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Old 13th Jan 2018, 3:32 pm   #27
G0HZU_JMR
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK.
Posts: 3,077
Default Re: What’s a relatively decent (old) transceiver for my needs?

Quote:
Is there anything from the 70s to 80s, transistor only which isn’t synthesised but is a relatively decent transceiver worth looking out for? I want to avoid complexity if possible and a massive outlay to start with.
My first commercial HF transceiver was the Yaesu FT707. This has a digital display and an old school VFO and as long as you are comfy with the multi colour LED s meter it is a really nice radio to operate because of the silky VFO knob with the large finger dimple in it.

It's worth a google to look at pictures of this radio. It really is very well made and has a solid feel to it and (for me at least) it really looks the part. I first saw one of these up close in the early 1980s when I was a spotty student and I simply had to have one. I bought mine before I even had a ham ticket and used it to listen to the various ham bands. But it isn't a general coverage radio and only operates on the bands from 80 to 10m.

It has average performance for its day but it also needs a decent 15-20A PSU to use with it because it is a mobile radio and runs from 13.8V. This didn't bother me at first because I only used it on receive. I bought a brand new Trio TS430S soon after finishing all my exams and the FT707 was traded in. I kind of wish I still had it because it has a lot more character than the plastic looking TS430S and it really was nice to operate on SSB.
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Regards, Jeremy G0HZU

Last edited by G0HZU_JMR; 13th Jan 2018 at 3:40 pm.
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