quiets it down real nice, especially considering I just use the accessory plug in the rental car. Still LOVE the memory buttons on the Magnums, and I can program in .555 USB, .385, LSB, .185 AM, etc.. and be there in two seconds with the push of two buttons.

73,
RT307
 
I think it will all depend on how noisy your base location is. I know that my car, other cars, some traffic signals, parking lot lights... cause noise in my receive. if you don't have anything causing noise in your general vicinity - blenders, microwaves, hair driers, a noisy power supply, etc... - you'll be great.
no idea if the above listed do cause noise, just pointing out possibilities.
when I go out to my folks house, 20 miles from somewhere, it's nice and quiet with the car off.

my base antenna will be up in a month, if you want to wait I can give you my opinion then. as of now, mine has never left the mobile.
 
I am not sure on the HP model from all the crap I have heard about them I am not wanting to ship it back and forth trying to fix the problems. I have a Cobra xl350 if I need more power.


I guess then a used regular 257 is what you will have to search for.
 
The one I had put out a lot of power right out of the box. I think the problem comes when people try to get that extra 20 watts out of them and burn the thing up. 20 watts that will never get noticed on the other end. Overall it was a good radio for what it was, but I wanted something different.
 
If you're looking to use it on 10 M, really they're not that user friendly, due to not having a full VFO, IMO.

They're good for what they're geared for: CB and freebanding.
 
No real VFO was one of my problems with the radio. I didn't care for the feel of the knobs and I didn't like the way the variable power worked.
 

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