[TenTec] Omni VI+ classic

[Rob Atkinson, K5UJ]

<<<I sure was happy the first time I opened up my Omni VI. It's built the 
way a radio ought
to be, in my opinion.>>>

No, there really isn't a ham rig anywhere that is built the way they ought 
to be.  The way they ought to be built is this:

The rig chassis is in a case that's mounted in a rack.  The rig chassis on 
rollers so it can be pulled out but still powered up via a bundled connector 
harness from the chassis to the case.  Rack handles on the f.p. of course, 
which has quick release screws to make it easy to pop it out of the case and 
roll it forward.  Front panel on hinges so it can fold down.  All pc boards 
mounted vertically coming off a mother board on the bottom.  You get an 
extender card with the rig so you can pull a board, plug in the extender and 
the board into that so it sits up and you have access to all of it, and all 
the test points while the rig is powered up.  Each pc card has a panel on 
top with release levers and scope probe sockets for standard i/o checks, and 
+- v. on each board.  Rig has diagnostic alarm lights on the f.p.  If forced 
air cooled, removable air filters you can rinse out and put back in.  Of 
course you have a scope on a dolly you can wheel up to it to make all this 
worthwhile.  With all of this, troubleshooting down to a pc card at least, 
would almost be a no-brainer.  You might even have a few spare cards on hand 
to swap for bad ones.

You know why this isn't done?  I'm sure you do.  A.  It would at least 
triple the price of every rig and no ham would buy anything like that 
because hams are cheap.  B.  .05 % of all hams would take advantage of this 
setup.  C.  Someone would make and sell the same thing but without all the 
nice maint. touches for 1/2 price and run the quality mfr. out of business.  
D.  Mfrs. assume a MTBF that to their view, does not justify all this--they 
forget that we are hams--we break stuff.

So we get a small increment above cheap consumer throw-away electronics.  
That's what the market will bear.  Yes, this includes Ten Tec rigs.    And 
by the way, the new stuff even from Ten Tec is SMT so you don't get any 
thru-hole troubleshooting breaks from them either.

I wrote what I considered an objective comment on why I thought the Omni VI+ 
didn't outsell every other rig on the market.  I admit I forgot that audio 
quality is up to the listener.  To some, quality may mean the narrow, tight 
sound that's more resistant to QRM as found with the Omni VI.  I prefer a 
broader richer sound which I think Kenwood delivered.  The 850 has a 
broadcast band improvement mod, which may make the front end more 
susceptible to QRM from medium wave bc stations when operated in the ham 
bands.  If an 850 with that mod is operated near a tx site of a QRO bc 
station, there may be some garbage mixing into the IFs in the ham bands.  
This may be one cause of the contentious "cement mixer" (BTW, I don't think 
any rig actually sounds like one) charge.  However the stock 850 had nothing 
but beautiful (to me) audio.

Rob Atkinson
K5UJ

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