| G0TLU |
Rating:      |
2012-04-27 | |
| Good quality and easy to use |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I have used a (borrowed) MFJ analyser in the past, but where the FG-01 scores for me is the graphical display. With the SWR and impedance curves you can easily see what's happening with your antenna. The numerical readout is there too for pin-point accuracy.
Some have said the prices of the battery pack and charger are a bit steep - true maybe, but both can also be used with the HB-1B (next on my wish list!). |
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| KJ6ETL |
Rating:      |
2012-04-19 | |
| Can't do without |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Getting back into Ham radio. Love experimenting with antenna's. I constructed a balcony antenna using an adjustable coil with a 102" whip. Using this analyzer makes a huge difference in tuning the antenna and actually seeing what is going on.
Its very rewarding to experiment adding a choke or capacitor and see the immediate effect on the display is awesome.
This Youkit FG-01 is very portable and well made. The display is despite its small size very easy to read. Even in bright daylight!
Thankfully I opted for the version with a rechargeable battery. Given how warm this pack gets I guess it must be drawing a lot of current. A fully charged battery will last you all day. Assuming you turn it off during breaks.
The website isn't very clear if the battery's are located inside the analyzer or have to be carried separately. Rest assured they are inside!
I cannot attest for the accuracy of this instrument. For me its more than good enough. Certainly for the price paid.
Highly recommended !
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| N4NYY |
Rating:      |
2012-02-28 | |
| Incredibly easy to use |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
OK. After reading the QST review and asking some people about various analyzers, I went and purchased this model. This is distributed by the manufacturer, and also by its USA distributor Ten-Tec.
First thing, is how clear such a small display can be. The color is great as you can distinguish SWR from Z. The span steps are easy to change.
This shows SWR and Z (impedance). If this is all you need (and that is all I want), then this is for you. If you need capacitance or inductance measurements, then you may need a Rigexpert or similar. Read further on the subject below.
Results were fantastic. I was able to quickly tune my antenna. Being this is so compact, you can carry it in a digital camera case and have it for field operation like Field Day. I once had borrowed an MFJ-259 from a friend, and he brought it over without batteries. He walked out with 10 new AA batteries. Geez! This FG-01 will kill the MFJ for portability, ease, battery cost, and everything else. The engineering looks great.
I would make 2 changes to the unit for future releases:
1. The $249 price is great. The $30 additional for the Li-ion battery pack is outrageous. However, they do send you an 3-battery case where you could buy three 3.7V (AA physical size) Li-ion batteries on your own for a couple bucks on ebay. I chose the battery pack (mistake). I would suggest that the manufacturer include these 3 batteries in the $249 price, as they can get them in bulk, instead of the battery pack. I think that combination would make these fly off of the shelf $249. Currently, with the battery pack and shipping, the price hovers near $300.
2. In future versions, try and develop capacitance and inductive measurements. This would appeal to the design crowd and make it more valuable. I personally do not need these, but some people I have spoken to would like these available.
Great job by the people of YouKits! |
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| KX7H |
Rating:      |
2012-02-21 | |
| Excellent |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Bought from Ten-Tec, receive today. Immediately installed the optional battery pack and connected to my ground mount Butternut HF6V and was able to see the resonant spots for all 6 bands the antenna covers in a matter of a few seconds. This device is awesome! I have a MFJ269. This analyzer blows the MFJ away for simple SWR, Z measurements due to the graphical display. If it holds up, it will be good value. |
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| WJ7S |
Rating:      |
2012-02-19 | |
| Perfect for portable use |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I picked up this analyzer for portable use with my Buddipole and KX-3 (on order). I have tested it out on my base antennas and it does what it is supposed to do in about 1/4 the size and weight of other popular analyzers. The graphical representations are easy to read and the unit works very well.
Two things to note: 1. the unit is so easy to use they don't include an owner's manual. If you want a manual, you need to download it; 2. Make sure you order the internal rechargeable battery pack when you order the analyzer. Otherwise, you will spend the better part of a day trying to find 14500 size batteries and then decide to order the internal unit. The internal rechargeable unit is the better choice--don't ask me how I know ;-}
If you want a small, portable analyzer that does a great job, this is the one. |
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| SWL377 |
Rating:      |
2012-02-06 | |
| Fantastic value!!! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
This will kill MFJs model 259 product sales. Vastly better product. You get to SEE the whole SWR and impedance plot not just points on it. Smaller, better and easier to use. This little analyser will amaze and impress you. Great design.
Customer service is A+. I had a minor problem
with mine and they shipped me a replacement even before they received mine back. Emails are answered instantly and clearly. You will love doing business with You Kits.
You Kits has a bright future and the certainly deserve it. Buy one of these and your antenna behavior will be easily measured and visualized. It's a pocket sized antenna lab at a very affordable price. All this plus outstanding support and customer service. It doesn't get any better than that.
73
AF6IM |
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| NZ8J |
Rating:      |
2012-01-24 | |
| Very functional and cute as well |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Just got it today, tried it out and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't know what to expect since my only experience with analyzers was the MFJ-259B I just sold. The MFJ treated me well over the years and worked really well and filled a need. I wanted to try something new and boy is this little thing nice. The one use I was concerned about how well it would work was in adjusting a tuner. Well, I couldn't be happier with the way it works, my biggest concern was how fast the display would react to changes made to the antenna tuner. No worries, it is as close to real time as you can get, makes adjusting a manual antenna tuner a breeze. It is not too complicated, but it is high tech enough to give you whats needed to check antennas, etc. Right now it's working fine, I'll post again later to see how the reliability is. All in all I'm glad I took the chance and bought it. (this is my second Youkits purchase, the HB1B 4 band QRP rig is a super little radio)
Tim
NZ8J |
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| AA1BW |
Rating:      |
2011-12-15 | |
| Perfect |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
It is the best antenna analyzer I have tried so far. The small LCD with the chart is so informative, that you will tune all antennas with this small wonder. The size is perfect for QRP hilltopping, so finally I will have always perfect antennas wherever I operate.
Much easier to find resonance and other data compared to the MFJ analyzer.
Highly recommended litle gem. |
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| ZL4TE |
Rating:      |
2011-11-06 | |
| Highly portable, great value |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I was after a pocket sized, pocket priced, antenna analyzer, that would be easy to use and understand. The FG-01 really fits the bill.
I ordered it direct from the manufacturer in China. The unit arrived by registered post and very well wrapped in bubble wrap. The unit came with the optional Li-on battery, a Li-on charger (US plug) and a 3 x aa cell battery holder. There was also a connector wire for the battery holder, which needs to be soldered to the leads of the battery holder, but that is no big drama. I was surprised there was no manual, but a quick look on the YouKits website and there it was.
The unit itself is about 4 inches tall by 1.25 inches deep, so really neat. There is a BNC connector and the charger socket on the top of the unit. On the front face is the on / off switch, control knob and 1.25 x 1.25 inch screen.
The battery fits inside the case which is held in place by 2 small screws. The board is all (as you would expect) surface mount, and the solder connections to the board, bnc plug etc, all looked good.
The unit operation is really very obvious. Turn on and a screen comes up telling you if the impedance curve is on or off.
I had put in the Li-on battery, and was very surprised to find that it had been fully charged, so the unit really was "ready to go".
The display then goes to the main screen. This has a graph showing the dip for minimum swr, and (if turned on) the impedance curve. This is confirmed by by a numeric readout below the graph showing swr, impedance, centre frequency, scan width and battery voltage.
Frequency is easily changed by rotating the front knob. The tuning increments can be changed easily by depressing the front knob till there is a small triangle displayed opposite the cf setting, then holding the knob down. One of the digits will change display to red and then, while holding the knob in, rotate to change to the desired tuning increment. The same procedure is used to change the scan width setting.
On a wide scan setting, and large frequency step, it is very easy to scan quickly to find the rough resonant frequency, then narrow the settings for fine tuning.
Once you are on rhe frequency you want, the graph shows the SWR and impedance (if the impedance option is turned on). This is confirmed underneath by the numeric display of SWR and impedance.
To be honest the lack of any manual, was not an issue, as I had it figured out and working in about 5 minutes.
When I installed my old tri band vertical a few years ago, I found it took ages to get a low swr on all 3 bands. Even then, it was not as good as it should have been. Using the FG-01, the adjustments were made in minutes, with a reduced swr on all 3 bands. It was also really easy to ensure the minimum swr was on the qrp frequencies that I like to use.
Using it at locations away from home with an FT817 and whatever wire (and space) is available is a breeze. The unit is so small it really does lend itself to going portable etc.
I have used MFJ offerings in the past, and had the usual problems. I find the FG-01 much easier to use and the graph is a real improvement over purely numeric displays.
I have also seen units to use with a laptop, but when working outside, I personally don't want to be messing around with a laptop.
If you want an all singing / dancing unit, then the FG-01 is probably not for you. If you want something for casual, portable use, testing out antennai etc, with a clear easy to understand display, then this more than fits the bill.
At the end of the day, it is almost $us150 (£80) cheaper than most other units, and for me it fulfils all of my requirements.
negatives - no manual, need to solder 2 wires for the aa cell pack to fit to the connector.
positives - inexpensive, very simple to use, highly portable, easy to understand graphical / digital display.
For me, the very minor negatives are more than made up for by the positives, and hence I give it a 5.
I would recommend the FG-01 to anyone who is on a budget, and does not require a professional unit costing thousands of $'s. I am really delighted with it, and it will certainly get well used.
Pete
ZL4TE
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