Today was a bit of an emotional day. I sold my beloved IC-7300. I bought the radio in 2016 and I have taken it on many a trip. It has always been a solid, reliable radio. It was and still is the radio I recommend to anyone looking for a first or even second radio. Even though it is an older design, it holds its own when compared to more modern radios. It has a lower noise floor and in A/B comparisons, whatever I hear on one radio, I can hear on this radio. I have compared it with an IC-7610, FTDX10, and a FT-710. I usually test in a CW contest environment, probably the toughest out there. The secret is the ergonomics. All the controls I use are easy to get to and easy to use. The radio went to a follow club member so it is staying in the family. It will be missed – for a while.
I have reserved a spot with HRO for an IC-7300 MK2. They will be shipping by the end of the year. What drew me to the MK2 was a lower noise floor, cooler running, and reduced power consumption. The IC-7300 has a pretty low number (around 850 mA) and the new one is even lower.
Screenshot
Another interest is Dual Comm port. According to Icom, it can run two separate apps on two separate com ports for the radio. I think that’s pretty cool. They took the IC-7300, listened to its user base and then made a better radio. I like that about Icom.
I can’t wait to get my hands on the MK2. I hope it will be here by Winter Field Day. In the meantime, I still have my TS-590sg and IC-7200 for field duty. I must be patient, I must be patient. 73 de Scott
One of the things I was concerned about the FTX1 was how to protect its face while in transit. The Yaesu side rails which are not yet available are too large. They make the radio too bulky. Icom, when they made the IC-705 available also released a STL file so we could make our own covers which I did. Actually, I modified the file and my son printed it on his 3D printer.
The other day, I decided to check to see if someone had made a STL file for a FTX1 cover. They did! I downloaded the file and sent it to my son who printed it out for me (19 hours). The file was unmodified and fit the FTX1 to a tee. The file can be found here: Yaesu FTX1 3D Cover
I will wrap a silicone rubber band around it to keep the radio secure in the cover. The cover weighs 6.5 oz and the whole weighs just over 4 lbs without the rubber band. For comparison, My IC-705 with cover weighs in at just under 3 lbs.
Another annoyance or at least a distraction is during CW transmit. On the FTX1 the frequency readout flashes in time to CW along with the xmit light above the main dial. It is rather bright. I shot a YouTube video showing the difference between the FTX1 and the IC-705.
Where does this leave me. Well, for one thing wondering what Yaesu was thinking. I’m not giving up on the radio, hopefully as time goes by, Yaesu will work out some of the kinks. I am a bit annoyed that Yaesu is using us as beta testers. I would expect that from a company like Xeigu which sells their radios for less than half the price of the FTX1. The FTX1 is supposed to be a premium radio at a premium price. Come on Yaesu, you can do better. I think Yaesu had an opportunity and missed the mark. As I said in a prior post, I have been very busy this summer. Hopefully soon, I will get the FTX1 out in the field. So far, as of today if I had to choose between the FTX1 and the IC-705, I would still choose the IC-705 for a QRP radio. For a full size radio, I would take the IC-7300 or the FT-710 over the FTX1 Optima. Of course, your mileage may vary. Thanks for stopping by. 72 de Scott
Dear Yaesu, What has happened? Have you forgotten us? I don’t understand your thinking when it comes to the FTX1. The FT-817 and its variants sold well for over 20 years. It is still a cherished radio and has a strong following. The FTX1 is an okay radio. It would appear to compete with the IC-705 and as I have said, it doesn’t really compare. In the realm of QRP radios the IC-705 is still better then the FTX1.
I think many of us were hoping for an improved FT-817/FT-818. The FT-817 had a nice form factor and only weighed ~2.5 lbs with a battery and antenna. The FTX1 is clunky and weighs ~4 pounds without an antenna. I still haven’t figured out the best way to carry it.
What would be a nice QRP radio? My suggestion is taking the form factor of the FT-891 and making it a 10 watt radio (20 might even be better). Replace the the 100 watt finals with a battery or a decent antenna tuner (10:1 matching?). You could even go so far as make it an SDR radio. Make a nice pouch with a shoulder strap to carry it. Most people who run QRP don’t have a need for a waterfall. Instead use the USB port to send the signal to a a tablet/cell phone/laptop to view the waterfall there. You can also allow connectivity to a tablet/cell phone/laptop for digital modes and logging. That might put you on top again.
I don’t understand the Optima option. ~$1,900. Right now, I can get a FT-710 for $955. That would leave almost $1,000 for another radio or two. The FT-710 is a better radio. I have an FT-710 and I think it is one of your better efforts. I recently used it for Field day and it did very well. I have an FTX1 and I’m keeping it for a while to see what you do with it.
Yes, I have a preference for Icom radios, they work better for me. I have had other Yaesu radios namely FTDX10, FTDX3000, FT-950 and years ago an FT-817. I also run a Kenwood. I use what works best for me. I am not necessarily bashing you, I am offering my opinion for your consideration.
Sincerely, Scott KK4Z
Note: right now I am not sure how the FTX1 fits into my lineup. As I said earlier, I think the IC-705 is better (at least for me YMMV). If I need something lighter I have a KX2. For Field Days and bigger events I can bring either an FT-710 or IC-7300. When I purchased this radio I was also looking at a KX3 with KXAT3 and KXFL3. Maybe if the right trade comes along…
Working on the farm. I have been busy on my property. I have 6 acres to take care of and there is always something to do. Right now I have to start getting firewood ready for winter. That means dragging downed trees to the process area, bucking, splitting and stacking. I have a John Deere 3025 tractor to help me out. A problem I was running into was how do I get my gear out to where I am working. The front end loader is okay to carry things until you need it for something else. Besides the steel of the bucket is not good for a chainsaw blade. In the past I would sometimes use my wife’s UTV. That has it’s own set of problems namely, she uses it for her stuff and it stays full. So I decided to build a cargo box for the 3 point hitch on my tractor. I got a carry-all from King Cutter which allows me to use my iMatch quick hitch.
I stopped by my local welder and had a 2″ receiver welded on along with some grab hooks. The finished project looks like this.
I can flip the tailgate up and turn it into a workbench.
I drilled a few holes so I can mount a chainsaw vise to sharpen my chainsaw in the field.
You can see the chainsaw sheath behind the vise. It will hold my 68cc chainsaw with a 27″ bar safely.
I use a 20′ shipping container for my maintenance shed. It’s hasn’t been reorganized since we initially filled it up almost 6 years ago. Another project is to get things in the shop sorted and non-essential stuff moved to one of our other outbuildings. I need to make it more of a workshop and less of a storage shed. There are always projects to work on.
New Paddles I just received a new set of paddles from Modern Morse. I haven’t taken them out to the field yet, but in house testing shows them to be very promising. They are asy to grip, comfortable in the hand and have a very smooth touch. Workmanship is superb. The paddle body and the arms are Ceracoated and the finger pieces appear to be passivated. The arms pivot on 4 small ball bearings and tension is magnetic. There is a switch inside the paddle to switch dit-dah polarity. This is nice for left handers or “booby-footed” right handers. You can now plug and play with any radio. The paddles come in a nice metal case and two hex keys. The smaller key adjusts the tension and contact spacing and the larger one is for the 4 crews that holds the top of the case to the bottom. The paddle mechanism is sealed with a plastic lid. to get to the switch, you have to loosen the four bolts and carefully lift the top off. Be careful as there are tiny washers on the paddle arm pivots. Another nice feature is the paddles come with 4 magnets on the bottom.
The colors have a nice retro feel and are pleasant to look at. They will certainly be easy to find in a pack or on the ground if dropped. The paddles fit nicely in my hand and I have no trouble sending. These are rugged paddles designed for field use. They are made in the USA by a Veteran. The first run is sold out and there will be a pause before the next run is available. You can check the status here https://www.modernmorse.com. These paddles are pricey but if you appreciate the feel of fine workmanship, they are worth it. I am happy with mine.
Final Summer got busy and hot. Hopefully as fall approaches I will have more time to get my radios out in the field. I did manage to make it to Field Day with my club and my FT-710. I thought retirement was for leisure but I have never been busier. So much to do, so little time. 73 de Scott
Last year I took a CWI course to help improve my CW — and it did. During the process I had a couple of code buddies and I got involved with straight key stuff — which was fun. However, I discovered a flaw in my thinking.
When I started with CW it was back in the 90’s. We had cassette tapes to listen to and to advance your license you had to pass a code test. I read somewhere that you should start with whatever sending device you plan on using. I chose paddles. I used the Ultimatic mode for a while but eventually settled on Iambic B. I became pretty proficient with squeeze keying. Most of of my CW career was with paddles. Over the past year I was not operating CW as much for different reasons and allowed myself to get a little rusty. I love the mode and thought it was time to get back into it.
The other day I got on the air to try a few POTA contacts. It was a bit of a mess. My brain had trouble wrapping around sideswiper cootie keying and squeeze keying. You can’t do both at once. I fumbled through a few contacts and then did some off line practice. I am getting it worked out. When I am in full practice I can send at close to 30 wpm and copy an exchange at about 25 or so. Conversational CW is a bit slower at 18 to 20 wpm.
Fortunately, I can train myself out of this. First I am going back to 100% Iambic B mode. Then it’s practice both offline and online. A few minutes warmup offline and a minimum of 5 CW contacts a day. My goal is to get myself really comfortable above 25 wpm. Life’s an adventure and is more so when we are having fun living it. 73 de Scott
I’m not afraid to tell on myself, I can own up to it. Last night I decided to go ahead and order a Yaesu FTX-1 Field. Not without reason though. I watched a few YouTube videos from hamvention with John from Yaesu talking about the FTX-1. He mentioned that the performance of the FTX-1 would be similar to the FT-710. That could be impressive. I just finished up a review on my FT-710 so I have a feel for the radio.
Another cause and effect was yesterday, I pulled my IC-705 out getting it ready for some POTA activations. I had been remiss doing QRP CW activations focusing instead on low power digital with full size radios. I have been feeling the urge to brush up on my CW skills. Back to the 705, I like the radio a lot. It does indeed push all of the buttons. I was holding it in my hand thinking it’s not so bad for a portable radio and the FTX-1 is only a little bigger…I thought I might do another comparison series this time between the 705 an the FTX-1. I have a couple of big trips planned for the fall and winter and these radios will do nicely.
Another reason that pushed me toward the FTX-1 was the price of used radios, they are over the top right now. I was looking at a KX3 and it was the same price as the FTX-1. Even some of the other used radios were more than I cared to spend for them. One thing I forgot to mention, is I have grown used to waterfall radios. I have learned to use them to help me find places in the band to operate and to do a real time check on propagation. It’s amazing what you can glean from those screens.
Hopefully, over the next couple of months I’ll put the IC-705 and the FTX-1 through their paces. Up front I will say that I have a preference for Icom radios, but the FT-710, KX2, and TS-890s have found places here at the ranch. I am not adverse to using different brand radios, I use whatever fits me best.
The new radio should be here in a couple of days and then the games begin. This should be fun. 72 de Scott
As information started coming out about Yaesu’s new QRP radio I was tempted to get one. However, the more I learned the less I liked about it. I have an Icom IC-705 and an Elecraft KX2 for QRP radios. My big field radios are an Icom IC-7300 and Yaesu FT-710F. I am looking for another QRP radio to do a long term review. I considered the FTX1 but gave it a pass for the following reasons.
Price. An IC-705 cost $1349.95 at HRO. The FTX1 cost $1499.95 but to be truly compatible with the IC-705, you have to add Bluetooth ($54.95) and GPS ($69.95). this brings the total to $1624.85. A spare battery for the FTX1 is $199.95. The Icom battery (BP-307) is $135.95; however, knockoffs on Amazon can be had for 2 for $59.95. I use them and they seem to work just fine. Another point are the antenna tuners. The AH-705 sells for $359.95 and can tune long wire and coax fed antennas. Yaesu chose a different path they have one tuner for coax fed antennas and one for long wire each costing $319.95 or $639.90 for both.
The optima package. It cost $1899.95 to give you a 100 watt option. To put this in perspective, you can buy a FT-710 Field for $884.95 and a FTM-510 for $499.95 for a total of $1384.90. Plus you get an antenna tuner included with the FT-710 and the 710 probably has better performance than the FTX1 on HF. As a side note, the FT-991A sells for $1229.95.
Performance. Yaesu was pretty mum about the performance of the FTX1. With the FTDX101, FTDX10, and FT-710, they touted the Rob Sherwood numbers long and loud. The only thing they said about the FTX1 was it had the same Analog to Digital Converter (ADC) as the FTDX10. ADC’s are all pretty similar in all of the SDR radios. So where does the FTX1 fall? Is it like the FT-710 or is it more like the FT-991A or the FT-891? For POTA and SOTA using SSB this is probably fine Rob Sherwood recommends a Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced number of 80 dB for contesting. For CW that number increases to 90dB. The FT-891 and the FT-991 are in the 70’s range.
My friend Thomas K4SWL who is attending Hamvention put his hands on a live FTX1. His first impression was it was much bigger than he imagined. He decided to cancel his reservation for a FTX1. Looking at how things attached to the radio, I had the same thoughts. If I am going that large, I’ll bring my IC-7300 or my FT-710F. I am curious about the current draw of the FTX1 at idle.
As folks get their hands on the radio, more details will come out. Hopefully Yaesu will be more forthcoming with information, we shall see. It seems to me that Yaesu did not listen to the QRP/POTA/SOTA community when building this radio. For sure the pricing and size seem out of whack. As for me, I am still looking for another radio to review, but at this time I will give the FTX1 a pass. 73 de Scott
This month I ended up at Black Rock Mountain State Park. It is one of my favorite parks. I like it because it is located on the top of Black Rock Mountain. The views are fantastic and you couldn’t find a better park to operate a radio. This was a weekday trip. For the past couple of months I tried operating during the week instead of in the weekend. It was okay, I think I like the weekends better.
The weather was beautiful mostly cool with a spot of rain on the first night. I was surprised to see Slate Colored Juncos on the mountain. My mother called them snowbirds because they often proceeded a cold front and sometimes snow. I was near a comfort station and right next tot he camp host. No issues when I put up my 28.5′ random wire vertical.
Radio du jour was my FT-710. I also brought with me my IC-705 thinking I would switch over to QRP and CW on the second day. More about that later. I started out on FT8 and 25 watts. I went QRV on 20 meters around 1900 Z. The band was wide open! I stayed on 20 until about 0200 Z. The first day, I made over 200 QSO’s. Wednesday morning things started out well and then fizzled. In the end I made 453 QSO’s covering 46 states and 16 DX entities. The states I missed were AL, HI, ND, and WV. For DX I got as far north and west as Alaska, as far south as Uruguay, as far east as European Russia. I was hoping the band would stretch far enough west to pick up Hawaii, but it didn’t quite make it. A hop too far.
By Wednesday afternoon the bands were dead and I decided to head back to the house. It was a good run while it lasted and a lot of fun. The only issue I had were people asking for dupes. I only need to work you once and the way band conditions were many stations I needed were a one shot deal. Heard them once and then they were gone. I lost some of those because of people asking for dupes. That means two of us lost. Most logging software will show you if you worked a station before. It’s what I use. As an activator, I try to get as many stations as I can in the log.
Once the bands died and I realized that QRP and CW were not viable, I decided to pack it up and head home. I left the park early Wednesday evening and was home before dark. All in all a nice trip. Here is a QSO map of the activation.
End of an Era. This will be my last year on WordPress. It cost me between $100-$200 a year to maintain and being retired I need to cut a few corners. What will happen, is I will move back to Blogger which is free. I own the domain name and I will bring that with me. My WordPress subscription, ends March of next year and in the mean time, I will move some of my posts over to Blogger. Mainly the technical stuff. I will also be taking fewer overnight trips and combining some trips with the wife doing more than amateur radio.
Retirement is grand, I wouldn’t trade it anything. With it comes a little more responsibility. If I think I want something on the pricey side, I ask myself if I am willing to go back to work for it. So far the answer is no. Stay safe and 73 de Scott
Today was the club’s semi-annual outing and this spring it was one of our old haunts, Cheaha State Park US-1037 in the fine state of Alabama. There are 3 things we as a club like to do, we like to eat, we like to socialize, and once in a while we talk on the radio.
As usual, food was in abundance.
We had several stations set up under the pavilion. QRM was held to a minimum. We had Xeigu G90’s, Tru-SDR, Icom IC-705, and my Yaesu FT-710. I set the radio up and turned it over to the club President John WD8LQT. John, like me is a CW op and I wanted his opinion of the FT-710. I didn’t have to twist his arm too hard. The setup was the radio feeding a Chameleon micro transformer with a 12’ whip and about a 20’ counterpoise. The radio was powered by a 20 amp-hour Bioenno battery and the paddles were a Begali Expedition.
Band conditions were poor and it took John most of the time at the park to get his 10 contacts. There were stops for eating and chatting. Early in the activation, I decided to change antennas to be sure we had an atmospheric issue and not an equipment one. I had my Diamond RHM-12 which recently proved itself to be a good performer. Once the switch was made and some searching through the bands, John started making contacts on 20 meters. I believe it was atmospherics and not the equipment. John got his 10 contacts and we called it good.
John’s comments about the FT-710 were quite favorable. Like any radio, there are pluses and minuses. In general he thought it was a very good radio for CW. There is more commentary from John on the YouTube video posted below. John did have one epic fail. The ear buds he was using which looked rather ancient finally gave up the ghost. I took it upon myself to intervene and unceremoniously threw them in the trash. John will thank me.
My review of the FT-710 is drawling to a close. I find that I like the radio. It performs well for its price point and has some features found on more expensive radios. It has its quirks as all radios do, but none that I find overly objectionable. I plan on keeping the radio and it has found a place among my field radios. I imagine the radio may make an appearance during this year’s Field Day.
Yaesu came out with too fairly closely spec’d radios at different price points. The FTDX10 currently sells for ~$1,500 and if you add in the 300 Hz filter, another ~$175. The FT710 Field sells for ~$1,075. Roughly $500 less.
The FTDX10 is a hybrid radio with a down conversion receiver feeding into a Direct Digital Synthesizer (DDS). The FT710 is a SDR radio similar to the IC-7300. I owned an FTDX10 for about 18 months and I am on my second FT710, total ownership time is approximately 10 months. I had the first FT710 a couple of months after the initial release. It wasn’t working the way I expected it to so I traded. About 6 months ago, after reading some of the update material, I thought I would give it another go. My second FT710, this time the field version, is much improved. It is my current go to field radio. I plan on keeping this one. Having used both radios if I had to do it again which one would I pick?
I would pick the FT710. The FT710 has 90-95% of the performance of the FTDX10 for $500 less. In fact, I do not think one could tell the difference between the two in a side by side blind test. There is a caveat, the receiver architecture is different between the two radios and it requires a slightly different skill set. SDR radios like the FT710 basically run wide open all of the time. Keeping that in mind, in most cases it is better to run IPO or attenuation rather than preamp. I almost never run preamp on my FT710. What is nice about the FT710 is it gives you 3 levels of attenuation: 6dB, 12dB, and 18dB; a feature usually only found on higher end radios. In contrast, the IC-7300 only gives you one, 18dB.
The other control you should become familiar with is the RF gain. On a Yaesu, RF gain starts in the fully clockwise position. When there is a lot of noise, slowly turn the RF gain counter-clockwise until only the desired signal is heard. Coming from analog radios years ago, my brain is still a very good filter. I use digital noise reduction sparingly. I often keep it at level 2 or 3, enough to take the edge off.
Perhaps the most compelling reason to chose the FT710 over the FTDX10 besides the cost, is the ergonomics. I have large hands and fat fingers. The FTDX10 clustered its controls close together so I had to be careful when pushing a button or twisting a knob. Even so, I would bump the frequency dial and throw it off frequency. I have remarked that the controls on the FTDX10 were more suited for the lefthand. In fact when it was a part of my home station, it sat to the left side. With the FT710, the controls spaced further apart and are easy to get to even with my big mitts. This is a real benefit for a field radio. The position of the radio or the lighting conditions may not be optimal so ergonomics are important. I find the FT710 a joy to use in the field.
If you are a dyed-in-the-wool FTDX10 owner, this post is not for you. I wrote this for the amateur radio operator looking for their first HF radio, or maybe a seasoned operator looking to venture into the Yaesu family. This is also for those who have limited funds and are agonizing over which radio to get and should they sacrifice funds for the more expensive radio over something else they may need for the shack. The FTDX10 is a fine radio. Its Achilles’ Heel is its ergonomics. The FT710 is a fine radio in its own right. I believe it is 90-95% of what the FTDX10 is but for much less money. Of all the Yaesu radios I have owned over the past almost 30 years, the FT710 is the one I have been most happy with. YMMV de Scott
I decided to travel a little further this time and head toward the Okefenokee swamp. this time I tried the Laura S Walker State Park. It was a five hour drive and about 320 miles but fortunately I was able to stay off the interstates for all but about 30 miles of the trip. The park is near Waycross, GA which recently suffered from severe weather. Even though it has been a while there it still plenty of evidence to attest to natures fury. The park itself was in good shape and I had a nice campsite.
I would normally use my 28.5′ vertical antenna but I had a power line that passed almost directly over my truck and camper. I could have requested a better campsite but in the spirit of FunComm I decided to work with what I had. Instead of my usual antennas I deployed a new antenna. A Diamond RHM-12. This is a manual screw drive type antenna that is only about 7 feet tall and covers 40 meters to 440 MHz. With additional coils it also covers 80 and 160 meters. I set it up away from the power lines and used a Chameleon Spike to set it into the ground. I also had 2 counterpoises about 20-25′.
I was a little concerned about its performance. Inside the camper I had My Lenovo Laptop and Yaesu FT-710 with an LDG tuner.
I had a Rig Expert Pro Stick antenna analyzer with me and I was able to get the SWR down below 2:1. I guess I could have monkeyed with to get it lower but since I had the tuner…
I have really taken a liking to the FT-710. It has been performing well and since the last firmware updates, it has become a little champ. It is winning my heart. The radio, tuner, and computer all worked well together. I only ran 25 watts of power as that is about the limit on the antenna using FT-8. I was going to work some CW but the days I was at the park the temps were up around 90 degrees, far from the 43 degrees the morning I left my home QTH. I ran the air conditioning and when it is on I have trouble copying CW. Years in Army Aviation and other loud occupations have affected my hearing.
How did I do? Surprisingly well. In a 24 hour period which included sleep time, I made 400 contacts (7 dupes). I made contacts in 46 states (Not AK, HI, MT or RI) and 34 DX entities! I think that’s a new record for me during a POTA Activation. I got as far west as Australia and American Samoa, and as far east as Turkey, Bulgaria, and European Russia. The bands were up and down and I had to make a few trips out to the antenna to adjust it when I changed bands.
I never expected that little antenna to perform so well. The RHM-12 antenna has been assigned to permanent duty in my antenna kit.
It’s important to take your gear out and use it. Understand how it operates under various conditions. Know what your gear can and cannot do. This is good to know having fun but becomes critical when more is at stake.
KK4Z 