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Midland 79-290
- Thread starter Moleculo
- Start date
Actually not bad at all. I replaced a Magnum 257 with this one. The 257 RX was so noisy I couldn't take it anymore. This midland has a coarse/fine clarifier which is nice. I use it with a RK56 noise cancelling mic and it sounds pretty nice. I had an Astatic Road Devil wired to it, but that mic and this radio didn't get along. The Midland is no 2510 on SSB, but it's not a bad little radio.
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T
terry619
Guest
If anyone out there ownes one of these, how many watts can you get out of it?
Thanks in advance.
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Thanks in advance.
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Many a good post on this radio model got lost from the forum change-over. I also see that before I could reply, I had to re-register, wait for email confirm/activation too - sheesh!
My radio does near 30w PEP as well. The Team Tricom 444 and Intek/Multicom 3230 are similar Euro version radios without the wx band. They employ FM modulation though. Tha Midland 79-290 is one radio that you shouldn't be hacking by ALC/AMC trace cuts, component removal, and hacks. You'll ruin it... it works pretty good out of the box. Some basic info. can be derived from the schematics seen here. Granted the diagrams are not of the FCC/US model, but a good part of it appears to be usable.
Pros:
- nice cast heatsink for a rear panel
- SMT componentry is reliable (and difficult to service!)
- easy to mod for channel expansion - no panel hacking/switches necessary
- LCD freq./band readout also works on expanded freqs as well
- theft deterrent by removing the front control panel
- dual finals -- should have thermal paste applied to them
Cons:
- signal strength meter - not that accurate
- image rejection is ok, just that
- would be nice to have a switchable NB/ANL
- no talkback circuitry
- stock mic ruins the radio's performance- dump it for a good N.C. type - no power mic needed
My radio does near 30w PEP as well. The Team Tricom 444 and Intek/Multicom 3230 are similar Euro version radios without the wx band. They employ FM modulation though. Tha Midland 79-290 is one radio that you shouldn't be hacking by ALC/AMC trace cuts, component removal, and hacks. You'll ruin it... it works pretty good out of the box. Some basic info. can be derived from the schematics seen here. Granted the diagrams are not of the FCC/US model, but a good part of it appears to be usable.
Pros:
- nice cast heatsink for a rear panel
- SMT componentry is reliable (and difficult to service!)
- easy to mod for channel expansion - no panel hacking/switches necessary
- LCD freq./band readout also works on expanded freqs as well
- theft deterrent by removing the front control panel
- dual finals -- should have thermal paste applied to them
Cons:
- signal strength meter - not that accurate
- image rejection is ok, just that
- would be nice to have a switchable NB/ANL
- no talkback circuitry
- stock mic ruins the radio's performance- dump it for a good N.C. type - no power mic needed
There were 2 versions of this radio one export and one just a basic CB. I had the Export and it was very good as far as sideband thats all I use there was a few things I personally didnt care for but all in all it was a pretty kick@$$ little radio. I got between 25 and 30 watts out of mine. One of my complaints was the memory its been a few years since I had it I tried buying it back but no luck.
Mine has been tuned and swings to 28 watts on a peak reading meter. Good radio but mic replacement is a must. Mine stays right on frequency when both hot and cold.
I cant comment on problems with adjacent channel intererence as there's not to much traffic on CB channels out this way anyway. I found it good value for money and worked a lot of dx with it. Mine and my friend Johns both have good receivers in them and are a step up on some of the later Cobra's.
Murray
I cant comment on problems with adjacent channel intererence as there's not to much traffic on CB channels out this way anyway. I found it good value for money and worked a lot of dx with it. Mine and my friend Johns both have good receivers in them and are a step up on some of the later Cobra's.
Murray
I had posted this information in the thread before the change over,,,and got lost in the shuffle.I wanted to offer this again...
Be aware that there's atleast 2 and maybe 3 versions of this radio....the old ones like the one i have is about 6to8 years old and it works perfectly,,after a few mods it does a good strong 30 watts PEP on am and sideband is awesome at 32watts with good ALC.I have removed the face plate on hundreds of occasions and it still lock's fine..I use a red devil mic on it ,set too 3 on the slide dial,,I have never had anything but praises for the radio's sideband quality....
Now the later models that have come into the shop,,and the latest one i ordered,for resale..werent quite up to par in the power range as the older one's..about 25watts on AM/27watts SSB,Although thats not much of a difference in the power catagory,I did want to pass on that information....Al in all i think is a great little radio,,,that does not sound like a little radio...lol I do have to agree with everyone else that has ever had one, the metered bar type meter is crap! But ya have to understand that in Midland's infinit wisdom,they opted for a complete LCD diplay to take care of all the visuals....cant say as i blame them....heck its there,,,why not utilize it....lol
Shut man,,,dual finals and a 2sb754 modulator....its a big radio.....lol although i did upgrade mine from the 2sb754...
I hope this will help in leading you in the direction ya want to go....
Later
rfpowerman
Be aware that there's atleast 2 and maybe 3 versions of this radio....the old ones like the one i have is about 6to8 years old and it works perfectly,,after a few mods it does a good strong 30 watts PEP on am and sideband is awesome at 32watts with good ALC.I have removed the face plate on hundreds of occasions and it still lock's fine..I use a red devil mic on it ,set too 3 on the slide dial,,I have never had anything but praises for the radio's sideband quality....
Now the later models that have come into the shop,,and the latest one i ordered,for resale..werent quite up to par in the power range as the older one's..about 25watts on AM/27watts SSB,Although thats not much of a difference in the power catagory,I did want to pass on that information....Al in all i think is a great little radio,,,that does not sound like a little radio...lol I do have to agree with everyone else that has ever had one, the metered bar type meter is crap! But ya have to understand that in Midland's infinit wisdom,they opted for a complete LCD diplay to take care of all the visuals....cant say as i blame them....heck its there,,,why not utilize it....lol
Shut man,,,dual finals and a 2sb754 modulator....its a big radio.....lol although i did upgrade mine from the 2sb754...
I hope this will help in leading you in the direction ya want to go....
Later
rfpowerman
rfpowerman- The rear panel ID tag should have the version number on it. Mine was their second version (1.1 or something like that) . What did you sub that 2sb754 with and what final tuning methods were associated with it. Did you do that as a power mod or more out of reliability?
I'd wager it is a 2sb817...That's a common upgrade done to the EPT6900xx radios--including my Galaxy DX2517. It doesn't make an appreciable difference power-wise (in my radio), but I believe it runs cooler than the stock part if you get long winded.
Thanks guys for all the info on the 79-290--a very cool radio. Does anyone know who actually makes them? My guess would be Maycom, the firmware and controls and such *really* reminds me of the Magnum 257 and clones, which are made by Maycom for all the various labels.
Thanks guys for all the info on the 79-290--a very cool radio. Does anyone know who actually makes them? My guess would be Maycom, the firmware and controls and such *really* reminds me of the Magnum 257 and clones, which are made by Maycom for all the various labels.