[TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
Tommy
aldermant at alltel.net
Sun Feb 13 20:01:58 EST 2005
"Is offering something and having it work poorly better than not
offering it at all?"
Absolutely...if your a salesman.
Absolutely not...if you are a user.
Tom - W4BQF
----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve N4LQ" <n4lq at iglou.com>
To: <tentec at contesting.com>
Sent: Sunday, February 13, 2005 7:30 PM
Subject: Re: [TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
>I wonder if it would have been wiser to just leave off the band
>scope feature? Is offering something and having it work poorly
>better than not offering it at all?
>
> Steve Ellington
> N4LQ at iglou.com
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Tommy" <aldermant at alltel.net>
> To: <tentec at contesting.com>
> Sent: Sunday, February 13, 2005 7:15 PM
> Subject: Re: [TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
>
>
>> Hi Bernard,
>>
>> And I think we are hitting on the issues that make it very
>> difficult for a (any) manufacturer to produce a product, i.e.,
>> differences of opinion.
>>
>> I vaguely recall Ten Tec did an on-line survey a long time ago
>> about the color/non-color screen verses the cost factor, I don't
>> know their results, but at least they ASKED! The unfortunate
>> truth is changing to a color display probably is significantly
>> more cost-involved that simply swapping the monitor. But the
>> current spectrum sweep performance is poor, regardless of what
>> color it is viewed with. While I think the cabinet looks
>> excellent as it is, the black-on-black lettering thing is pretty
>> silly. I personally will always go with performance, meaning
>> hardware AND firmware, before the color display and/or the
>> cabinet, in terms of importance.
>>
>> Tom - W4BQF
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Bernard(wtrone)" <wtrone at comcast.net>
>> To: <tentec at contesting.com>
>> Sent: Sunday, February 13, 2005 6:21 PM
>> Subject: Re: [TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
>>
>>
>>> Tommy:
>>>
>>> Just my personal opinion, but I think that TenTec made an
>>> error in
>>> not paying more attention to customer wants/ desires/ likes in
>>> terms of a
>>> color display and a better looking cabinet.
>>>
>>> I asked Scott, at the Huntsville Hamfest, a couple of
>>> years ago
>>> about the color display. His comment was that it was a cost
>>> driven issue.
>>> Personally, I would have paid extra for a color display and a
>>> few more color
>>> driven options. But, that was TenTec's decision and it is hard
>>> to fault
>>> them.
>>>
>>> I selected the Orion because of its receiver
>>> specifications. I have
>>> not regretted that decision. The new Icom does not exceed the
>>> Orion specs
>>> and the new Yaesu specs are still undetermined.
>>>
>>> The Orion design is probably somewhere between 3-4 years
>>> old (from
>>> initial design). No doubt that the processors could be replaced
>>> with much
>>> higher speed units. I would not be surprised to see this in the
>>> future. I
>>> have also heard rumors of a color display. Will these occur?
>>> Well, only
>>> TenTec knows for sure. If these occur, I hope that I can
>>> upgrade my Orion!
>>>
>>> In the mean time, I will enjoy my Orion and not worry
>>> about the Icom
>>> and Yaesu rigs.
>>>
>>> Just one man's opinion.
>>>
>>> 73s,
>>>
>>> Bernard, WA4OEJ
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Tommy" <aldermant at alltel.net>
>>> To: <tentec at contesting.com>
>>> Sent: Sunday, February 13, 2005 4:22 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
>>>
>>>
>>>> This is my opinion only!
>>>>
>>>> I think it's becoming obvious that what the ham radio user
>>>> community
>>>> wants in a radio has changed to more 'glitz' that actual
>>>> operational
>>>> performance. Ten Tec probably designed the Orion with customer
>>>> loyalty in mind, the 'IY' manufacturers designed their latest
>>>> rig's
>>>> with the customer's wallet in mind. (Acknowledging the 'IY'
>>>> manufacterers current radios technical performance IS quite
>>>> good.)
>>>> The Orion is just about as perfect 'hardware design' as one
>>>> could
>>>> ask from amateur equipment. The ONLY snaffu in the Orion design
>>>> is
>>>> possible the added stages of amplification on the last two
>>>> narrow
>>>> roofing filter positions, done with their user community in
>>>> mind.
>>>> The selectable roofing filters, which help provide the very
>>>> best
>>>> receiver performance available kinda caught the competition
>>>> grasping
>>>> for some way to use the term 'roofing filter'. Ten Tec again,
>>>> with
>>>> the user community (cost to the user) in mind, used a non-color
>>>> display. The concept of a near-perfect hardware design and
>>>> firmware
>>>> downloadable updates should have been a 'killer' system for the
>>>> ham
>>>> community IF the ham community was still technical-orionted.
>>>>
>>>> Two major problems; 1) The very old addage "One aw-s**t will
>>>> kill a
>>>> thousand 'Atta-Boys'!" remains true today. While the Orion is
>>>> an
>>>> extremely excellent hardware design, Ten Tec kinda dropped the
>>>> ball
>>>> with the Orion's firmware; 2) probably 95% of today's ham
>>>> community
>>>> think a color screen (so to speak) is much more important than
>>>> actual radio performance under extreme operating conditions.
>>>>
>>>> What I saw yesterday at the Orlando hamfest kinda brings home
>>>> the
>>>> point about today's hams. During my walk around at that hamfest
>>>> what
>>>> I saw was shocking to me.
>>>>
>>>> First walk through approximate number of ham visitors:
>>>>
>>>> Yaesu booth: 25 to 30 visitors at the booth.
>>>> Icom booth: 30 to 40 visitors at the booth.
>>>> Elecraft booth: 10 to 15 visitior at the booth.
>>>> FlexRadio booth: 8 to 10 visitors at the booth.
>>>> Ten Tec booth: Only person present was the sales guy.
>>>>
>>>> Two hours later:
>>>>
>>>> Yaesu booth: 20-30 visitors
>>>> Icom booth: 20-30 visitors
>>>> Elcraft booth: 8-10 visitors
>>>> FlexRadio booth: 5-10 visitors
>>>> Ten Tec booth: Myself and the TT sales guy.
>>>>
>>>> My immediate impression was the non-technical ham of today
>>>> probably
>>>> ranks pretty color screens over pure absolute technical
>>>> performance.
>>>> I think even if Ten Tec had a flawless firmware package in the
>>>> Orion
>>>> today, the 'average' ham would prefer showing his friends the
>>>> 'pretty color screen' and boast about how much it cost instead
>>>> of
>>>> proudly boasting about the technical excellence of their Orion.
>>>>
>>>> In my opinion, the "Guys @ TT" had the wisdom to produce the
>>>> best
>>>> hardware design offered to the ham community on their first
>>>> try, and
>>>> I personally do not see the need for "Hardware" improvements
>>>> via an
>>>> Orion Pro II, or what ever. Of course, advancement in
>>>> technology
>>>> would require such, in the future.
>>>>
>>>> Tom - W4BQF
>>>>
>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>> From: "Jim Davis" <nn6ee at yahoo.com>
>>>> To: "Ten-Tec List" <tentec at contesting.com>
>>>> Sent: Sunday, February 13, 2005 1:51 PM
>>>> Subject: [TenTec] TT (Orion) Future improvements!!!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> > Gentlemen,
>>>> >
>>>> > In the future I hope that the Guys @ TT have the
>>>> > wisdom to offer "Hardware" improvements (when
>>>> > available) instead of offering a entirely new version
>>>> > of our Rig. Look what manufacturers like Icom did to
>>>> > us when they brought out the IC-756, then the PRO,
>>>> > then the PRO 2, then the PRO 3!!! All similar rigs
>>>> > but enough differences to preclude any chance of
>>>> > up-grading any of them by their owners which I think
>>>> > is an insult to all of us who ARE NOT independently
>>>> > wealthy or have a psycotic need to keep up with the
>>>> > "JONESES!!!" $3400.00 is too big a chunk of change to
>>>> > have to part with every time TT brings out a better
>>>> > rig?
>>>> >
>>>> > The "ORION" is a stellar rig, no doubt about it, BUT
>>>> > still the hardware should be made avaialble when the
>>>> > time comes and it WILL!!!
>>>> >
>>>> > Any thoughts???
>>>> >
>>>> > Jim/nn6ee
>>>> >
>>>> >
>>>> >
>>>> > __________________________________
>>>> > Do you Yahoo!?
>>>> > The all-new My Yahoo! - Get yours free!
>>>> > http://my.yahoo.com
>>>> >
>>>> >
>>>> > _______________________________________________
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>>>>
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>>>
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