new user of 8600

[grueic8600]

hello. i just recently found this forum and thought i'd sign up - eager to learn about the ic8600. i got it 3 weeks ago and love it! i feel like i have a good handle on it, enough to listen to 80/75m bands SSB. it is replacing a radioshack dx398 (well i'm keeping it). i can't get over how much is out there! i would try shortwave and dxing over the years on and off and it wasn't until just recently that i said to myself i'm going to try an antenna. i stumbled on the mag-loop by w6lvp and was shocked at what i could find and listen to! so a week later i ordered the 8600. the spectrum waterfall is fantastic. i never knew something like that would be available on a receiver. i'm eager to try out an antenna for freq above 30mhz - just have to find one that won't break the bank - and be indoor as i'm in a lovely condo.

looking forward to reading/learning about it on these forums.

 

[N4DJC]

It’s an excellent receiver, a good antenna is the key. I have a 9700 and love it, overkill but worth it.

 

[TailGator911]

I also have my R8600 hooked to a w6lvp loop and I love it. I switch sometimes between that and a 40-ft end-fed PAR that is stretched between a mast on the side of my house and a tree in my backyard. My reception is fantastic. The R8600 is the creme of the crop if you ask me. I used to think it was a tad bit overpriced, but not anymore. Well worth the big bucks.

 

[grueic8600]

heh heh. i think it is a bit overkill, but there were not a lot of other options that has all the stuff! i did consider the aor xxxx similar price or a little lower as i recall. but the waterfall spectrum really nailed it for me. i know i could have done a computer and black-box sdrplay, but i like not sitting at my computer all the time. (which i can do anyway!)

two real quick questions:

1. my radio sits on a wire shelving unit. each shelf is 4ft by 18" deep., the loop fits perfectly over one of the leg poles. the power supply is also a box and sits next to the radio. both units are 2ft away from the bottom of the loop. is this going to cause a problem with noise or interference? i know ideally the antenna would be out in the yard, but i feel impressed at the stations i can get now in 80m/75m and in the 1.8xx mhz (160m?) range.

2. should i be putting a ground wire on the radio ground post. if yes, where would i run it? i could go into the basement below me with a coax rg6 wire. i read about something with regard to a loose loop of wire laying on the floor or spread out as either doing something for the antenna or being some type of random ground?

i'm currently studying the NOTCH filter function when you press the FUNCTION button. it seems that works early on in the signal. the one that impresses me most though is the dual band pass that i can tune with knob c. sometimes that really helps cut out some of the noise on weaker signals.

i tell you, every time i listen with it i learn something new. the big thing is how listening can be different every night due to weather, atmosphere. last week or so i was blown away by the fact i was picking up lighting 500 miles away!

 

[TailGator911]

Surprisingly, my loop is not that susceptible to interference mounted on a heavy duty loudspeaker tripod just outside my shack window with about a 15-ft coax run. I managed, after a few outside trips and adjustments, to find a sweet spot just inside the shrubs and about 10-ft from the side of the house. At first I had it too close to the window, but when I moved it 10-ft away the performance and reception tripled in quality. I buried each leg of the tripod stand about 8-in deep in the flower bed for more stability. Very satisfied with the w6lvp loop.

 

[grueic8600]

cool. i tried mine in 3 locations inside and wow each time improved tremendously. now on certain nights i can get some really really clear stations and high s/n.

this summer i will try it outside and see how that goes. but ive been enjoying it pretty much every night. just curious about how much better i can get but yeah without this loop i was going to abandon yet another attempt at shortwave listening. it just works and going from the dx398 to the 8600 was just as impressive of an upgrade!

 

[n2pqq]

hello. i just recently found this forum and thought i'd sign up - eager to learn about the ic8600. i got it 3 weeks ago and love it! i feel like i have a good handle on it, enough to listen to 80/75m bands SSB. it is replacing a radioshack dx398 (well i'm keeping it). i can't get over how much is out there! i would try shortwave and dxing over the years on and off and it wasn't until just recently that i said to myself i'm going to try an antenna. i stumbled on the mag-loop by w6lvp and was shocked at what i could find and listen to! so a week later i ordered the 8600. the spectrum waterfall is fantastic. i never knew something like that would be available on a receiver. i'm eager to try out an antenna for freq above 30mhz - just have to find one that won't break the bank - and be indoor as i'm in a lovely condo.

looking forward to reading/learning about it on these forums.

The links below will help you along on understanding and enjoying your Icom ic-r8600
There are also many videos on youtube explaining the radio.

IC-R8600 | Products | Icom Inc. (icomjapan.com)

ic-r8600@groups.io | Home

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[grueic8600]

thanks. i've signed up for the group!

 

[Willy_Pete]

Welcome - I'm new here myself. Have you also seen the user group on Facebook? It has an international following and the postings must be in english to participate. More useful tips to be found there too.

 

[grueic8600]

i'll check that out, but i am not a facebook participant

 

[wv2vvl]

It’s an excellent receiver, a good antenna is the key. I have a 9700 and love it, overkill but worth it.

I'm using a Diamond 3000 discone with my 8600 & even though its specs call for a low end of 25 MHz & I receive great at 1 MHz. I am listening to XE1XR calling CQ & working DX on 14.20000 USB (20 meter band). After I tuned in 1.02 MHz (KDKA clear channel AM BC in Pittsburgh), I tuned in 1090.00 MHz & copied the digital signals from ATC transponders on nearby aircraft. Their pulses are transmitted at high power so the signals were very strong despite 50' of RG-8 coax.

The data sheet on the discone states that you can use it for transmit on 144, 440 & 1296 but not on 28-29 MHz. I've seen the performance curves for similar wideband antennas & the VSWR starts climbing sharply as you get close to the low end of its designed performance.

I've had it for a few weeks now & am learning how to operate it in stages. Incredible radio. Congratulations!

Jack

 

[grueic8600]

hello. i should give a quick update as i've been using it for a while. it's been going great. i'm starting to pick up on a lot of different things like reception differences, sometimes night-to-night. i was able to take my antenna just outside the house, about 8-10ft away from where the antenna sits when inside. i did seem to notice a difference in sig-to-noise which enabled me to hear a fainter station on a few different freq i was messing with. all in all though, the indoor location is pretty good.

i have not do a lot of interneting lately because i'm just having a lot of darned fun tuning in and either listening to familiar voices or skipping around and listening to contests.

i fiddle with the automatic gain, the notch filter, the dual pass-band tuning and sometimes that helps, but most of the time i don't necessairly get anything drastically different.

recently i've found a LOT of activity around upper 6mhz to 7+mhz which kind of surprised me as early on i never really heard much up there. it's pretty clean too as far as noise as compared to down around 3mhz where i get more noise and a lot of lightning. part of me wonders about the summer season and people getting a lot of lightning so maybe they move higher up?

anyway, every time i sit down 2hrs passes! it's a great way to unwind at the end of a day.

 

[wv2vvl]

The links below will help you along on understanding and enjoying your Icom ic-r8600
There are also many videos on youtube explaining the radio.

IC-R8600 | Products | Icom Inc. (icomjapan.com)

ic-r8600@groups.io | Home

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Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Try the Diamond 3000 discone. I had mine only partly assembled, leaning at a 45 deg angle in my basement shack & it worked incredibly well from 1 MHz to 1090 MHz & everything in between - on receive. I'm planning to buy an ICOM 7300 transceiver, which I plan to use on 6 meters after I get my license. The VE exam is next Monday. Antenna 2 is an end fed long wire which does not perform as well as the discone on receive due to a higher noise level on the lower frequencies. The discone is now outdoors on 15' of Rohn 1 1/4" mast & I can't get over the reception.

Jack
Bucks Co., PA

 

[ka3jjz]

We also have a wiki for this radio which has links for software and a few other things of interest....

IC-R8600 - The RadioReference Wiki

wiki.radioreference.com

Mike