Yaesu FT 991A vs Icom IC 7300 - Which Radio Should You Buy?

The Yaesu FT-991A or the Icom IC-7300, both great radios for the starting ham.

Like it says..........For the new starting ham person,I would choose the Yaesu FT-991a,it's all there and more than you need in a all in 1 unit. I own Yaesu's,Icom's and Kenwood's,thay are all great radios and yes ,I like ALL of them for what it does and what my needs are. I'm not a snob or one brand radio system guy...........been there and done that........

 

Yaesu Loses
because of Tech Support handsdown

 

Full disclosure, I am a Yaesu and Kenwood fan. I do not like the Icom menu system.
Shame for using advertising specs rather than field experience. My 991A has never used that much rcv current
Looking at it now @1.3A rcv. Have used both ing the field, I would not buy the 7300. I use Winlink VARA and it is convenient to easily go top VARA FM with a few clicks for HF and V/UHF comms. My experience with the ATUs is that the 7300 is a 3:1 tuner can do 5:1 with the 991A ATU except on 6M. Also the general coverage goes down to 30khz for listening to 173 and 473 khz and SWLing down low. Again the ergonomics are more to my liking and I have found Yaesu Service reasonably good over the years having used many as main rig since '82. I also have an Eagle and a KX-3 which are both in a different class than either the 7300 or 991A but I find myself using the Yaesu more. For a couple hundred more you ger VHF/UHF All Mode with reasonable power. I do not use the C4FM but it's there. When asked I usually recommend what I have and have had no one mad at me for it yet. YMMV

By the way, I am NOT an early adopter and always wait a year or 2 to let others find problems and just research and if possible USE a rig before I but one. Field Days are great opportunities for this.

Dave K3FHP

 

The FT-991A offers features the IC-7300 does not, including VHF and UHF all mode coverage, and Yaesu C4FM/Fusion. If someone desires those capabilities, then the FT-991A is the logical choice.

However, for mainly HF operation, the IC-7300 seems superior. It's what I would expect from a HF/6 meter only transceiver when compared to a multiband transceiver.

 

I wonder why they didn't cover the receiver types. One of them is a triple-conversion super-het, the other is a pure ADC SDR. One receiver is listed by Sherwood as being better than the other, and one of them suffers from RX overload issues.

 

Brilliant !!! Comparing an all band all mode rig to a HF only rig is about as great as comparing a Chevy Cruze to a Porsche Panemara.
MIight want to choose a different Yaesu or Kenwood to compare to the 7300.
These are two totally separate radios aimed at two separate markets.It makes no sense to compare them.
Now if you were to compare the Icom 703MKII to the Yaesu FT991A then we would have a qualified comparison.

 

I shall have to watch the video, but I had this choice last December and between the 7300 and the 991A I went with the FT DX 3000...a few more pennies but a hellova lot more radio IMHO. I didn't want and entry level radio and the FTDX3000 and teh DX 10 were being sold at the same time. I went with the 3000 because of three antenna inputs; its had a few years to shake out the bugs versus the brand new DX 10 and it just looked sexy...all black and sleek...

I am sure whatever choice one makes, whether it is based upon requirements, wants, needs or budget, that they will be happy with their choice...

73

 

The same video done more of few times.... I can see why in this hobby there is nothing to explore.

 

Why not the FTdx10 and the 7300? True, it costs more, but for the extra money you get a larger touch screen display, a better receiver (according to Sherwoid), video output to an external monitor, a three year warranty, and a revamped menu system.

 

Both are good ham radios.
I would like the Yaesu FT-991A where you can enjoy Wires-X.

73 JF1IRQ

 

About 20 dB difference in the RMDR for close signals... They can't be compared seriously - eventually for specific uses.

 

I have 2 991As...

 

Fellow Secret Squirrel!! What flavor? I was a "M" many years ago (78-84).

 

So I guess I am what most would call an Icom “fan-boy” my current stable contains the W32A, R30, R100, R8600, IC736, IC7100 and IC9100. The only Yaesu gear I own are the FT1DR and the FRG9600. Having said all of that I would take the 991A over the 7300 hands down. The 7300 just doesn’t appeal to me I used one and have nothing against it but didn’t love it. I had a 9700 for about a year and sold it. I like the 9100 better. I don’t care what the specs say, if I don’t enjoy using it I don’t want it.