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write your own review of the Yaesu FT-817 ND.
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W4PUP
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 9, 2010 11:53
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5 Watt SSB DX? Yep!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Since getting the 817ND for Christmas I have found the secret of this radio is antenna,antenna, antenna! I ordered a small whip style with a jumper for the different coils, made a nice SWL antenna I suppose. I then put up a GAP Titan DX and it was the difference between night and day. Here in S. Florida I can sit in my lawn chair at the base of the vertical with the short coax lead from the antenna, center and shield hooked to a binding post/BNC on the front of the radio, drink coffee and work DX. Tip of the hat to G1MYA, my first 15 meter DX this morning. I've bettered 1 watt per thousand miles 3 times now with QSOs in Latvia, Vienna, and Slovenia (YL2BJ, OE3DIA, S58N) Also worked J79WW, TI8II, HI7MC, PA3GSU all in the last 30 days. The The rcvr seems to be noisy, but for what this radio can do I'm very pleased with it.
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M3FLP
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 9, 2010 09:17
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Get one quick!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Looks like I am in agreement with most others here, the 817 is absolutely brilliant.
I have a Wonder Wand Widebander with mine and it's amazing what you can do indoors RX & TX on 5 watts.
All bands are covered and mine was new from ML&S with the wideband TX mod done by them. They also fitted the Peglegs.
Battery life I think is very good but I have a small 7aH battery for £15 off Ebay and a solar panel that charges it for another £10 if I need to go portable for a long time.
It would be the first thing I would take with me if the SHTF and I had to leave quickly.
Amazing little rig, I am very happy and it's a keeper!
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PA1PXL
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 3, 2010 03:31
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Wonder box
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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This is a must-have transceiver! So much fun in such a small box. It covers all the bands from Hf to UHF incl FM broadcast.
You can make qrp contacts at home or portable/mobile.
You can't go wrong with a Yaesu 817(ND)
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G6EJD
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 24, 2010 12:24
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FT-817 true all-rounder
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is a truely versatile radio, had it for a few weeks now, using it portable and mobile and have used all modes so-far including PSK31 from my netbook. Overall I'm very impressed and it's my best buy. I have fitted the YF122S SSB filter to improve adjacent channel performance and there is a slight increase in TX audio performance (quality and level) too.
Battery life is about right, as is power out and ability to use memories and features. Ergonomics are good for me. It is small, but that's what I wanted. I have the optional Yaesu case, which is OK, keeps it clean and scratch free. Antenna is about 30cm long without the 6M extension. Buy it, you won't regret it IMO.
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ON4LDU
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 28, 2009 10:55
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Amazing rig !
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Got mine 1 1/2 year and work so many dx's with this tiny radio. 150 DXCC in 18 months with vertical ant.
Sensitive receiver, just add a BF filter and CW narrow filter and you're on the way...
Working like a big trx with 5W, ideal for travel qrp.
Buy one and you don't believe what you're able to work or hear.
Best 73s fm ON4LDU
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KD4VLF
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 22, 2009 15:30
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I LOVE THIS RIG !
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I looked around for awhile to select a qrp rig and am now glad that I picked the 817. How Yaesu packed so much radio into such a small package is incredible. I've used it in my shack and portable with great results. When going portable, I use it with a 7AH gell cell and can play for hours. Some complain about the internal battery pack (1400 mah), but the other features and performance of the radio far outweigh that one drawback. It has worked so well for me that I plan to buy another for use in my van.
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N4MJG
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 16, 2009 03:39
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Great Rig !
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I used my at camping back past june this year great rig the whole time i was using..
73
Jackie
N4MJG
WWW.N4MJG.COM
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KD9KC
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 15, 2009 23:55
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It's a keeper!
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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Question: How did Yaesu pack so much fun into such a small package?
I have been using the FT-817ND for nearly a year now. I have not had this much fun in 10 years. It literally brought me back to HF.
I did get all the W4RT additions installed. The OBP Speech Processor was added, along with the OBF dual filter board. This is said to increase talk power by as much as 7 dB. This is important with only 5 watts out. Friends who know my voice well say the speech processor and Collins SSB filter combo really sound like me. It wasn't that way when I first opened the box.
CW is nice too. It isn't my favorite mode, although this little radio lends itself to CW well enough for my tastes.
Field Day 2009 saw me doing a 1B Battery/Solar operation in my garden. I was rained out twice, took a 4-hour nap, still worked 168 stations including Alaska and Hawaii, about 10% of that was CW, finishing in the upper half of the class.
I suppose there are some gripes - someone can always find something they wish was done differently. But pound for pound, I don't think there is a radio out there that can do all this on one small package.
Overall - it is one of the nicest little radios I have ever used. I can take it everywhere, try that with my IC-781. Mountaintop V/UHF contests will be fun - can't wait to try one.
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G8XDD
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 24, 2009 07:55
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Great!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Wow, what a versatile radio, had mine for a few years now, mainly for SOTA portable and occasional use on vhf/uhf in shack. Did the s/ware mod to enable 60m work all over the UK on 5watts on 60m whilst out on the hills.I also use it for psk31 on 80m 40m 30m and 20m. I have changed lots of radios around since coming back into the hobby 6 years ago, but this one stays!!
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K5RIX
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Rating: 4/5
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Nov 7, 2009 02:57
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Great Starting Point
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This is a fantastic box! It'd be a 5 except:
No QSK, and relay T/R switching is noisy
Horrible battery compartment cover design/implementation
Supplied manual is difficult to comprehend/confusing/weird
That said, this is a fantastic rig. Fortunately, W4RT offers solutions for the battery compartment gripe, and Hugh McCully (VE3AYR) offers a comprehendible (and useable) manual. Unfortunately, the CW T/R switching isn't fixable for those operators who prefer QSK and silent diode T/R switching.
The receiver is really good, and all the necessary stuff is available via the menus. The flexibility of such a package as the '817 almost goes without saying. With the aftermarket manual mentioned above, it's pretty easy to find how to perform operations one is likely to forget if not used often. Optional IF filters are available from Yaesu and W4RT, and maybe others. The W4RT filters are identical to the Yaesu filters, but cost 2/3 as much. Even with the rather tiny internal speaker, the receiver audio is pretty decent and very intelligible. NOAA weather channels are not available on this receiver without modification.
I have had many good QSO's with my '817 on CW and SSB and FM. I traded an old Corsair II for it a little over a year ago. The '817 is truly remarkable, offering performance way beyond its physical dimensions. I have installed the 500 Hz Collins mechanical filter and the 2700 mAh W4RT battery. Also, I purchased the BHi Radio Mate keyboard accessory for my '817. Curiously, the Yaesu manual text specifies a three-conductor plug for a straight key, while the illustration in the same manual shows a two-conductor 3.5mm plug. The text is correct.
The '817 is an amazingly good radio that could be a lot better for CW ops.
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