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write your own review of the Yaesu VX-8R.
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KI4WBJ
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Rating: 4/5
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Jan 16, 2010 14:56
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Possible Weak Output
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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My less than a week old VX-8R is on its way to Yaesu to be looked at. I was having issues were the radio didn’t seem to have the output power it had earlier in the week to hit the local repeaters. I have two radios, the VX-7R and the VX-8R. The standard antennas I use are the Diamond RH77CA and the Comet B-10NMO. Today while I was working a local repeater no one was able to hear me. They said I had a good input but they were unable to hear my voice. I could hear them 5 by 5 and I was triggering the repeater with no problems. I even turned on one of my scanners and I could hear myself keying up the repeater but no voice. I tried this both internal mic and the external mic. I repeated this entire process with the VX-7R and it works like a champ. The repeater I was using is only 20+ miles away. Again I was able to talk to them the day before with no problems and the 7R had no issues.
I repeated this process again on a repeater on a few miles away and this time I was able to hear myself. It seems like I have to be right up on a repeater to get the 8R to work. Nothing has changed since the previous day. This morning on my way to work I decided to use the Comet B-10NMO on my truck and key up on a few repeaters. There are two that are about 15 to 20 miles away. I keyed up on them and I had full signal strength on my transmission and I received the repeater ID with max signal. Again with my scanner on, I tried a test transmission and I didn’t hear myself except for me keying the radio. Even with the problems I like the VX-8R when I wasn’t having issues. I did the mars/cap mod so I can’t send it back.
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F4EPP
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Rating: 0/5
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Jan 14, 2010 14:18
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AUDIO PROBLEM
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Mine worked 2 days only...
(I'm a VX-3,6,7,177 owner)
Suddenly the sound level was very low and completly distorted in the internal HP. The earphone jack didn't work at all. No way to use it.
I searched on the internet and found tons of websites talking about this audio problem...
This is the first time one of my Yaesu HT doesn't work.
Not to mention my problem, I advise people against buying this HT in a high RF zone. The double reception mode is as sensitive as the VX-7 and the AM/FM broadcast mode is deaf.
I sent it back for full refund...
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DO5TMX
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Rating: 2/5
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Jan 6, 2010 17:11
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Poor APRS-Performance
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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The Good:
* Very light-weight and slim with the stock battery installed
* Compared to an IC-92 modulation rapports are always better
* 5 watts HF-output (more than the even smaller HTs …)
* real dual VFO RX
* standard 3.5 mm headphone jack
The Bad:
* Speaker sounds cheap
* Compared to a GP380 (Euro HT1250) modulation rapports are awful ;-)
* wouldn't want to drop it - just too much plastic and no rugged feeling
* stock rubber-ducky antenna can go right into the junk drawer
The Ugly:
* The speaker in my unit suddenly stopped working altogether, had to send it in for repair - a friend reported the same issue
The APRS-Disappointment:
* transmits Mic-E packets only (fine for QRP but …)
* No CTCSS operation while APRS-Modem active -> no VoiceAlert
* only fixed beacon intervals, no smart beaconing
* no proportional pathing
* If the channel is busy while an auto-beacon is scheduled the packet is not deferred but dropped entirely
* un-ack'd text-messages are re-transmitted once every minute, no decay here either
* no Automatic Frequency Reporting System, no Auto Tune
Conclusion:
If you want a compact, light-weight radio for FM voice that got all the bells and whistles the VX-8 is for you.
If you want APRS in your pocket hold your horses or build your own.
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W1WOW
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 26, 2009 10:38
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A very fun radio...keeps you entertained for hours!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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The Yaesu VX-8R is a wonderful little "do-it-all" radio. If you are looking for a radio that will keep you entertained for hours and always leave you something to "try-out," the Yaesu VX-8R does a great job. The VHF/UHF bands aren't the most interesting to me but with the ARPS modifications its made them a little more interesting. I even love listening to broadcast radio while scanning to other banks of frequencies! Just pretty cool. It's a cool radio which makes it fun. When I decided to get a VHF/UHF radio, I wanted be fun and not leave me short of features. Heck its even submersible - great for the whaler's open cockpit. I will eventually purchase the GPS module and play with that some. APRS messaging is a fun thing to do when you just want to play with the radio.
All in all a great FUN radio that keeps you entertained. You may want to investigate a belt clip option which is a great improvement over the stock belt clip at: www.HamClips.com.
It's an exciting, rugged, feature packed HT - that's why the 5 rating.
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N4MJG
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 25, 2009 14:00
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Great HT
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Greetings!
I just got this HT for christmas on 12/25/09 ,so far so good i like the ht it was replace by vx 5r display went bad and cannot be replace. i had this 5 r since 2001 brought it NEW ! it was time for replacement for a new VX8R WOW I MUST BE A GOOD BOY !
73
Jackie
N4MJG
WWW.N4MJG.COM
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N6YNV
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Rating: 4/5
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Dec 25, 2009 11:57
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A good little radio!
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Nothing really new to report over the other reviews. I like the radio, but not really sure if I needed all the "bells and whistles" it provides. If you are not into APRS, GPS and some of the other emergency/survival features I would suggest the VX-7R. Less expensive to buy, cheaper batteries and similar radio features/bands.
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VK2UAL
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Rating: 4/5
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Dec 6, 2009 15:25
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Excellent Unit But Poor Option Interoperability
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I have owned the VX-5R from new and I bought the VX-7R new for my brother and I am very happy with both units. I have now owned the VX8R for about 7 months now and I am still getting my head around this very complex little unit. These days radio's like the VX8 have so many very useful bells and whistles that you have no chance of getting the best out of what it can do without putting in the time to read and understand the units manual. If you do put in the time you will be payed back with a huge list of very handy features that I still am finding different ways to use and enjoy the VX8 with our great hobby. The only down side I have found is the price of Yaesu options and the lack of interoperability with past radio options for the VX5 and VX7, it has been very expensive to buy the same options again but for the VX8. This is the only reason I am giving the VX8 a Good rating not a Great rating. The radio is excellent but interoperability with past options lets it down. 73z Richard VK2UAL
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W1WOW
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Rating: 4/5
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Nov 23, 2009 10:05
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Wonderful HT - Needs this replacement Belt Clip
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Love this HT - Yaesu has done it again, BUT it really needs a new belt clip as the one supplied is really sub-par. I have the perfect solution to this belt clip issue.
http://radiotuner.vflyer.com/home/flyer/home/2952972
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KC2JPY
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 21, 2009 06:28
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Yaesu has done it again!
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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Well, despite liking most of the improvement suggestions by other members, I really think the VX-8 is as perfect an all-in-wonder as we are going to get for a couple years. No other radio maker makes a radio anywhere near this advanced! I bought this radio to be a companion to my VX-5, which I still think is one of the greatest HTs ever made. But what I really love about this radio is the emergency-use capability. The included battery is OK as long as you are just monitoring one frequency, but I like the 1800 mah battery when I'm skiing, with no cell reception. It NEVER dies, and I monitor the local ham repeater, scan FRS/GMRS stations, and listen to an FM radio station through the bluetooth headset! I have the utmost confidence that this radio will perform well in ANY situation. One minor thing, you HAVE to set both the selector knob AND the up/down buttons to frequency select OR volume. would be nice if they worked independently. Now all I need is a solar charger to charge one battery while not in use! One more thing, this is NOT a cheap radio, if you deck it out with everything, it comes out to about $1000. But, you get what you pay for with it, and I really think for the top radio years ahead of anyone else, it's a fair price.
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KC2PLJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 19, 2009 17:36
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Very Nice
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This Little HT can do a lot of different things that others can't. APRS features are real nice as well as wide band receive. A solid 5 and a very good cure for boredom! Mike
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