Kenwood: Kenwood announces end of production for TH-D74

[AK9R]

Following on the heels of Icom's announcement about delaying the ID-52 due to the fire at the AKM chip factory in Japan is this announcement from Kenwood:

無線通信機器　生産完了のお知らせ

ケンウッドブランドの総合情報ページです。ホームオーディオ、カーオーディオ、カーナビゲーション、無線機等の商品情報や、サポートなどの商品関連情報を提供している公式ホームページです。

www.kenwood.com

Note: Google Translate seems to do a pretty good job translating Japanese to English.

AKM makes ADC and DAC chips used in both audio equipment and digital voice radios.

 

[vagrant]

I was hoping they would make a mobile version of the D74A. That chip has sailed.

 

[tweiss3]

That's unfortunate. I want one, and was hoping to get one in the next year, but that ship just sailed.

 

[AK9R]

DX Engineering and Gigaparts still have them in stock. Not sure about Ham Radio Outlet.

 

[tweiss3]

DX Engineering and Gigaparts still have them in stock. Not sure about Ham Radio Outlet.

Yea, I have a curbside to pick up from DX on my way home now. I didn't want to spend that money right now, but maybe I can finally get on the new 220 machines that just went up.

 

[N4DJC]

I saw that last week. Kenwood has no dual band HT’s with the D72 and D74 gone.

 

[krokus]

I hope they reconsider, or at least make a successor. DMR would would be a nice addition, in a successor.

 

[kd5knr]

The product listed as being discontinued on the Japan Kenwood site is the TH-D74, a Dual Band Radio. The radio used in the US Amateur World is the TH-D74A, a 144/220/430 MHz Triband radio. These two radios are not the same product.

 

[tweiss3]

The product listed as being discontinued on the Japan Kenwood site is the TH-D74, a Dual Band Radio. The radio used in the US Amateur World is the TH-D74A, a 144/220/430 MHz Triband radio. These two radios are not the same product.

The US version is the only one that carries the 220MHz band, but they are the same radio (same manual and everything).

 

[AK9R]

Correct. The TH-D74, TH-D74A, and TH-D74E are the same radio with the only difference being the configuration of the CPU based on the band limits in the destination country.

Kenwood's memo didn't go into the reasons why the radio is being dropped, but we can gain some insight from Icom's memos about the ID-52. Icom has announced that the ID-52, a D-STAR radio like the TH-D74, will be delayed due to a fire at a component supplier's factory. That component supplier is AKM which makes ADC and DAC chips. These chips are used in a number of consumer products including digital voice radios like the ID-52 and TH-D74.

 

[N2ICV]

And they were junk I had 3 friends that got bad ones with JUNK CPUs. 1 ham it took 4 months to get it back from them!

 

[kd5knr]

The US version is the only one that carries the 220MHz band, but they are the same radio (same manual and everything).

I stand corrected.

 

[AD0JA]

And they were junk I had 3 friends that got bad ones with JUNK CPUs. 1 ham it took 4 months to get it back from them!

As a Kenwood fan, I unfortunately have to agree as well. They really missed the mark with the D74A. Couple of my buddies got bad non-functional ones straight from the dealer. Sent them back immediately.

The TH-F6A was a great radio, really wish they'd design a more modern radio that's as rugged and capable as it.

 

[danesgs]

I think Kenwood is not going to invest in the hobby anymore. Too many new, quality re-designed Chinese radios to compete against.

ICOM and Yaesu took 5 years to make a sub-100 dollar HT to go up against the Baofeng and Anytone models and its just more viable to come out with consumer HF rigs like the FT-dx10 and high-end rigs than design a tri-band VHF/UHF HT radio. Ed has been carrying the Anytone line exclusively for years now and has a tri-band HT for under 200.00 that does what the D74A tried to do. His support is also superb.

Wouxun is history | Buy a better radio, buy Anytone

Anytone At-3318UV,Anytone At-3318UV-E

www.wouxun.us

Also read on his site why he no longer sells Wouxun products.

KJ4DGE

 

[AK9R]

A friend of mine contacted me in 1994 very concerned about Kenwood getting out of amateur radio. He was quite sure it was going to happen as it didn't seem that Kenwood was making any investments in developing amateur radio gear. That was over 25 years ago and Kenwood is still here.

That said, JVC Kenwood, as a corporation, only derives about 24% of its revenue from all radio communications products, including both amateur radio and land mobile radio.

Icom's least expensive handheld amateur radio is the IC-V86 which retails for about $115. And, it is 2m only. It competes pretty closely with the Kenwood TH-K20 which sells for about $10 more and is also 2m only. Icom no longer sells any analog dual-band handheld amateur radios and the ID-52 dual-band D-STAR handheld has been delayed for the same reason that Kenwood stopped production of the TH-D74.

Yaesu has two dual-band handheld amateur radios that are less than $100, the FT-4X and the FT-65. Both are built in China using Chinese "radio on a chip" designs. The user interface for these radios is a mix of Yaesu and Baofeng and they are "one band at a time" radios, not true dual-banders like the TH-D74 (or TH-D72 or TH-F6).

All that said, the thread is about the discontinuation of the Kenwood TH-D74, which appears to be a fact not subject to debate. If you think Kenwood is getting out of amateur radio, please start a new thread where you make your case...assuming you have more evidence than my friend did back in 1994. And, if you don't like D-STAR or think Anytone is building a better radio, please start a new thread on those topics.

 

[AK9R]

It's been reported elsewhere that the TH-D74 uses the AK2400 chip from AKM.

AK2400 | Integrated RF ICs | Wireless Communication ICs | Communication ICs | PRODUCTS | Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM)

High integrated receiver for PMR / LMR. The AK2400 integrates various functions necessary for a variable bandwidth IF filter, fractional N synthesizer, 12-bit 1Msps ADC, FM demodulator and receiver in an 8 mm☐ package.

www.akm.com

All this in an 8mm x 8mm 56-pin chip.

 

[mmckenna]

There may be additional reasons for stopping production. Maybe sales are slow...
The Chinese are pretty smart, and spinning up a new factory to crank out those chips would not be difficult.

 

[AK9R]

AKM is a Japanese company. The factory that was reportedly damaged by fire is in Nobeoka City, Japan. The fire raged for 82 hours in the third week of October 2020. AKM estimates that it will take 6 months to rebuild the factory. I've seen reports that AKM is working with other fabs to restore production of AKM's chips.

Yes, I think Kenwood may have decided to stop production of the TH-D74 due to slow sales. It's unfortunate, but the cheap, Chinese radios are killing demand for amateur radio handhelds from Japanese manufacturers. Icom is down to two handhelds, the IC-V86 and the announced, but not yet released ID-52. Kenwood is now down to one handheld, the TH-K20. Yaesu has three handhelds made in China, a couple of really old models, and newer models that they need to keep producing to justify their development of a digital voice mode that's incompatible with everybody else. It's like the death of Collins, Drake, Hallicrafters, Johnson, etc., all over again.

BTW, what's happening with Icom's and Kenwood's radios is nothing compared to the pro and consumer audio industry which is very reliant on ADCs and DACs made by AKM. In some cases, the price of AKM chips that were still in distributor's warehouses jumped 2000% (yes, two thousand percent) as they were being snatched up like toilet paper during a pandemic.

 

[N4DJC]

AKM is a Japanese company. The factory that was reportedly damaged by fire is in Nobeoka City, Japan. The fire raged for 82 hours in the third week of October 2020. AKM estimates that it will take 6 months to rebuild the factory. I've seen reports that AKM is working with other fabs to restore production of AKM's chips.

Yes, I think Kenwood may have decided to stop production of the TH-D74 due to slow sales. It's unfortunate, but the cheap, Chinese radios are killing demand for amateur radio handhelds from Japanese manufacturers. Icom is down to two handhelds, the IC-V86 and the announced, but not yet released ID-52. Kenwood is now down to one handheld, the TH-K20. Yaesu has three handhelds made in China, a couple of really old models, and newer models that they need to keep producing to justify their development of a digital voice mode that's incompatible with everybody else. It's like the death of Collins, Drake, Hallicrafters, Johnson, etc., all over again.

BTW, what's happening with Icom's and Kenwood's radios is nothing compared to the pro and consumer audio industry which is very reliant on ADCs and DACs made by AKM. In some cases, the price of AKM chips that were still in distributor's warehouses jumped 2000% (yes, two thousand percent) as they were being snatched up like toilet paper during a pandemic.

The state of the higher end handheld market is pretty dismal at this point. My first thought was what a loss for satellite operators, but we are a minuscule part of the market.

 

[tweiss3]

The state of the higher end handheld market is pretty dismal at this point. My first thought was what a loss for satellite operators, but we are a minuscule part of the market.

When you add the satellite use + real APRS + 220MHz, it is quite a loss. It was one of the only two non CCR 220 HTs available.

BTW, I'm super impressed with mine, being only a few days in. Leaps and bounds better reception over the 878, and the ability to monitor the local 6M repeater network around the house without sitting down at the shack is huge. D-Star was just a bonus for me, but I like it better than DMR (and it sounds better).