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10 Ways the ICOM 7300 Has Impacted Ham Radio — 5 Years Out

Discussion in 'Amateur Radio News' started by K8QS, Sep 29, 2020.

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  1. K3IK

    K3IK XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    I'm not against using scopes. panadapters were all the vogue at one time. also operate lots of ft-8 as well as cw and ssb, etc. just commenting on the MAGIC of ham radio which is sometimes lost on the newer hams with the technology that is available.
     
    M1WML, KR3DX, W4LJ and 1 other person like this.
  2. W9WQA

    W9WQA Ham Member QRZ Page

    nice???
    more like ,FANTASTIC, for reasons mentioned. just a glance at band activity, no longer blindly tuning around...
     
    M1WML likes this.
  3. W9WQA

    W9WQA Ham Member QRZ Page

    and, once more, tell it to yaesu to fix the 991a!!. get the 7300 display and ill buy one
     
    M1WML and YV5FAB like this.
  4. K5EMG

    K5EMG Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    I agree with you, some magic have being lost, but another kind of magic comes with new technologies.
     
    N0YPD, M1WML, YV5FAB and 1 other person like this.
  5. AJ6KZ

    AJ6KZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    My first HF radio was a QCX 40m kit. It was great fun to build but I wasn't ready for the "tinkering" aspect of radio just yet, so I bought a 7300. I thought it was the coolest thing. However, my main interest (only interest, actually) was CW, and the relay switching of the 7300 eventually drove me nuts, even with headphones and putting putty over the relay.

    I sold the 7300 and acquired a used K3, which I love. I missed the waterfall display for about a day.
     
    M1WML, VK6APZ/SK2022, ND6M and 5 others like this.
  6. K9GLS

    K9GLS Guest

    "Not all those who wander are lost." - J.R.R. Tolkien
     
    M1WML, N1OOQ, PY2NEA and 2 others like this.
  7. KO2Q

    KO2Q Lifetime Member 562 Platinum Subscriber Life Member QRZ Page

    "I can see how much activity is on the bands in just one look..."

    I can do the same thing by turning the big knob on the front of my K3s.

    Can that fancy "waterfall" detect a CW signal buried in the noise, like my ears can?

    I don't care for those "waterfall" displays and have no use for one.
     
    Last edited: Sep 30, 2020
    M1WML, VK6APZ/SK2022, ND6M and 2 others like this.
  8. WC5P

    WC5P Platinum Subscriber Platinum Subscriber QRZ Page

    I have had a 7300 for a year or so. The display was cool at first, but, as time went on, I found that I hardly ever used it. I much prefer to be able to view all the rig paramaters at once, s-meter, power setting, alc, swr, compression, etc. When I have a reason to view the scope, all I have to do is poke a touch screen button.
     
    M1WML, KN3A, K9GLS and 1 other person like this.
  9. KC2IEB

    KC2IEB XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    As a new HF operator (of a couple weeks), and a proud owner of a 7300, I also tend to prefer the s-meter, swr, etc display, and bounce over to the scope when I feel like I need a broader view.
     
    M1WML and K9GLS like this.
  10. K8MH

    K8MH Ham Member QRZ Page

    Q - I love the waterfall display on the 7300 - it indicates to me, an empty area to operate (POTA activations), sure beats spinning the dial. You know what they say, a picture is worth a 1000 words. 73's K8MH
     
    KQ2N, KC2IEB, M1WML and 3 others like this.
  11. WB2WIK

    WB2WIK Platinum Subscriber Platinum Subscriber QRZ Page

    It's fascinating that there are rigs that actually do display all that, and the spectrum scope/waterfall at the same time...

    I have several HF rigs, including a now 6 month-old or so Xiegu G90, a cheap Chinese 20W HF transceiver. It displays all of that simultaneously on a very bright display that pretty much lights up a room. Not a touch-screen (it's too small for that, and I don't prefer touch-screens anyway) but it sure provides all that info at a glance. $449 rig.

    My old Ten Tec rigs like the ORION-II also display all such information at a glance on a much larger screen. Its spectrum display is not real-time and continuous, you have to push a button to show it and it's just one sweep at a time, but it's also pretty old technology. Sitting the old ORION next to an IC-7300 and doing side-by-side comparisons using a coax switch is very enlightening.:p Not the same price class, though, so that's a bit unfair.
     
    M1WML, PY2NEA and K0UO like this.
  12. K0UO

    K0UO Platinum Subscriber Platinum Subscriber QRZ Page

    I'm 50+ years too
    Try it, and You will Like it (SCOPE) Just ask the ten of 1000s that now have them. I did not have a PC, a good antenna, or an SWR meter 50 years ago ether!!
     
    M1WML, W9FL and KK1N like this.
  13. NX1V

    NX1V Ham Member QRZ Page

    The 7300 is a neat little radio. I went with an ftdx3000 because I want buttons and knobs and stuff and I loath the touch screen.
    It looks good though and performs well. It does not have the receiver of the 3000 for sure. Also, the display on the 7300 is pretty good, but for band scopes,
    the IF output on the 3000 can't be beated. (Although the bandscope on the radio itself sucks.)

    Ultimately, it's a great radio for people who want one thing that does everything.
     
    KA2K, M1WML and PA0MHS like this.
  14. WA2LXB

    WA2LXB XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    I am a 7300 fan boy...price, portability, performance, flexibility, and abuse/mistake tolerant. I use the scope to test my GDO and AA-600 for accuracy. The audio spectrum scope has been very useful for me as I freeze and record audio modulation wave forms for friends testing their gear. The RF spectrum display also has persistence...which allows me to catch a signal that has stopped transmitting but I still see its ghost in the persistence so I know where to watch. I also operate Drakes, Heathkit, Johnson Viking and Hammarlund. All of these radios are extraordinary.
     
    M1WML and W9FL like this.
  15. WA3TVH

    WA3TVH Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    I owned my 7300 for about 18 months it was my first new radio since the Icom 735 purchased in 1985. Great radio with lots of value added features. Use them or not use them they are there for you. I have no need for the data features at the moment but it is great they exist. As for the waterfall it is handy, great for six meters if you are looking for openings. Back when I was a youngish ham I would use a 9" B&W TV tuned to channel 3 to watch for openings, kind of the same idea. BTW I also still have that old 735 along with my Kenwood TS-530S and my Novice station Johnson Viking Ranger and Halli SX-71 all good radios each having their strengths and weaknesses.
     
    M1WML and PY2NEA like this.

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