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Reviews For: VE3TMT LED Upgrade for Icom 756PRO Series

Category: Amateur Radio Equipment Repair

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Review Summary For : VE3TMT LED Upgrade for Icom 756PRO Series
Reviews: 24MSRP: 75. USD for kit
Description:
LED back light upgrade for the Icom 756PRO Series. Replaces the aging CCFL lights which are prone to failure. Also eliminates the worry of the HV inverter circuit failing.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.qrz.com/db/ve3tmt
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00245
W4WTH Rating: 2022-08-27
Works very well Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I contacted VE3TMT after reading some reviews on his LED upgrade. I decided after reading his install instructions to order the kit and install it myself. I have a good bit of experience on the workbench with electronic repair and found the install pretty straight forward. There is a tiny connection to be made but being careful and planning it out all is good. I had a question afterward and he replied quickly and had a good answer. I recommend him and his led upgrade. My 756pro never looked better.
KC9FSH Rating: 2020-08-07
Easy to install and great support Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
My IC-756ProII started to have a dim display recently so I looked into this issue and came across the VE3TMT conversion kit to change it from CFL to LED. I e-mailed Max to ask a few questions and surprisingly he sent me the install instructions and let me look them over, this helped make me decide that this was a project that I could take on myself.
I ordered the kit and about a week later it arrived, which is pretty quick for a international package from Ontario to Wisconsin.
The instructions that are sent are great and walk you through every step. The hardest part is getting the diffuser lined up just right to go on the display. One thing I would recommend is to order some 30 awg solid wire, this will allow you to put the wire inside the dimmer via instead of soldering to the top of the via, which has a neighboring via very close by.
When I opened the front of the radio up there was a ground clip laying in the plastic, since Max has worked on a lot of these radios I e-mailed him to see if he knew where it went. To my surprise he called me no more than 3 minutes after I sent the e-mail and we talked about some of the places that he knows that ground clips went.

If you can solder well and have about 2 1/2 to 3 hours of time then you can install this kit. The only way Max can make it easier is if he does it himself (which he does offer for an additional fee)

Overall I am very happy with this upgrade kit and the display on my radio looks like it's brand new. I can now set my brightness and contrast to 50%, down for 100% prior. Even at 0% brightness the display is brighter now than with the CFL.
N3IPN Rating: 2020-07-21
Works great! Great support! Even greater communication! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I inquired about the upgrade before I purchased it, and he sent the installation instructions so I could look at it... I had a couple of questions about the instructions and he responded with answers quickly.. I started the installation and needed some advice about the best approach to complete the hardest task. I sent off an e-mail and got the right advice and completed the job in a little over 3 hours working very slowly... The display is bright as soon as it's turned on... no more 5-10 minute warm-up! Everything needed was supplied! I couldn't be more pleased!
KD8SAV Rating: 2020-07-21
Max took my 756 Pro II and installed the backlight kit. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Max took my IC-756 Pro II that I had him work on after a botched install job on my end. I never should have gone into a modern radio to do the install. All I had worked on before this was an HW-101 and a Triton IV. I had pulled out the two sockets for the flat cables going from the display board and the main board.

Max did a great job of repairing my display board and installing the LED back light. The rig is lit up like new, and I would send him another rig if I ever get one.

AA2T Rating: 2020-07-08
Works Great, Quick Turn around. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
i had Max put the new display into my front panel and he turned it around in a day (plus shipping). Works great, the display controls work just like stock. Couldn't be happier.
K1PGS Rating: 2020-01-24
Top notch product. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Great package of parts and great instructions. I received the parts within 5 days. I had the radio all apart including the LCD. I didn’t have any trouble taking that apart or putting it back together with the new LED strip. The hardest part was hooking up the dimmer wire from your board to pin 79. However, I got that on the first try. Then I put everything back together without a hitch. Powered on the rig but no display. I had read your warning in your directions that could happen. So I started adjusting the VR as instructed and the display came on. Well, I’m running it at 50% from the IC-756 Pro III menus with a plenty bright display. I am so happy that a fellow ham told me about Max during a recent QSO.
Max, thanks again. My IC-756ProIII lives on.
Paul
K1PGS
N7FS Rating: 2019-06-29
New life for a great classic. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The install is not too bad. Just be patient and follow the instructions to a tee and you will NOT be disappointed. Before I would have to set the brightness every time to 100 percent after the standard 10 plus minute warm up time and then back it off to 80 percent. Now when you turn the rig on there is no more wait time, and what was bright at 80 percent is the same if not better at only 50 percent. Plus the dimmer function still works. That is why I give this a solid 5 rating. Thank you again Max for an awesome idea for many more years of great service from a legendary rig. Chris, N7FS, Seattle, Wa...
BX4AL Rating: 2019-06-18
I like this very much. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I'm from Taiwan.BX4AL Tony. ICOM 756PROII The screen was dark for a long time. Accidental discovery. 756PRO Series LED Upgrade Kit. Delivery is also very fast.5-6 days to Taiwan.
During installation, there is one place where the welding joint is very small, but it is easy to overcome.At present, only 11% of the machine menu is very bright.
ve3tmt Max Answer any assembly questions with great patience.Easy to assemble. Recommendable.

Thank you
WA2SST Rating: 2019-04-17
Great product and incredible support Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
So I finally got my dream rig of a Icom Ic-756ProIII. I had been looking at it for many years and finally found one that was extremely clean inside and out for a very reasonable price. I guess we can thank Icom for the price reduction on the SDR 7300 that ultimately dropped the price of good used rigs.

The only problem was the CCFL back light did not bring the display to a reasonable intensity. The last production run of the ProIII was, from what I understand, January of 2009. So The rig I purchased had to be at least approaching 10 years old and probably older.

The display did not get any brighter from 65% on the menu to 100%. My thought was the CCFL was failing. So I did some research and found VE3TMT’s LED mod to cure the low display intensity on the ProIII.

I emailed Max Donaghue (VE3TMT) and had some questions about the kit’s installation. Almost immediately he sent me the PDF instructions so I could make up my own mind whether or not I would do the mod.

I decided to do the mod and paid for the kit via PayPal and received the kit a week later in a box that had layer upon layer of bubble wrap to protect the contents. Overall I would say that a week from Canada through customs was a tremendous service.

The kit that I bought did not have the LED driver board assembled. That board has about 10 parts and is well silk screened so assembly was very easy saving a few dollars. The other board is a DC to DC converter taking a 10 VDC 7810 regulator and outputting 13.5VDC so the display does not flicker from any voltage drop during transmission. This board is pre-assembled and the output voltage is set by Max.

The PDF instructions are in full color with step by step disassembly instructions and then step by step instructions to install the LED mod. The only part of the installation that is tricky is picking up the rig’s dimmer circuit. My 66 year old eyes and my soldering hand are not what they once were! So I emailed Max for some alternative suggestions and within minutes (and I mean within minutes) I had a response. The plated through hole that my version of the front panel board was incredibly tiny. I was able to use some of my fly tying wire (guessing 34 gauge) the make that connection.

I followed the instructions provided to set the display brightness and it is incredibly bright. I would bet the farm it is better than new. The display is bright and crisp and clear and the menu dimmer control functions as it should. I wish I could attach a before and after photo of the display. I adjusted the display as to what I thought the 50% default value should be and it looks great when I roll the intensity up or down from the menu in the rig.

Overall I can highly recommend this kit because of the well documented instructions, quality of the kit components and a very fast response with assembly instructions that I had. If you purchase the kit take your time as the disassembly of the display components can be tricky.

If your ic-756Pro series display intensity is not what it once was I would say get the kit and assemble it or as an alternative you can send the front panel board to Max and he will do the mod for a fee. Then all you need to do when you receive the board back from Max is set the desired display intensity and reassemble the radio. The mod was well worth the time and effort because the enclosed LED strip in the kit is rated at 100,000 hours.
W5CAH Rating: 2018-10-11
Icom IC-756PRO display repair/upgrade Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
My 756PRO purchased new in 2000 was suffering a dimming LCD display. I ordered Max Donoghue's (VE3TMT) LED upgrade kit, installed it and am happy to report a successful install and great results. As others have stated take your time and follow the PDF Max provides.