Need some advise

[KD8JUF]

Hello,

I just got my General on Saturday. Now I need to start building my shack. I have a Yeasu VX8R HT I use for local repeaters on 2M & 70 cm but I need to get into HF. What would you suggest my first HF base to be? I'm looking at getting into DX and just getting my feet wet. So I don't even know what bells and whistles to look at. If you were going to buy your first rig, what would you buy?

Thanks,

Mike KD8JUF

 

[packrat]

That is a question nobody but you can answer. Do your research, ask other hams to let you check out their equipment, research e-ham and qrz, ask more questions, and then make a decision. Start simple, and work up from there. Don't buy ANYTHING ELSE 'til you have some idea as to what does what and what will work well for you. The learning is the most fun anyway, so take your time and enjoy. Maybe look at joining a club, if that is your thing, and learn first hand from experience.

 

[kd-5-bgt]

Hmmm, I would have to say start off simple,all the bells and whistles are nice to have but they are not really needed.....As far as what type of radio to get.... as said above,take the time to shop around and do your homework

Some sort of tuner would be an asset,LDG makes some nice automatic tuners that have a good ability to make your radio happy for a fair price.If you decide on a manual tuner MFJ works pretty well at a good price.

 

[hookedon6]

as said before, thats a pretty wide question.

i would look long and hard at an IC7000, get the NAGY mike mod done and you are good to go.

 

[stevesm]

I'm not trying to hijack, but here goes.

So, don't tell me what bells and whistles to look for.
What features on a new radio would you have gotten the first time if you had known about them?

Thanks kd5bgt for the input.

 

[W5LZ]

I know how it's like, but there's really no hurry for you do do any buying. Best advice I can think of is to get your hands -on- a radio before buying it, try it out, see if it 'fits' you, does what you want or think you want to do. I sure wouldn't rule out any used equipment either. Do a lot of looking at reviews, etc, even the older ones.
I think you will find that HF isn't like what you're used to on VHF/UHF at all, or like CB either. Neither is the equipment for that matter! Think 'larger' than a typical handy-talky of VHF radio, and definitely in relation to antennas. Unless you plan to do everything mobile, a 'larger' radio is very handy, don't miss as many tiny buttons, larger display, easier to see, etc, etc.
In general, HF radios typically mean a larger than you'd think power supply, which is very handy to have anyway. Means you can run more than one radio at a time or a few of those 'gadgets' that need 12 volts (I hate 'wall-warts'! And there ain't never enough 'plug-ins'!).
Catalogs! Ask for them from everybody and their dog! Or down-load them. Or borrow them, whatever. They always come in handy for something, lining bird cages if nothing else.
You can't know what you want until you find out about stuff, so find out about stuff before you buy.
- 'Doc

(And naturally... if you ain't got Kenwood, you got squat.)

 

[Hutch]

Another important consideration is your budget. It's hard to recommend radios when we have no idea what you want to spend. Some people like simple radios and some people like and can deal with pages of menus. Take a look pick some radios that appeal to you and then ask, you'd probably get better responses.

 

[ke7vvt]

KD8JUF,

Amateur HF Transceivers Start here, open up every link and start getting rid of the ones that are too expensive. Then compare features and start saving. When I become rich and famous, I'm getting Kenwood TS-480SAT and TS-480HX Transceivers TS480

KE7VVT

 

[KB9NHA]

Hello,

I just got my General on Saturday. Now I need to start building my shack. I have a Yeasu VX8R HT I use for local repeaters on 2M & 70 cm but I need to get into HF. What would you suggest my first HF base to be? I'm looking at getting into DX and just getting my feet wet. So I don't even know what bells and whistles to look at. If you were going to buy your first rig, what would you buy?

Thanks,

Mike KD8JUF

I'll probably buy a Kenwood TS-2000 VHF/UHF/HF All-Mode Transceiver. Can be used as a fix or mobile base station. You can do crossband repeat on VHF/UHF local ham bands. It's not so expensive & bulky.

 

[packrat]

I personally recommend newbies stay away from the "shack in a box" type radios. They are entirely too much to learn on, and you wind up frustrated, and if you stay with it, much of the rigs capability goes untouched. Get separate HF / UHF-VHF rigs so you can set them up and use them.

Again, don't just jump in til you know what does what and what will REALLY work for you.

 

[W5LZ]

I have to agree with 'packrat' about the "all in one" type radios for anyone new to the hobby. After you become acquainted with 'things', if you want to do that "all in one" thingy, then have at it! It is a bit 'much' to chew when starting though.
There are 'pros/cons' with those things. If it fit's your particular situation, that's great. But there are also limits to how 'handy' they are depending on what your requirements/desires are. I'd love to have a TS-2000(whatever) that does it all, but I'm not going to give up using a separate VHF/UHF radio where applicable. Make sense? Beats me, but that's how I feel about it. Oh well...
- 'Doc

 

[KB9NHA]

But the all-in-one radio (Kenwood TS-2000) mentioned is according to many, simple to operate. It's full featured considering it got all that you need for a small (not necessarily compact) rig. It doesn't have the many control features as well as other features that you find in most big HF rigs that you might not need &/or find too complicated as a beginner.

For a full featured rig that combined not just worldwide but local ham bands in it, can crossband repeat, can function as a true base station, can be operated remotely via Kenwood's Sky Command II (with compatible radio), with built in TNC, satellite ready, with digital filter (no need to buy expensive option), with built-in auto tuner, built-in computer control & looks hot as hell. It's something that you need to look into.

I forgot to mention, the price... it's under $2,000 ($1499.95 for a standard version).

See it in action...
YouTube - Kenwood TS-2000 (PREVIEW)

 

[Highlander_821]

I think that if you are pretty tech-savvy, the TS-2000 will be just fine for you. I have a FT-847 that is very simple to operate, and it is a really good radio (better with a couple of after-market filters) . I like having one radio that will pretty much do it all.

 

[KB9NHA]

I think that if you are pretty tech-savvy, the TS-2000 will be just fine for you. I have a FT-847 that is very simple to operate, and it is a really good radio (better with a couple of after-market filters) . I like having one radio that will pretty much do it all.

Yes, either the Kenwood TS-2000 or the Yaesu FT-847 will do the trick & you should consider buying. This rigs can do the same as its overweight high end cousins. You don't have to spend $5000 or more to buy bigger & bulkier stuff (with all those complicated features unnecessary for a beginner) that you'll end up not using in the end.

The decision is yours to make. One thing I suggest is to keep your set up simple. Get a rig that's less expensive & full featured. Don't buy expensive bigger & bulkier stuff that will take all the space in your desk with all the addons you have to buy with the rig plus the extra time reading all the manuals for those specific addons.

 

[doctor]

rig

try a ft857d...all coverage,all bands, simple to operate<even I can do it>,if you want to go digital you only need a data cable to the pc...

DOCTOR/795