[CQ-Contest] What Radio? / SO2R

Thu May 24 11:38:47 EDT 2001

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 The FT-920 isn't particularly friendly in a multi-radio setup. Lots of phase noise and other "crap" that you don't get with the 'MP and probably a lot of other rigs. I added a 'MP last fall as my second radio and am dying to toss out the 920 in favor of a second MP. There are some band combinations which are absolutely unusable at my QTH due to the noise from the 920, even on 100 watts with a pair of DuneStar filters and vertical vs horizontal antennas. However, at other locations where we've used two 'MPs, the noise is considerably less and all band combinations are usable at low power, with a couple of funky combinations that don't work perfectly at the legal limit.  If all you have is a 920, it's a pretty good contesting rig - I used mine quite happily for a couple of years before getting the MP - but knowing what I do now, I'd never buy another 920 if I thought there was ever a chance of using it in a multi-radio environment.

Remember that just because a high-end rig has a lot of knobs and dials, you don't *have* to fiddle with them if you get it set up right to begin with. I find that the only knob I mess with mostly during contests is the big one! An occasional filter adjustment, and a hand on the RIT are pretty much a given, but otherwise I don't utilize 95% of the features on either of my rigs. 

Whatever you decide on for a second rig, I'd say it's of paramount importance to get two rigs that are either identical or at least very similar in function - that way you don't have to do the mental gymnastics as go back and forth between rigs, trying to remember which knob does what. This was a benefit of getting the MP - it has a very similar front panel layout to my 920. I tried one contest with the 920 and my FT-100 (mobile rig) and that was just a bad idea, as I couldn't efficiently move between the rigs without losing concentration.

While I haven't used one, the TS-850 was recommended to me as a great second rig when I was starting the process of figuring out what to buy - not too expensive, works great and simple to use. Do a search of the CQ-Contest archives at www.contesting.com and you can find dozens of threads related to this subject.

73,

-Marty NW0L
 martyt at pobox.com

  Richard Thorne <rthorne at tcac.net> wrote: 

I'm pondering purchasing a new radio, i.e. a used 1000mp. But this
question is not so much about what radio but the thought process of
buying a rig.

In my mind, if your contesting you shouldn't be twiddling a bunch of
knobs that you find on the high end radios. It seems to me that your
fingers should be doing one of two things, either logging calls while
running stations or twisting the vfo during search and pounce.

To that end wouldn't it be better to have a couple of good reliable
contest rigs like the trusty old TS-850 or FT-990. Or possibly a couple
of FT-920's? Spending the $$ on a pair of lower end rigs also gives you
the ability of swapping rigs if one happens to go down.

I know the 850's did very well in a multi transmitter environment and if
I remember from my N4ZC multi days, the 990 did well too. How about the
newer FT-920, how is it holding up in multi transmitter environments?
Or maybe the 570 or 870?

So I guess the real question is, should one spend the $$ on one high end
rig, or on a pair of lower end rigs.

---------------------------------
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<P> The FT-920 isn't particularly friendly in a multi-radio setup. Lots of phase noise and other "crap" that you don't get with the 'MP and probably a lot of other rigs. I added a 'MP last fall as my second radio and am dying to toss out the 920 in favor of a second MP. There are some band combinations which are absolutely unusable at my QTH due to the noise from the 920, even on&nbsp;100 watts&nbsp;with a pair of DuneStar filters and vertical vs horizontal antennas. However, at other locations where we've used two 'MPs, the noise is considerably less and all band combinations are usable at low power, with a couple of funky combinations that don't work perfectly at the legal limit.&nbsp; If all you have is a 920, it's a pretty good contesting rig - I used mine quite happily for&nbsp;a couple of years before getting the MP - but knowing what I do now, I'd never buy another 920 if I thought there&nbsp;was ever a chance of using it in a multi-radio environment.</P>
<P>Remember that just because a high-end rig has a lot of knobs and dials, you don't *have* to fiddle with them if you get it set up right to begin with. I find that the only knob I mess with mostly during contests is the big one! An occasional filter adjustment, and a hand on the RIT are pretty much a given, but otherwise I don't utilize 95% of the features on either of my rigs. </P>
<P>Whatever you decide on for a second rig, I'd say it's of paramount importance to get two rigs that are either identical or at least very similar in function - that way you don't have to do the mental gymnastics as go back and forth between rigs, trying to remember which knob does what. This was a benefit of getting the MP - it has a very similar front panel layout to my 920. I tried one contest with the 920 and my FT-100 (mobile rig) and that was just a bad idea, as I couldn't efficiently move between the rigs without losing concentration.</P>
<P>While I haven't used one, the TS-850 was recommended to me as a great second rig when I was starting the process of figuring out what to buy - not too expensive, works great and simple to use. Do a search of the CQ-Contest archives at <A href="http://www.contesting.com">www.contesting.com</A> and you can find dozens of threads related to this subject.</P>
<P>73,</P>
<P>-Marty NW0L<BR>&nbsp;<A href="mailto:martyt at pobox.com">martyt at pobox.com</A><BR></P>
<P>&nbsp; <B><I>Richard Thorne &lt;rthorne at tcac.net&gt;</I></B> wrote: <BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid"><BR>I'm pondering purchasing a new radio, i.e. a used 1000mp. But this<BR>question is not so much about what radio but the thought process of<BR>buying a rig.<BR><BR>In my mind, if your contesting you shouldn't be twiddling a bunch of<BR>knobs that you find on the high end radios. It seems to me that your<BR>fingers should be doing one of two things, either logging calls while<BR>running stations or twisting the vfo during search and pounce.<BR><BR>To that end wouldn't it be better to have a couple of good reliable<BR>contest rigs like the trusty old TS-850 or FT-990. Or possibly a couple<BR>of FT-920's? Spending the $$ on a pair of lower end rigs also gives you<BR>the ability of swapping rigs if one happens to go down.<BR><BR>I know the 850's did very well in a multi transmitter environment and if<BR>I remember from my N4ZC multi days, the 990 did well too. How about the<BR>newer FT-920,!
 how is it holding up in multi transmitter environments?<BR>Or maybe the 570 or 870?<BR><BR>So I guess the real question is, should one spend the $$ on one high end<BR>rig, or on a pair of lower end rigs.<BR></BLOCKQUOTE><p><br><hr size=1><b>Do You Yahoo!?</b><br>
<a href="rd.yahoo.com/auctions/tag/?http://promotions.yahoo.com/promotions/yahooauctions/index.html">Yahoo! Auctions $2 Million Sweepstakes </a> -  Got something to sell?
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