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Reviews For: Yaesu FT-817ND

Category: QRP Radios (5 watts or less)

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Review Summary For : Yaesu FT-817ND
Reviews: 169MSRP: 589.00
Description:
The world’s first self-contained, battery-powered, Multi-mode Portable Transceiver covering the HF, VHF, and UHF bands! Despite its incredibly small size (5.3" x 1.5" x 6.5"), the FT-817 delivers big performance! Its next-generagion PA puts out five watts on all HF bands, plus the 50 MHz, 144 MHz, and 430 MHz bands, on all popular operating modes: USB/LSB/CW/AM/FM/Packet/PSK-31/RTTY. Now the 817 legacy is even better with the introduction of the FT-817ND, which includes coverage of the U.S. 60-meter (5 MHz) band, and it also includes a 1400 mAh NiMH Battery pack (FNB-85) and NC-72B Charger!
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.yaesu.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
151694.8
KJ4DGE Rating: 2013-12-24
Great radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I will not go into a lot of tech details here as others who have this rig either like it or compare it to something it was not meant to be compared to. It is a QRP radio and as such it does a fine job on all bands and all modes. Like any other radio a antenna that is suited for the band is needed to make it shine. don't be fooled by the 5 watts, I kicked my signal down the road 900 miles on 6 meters so it can do the job on HF I am sure. I only had a tech ticket when I had the radio. Wish I still had the little wonder box, but as we all know, food on the table will trump radio's any day of the week. you cannot go wrong with a dusk to daylight rig such as this one, and for the size, truly amazing!
KB1GMX Rating: 2013-12-23
handy and does much Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Got mine used over a month ago and have had a blast taking it around with me.

I rate it a 4 because it could have a better receiver in the overload department plus the manual is awkward.

1)It is a small radio.
2)The audio quality is very good (using an replacement speaker..
3)The selectivity of this radio is not as good as my TT Eagle. The sensitivity is good. The selectivity is limited by the installed filters and the up conversion first filter.
4)The battery life is ok. This radio will only output 2.5 watts with the internal battery pack
Manual says it shouldn't and its not lying. An external battery pack such as a AGM 7AH or LIon battery is highly advised. This is the one way to output 5 watts for any length of time. I've use the internal pack with Alkaline cells for ops and they don't last long. The RX sucks down about.3A
which is high for a portable set.
5)The IM rejection capabilities of this radio
depends on the user using the IPO(preamp) and ATT carefully. For its size and price its decent.
6)The AM broadcast band is handy.
7) The radio was tested on 6, 2 and 440.
Sensitivity was good and with a reasonable antenna very useful. Compares to all of my 6M radios for sensitivity.
8) I tested this radio on 2 meters and can tell you it works well for only 5W using a Arrow OSJ146/440 as the Antenna on FM and beams for SSB.
9)I worked three states on 40 meters mobile.
10) The Collins SSB filter has soft skirts but can be replaced with a better model.
11)The Collins filter for CW does make a difference in the performance of the radio.
12) This radio has a small display and I need my glasses to read it. For its size its ok and the menu option of large frequency digits help.
13)Understand that this is a QRP rig and not a
100W Tentec Eagle
14)I have not bothered with the Miracle Whip antenna as its a electrically short antenna and
very poor below 2M. Minimally is needs a counterpoise to load against. The 40M whip on
the truck is only 7ft and its made more than few contacts at 5W SSB. Serious fun begins with a
decent antenna (dipole or EFHW).
15)A tuner is a serious consideration for this radio for portable ops. The Electraft T1 was used with this radio and it is a great companion tuner
16)All in all this radio was way better than my initial first glance. When you add the price of the filters,the tuner, portable antenna system, the 2500mah battery pack, you have a very portable all band radio.
18 When connected to my PAR EF40/20/10 up at 30ft and running 5W I had a lot of SSB fun and world wide contacts.

In general for a compact low power transceiver aimed for portable use its a useful and fun radio.
There are compromises in the design and its fairly old tech radio but it functions well enough and the frequency agility is a hugely useful feature.

Perfect no, a match to many larger and more power hungry base station radios no, but still useful and fun. There are very few radios that offer as much as it does in the same space.


Allison
OZ1CQQ Rating: 2013-10-04
i love it :-) Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I love this little gem.
Forget all the details this is wonderfull qrp station.
MM0IMC Rating: 2013-09-21
Great Rig Yaesu, Don't Change a Thing!!! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Great rig! Yaesu, please don't change a thing about this radio!

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Earlier 5-star review posted by MM0IMC on 2013-09-21

I've had mine about 6 weeks now and have made contacts into the Eastern U.S. on just 5W SSB on both 40m and 20m. This was using a simple homemade wire inverted-V fan dipole up about 23 feet on a fibreglass fishing pole.

I've also had inter-G contacts on 500mW too!
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Earlier 5-star review posted by MM0IMC on 2013-09-14

Great rig! Yaesu, please don't change a thing about this radio!
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Earlier 5-star review posted by MM0IMC on 2013-03-11

I've had mine about 6 weeks now and have made contacts into the Eastern U.S. on just 5W SSB on both 40m and 20m. This was using a simple homemade wire inverted-V fan dipole up about 23 feet on a fibreglass fishing pole.

I've also had inter-G contacts on 500mW too!
K7LZR Rating: 2013-09-15
7 years later..... Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Well, its been 7 years since I bought my first FT-817. These rigs have been everywhere with me over the years and and have been used in almost every conceivable configuration from base station to mobile to backpack/picnic table portable and even bicycle & pedestrian mobile.

To date, there are still no other portable radios on the market which compete with the FT-817nd in terms of versatility. I considered the Elecraft KX-3 for my uses as well but ended up staying with the FT-817nd because of its 2m, 70cm, airband, and FM broadcast capabilities. I do use all of these bands and modes. For example, I'm somewhat active on 2m SSB & CW with an 11-ele. beam antenna. Couldn't get there with a KX-3.

Some folks say that the 5-watt transmitter output is a serious limitation. I personally haven't found it to be a problem and am usually able to contact the stations which I try for. In base radio configuration I use an external 100w HF amplifier and it works well.

I installed the Windcamp LiPo battery in my FT-817nd several months ago and it works great and lasts for a long time between charges.

All in all, I just don't think that as of yet you will find a more adaptable & versatile radio.




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Earlier 5-star review posted by K7LZR on 2011-08-10

Over the years I've bought and sold five FT-817 radios. Always missed them after they were gone and told myself that I would buy another and keep it for good this time. And it happened. I was actually given a brand-new FT-817nd as a gift from a very special friend.

The FT-817 is a very nice all purpose radio.....it works very well on all bands from 160m thru 70cm with all modes in a very small package. I find this to fit my operating needs well because I can use this rig either as a base, mobile, or portable. For base use, I have a 100w amplifier to go with it and that combo works just as well as any other 100w radio.

For mobile/portable use it can't be beat. I am a long-range hiker in the summer, often taking hikes of 15-20mi. into remote wilderness areas. The FT-817 always goes along in my backpack to provide emergency communication if needed, and to activate mountaintops for SOTA.

To summarize, the FT-817 is an incredible little package of versatile ham radio performance at a great price. Should be a staple item for most hams :).
KC9WQR Rating: 2013-09-09
Great Durable Rig Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have both the FT-817 and the FT-817nd and to tell you the truth I LOVE them both!!! I currently use the non nd version as my base station and the nd version for portable stuff. If it weren't for the non nd version being so good then I probably wouldn't have the nd. I have used them both portable and can only tell you that this is the way to go for a camp site radio. throw a wire into the trees or on an extendable pole and your in business. Great Bug out bag radio too. multiple power source options,
KATEKEBO Rating: 2013-03-13
Best portable HF rig available Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The FT-817ND has been reviewed so many times that it's hard to add anything new. So I will be brief and to the point:

After using many other portable QRP rigs side-by-side with the FT-817ND I can attest that no other radio beats the little Yeasu in terms of flexibility, versatility and overall performance. Other radios may shine in one area or another, but none is an overall champion like the FT-817. If you need a highly portable, self-contained, reliable and versatile radio for backpacking, camping, pedestrian operations or travel, there is simply no contest.

That said, the FT-817ND does have some limitations:

1) The only really serious shortcoming is power consumption, especially on receive. At nearly half-ampere, it runs through the internal batteries with abandonment. An external power source (substantial battery or power supply) is a must if you want to operate for more that an hour or so.

2) The radio has other, minor quirks:

- CW selectivity could be better.
- The screen is small. It is a small radio.
- The menu operation is complex. But this is because the radio includes an incredible amount of options and functions in a small package. It is not a radio for the technically-challenged, those who are too lazy to read and understand a manual, or those think that 1960's technology was the best.

But the good things easily outweigh the shortcomings.

There are other radios that may be a better option if you look exclusively for a very specific thing, like dedicated CW rig, something extremely simple and easy to use, or something that will consume less power. But even if these radios surpass the FT-817 in one or two specific performance areas, they can't match the other 10+ advantages that the FT-817 has. The only way to match and beat the FT-817 is to use a full-size mobile / base rig, or to carry several portable radios.

KW6JIM Rating: 2013-01-19
Excellent QRP rig! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I bought this radio about 6 months ago. I have it installed as part of a go-pack with an external battery and a solar charging system.

I had it set up today with my Buddipole in a vertical figuration on 15 and 20 meters. I am in the north end of California and had 5 quick QSOs. Two in Utah, one in Kansas, and two in Texas - the longest being about 1650 miles at 5 watts. I plan on doing SOTA activations with it this coming summer.

It's an excellent little rig. I highly recommend it. But, I also recommend doing yourself a favor in buying or building a quality QRP antenna. Again, I highly recommend the Buddipole system.
N6AIR Rating: 2013-01-15
Very happy with it Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've been a ham since the mid 1960's and I've had quite a few radios, mostly Kenwoods.

I'm very impressed with the FT-817ND.

The audio quality, the sensitivity and the selectivity are all superior to the SG2020.

The menus were a pain at first but I'm used to them now. It just takes time.

I love the small size and light weight.

I hesitated a long time before I bought it because I was wondering how limiting five watts would be. It's turned out to be a real education for me.

If I hear a station that's moderately strong, the chances are excellent that they will hear me with Q5 copy with my five watts. If the station sounds good and strong, the chances are better than average that they'll be able to hear me with half a watt. With 2.5 watts running mobile using a Hamstick, I'm not as strong as the other stations but more often than not I can make contact with the stations I hear.

I love this little radio. Though you have to wade through menus to find them, it has numerous features.

Here are some criticisms:

1. The rf attenuator isn't very effective and cutting out white noise like my old Kenwoods.

2. If you want to program frequencies with a computer, a Mac won't work.

3. The internal battery is something you'll want to replace. It lasts about 10 minutes.

I've very glad I took the plunge and bought this radio. It's a little marvel.

SAPPHIRE Rating: 2012-12-30
A magic box Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought last version.
Very good, better performance of many rtx.
A magic box!

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Earlier 4-star review posted by SAPPHIRE on 2011-08-28

Good radio does not exist anything like Yaesu 817.
Good receiver comparable to the Yaesu 897. But the Yaesu 897 is better if well regulated DSP and NB.
When connected to external high gain antenna is necessary to turn the preamp off by pressing the IPO. The Nb turned on only in SSB, FM must be turned off.
These measures also apply for a good rx for Yaesu 897/857/817.
The Yaesu 817 is now on the market for many years, would need a software and hardware upgrade.
The battery life is poor.
It could improve the battery consumption with a power save circuit
Use electronic switches replace relay
Increase the tx power 10/20 watt external power only