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Reviews For: EMTECH ZM-2 ATU

Category: Antenna Tuners/Matching Networks

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Review Summary For : EMTECH ZM-2 ATU
Reviews: 70MSRP: 65
Description:
Complete kit, all parts furnished
Product is in production
More Info: http://emtech.steadynet.com/zmdesc.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00704.8
JABBATHECAT Rating: 2022-07-11
Great bit of kit! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Built this unit many years ago and it hasn't let me down, happy to recommend...
W5HEH Rating: 2021-12-19
Low Power light weight tuner Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Does a very good job , small and light for portable and Backpacking . I also purchased it with pre-wound toroids cause my thick Hillbilly hands would have trouble , hihi. Went together well , watched youtubes and photos on website to assist.
Well Done Emtech ! 2014

UPDATE 12 2021 - Tuner Kit still going strong,has been bounced around the Shack Work Bench, outside as well.
Survived and still delivers for Fun easy 1st Kit since i was a teen in the 60s ! Highly recommend this for Young and young at heart - very Satisfying when completed . Watch the Videos on youtube for tips - will help . IF some are concerned about label , seen a tip on just clear spray or brush coating Labels for durability , no worries , Have Fun , 73
W9WCR Rating: 2021-11-24
Junk Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Junk and defective. The panel label is paper that should last about 5 minutes before its destroyed. The religious propaganda in the box was a higher quality than the panel label!
No response from seller so had to fight with paypal to get my money back.
Pass on this one before you blow your finals.
AC9XH Rating: 2021-03-20
cant go wrong with an usa kit. this one is a winner!!!!!!!! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
recently bought a zm-2 tuner and have used it on all my rigs.

turned the power down on my icom 746, running a ubitx v6.1,and a patcomm pc500.

I can work into any antenna that i have built.easy to tune,and perfect for qrp work. right now im focusing on ft8 operations and psk and when you get the led quenched,DX comes rolling in. In fact i dont use auto tuner in the icom 746 anymore since i have the power turned down.with the icom 746 on qrp with autotuner i have trouble contacting DX. Now with the zm-2, it brings them onto the screen and im making DX contacts that i have never made before.example: 7500 miles to the southern end of AFRICA.Not bad on 5 watts. i RECOMMENDIT FOR ALL HAMS RUNNING QRP .
AC9XH
VA7NYC Rating: 2020-02-25
Good and well built ATU Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Got mine last week which I ordered pre-built.

When trying to match my (monoband'ed for 20 meters) end-fed EFT-10/20/40 antenna for working on 40m, at first I was not able to do so with the switch in 'GND' position, but after switching to 'Link' I got the perfect VSWR. For 80m and 20m the switch needs to be in GND position as expected. This info can be useful to those using the same antenna.

Other than that, the unit is well built, is a pleasure to use, and just looks and feels aesthetically pleasant.
WA5RR Rating: 2020-02-21
Simple Excellence Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This simple-to-use tuner has performed flawlessly for the past 8 months. I've had it tune all sorts of antennas from dipoles, to wire verticals, and random wires and it hasn't let me down.

The built-in SWR indicator saves me from having to lug around an extra meter. It makes a great companion to my QRP Labs QCX-20 and my uBitX transceivers.
PY1ZB Rating: 2017-09-04
Make antenna really match Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I use ZM2 in the field, having the more diverse and random kings of antennas, and always can find a good match and useful SWR.

It made miracles using longwires at difficult bands like 80m, turning possible QSOs with very low power (QRP).

I really recommend, so I'm buying my second unit.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by PY1ZB on 2016-12-11

It was easy to build and use.

I made lots of contacts using this tuner, even trying smaller antenna size for what was recommended for minimum band size, it worked well.

I recommend.
K7DXT Rating: 2017-07-08
Good Piece of Kit for QRP Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought the EMTECH ZM-2 used about three years ago, but didn't get around to using it much. Last year, I purchased a new Elecraft KX2, but did not order the auto tuner with it. The Emtech works great with the Elecraft, and have been using it in the field with an end fed antenna without any issues. Good little tuner.
ZL2OZ Rating: 2016-11-12
Great Portable ATU Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I ordered and assembled Emtech's ZM-2 about 8 years ago. I wanted a lightweight compact QRP ATU to go with my FT817 and this has certainly filled the bill! I am often in the bush and mountains doing work for NZ's Department of Conservation and needed reliable comms. I have used long wires, split dipoles and single band dipoles with this ATU. It needs careful turning because sometimes the null point is so sharp you can miss it. The LED idea works great. More recently I've been using a doublet to great effect with QRP QSOs around the World.
VK5GI Rating: 2016-08-23
It works! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Ok, it looks crap, for what it is it seems expensive, BUT - IT WORKS. A wet noodle up a tree, dim the led bingo! You are "tuned" up and ready to go. I've aquired three of them over the years and use them all the time for portable ops. Power limit is 15 watts, so it doesn't replace your you-beaut MFJ, but it isn't intended to. It is small and easily packed into your GO bag. I recommend the ZM-2 very highly.