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Reviews For: Kenwood TR 751A

Category: Transceivers: VHF/UHF+ Amateur Base/Mobile (non hand-held)

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Review Summary For : Kenwood TR 751A
Reviews: 39MSRP: 225-350 used TU7 45+
Description:
2 Meter All Mode Transceiver. 25 Watts RF Output.
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hammulti/tr751a.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00394.7
HB9DRD Rating: 2003-01-03
Wonderful radio, again Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have now bought myself another TR-751E (and a TR-851E :-)) and so I have another chance to re-evaluate it. It passes with flying colours.

I did a sensitivity check using off-air beacon signals against my IC-910H and it is the same. This means that both radios have noise figures lower than the external noise level, and that is as good as it needs to get except for EME or satellite work.

The front ends of the IC-910H, TR-751E and TR-851E use GaAsFETs so this result shouldn't be too surprising. It is a simple radio to use, no frills but gets the job done, what more does one need ?

Its nice to have it back, I will do a review of the TR-851E at a later date once we have become better aquainted.


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Earlier 5-star review posted by HB9DRD on 2002-06-19

I owned a TR-751E for a while in the late 80s/early 90s when they were still available new. I used mine primarily on satellites (AO-13) and it was wonderful, the receiver was exceptional I thought. I eventually traded it for a TS-711E, but this was done for aesthetic reasons (I already owned a TS-811E) and the 711 was not an improvement performance wise. I am tempted to get another one for portable use as they can be bought for very reasonable prices now.
KG4UOQ Rating: 2002-12-02
excellent little rig Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
This is an excellent 2 meter rig. I haven't played with CW on it yet (can't hear any around central NC) but SSB and FM work great. I bought mine used, and it came with a tone board in it. There are ten memories, plus a "call channel" which is basically just another memory, and that's (barely) enough. The memories store all the relevant settings (mode, freq, offset, tone) and you can have a few for FM and a few for SSB if you want to.

As far as SSB, it's a neat rig. RX sensitivity is great... I routinely check in to a 2m SSB net (Greensboro NC, FM05, 144.225 Tues 20:00 eastern) with net control about 27 miles away. I've heard a station from Lynchburg, VA, well over 80 miles away. This is with an MFJ 1/4 wave mag mount antenna stuck horizontally on the side of my truck. Yes, I know, I have to build a better antenna.

RX sensitivity is dynamite. I can routinely hear stations I can't reach out to. Any more RX sensitivity would be wasted. The Noise Blanker works well against ignition noise, and while you can tell it's distorting the RX audio, it isn't bad enough to be objectionable. On balance, it's better to have it than not.

TX has one little "gotcha" to be aware of: the mike gain is pretty different between SSB and FM, and there's no mike gain control. On FM, I need to get really close to the mike. On SSB, I need to have it a foot away. Watch the meter on SSB TX and don't let the needle swing beyond S9 or you'll start splattering.

Front panel bulb replacement: I had to do this myself. You'll need a pair of 12V "grain of wheat" bulbs from Radio Shack. Gently pull stuff off until you can get to the back of the PCB where the LCD is installed. Unsolder the two bulbs, pull them out, and gently peel off the transparent green plastic they are encased in. Install these plastic layers over the new bulbs, trim the lead length to match, and gently solder them in place. Takes 30 minutes or so the first time.

Problems? If you find one of these for $250-$300, jump on it. You'll love it. But bear in mind that you're starting to get up toward ICOM IC-706MkIIG territory ($850), and that radio will do everything this one will, plus 6m, 70cm, and HF, and has more power. Bear in mind, also, that the TR-751 is at the upper end of the size spectrum for a mobile radio. It'll fit in a truck just fine, but it's going to be tight in a car.

I'll be moving mine from the truck to the house fairly soon, at which point it will be connected to a TE Systems 160W amp and will be used for meteor scatter, packet, and SSTV.
G0TKJ Rating: 2002-06-19
Good work horse Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Well what can I say about this rig. I bought one in 1987 when I was G1YTX and my dad is G1YTU. He still has the rig and I have just got myself one used for £300 which is a bargin price. The one we bought new is still going strong and have only had to replace the LCD bulbs twice in 14 years!!!!! This is a great little rig with good front end performace and is in the UK, one of the widest used rig for both old and new hams. If you put a good Valve amp for home base use and masthead preamp and you've got yourself a damm good 2M station. I use mine with a 18 ele boomer (a cushcraft 4218xl) and it works a treat. One thing i would put on the rig is a speech prosseor for SSB as this gives the audio a little more punch.

A good little work horse.
N2ETJ Rating: 2002-02-04
Lots of Bang for the Buck Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased this used... can be had from around $300 ..... great basic SSB radio with great front end and good audio reports. With only a Cushcraft A148*50T twist antenna, have worked almost 300 miles with just the 25 watts...very impressed... find one and buy it...
N2NHU Rating: 2001-12-15
great 2m ssb starter rig Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
What a nice radio for only $270 on ebay. I also have the Yaesu FT 290R-II and it is no match for the Kenwood tr-751a (receiver, tuning much better on kenwood). I like everything about the Kenwood, and it REALLY shines on SSB when you put a good 150W amp with a preamp for receive. I would rate it a five if it had direct frequency entry, or better than 50 hz tuning, and more memories for FM. Looking for a SSB starter rig? This is it. If you operate FM repeaters, get something modern. For SSB this radio rocks!
VK3BRZ Rating: 2001-10-10
A great rig spoiled by frequency drift. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I regard my TR 751A as an SSB rig that also does FM rather than the other way around, so its performance as a sideband rig is mainly what counts for me.

My TR 751A is used mainly for hill-topping SSB/CW DX work, so its weak-signal performance as well as its overload immunity are important. It scores well in both regards. For really weak signals a preamp gives a worthwhile improvement without producing obvious overload effects when strong signals are encountered.

The noise blanker works OK, even on power-line noise at my place, although it does have a tendency to produce a noticeable amount of distortion on the recovered audio.

The rig has 10 memories which store frequency, mode and repeater offset, plus an extra memory (the "COM" button) for your favourite channel.

Output power is 25W, all modes. Enough for plenty of fun, or for driving a big PA. There is a low-power switch with an internal adjustment to set the power to anything you like, up to 25W.

Both RX and TX audio are excellent. Frequency display resolution is 100Hz (SSB/CW), but the rig tunes in 50Hz steps and indicates this with a decimal point after the last digit that toggles on and off on with each increment. This may seem a little primitive today, but I find it OK.

Frequency stability seems below par, and surprisingly, much worse than its 70cm cousin, the TR 851A, which I also have. From cold my TR 751A drifts UP some 300Hz in the first 15 minutes, then over the next hour settles 800Hz LOW. Not all that good, even for a rig of its era. At least it does finally settle. My old TS 700A with its analogue VFO is better. Another TR 751A which I have access to behaves much the same.

Otherwise, a very pleasant rig to use. I would have given it a 5 if it wasn't for the frequency drift. The fact that I've kept it means its other features outweigh the drift problem.
K4MSG Rating: 2001-09-04
Great 2m Multimode! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought my first one new in the early 1990s, thought it was great but sold it anyway. Since then I have owned two others, both kept for a while and then sold, and am now awaiting arrival of #4. Maybe someday I'll learn..... The receiver is *HOT*, the rig is easy to use, and while it may lack in a few of the more modern bells & whistles (like number of memory channels) it is still a great radio in the shack or for portable VHF contesting. With the adjustable low-power output it can be set up to drive a typical 25W in-160W/300W out brick using high power, or any amplifier requiring lower input (like a 100W HT amplifier) using the low-power setting, suitably adjusted between 1 and 25 watts. It's also nice for throttling back for local contacts.
Kenwood came up with a real winner in this radio, and the used prices for good ones ($300-$400) make it a very attractive way to try 2m SSB/CW.
JAMES_BENEDICT_EX_N8FVJ Rating: 2001-03-17
Excellent Receiver! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I rated the TR-751A a five (5) based upon the hot receiver performance and the era the radio was manufactured! Today, better equipment is available, but for many times the used price of the TR-751A. For the cash outlay, the radio is a top performer. The very sensitive receiver can work long haul SSB/CW communications. The VFO is 'rock solid' and the radio is easy to use.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by JAMES_BENEDICT_EX_N8FVJ on 2000-06-30

The Kenwood TR-751A is a 2 meter all mode transceiver with 25/5 watts RF output. The TR-751A makes use of a low noise, high gain GaAs FET RF receive amplifier which is far, far superior to the Kenwood TR 9130 for weak signal conditions. The USB/LSB filter is 2.2khz (-6db) and 4.8khz (-60db) bandpass. For crowded CW work add an after market DSP unit! Other features are Auto-mode operation following the 2 meter band plan, 142-149 receive, dual VFOs, 10 memories,
four scan functions, repeater offset and reverse
switch, programmable sub-tone with optional TU-7,
all-mode squelch, very effective noise blanker,
semi-breakin with side tone, built -in RIT and a
large backlit LCD display. A rear mounted jack
will key an external RF amplifier. The microphone is a 16-key UP/DN type. The minor drawbacks are
no IF shift and 50hz tuning steps on SSB. The RIT
will adjust the receive audio and I have not
heard of any negative feedback on xmit. The
receiver is single conversion as are most more
expensive 'base' type radios. The reason the
radio is a bargain is it costs hundreds of
dollars less than larger 2m all mode radios. As
for performance, the ARRL product reviews proves
this radio performs as well as the more expensive
transceivers on the market. As for size, about 7"
W (X) 2.4"H (X) 8.5"D. Now that the amateur community has accepted small 'base' radios such as an Icon IC 706, this little radio is still up to date!
W7NEW Rating: 2000-10-25
Good Radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This is a very good 2meter all mode mobil radio. It is a little lacking in the feature department but all the needed features are there and easy to use. The radio is also a little wimpy power wise but if your a serious ssb user you will have an amp anyway. The radios receive is excellent, fidelity and sesitivity are up to snuff. The tone board for all of you fm users was still available at R&L electronics last I checked. If you can find one that is in good shape for about 400.00 to 500.00 it would be a good buy.