[Icom] IC-2100H alternator whine problems

[Gert E. Janssens]

Hello all,

I am new to this list; or rather "new-again", as I resubscibed after buying
a new Icom, the IC-2100H. I must say it is a beauty. Everything I need (and
more) and extremely good audio, both receive and transmit. And at the
current price I couldn't resist.

However, I have a peculiar problem with it: for some reason it picks up a
huge amount of alternator noise, and not only receives it but retransmits it
too.

I had a Yaesu FT-1500M in the car before the Icom, but the 1500 was
installed in my wife's car. That one does not have that problem; in fact I
removed the 2100 today and put the 1500 back in to make sure. Didn't do it,
so I put the Icom back in and the noise was there again. I then put the Icom
in  my wife's car, and it also picks up the generator's noise there.

I tried an in-line DC filter (Radio Shack) but that doesn't help at all.
Checked all my cabling, even put on new connectors here and there, all to no
avail...

What I haven't tried yet are those ferrite beads that are spoken of many
times, because I simply don't know which ones to use and where to get them.
After contacting Icom America they told me to use ferrite beads, but were
unable to tell me which ones... They (Icom) also recommended me to install a
bandpass filter in the coax line. It seems like I'm going to have to spend
the price of two radios just to get it working!

Does/did anyone else on this list have the same problem? Any
advice/help/fixes will be highly appreciated. It's just too good a radio
(and barely two weeks old) for me to get rid of it...

Thanks in advance, 73,

Gert - K5WW