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Reviews For: MFJ-901B

Category: Antenna Tuners/Matching Networks

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Review Summary For : MFJ-901B
Reviews: 53MSRP: 79.95
Description:
MFJ'S smallest 200W tuner
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/products.php?prodid=MFJ-901B
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
15534.2
K0CWO Rating: 2004-08-19
Fine portable tuner Time Owned: N.A.
Loads my 600 Ohm 160 meter doublet every time using my Icom 706, 160-10 meters. Great, small portable 100 watt tuner.
VA7CPC Rating: 2003-10-31
Simple, works well. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The 901B offers extremely good value for money.

I bought an MFJ 901B used, over eBay. Opened the case to check wiring, found an intermittent short caused by uninsulated wire and too-small clearance. After I bent the wire, everything was fine. My IC-706 now loads up very nicely into an Alpha Delta DX-EE clear across 40/20/15 meters, SWR < 1.5:1. Without tuner, SWR was _infinite_ at most frequencies.

My next improvement will be to use screws and nuts to mount the coax connectors to the case, instead of factory pop rivets.

It's a "T-network" -- a high-pass filter. Degrades AM broadcast band reception, and there's no "cutout" switch.
K9NK Rating: 2003-10-24
Excellent Tuner Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Get an MFJ-901B tuner and you will be very pleased!! I have owned 4 different MFJ tuners they all have had poor soldering jobs or the meters never worked right. The 901B is as simple as it gets but it works perfect with my FT-857.
WB8ICU Rating: 2003-08-21
good for the money Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have a mfj901B. It works fine, but I decided to "upgrade" to the 941B. Got it on ebay. Upon looking inside, I was surprised to see it was really Just the 901 with a swr/power meter. Went to the internet and looked up the 941E schematics and specs. Big surprise, its the same exact tuner with a crossed needle meter! Basicly, its a tee tuner with a grounded coil. I'm surpriesed it works so well with those close spaced caps, but it does
GM0WNR Rating: 2003-07-22
Great compact performer Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Have only had this little beaut for about 2 weeks now, but performs very well indeed. I use it with an IC 706 and 1/2 wave dipole cut approx for 40m at about 15m high, tunes all bands from 40m up, even including 6m!!! It does very well if you don't need an SWR meter. No frills very basic compact tuner, seems very well made as well after a look in the box, only very slight complaint, slight capacitance effect from my hand being near, other than that its superb.
SM0SSJ Rating: 2003-07-07
Good Time Owned: more than 12 months.
At first it didn“t work att all. I had to open it and repair it before i could use it (they had made a wrong connection in it).

But now it works very good, it tunes everything with good results.
WR2W Rating: 2003-05-18
Works Ok...Poor Quality Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have owned 6 different models of MFJ tuners, and I would have to say the 901B, and the 1610 work better than the rest of their tuners. It tunes well on all bands with a relatively short length of wire, and a Good ground system. I decided to open it before I used it, and like All their other models I have owned, I found the front shaft mounts to be loose, uncalibrated knob pointers, a bent cap plate, and the random wire terminal was cracked. The 901B, and the 1610 are the Last product I will ever buy from MFJ because of their poor quality manufacturing process, and No QC. They are Not dedicated to their customers, and have done Nothing to correct their QC, and manufacture for years. Customers should Not have to "rebuild", or check QC for a manufacturer. I don't understand why hams continue to buy their product knowing their track record. So they have a good warranty but don't think you're going to get a high quality replacement, you're not.....
N2WSO Rating: 2002-10-17
Great little tuner. One of MFJ's best!!! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I read all the reviews on this tuner and how many of them needed some small repair. But I needed a really small tuner for portable operation so I bought it anyway. When it arrived I immediately opened it to check it for any quality problems. Surprise, there were none. All the solder joints are superb and none of the capacitor plates were shorting out. Overall, I'd say this is one of the finest MFJ units I've ever purchased. The design and construction are all first rate. The chassis is aluminum and the whole unit only weighs about 1.5 lbs., perfect for portable operation and only half the weight of my other 200 watt tuner. The balun is a real plus and while it is indeed small, it should have no problem with the 100 watts maximum I plan to use with it. Overall, I would say I'm extremely satisfied with it and for the price it can't be beat. In fact, I'm now considering buying a second one for my main staion since it takes up so little table space and is so easy to use. I was never all that crazy about cross needle meters so this tuner allows me to use my regular Power and SWR meter with the 2 separate meters. I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone as long as they do not exceed the rated power. 73 Bob.
WD8OKN Rating: 2001-12-30
Works just fine! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
It works just fine, if you do not mind a small repair here and there. I read the reviews before I bought the tuner and laughed at the repairs people needed to make. When mine arrived, sure enough... I had to repair it immediately. The second capacitor on the right (for the ant.) was not soldered at all. Within 5 minutes, I had it soldered and the tuner works beyond expectations. I am using a 20m dipole and tuning it on ALL bands to better than a 1.5 to 1.
NN1I Rating: 2001-07-15
OK Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a very simple piece of electronics: two variable capacitors and a coil in a small box, plus a small balun inside. It is nice to have one, if you want to take it on the field or just work from home with 100W rig. However, I had to fix mine a little: I opened the case and adjusted capacitors knobs such a way that "1" corresponds to minimum capacitance (plates all the way out) just like the manual said. For some reason they set it wrong corresponding to "6". It does not affect the performance at all, it is if you change the band and want quickly figure out wich way to make adjustments.