|
New to Ham Radio?
My Profile
Community
Articles
Forums
News
Reviews
Friends Remembered
Speak Out
Strays
Survey Question
Operating
Contesting
DX Cluster Spots
Propagation
Resources
Calendar
Classifieds
Ham Exams
Ham Links
List Archives
News Articles
Product Reviews
QSL Managers
Site Info
eHam Help (FAQ)
Support the site
The eHam Team
Advertising Info
Vision Statement
About eHam.net
|
| Reviews Summary for Yaesu FT-897 |
|
Reviews: 261
|
Average rating: 4.6/5
|
MSRP: $1049.95
|
Description: It is the world's first multi-mode high-power base/mobile transceiver designed to fitted with internal batteries (optional) for portable use. The coverage is HF 160 to 10 meters plus 50/144/430 MHz VHF/UHF. Receive is 0.1-56, 76-108, 118-164 and 420-470 MHz. 7.9x3.2x10.3 inches (200x80x263 mm).
|
|
More info: http://www.yaesu.com/amateur/ft897.html
|
|
Email Subscription
You are not subscribed to this review.
Subscribe!
My Subscriptions
Subscriptions Help
|
You can
write your own review of the Yaesu FT-897.
|
DK5EW
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Jul 3, 2009 07:03
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Fantastic RIG
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
After 20 years of having ICOM transceivers I wanted to give that little RIG a chance. I mostly operate on 2m in Meteorscatter and EME mode. After setting up the 897D and making familar with the menue I made first attempts in MS/EME/TROPO. I was really surpriced how sensitive that little wounder is. The factory installed TCXO gives the 897 a very stable freq. what is needed in JT65 EME mode. Also my HeilSetPro is running great with perfect modulation.
Looking on the price and what the 897D offers I will sell my 7400 because that RIG is not better.
|
|
WB4RHQ
|
Rating: 5/5
|
May 11, 2009 05:36
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Outstanding Performer
|
Time owned: 6 to 12 months
|
|
I have had my 897 for about a year and use it with a 170' long wire. Performance has been outstanding. Recently I obtained an IC-7000 to run mobile, but have had then both on the desk to compare. Most friends who run the 7000 have raved about the audio and the reception, but side by side, the 897 is a clear winner to me. The 7000 will still go in the truck, but the 897 is hard to beat for a sub $1000 radio.
|
|
N8EB
|
Rating: 5/5
|
May 11, 2009 04:54
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Second look after a year
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
I have had my 897D for about a year now, and thought an update was in order. If you read my first review, I mention that I had a noise source near my QTH that I could not track down. I have moved, so that is one problem cleared up.
I now live in a mobile home park that has antenna restrictions, so for 2 months I have been using a borrowed ATAS antenna with mag mount on the car to work HF - until last week. Some hams came out and put up an almost invisible inverted "L" wire antenna, so I have a choice.
On to the 897D! It has performed rather well even on the ATAS on the car. Now that I also have a wire antenna, it is amazing me even more on how well this rig can tune out noise - at least compared to my old Icom.
I have also started doing a little digital work lately, and I can not find any negative points about this radio - at least in it's price point. As I say in my original review, if you have a bazillion dollars to spend, there are better radios out there, but for a sub $1,000 rig that covers HF/UHF/VHF, this radio is hard to beat.
I am toying with the idea of buying a filter for digital work, but it certainly is not needed!
Unless I win the lotto, I plan on keeping this rig around for a while - great portable rig, decent base rig, and handles every mode/band with ease. Definately a keeper!
|
|
KF7BZZ
|
Rating: 4/5
|
May 7, 2009 21:42
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Solid Rig
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
|
I bought the FT-897D for VHF/6M/Echolink to complement my 950D. I run it via HRD as I find the controls a tad too narrow for constant tweaking. Aside from that minor inconvenience I find the rig a delight to work and the menu system easy after a few run throughs. I'm looking forward to field work in the Wind Rivers this summer. 73
|
|
G4WBW
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Apr 28, 2009 23:25
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Happy ending
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
Waters and Stanton contacted me yesterday to say that as my 897 could not be repaired after so long they were sending my a replacement.
|
|
G0RIF
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Mar 30, 2009 03:17
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
First impressions...are good!
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
My FT-897 (purchased second hand) arrived about a week ago but was only used on receive for the first few days while I got the hang of the menu system and sorted out a new power supply. Out of the box I have to say that the pictures don't do this radio justice. Granted it's what's on the inside that really matters but it doesn't hurt if a radio looks good on the desk. To that end the FT-897 is a good looking radio!
In use I have found the menu system simple enough but if you're used to a more sophisticated user interface you may find some of the key presses required to effect a change in the radio's setup to be a little bit long winded. My other radio is a Kenwood TS-480SAT and that radio has a very nice user interface - by comparison I am finding the Yaesu FT-897 to be a bit cumbersome.
Receive performance on HF is good and the radio does benefit from audio DSP noise reduction. This does significantly quieten what is otherwise a pretty noisy receiver. There is also DSP [audio] bandwidth filtering which is effective in reducing adjacent channel interference. This was put to particular use in the CQWW WPX SSB contest this past weekend where the receiver seemed to cope quite well with crowded band conditions, although it should be noted I do have the W4RT 2.3KHz Collins SSB filter installed which no doubt helps.
By way of comparison I would say that the FT-897 is not as good as the TS-480 on HF receive but that should come as no real surprise as the TS-480 is HF+6m only and is designed for optimal HF performance whereas the FT-897 covers HF+6m plus 2m and 70cm. The difference is hard to quantify and I couldn't hear anything on the Kenwood that I couldn't on the Yaesu - it's just that the Kenwood seems more "in control" and has better recovered audio that the FT-897. This is just my wholly subjective view - your opinions might differ.
I can't say much yet about the transmit performance - I need a few on air reports to compare a few settings before passing judgement. I hope to be able to conduct those tests in the next few weeks - I'll report my findings then.
Overall, given it's design intent, the FT-897 is in my opinion a very good radio. It seems to have ticked all the right boxes and arrived at good compromises in terms of size, frequency coverage, operator convenience and performance.
I am looking forward to taking the radio out into the field for some portable operations and antenna experimentation but for now I'm enjoying using the radio in the shack where it is used for HF SSB, 2m and 70cm work while the TS-480 handles all other HF modes.
In summary then, given what it sets out to achieve, I have to rate the Yaesu FT-897 a very good radio (but not great) and one I look forward to owning and using for many years.
|
|
KC9KUH
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Mar 12, 2009 10:27
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
A+
|
Time owned: 6 to 12 months
|
SO FAR SO GOOD LOVE THIS RADIO HF/VHF/UHF ALL IN ONE RADIO WORK OTHERS ON VHF FM AND SSB AND IN THE VHF CONTEST WISH IT WAS 100 WATTS ON VHF BUT 50 WORKS FINE FOR WHAT I DO .
JUST PUT A HEIL HM-10 ON IT NOW I LIKE TALKING ON HF MORE AND NOW IM WORKING ON GETING MY DXCC IM UP TOO 56 SO IM WORKING ONE AT A TIME . THIS IS THE BEST DEAL OUT THER GOING SO FAR IT NOT A ICOM 7700 OR ONE OF THE BIG HI END RADIO BUT IT'S A NICE RADIO TO GET THE NEW OR OLD HAM GOING.
JUST GOT TO PLAY WITH PSK AND RTTY THE 897D WORKS GOOD WITH THEM TOO
73'S KC9KUH
73'S KC9KUH
|
|
AI4WC
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Mar 5, 2009 06:28
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
It's a keeper!
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
I bought my 897 while still a Technician-it was an incentive to upgrade. I'm apartment-bound and use it with portable Hamstick dipoles and it performs well, all things considered. The menu's are sometimes frustrating, but the radio performs as one would expect. Coupled with my LDG AT-200 PRO autotuner, it is a joy to operate. The W4RT internal battery pack and the One Fast Charger are the perfect accessory for portable work. I have a Kenwood TS-130S also but the 897 is my choice for portable operations, along with my 80 watt BP solar panel for battery charging.
|
|
G7WAP
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Mar 4, 2009 18:51
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
inexpensive but great
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
ok the prices have gone up recently for whatever reason but when i bought my 897 i was impressed on how well it performs. I've had mine for a good couple of years and i'm still learning about it. It gives a very good performance on hf,vhf, and uhf overall. It caused a little tvi on a bad filtered freeview box that my other radio didn't cause but i soon solved that. I addition this radio is fantastic on data. So if you like Rtty, psk then this is the box for you. If you don't like data but have a budget limited to around £500 then you can pick up one of these beauties or it's little sibling the 857. My only minor complaint is the menu driven front end but once you get used to it, it grows on you.
|
|
KB9MVW
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Feb 13, 2009 00:30
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
quality
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
|
The biggest mistake I have made was trading my original 897d I had a few years back. FOR THE PRICE it is my opinion that there is not an equal to this radio in any respect.Just the right size for a base or a serious field rig. Works hf very well, you might prefer to install the collins filter for sideband work but its truly not needed for cw. In cw there is a dsp feature that really narrows the pass band more than any sane person should need. And on phone it is fine, During crowded conditions the if shift takes care of most problems, the collins filter would be needed more for the ham involved in contests. The internal batteries work pretty darn good on sideband, Expect a faster drain on fm. This is one of the best general purpose radios I have ever used. I Just bought another one with the same outstanding results. There is no other portable radio on the market currently that can do what this rig can..!!!OHH one hint don,t crank up the audio more than factory spec in the menu, the audio is hot enough and turning it up will just make you sound distorted..
|
|
If you have any questions, problems, or suggestions about Reviews,
please email your Reviews Manager.
|
|
|
|
|
