Had some fun yesterday testing the 500mw vx1r and using the low power option at 50mw to hit repeaters. Also tested the vx7r for a simplex qso. The radio is part of my edc ham radio bag and combined it with my hiking pole and a whip antenna. You can see how I wear the bag in the video on my belt with an s-biner clip. As you can see this is a small bag and it only houses a vx1r which i used for making this video. I combined it with my external antennas to attempt to get the most out of the unit. It was very hard and challenging to get a simplex contact with the vx1r. I only got one local contact but it was fun nonetheless hitting repeaters with 50mw with a 3 element yagi antenna. Feel free to skip around the video as its long and boringly nerdy. Haha.
Nice. I happen to be traveling this weekend and brought my VX7, a roll-up slim-jim antenna, and a 6m dipole. I did some playing around last night with 6m AM using a wire dipole. With 1 watt nobody heard me, but oh well. If I saw what I think I saw in beginning of your video, you're using your VX1 on 2m with the dipole in a horizontal position. You would probably do better to orient it vertically because 2m FM is typically transmitted via vertical antennas (HTs, auto antennas, repeater antennas). Operating with a horizontal antenna will result in you being down signal-wise quite a bit. Chris
Oh I love the vx 7r! later in the video I use the yagi in vetical fashsion. The preview picture is a bit misleading. That vx1r is my favorite micro small ht out of the vx line. I have the 3r and like it alot too. The vx1r is a bit more versatile in its powering options for me. I thought I was the only guy trying out the am part of 6m with my vx7r. I love that radio and have been putting that radio through hell on the trails! Such a good radio despite the common ceramic filter breaking down every so often. where were you last night? on a hill or at the home qth? how do you like the vx7r?
I bought my VX-7 as a new Tech when I got licensed 14 years ago. I went with it because it cover the most bands and had AM capability, so I thought I'd get to do more until I got around to upgrading (this was before the morse requirement was dropped). I am currently in Eastern NC, so it's flat as a pancake here. As for liking the VX-7, I do like it as a swiss-army-knife of a radio, its ruggedness, and size, but I've switched to an old Icom IC-V8 for my SOTA FM work because the Icom's strict 2m receiver is more sensitive and better able to filter out QRM than the VX-7's wideband receiver (at one Summit I've activated, the VX-7 is completely deaf while the IC-V8 is able to make contacts). They both have their uses though. Chris
Yes the reciever may not be as good as a decent mono bander. I have experimented with a vx 170 and a vx1r. the 170 seems to be a bit more sensitive in my subjective opinion. i still use both. i also bring a yaesu ft1dr for the aprs.
