IC-705 vs FTX1 receiver part 3

To some, this part of the test is where the rubber meets the road. For this portion I hooked both radios up to the same antenna and used an A/B switch to go back and forth between the radios. The signal source came from this morning’s CWops CWtest, a weekly one hour sprint. many of the signals are under 500 Hz apart and there are usually weak and strong signals in the mix.

I recorded about 5 minutes of the CWtest switching the radios back and forth approximately every 30 seconds. I made a YouTube video which I will post below. While I was recording I sat directly behind my iPhone so keep that in mind that my comments are from live first hand experience.

Receiver. Before the test, I had both radios turned on and attached to the antenna. When switched to the IC-705, I could hear faint CW signals even though the S-meter or the waterfall were not showing any indication of a signal. When I switched over to the FTX1, I couldn’t hear the signal. generally speaking, I feel that the IC-705 has a slightly lower noise floor than the FTX1. Both radios have good receivers and it would take an experienced ear to make use of the lower noise floor.

Filtering. I set the radios up the same: CW mode, no RF gain, DNR set to 2, filter width set to 250 Hz, and waterfall to 5K on each side. When the test started, I found a weak signal that had a strong signal next to it, approx. 300-500 Hz away. Both radios did a very good job even though both had some filter ringing. The desired signal was still clear and easy to copy. About halfway through, I swapped and found a strong signal with a weak signal nearby. The weak signal was about 300-500 Hz away. this time there was no ringing and the desired signal was easy to copy. Both radios performed about the same.

Audio. The FTX1 has more audio, that’s the best way I can put. It is louder, and sounds more full than the IC-705. To my ear, the audio port design, volume, and frequency response appear to be geared toward SSB and FM. However, the CW signals out of the IC-705 sounded clearer and more distinct. This may due to the smaller speaker acting more like a tweeter making the higher pitched CW signals sound clear. The FTX1’s CW sounded a little muffled. For me, when I operate CW I am usually wearing headphones or earbuds.

Summary. Performance wise, you can’t go wrong with either radio. If you are the audiophile type, the FTDX1 might be a better choice. CW ops might like the IC-705 better. I will post the YouTube video below once I get it uploaded.