[TenTec] Orion 2 situation

[Rick - DJ0IP / NJ0IP]

Mike, that was an excellent post.

EVERYONE seems to be focused on the "position" of radios on Rob Sherwood's
list, and they get all tied up majoring in minors.

For several years now, Rob has been saying in all of his presentations that
other things are just as important or even more important, including:
  
  <1> Ergonomics.  He says, you have to enjoy operating the radio.  Some
radios are more fun than others.  Some are really difficult to operate,
especially from a software menu point and I (personally - not Rob) include
the K3 in that group.

  <2>  COST of OWNERSHIP (CoO).  He clearly points out that high repair
bills and short life cycles can make owning some of these expensive radios
even more expensive than they appear.

Let's see . . .  how much did my Eagle cost?  What is the worst case loss I
could have?   
Hey, the Eagle has an excellent CoO!

73
Rick, DJ0IP


-----Original Message-----
From: TenTec [mailto:tentec-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Mike
Stricker
Sent: Monday, July 01, 2013 1:50 AM
To: tentec at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TenTec] Orion 2 situation

Jim Brown reminded us why the Orion 2 is no longer going to be
produced....due to components issues.  In my mind, that presents an even
larger problem...long term ownership.  If Ten Tec can't get parts to produce
radios, what would make us believe that they will be able to repair these
radios in the future?  These newer radios are very UNLIKE the tube rigs and
hybrid radios of yesteryear.  Those radios had no proprietary components in
them and whatever seemed complex at the time, could/can be rebuilt or
replaced with modern "systems" like a DDS controlled VFO.  If a particular
uC or DSP chip becomes unobtanium, then you wind up with a rather large
doorstop unless you buy up other doorstops to make one radio.
Sadly, I suspected this was going to happen because the little issues that
remained with the Orion 2 were not being addressed.  I feel fortunate to
have owned one for a while but more fortunate to have sold it and gotten out
of it unscathed.  The other 2 American manufacturers aren't much different
or better.  Flex-Radio recently announced that they would not be
producing/supporting the 5000 and when the Elecraft K3 was announced, no
further firmware updates to the K2 were made (and there were a couple that
should have been to make the radio meet its specifications).
I'm afraid that the reality is that we are all beta testers while we own the
radio.  Just when we think they are solid, the manufacturer terminates
production/support.  We often rely on their promises and are let down.
 Thankfully, I can rely on other aspects of the hobby, like modifying less
expensive equipment to suit my own needs.
Mike, WA1SEO
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