[CQ-Contest] Kenwood for Contesting

[Sandy Taylor]

The TS-850 was the last real contest-grade Kenwood produced: it had it all,
great receiver, great filter flexibility, excellent transmit audio, quick
antenna tuner, great frequency flexibility and excellent, for the
pre-digital days, QRM-fighting tools (Slope Tune really sings if you put
better-than-OEM (read: Inrad) filters in it).

Post TS-850, it seems Kenwood had a change of marketing strategy: instead of
trying to build a name for itself on the strength of contesting
recommendations, it went after features. It's like its strategy was to
appeal to those ops who don't know 3OIMD from BDR, but do know that they
like "the world's first backlit control panel" or 1.8 MHz to 1.2 GHz in one
box.

There's nothing terribly wrong with later Kenwoods, but the company never
again seemed interested in pursuing excellence in the core radio like it was
when it built the TS-930, TS-940, TS-950 and TS-850. (Or even the TS-830,
for that matter.)

It's like cars: why bother getting the handling right if we can just toss in
some irrelevant gizmos?

It's the cheap road to mass-market appeal, if you ask me.

No flames, please. I'm not saying current Kenwoods are bad radios for what
they are. They're just not great radios like we had been used to getting
from Kenwood.

73, Kelly
Ve4xt



-----Original Message-----
From: cq-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:cq-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of AD5VJ Bob
Sent: January-26-08 5:51 PM
To: CQ Contest
Subject: [CQ-Contest] Kenwood for Contesting

Would any of you guys consider any  Kenwood model of Contest quality?

I have not heard much abt them in regards to contesting.

I have an FT-1000MP MKV with the DVS-2 and FH-1 along with the narrow CW
filter, external matching speaker and of course FT-29
external power supply and it does a fantastic job of DX and Contesting, just
dont understand why I dont hear anything about Kenwood
anymore.


  73 fer nw es gud DX,
QSL VIA: LotW, BUR, e-QSL
Bob AD5VJ
http://www.ad5vj.com/

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