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power output of mobiles

crusader

Member
Jun 19, 2005
59
1
16
southwest england
i am thinking of buying either an ic 706 mk 1 or 2. an ft 100 or an ft 857 for use as a small mobile radio,however i need to be able to adjust the power output down to a maximum of 20 w on ssb.can any one advise me if this is possible on all of these radios? many thanks in advance.
 

Yaesu's ft-100 and ft-857 both have adjustable output 1w through 100w...........BTW if you can find one yaesu's ft100d is a nice rig,hope this helps.
 
Any of those rigs will suit your purpose, as others have said. May I ask why you want to use a mobile rig at 20w? Most of the time I'm cursing because I don't have more power mobile....and I run an Ameritron AL-500 behind my rig.
 
hi number one,
the reason for buying one of the above radios is purely down to having no space in my mobile to mount any normal radio,but i can mount one of the above using a seperation kit.
the reason for 20w ssb, is to run into a small mobile linear,which peaks at approx 600w out on ssb, i cant afford to run qrp through a quarter wave whip! all the best!
 
crusader said:
i cant afford to run qrp through a quarter wave whip!

In the early 90's I ran exactly that - an HR2510 into a 1/4w fiberglass bumper-mounted whip.

Had absolutely no trouble working stations on 10M; would probably be eligible for DXCC -if- I would gather up the cards and turn them in.

Most memorable DX was a JA (Japan); worked while driving to Cleveland one evening...with all of 25w.
 
Most memorable DX was a JA (Japan); worked while driving to Cleveland one evening...with all of 25w.

Bet you can't do that now.... :P Maybe in a couple more years we'll be back to that, though
 
crusader said:
hi number one,
the reason for buying one of the above radios is purely down to having no space in my mobile to mount any normal radio,but i can mount one of the above using a seperation kit.
the reason for 20w ssb, is to run into a small mobile linear,which peaks at approx 600w out on ssb, i cant afford to run qrp through a quarter wave whip! all the best!

I believe your best bet would be the Yaesu FT-857D as they are the smallest rig I know of (considerably smaller than the 706 series) while having a readily available remote kit and an overall agruably better HF receiver than the 706 series.
I personally prefer the FT-100D, had a new IC-706IIG side by side with the FT-100D on the desk for two months and let the 706IIG go on ebay. I've never missed it.

One thing most all local ops noticed was the superior audio richness on the Yaesu while comparing the two rigs stock mic to stock mic.
The Yaesu sounds especially full when using the MD-100 desk mic. Set the underside 'filter' to ON, the 'high emphasis' to OFF, and the bass filter wherever it sounds best with your voice, probably 'OFF' unless you're DXing. Also, when on AM or DXing, you may prefer to set 'high emphasis' to ON.

The FT-857D is basically a newer / smaller version of the FT-100D but with some interesting changes including a friendlier noise blanker which tends not to distort strong incoming signals as much.

Another cool feature on the Yaesu FT-897D is it's analog S-meter port, I'm not sure but I think the FT-857D also has this.
Just pick up an LDG, Workman, or MFJ outboard analog S-meter and plug it into the supplied jack.
My friend Donn's FT-897D + LDG meter is nearly an exact match to his (and my) ICOM IC-751A's S-meter readings.

I don't know about you, but I hate life without an analog meter. I detest those worthless LCD meters.

The Yaesu also offers provision for a TCXO (Temp. controlled Crystal Oscillator) which is a must for SSB frequency stability.

I could go on and on about the Yaesu, actually I made a list numbering 36 items in favor of the Yaesu over the 706IIG, and only 7 preferences about the ICOM.

- Also, prices seem better for the FT-857D.

...never looked back.

http://www.benelec.com.au/Yaesu/FT857.htm
FT-857RHfp.jpg
 
The FT-857 goes down to 5 watts not one.At least that is where the settings stop on mine in the menue.I find the menu settings pretty accurate for power reading too. I love the LDG-mete for the '857.I too am an analog meter lover.You can set it to read a differant function that the internal meter which is cool.
 
Thanks 007 and also to you Qrn, the information from actual users of the radios is by far the best way to evaluate any pro's and cons of different gear.i will look out for an 857 on ebay and see how i get on.
 
crusader said:
Thanks 007 and also to you Qrn, the information from actual users of the radios is by far the best way to evaluate any pro's and cons of different gear.i will look out for an 857 on ebay and see how i get on.

Don't forget to check HRO for new 857's. Yaesu always seems to have a $70 coupon which puts the price around $680, and I've seen a lot of used ones on Ebay end up in the low to mid 600's. For the difference NEW would be the way to go (IMHO)

Woody
 
the new prices are very good but one problem,i'm in the uk so shipping/import costs may be prohibitive.if something costs $300 in the U.S. it will cost £300 ($563) in the U.K. we've been scratching our heads for years how something nearly doubles in price sitting in a shipping container as it crosses the atlantic!
 
Hey

Both are great radios..
Never heard of bad report on either..

My 706 MKIIG has always worked Great...

I Might add..
IC-7000 kicks butt...
yes it is expensive...

but most say my audio (on stock mike mind you) is like broadcast quality...

Again quite Expensive
 

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