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Reviews For: Yaesu FT-2800M

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

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Review Summary For : Yaesu FT-2800M
Reviews: 196MSRP: 195.00
Description:
Yaesu 2m Transceiver Introuduced 2/2003. 65 Watt Output,- 4 power levels, 2M Transmit, 134-174 Receive, 219 Memories w/ 6 char AlphaNumeric display, NOAA Weather, CTCSS & DTS encode/decode, rugged case.
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.yaesu.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
001963.7
N7CPU Rating: 2011-06-20
Great after 2 slight mods Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I purchased this from a local at a hamfest, I have been using it for data at full output with long transmission times without a problem and with the heatsink getting slightly warm. The best thing to do with this unit is to go into the engineering menus and turn the high power down to 60w from the 65, this reduces heat on the sink by almost 50%. Tightening down the screws on the RF transistor helps also, they seem to loosen from thermal expansion and contraction over time. Receiver is pretty good for a baseline mobile unit. low intermod, high sensitivity and decent selectivity. The weakest item out of the box is the mic, but I consider included mics as throw away items. a decent shure or an old turner will make an marked improvement in this radio's already great audio
AI4HO Rating: 2011-06-03
No Problems with this rig.. Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I am the second owner of my FT-2800M,and thus far have not had any problems at all with this rig. At first I was leary of buying this because of the poor reviews this rig gets. The previous owner has or rather had 3 of these, and didn't need all 3 so I was the lucky guy that got his excess. All that said...yea, I did have concerns about this rig, so I asked the owner...well ok..I grilled the owner at length about the use, any failures of any parts,etc. Also asked what he did/did not like about the radio, any other points of interest that may be of benefit to me after I get this rig. What happens, I get it and the next day it craps out? He did offer a 5 day money back return if the rig did not preform to my satisfaction.

So, here we are 6-8 months later, the rig sits here in my living room, connected to my Diamond V2000A tri band antenna. I can honestly say that with my rig at least I have not acquired any problems to speak of. I do have a friend in the next town north who will be 85 on Monday 6/6/11.. any time we talk, or he hears me talking to someone, he chimes in with the..Mark, you got a hum on your transmit...OK, if I do why hasn't any one else said anything. I'm on this radio, almost daily, at least its on every day of the week. I may only talk on it 5-6 days a week some times, but this rig does get its use. I really can't find any fault with this rig in any way, shape or form. All in all...65 watts out on 2 meters, hey it works for me and that's all that really matters isn't it?

If you do manage t find one of these rigs, its great as a base rig, which is what I needed it for. I do have an FT-8900R which covers 10,6,2, 70cms. it to is an excellent rig, but this review isn't about that radio is it? See my review on the 8900, if you want. Would I buy another one? Don't know, maybe if the price was right, I got this one for $90 shipped. If I could find another that is as good as this one..yea I would. Take it from there folks, its not a bad radio, at least in my estimation, thank you all who take the time to read this post.

Remember our troops as they take the fight to the enemy day after day. Freedoms isn't free, there is always a cost involved.


de Mark
W3LZK
DV1UBY Rating: 2011-04-05
BAD, AWFUL RADIO! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I WILL NOT BUY ANY RADIO FROM YAESU/VERTEX-STANDARD EVER AGAIN! MY FT-2800M >>> ANOTHER MASS PRODUCED PRODUCT FROM CHINA, MEANING THEY ARE POORLY MADE AND THE HAVE A VERY POOR QUALITY!

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Earlier 4-star review posted by DV1UBY on 2009-02-21

This rig is a good receiver. Also, you don't have to install an exhaust fan for this rig. It is very evident that the rig's heat sink really works! For me this Yaesu FT-2800M is recommedable!
PA3CTG Rating: 2011-02-23
No RF ouput, bad pre-driver 2SK3075 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
The good: Large display, large frequency dial knob, robust casing, high RF output power, good TX modulation, high AF power when external speaker used & lots of settings possible.

The bad: after a couple of months suddenly no RF output anymore. Found the pre-diver (2SK3075) bad. This one cannot be removed using a solder iron, you need special hot air gun. Luckily we had one at my work. Unfortunately the 2SK3075 is hard to find in Europe. I replaced it with a RD15HVF1. Added some heat sink metal to fix the TO-220 case on. Also found the 470uF/16volt capacitor bad(AF DC decoupling). It was mounted wrong! Minus should point to the center of the PCB! I also had to replace the fuse holder because it burned(contact resistance @ 15Amp fuse).

Tested the radio on my Marconi 2945A and put it back in my car. The radio works fine for some time now. Hope it stays like this. The radio is good value for money, it only has some flaws.

Hint: only use high RF power for 1 minute max. or use (create) forced air cooling.

73' Harm
N0HSM Rating: 2011-02-22
Another bad final Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
The good: The radio gets good audio reports from fellow hams. It has a decent receiver. The large display is great!

The bad: This radio has a problem with the final output transistor. I should have read done better homework on eHam before purchasing. However, it should not take the misfortune of other hams before Yaesu admits they have a problem.

Now looking for something else. I will stay away from Yaesu.
K4CLL Rating: 2011-02-21
A big disappointment Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought 2 of these at different times. The first had a hum when certain tones were programmed in it. People were always telling me I had a DC hum. The second had such bad audio out that you had to eat the mic or people complained they couldn't hear me. I went Icom and have none of these issues. I honestly expected better from Yaesu. I know it is a cheap rig, but others in the same price range are working fine.
KG4FMQ Rating: 2011-02-12
Not too bad! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had this radio for more than 4 years. It does everything that it is suppose to do. It has always put out the full power. It is built like a tank. The only issue I have had is low audio with the radio. I did some research, and found that there is a hidden menu that has many other features, but be careful!!! The hidden menu will allow you to boost the audio with out doing the mic mod. Anyway, this rig has been solid, and thats the only reason I could not give it a 5. On a side note, I would not put this rig, or the 2600 in a mobile, due to the mic cords over time will become brittle, and split.

73,
KG4FMQ
ON7PAT Rating: 2010-11-14
disgrace...saga continues Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Picked it back up after warranty repair...boxed it up to bring back 2 hours later...now it cuts back its RF power when it gets hand-warm...on 10 watt...

great engineering innit??

to be continued...


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Earlier 0-star review posted by ON7PAT on 2010-11-07

Had this radio from NIB,it just decided, it had enough mid TX and went "stone dead",cold without warning...
Never used it on more then 10 watt, so it never got hot and the finals never were taxed to their supposed potential.
I'll bring it back to the shop, as it its still covered by warranty, and they better do something about it fast!
If this is the best Yaesu can come up with...I'll be looking at other brands.
Besides my FT 60, this is the first new Yaesu I have ever bought, and if this isn't sorted out good and proper from the first go, it will also be the last new Yaesu I will ever buy...
PA1HR Rating: 2010-10-24
Still excellent after 100,000 miles! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
After 2,5 years and about 100,000 miles I still love my FT-2800M in my car! No problems at all, even at high power all the time. Excellent reports. Very easy to operate. Very large and excellent readable display. Excellent features. I am very satisfied with this mobile transceiver!
KA4CUE Rating: 2010-08-05
Very Good Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I installed it in my Motor home back in '04 and it has worked great. Gets good reports where ever we go with a quarter wave through the glass mounted antenna. Plenty of audio for the enviroment its in on the road. I use the voltage display to keep me updated about the coach batteries. Wx is a nice feature on the road also. Its a stout rig for the money and I recommend it and would buy another.