question which is a better radio the icom 706mkIIG are the yaesu ft 897d trying to decide which one to buy
icom 706mkIIg are yaesu ft897d
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As you are looking to purchase a used radio, perhaps purchase a Yaesu 991A. They can be found used for $1000 and less, especially on the swap area of QRZ.com. I sold my 897D and enjoy the additional built-in features the 991A offers. The one thing my 897D offered over the 991A is the extremely low power draw during RX. I think it was 200 mA whereas my 991A pulls almost 2A, but the 991A has a larger screen with much more going on with the waterfall. This is not a problem for me as I have a 100Ah LiFePO4 battery and plenty of solar panels when out in the field. At home a good switching or linear power supply will work fine.
Also be aware that the 897D had bad ceramic filters in some batches. You will need to pay out of pocket to have those replaced. I intentionally purchased a 2013 model without that problem as well as a good working screen. Some screens on the 897D will get vertical lines and are referred to as Zebra stripes.
If I had to choose between the 706 & and the 897D I would/did choose the 897D.
Also be aware that the 897D had bad ceramic filters in some batches. You will need to pay out of pocket to have those replaced. I intentionally purchased a 2013 model without that problem as well as a good working screen. Some screens on the 897D will get vertical lines and are referred to as Zebra stripes.
If I had to choose between the 706 & and the 897D I would/did choose the 897D.
Icom IC-706 MkIIG has been out of production for about 14 years. If you are looking to buy one, understand that it is not a new radio. Also understand that due to the compact nature of the IC-706 and IC-7000, these radios are prone to heat-related failures.
Yaesu FT-897D has been out production for about 9 years. The FT-897, FT-857, and FT-817 are all basically the same radio in different boxes though the 897 and 857 have different final amplifiers. Again, lots of electronics crammed into a small space.
A problem that is gradually becoming worse and worse is that older electronics devices are nearly impossible to service. If specialized ICs were used in the original design, such as DSPs, FPGAs, CPUs, they may no longer be available from the chip manufacturers and few repair shops can do board level repairs anyway. If the shop can't get a replacement main board or logic board or PA board from the manufacturer or a "parts radio", you're screwed.
Since the two radios you list have basically the same band coverage, I'll jump to the conclusion that you are looking for a "shack in a box" solution. I generally recommend against these sorts of radios. For one, in most parts of the country, FM is the predominant mode on 2m and 70cm so paying for CW and SSB modes on those bands may be a waste of money. The second reason is that if one part of the radio fails, you are entirely off the air while the radio goes in for service. I think you might be better served by getting a good HF+6m radio, like an Icom IC-7300 or a used Kenwood TS-590SG, and a good VHF/UHF dual-band FM mobile radio.
Yaesu FT-897D has been out production for about 9 years. The FT-897, FT-857, and FT-817 are all basically the same radio in different boxes though the 897 and 857 have different final amplifiers. Again, lots of electronics crammed into a small space.
A problem that is gradually becoming worse and worse is that older electronics devices are nearly impossible to service. If specialized ICs were used in the original design, such as DSPs, FPGAs, CPUs, they may no longer be available from the chip manufacturers and few repair shops can do board level repairs anyway. If the shop can't get a replacement main board or logic board or PA board from the manufacturer or a "parts radio", you're screwed.
Since the two radios you list have basically the same band coverage, I'll jump to the conclusion that you are looking for a "shack in a box" solution. I generally recommend against these sorts of radios. For one, in most parts of the country, FM is the predominant mode on 2m and 70cm so paying for CW and SSB modes on those bands may be a waste of money. The second reason is that if one part of the radio fails, you are entirely off the air while the radio goes in for service. I think you might be better served by getting a good HF+6m radio, like an Icom IC-7300 or a used Kenwood TS-590SG, and a good VHF/UHF dual-band FM mobile radio.
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