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write your own review of the Ten-Tec Orion II.
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KO0Q
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 18, 2011 06:44
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Excellent Product
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've owned the Orion II for about 2 years and cannot be happier with the rig. Very easy to use with hefty knobs to turn. Menu and operation works flawlessly.
My only peeve is I wish it had an ALC connection on the back for my amp. No big deal, but just a wish.
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KA4ICK
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 13, 2011 20:44
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Ten Tec’s Flagship Radio Continues to Fly High!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I always dreamed of owning a top gun radio and those dreams became color with the introduction of Ten Tec’s Orion II…
I first laid my eyes on the Orion II at Ten Tec’s hamfest several years ago. Having the Original Orion, will this second generation bring anything to the table besides a color screen? Would it be as impressive in my shack?? The short of the answer is Yes!!!!; and exceeds expectations!
To set the stage, I am experienced with all of the most recent Ten Tec HF rigs and with some of the more modern "other brand" radios. My favorite modes of operations are SSB/ESSB ragchewing, DXing, CW, AM, and digital modes. I even enjoy the major contests only to listen for and pounce on those rare contacts I need. And recently, I have enjoyed chasing DX on 160 meter CW.
Precision is the rig's middle name; no guessing at any of the controls such as mike gain, PBT, etc. So no guessing games here going between settings for different operating styles or modes; i.e. Each control is represented by a number; want to do 20wpm in cw, set the control to 20.
The rig's foot print looks exactly like the original Orion, but once you power it up, those thoughts of the original Orion is gone as the color screen lights up! The receiver is what sets this new model apart from the rest as you can snuggle right up next to a strong signal during a contest, for example, and use the appropriate filter to block them right out.
You will find the radio is very easily configured. You use a simple, well laid out menu to set up things that do not change very often. This menu uses plain English that is easily understood and not some code system. The radio itself has a solid "feel". The Orion II is also highly customizable. For example, the AGC can be fully adjusted for Hang, Decay, and Threshold. There are so many other customizable options that will enable you to adjust the radio for your operating style or propagation needs. But you can just as easy take the defaults for great performance out of the box.
I have heard several Orion II's on the air and can honestly say that the transmitted audio is what caught my attention, since I love listening to great audio. The Transmit BW and low freq roll-off along with a TX EQ adjustments allows for customary tailoring of your desired transmitted audio. And of course the Monitor feature allows you to hear your adjustments through a set of headphones. The mic input is the same as a Yaesu 8 pin connection. The receiver is flat down to 50 hz without the need for any external equalization. This is a perfect choice for a “still in production” radio with out of the box ESSB capabilities.
Working CW is so smooth. I watched the Ten Tec video on the Orion II before buying and actually went back and forth on the QSK demo portion. Was the QSK really this smooth and click free? Yes! The transition is very smooth and the weight adjustments add to your personal preference with the built in keyer.
The receiver is so quiet and can be adjusted so that the background is reduced so that a received signal "pops" out of the noise. This is especially true with noisy band conditions, for example, on 160 cw listening for that rare DX contact.
Also, during recent contests, I had the opportunity to see how "bullet proof" the receiver’s front-end really is. During these contests I had several opportunities to snuggle up to a strong station, and quickly via a front panel control, reduce the bandwidth, and also the Pass Band (if needed) and hear a very weak station just a KC away; and work them very easily! This little non-scientific front-end test quickly reduced my anxiety concerns of the rig's ability to hear as well as the higher priced rigs on the market.
Having a second receiver sure makes it nice working split in the pileups. A set of headphones will allow you to utilize various split modes, taking advantage of the second receiver. You can select within the menu to listen to one receiver in one ear and the other receiver in the other, for example. You can also take advantage of diversity reception with the second receiver to hear the best reception from either receiver if you had two antennas connected to the radio.
The firmware releases have been subtle, but quick and well communicated along with frequent user interaction with the software developer himself. This customer service is a reflection of the great customer satisfaction and support Ten Tec is famous for. I am not aware of any other off-shore radio manufacturer exhibiting this kind of support.
I also utilize the accessory jack on the back to interface my computer with the Orion II for recording and also for data mode communications. The input/output levels are very adequate to drive the computer applications (computer audio recorder, PSK-31 program, etc.). The levels can be controlled via the menu if needed.
In conclusion, I continue to be very impressed with the Ten Tec Orion II. Due to the flexibility, operability, and solidness of the radio, I feel it is one of the best values on the ham radio HF market today. You have the ability to operate from the default settings straight out of the shipping box, or have a full functional software controlled rig with the aid of your computer and software to take full control of the Orion II. The Ten Tec Orion tradition continues with their flagship offering!
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W3WW
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 31, 2011 16:35
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YES - Awsome Radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Every one is entitled to an opinion..so here's mine.
After 5 years with several of the finest (7700, K3, 7600 .. etc) radios, I am firmly convinced the Orion II is the overall ( price, features, performance and reliability ) most outstanding radio on the market today. After having the opportunity to compare radios side by side, I find myself gravitating back to the Orion II because of the superb audio, menu flexability and ultra quiet receiver. If the Orion II receiver is properly adjusted via the menu settings, nothing can come close for any type of operating preferences. I have been able to enjoy a CW ragchew with this radio that I could not have with competitors radios. I am a 99% CW operator but I find myself listening to SSB due to the exceptional audio quality of the Orion. Not so with the others.
As far as I'm concerned this is without a doubt, the most exceptional radio on the market today. Try it.....You will be astonished !!!!
Good Luck & 73, Don
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AB1KC
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 30, 2011 09:09
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Awesome radio!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Ten Tec Orion II
Having owned my Orion II for almost two years I now feel as though I am familiar enough with its use to write this review. As with any complex device it takes a bit of time to develop an accurate assessment of the rig but here, a few things stood out immediately. Coming from a K3 to this radio the first thing I noticed was that the audio was much nicer to listen to. There are those who would complain about any dsp processing, but I am a child of mediocre analog radios who switched to dsp with my first Icom 746 Pro. I understand that this may not have the smooth sound of a Sherwood Engineering modified R-4c Drake but it is certainly much nicer to listen to than any radio I have owned before. I think it is head and shoulders above the K3 in audio quality. I spend a fair bit of time listening and this is important to me. I even participated in a “blind” listening test between a K3 and an Orion with a ham who thought that I couldn’t tell the difference and I could pick out the Orion every time. It is just that nice.
This brings me to the second favorite part of owning this radio, Ten Tec itself. I can not imagine the difficulty they must suffer through in trying to deal with the “amateur public” (I am including myself here!) but they have shown me nothing but an unwavering desire to support their products. I am amazed at the ease I have in contacting people to help with my “issues” and concerns. I am forever a Ten Tec customer as a result of the way they have helped me on numerous occasions. That is not to say that I always like what I am told, “No you can not have…... modification made to this rig, it simply will not work” or that an issue is in my own implementation of the rig into my shack. They always take my calls though and they are always helpful.
Beyond these attributes there are things about the rig that I just love: simple to use menus with names that make sense, button layout that is easy to learn and use, features that are fun to play with like diversity reception (yes I realize that the two receivers are not phase locked and are different in abilities but it is fun nonetheless!), an infinite number of ways to combine two receivers and three antennas etc. I just really love this rig!
In summary
The good:
Company support
Audio quality both rx and tx
Ease of use
Menu structure/ control software
Technological prowess of Ten Tec
Physical size (big is good!)
Made in USA
In every review there needs to be some constructive criticism so here goes:
The tuning knobs are not my favorite things. I’d like to find a way to give this radio the knobs it deserves, something more like what Icom uses on their 7700 and 7800 would be really nice. How about an accessory knob at a ridiculous cost? FWIW I find that the knobs are not really out of round as many people complain but rather the skirts are sometimes less than perfectly centered on the knobs. You can remove the knob and play with the mounting screws and get them pretty nice if you like. I’d just prefer a really nice heavy and smooth knob.
Band scope, I suspect that this is being addressed now (hints on the Ten Tec Yahoo group). If not it is not the biggest deal as I now use an SDR radio and N4PY software to get a really nice panadapter display of the band. Point and click tuning is awesome, you have got to try it!
I would personally enjoy having more direct information from Ten Tec regarding development of software and accessories for the radio. Maybe that is la-la land but it would be nice not to feel so “in the dark”.
Ability to save radio settings in non-volatile memory. I hate doing an update and then trying to remember just how I had the radio set up. Here again the N4PY Orion software has this feature so this isn’t such a big deal.
No single radio can be perfect for every user and I suspect that all radios have their issues. I find this radio to be a delight to use and I would recommend it highly.
Bruce
AB1KC
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WB4RHQ
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 30, 2011 04:57
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Excellent Radio
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I find this to be an excellent rig. This is my first Ten Tec radio in many years, and it is a pleasure to use. After using a friend's IC-7600 at Field Day I was ready to go that route, but the Orion II is hands down better than the 7600.
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K8AC
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 24, 2011 12:41
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A very pleasant surprise
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is my first Ten-Tec transceiver and I must say it's a pleasant surprise. I picked it up second-hand, after owning a K3 and an FTDX-5000D. Never did like the K3 (yes, it performed well) as the ergonomics were severely lacking. The FTDX-5000D was terrible on CW, with the typical from-the-factory keying problems. I expected to be disappointed with the Orion II as well, but I'd be hard pressed to cite any major problems. To bring it up to speed, I obtained the headphone RFI filter board from Tec-Tec as well as 2 replacement electrolytics for one of the boards (they were known to fail) and installed those easily. I also installed one of Clifton Laboratories Z-10000U buffer amps with a tap on the 9 MHz IF, providing the IF output to the "Spare" jack on the Orion's rear panel as a connection point for an LP-Pan. With that and LP-Pan, N4PY software and PowerSDR IF, you have a first-class panadapter with point-and-click capability to tune the Orion to a frequency.
While I had the Orion apart, I looked it over carefully and just didn't see the "poor build quality" that a couple of guys have reported. There are a couple of shortcomings - a couple of the knobs are out-of-round (why can't Ten-Tec provide round knobs in this price range?) and the rubber grips on both tuning knobs are of uneven thickness, making the knobs appear out-of-round. One reviewer reported that the tuning knobs are not adjustable for drag and that certainly isn't the case on my unit. On both VFO knobs, the knob turns in relation to the skirt and that's how you adjust the drag. Turning the drag to "off" might pose a problem as the knobs are slightly out of balance because of the rubber grips being uneven.
The bandscope is useful only for seeing if there is activity on the band due to it's inherent delay and poor resolution. But, it's far superior to the SM-5000 scope for the FTDX-5000, which lacks adequate brightness and contrast. The menu system is excellent compared to the K3 and FTDX-5000 as you can view all menu items related to a particular function (e.g. CW, Receive, Transmit, etc.) on one screen at the same time and you don't need the manual to figure out the meanings. One other negative is the overall depth - something like 18.75 inches, and that might be a problem for you as it's considerably deeper than just about every other rig. The cooling fan should really have been thermostatically controlled as it runs all the time. There are a total of 8 screen color combinations that may be selected via a menu item, but other than the very good default color scheme, they're all rather washed out. On the other hand, the default scheme is brilliant even with the backlight run on "Low".
Even ignoring the top-notch performance numbers that you can read about elsewhere, this is a first-class CW rig - maybe the best I've ever used. There are enough knobs and buttons to get the job done, but not so many that you forget what they're used for.
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KB6HRT
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 21, 2011 16:21
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Best Receive audio!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Took Ten-Tec up on there 30 return audition. The O2 is a very good looking radio, easy to use, have a HAM friend that came to my QTH that had one of the first O2's she said all the bugs that were in the first 100 units had been worked out an then some, an is a fine radio! the middle to close receive is the best I have ever heard in my life a 10+ for sure. I liked most everything about this rig. Checking the radio against a ICOM 756P3 and a Kenwood TS590s I could not hear anything on any of these radios that I could not hear on the others, All 3 radios received very well with clear copy on SSB. Looks wise 1. the O2 2. the I P3 3. the590s Ease of use's for me 1. 590s 2.I P3 3. O2 I have never used a O2 before so you have to take that in account. receive sound 1, O2 2. 590s 3.I P3 but all three radios have very good sound. I have used ICOM radios over the years and have a PW1 and SM20 mic and AH4 tune which have very seldom gave me trouble, so making a change to Ten-Tec for me would be a major endeavor. I believe any HAM that wants a Very Very Good American radio with the best SSB receive I have EVER heard, look no further! ................KB6HRT
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AD4C2006
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 21, 2011 12:13
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Second review after 4 months of use.
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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After been using my Orion II for almost 4 months and comparing it daily with my K3,these are my observations.
Well to start I want to tell you that I own my K3 for 2 years and 3 months and I am very enchanted with it,it’s a keeper without a doubt,I purchased this O2 last December as my xmas gift.
If we compare both radios as I have done already we can tell they are “almost” twin brothers except for the size.I am going to point out all the differences between them but also on what they are the same.
1-Audio quality.
Some users say they like the O2 because its audio quality,yes,you’re right,if you saw all my qrz information,you see that the audio freq response on this radio is pretty wide from 50 to 4000 Hz with a very sharp skirt at the top,that makes it a perfect audio for either ESSB or AM receive,but the K3 has a slight wider response from 40 to 4000 Hz which makes him as good as the O2,if you tune the same station on both the audio quality difference is marginal,very few people has heard the difference.One thing better the K3 has is that it uses an eight band RX Equalizer that allow you to tailor your receive audio when at the O2 there is only a RX EQ that allow you a to make slight changes in db minus or plus.To have the graph at the Orion that you see at QRZ I set mine RX EQ at -6db.
2-Selectivity.
Both the K3 and the O2 has the same selectivity.My K3 has the following roofers:6.0, 2.8, 1.8, 1.0, and 400Hz. My O2 has the following roofers: 20, 6.0, 2.4, 1.8, 1.0 and also 400 Hz.Only difference here is that all O2 come with an extra roofer of 20Khz for when you are going to RX broadcast AM or when you go to FM,in my case I never was interested on neither of those modes for the K3,so coming to SSB you will be able to pull clean a weak station using the roofer of 1.8 Khz when you had a strong one at just 2Khz apart from your working freq as well on both radios,for CW same deal,you can be at just 300 Hz from a station with a 599 + signal and be able to pull a weak one with a 559 or lower If you engage the roofer of 400Hz plus the DSP as well as you do at the K3 BUT here comes the first difference,the noise floor at the Orion is about 6 db lower than the K3,so that means you will pull the weak station
More clear than at the K3.So now you now that the O2 receiver is more quite (less noisy).
3- Sensitivity.
The K3 is very sensitive although on the higher bands as 10M it needs the preamp ON to pull weak stations when the O2 don’t need it,or at least mine works like that.On both radios the RF gain control has to be set backward to about half of it turn on the K3 and to “70” on the O2 for the higher bands (10,12,and 15M) and to “60” (from 160 to 17M) to lower band noise.
4-Friendly user or ease of use.
Without a doubt the O2 is the winner in this field,the K3 besides to have small knobs and keys that conflict with thick fingers like mine,has an extensive complicated menu to set although once you set it properly you won’t need to set again,BUT all the lineal controls has TRIPLE functions,and that makes the operation more difficult.I got used to it but at the beginning it took me a month to figure them out,with the O2 it took me just two days to figure how all the controls work not even having to read the manual,its easier than the K3.
5- “The eyes of the beholder” ( nice sentence,I like it)
Without a doubt the K3 is a an ugly radio,has no attractive at all but once you operate it and discover its enchant receiving and transmitting,you will close your eyes and will forget how ugly it is and will defend it always in spite of you know its ugly.When you see a O2 closely,man,you realize that is a beautiful radio specially that big impressive multicolor display that let you see all the functions of the radio.
6- NR
On both radios the NR works great BUT I have found easier to set the one at the O2.Althought it has only 9 settings just the # 1 is enough to make a very quite band,it will sound like a squelched FM radio.You can have same results on the K3 but it takes more time experimenting with the multiple settings.
7- TX audio quality.
The majority of radios in the market sound good on TX when you use them with the right mic specially the ones designed by the company that built them,but when you change mics its another story because they don’t have builtin mic equalizer as these two radios has,that is very useful feature K3 and O2 has,I have to say that the TX EQ on the K3 is better from the fact that it has 8 freqs to set when the O2 has only one setting that allow you to move dbs up and down to make a “compromise” setting depending of how you want to sound.K3 is more versatile when choosing mics because ANY mic will sound good when you set the 8 bands EQ properly.You can’t do that with the O2 because of its TX EQ limitation although I have to say I have found an excellent mic that fit on my O2,the W2ENY $50 mic that a guy from Ny sells,its an electret mic that requires DC bias that is taken at the front panel mic conector.In my case when I am ragchewing with my friends on 40M I set my TX EQ at -6db but when I go to make DX or contests,I set it at -12 for higher pitch TX audio.
8- CW operation
In this mode the K3 is definitively the winner in spite of is not so quite than the O2, why is that? Because it has not only a supreme perfect QSK but also it has an extra audio filter called APF that once you tune a very weak station with a 339 signal you enable that extra DSP filter and the station will come up with a very clean signal that will sound like a 579 signal,its amazing how well that circuit works,also the tunning of a station is easier because it has en electronic circuit to move automatically your VFO freq to track the receive station and “zero beat it” which you will also see at the display.One more thing the K3 has better is that having a separate RX EQ you can also tailor your audio bandwith for CW,in my case I built a 400Hz audio filter using the EQ that help more to pull the weak ones.
Some of you might be interested to know my settings for CW and here is how I use them.
MENU—CW
CW QSK Delay…………………..10%
Internal Keyer……………………ON
CW Weighting……………………100%
Sidetone pitch…………………400 Hz
CW Rise/Fall………………………3 ms
SSB: CW Jack PTT……………ON
PTT in CW as………………………Mox
Keyer mode……………………… A
Xtal Filter………………………….Auto
Enable 1.8 Khz…………………..Yes
Enable 600 Hz……………………Yes (Inrad 400 Hz )
600 Hz C.F. Adj…………………200 Hz
Enable 300 Hz……………………No
300 Hz C.F. Adj………………….0
DSP Filter Length……………...199 Taps
MENU---SSB
Aux Input Gain…………………100 ( I use it for recordings off air playback)
TX Filter BW………………………3000 Hz
Rolloff……………………………….50 Hz
TX Audio source………………..BOTH
H/W Mic gain……………………..0.0 db
Final of the story,I use ALWAYS my Orion 2 for SSB and my K3 ALWAYS for CW. If you really want to have a second radio the K3 must be your choice,you will love it after all. 73
Hector
AD4C
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W0PR
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 29, 2011 10:05
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5 year report
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I'm still a fan. Best bang for the buck radio available today. Go spend $10k on a radio,it's your money, but you'll not be getting more radio.
I stand with the many 5/5 guys here on eHam. The Orion II is an exceptional radio, made for dx, made for contesting.
Treat yourself to really good DSP filtering and ease of use. This radio is a treat to own and use.
I use mine almost exclusively on CW and RTTY, but it's a stunning performer on SSB as well. The smooth QSK using my Alpha 91b is such a treat...how do they do that, anyway...and the filtering is simply the wonderful. I love it.
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AB4KJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 19, 2011 06:32
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Great radio
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Having recently got back into the hobby, I purchased two radios. The Orion II was recommended. Upon receiving the radio, I was very impressed with performance with weak signals and pile ups. I got mine with the full suite of filters and the tuner. The internal tuner is heavy duty and has no problems tuning my wires. I receive regular comments on how nice it sounds on SSB and CW. I did have a minor display issues. The service manager Paul at Ten Tec arranged for shipping pick up and picked up the costs to get it resolved and back into my hands. I was blown away by the support. Suggestions for improvement: a panadaptor and better sub receiver. These are minor for me because of the type of user I am. Despite these suggestions, I would buy an Orion again and recommend it to others.
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