Icom IC-RX7: Exceptional Radio

[n3uhh]

I received my RX7 from HRO on Oct. 14. Out of my apx. 10 radios
including the BCD396T and BC246T, the RX7 is my favorite.

The following is my opinion of the radio, your results may vary.

I monitor the public safety part of the spectrum primarily--from 453
to 463 MHz. The sensitivity of the radio is sensational. It is
better than any of my unidens, and the reception is comparable to the
Icom R2. I can receive Pittsburgh City Fire from over 90 miles away
loud and clear. Stations that I receive on my 396 poorly come in
very well on the RX7.

Selectivity of the unit is good--it helps that most
broadcasting stations use a PL tone, so it really isn't much of an
issue anyway.

The link type memory system is ingenious. It is somewhat similar to
the 396, in which you can assign systems 'quick' keys--but it goes a
step farther. You can even assign a number to your groups to turn
them on and off via the keypad, not just the systems. This allows for
more combinations--I have individual counties to the east each assigned a
number--i.e. 11, 12, 13, etc. I then have all of those counties
assigned a number--10--that turns off and on all of those counties at once.

The radio has many other excellent features--far too many to list
them all here.

I have had to adjust to some other workings of the unit--it took me
some time to learn how to program the radio--which can be rather
tedious unless you purchase the software--still, with the numerical
keypad, it's much easier than the R2. Sometimes while the unit is
scanning on a frequency with a PL, it seems to 'trip' over that
channel if it receives a signal that doesn't match the PL you have
programmed. You don't hear anything, but if you watch the display,
you can see just the slightest pause when that happens.
Otherwise, it is not the loudest radio I own, but the volume
for me is satisfactory. The tradeoff for high volume is longer battery life.
It helps that you can adjust the bass and treble however.

The case for the radio is really nice, a soft leather that fits the
radio well, a must have. The radio is just a perfect size also--
very thin.

Battery life with the lithium battery is close to the rated 8 hrs.
When I use Ni-MH rechargeable's, the battery life is phenomenal--
longer than any radio I've ever had. I've gone 16 hrs+ continuously,
but it is hard to tell the maximum run time, because at some point in
the evening, I have to go to sleep.

Overall, in my view, this is the best analog radio out there. I
really am considering a second one--I could then monitor local
agencies with one, and just play with the other one and turn on the
weather alert.

I am really surprised there hasn't been more publicity over this radio.
Icom would do well to get the word out there on this one. The only
further step for Icom, would be a unit that follows trunked systems,
and of course, something digital. But for now, scanning is fun again!

[safetyobc]

Could you post pictures of your RX-7 along side other radios?

Also do you still have high praises for this radio after using it for several months?

Thanks.

[n3uhh]

I don't have any pics of the unit at the moment. I still feel the same about this radio, having used it through the course of the winter. It has worked well, and I use it almost exclusively. Recently when listenening from the Rt 22 corridor, I received EMS from St. Mary's in Elk county with just the supplied antenna, and the excellent receive circuitry is my favorite aspect. The volume could be an issue in noisy environments, because it's true that it just isn't that loud. I have used a Jabra A-210 plugged into a Radio Shack 3/32" to 1/8" adapter, and another adapter to convert it from stereo to mono, then into the scanner earphone jack, paired with a bluetooth earpiece for wireless monitoring, and this works quite well.

[Air490]

I have to agree. The RX7 is a great receiver. It scans faster than previous Icoms, has a great display, is compact, easy to use, batteries last for ages and has great sensitivity. My only gripe is the speaker volume. I find it needs to be set at 30 (out of a maximum of 35) just so I can hear it. Other than that I am very happy with this scanner!

[manna452121]

Is it possible to transfer .icf files from my R-20 to the RX-7.I have the software for the RX-7 but i was hoping to make things a bit easier.Volume can be low but still a great radio

[DaveIN]

I'll bet the memory map is different on the RX-7, so if the R-20 .icf files worked I'd be surprised. They are not between the R-5 and the R-20.

[manna452121]

Spent the weekend loading some data and the software does make life easier.While on All Scan I notice that on my display only the Names are on view,is it possible to get the freq listed on the Display.I found by pressing and holding the HOLD button the freq is displayed.

[hotdjdave]

Which is better: the RX-20 or the RX-7?

[nickcarr]

I have no idea why someone would want the RX-7 (other than price point.) No SSB support and far tighter frequency coverage.

[Air490]

I'll field that... it is more compact, has a long life Lithium battery, it scans faster than other Icom models and it's easy to use.

[tanger32au]

Originally Posted by Air490

I'll field that... it is more compact, has a long life Lithium battery, it scans faster than other Icom models and it's easy to use.

I totally agree, I am falling in love with my RX7.

[phillmobile]

well i would like to say i have recently bought one of these and i a so appalled at how bad the receive is i am going to be making a video for you tube to prove this is a pill of rubbish i regret spending my money should have bought a uniden, even my 15 year old 20 channel realistic pr0-50 makes it look daft it really is that bad, even a handset next to it and yes you get full signal strenght but the sound from the speaker is in the back ground with more hiss giving the simptoms of a weak signal from a 4watt hand held 6 inches away i can't even listen to the coast gaurd a mile away which my pro-50 does with ease, even on a outdoor ham antenna it struggles to listen to ham repeaters on vhf and thats on a 10 foot high antenna swred to the repeaters.

Don't waste your money wait for my you tube video you will see itsd a pile of junk

[tanger32au]

Originally Posted by phillmobile

well i would like to say i have recently bought one of these and i a so appalled at how bad the receive is i am going to be making a video for you tube to prove this is a pill of rubbish i regret spending my money should have bought a uniden, even my 15 year old 20 channel realistic pr0-50 makes it look daft it really is that bad, even a handset next to it and yes you get full signal strenght but the sound from the speaker is in the back ground with more hiss giving the simptoms of a weak signal from a 4watt hand held 6 inches away i can't even listen to the coast gaurd a mile away which my pro-50 does with ease, even on a outdoor ham antenna it struggles to listen to ham repeaters on vhf and thats on a 10 foot high antenna swred to the repeaters.

Don't waste your money wait for my you tube video you will see itsd a pile of junk

Maybe you just got a "bad one"? I was very happy with my RX7 as have been quite a few other people......

[hertzian]

Originally Posted by phillmobile

Don't waste your money wait for my you tube video you will see itsd a pile of junk

In the video, be sure to have the RF gain set to max, no attenuation, and play with the ANL, and the bass and treble tone controls.

The RX7 is what I'd call a "discreet" receiver, ideal for use with headphones really. Yep, the internal speaker is only driven with 60mw power.

You shouldn't have that much of a sensitivity issue, unless you have the rf gain down, the attenuator on, or perhaps the sma-bnc adapter you use with your outside antenna, or even the RX7 sma jack itself is damaged.

You may have gotten a demo unit, or some other return where somebody just fried the front end, and put it back into the box? Although with a full-scale s-meter reading, maybe that isn't the case.

You aren't in FM-Wide mode by any chance?

However, if you do get a Uniden as a replacement, you'll immediately be comfortable with a similar 3-tiered memory management arrangement.

[MPSCS]

Originally Posted by phillmobile

well i would like to say i have recently bought one of these and i a so appalled at how bad the receive is i am going to be making a video for you tube to prove this is a pill of rubbish i regret spending my money should have bought a uniden, even my 15 year old 20 channel realistic pr0-50 makes it look daft it really is that bad, even a handset next to it and yes you get full signal strenght but the sound from the speaker is in the back ground with more hiss giving the simptoms of a weak signal from a 4watt hand held 6 inches away i can't even listen to the coast gaurd a mile away which my pro-50 does with ease, even on a outdoor ham antenna it struggles to listen to ham repeaters on vhf and thats on a 10 foot high antenna swred to the repeaters.

Don't waste your money wait for my you tube video you will see itsd a pile of junk

You probably overloaded it on your outdoor antenna.

[SLJ2137694]

I just noticed that Universal Radio now has this radio listed for $199.00!!!! I want to say that I am a relatively new owner of the RX7 but I am happy with it so far.
ICOM IC-RX7 Wideband Receiver RX7

[pdfdems286]

any comment's about the mil-air performance. i'm probably going to drop the buck's.

[maalox]

how would some compare this radio to others like the icom r5 or 330t i no all the icom have excellent audio.

[hertzian]

Comparing it to the Icom R5 or especially the Uniden 330T is a tall order, but I'll give it a go...

The main reason to get the RX7 is for its slimness and feather-weight with a decent receiver, dynamic memory layout, and great audio - IF you use headphones.

Like the R5, it uses a very nice wideband duck, better than the standard offering that comes with the Uniden. Then again, we're still talking a do-it-all 6-inch duck, and in either case, forget about decent HF reception on either unless you attach an external antenna.

The RX7 uses a Lithium battery, which is very lightweight. Personally I don't see the need for Lithiums in scanners or receivers, being essentially low-current devices, unlike a handheld that transmits. I would have been just as happy with a "sleeve" like the R20 has, even with AAA batteries to keep the weight down. Use "low self-discharge" batteries, and even the triple-A size might have been sufficient. Once you slap the AA BP262 shell on an RX7, and you violate the basic slim/light-weight design.

A big advantage over the R5 is the dynamic memory / direct-keys, and alpha tags that can go up to 16 characters, although I find with the large fonts, 12 is more reasonable if you don't want the tags to scroll. The RX7 is similar to the 330T in this regard.

None of these receivers have ssb/cw capabilities for HF, which is a shame.

Only the 330T has a true "narrow FM". What icom calls narrow-fm is just the standard FM used for commercial / amateur communications, and WFM for broadcast. The 330T has today's version of narrow fm, which many conventional systems are using, along with "FM" and "WFM".

Only the 330T does trunking. Then again, the 330T is a real scanner, and not just a receiver that scans, however the RX7 points out to me that Icom could make a decent scanner if they wanted to.

The R5 has almost double the audio power, and the 330T is super-loud. Only the 330T is loud enough to use in emergencies. The R5 and RX7 while having good audio fidelity, need headphones in noisy conditions. The RX7 is the only one that has three levels each for bass / treble control, which makes it much easier to dial in a comfortable setting if you are using very high-fidelity headphones. Ideally, I need to find quality earbuds for comm use that cuts off at 5K or 10K.

(Note: the Kenwood HS-6 communications headphones cuts off at 10K and the HS-5 cuts off at 5K I think and sound GREAT with these handhelds - problem is you have to find mini-plug adapters and they aren't ear-buds, but over ear types. I can recommend both of them highly.)

The R5 does not have the dynamic memory layout, and the alpha tags are very limited with only 6 characters. This is a big limitation for me.

Since I don't own an R5, I can't vouch for the receiver performance. All I can say is that the RX7 holds up very well to my 396T for conventional systems, and from what I've read the R5 is easily overloaded. Perhaps an R5 owner who also owns an RX7 or Uniden 330T can chime in.

Only the 330T has the "close call" feature, whereas the Icoms need to do band-edge searching etc. However, the Icoms have "VSC" or voice-activated squelch. While this is too slow to put into a scan list for me, VSC works pretty well on some systems that don't use PL/DCS, and there is some outside carrier or interference that opens the squelch. Unfortunately it takes too long to decode it, so VSC for me is used in constant-monitoring mode. However it is a great feature that my Uniden doesn't have.

So there you go - The RX7 makes a great conventional receiver that scans that is high-quality and somewhat unique. But if you want a real scanner that does trunking, along with HF AM, then the 330T offers more than either the R5 or RX7.

[maalox]

Originally Posted by hertzian

Comparing it to the Icom R5 or especially the Uniden 330T is a tall order, but I'll give it a go...

The main reason to get the RX7 is for its slimness and feather-weight with a decent receiver, dynamic memory layout, and great audio - IF you use headphones.

Like the R5, it uses a very nice wideband duck, better than the standard offering that comes with the Uniden. Then again, we're still talking a do-it-all 6-inch duck, and in either case, forget about decent HF reception on either unless you attach an external antenna.

The RX7 uses a Lithium battery, which is very lightweight. Personally I don't see the need for Lithiums in scanners or receivers, being essentially low-current devices, unlike a handheld that transmits. I would have been just as happy with a "sleeve" like the R20 has, even with AAA batteries to keep the weight down. Use "low self-discharge" batteries, and even the triple-A size might have been sufficient. Once you slap the AA BP262 shell on an RX7, and you violate the basic slim/light-weight design.

A big advantage over the R5 is the dynamic memory / direct-keys, and alpha tags that can go up to 16 characters, although I find with the large fonts, 12 is more reasonable if you don't want the tags to scroll. The RX7 is similar to the 330T in this regard.

None of these receivers have ssb/cw capabilities for HF, which is a shame.

Only the 330T has a true "narrow FM". What icom calls narrow-fm is just the standard FM used for commercial / amateur communications, and WFM for broadcast. The 330T has today's version of narrow fm, which many conventional systems are using, along with "FM" and "WFM".

Only the 330T does trunking. Then again, the 330T is a real scanner, and not just a receiver that scans, however the RX7 points out to me that Icom could make a decent scanner if they wanted to.

The R5 has almost double the audio power, and the 330T is super-loud. Only the 330T is loud enough to use in emergencies. The R5 and RX7 while having good audio fidelity, need headphones in noisy conditions. The RX7 is the only one that has three levels each for bass / treble control, which makes it much easier to dial in a comfortable setting if you are using very high-fidelity headphones. Ideally, I need to find quality earbuds for comm use that cuts off at 5K or 10K.

(Note: the Kenwood HS-6 communications headphones cuts off at 10K and the HS-5 cuts off at 5K I think and sound GREAT with these handhelds - problem is you have to find mini-plug adapters and they aren't ear-buds, but over ear types. I can recommend both of them highly.)

The R5 does not have the dynamic memory layout, and the alpha tags are very limited with only 6 characters. This is a big limitation for me.

Since I don't own an R5, I can't vouch for the receiver performance. All I can say is that the RX7 holds up very well to my 396T for conventional systems, and from what I've read the R5 is easily overloaded. Perhaps an R5 owner who also owns an RX7 or Uniden 330T can chime in.

Only the 330T has the "close call" feature, whereas the Icoms need to do band-edge searching etc. However, the Icoms have "VSC" or voice-activated squelch. While this is too slow to put into a scan list for me, VSC works pretty well on some systems that don't use PL/DCS, and there is some outside carrier or interference that opens the squelch. Unfortunately it takes too long to decode it, so VSC for me is used in constant-monitoring mode. However it is a great feature that my Uniden doesn't have.

So there you go - The RX7 makes a great conventional receiver that scans that is high-quality and somewhat unique. But if you want a real scanner that does trunking, along with HF AM, then the 330T offers more than either the R5 or RX7.

thanks i do have a 330t....