Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes

Reviews For: ICOM IC-737A

Category: Transceivers: HF Amateur HF+6M+VHF+UHF models - non QRP <5W

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
Review Summary For : ICOM IC-737A
Reviews: 10MSRP: 1495
Description:
ICOM 737A--HF TRANSCEIVER (10-160M) WITH 500 HZ CW FILTER, ANTENNA TUNER, MANUAL NOTCH, PBT, NOISE REDUCTION, AUTO SPILT, 100 MEMORYS, AND ELECTRONIC KEYER. SENSITIVITY ~ 0.16 uV!! (TRIPLE CONVERSION)
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.qsl.net/sm7vhs/radio/icom/ic737/ic737.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00104.7
VK5CZ Rating: 2013-03-18
Great radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Mine is the 736 with 6m also. this rig has the best full break in any radio i've had or see having in the future. With such a quiet noise floor the rx just ticks away in the background while sending cw maybe 25 wpm. No clunking during switching at all very smooth indeed.
I've had mine since new in 1996 till death do us part.
IW1DFU Rating: 2013-03-17
Great for the price! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I've bought an used one to bring it in IA5 during the summer. At today the price is around 350Euro for a good used one. I only work in CW so I've immediatly added an FL52A + FL101 (doing a simple mods it is able to manage the switch between 500 and 250 hz). The reciver is good compared to other rigs that costs much more. The auto tuner is great and fast. The fan is vy quiet and all the features works fine. the QSK is good and also the inside keyer. Easy to operate and solid as a rock. For me it's a 5/5 looking at the price/value. Mine was paied 330Euro and it's look like new. The reciver is much better than a FT897, 857, FT100 , IC706, etc... Expecially on Low bands. No way, IC737 is not a toy, it's a good rig.
M3VZQ Rating: 2010-07-10
737A LOVELY RADIO Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
WHAT CAN I SAY - I LOVE THIS RADIO GREAT SOLID GOOD LOOKING RIG WITH SUPERB PERFORMANCE MORE THAN HAPPY WITH THIS LOVELY RADIO - CANT WAIT UNTIL I ADD THE HEIL-ICM MIC TO THIS BEAUTY.
K5RM Rating: 2007-06-18
Great RIG Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned this rig for more than 5 years. It was my second HF rig. It has performed flawlessly. I don't do much on SSB, but the reports that I have had, it sounds really well. I like the auto-tuner since it remembers the last place that it was on a given band. The QSK is great. The radio is easy to operate and has a lot of great features. I like the large display the the 737A has. This rig has worked many contest and never gets too warm. Puts out a solid 100 watts, actually puts out over 100 watts but I only have it set at 100 so not to burn out final. I also have it adjusted to only put out 5 watts on low power to work QRP contest. I do plan on keeping this rig for awhile longer but am looking to upgrade to a little bit bigger HF Rig.
W7MY Rating: 2006-07-07
A reliable performer Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned my 737 since 1994 and it has performed without any problems. Last year I sent it back to Icom for an alignment but it really didn't need it. My only failure has been an FT CW filter. I guess I can't blame Icom for that! In any case, I took it apart and resoldered the crystals. Sure enough, it came back to life.

The auto tuner works great and has a wide-range. The VFO is extremely stable; it only moves 30 HZ from dead cold to fully warm in about 15 minutes.

Its a really great basic radio void of menus; love those switches and knobs!
KG7VG Rating: 2005-07-01
Fine piece of machinery Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Sure it's not a super-modern rig, but it's great at today's prices. Excellent receiver, smooth audio and a built in tuner that tunes anything in a hurry.
I'd give this rig a 4.5 if I could. Lack of a DSP option is the only thing keeping this rig from a 5.
WA4SBA Rating: 2004-10-15
Easy to use Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have had my 737a for about a month now and I am very impressed. I am not a technical ham, so I guess you could call me more of an appliance operator. This rig is very easy to use. I installed the fl-100 500 hz cw filter and this gives it great selectivity. The receiver is very quiet and sensitive. The noise blanker works like a top. I have received excellent signal reports on both cw and ssb. I have been off the air for a number of years and my old rig was a Tempo 2020. Things sure have changed. For someone looking for an easy to use rig with plenty of bells and whistles I highly recommend the 737a. The used price of around $400 makes this rig affordable for almost everyone.
G0UWK Rating: 2004-05-26
Chalk & Cheese Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Superb Receiver probably amongst the best ever produced
I paid top whack for mine when first released, Poor output and very thin Audio, the old gripe about older Icom gear,
I would recommend this rig for someone looking for a nice receiver and at the current U.K. second hand prices this would be a bargain,
The IC736 (same as the 737a but with 6M) suffers the same poor TX audio,
Eventually sold mine and replaced with a TS850 SAT
Much better tx Audio quality and facilities a prettier rig altogether but i don't rate the rx sensitivity as good as the Icom especially on 28mhz
The First sign of change from the horrible Icom tx audio was the IC756 from that day on Icom has never looked back
KA0DPC Rating: 2003-08-23
Straight forward rig easy to use Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Purchased 737a when it first came out because I had used a 735 for years and figured I was safe from frequent model changes. Also thought the 737a would retain its value like the 735 has/did. Well I was wrong on all of those criteria, BUT its a easy rig to use.

I'm a middle of the road operator, no great expectations. Have looked at the new rigs 756PRO which looks like Darth Vader to me and is just about as scary. Like the screen on the 746PRO, but cannot see any advantage to it over my 737a on the HF bands.

I've been told the current used price for the 737a is $350-400, feel that its a STEAL at that price.
WA2OCG Rating: 2000-05-07
Great DX rig for new General licensee or serious DXer. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Rig has been in use for six years. Excellent rig for serious DX and contesting. With manual notch, PBT, and RIT, selectivity without DSP has been excellent. CW keying is excellent, and SSB with both gain and compression has received excellent audio reports. Enough "bells and whistles" for the serious amateur, yet simple, "out-of-the-box" operation. If on the air use can be used as an indicator of effeciency, then judge for yourself: using a R7 vertical and barefoot, over 100 rare countries were worked on both CW and SSB!