FT-950: first impressions...

[IT9JCB]

I've got my ft-950 few days ago....all is going OK but the SSB rx audio seems to be to low and too much low-pass filtered. I've tried a pair of external speakers without relevant results. It sounds to fat on basses....played also with rx setting menu ...nothing to say. Has anyone tested it......? 73's de Claudio IT9JCB

[K3EY]

For an RF expert you sure are quick to judge before looking and trying. There are only a thousand different ways to set it.


On Receive it sounds ok to me, not much differance than the PROIII sitting beside it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

FROM REFLECTOR


I have done a lot of testing with the FT-2000 parametriq equalizer.
Hopefully the FT-950 equalizer is identical in setup.

Try these settings:
These have been tested using the MD-100 microphone and gave great
results. This settings gave a rather "broad" ragchew SSB TX audio.
These also works great with the MH-31b8 original hand mic.

Menu 064 (SSB TX bandwidth): 1-30 (100-3000 Hz). Setting at 2-28 (200-
2800 Hz) gives a bandwidth of 2600Hz and makes you sound more
narrow/sharp (better for DX ?).

Parametriq EQ (withouth PROC)

Menu 091 : 100
Menu 092 : +6
Menu 093 : 3
Menu 094 : 1000
Menu 095 : -5
Menu 096 : 5
Menu 097 : 3200
Menu 098 : +10
Menu 099 : 1

Parametriq EQ (with PROC)

Menu 100 : 100
Menu 101 : -10
Menu 102 : 6 to 8
Menu 103 : 800
Menu 104 : 0 to -3
Menu 105 : 8
Menu 106 : 2400 to 2600
Menu 107 : +10
Menu 108 : 1

Menu 109 (PROC GAIN): try 25% NOTE !! distorts badly if turned up too
much !! Use the monitor function and headphones to hear at which level
distortion starts.

IMPORTANT ! Don't forget to push and hold MENU for 2 seconds to exit
menu and store new settings !

Mic gain at 11 - 12'o clock (watch the ALC-level)

Using PROC really cuts throug in noisy band conditions. This is mostly
because of the difference in parametriq equalizer settings.

VERY IMPORTANT !
Distance to MD-100 : around 15-20 cm. (6-8 inches).
Please set all controls underneath the MD-100 in the OFF/THRUE
position.
Distance to MH-31b8 : around 8-10cm. (3-4 inches) any closer than 2
inches will create breathing noise (very unpleasant).

Other menu settings :

Menu 036 : A3E mic gain (AM) : 90
Menu 056 : F3E mic gain (FM) : 25

[IT9JCB]

Thanks to K3EY for useful infos...the proposed menu setting regards only the tx side, I've also found similar settings on mine.
Unfortunately there are NO settings for which concern the rx side response, only agc decay time. 73's Claudio

[K9XR]

K3EY, in my book RX means "RECEIVE".

Who's so Quick to judge??

[W0BKR]

I just got my 950 and honestly, don't notice that issue, but try adjusting the SHIFT or any of the other IF filtering settings.

First impression of radio (still have a long way to "learn" this radio):

1. NB doesn't seem to really help much if at all.
2. DNR is so-so but then again, so are the others out there for really cutting out noise, etc.
3. Selectivity (i.e. roofing filter selection, etc.) doesn't seem to be there, nor do controls such as Roofing Filters have much effect on QRN.
4. Radio is easy to navigate if you don't require the menu items.
5. Sounds good, a bit confusing on the "block diagram" display. Just give me a simple "Filter 1 or Filter 2, etc" selection indication.
6. Miss the analog meter.
7. Back panel well marked.
8. Knobs and general ergonomics seems very nice.


Just my first hour or so with this radio.

[ae5eh]

I've had mine for a month now.

So far, I'm pleased. Of course I'm a new operator so how could I know anything, right? http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I'm still experimenting with the menus and really like the tweakability. The only one I've done adjusting with the most is the contour in trying to pull out weak signals in the noise. It works well for me. The more I dig into the menus as a use this radio, the more I like it.

Be careful with the speech processor. I have mine set at 40. I believe the default setting is 50.


Seems like if you don't like the FT2000, you won't like the 950 either.

With all the bitching about this radio in the 950 yahoo group, you'd think that ebay would be flooded with these for sale.

Sad that there is just no making some folks happy. They piss and moan when something costs so much (IC7800), and still do the same when something doesn't cost much but doesn't perform like a million bucks (FT857/897/450/950). http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

[W9LDV]

gosh i am so glad i don't have to work with all those menus on my ts-520s. i can just turn it on and speak and it didn't cost me a arm and leg for it. must be nice to buy a new radio and spend all your time trying to make it sound good on transmitt and recieve. some guys have all the fun.:D

[IT9JCB]

Ok guys, this is my "first month" report about the FT-950.
First of all I've to say that I'm a bit surprised (and disappointed too..) about the K3EY and K9XR comments: yes I'm an engineer, I could judge a rig simply looking to its block diagram but I use also my hears to do it and if a say that it sounds bad on Rx (=receive, yes) I mean that I'm using my hears as instrument.

Hereafter the Pros and Cons:

Pros (in order of importance):

- the radio look is very good as well as the general level of construction:everything knobs, display, connectors etc etc. is as for higher class products.

- value for money (I payed it about 1350.00 euros) is outstanding.

- the DSP works very well on transmission: audio quality is excellent even using the original MH-31 micro and properly adjusting the built-in parametric equalizer.

- The RF section of the receiver (means IMD, birdies, noise etc ) is very good, at same level of higher class rigs like IC756proIII and others, and probably it's a bit better because it 's possible to select between three roofing filters instead of one with 15 KHz bandwidth. This results in a very quiet receiver.


Cons (in order of importance):

- there is (at time, depending on the who is speaking into the micro) a strong AGC attack distortion on receive: audible clipping is present clearly especially if you use the contour control as boost (plus) instead of notch (minus). Other peoples have reported this problem in their eHam reviews.

- speech processor works very bad and cannot practically used: too much distortion.

- the receive audio is too much filtered and smoothed for me (checked also by switching A/B to my TS-140S same ext speaker SP20). I've solved the problem connecting the packet audio out to an external amp.

- No dedicated TX power control knob: it's very tedious to play with menu each time you have the adjust power out.

- low PEP power: the CW power is as for others rigs ~100W, while the PEP is a bit lower, my TS140S has 130W PEP while FT-950 has just 100W.

- DNR: for me it does not work at all, the noise is killed but the artifact on the cleaned signal is too much for me. Listen at Icom DNR....

I would like to point out that the reported Cons refers to the DSP section and they could be easily fixed by a new software version eventually provided by Yaesu after receiving feedback reports form users. In any case I would suggest this rig to everyone wants an honest DSP rig without spending a fortune for it. For the moment my 950 still stands in my desk....

73s
IT9JCB

[K9XR]

Ok guys, this is my "first month" report about the FT-950.
First of all I've to say that I'm a bit surprised (and disappointed too..) about the K3EY and K9XR comments: yes I'm an engineer, I could judge a rig simply looking to its block diagram but I use also my hears to do it and if a say that it sounds bad on Rx (=receive, yes) I mean that I'm using my hears as instrument.

Hereafter the Pros and Cons:

Pros (in order of importance):

- the radio look is very good as well as the general level of construction:everything knobs, display, connectors etc etc. is as for higher class products.

- value for money (I payed it about 1350.00 euros) is outstanding.

- the DSP works very well on transmission: audio quality is excellent even using the original MH-31 micro and properly adjusting the built-in parametric equalizer.

- The RF section of the receiver (means IMD, birdies, noise etc ) is very good, at same level of higher class rigs like IC756proIII and others, and probably it's a bit better because it 's possible to select between three roofing filters instead of one with 15 KHz bandwidth. This results in a very quiet receiver.


Cons (in order of importance):

- there is (at time, depending on the who is speaking into the micro) a strong AGC attack distortion on receive: audible clipping is present clearly especially if you use the contour control as boost (plus) instead of notch (minus). Other peoples have reported this problem in their eHam reviews.

- speech processor works very bad and cannot practically used: too much distortion.

- the receive audio is too much filtered and smoothed for me (checked also by switching A/B to my TS-140S same ext speaker SP20). I've solved the problem connecting the packet audio out to an external amp.

- No dedicated TX power control knob: it's very tedious to play with menu each time you have the adjust power out.

- low PEP power: the CW power is as for others rigs ~100W, while the PEP is a bit lower, my TS140S has 130W PEP while FT-950 has just 100W.

- DNR: for me it does not work at all, the noise is killed but the artifact on the cleaned signal is too much for me. Listen at Icom DNR....

I would like to point out that the reported Cons refers to the DSP section and they could be easily fixed by a new software version eventually provided by Yaesu after receiving feedback reports form users. In any case I would suggest this rig to everyone wants an honest DSP rig without spending a fortune for it. For the moment my 950 still stands in my desk....

73s
IT9JCB


I am sorry if I offended you. I did not direct any bad will toward you. I just did not care for the way he attacked your oppinion. He then quoted a big list of transmitter settings that had nothing to do with the receiver settings.
I think he got pretty defensive about the comments on a radio that he had just gotten.

By the way he must be a little confused or something because about a week after his post he got rid of the FT-950. Maybe he never learned to use it properly, I don't really know.

I hope you have good luck with your new rig.

I just wanted to set the record straight.

73 Al K9XR

[IT9JCB]

Hi Albert..sorry, didn't read carefully your post. You don't have to excuse with me, I got a bit confused with the 'other' guy. 73s de IT9JCB

PS I think that ham community need to have an extensive technical training before to be able to push a PTT or a CW key....agree ?

[K9XR]

Hi Albert..sorry, didn't read carefully your post. You don't have to excuse with me, I got a bit confused with the 'other' guy. 73s de IT9JCB

PS I think that ham community need to have an extensive technical training before to be able to push a PTT or a CW key....agree ?

OK no problem. One of the problems that comes along with these menu driven radios is they make us do something we never thought we had to do before. That is: reading the manual. They have mure useful functions than anything we have used in days gone by, but sometimes we may have to do a little research with the manual to utilize them. I have a 756 PRO and a IC 7000 and I make sure the manuals are always within easy reach.

Yes, you are right, we need to get educated before we attempt to use them. I guess it never hurts to learn something new. I just wish it was as easy to learn as it used to be.

Keep us updated on your progress with the radio and Good Luck.

73, Al

[KD4QFT]

I have been away from radio for 15 years and have been looking at reviews for equipment, I have seen the member listed on these pages using two differant call signs one apperantly not yet released for use to give a zero review and also with the differant call sign a 2 review for the 950, I also have two call signs I can legally use from differant Countries but would only judge once, it is unfair to give reviews more than once, if you wish to change a previous review delete the first and then correct your previous judgement, if the web site does not allow this, do not judge too quickly, and please Amateurs we have always been judged a group of weirdoes by "normal "people but we all tried to help each other so stop bitching and just help.

[K9XR]

I have been away from radio for 15 years and have been looking at reviews for equipment, I have seen the member listed on these pages using two differant call signs one apperantly not yet released for use to give a zero review and also with the differant call sign a 2 review for the 950, I also have two call signs I can legally use from differant Countries but would only judge once, it is unfair to give reviews more than once, if you wish to change a previous review delete the first and then correct your previous judgement, if the web site does not allow this, do not judge too quickly, and please Amateurs we have always been judged a group of weirdoes by "normal "people but we all tried to help each other so stop bitching and just help.

I'm not sure who you are talking about with the two reviews. I know that at least three guys who gave reviews in this thread have sold their FT-950's. It was reviewed in QST recently and It didn't seem they were very impressed with it either.

[KD4QFT]

Hi
The reviewer I have looked at is on eHam site giving a zero with one call sign and a 2 with another call sign, I decided to look up their licence details for length of licence class etc as most other hams are giving 3 to 5 and found the same name to both the licence details, I then decided this was a person with a gripe with the company and not really a review to take note of, I am unsure how you can give a zero any way unless the equipment did not switch on from new, it is really difficult understanding reviews from most hams as only a few seem to back up their information with actual numbers or scales, your monthly review is what is required about actually using the unit over a length of time not a couple of days, I seem to think I am the only ham who looks into the equipment reviews for ages BEFORE buying or I do not yet have enough money to buy whatever and sell two days later because of a whim.
I am considering the 950 for the following
Cost $1330 is best price in USA I can find, any one know cheaper post on here.
The receiver as the capability of having the added external filter for the bands I prefer.
I assume the short falls various hams find will be updated with a menu driven unit with future downloads.
External psu, cheaper to return faulty units with shipping costs etc.
Oh and did I mention cost.
And the main reason cost is the winner, more expensive is not always the better purchase.
I have personal experience where selling items too cheaply can cost the cheaper dealer the sale, but that's another story.
PLEASE update your findings as I am still considering a second Kenwood 830 to add to my original one or maybe go back to stamp or coin collecting and put 830 back under bed for another 15 years by that time I will probably not need any radio or any other type of junk.

[W0BKR]

That is one nit with Eham. If you want to update or amend your review, you can't. You are FORCED to either enter another review or just skip it.

I like many others, downloaded the manual and read it, read it and read it some more.

If I didn't need or watn 6 meters, the 830 is a super receiver just as is teh TS-850. But if you are wanting something new, then the 950 may work for you. It didn't as a back up radio for me and I have no regrets parting with mine.

You have to consider your needs and cost. For me, I wanted something with better capability for low bands which it failed miserably. However, if I was just a generic rag chewer, then it would work for me and be a reasonably new radio.

You have to be critical when you are buying something new and spending whether it be $1000 or 10000.

[ae5eh]

I've had mine for a month now.

So far, I'm pleased. Of course I'm a new operator so how could I know anything, right? http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I'm still experimenting with the menus and really like the tweakability. The only one I've done adjusting with the most is the contour in trying to pull out weak signals in the noise. It works well for me. The more I dig into the menus as a use this radio, the more I like it.

Be careful with the speech processor. I have mine set at 40. I believe the default setting is 50.


Seems like if you don't like the FT2000, you won't like the 950 either.

With all the bitching about this radio in the 950 yahoo group, you'd think that ebay would be flooded with these for sale.

Sad that there is just no making some folks happy. They piss and moan when something costs so much (IC7800), and still do the same when something doesn't cost much but doesn't perform like a million bucks (FT857/897/450/950). http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

Sometimes it takes some work to figure out what you really want in a radio. You can't get something for nothing. If you want more, it may, and most likely will most of the time cost you. The 950 was not a bad radio for the price. I felt like I got more or less what I paid for. But it wasn't enough, so I sold it and got a brand new IC756PROIII. Big improvement over the 950, and a fair improvement over the basket case 756PRO I had.

Well, this month, it was either Dayton, or another radio toy. So I got a new IC7700. Yeah, I think this thing will keep me engaged for a while. I believe I will have to work pretty hard to find it's limitations.

[KY5U]

Love my 950. RX good and love the Tx equalizer for the price. My only complaint is not being able to find out how to transmit on one antenna and receive on a different one without having to switch.

[ae5eh]

Love my 950. RX good and love the Tx equalizer for the price. My only complaint is not being able to find out how to transmit on one antenna and receive on a different one without having to switch.

Have you heard anything official about the first firmware upgrade? The 950 is a decent radio. I'm thinking the first firmware upgrade will make it even better.

73 de terry ae5eh

[K9XR]

I've had mine for a month now.

So far, I'm pleased. Of course I'm a new operator so how could I know anything, right? http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I'm still experimenting with the menus and really like the tweakability. The only one I've done adjusting with the most is the contour in trying to pull out weak signals in the noise. It works well for me. The more I dig into the menus as a use this radio, the more I like it.

Be careful with the speech processor. I have mine set at 40. I believe the default setting is 50.


Seems like if you don't like the FT2000, you won't like the 950 either.

With all the bitching about this radio in the 950 yahoo group, you'd think that ebay would be flooded with these for sale.

Sad that there is just no making some folks happy. They piss and moan when something costs so much (IC7800), and still do the same when something doesn't cost much but doesn't perform like a million bucks (FT857/897/450/950). http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

Sounds like the voice of experience to me. How is that 950 doing now?

[ae5eh]

:)Sounds like the voice of experience to me. How is that 950 doing now?

Yup, for sure my friend. Dollars paid, hands on using it in just about all the ways I cared to see it used in. My own digging and searching. I wanted more than the 950 was capable of giving, so rather than pissing and moaning about what I thought it should do (wow, who would do such a thing?) I quietly sold it, and got something else. But unlike so many others always looking for everything for nothing, and slamming the 950, I didn't. Looking back on it, I don't regret owning it. I still think it was a decent radio overall for the price, which is cheaper now than when I purchased mine.

How's my FT950 doing? Couldn't tell you for sure, but I can put you in touch with the guy that bought it from me, and you can ask him if you like.

And, has the first firmware upgrade come out for the FT950? Maybe you can tell me. I've seriously considered buying another one as a collectors item before mother batwing sells Yaesu. :)

[K2GSP]

I have had my 950 for about a month now and I love it. the price at R&L was cheap. I was able to buy the external speaker and the MD-100 desk mic for about the cost of a 746 pro.

I have no problem with the RX. I have been able to pull out stations I would have missed in the past, due to QRM. I have gotten more great signal reports then I can ever remember. I'm very happy with it.

Still learning the menus, so I will let you know how they go.

Overall I'm happy camper.

[W5VZM]

i have tested these 2 rigs with the same antenna the ft950 yaesu verses the icom 746 pro
on an extremely weak dx station and trying every posible adjustment the signal could be understood on the ft950 yaesu and could not be understood on the 746 pro icom this was an extremely weak signal and the difference was not enough to be of a lot of importance since both recievers are excelent pieces of equipment the recieve audio is better on the icom 746 pro the ft950 has too much base in the audio but with very careful adjustments it can be improved

w5vzm

[K6WAC]

I am a bit puzzled by the negative response to this radio. I:cool: purchased one with the newest pep 950 firmware direct from Yaesu and couldn't be happier. The rx is every bit as hot as the 756 Pro lll but without the high price tag. Additionally,I have compared the new IC 7600 side by side with the 950 with the pep 950 upgrade and notice very little difference. Maybe I stumbled upon a few operators on the forum that have had a bit of problems with the older firmware. But with the new upgrades, most of the rx issues discussed have been remedied; turning this radio into a real valuable addition to the shack. 73

[W1GUH]

gosh i am so glad i don't have to work with all those menus on my ts-520s. i can just turn it on and speak and it didn't cost me a arm and leg for it. must be nice to buy a new radio and spend all your time trying to make it sound good on transmitt and recieve. some guys have all the fun.:D

I hear that! As I just found out about my '857, there's tweaking to do to get it to sound good. The last new radio I put on the air was an ICOM 701 & it had the classic panel and no menus. Today's radios, OTOH, whew! They require a whole new set of instincts. but...the good news is you can tweak stuff that on a '701 would have been formidable, like transmitted carrier placement, etc.

I don't know if I'm talking apples and oranges here ('950 & '857) but my experience with the DNR in the '857 is very good. While mobiling, it does a really good, in fact, surprisingly good job in cleaning up the audio. It's possible that it's optimized for the type of noise one gets from a car. Come to think of it, it doesn't do squat with the horrendous line noise I have at home.

As far as bassy received audio goes, that's kind of a stumper. That, of course, could be because your BP shift is turned on and set wrong, but I'd be surprised to hear that you haven't already checked that. Other than that, does you radio have a bfo or received carrier setting in the menu? I believe mine does, and that could be contributing...but again, it would be surprising if it came stock with it set "wrong."

Finally, the stock mic levels in an '857 are way too high. I don't know if this situation is the same in a '950, but it'd be worth checking that out. If you get a report of muffled audio, that could be the problem. If the mic level is too high you'll have excessive ALC action, resulting in muffled audio.

Good luck & have fun!

[SQ3OGP]

hi,
it is posible to the ft950 user and md100a8x write on this forum the settings to the eq and proc, i look the best audio settings to the md100 desk mick and ft950.

[N8KYX]

I have had an ft 950 for a year now and other than adding the heil hm10 mic the radio was perfect right out of the box. I have had nothing but excellent reports. I added the upgrades and the receive was improved a little. The problems I hear with the audio complaints can be solved by resetting the radio back to factory settings and leaving the single-wide-band audio to the professional radio stations. There is no since in spending allot of money for a good radio and then making it sound trashy. As for processor, well, you know!
As for the receive, well, I had to change only the contour because of my hearing problem. And most of the time I don't use the contour at all. That was easy. If you have poor receive audio after trying a few minor adjustments you may by some slim chance got one that may need to go back to the factory or again just do a reset.

I have had radios of all makes over the years and other than the ts 520s that I still use the ft 950 is hard to beat.

[SP5NVX]

HI
New version of software for mic equalizer and menu-settings-backup ft950
http://82.210.182.160/FT-950menu.zip
73!
Tom

[KD4QFT]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have read all the reports and decided to buy a 950 from a local Ham moving to a Flex radio.
This is the first Yaesu purchased by me since the early 80's a FTdx 401 always had kenwood before.
I was a bit worried that a really old idiot would have trouble with a rig that had a larger menu than Denny's but decided to give it a go
I have had no problems setting up menu's, the set from default works fine for me and I have only changed the slow agc to 4000 max a 1 sec delay on s and alc meter, and the only change to any settings is menu 104 I increased to 5 to boost transmit audio with processor.
I am not a camp follower and do not believe any manufacturer is best all are good for differant reasons and I do not believe more money means more radio,
I rate the 950 as fantastic for ssb and DO NOT add the phrase "for the money" ssb is now all I use, the filters and dsp are good and if you are looking for a good rig I would say choose the Yaesu FT-950.
I looked at adding an extension speaker but almost died at the amount of money some companies want for noise cancelling speakers.
I purchased a set of Logitech X-230 2.1 speakers and these are very well made good construction and well worth the extra money to add to the audio output of the 950.

[W0GI]

gosh i am so glad i don't have to work with all those menus on my ts-520s. i can just turn it on and speak and it didn't cost me a arm and leg for it. must be nice to buy a new radio and spend all your time trying to make it sound good on transmitt and recieve. some guys have all the fun.:D

Think of the fun you miss, searching for the manual, so you can find the sub-menu that you use to set RF output for tuning up.

Actualy, I played with an FT-950 a few weeks ago at HRO in Denver. They asked me if I wanted the manual. I could only reply that if I needed a manual to check it out, I sure wouldn't buy it.

Seriously, it has some nice features, but I am somewhat confused why some basic functions are on sub-menus.

I have a MK-V, and it has lots of BS that I don't need in the sub-menus, but at least the basic stuff like keyer on/off, keyer speed, RF output, mic gain, proc gain, and other functions are on the panel.

It seems there is a disconnect between the engineers, and actual people that use the radio everyday. :)

Ergonomics? What's that mean? It means I never need a sub-menu while operating, only during setup.

But that's just me. I would rather rebuild a boat anchor, then spend hours reading manuals. :D