At 06:36 AM 6/15/2009, Kevin wrote: >Hi All, >New to this group and I am interested in getting into the D-Star family. >Currently I do not have any D-Star equipment but hopefully this should >change soon. > >The reason for this message is to find out what would be the best radio to >get, that would be suitable for some time...?
Hi, Kevin, Some questions back at you... Are you looking for mobile/base, or handheld? Or both! Do you want a two-bands-at-once radio, or would a single display, dual-band radio do the job (and there are a few mono-banders out there)? These questions are generic - they don't have anything to do with D-STAR. But there are now some issues that do relate to D-STAR, in that ICOM's newer radios implement D-STAR better than some of the early ones. I'll explain and hit the high spots of the current radios. The IC-2820 is currently the top of the line mobile. Dual-band, dual-display so you can run two bands at once (but only one of them can be D-STAR). It gets high marks as a general radio, though I've seen better intermod performance (Standard 5900, Yaesu 8900 do better). I find the memory/bank system particularly useful. It has a large display that makes all the menu items and call sign entry easier. However, that display lacks contrast, and it can be hard to read in some lighting situations. The ID-880 is the new one-band-at-a-time dual-band mobile. It replaces the ID-800, ICOM's first dual-band D-STAR mobile, and improves on several D-STAR related programming issues. The 880 has lots more memories (several kinds of memories) that are useful in D-STAR operation. The older ID-800 works fine - it's just clumsy to use (and the 880 is still clumsy compared to the 2820 because the display can't show as much). You might find a bargain on an 800. On the handheld side, the IC-92 is the top - another two-at-once dual-bander, and an overall good handheld. It improved a large handful of features over it's predecessor, the IC-91 (I compare them in a QST review, available as a PDF on my web site: www.ARVideoNews.com in the OtherStuff section). The 91 became the bargain D-STAR dual-band radio, and it's now on clearance, so might be even cheaper until it's gone. The new IC-80 is a one-band-at-a-time dual band HT. I haven't used one yet, but I hear mostly good things except for the little speaker. Priced higher than the 91, lower than the 92. You're probably just getting the idea that you have to program call signs into menus on D-STAR radios to make them work thru repeaters (see the videos on my web site above). It's not hard, but there is a learning curve that has frustrated some hams. The 80 and 880 have new programming that was intended to make that a little easier, but it "broke" a new, non-ICOM function on the repeater network that requires a work-around to fix. Again, nothing difficult once you know what to do. There are discussions about that in the archives of this list, and the other radio-specific Yahoo groups. 73, Gary KN4AQ ARVN: Amateur Radio//Video News Gary Pearce KN4AQ 508 Spencer Crest Ct. Cary, NC 27513 <mailto:[email protected]>[email protected] 919-380-9944 www.ARVideoNews.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
