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Reviews For: MDS RC-1 Antenna Rotator Controller

Category: Antenna Rotators & Accessories

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Review Summary For : MDS RC-1 Antenna Rotator Controller
Reviews: 28MSRP: 250
Description:
Digital Antenna Rotator Controller for HiGain Rotators (HAM-M, HAM-IV, Tailtwister) Yeasu, and other antenna rotators
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mds-ham.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00284.4
KM4CQG Rating: 2014-10-27
Digital interface Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I'm running a digital ham shack and utilize remote operation.

MDS RC1-Y makes a perfect interface for the Yaesu 800 rotor. USB is built into the unit and power input of 13.8 volts provided by my stations power supply.

HRD Rotor + Logging software drives MDS where you want it to go automatically. Setup works good. I did find that unit performs better when selecting the DCU2 interface on HRD Rotor software. A few tweaks when setting up interface almost plug and play.

Unit is very light and if you do manually control the MDS it it will move around.

Ian
AB2IR Rating: 2014-05-30
Great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Using with Ham IV rotor and RST rotor software/ DXlab. Just wish the display could be left on. It times out to save screen I guess. Just have to push button to refresh it back. Works great, would buy again. Bought a used transformer and built seperate power supply box. MDS should sell a transformer for those interested. OEM controller burned out from close lightening flash. This replacement works Great.
VA2SS Rating: 2014-03-03
Good value for the price Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I owned the version for the Yaesu G-450 4-5 years ago... was very satisfied. Now I owned the version for the G-1000DXA, still very satisfied today.

The north or south stop feature save time to setup software that does not support this kind of setting.

Unless for a few "picky" things, this controller does not have a chassis grounded to the PCB. Probably not so important for a few, but for other, it could prevent the display to fickle when transmitting nearby an antenna or a power supply. Easy modification to cure the problem definitely.

Many parts on the PCB assembly are not so well soldered and properly aligned (I'm an Elecraft builder).... not too bad for a few because the unit works without a flaw, but not so interesting for others when the shaft of the encoder was touching the enclosure, prevent the shaft to freely turn without much friction..... quality control.... :-)

Overall, the technical support is excellent, fast and clear answer from the company. Very easy to deal with them.

To be honest, I will buy another one without any hesitation, if will need too in the futur.
W9DJ Rating: 2013-11-16
Outstanding! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I have owned this little box for about 5 months. I have the Yaesu G800 version (RC-1Y?), and use it both when I am in the shack and remotely using LP Rotor software. It works just as advertised. It is a little lightweight, and will tend to slide around unless you hold on to it when pushing buttons, but that is not much of a defect. Delivery was really fast, and they were very responsive when I had a question during installation (it helps not only to read the manual, but also to believe it).

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Earlier 5-star review posted by W9DJ on 2013-08-21

I bought an MDS controller to be able to operate my old 800 series analog Yaesu rotor remotely. It works just as advertised. Excellent product. The only quibble I have is that the controller is quite lightweight, and can move around easily when you poke the buttons, so depending on how it's sitting it can be a two handed operation, but that's easily remedied. Delivery was very fast, and my one hook up question was quickly answered by email. I'd buy it again in an instant.
KF2E Rating: 2013-09-07
Great product with great support Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
If you want to add computer control to your Yaesu rotator this is just the item you need. Setup is a breeze and it works just as described. In addition to a great product they have top notch support as well.
N5IF Rating: 2013-08-06
Great! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I wanted a new controller for my Orion 2800 AC version rotator. Glen had not done one of those before so some info was sent back and forth and then the unit arrived promptly. Connections were a breeze, a CD with a Word Doc was in the box that included all needed info to make it easy. Once calibrated, the rotor and new controller work great together.
W5PR Rating: 2013-06-13
Great Rotor Control Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought one of these a few months ago to control a Yaesu G-2700 I bought without a controller. It is a great unit and I just ordered a second one for my G-2800 on the second tower.
W2FZ Rating: 2013-01-16
Great Product for Remote Operation Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Bought this several years ago. Finally got the radio up and running on remote operation. This RC-1 was key to successful operation. Not only does it work great, so is the service. They stand behind the product and respond to questions immediately.

I would recommend this product without any hesitation.
N8BQQ Rating: 2012-12-11
Very Nice Works Great Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This unit works very well. Easy to set up. Works very well with HRD. Stops within a degree or two every time. Well thought out features and firmware.
VA7TF Rating: 2012-12-05
Great product?Excelent service Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Well, I bit the bullet and bought RC-1. Although there are other controllers around, the price and features convinced me. I am using a HAM IV rotator. After some help from Glen at MDS, this is a real gem. Although it does not come with a 24 vac power supply, I used the HAM IV power supply at first ( The RC-1 manual explains how to use the HAM controller power supply), but have since made a seperate 24 vac power supply. Ham Radio Deluxe has a great controller program. Also, PstRotator and PstRotatorAz work great.