Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes

Reviews For: MFJ 1700C

Category: Antenna Switching, Phasing, Controllers

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
Review Summary For : MFJ 1700C
Reviews: 24MSRP: $99
Description:
This deluxe high power Antenna/Transceiver Switch has two ceramic rotary switches that let you select 1 to 6 antennas and 1 to 6 transceivers in any combination.
You can also plug in an antenna tuner, wattmeter, linear, etc so it is always connected to the antenna and transceiver selected.
Handles 2kW PEP for 50-75 Ohm loads. Unused terminals are automatically grounded. Has SO-239 connectors. Covers 1.8 - 30MHz. 10x3x1 1/2 inches.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/products.php?prodid=MFJ-1700C
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00243.7
AE7NN Rating: 2022-01-20
Do not change rotary switch positions with equipment on. Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I blew out, made it so that the sound is muffled, the preamplifier(s) of my Yaesu FTDX 3000D by rapidly changing the antenna selector switch from 1 to 6 while the Yaesu FTDX 3000D was on, of my MFJ-1700C, moral of this story is that electronic equipment is very sensitive to static electricity so do not change the positions of a rotary switch, in this case the switch on an MFJ-1700C, while the equipment connected to it is on, good equipment other than that as far as I can tell. I had similar experiences with other equipment i.e. a Yaesu FL-101 High Frequency Transceiver and a Heathkit IM-28, VOM. The above problem really sticks out if you rapidly switch back and forth a rotary switch when the equipment is on and not switched off.
G8FXC Rating: 2021-02-25
Not bad, but observe the specified frequency range Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I've got multiple rigs and antennae and wanted a comprehensive switching arrangement. Knowing MFJ's reputation for poor quality control, I opened it before installation and inspected it. It seemed to be decently assembled with no screws missing or dry joints. I was also concerned about the isolation levels - certainly don't want to destroy the front end of any of my rigs - so rather than take someone else's word for it, I hooked it up to a VNA and measured the isolation levels.

The numbers were not bad but not as good as I had hoped. At 1MHz I was getting better than 80dB isolation between transceiver inputs. This dropped off to something over 50dB at 20Mhz and down to less than 40dB between some inputs at 30MHz. Running 100W - as I do - these numbers should be good enough to protect your rigs, but they certainly could be better.

I was puzzled by the differences between the ports which were quite significant, so I decided to do some further measurements. Unused inputs are grounded which should help increase the isolation but I found that some of the inputs were showing a significant fraction of an ohm between the centre pin and PL259 body when they should have been grounded. I buzzed around with a good meter and the reason became obvious. MFJ rely on the path through the case to complete the ground connection. That case is aluminium and painted - I guess they scrape the paint and oxide layer off the aluminium before they install the switches and PL259 sockets, but some of the components were still not very well grounded. I ran a reasonably thick wire round all the sockets, capturing it under the nut of the fixing screw and soldered it to the ground tab on the switch. A retest showed less than 0.1 ohms (the lower limit of my meter resolution) on all sockets and the VNA showed moderately improved and consistent isolation between ports.

The isolation still drops off to something like 43 dB at 30MHz. This should be enough if you run 100W, but do your own sums if you run more. I didn't measure it above 30MHz- which is what MFJ claim as the upper frequency - but isolation was dropping off quite quickly at that point, so don't push your luck and try to go higher in frequency!

G8FXC (Martin)
KD9NTD Rating: 2020-05-20
Bad switch, not willing to risk another one Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I am not an MFJ hater, I own several of their products and all have been good except this. I had high SWR on every radio when using it, and lost 90 percent of my signal. I worked on my station for hours, making sure I had good coax cables and that I had things hooked up correctly. I finally disassembled the switch and had a peek inside, all solder joints looked good actually, and I saw nothing wrong mechanically so this left me puzzled. For some reason, it worked good only when one transceiver was connected to it. But as soon as I added more, it went to pot. I did like the fact that you could use one single watt meter and tuner on multiple radios, so I really wanted this to work. It would have been a great solution. But sadly it was unusable so I had no choice but to return it. KD9NTD
PY2KNK Rating: 2018-10-01
highly recommended Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I am very satisfied with this basin antenna commutator, it has no problems of bad contact, it really works very well so you want to work with multiple radios and linear amplifiers.

I recommend,

73

PY2KNK
G0TMX Rating: 2017-05-26
Dont understand the bad press.. Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I've owned this antenna switch for nearly a year now. It is connected to my HF AND antennas for 50Mhz & 70Mhz.. as a 'passive' switch, it works flawlessly on all the antennas right upto and including 70Mhz. The switching is positive and leaves you in no doubt as to which rig is connected to which antenna. I have had no issues with poor construction nor RF flash over - although I do tend to only run 50w as a normal power level here in the UK. The unit replaced 2x cumbersome 4 way SO239 switches, and I can say it has presented me with the flexibility I was after in a much neater, single unit design that I was using hitherto.. I'm very pleased with it.
W3FOX Rating: 2015-07-10
Don't Buy It Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I bought this switch less than a year ago.. My rig runs 100watts. The switch worked great up until about a week ago. I have six antennas attached and frequently switch between them. The contacts on the switch are no longer making a good connection and have to wiggle the switch to try and an get a good connection. The problem is getting worse and worse. I suspect the quality of the contacts are not adequate for frequent switching. I would not recommend buying it. Looking to replace it with a better quality product, even if it costs more.
EI8KF Rating: 2014-08-15
Excellent switch at a very good price! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I recently bought an MFJ-1700C to switch 2 radios, a Kenwood TS-570 and TS-850 between 2 antennae, a Hustler vertical and a Comet H-422. It works perfectly!!

I've read so many bad reviews of MFJ gear that I was a little nervous about ordering it. I checked out a couple of other solutions on the web but felt that the 1700C would meet my needs at the best price.
When it arrived I shook the package and sure enough, there was something loose inside. I opened up the unit and noticed a nut had worked loose, nothing major, a very simple and quick fix.

When I'd set it up on my desk I discovered another great advantage of this unit. I had considered adding another sensor to my LP-100A wattmeter but for practically half the cost of the conversion kit and sensor I'm able to meter both rigs through the COM jack on the 1700C. A definite bonus!

Overall I'm very happy with this switch and would definitely recommend it to anyone!
N4NUI Rating: 2014-01-02
Poor Quality Assembly Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I received my 1700C and something inside rattled right out of the box. I noticed that two of the SO-239 connectors each had a mounting bolt sticking out. Inside I found the two nuts. When I hooked up the thing I noticed a lot of receiver noise when I wiggled the "Antenna" rotary switch. I opened it again and realized that there were bad solder joints at the switch wafer contacts where the solid wire from the SO-239s were connected. Rather than mechanically secure the wire into the wafer contact hole, all the leads were just resting on top of the contacts where a glob of solder had been applied. These idiots don't seem to know that electrical solder is no substitute for a secure mechanical connection. I used some 22ga wire wrapped around the wafer contact and the SO-239 lead for a mechanical connection and re-soldered everything.
OSAGEARCHER Rating: 2013-12-12
Does not isolate signals Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought this to replace 2 3-way Diamond coax switches I used to switch back and forth among 3 antennas and 3 SW receivers, because of future expansion plans to add more antennas and/or more receivers.

Sadly I found the MFJ-1700C would not completely isolate signals - after switching to a different receiver I would still get signal on ones that were switched out. Not much, but in comparison to my setup connecting the 2 3-way Diamond coax switches, a lot because the Diamonds have no bleed-over whatsoever.

I went back to using the Diamond coax switches and have no problems.
WZ7E Rating: 2012-11-28
works fine Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This switch provides lots of flexibility and convenience. I like how it reduces messing with connectors, coax and peripheral gear.
Works well, no issues, good quality inside and out. In daily use for 3+ years.