need help for a gift- Clueless about radios - Yaesu VR500 Icom IC91AD ??

[crenninger]

Hi all, sorry to just ask a question but I am stuck.

I want to give a radio/scanner to my father as a gift but I am clueless about radios...

A few months back he was talking about a Yaesu VR500 to listen to airport, etc....
he is a Hamradio operator in Europe.

I called up Hamradio.com to check availability and I also asked about other suggestion.

They mentioned the IC91AD which will also do the airport etc... but adds the Dstart (seems related to digital something) and frequency the VR500 doesn't have.

To me, it's all language I don't get...

So my questions
1- what would the VR500 does that the AC91AD doesn't do ?
2- What are the pro/cons of both ?
3- if / when the airport signal is going to turn digital (it will happen sooner or later) will the IC91AD be able to handle that ?

4- Any other suggestion of other Hand held radio ??

Max price should be around $400.

thanks for for the help
Christian

 

[newsphotog]

I got the Icom 91AD simply for the D-STAR capability (D-STAR - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). If your father has a lot of D-STAR systems in his area, I think this is the way to go. I especially like the dual-band capability. I can listen to (for instance) D-STAR on one side of the radio and all the analog repeaters scanning on the other side. Sometimes I will leave D-STAR on one band and listen to my local police and fire departments (460 MHz) on the other side. It has a very wide receive capability. I think it's also very easy to program. I think it's an easy to understand setup, especially if you're not using D-STAR. I have been very pleased with it and I have dropped it a ton of times and it is built like a tank.

I purchased my IC-91AD from Gigaparts. The item is going for $390 right now with a $25 discount on Gigaparts. http://www.gigaparts.com/store.php?action=profile&sku=ZIC-91AD

As for the Yaesu, the only Yaesu I have owned is the FT-7800 as my first ham radio. Yaesus seem to be very well thought out and you get a lot out of them for your money.

Keep in mind neither of these will do trunk tracking, and it won't decode digital (except for D-STAR on the IC-91AD). It will scan only conventional frequencies.

I think it really depends what your father is interested in. If he's interested in D-STAR, I'd definitely spring for the IC-91AD. If he has no interest in D-STAR then I suppose it would be logical to get the VR-500, but you could just get the IC-91AD and not use the DV mode.

 

[datainmotion]

I think its important to note that the VR-500 is ONLY a receiver, while the 91AD is a tranceiver (transmit and receive).

If all he wants to do is listen, the VR-500 is less expensive (around $300 now, I believe). However, since the 91AD will do both for only $100 more, and you said he is a Ham, that might be the better choice.

Either way, kudos to you for finding this site and taking the time to ask the questions - I'd appreciate the effort if it were my kid

 

[robertmac]

I’m a little surprised that your grandfather, as a ham operator in Europe, doesn’t already have a radio [scanner or tx/rx] for the air frequencies [108 and up and the 200 MHz freq]. Most ham radio tx/rx have everything from below the AM broadcast frequencies to the microwave 1300 MHz freq.. I don’t have the answer specifically to your question of which would be better but would like to recommend: make sure the “step” is appropriate for the frequencies in Europe. I believe the Icom will do 8.33 steps that I understand is used in Europe; and you may want to ensure that they or whatever scanner/radio is purchased also covers the 200 MHz freq.. I don’t think airports will be going Digital in the near future for air control freq.. Plus, not sure how important it is to have DSTAR digital. It is new so there will probably be improvements coming up. Most digital are P25 compatible which DSTAR is not. Take a look at Universal Radio shortwave, amateur, scanner and CB radio since 1942 as I like to use this site to look at specs. and prices. One doesn't transmit on air freqs. so a good scanner may be all that is required. Icom also has scanners that can add P25 digital and DSTAR to but the prices are a little steep.

 

[crenninger]

thx

Thanks for your answers.
BTW, my father has equipement at the house, not a handheld yet.

I don't really understand most of it, but I will try )..

I understand the VR500 does only rception while the Icom will do reception and emission.

My question is more about frequencies , does the IC91AD is supporting all the frequencies the VR500 ?

from Yaesu website : Carry the world with you! Continuous coverage: 100 kHz to 1299.99995 MHz! All mode reception: FM, Wide-FM, USB, LSB, CW, and AM! Huge memory capacity: 1091 Channels!

from Icom site:
Version Transmit Receive (Working range) Mode
IC-91AD/A U.S.A.
144–148, 420–450*1 VFO A: 0.495–999.990*3 FM/WFM*4/AM*4
VFO B: 118–174, 350–470 FM/FM-N/AM*4/DV*5


So what would the VR500 receive that the Icom could not receive ?
thanks

 

[crenninger]

here is the link to Icom site, way more specs:

IC-91A / IC-91AD VHF/UHF Dual Band Transceiver - Specifications - Icom America

 

[wa8lgm]

To be one ask one.

Well, you've made the first step in asking about the equipment for your dad. Now, how about taking a second look at the hobby and learning a little about it? There are plenty of good people out there who will help you to get a license. They are called Elmers. There are also lots and lots of ham radio clubs out there with plenty of people who will be willing to answer any and all of your questions about this ham radio thing. Most of them are pretty patient with the new person's "dumb" questions.
There is, first of all, no such thing as a "dumb" question. Asking a question about anything equivocates towards interest in the subject of the question, else you wouldn't have asked it in the first place. Check on the Internet or ask around at one of the local radio shops about people who are into this hobby and I just bet you that there will be some kind of a positive response to your questions about who and where they are.
Good luck to you, and here's hoping that one of these days, you will be on the air and know a lot more about the hobby than you do now. Good luck and best wishes to you.

 

[gcgrotz]

The IC91 is a transmitter, as was stated. However, it only transmits on Ham frequencies in the VHF/UHF range. I'm not sure if you need to spend the extra money on D Star digital capability. It is relatively new and sees little use outside of the major cities here in the US.

I would steer you to look at Yaseu models like VX6/VX7/VX8, they all have wideband recieve with ham band transmit. I have used my VX6 in airports here and Europe and on Cruise ships and while in port I have even made a few local contacts.

On most scanners or ham radio handheld radios, the receiving quality on the "shortwave" frequencies below 30 MHz is generally a compromise and not good for serious listening, while the VHF/UHF quality is usually very good. I like to use my VX6 sometimes to listen to local AM and FM broadcast radio, and the strong shortwave stations come in OK also. It is just a fun feature to have.

Good Luck!