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Reviews For: Youkits FG-01 graphic antenna analyzer

Category: Antenna Analyzers

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Review Summary For : Youkits FG-01 graphic antenna analyzer
Reviews: 59MSRP: 249
Description:
Antenna analyzer covering 1 - 60 mhz
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.youkits.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00594.4
VE7JDZ Rating: 2014-11-24
Decent Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I think this is a nice little piece for the price. It works and provides the information every ham would need to build and/or adjust antennas.

The purchase experience is a different game. At least for Canada, be prepared to pay for the analyzer+shipping costs and then a few weeks or months later, for a customs charge. The seller will say nothing about this and will be silent after you reach out to find out why the charge when the seller claims the total price includes all charges. Be aware!
VK3ZGP Rating: 2014-09-25
Great Little Analyzer Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Here there are a large number of good reviews of the YouKits FG-01 so I'll just focus on two areas.

(1) Support
My original long wire installation wended its way though trees and I 'improved' it by clearing back the trees. Unintended consequence was an increase in the 50Hz voltage from a 66kV power line. On the first day I managed to destroy the FG-01 and then discovered the terminal voltage was too high for the FG-01 or any other device. The appropriate Balun and earth stake resolved that issue. I emailed the YouKits, explained exactly what had happened and offered to pay for the repair as the unit had been damaged by my actions and I didn't believe it would be a valid warranty claim. They requested I return the unit to China. The unit was promptly repaired at no cost to me. It was a very good experience and professionally handled with good communication.

(2) Batteries
Although the units are sold with a battery pack and charger, mine also shipped with a AAA battery holder that could be alternatively installed. Now you are spoilt for choice. I installed the supplied battery pack and have not had any battery issues. As far as I'm concerned there are no battery issues these days.

I have no hesitation giving this great little unit a rating of 5 out of 5.
AD0AR Rating: 2014-09-10
Bought the newer version Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I purchased the original version with no memories back in 2012. Real pain when jumping bands but worked fine. Youkits then rolled out a newer version of the FG-01 with much longer battery life/ larger screen/ AND 10 MEMORIES! I purchased this one too as soon as it was available in the marketplace. The 10 memory feature suits my needs perfectly!
I have had conversations with another amateur who did not like how the graph would change resonance when grabbing/ letting go of the metal case. I experienced the same "jitteriyness" on both of my units, but I was able to rapidly pinpoint the problem. Common mode currents! Choking the shield of the coax at the feedpoint with the appropriate type of ferrite eliminated the shifting of the graph and also increased weak signal performance of my station by reducing out of band noise on my coax shield.
SO the meter not alone helped me tune my antennas to resonance, but also made me aware of a small deficiency in my install. Fantastic piece of test equipment!!! Don't forget to order the battery if the version you care to purchase does not come with one, you will need the rechargeable battery.
Word of caution about the charger though- It is the single smallest but HUGE generator of RFI you have ever seen. I have banned it to the farthest reaches of my house and it still gives me S-5 to S-9 of white noise so I only charge the battery when I am not operating and unplug it when I am on the air. Problem solved.
In God we trust, all others we monitor AD0AR
AD4C2006 Rating: 2014-08-15
Great instrument Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I had nothing else to say as WOW ! I am impressed with everything on this tiny antenna analyzer, I sold my MFJ-269 and purchased this one because of its small size, it fits in my shirts pockets easily, its very light and even it did not come with a manual, it was for me few minutes to figure out how it works. I hooked first a perfect 50 ohms dummy load on the BNC connector and as soon turned it on, there were two straight horizontal lines, meaning it was showing 50 ohms all over with the upper line and 1.1 swr with the lower line. Then connected to my 20M bazooka and saw 1.1 with 48 ohms on 14.100 Mhz and my 17M bazooka showed 1.1 with 49 ohms on 18.150.
With this instrument you don't need to be moving knobs, just set the center freq (CF)and the spam width (SW)and you are ready to see a graph of you radiation system in one second.
Very handy,useful and afordable instrument that every ham must have as station accessory. I also like the fact that you can memorize all common freqs you want to check within a band so you will not need to move the freq knob anymore, just the memories.
My two dislikes are the fact that it won't come with a charger so I purchased trough amazon.com a four slots charger and also three 14500 Li-ion rechargable batteries to complete the set.
Batteries seem to last long, I have done many measurements and meter shows still 12.1V after a full two hours charge although you can use batteries as they come not fully charged.
The other dislike is that the plastic battery holder once you install the batteries, will stay lose inside the box, what I did was to stick it on the cover upper wall using heavy duty Velcro so it will not touch the board.
This is a keeper with no doubt.

Hector
AD4C

AB2IR Rating: 2014-05-30
Nice for me Time Owned: more than 12 months.
For quick checks instead of pulling out my MFJ-269 and turning the knobs for five minutes. My only complaint is the switch level, wish it had a better half level between switching. Trying to tweek an antenna and jumps out of swr range to fast. Works fine though. Battery life is great.
KU7I Rating: 2014-05-13
Don't even need a manual! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This thing is a gem....a bit physically small...wish the screen was a little larger but not going to hit the company on that fact. It is so easy to use you do not even need a manual although I did check out the quick user's guide on the internet. I had an MFJ 259 when they first came out about 15 yrs ago or so.....this thing is built so much better it is ridiculous. I am amazed at the build quality. Check out the various You Tube videos that you can link into from their web site or just go to You Tube and search on FG-01. It works perfect. Can not recommend anything other than this for this price range.
KD0YDG Rating: 2014-03-22
Great analyzer Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I was having a number of issues with my various antennas I was trying and spent much time in trial and error. This analyzer ended all that! I am very happy that I made the jump and listened to the advice on this site. I got mine from Ten-Tec.
PA0RBA Rating: 2014-03-17
Handy, inexpensive and realtime graphical information Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
This is THE analyser if you want to experiment with antennas. On the roof, in the garden, the display says it all and in realtime. Tinkering with a coil or wire length; just watch the display and see what happens!! Great fun...
Note: order the original battery pack; it works oke.
KJ6QVB Rating: 2014-01-17
UPDATE Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Some of the reviews are very critical of the FG-01 power. As I recall, the manufacturer strongly recommended purchasing the rechargable battery pack, which I did. And it was $30 well-spent. I only use it occasionally, but I've only had to charge it ONCE since I got it 2 years ago. So for those of you penny-pinchers who didn't heed the suggestion, you get what you (don't) pay for!
N0FPE Rating: 2014-01-17
Better now Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
After my last review of this unit things have gotten better.! It now works as it should and seems to preform well. I have tested antennas of all types and frequencies up to 50mhz. The biggest downfall of this unit is the oddball power system! The hard to find expensive 3.7V 14500 style batteries are a real PITA. why this battery was used is byond me. And of course when you get the unit it has NO instructions and just by looking at the battery holder you would think it used standard AA batteries since that's what the hold SAYS ON IT!!! Of course the manufacturer will be glad to sell you a battery pack at an extra cost. So as far as an antenna analyzer it is pretty good, its down fall is a non standard battery system.