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| Reviews Summary for Icom IC-V8000 |
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Reviews: 176
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Average rating: 4.4/5
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MSRP: $249.00
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Description: 2 meter mobile radio
75 Watts output power
RX: 136 - 174 MHz
Wide/narrow operation
Front firing speaker
Cooling fan
Dual color display
Auto repeater offset
CTCSS Encode
CTCSS Decode
CTCSS Tone scan
DCS Encode
DCS Decode
DCS Code scan
DTMF Encode
DTMF Decode (optional)
DTMF Code squelch
Dynamic Memory Scan
Weather channels
Weather alert
Weather scan
207 Memory channels (3 scan edges)
Call channel
6 Character alphanumeric display
PC programmable
Radio - radio cloning
Programmable keys
RF Attenuator
Channelized operation
Alpha only operation
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More info: http://www.icomamerica.com/amateur/2mmobile/index.html#v8000
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K6MTT
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Rating: 2/5
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Jan 1, 2010 13:07
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after 5 years - a mixed bag
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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My original rating of this radio after a couple of years of ownership was a 5. I had not experienced any of the many issues stated here. Now I have to re-rate it with a downward number. The programming ceased to work (as well as the external speaker). I opened it up and found a completely lifted solder pad under the jack. It's a 4-point soldered connection and the only way the pad would lift like it did is poor assembly technique - the jack was not flush with the circuit board when it was originally soldered. Unfortunately, the pad is ripped and not making contact with something, and resoldering did not fix it. The internal speaker still works, but no programming or external speaker.
I too have experienced very hot operation - even with the fan on, at medium power, things run very warm. At the full 75W, it gets hot. I can imagine why people experience failures of the final. It's hard to tell why - it appears to be very well heat-sinked, but the heat conduction grease was pretty sparse when I opened the radio for the above repair. I never run at full power unless I absolutely need.
Once again, it's an Icom mixed bag - the case is constructed excellently, but the design of the speaker jack (which is not attached to the case but only to the main board) is not very rugged.
As much as I initially loved this radio - and still do for operation and the display, I would not buy another one because of it's various weak points. (Perhaps they have fixed them in model revisions though, mine is a 2004 model.)
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KI4BDS
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 31, 2009 10:13
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Great radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have given 2 other reviews on the V8000 since 2003 when I bought it. I hate the Mic problems, just as regular as clockwork the switch will quit. That is not military quality ICOM. I am however, going to buy another one for a Prius because the front firing speaker is ideal and the size doesnt matter when you must have an external speaker and wires run all over for a faceplate (I have a 706) The old V8 is in a 4wd farm truck and has been abused by me in the dusty, dirty, hot, humid conditons of N VA.We haul hay and feed and horses all over the country and it doesnt blink. My other choice will be a new 706 but for 2m V8 is my #1 choice.
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KC9HVA
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Rating: 2/5
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Dec 1, 2009 14:42
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icoms 2 out of 5
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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i have used this radio for about a 12 months number 1 it has a transmit deviation problem very slight distortion in transmit. ya got to put it on a deviation meter to see it. its been to icom 2 times for the same problem . i wont get into that . for the money its not a bad radio . but over priced.i sold on ebay and paid off my balance on my credit card.
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KD0JJP
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 1, 2009 13:58
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Very nice durable radio
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I got this radio used from a auto wrecking yard, very impressed, I work in Public Saftey and this radio seems every bit at sturdy as our Motorola mobile units! I have never used more then mid power setting even 60 miles from repeaters with a 2.15 dbi antenna!
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SNJCT2000
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Rating: 2/5
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Oct 17, 2009 18:24
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Not so good
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I bought this radio to go with my IC V8. While I love my IC V8 portable, this radio falls far short. My biggest issue is the intermod. It becomes easily overloaded by weak signals. I live in the boonies and this thing will lock on static from just about anything close by. And the sensitivity is not all that great either.
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KG5PT
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Rating: 4/5
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Oct 14, 2009 23:18
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Decent Radio for the Money
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Pros:
- Solid mechanical construction
- Very fast memory channel scanning speed
- Backlight color can be changed from amber to green
- Front-firing speaker, good audio power
Cons:
- Lacks a true intermediate power level setting (i.e., 45 watts)
- 60 watt maximum output power falls far short of advertised 75 watt spec
- Alpha numeric tags limited to 6 characters
- Volume & Squelch controls are reversed from their traditional positions on the front panel
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N3OQD
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Rating: 3/5
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Aug 13, 2009 15:54
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overview
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Not a bad radio I suppose. Had the usual PPT clicker switch problem. Was able to solve myself. Power output is about 60w max. This is the only radio I have that puts out less power than it is rated for. Not sure why Icom uses a 70w transistor for 75w application though. The NOAA weather alert does work but chops receive periodically every so many seconds. This is a bit of an annoyance in that some current sets do not do this. Yet despite these, it has done well.
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N6OSB
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Rating: 0/5
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Jul 26, 2009 00:44
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Great radio, awefull microphone
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I fell in love with the radio the first time I used it. I currently own 3 of them. I've been very gentle with the radios and they are all in great shape. But I've had multiple microphone issues. I've had 2 microphones go bad on me. One is out of warranty so I'm out of luck. The second one is still in warranty. Looking on the Internet I'm not the only person with Icome microphone problems. When I bought these radios I thought of going with a Yaesu or Kenwood but only the Icom provided 75 watts. Now that Yaesu has a fan-less 75 watt radio that would make an excellent replacement radio. If I had to do it all over again I would go with a more reliable brand. Icom is crap!!! I've owned 4 Icom radios and have had problems with just about all of them.
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W3TUA
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Rating: 3/5
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May 26, 2009 13:14
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Bad Finals
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I currently own two of these rigs. Both of them have burnt-out finals. One of the rig's final transistor became so hot it unsoldered from the PCB.
There have been several reports of failures with this rig. I gave it a '3' because of the excellent audio from the front-firing speaker and it's ease of programming. I would suggest never running these radios at full output EVER!
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KI6OSH
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Rating: 5/5
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May 26, 2009 11:34
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Excellent!
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I've had this radio for almost one year and it works perfectly. Fairly easy for a newby like me to program. Nice to have the fan for cooling in our hot Sacramento Valley summers. 75 watts make all the repeaters that I would use attainable. All in all, highly recommended.
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