yaesu ft 1500m

[2e0okc]

i have put a deposit on a little ft1500m i am paying £80 pounds for it i have just passed my m3 but i need to know if they get hot and do they sound nice em one information . 73 phil

[kb5yue]

There have many posts concerning the FT-1500. I have one and LOVE it! I does tend to get hot on high power for too long, but I have all the memories programmed with the lowest power setting. If I need to boost the power, that isn't a problem. I've been told that the audio from the 1500 is clear and clean. It is currently in my truck with a 5/8 wave magnet mount antenna. I paid $140.00 U.S. for mine.

I have not used the data port on mine, but a friend of mine has one and uses it strictly for PACKET operations. He has told me that he is pleased with it.

[w5zzq]

It does get mighty hot on high at times. But if you keep the air flowing around it - it should be fine.....Larry..

[KC8MQX]

The radio will heat up with prolonged use at 50 watts, although it has never been excessive enough to cause any problems whatsoever. For me it's not that often that I need full power for a long QSO. Great rig for the price and it's size.

[KD7YMR]

I’ve had my little FT-1500m for about 6 months already. #As others have stated, they do tend to run a little warm. #I found that after I did a little extra work on my antenna, bringing the match closer in to 1:1, the heating problem reduced noticeable, but it still gets warm. #The mobile mount is some what of a heat sink, but that doesn't do much good with the newer plastic dashboards in the cars nowadays, so keep the heat issue in mind when you install your rig.

#The reports I receive from my fellow hams are commendable when I talk over my FT 1500m. #Even on the long-hall's it still performs extremely well with no fade of drift worth mentioning. #Even over the long radio meetings, the FT-1500m holds its own against other, much more expensive units.

#The memories are a little funny however. #Once you program a slot, you can't delete it. #You can write over it or you can block it off, but you just can't clear it out. #That causes a little bit of a hassle when you have the memory full, you will have to overwrite one from the last trip you were on in order to install a new frequency.

#The front panel is wonderfully simple. #The blue color display is good in all but the brightest light, and the control layout is well thought out too. #5 Dual function buttons on the top are easily accessible and visible. #With the mike controls, you can easily program anything without touching the radio. #It's so slick, it’s Kewl! #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

#This little radio is rock solid too. #It’s almost a solid brick of metal. #Well ventilated of course, being the case is its heat sink. #And there is no fan ether. #That’s one more reason to carefully consider the location when you go to mount it. #You may get a dirty look if your wife lays her bare leg against it when she climbs in the rig after you've been chewing on the ol' rag for a while.

There are mods for it, but I don't see why anyone would care to increase the power with its heat issue in the first place. #The clarity of the signal is excellent, and with a good antenna, you just don't need that little bit of extra power the mod will give you.

#All in all, for a mobile 2 meter rag-chewer, I would rate this at 8.5 out of 10, and only because of the memory and heat issues. #You have to consider that there’re trade-offs in everything you do, and I think Yaesu did one heck of a job designing this little rig. #A big round of applause to the engineers!

# #73's

KD7YMR
Abaslon

http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[kk7jk]

Yes, they do get hot, however, SWR should be the lowest you can get.
Have had mine for afew years and the MEMORY has gone away, opened the transceiver up and guess what, no battery.
Took the entire PCB out, top and bottom, no battery unless Industry has made a new type looking battery. One large Capacitor is there but no battery, anyone have the same trouble?
Other then losing memory I enjoy it.

[M0JFE]

I have a 1500m and like it I have programed the shipping channels as well as other 2m stuff in the memory .The weather channels don't work in the UK but ch16 shipping gives all the coastal info you need .It does get warm even on low power butif concerned use an old cpu brushless fan to take away the heat.I love the radio and once you have got used to the menu thing you are away.
John
M0JFE(formally M3JFE)

[k1wcc]

I have had my FT-1500 for about 5 years. It's in my pickup truck and the only thing I can say about it is: It just keeps working. It is used in summer heat over 100 deg. F to subzero winter cold, in dirty and dusty conditions, and it just keeps working. For a year, I commuted 75 miles each way to work, and ran it at 50 watts on the morning commute almost continuously. It does get hot but seems to be able to take it. It isn't intuitive to program but once you get the hang of it, it's fine. I use it with a Larson 5/8 wave mobile antenna. It's a worry-free radio for me and sure did make that long commute a lot easier.

Henry #K1WCC

[kg4llq]

Phil: I've had my FT1500M for over 3 years as my base 2 meter unit. I use it for my local 2 meter repeater & net (our club repeater is only 7 miles north of my QTH) so I keep it on the lowest power. I use a home-brew "J" pole antenna (concealed in a pvc plastic pipe) located in my basement! Inserted between the FT1500M & the antenna is an MFJ 2 meter tuner which definitely helps to keep the SWR at a respectable 1.1:1 at the radio.
In years past, when I had a Cushcraft Ringo Ranger mounted on my house chimney, I was able to reach most repeaters within a 100+ mile radius with the FT1500M on high power (50 watts). I did notice then that the unit got hot. I would recommend to anyone the FT1500M as a reliable base or mobile 2 meter rig. I've had no problems with it. As another ham mentioned, once a frequency is entered in Memory, you can't delete it! You can only write over it or "hide" it. I don't like that feature, but it's only a small inconvenience.
Good luck # 73, KEN - KG4LLQ

[KG4RUL]

I had one for 1 1/2 years but sold it when I go my FT-100D. Big Mistake! I really miss the Alpha labels for memories and the ease of accessing weather broadcasts. I seldom needed full power for local repeaters. Looking for used ones on E-Bay, the prices I have seen are higher than the sale price I paid for a new one.

Dennis http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif