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Reviews For: ICOM IC-756PRO2

Category: Transceivers: HF Amateur HF+6M+VHF+UHF models - non QRP <5W

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Review Summary For : ICOM IC-756PRO2
Reviews: 152MSRP: 2969.95 Street
Description:
HF+6m Transceiver
Product is in production
More Info: http://WWW.ICOMAMERICA.COM
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
001524.5
TG9AKH Rating: 2006-01-23
Great Radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The ICOM IC-756PRO2 is everything I expected, and more. I have not experienced any problems with it. The radio warms up on TX if operated at max output power (slightly over 100W according to an external power meter). It also stays cool during RX. All features work as advertised, with the auto-notch and noise reduction really exceeding my expectations.

In a quiet shack, with no other audio sources being active, the rig's internal fan is a little noisier than I would like it to be. However, I have found this to be most problematic when operating FM at max power in 10m, a situation that rarely demands a really quiet environment. Heating in SSB, AM and digimodes is much less pronounced and hence, fan noise is really not an issue.

Overall, this is a wonderful rig. If I had the spare cash I would probably by the PRO2, or its younger brother, the PRO3, again. NO regrets. Just a wonderful experience.
NE0P Rating: 2005-10-04
Good but needs some improvements Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I had an Icom 756PRO2 a couple of months ago, and overall it is a great rig. Very quiet receiver, good DSP noise reduction, and the DSP filters work nicely. Glad that Icom also included a manual IF notch. There were a few things that needed improving in this rig:

1. It runs really hot. I left it on receive only for 2 hours or so and it was hot to the touch-felt like my TS2000 does after running RTTY for awhile.

2. You can't get 100 watts out on SSB. Maybe 75 or so according to the power meter on the 756PRO2. My 756 original put out 100 watts according to its meter. I have heard others make this same complaint, so it wasn't just my rig.

3. The NB really doesn't do anything except increase the IMD on the band. THe NB in my 756 original was much better.

4. What is with this 10 second boot up sequence when turning on the rig? Other DSP based radios don't do that. I think Icom just added it to make you feel like you have some sort of powerful processor inside. It was kind of annoying.

For some reason the 756PRO2 just didn't feel like a top of the line rig when operating. It was a nice rig and did a good job, but didn't feel like a $3000 radio. I replaced it with a FT1000MP which does dual receive better and seems just as quiet, and does seem like a competition grade radio. I do miss the bandscope and dual receive on 6 though.
W4FED Rating: 2005-05-29
if i had ony knew... Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
if i had only knew the 756pro2 was the radio it is i would have had one at least two years ago. i was running the kenwood ts-2000 and thought all the 756pro2 talk was just "icom sales hipe". boy was i wrong. i decided to sell my 2000 and replace it with a high-end radio with minimal difference to pay. my decision to get a "mint, just like new, 756pro2" was based on a friend of mine having one. this ic-756pro2 has to be the best radio that has ever set in my shack console, bar none. the most effective menu system, yet the easiest to configure. the best dsp noise reduction and usable signal to noise separation i have ever seen. i dont know all the fine discriptive nomenclature of every component of the radio, but i do know it has really helped me enjoy the hobby by providing a quality product to support my radio activity. i still run several different radios in the console for the use on different bands, at different times of the day. i usually run the 756pro2 on 75m in the evening, through the amp and external tuner. the others are hooked directly to the wire antenna through the same daiwa 4-position switch. i run tests from time to time on the yaesu 920 and the kenwood 850 comparing the receive against the pro2. most of the time the pro2 will hear more usable signals than the other two with them real close with the audio to noise less effective. i used to run a 746 also and found the receive to be excellent also. by the way, you should also know, this operation is with all preamps OFF. if the pro3 is as much better than the pro2 as the icom folks say, well i guess i'll have to get one as soon as the "mint, like new" ones hit the market at a much more affordable price. thanks for reading and i hope to talk to you on the hf bands very soon...

mike/w4fed


----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by W4FED on 2005-02-06

if i had known that the pro2 was the radio it is i would have had one a year ago. i recently purchased one in "like new condition" from "the ham station". i sold the ts-2000 i had and replaced it with the pro2. i was not unhappy with the ts-2000, i was just ready to replace it with another radio that also peaked my interest. the first evening i had the pro2, i knew it was going to be a great radio. everything from the receive and the signal to noise ratio to the ease of menu programing, makes it a keeper. i now have had it for a month and have given it a permanent spot in the shack console slot. the active scope shows all the activity on a portion of any band i select, saving me the time of dialing around only to find inactivity. the multi digital meter shows all readings (alc,po,alc,comp,&swr) at a glance. the selections for the lcd screen and fonts also make it more enjoyable to look at and to opperate. with all the controls on the front of the radio vs some on the rear, makes it more user friendly. the filter selections and band pass tuning gives the ultimate reception for the worst operating conditions at times. i also use a boom mounted studio type mic and it matches up great the amount of drive needed to get the output needed for non-amp and amplifier use, without having to change the settings.

i could continue all day with this, but i wont, if you are looking for a full featured hf and 6m radio, the ic-756pro2 will be a good selection for you and hope you enjoy it as much as i have and plan to enjoy mine...
WA3BTA Rating: 2005-04-01
Great rig! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I was somewhat apprehensive getting this rig as I had not been active in many years and all previous rigs had been analog, so I worried some that the learning curve would be steep. However, I immediately found that the basic operation was very simple and only a few "key (button) combinations" needed to learned to get immediately on the air and running. The automatic antenna tuning (and memory!) is fantabulous! With my Carolina Windom up ~40 feet, I can work DX that I never imagined before (and here we are almost in the sunspot trough). Working split frequencies (DX) was very easy to master. The only difficulty was that it took many re-readings to figure out what was the proper way to set up for digital (e.g. PSK etc) operation...and even the factory techs didn't have it right.
W6MAX Rating: 2005-03-26
Great Radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had this radio 1 year now and still runs flawlesly I would recomend this radio to anyone A+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ all the way
KA2SEY Rating: 2005-02-07
Excellent Rig Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I owned my pro 2 about three months now, made many contacts in that time. Got alot good reports back also. Lately working more CW. I owned a Yaesu FT 1000MP and found in comparison. Two things - the first is you no-longer have to buy all the filters - like the 1000 and 2nd it seems to have a quicker duty cycle on CW. Much more responsive than the 1000. Don't get me wrong they are both great rigs. Just choose this over the FT 1000MP for that reason. Either rig is a great buy. The filtering is a little different over the Yeasu. Has a little of a tin-can sound. You have to listen really carefully to hear tho. Very pleasant on tone (receive) while working CW and Voice is exceptionally. Has a broadcast style sound. Very clean! I'm happy with mine, and will come back in a few more months and let you know more. I owned alot HF rig's some old and some newer - this look's like a keeper. 73
AA2T Rating: 2005-01-30
Great but not perfect Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just have the rig for a week or so. Most of the high points have been covered by others, only minor nit issues:

Small controls for mic gain etc.. poor ergonomically.. better not be "fat fingered".
Memory doesn't seem to remember the split setting and shift.
Find the preamps pretty noisy compared to other rigs.
NR works ok, but not as good as clearspeech speaker.
Takes a bit for LCD brightness to come up when in a cool place.
KE4KVW Rating: 2005-01-29
PERFECT AGAIN!!! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have had my PROII since June 2004(7 months)and I have found NOTHING I do NOT like about it!The bandscope and optional display settings are nice.Looks like a NEW rig on my desk every time I change the display options.I use an I-Mate so the bandscope is ALWAYS looking me in the eye.I am an ICOM man and the PROII looks VERY NICE sitting next to my ORIGINAL 746(or ANY desk).The menu is VERY simple and even better since ALL of my ICOMS have almost the same menu(756 PROII,746,706MII mobile).This rig is simple to operate,sounds GREAT (LOUD)on the air,& hears what others do NOT & can NOT I think!I can NOT even think how the NEW PROIII can be BETTER but leave it to ICOM and it can happen!All in all as I said, "PERFECT"rig in my book.ClaytonKE4KVW
KG6GAC Rating: 2005-01-28
Great Radio Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Great Radio A++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
W6VA Rating: 2004-12-02
Scope is Addictive Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Superb rig. Great sound on receive and I get excellent audio reports from everyone and I'm still using the original hand microphone that comes with the rig.

The spectrum scope is totally addictive and I tune by sight first and then fine tune by audio.
I can review an entire segment of the band at a glance and see where the action is and where the clear frequencies are. I'm dazzled by the scope and never tire of looking at the display on a busy band. I don't see how you can use a rig without one. Going back to a non scope rig would be like operating blind.

The internal AT works great and handles most any SWR imbalance.

On the downside I have to say I see almost no results from the NR and the NB only works on the most basic of ignition type interference. I hear that the ProIII may be much better in this regard. I just gave up on using the NR since it seemed to make things worse, not better.

I don't understand why Icom couldn't have put some white markers on the various pots such as the Dual Watch balance control, Notch, AF gain, etc. Black on black just doesn't make it when trying to figure out what position the pot is in.
They do it on the tiny little pots at the bottom.
Which also is a complaint since these tiny little pots could have been a little bigger.

Overall though these are minor complaints and I have to rate the rig a 5. A delight to work with
and almost transparent to use once things have been set up.

One other problem and that was an initial defect in the rig which was repaired under warranty but entailed the incovenience of having to pack it up and sending it back to Icom for almost a month. In a rig of this price I'd think the quality control could have been better.

As someone else pointed out the RTTY is pretty small, you almost have to put your nose on the scope to read it. It would have been nice for them to have provided a VGA output for a bigger monitor. I understand they didn't provide this on the ProIII either. Only reserved for IC7800 owners. Too bad since it would have been easy for them to do.

All in all a great rig with a few flaws, but is there any perfect rig out there yet?