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Reviews For: Yaesu FTM-400DR

Category: Transceivers: VHF/UHF+ Amateur Base/Mobile (non hand-held)

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Review Summary For : Yaesu FTM-400DR
Reviews: 92MSRP: $699
Description:
The FTM-400DR uses C4FM FDMA (C4FM – 4-level FSK Modulation, FDMA –
Frequency Division Multiple Access), which has been developed for the
professional LMR communications. It uses this enhanced technology for a
lower BER (bit error rate), resulting in stable communications without
interruptions during mobile operations, even in a rapidly moving vehicle.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cmd=DisplayProducts&ProdCatID=106&encProdID=227201D29C822AEFF8482F3367495319&DivisionID=65&isArchived=0
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00923.8
IZ4UFQ Rating: 2015-07-04
Software improvements badly needed Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have already posted a review some weeks ago, so I am adding to it.

I have been able to make external GPS work by trial and errors, because the manual does not state that the baud rate for the external GPS must be 4800. It is not configurable in the radio software at all. Note that internal GPS (I know because I have opened and studied the head unit) runs at 9600 baud.

After a lot of testing I have also determined the the internal GPS receiver seems to have issues with RTC skewing or something like that, because after having been switched off for more than 4 hours it needs a lot of time to acquire sats again. If kept off for less time, acquisition time is fine. I have also verified that the internal battery that keeps GPS RTC alive works perfectly and can keep it powered for more than 3 days, so it's no battery issue.

Apart from that, various improvements are needed in software:

- Make the external GPS baud rate configurable, and not fixed to 4800 bps.

- Regarding GPS position visualization, I think that MY position should always be shown as coordinates, showing it as an arrow pointing to myself seems quite useless to me, while the other party position is better shown as an arrow than coordinates. What's wrong is that there is only one setting to select coordinates or graphical arrow pointing to the position, while there should be 2 different settings so I can set my position to be shown as coordinates and "your" position to be shown as an arrow.

- Regarding APRS ringer (sounds) if I disable sound for received beacons (RX BEACONS) , then sounds are disabled also for my own beacons (MY PACKET) which in my opinion is wrong. I should be able to mute the sound for generic packets while still hearing beeps for my own packets. There should be no interaction between RX BEACONS and MY PACKET settings.

- Regarding memories: I have found no way to copy the content of a memory to the VFO. I can put the VFO contents in a memory, but not the other way round, which is useful for example to take settings from a memory (shift, tones, and so on) then alter them, then save them to a different memory.


PS: I have tried contacting Yaesu by email, but I have not been able to find an email address on Yaesu Japan website.

Come on, Yaesu, give us a BETTER SOFTWARE and maybe a better internal GPS receiver too. I have had great results with Globaltop PA6C and PA6B modules, and I am thinking about swapping the original internal module for a PA6B. Power requirements and serial output are the same.
AA6TS Rating: 2015-06-22
Continuing saga of life with a FTM-400DR Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I wish there was a way I could edit my review so I could keep all of the information together! Now that I have figured a workaround to have VHF/VHF (see my other review), I am perplexed to discover that the radio is locking up (freezing). This means that the touch screen stopped working and the only button that works is the on/off switch. There is nothing I can do about this except to wait until it begins to work again, which it does, eventually, but not when I need it to! I can't even reset the unit because the setup menu button stopped working! Another problem is that when I have the AMS (Automatic Mode Select) turned on, transmissions in FM analog drop words every few seconds – enough that I don’t hear the whole message. When I turn of AMS, everything sounds as it should. I have researched both problems and found nothing at all on this. Am I the only one experiencing these problems? I will be stopping at HRO today to see if this is are common problems or if I have a lemon. I love the radio, it has a ton of useful features, good sound and great ease-of-use, but it shouldn’t have so many problems.
AC4JK Rating: 2015-06-09
Better than some reports Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Just to set the record straight, the FTM-400DR actually IS a dual-receive radio and CAN receive two frequencies at the same time... contrary to what an earlier reviewer has posted. The FTM-400DR is extremely configurable, so perhaps some of his settings are at fault, but my radio can receive audio from both the upper and lower "bands" simultaneously - even when both are set to either VHF or UHF frequencies.

I am very satisfied with the FTM-400DR (I have three of them). I normally scan amateur frequencies on the upper display and public safety frequencies on the bottom display. Works fine business!

John AC4JK
KA0CDR Rating: 2015-06-05
crazy/stupid Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Picked one up yesterday, intalled in car today, came with cable to move the control head unit so i put it in the trunk.
Put the main unit under the dash since it has the mic plug, not sure how this is going to work out. I will let everyone know after a week or two.
Thanks Yeasu i never would have thought of this with out your help.
REMOVED_KN9TVE Rating: 2015-05-26
Nice Radio Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I was in the market for a mobile dual band radio with cross band repeater capability. I bought this when there were substantial discounts from Yaesu and HRO. I found most of the rig features fairly easy to program without hitting the book to hard. I did buy programming software to make life easier since I'm always changing settings and repeaters. The APRS was a bit hard for me to setup, since this was my first APRS rig. I did get it, but I had search the internet to learn some new stuff. My GPS works great, 2-3 minutes. I love the touch display. If you can pick up this radio at a promo price, it is feature packed and easy to use.
WA3ERQ Rating: 2015-05-21
Great idea but just OK Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I should have read the reviews before purchasing. The radio works great except for the GPS gaining satellite locks. It takes on average 5-10 minutes in a clear opening to gain the 5 satellites needed for a lock and on one occasion it took 80 minutes which is completely unacceptable. On the Yahoo group someone suggested purchasing a GPS repeater for $40 but after spending close to $600 for a radio, it should work perfectly.
Other than the GPS issue which other owners have not been successful getting it addressed with Yaesu, the radio works great. The color touch screen is a very nice touch. The menus are very easy to navigate and for a dual band/dual watch radio, I give it a 5! I recommend getting the RT systems programming software. Using a SD card to program and clone is a great idea. Very easy to use and to make changes. I haven't tried to make changes to the memories manually but I'm sure it's pretty easy. One recommendation on the RT Systems software. Unlike the TM-710 where your memories are available for both the A and B sides, on the FTM-400DR, you have to program them in for both sides, otherwise they won't be available (I entered in all of my memories on the A side then CUT/PASTE onto the B side). Also, keep in mind that you can program your APRS settings in the software otherwise it will revert them to the factory settings (setting APRS is easy via the menus).

Although I really like the radio's performance as a radio (System fusion sounds different but not fantastic), I am really disappointed in the GPS function. My TM-710 gains a GPS lock in 5-10 SECONDS using the Greenlight Labs module. The 400DR in the same exact place doesn't work as well.

If you're looking for a dual watch/dual band digital radio, this is the one. If you're looking into APRS and using the GPS, consider another radio.
K5HV Rating: 2015-05-19
Disappointed about APRS operation Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I'm very disappointed in the APRS operation because my locations don't show on my APRS+SA/STREET ATLAS V9 map.
It does show on APRS-FI, so that shows it is transmitting the basic parameters as a MIC-E.

N0NNO Rating: 2015-04-15
Incredable radio...! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
First licensed in 1959, hold an Advanced Class license. I purchased the FTM-400R a few weeks ago and have run it all day every day in my base station. With a little practice it is very easy to program with the touch screen. The internal speaker isn't the best but I don't used any of the internal speakers, the external speaker delivers excellent audio, and reports on my audio have been excellent...! I have found no issue with the GPS acquisition as other have. I'm considering a second one for the mobile. Love the stacked display.
I guess I really do not have much bad to say about the rig... I will say I'm partial to Yaesu with 6 rigs of various description HF through .70cm.
I'm going to order the RT System programming software and try it.
K8RCT Rating: 2015-04-13
Great radio but needs longer mic cord Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have been using my FTM-400DR for a couple of weeks and love the radio. The only problem is that they only supply a short mic cable. The expansion kit for the radio is way to much money! If you can mount the radio on or under the dash you will be fine.
KC9WQR Rating: 2015-04-11
Great work Yaesu!! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought this rig recently because of the DR1X repeaters going in all around me and just to try digital voice. From the moment I hooked this rig up to my power supply, I was impressed. I never thought I would like a touch screen this much.(I've always been a practical sort of guy) The screen is easy to see and not cheaply made at all. The greatest thing about the addition of a touch screen is the ease of programming. The recieve audio on this is typical of Yaesu rigs, so it is less than desireable on FM but still tolerable. The C4FM Digital receive audio IS AMAZING!!!!! I can't tell you how much you need to try this, JUST TRY IT.........you won't regret it. AS far as price goes; it is expensive, but worth every penny. Cross Band repeat works exceptionally well on this rig also. I gave this rig an over all 5 stars because of functionality, durability, and Digital voice capability. Great Job Yaesu!!!