Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes

Reviews For: Yaesu FT-270R

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

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
Review Summary For : Yaesu FT-270R
Reviews: 4MSRP:
Description:
25 Watt VHF Mobile FM Radio
Product is not in production
More Info: http://
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0044.5
KG6AFA Rating: 2012-01-29
Power up problem Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I only used the radio a few times.Took it out the other day and it would not power up.Sent it back to Yaesu but they said that it worked fine.They could not duplicate the problem.They said they will test it again. A great radio so far exept for this. Waiting to see if they find anything.
KC6OND Rating: 2008-07-05
A Solid Performance!!! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This 25watt rig has been around for years. I have run it mobile, and used it as a base. I've had many compliments on how good the audio is. I've gone thru several rigs in the last few years, but it has stayed. Easy to use, great receive. I think I will still have it in another ten years. No issues with this unit ever...And I have worked it hard. 73's Jerry
KD8WK Rating: 2004-08-23
dependable, well-built, mobile rig Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I own an FT-270RH, which is basically an FT-270R with a 45 Watt PA and built-in cooling fan. I bought this tranceiver in 1987 for mobile use. Since then, I've replaced the car, but kept the rig.

The 270 has been a solid performer. Equipped with both the optional subaudible tone board and voice frequency readout, it makes a very capable mobile unit. The audio quality is superb and and it required no internal adjustments out of the box. Receive sensitivity is good an intermod rejection adequate.

The programming is distinctly Yaesu: convoluted but handy once you get the hang of it. Storing an explicit xmit frequency in a memory requires a bit of effort. The rig has ten memories and a variety of scan capabilities.

Negatives: the optional subaudible board works well, but is missing several of the more esoteric tones in use today. The rig has very occasionally glitched, requiring a microprocessor reset (and reprogramming) to fix. Once, when I left the car outside in subzero temperatures, the LCD cracked at the top, resulting in blackness bleeding into the top of the display.

All told, I've been very happy with the FT-270RH, and after surviving 17 years in a mobile environment, I can only rate its overall reliability as an A+.
M0MCX Rating: 2004-01-30
What a fabulous little mobile radio.. Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Compared side-by-side with my TR9000 (another brilliant radio), this is an amazing little VHF mobile rig. I say little because it's about the size of 4 packets of cigarettes with all the controls you'll ever need on the front panel. There's also a microphone based up/down button for easy channel changing and scanning controls. Some of these radios were modified for TX/RX in the 140-150 MHz band (mine is) but it means I can listen to police and emergency services too :)

It's 25 watt (switchable to around 7 watts) output is designed for non-stop duty operation and although it can get fairly hot for long overs, this does not affect the radio in the slightest.

Compared side-by-side with my TR9000 (what an amazing VHF multi-mode that is) there's nothing to choose from them on receive, picking up weak signals with precision and clarity in their stride.

However on transmit, the Yaesu wins every time. Tests involving blind radio reports with other stations - and switching between the TR9000 and the FT-270R gave me some interesting results. I asked each station that if they had to choose on audio alone which radio they would prefer, 100% picked the Yaesu FT-270R.

The build quality is great with an all-metal chassis and hard black-fleck paint job apart from the front panel which is a light silver grey. Although mine must be quite a few years old now, the front panel is immaculate, so I guess they're made pretty well. Antenna connection is via a flying lead with a moulded SO259 socket.

I'll certainly be keeping mine as it outperforms most modern VHF-only radios - certainly on price but perhaps on performance too. I'm so impressed with mine that I've got it in the shack as my primary VHF radio!

Certainly worth a 5/5.

Good luck!