What is a good HF rig to get (re)started with?

[K9MHZ]

[But the 718 receiver would not sound as good 520 or 820 and then there is the proven old 530 and the classic 830 which is in this price range and still a impressive performer even today.

I owned a lot of that stuff back in the day, myself.  Good stuff, but getting pretty old and their receivers are far from comparable to modern gear.  "Sound" is a very subjective qualitative assessment, and hardly enough to trump all other parameters.

[W8JX]

[But the 718 receiver would not sound as good 520 or 820 and then there is the proven old 530 and the classic 830 which is in this price range and still a impressive performer even today.

I owned a lot of that stuff back in the day, myself.  Good stuff, but getting pretty old and their receivers are far from comparable to modern gear.  "Sound" is a very subjective qualitative assessment, and hardly enough to trump all other parameters.

Well far from comparable if you mean the old analog receivers sound much better than the modern entry level DSP rigs of today which lack the fidelity of old rigs.

[KC0KEK]

The Kenwood TS-570SG is worth considering.

[K9MHZ]

Well far from comparable if you mean the old analog receivers sound much better than the modern entry level DSP rigs of today which lack the fidelity of old rigs.

No.....they're deaf, they drift, have dial backlash, etc.  And all for what....a "cool" hifi sound?

The OP apparently has his mind already set on a 440S or whatever, so I don't know why he even posted.  But telling a newb that he should look at a 520 or a Heathkit (talk about suck) just because we thought they were cool back in the day is silly.  Our nostalgia shouldn't be taken as gospel truths by a new person.  

      

[AA4PB]

You'd be surprised how good a modern receiver can sound if you put a decent external speaker on it. Remember, we aren't typically listening the AM signals on the ham bands any longer.

[KC0KEK]

You'd be surprised how good a modern receiver can sound if you put a decent external speaker on it.

I sure tried with the 570 but never could get it to sound anywhere near as good as my Icom R70 or Drake R8, so I bought an Icom 7700. Other folks might have no qualms about the 570's audio. Great rig otherwise.

[W8JX]

You'd be surprised how good a modern receiver can sound if you put a decent external speaker on it.

I sure tried with the 570 but never could get it to sound anywhere near as good as my Icom R70 or Drake R8, so I bought an Icom 7700. Other folks might have no qualms about the 570's audio. Great rig otherwise.

The 570 sounds MUCH better with a external speaker. The internal one is lacking.