Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes
Reviews Home

Reviews For: Kenwood TS-850

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

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
Review Summary For : Kenwood TS-850
Reviews: 137MSRP: 1,999.99
Description:
High Performance HF Transceiver with full coverage receiver
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.qsl.net/sm7vhs/radio/kenwood/ts850/ts-850.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
23.51374.8
AE9DX Rating: 2021-01-22
Excellent radio Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I recently purchased my third TS-850S. Why I ever sold the first two I have no idea. This is a late model with a 60 mil serial number. For a non-DSP radio, this has one of the best receivers out there.. I can hear CW signals on this rig that I can't using my Icom 7800. I added the filters for CW and SSB and the radio shines. If you can find a late serial number radio at a reasonable price, don't hesitate to buy it. The ease of use and not having to scroll through menus is a real joy.
VE4JIM Rating: 2020-08-13
Big yellow taxi Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Joni Mitchel's song about her old man
My TS-850 went south on me because of a proximity lightning strike which took out a diode in the front end. It is back in service after being on the gurney for nearly 3 months and now I know what I was missing. My Yaesu ft 990 is OK it gets me out it hears but it ain't no Kenwood. Welcome back OM
The receiver in the 850 is so nice to use and the lack of menu driven features makes it a keeper.
This is the second 850 that I have owned. The first one got talked out of me in favour of an 870 which I never was very fond of not like this one. I am now on the hunt for a newer s/n 850 which no one seems to part with...I wonder why??
Jim VE4JIM
K7FD Rating: 2019-11-30
A return to simpler times Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I recently had the opportunity to add a very late serial number TS-850S to the operating position. Always admired this radio but never owned one until now. What a joy to use!

High points of this radio are excellent receiver, articulate transmit audio, solid build quality, weighted VFO knob, & no menus to navigate...all in a beautiful looking package.

John K7FD

K0SRB Rating: 2019-08-10
Replacement CAR unit boards available Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Bought mine in 1999 when I upgraded from a tired old ts-440. This radio has an excellent receiver. It is very sensitive and has great selectivity. Mine had the issue with leaking caps and damaged dds chips. Fortunately I found some good replacement chips and had it fixed. The good news now is there is a replacement board that has been developed. It is available on ebay currently 8-2019 for $250 which is reasonable considering the scarcity of the dds chips anymore. Search for "car unit 6631 kenwood ts 850 on ebay and you should come up with the seller.
VE3TMT Rating: 2018-10-29
Still a classic Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Recently picked up another TS-850S. I believe this is my 6th one in my 28 years as a ham. That should tell you something. I was lucky enough to find a 51mil series at a very good price. It has the 2nd generation DDS chips, and no leaking caps, I checked. Did the sidetone mod, the NB mod and the BCB mod. It came with the 500Hz CW filter in the 455 IF, and I have the 500Hz and 270Hz filters on the way for the 8.83 IF. I forgot just how good these radios are. My first two contacts gave me glowing reports. I use a KOSS SB40 headset/mic directly into the mic jack on the front. It's getting hard to find these for sale with the updated DDS chips, look for radios with 40mil or higher serial numbers. This one will not be leaving the shack anytime soon. The previous radio was a TenTec Pegasus, which was a nice radio, but I grew tired of having to click the mouse so much to operate.

----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by VE3TMT on 2008-01-15

With all the current reviews on the FT950 and FT2000 not really praising those models, perhaps it is time to go back a little. I do not consider the TS850 to even be in the same league as the Yaesu models, but for what it does do, it does it well.

One of the highest rated receivers ever to be tested in the ARRL labs, no complicated menus to navigate, and that renowned Kenwood audio make the TS850 one of the best used radios on the market. Split frequency is easy. Set VFO B to your TX freq, and hit the split button, couldn't be simpler. I wouldn't waste money on a narrow SSB filter as the IF SLOPE tuning does an adequate job for casual SSB operations. Invest in a set of CW filters and you will have one great radio for CW, PSK and RTTY work. My 850 is used for all the RTTY contests and it will put out 100w all day long without breaking a sweat.

I have fitted mine with an internal RS232/TTL converter so it is a simple matter of hooking up a serial cable to run it from the computer. Try to get one in the 40 million serial range or higher, it will have the new DDS chips in it. The early units were prone to failure.

Keep in mind these radios were discontinued in 1996 so there are bound to be some beaters out there. But if you can find a late model unit in good condition I guarantee it won't be going back to the dealer for a refund or showing up on a swap listing two months after you buy it.
M0HDX Rating: 2015-12-02
Love Mine Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I use my ts-850 on a daily basis and often compare it side by side with my yaesu ft-1000 mk5 and prefer the ts-850 receiver for pulling in the extremely weak signals,Transmitted audio is always good using the standard mc-43 fist microphone producing good clear punchy audio ideal for working dx.The ts-850 is simple to use with no complicated menus to navigate and they dont get much better than this.My ts-850 is one of the first production run models with a 200 serial number (88-89) so i recently had the electrolytic capacitors on the carrier oscillator board changed.The electrolytics leak their electrolyte, corroding the PCB and losing capacitance until the board eventually packs up so always worth checking if you have a early ts-850 for leakage.The early DDS chips were problematic and my board had them changed at some point.

The station manager might go but my ts-850 is here to stay.

jimmy M0HDX
SA3AYF Rating: 2015-09-04
Wow, beats many new DSP rigs Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought one of these for the equivalent of $350 of an OM as a cheap rig while being away from my home QTH for 1,5 years.

Now I still use this as my main radio, and have sold my IC-7000... I also use it as the exciter for my 2m transverter whit outstanding results !

All filters but on one was installed, and I have added the last CW-filter after purchase myself.

There is something very special about real analouge mechanical filtering that can not be reproduced by any DSP, IF or AF doesn´t matter.

The ones complaining about the NB may have overlooked the fact that there are 2 (!) NB´s available in the rig with different usages ?

The tuner is very fast and wnderfully quiet, compared to the noisy ATU´s with chattering relays in search of a matching fixed value.
This one is quiet, smooth and much wider than the standard "max 3:1" -tuner on modern rigs.

Servicing, well these radios were built with the intention of actually being possible to repair, should something go wrong.
I had to replace a cap on the CAR-board, which was a breeze compaired to servicing anything in my previous IC-7000 (which I had to do as well even tough it was 15 years younger) !

In short, this rig is awesome in it´s selectivity, filtering and audio. The passband shift and NB is working as it should, no menus and everything up-front.

If you can find one, its VERY much radio for no money at all.

And oh, if you are thinking about a remote station, this is a perfect choice !
W4BDX Rating: 2015-06-17
Dependable Rig Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Had this rig for over 3 years now, purchased on ebay send out to Jankeelectronics for complete service. Haven't had any issues with it and is very dependable. The receive compared to other radios of its class in IMO is easyer to listen to with a soft mellow sound. The Tx with only 100 watts has enough punch to brake in any pile up considering that you have a good antenna backing it up. Many compliments from other stations had been given on its audio quality and signal reports. If I can hear it they can hear me every time. If you pick one up just ensure to ask if all known issues had been done, all of them are recorded on the web. If that is the case you will have great fun operating this station, very easy to operate and a pleasure to listen to all of this for an affordable price. They still sell for about $600 to $9-- based on their conditions and modifications. I recomend this radio as long as it has been recently serviced and all known issues taken care of! 73
KE4ZHN Rating: 2015-04-26
A solid rig Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had one of these with the DSP100. The transmit is excellent as with most Kenwood's. Mine was used when I got it and the display failed on it. I fixed it myself but it was a bit of a pain. Other than that the rig was trouble free. A good receiver but not great. Unless you option in some pricey filters this rig in stock form is pretty noisy and does not cope too well with adjacent frequency splatter. The notch filter worked fine but no auto notch. If you want a rig on a budget, finding one of these that hasn't been butchered is still a good find. However, they are getting long in the tooth now and are subject to capacitor issues and other things that come with age. Parts are tough to come by as well. One of the best rigs Kenwood ever made. I wish they still made rigs with the nice displays and ergonomics of these classics. The new all plastic rigs look and feel so cheesy. These rigs had a solid feel and look and were good performers in their day.

----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by KE4ZHN on 2006-04-10

Ive only had mine a short time but already I love this rig. Its everything I need in a rig and more. My trusty 450 served me well for a good many years but this rigs not going anywhere anytime soon. The only things I dont like about it are the rear mounted vox controls and the BC band attenuation built into the receiver. This has been fixed with a simple mod to the RF board and now the rig makes a very enjoyable BC band receiver as well as a SW receiver. The transmitter is excellent, I get compliments on my TX audio often and I dont use any external gear to enhance it. All in all a great rig in its class that seems to be able to hold its own against even more modern radios.
K5RWD Rating: 2015-04-26
Great but, receiver not so much. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I agree with most of the positive reviews of this rig, it is an outstanding performer on the transmit side of things. However, I will have to agree with the few reviewers who are at odds with the receiver. If you have never used a unit with decent receive, then you may not be able to understand the issue. Even with filters enabled, this radio (And the TS-450) are very noisy, and will start to fatigue you if you listen to long. I believe the rig to be just too aggressive on the receive side and it's just not quiet. The AIP helps some, but if you compare this rig to something like a Yaesu FT-101 or some of the old boat anchor receivers, you will hear a huge difference. I have done side by side comparisons with these other radios, and the difference if very noticeable. With that said, I will never let this unit go, with a few mods this radio is a top audio performer on transmit, probably the best you can get before you get into digital SDR and the like. Be careful with the older Serial number radios, the issues with some components in the radio are well documented, as the other reviewers have already stated.

Cheers!