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Reviews For: Gap HEAR IT dsp speaker

Category: Speakers for communications

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Review Summary For : Gap HEAR IT dsp speaker
Reviews: 18MSRP: 159
Description:
Small speaker with dsp unit inside. Connects to speaker out plug of rig. Requires 13.8v, and has 8 possible filters.
Product is in production
More Info: http://
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00184.2
KI7VO Rating: 2013-06-07
You need this one for the older rigs Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I was wondering about the price-but went ahead to help my ear stress on my IC-735. The Notch and like goes so far. Yeah controls are placed awkwardly, but, once you settle on position 4 or 5 you can forget daily fiddling. The unit in line is peaked for voice intelligence. MY voice is not a baritone announcer- nor are most hams either. I always have the unit inline without it is just a lot more distracting and work. The old radios have great transmitters but were shelved because of aging ear tech. The Hear IT is a hearing aid for the both of us. You can run with the young tech loaded rigs again.
MARK42 Rating: 2012-11-07
Poor design Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
While the DSP works fairly well, the ergonomics of this unit are the worst I have ever seen on any product. I can usually overlook poor ergonomics. It isn't all that hard. Once I become used to the way a device works, even ergonomically-challenged receivers like the Sony 7600gr and Drake R8 are a breeze to use, I even learned to love my Sony ICF Pro80. Then there's the other end of the spectrum. A device with such malevolent ergonomics, it actually seems to have been deliberately designed to make a simple device as difficult to use as possible, and no amount of use will ever make things better. In this case familiarity breeds contempt.

The Power/Bypass switch is on the bottom, the DSP in/out switch shares the top with a volume control that works in reverse, is very stiff, and doesn't have a knob to help turn it. There is an audio out jack on the left side. The power jack is on the back along with the hardwired audio input line and the DSP level rotary binary encoder. This encoder comes with a separate knob that has to be inserted into the switch to allow it to be turned. This knob only attaches by friction fit and easily falls off. I wound up using a tiny dot of CA adhesive to keep the knob in place. I'm just thankful I didn't get the previous version that used a dip switch to control the level.

These hideous ergonomics detract so badly from the usability of this device that I can't recommend it even though it does work. I have multiple receivers and don't bother using this device anymore because it's such a hassle. If the four controls were on the front panel, and had real knobs for the volume and DSP level, I'd rate the unit a 4. As it is, I feel I'm being generous giving it a 2.
W0PP Rating: 2012-04-28
Great support Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Though I was only able to use mine a couple of weeks due to medical problems when it quit working I ontacted Rich at Gap via email. He had me mail it back to them to check it out. It took me another month to get it back to them due to additional medical issues. Received a call from Rich and they found the adjustment knob had been smashed into the circuit board when it was shipped to them originally (the knob would never latch in place and it always had issues working). They put a new speaker in UPS for me and hopefully it'll arrive Monday. Great support!
W8NVC Rating: 2011-09-11
The Best Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I cant imagine listening without it.
removes 80% of noise, static, you name it.
i have a plazma tv that when the tv is on i get 20 over 9 Noise level, i switch on the gap Hear it, and its gone.. Once you have and use this Speaker, Youll never go back..
Then theres times that theres a signal i cant pull it out, a low signal like say a 3, i can hear the person talking but i cant make them out,, I switch on the Gap hear it, and i can actually hear them clearly, it drops the Noise, so i can hear them... do yourself a favor, go buy one, youll be pleased...
KJ4DKT Rating: 2010-06-14
CLEARSPEECH vs. GAP Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have the Clear Speech w/spkr and the Gap w/spkr. I would not sell either, as both are nearly identical at removing noise of all kinds. Static crashes: GONE, white noise: GONE, QRM/QRN: GONE. I believe that no other accessory is above these units. Ill keep mine.
N2WUX Rating: 2009-04-07
good Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I bought this unit about six months ago for my home QTH with my YEASU FT-920,hoping that it would perform as well as the "GAP HEAR IT IN LINE MODULE" that I have installed in my mobile with my ICOM 706 MRK IIG.At first,I was very disappointed because even with the audio output level turned all the way up,the speakers volume was very low and the audio quality was very poor.Since it has an external speaker jack ,I tried quite a variety of other speakers but with poor results.A RADIO SHACK amplified speaker solved the volume problem but the audio still sounded very "twangy ".Finally,I was fooling around with the adjustible DSP NOTCH filter on the YEASU,and when I shut it off, " BANG " , the volume level went up about 100% and the audio Quality improved 1000%.I still use the RADIO SHACK speaker and get plenty of volume with no " TWANGYNESS " whatsoever.Next,I tried the same trick with my ICOM 706 in the mobile but it made only a slight difference as I switched the DSP on and off.Now I can copy signals with as little as 1 or 2 "S" units with the YEASU and can easily understand them. N2WUX,BUFFALO N.Y.
W4KVW Rating: 2009-01-19
WHITE NOISE KILLER Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had TWO of these & loved them.I used one with an ICOM 706MII(mobile)& one with an original ICOM 746.They worked GREAT but I traded one with the rig it was on(746)& sold the other after getting rid of the 706MII.I have a GAP "HEAR IT" module on it's way as of tomorrow(1-20-09)to use with an ICOM 271A 2 meter all mode.The HEAR IT speaker was a WHITE NOISE KILLER & made the ears MUCH better on the 746 & 706MII.I'm looking forward to what the HEAR IT module does for the ears & noise level on the OLD 271A.I'll be writing a review on it SOON after some play time & if I were a betting man I'd say the review will be ALL GOOD from past experience with their DSP products! }:>)

CLAYTON
W4KVW
KC8HXO Rating: 2008-05-14
Superb Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Ok-
Yes, it has some hum with NR off, and radio volume all the way down. (Wonder how many contacts he makes THAT way!!????) Turn the volume up, and the hum disappears. Yes, it has some delay... match the speaker volume to your unamplified volume. Then it won't "rip your ears off" during short delay. No RFI in mine, and I run a little power, with open wire feed running right in the shack. No problems with my headphones. If the bracket gets in the way, reverse it, and hang speaker upside down. Only thing then that could then be hard to get at is the bypass switch.... and trust me, you won't want to bypass this little baby.
I would prefer a rotary knob to determine which of 8 levels the DSP operates, but that's really my only small gripe. Still have to give it a 5.
IRONHAND Rating: 2007-07-12
Absolutely Amazing Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I did a lot of research on the different D.S.P solutions by GAP, MFJ, TIMEWAVE and others. I have an Icom 707 with no filters and needed something to help with atmospheric noise. There were several bad reviews here so I decided to buy the Hear It DSP Speaker on E-bay for $90.00 with shipping that’s about ½ the cost of a new one.

This unit preformed perfectly. When I turned my radio on there was 2 s-units of noise then I activated the D.S.P and the noise was gone and I heard 5 different conversations. I am really upset that people would write bad reviews on a unit that will prolong the life of an older rig like this. Next I want to buy either the chip that installs in the radio or external speaker. I would have gone that way in the first place if it wasn’t for the bad reviews I read here. Shame on you!

There is one minor flaw in the unit. When you transmit there is about a ½ second recovery time. Compare that to the fact you may not even be transmitting when you couldn’t here them in the first place and that’s a fair compromise.

This is the best thing I have ever found for voice clarity in radio.
KPAX2 Rating: 2007-04-25
JUNK-O-LA Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I look at this thing as a Gimmic is all, same as all the DSP garbage that's out there.

The RFI wipes it out on transmit, the frequency response is shot to hell, the high ends rip your ears off, the overall tonal response is degraded so it's really not even communications quality audio anymore.

AC HUM in the signal using a poor quality AC ADAPTER.

Like, what is the rants and raves for about this junk anyhow? We like good old fashioned QRM! AT least the frequency response is still there.

It's worth $49.95 -

By the way - Todays technology is far superior than when they released this thing!

They got a product that was released way too soon and wasn't finished correctly.

Just like all the crappy software out there, you're the BETA-TESTER! They read enough complaints, then they'll release a NEW and improved version, disgusting...........

And some people call this good business?

We sold it our after using it, Always a sucker on EBAY I guess.