New Yaesu All Mode?

Since the FT-847 has been withdrawn for somewhile now has anyone heard of a replacement for it?

I seem to remember the FT-736 was replaced by the FT-847 but there has just been silence since the 847 was withdrawn.

In addition the FT-857 seems to be getting lower and lower in price which is usually a sign it is to be replaced, has anyone heard anything?

 

I think the only reason the FT-857 is dropping in price is due to high customer demand. For a small rig the Ft-857 is a dam fine rig. Yaesu got this one right. The menu system is very easy to use, it has a great receiver. Even with the mods it's far better then my FT-847 on HF. The remote control mike makes it a dream to use mobile. I really think the FT-857 is probably the best little rig for mobile use. Sure the Icom 7000 has more features but those features are really hard to use mobile so basically they are useless. And the IC-7000 cost almost twice as much! The Icom 706 is not even in the ball park, its decade + old technology and it's much larger and won't fit in many of the smaller cars.

I think Yeasu would be out of their mind if they discontinued the FT-857. Unless you are driving a big rig or a large truck the Ft-857 really has no competition in the mobile market.

Before you flame me remember I am talking strictly mobile use. The Icom IC-7000 and maybe even the 706 are probably better if you need a mini base rig. For portable opps its probably a tossup.

Personally I think Yeasu made a mistake discontinuing the Ft-847. I think when Kenwood released the TS-2000 it took sales away from the FT-847. This is normal there will always be the fanatical upgrade crowd chomping at the bit to upgrade to the latest and greatest.

Yaesu should have waited for the market to stabilize and the flaws in the TS-2000 to start showing up before they discontinued the Ft-847. Now years later the value of the FT-847 beginning to become apparent. FT-847's have been selling on Ebay for between $1000 and $1400 depending on installed filters. Truth be told for VHF UHF work even I prefer the Ft-847 over the TS-2000. I sold my original Ft-847 and bought a TS-2000, 3 months later I sold the TS-2000 and went back to the FT-847.

First off the TS-2000 is, well plain ugly! I could have lived with that if the VHF/UHF receiver was any good but compared to my FT-847 it was deaf. It's HF performance was slightly better then the FT-847 but not good enough to justify its poor VHF/UHF. The DSP was beter on the TS-2000 but what good is DSP if the rig is deaf. Remember the primary roll for the FT-847 and TS-2000 is VHF/UHF weak signal and satellite, with HF thrown in as a convenience. Nether where intended to be a high end contender in HF.

 

Indeed but is there any news on a replacement?

I have an FT--847 which I think is great on 2 & 70 all mode but would like to see them bringing out something new with perhaps 23cm.

Kenwood need to do something too! I sense there is money in HF rigs as the big 3 are still building them but Yaesu & Icom are the only companies producing all mode VHF/UHF radios albeit with HF included. So is allmode VHF/UHF a lost cause in terms of profitability?

 

A lot of guy's that spend the majority of their time on HF don't really care for the DC to daylight rigs. I really don't blame them, except for possibly the IC-7000 and the FT-857 most of them really don't perform all that well on HF. Most lack features that make working in crowded bands easier. Personally I wish someone built reasonably priced VHF/UHF all mode satellite capable rig. I would rather run a dedicated VHF/UHF all mode rig and a dedicated HF rig.

Many dedicated TS-2000 users feel the TS-2000 is a superior rig. Funny thing, I work a lot of VHF/UHF weak signal and most of my contacts are people running FT-847's I very rarely make contacts with hams running TS-2000's. In fact Most of the time when I run into people using TS-2000 they are on repeaters.