[VHFcontesting] Icom 706MKII or Kenwood TS690

[KA6AMD]

John,

I have both radios and they are really designed to do different things.  
I use the TS-690 in the house and the Icom 706 in the car.  I use both 
when I go out mountaintopping in contests.  The 690's front end is a 
little less crunchable  than the 706's, but its not a big difference.  
Since I usually operate from out in the middle of nowhere, so I am not 
really stressing the front ends on either radio.  I use the 690 to run 
my 222 MHz transverter as it has much better control of output power 
than the 706.  The 3db output power difference in the two rigs doesn't 
seem to make much difference in a contest situation, however, I usually 
operate QRP portable, so I am limited to 10W anyway. 

I like the user interface on the Kenwood much better and would have 
bought a Kenwood if they had the 50, 144, 432 MHz option available when 
I was buying the IC-706.  The portability was so much better than taking 
three different radios.  I looked at the Icom and Yaesu FT-100 and opted 
for the Icom based on the user interface.  It was easier to use, a 
definite advantage when out mountaintopping in the wee hours of the 
morning. 

Erich
KA6AMD
DM15

John Geiger wrote:
> I currently have an Icom 706MKII which I picked up recently, and it is doing a decent job on HF and 6, other than the receiver overloading at times in the IARU contest, and the SSB audio being kind of wimpy-really can't push it to 100 watts out.  It is nice to have the built in CW keyer, and the 100 watts on 6 meters, not to mention 20 watts on 2 meters.
>
> However, I have also been looking at a couple of Kenwood TS690s which I could get in exchange for the MKII.  I had a TS690 briefly last year, and it seemed like a pretty good radio.  The 690 would have built in autotuner, more filter options,and better metering (you can read power and SWR at the same time), but it would require an outboard keyer, and only does 50 watts on 6 meters, with no 2 meters. Still, it seems like it might be a better contest performer.
>
> Has anyone compared these 2 rigs?  And what are other's opinions?  Would the TS690 be a better rig to have than the 706MKII?  It is much less menu driven.
>
> 73s John W5TD
>
>
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