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| Reviews Summary for Yaesu FT-950 |
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Reviews: 115
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Average rating: 4.6/5
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MSRP: $1840
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Description: The Yaesu FT-950 is an HF/6m transceiver which features IF DSP as well as 3 kHz, 6 kHz and 15 kHz roofing filters. The transceiver can be interfaced with the DMU-2000 to add additional functions such Band Scope, Audio Scope, X-Y Oscilloscope, World Clock, Rotator Control, and extensive transceiver status displays, in addition to station logging capability. The optional RF µTuning Kits may be connected via the rear panel, providing improved selectivity to protect the receiver from close-in interference on a crowded band.
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More info: http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamhf/0950.html
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write your own review of the Yaesu FT-950.
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K9ROD
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 22, 2009 19:02
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What a Radio!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I first saw this radio at HRO Denver. I knew that I had to hae one as soon as I saw it. I have really enjoyed all the features (and there are many) this radio has to offer. I'm looking forward to some software projects with the DMU-2000 that goes with it. So far the only things I don't like are limited use of the keyboard with the DMU-2000 unit and the Automatic Antenna Tunner. The ATU needs to be retunned all the time. Even on the same band. But these are small thing compared to all it has to offer.
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G0KYX
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Rating: 4/5
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Dec 18, 2009 15:28
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Early Days
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Early days yet, but initially I am very impressed with the rig, and as I get used to using it, I'm sure I will be even more impressed. However, I find the in-build atu very limiting. In a retirement complex, I'm limited in my choice of antenna and have a Sandpiper MV6+3. At resonance on 80 and 40 it is impossible to use the whole band without an external atu. This surprised me, as the auto atu on my old TS 450SAT would "tune" for the whole band in each case. Not an insurmountable problem, but a disappointment. More comments later!! de G0KYX
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N1TX
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 18, 2009 13:33
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Best value and better after PEP updates
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This is an update to my original post from 12/24/2007. I bought the FT950 two years ago to replace another high-end (but middle-age) Yaesu rig, and I've never looked back. Budget and performance both factored heavily into my decision, and I confess to have been on the fence for several weeks while I considered other top performers in the $2000-2500 range. I am not normally one to run out and purchase the "latest and greatest" of anything, preferring to see how things pan out in the market. I've had enough pain as a beta-tester. In this case, though, I just had to try the FT-950.
Two years later, the rig has been through the wringer and reliably provided 13,000+ contacts in CW, SSB, and RTTY contests. You can see I have some basis for highly recommending this moderately-priced rig.
The DSP-heavy rig required some learning curve, since its analog cousins are much more forgiving of mis-adjustment and sloppy operation. Powerful IF filtering and signal enhancement combinations are a true blessing, but you have to know under what conditions they perform best. Once I gained a couple of months experience with the FT-950, I became quite comfortable making it do what I wanted it to do every time.
I purchased the DMU-2000 at the same time, which is a very nice, if expensive, accessory. Besides the obvious bandscope and audio scope niceties, the DMU provides explicit, in-depth information about the radio settings, and it makes menu navigation a snap.
Along came some software updates from Yaesu about a year ago, which seemed to make the audio somewhat more harsh, and I think the update was a step backward in noise reduction. However, the latest PEP updates have greatly improved things. The display functionality has become more human-friendly, too. I am extremely happy to see Yaesu supporting the rig with sensible upgrades.
I'm now shopping for a second FT-950 to use in the KL2R contest shack. That's how much confidence I have in it.
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KG4GLI
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 11, 2009 06:06
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Happy Again
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I am very happy to report that I now have another Yaesu FT 950. I had to sale the first one due to my Heat and Air conditioning that had gone out had to replace it. I did some trading around and got a Kenwood ts 2000 very good rig, however it just not up to par with the Yaesu. The receiver is a little more noisy on the Kenwood and not as senitive as the Yaesu. The receiver on the 950 is very smooth. Very low background noisy. The signals just jump out at you on the FT 950. You can go from a 3 wide to down to 1.8 or if you readjust the filter every more narror if you like. All in all the FT 950 is a very good value for the price and did the mention the audio that can be adjusted to match you voice exactly. Another feather is the Firmware updates they just keep getting better. Once Yaesu has one out all yo have to do is download the file make changes to the PROM and the rig just keeps getting better all in all very good job Yaesu. If you have the chance try one I thing you will be surprised.
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OE4VIE
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 1, 2009 10:42
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Unbeatable for price
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I am using this rig more than 12 months now. Still works perfectly, and has been improved or updated with firmware updates when available. The receiver sensitivity and audio quality is outstanding.
CW functions are great. Also I use this rig together with an 2m transverter and they performed very well, it is nice to use the FT-950 functions on 2m too.....great stuff!
This rig has to be one of the best buys for the money.
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ON3RE
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Rating: 4/5
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Sep 24, 2009 14:48
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good radio
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I have my radio about a year now.
good radio but just one problem.
(all ft950 and ft2000 have this problem)
the fm RX and TX is about 663hz to far to left!
only FM problem, Am/usb/lsb/cw are perfect...
so if you want to youse for FM, Mmmm think again.
updated firmware 11.531.11 still the same problem...
hope there will be a update soon......
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KA2DDX
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 20, 2009 10:37
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Nice Rig
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have owned this rig for a little over a month and have used it a lot. I still have my FT-920, which I've been very happy with, so the 950 had to own up. And, it does. It has a nicer display with a lot of features. This is not a radio to turn on and use, you must play with it, and get familiar with the various features, especially the filtering. Using Ham Radio Deluxe software with this makes it an even better experience.
The radio firmware update went ok. I live in an area with a lot of qrn, probably from the old shopping center behind me. Recently, one night on 20 meters, I was able to drop the noise way down and work an S2 Western Siberian station on cw, armchair copy, albeit at solar minimum, thanks to the advanced filtering in this rig. Receive audio is good, especially on ssb. Afsk works well from this rig. Nice and stable. The internal tuner works well on my 130 foot dipole except on 40 meters, while my FT-920 tunes the same dipole 160 thru 6 meters. Otherwise, no gripes about the tuner.
If you're looking for an all-mode rig for around $1300 bux, go for it, just be patient learning how to use it. So far, so good.
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VE2EZD
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 18, 2009 18:58
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A classic in the making...
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I bought my Ft-950 11 months ago. Why Yaesu? Primarily because of reliability issues. I own a TS-570DG that I had to send back for repair because of blown out drivers. The 570 is the most intuitive radio I've used. Unbelievable! But that driver problem set me $400 back and I was also experiencing very bad AGC pumping in CW with the stock filter. Yes, I added an Inrad narrow CW filter to it but as I like to go chasing CW stations S&P style with the wide filter I can tell you that this pumping is it's weakest point.
I wanted to upgrade to an IF-DSP radio in the 1500$ level. The IC-746Pro was very attractive but the reviews on eHam were not reassuring on long term reliability. Then Steeve at Radioworld (Toronto) told me about the FT-950. After reading A LOT about this radio I decided to take the plunge. And I can tell you that I do not regret my choice.
First impressions.
The radio is BIG, much bigger than my FT-847 and TS570DG. The display is clear and crisp but somewhat limited on the quantity of information delivered but I can easily live with it. The VFO knob is very well made and silky smooth and you don't see it wobble like so many other radios.
The receiver.
OK! I do not have access to any HP test equipement to support my comments but in my humble experience in amateur radio (32 years), this is a very fine receiver. I worked a lot of CW contests and had to copy stations in very difficult situations. I threw at them all the tools the FT-950 offered to me, from bandwith, IPO, RF-gain, IF-shift, attenuator, width, AGC settings and contour. The FT-950 proved to be a solid performer.
Operating CW contests Low Power is not an easy task. My secret weapon is to "zero-beat" the station I want to contact. I know some reviewers judged the FT-950 "zero-beat" indicator to be worthless. Please, keep this impression. I'm just amazed at how fast I can zero-in a CW signal with it. Awsome! Yes it's perfectible but it's still the best I found on a radio.
I did all the PEP upgrades available and this radio went to fine to very very fine. At first I experienced noticeable hiss in the audio when using the headphones. There is no more hiss with the PEP upgrade. The receiver audio also went from just OK to crisp and clear with the PEP upgrade.
I wrote a very efficient Win32 application in C to control the radio. I can access with it a lot of the FT-950 functionnality without entering any menu. As an example, I can engage or disengage the DNR with a single click of the mouse. Now I understand why Yeasu restrained so much the FT-950 front-pannel functionnality, It would have easily been an FT-2000 killer.
73s de VE2EZD
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K3EY
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 2, 2009 08:13
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Best Value out there Period!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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After having owned several of these radios including the very early S/N I felt like I owed Yaesu to write this review. When they first came out I slammed these radios and like others gave them unfair low ratings.
Even when I would sell one I would end up getting another one after some time because one thing I do love about the 950 is the ergonomics combined with the feel of a big high quality radio.
I write this review freely admitting to throwing good money away buying new high-end HF radios only to sell them after a short time at a loss just so I could play with them. After many radios including the K2 and PROIII which are both rated at the top in the performance scale, I find the FT950 with it's latest software updates to be right there with them. IMO spending twice as much for a HF radio is a fools game when the 950’s performance is just as good. Plus Yaesu with their software updates can make an older radio a new radio and as good as others costing a lot more. You buy a IC7600 and that's what you bought it will never change but if Yaesu keeps improving this 950 with updated software, well you get the picture.
As far as the remarks of dedicated power button and other IMO silly issues, again you knew this going in, so why is it an issues?
This radio is more than enough for my operating which is weak CW DX, PSK and rag chewing with an occasional SSB QSO. It’s performance is just as good and it's more fun to play with than my PROIII which is neat but outdated as far as cost versus performance.
MY only regret--I should have saved my money and keep the first 950 I bought and when the updates came out I would have been satisfied.
For the best bang for the buck the 950 is top dog and anyone saying differently isn't rational or irrational biased and blinded with brand loyalty.
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WB5JEO
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 20, 2009 08:01
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Me like.
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Okay. I've had it a week, so this is hardly an exhaustive review of all features and functions. My 6th HF rig in 35 years and my first Yaesu of any kind. I am first struck by the receiver, just plain performance without any tweaking. It is the best I've ever had. It's not just specifics. There's an overall quality, a "purity" that I just don't feel with my Kenwood. Looks to me like an honest S-meter, too.
I find it an easy radio to operate. I think anyone would find it simple to open the box, plug it in, and begin operating with no more adjustment than mic gain. It's true that there is a lot going on, but it took me relatively little time to get oriented. The areas of the front panel dedicated to particular groups of functions follow the same general pattern of selecting function to be controlled by the local knob that it's easy to retain the ways the controls are used.
Some have spoken of the menu system. I find it not at all difficult to navigate. It's true that there are a lot of menu options, but it's not hard to find what you want. I particularly like the system block diagram on the display. Just a glance tells you what's going on in each section, without having to scan the individual controls.
It's true that the tuner is loud. But who cares? It works and reaches its conclusions pretty rapidly. I kind of like to hear it working. (It's got that old movie computer sound, like the clacking as the text appears on the screen in Alien.)
You can do more elaborate things with memory, but there is a dead simple Store and Recall that sequences through five memories on a FIFO scheme that is very nice for setting up the day's interests very rapidly.
It's a big enough radio that the controls are nicely sized, with no tendency to bump one when using another. The main tuning knob can be finely adjusted for drag very easily. If you sit up high, figure on rigging something to angle the front panel up to get a good look at the display and the lower controls.
Overall, it strikes me that Yaesu has struck a pretty good balance between what is set through a menu and what is directly set from a panel control. They did an excellent job of making good use of the available front panel space without having a dozen tiny knobs.
Bottom line is a stunning receiver, and in less than an hour, I was up and running QSO's, with TX and RX audio running into my computer recorder, and I would guess 80-90% of the functions usable and doing it without much thought or hunting for function controls. For a radio in this price range, that's the way it should be, and Yaesu does not disappoint.
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