I recently purchased and have returned a new FTDX-9000mp transceiver to Yaesu. The transceiver arrived with an issue, related to the Sub-VFO knob that would wobble when rotated. It would have been the second 9K I have owned. The previous one did not have any issues like this whatsoever. It was perfect, as a radio of that caliber should.
I contacted Yaesu about the issue for assistance. Tim Factor asked for documentation and photos of the issue. No problem, I sent a video. However, he said he did not see an issue, and asked for another video. I sent a second video. Then he said, he looked at one they have on display, and it does the same thing, so it's within specification.
He sent me a video of that display unit, but it did not show the same issue. So, I don't know what he was trying to prove. All I asked to do, was to exchange a $50 knob on a new $12,000 radio. He refused to help, and acted as if he kept denying the issue existed, I would go away.
Leaving me no recourse, and killing what little confidence remained that I had in Yaesu service. I decided it would be best if I returned the transceiver. Even the retailer noted the issue was plainly visible in the video I sent, and was clearly displeased how it was handled by Yaesu.
Eventually, I was contacted by Mr. Factor's supervisor, finally offering to exchange the knob. However, that was too little too late, I'd had enough of Yaesu's BS. This is the second time, I've had poor dealings with Yaesu Service, and Mr. Factor. The last time it was over a FTDX-3000, that would not operate correctly with a Quadra Amplifier. In that case, Yaesu could duplicate the issue on the bench in California, but kept insisting it was somehow something in my station at fault or I did not have the ALC set correctly. I repeatedly told them, I had taken the radio to another amateur's station, who also owned a Quadra and the problem continued there as well. I also told them, I had no other issues with the 10 other transceivers I owned when used with the Quadra. Yet, Yaesu service kept making irrelevant suggestions as to ways I should modify my station and other nonsense.
After months of battling with them over the FTDX-3000. I was given a choice, either accept the faulty radio back, or accept a refurbished radio to replace the new one I had purchased.
Enough is enough, never again will I purchase anything from Yaesu, unless I can simply throw it away if there is a problem. Lesson learned, Yaesu's motto seems to be "the customer is always wrong".
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Earlier 0-star review posted by AB4D on 2016-07-15
I recently concluded a failed effort to have Yaesu USA perform a repair under warranty. The problem, when using a FTDX-3000D transceiver with my Yaesu Quadra amplifier. The SSB audio would distort, whenever the ALC line was connected to control drive to the amplifier. Testing with several other transceivers did not duplicate the problem at my station. Using the FTDX-3000 at another station that also has a Quadra, the problem was present there as well. Transmitting into a dummy load, also showed the issue was present. In December 2015, I contacted Tim Factor, Service Manager at Yaesu USA, for assistance. When I described the problem, he immediately suggested that excessive mic gain was the cause of the issue. Based on his suggestion, I tried all manner of settings, but I could not resolve the issue.
Upon my insistence, I sent the radio to Yaesu USA for warranty repair. Yaesu service was able to duplicate the problem on the bench. Yet, Mr. Factor would not acknowledge there is a defect with the radio. Rather, he was adamant, that excessive mic gain was still the cause. I was told, no repair was necessary, and I was instructed that when the radio was returned, to set the mic gain no higher than "11" and I should only use the stock MH-31 hand microphone. As far as Yaesu was concerned, the issue was resolved. I asked if they checked other modes as well, to ensure there was no issue with any of the other modes? He admitted they had not, and indicated no intention to do so, because I only mentioned a problem with SSB. It was clear, Mr. Factor really had no genuine interest in finding the actual root cause of the problem.
The radio was returned to me without any repair attempt by Yaesu. I set the mic gain to "11" as suggested by Tim Factor. However, what I quickly discovered, with the mic gain set so low, the radio would not drive the Quadra to full output. Thus, there is little to no ALC voltage being generated, so it only temporary masks the issue. When I increased the mic gain to achieve adequate drive, the problem returned. Rather than fix the issue while the radio was under warranty. Apparently, Mr. Factor thought he found a simple trick to circumvent the issue.
I had previously owned another FTDX-3000D, that I used with the same Quadra Amplifier, and did not have any issues with distortion. The usual mic gain setting for my voice is 18, which gives an ALC reading of about 60% of full ALC meter scale deflection. I spoke to a number of other hams using the FTDX-3000D and the Yaesu Quadra, and none of them are required to have the mic gain set so low, or use the stock microphone, and none of them have experienced a similar issue with distortion. I also shared this information with Mr. Factor, but he ignored that information, and was still persistent that excessive microphone gain was the cause of the problem. I concluded what I already suspected. The FTDX-3000D I own has a unresolved defect within the ALC circuit.
Dissatisfied with the repair effort, I sent a follow up email to Mr. Factor and Mikio Maruya, Vice President of Customer Service, notifying them the problem was still present, and asked if they had any further interest in resolving the issue under warranty. However, neither of these individuals responded to my request. In frustration and a due to a lack of response. I gave up, and assumed that Yaesu had no intention of honoring the warranty on my new radio or performing the repair.
Then something odd happened. A few months later at the end of April 2016, I was contacted by Wesley Gray of Yaesu Customer Service, asking if I still had the problem. He made a few suggestions of using ferite beads to resolve the issue, as he suggested it could be RFI related to my station. However, it seemed he was completely ignoring or wasn't aware that, Yaesu service had already duplicated the issue on the bench, so it wasn't location specific. He asked for a few more facts about the problem, which I provided, and said he would speak to his supervisor about the issue and would get back to me. I felt elated and redeemed, and foolishly believed that Mr. Gray was interested in helping me resolve this issue. A few weeks passed, and I had not heard anything from Mr. Gray. So I began sending him emails about every other week. However, despite emails asking for status and the courtesy of a response, I haven't had a response from anyone at Yaesu USA. Yesterday, I sent Mr. Gray a final email, asking for status. Yet again, he has choose to ignore my message.
There once was a time when I thought Yaesu gear and their service was very good. It appears, those days are gone. I've purchased a significant amount of gear from Yaesu over the past 25 years, including a new FTDX-9000MP. One would think, that Yaesu would be interested in helping a loyal customer and retaining their customer base. However, I think I've learned my lesson about buying products from Yaesu. Based on this experience, it's highly doubtful that any future purchases will bear the Yaesu name. BUYER BEWARE! |