[MilCom] Icom R5/R10?

[Duane Mantick]

You didn't say WHICH band, but I will assume that since you posted
to MILCOM you probably mean 225 to 4-hundred-whatever.  :-)

I own an R10 and have used it extensively not only in this range
but also down in the "civilian" air range as well.  I would call the
receiver itself quite good - BUT, I think Icom could have done better
with the antenna.  This rubber duck antenna is ALWAYS a compromise,
and it is by fluke of luck that they seem to work their best in the
upper VHF to low and mid UHF frequencies.

If you are in near proximity to your source, e.g., like if you are
near a base or at an airshow, the R10 and factory duck antenna work
quite well.  Only gripe here is that the scan speed of the R10 is 
rather sloooooow - If you are trying to listen to more than about
20 frequencies in scan you run the risk of missing things simply
because of that.

Of course, you ALWAYS run the risk of missing things when you're
trying to scan with only one radio - I can say categorically that 
if I had more cash right now, my R10 would have a reaction tuner
attached to it for base visits and airshows.

While at home, I have been pleasantly surprised that even indoors,
I can pick up a2a transmissions in the local MOA on just the duck.
Not real strong, but doing this on just a rubber duck antenna is no
slouch.  If I hook it up to a "real" antenna, the R10's receiver
performance is incredibly impressive for a handheld radio.  I have 
a Radio Shack very basic VHF/UHF scanner antenna which is also 
indoors but up about 10 feet in my livingroom (with a cathedral ceiling,
you can get away with a stunt like this  :-)   ) and shows quite 
clearly how the R10 loves ANY decent antenna.  

As an aside, the performance of the R10 and the factory duck on the
HF bands is awful...BUT, once again if you hook the radio up to an
antenna that is good for HF the R10 receiver shows, again, superb
ability for HF for a handheld.  Just needs the right antenna, and 
even one of my attic-wires really lets the R10 show off.

To sum up, I think there might be better handhelds around for one
purpose or another but for a broadband handheld receiver I am 
quite pleased with the R10.

Duane
WB9OMC
Lafayette, IN
 

-----Original Message-----
From: milcom-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:milcom-bounces at mailman.qth.net]
On Behalf Of YoCuz at comcast.net
Sent: Sunday, December 12, 2004 10:07 PM
To: MilCom at mailman.qth.net
Subject: [MilCom] Icom R5/R10?

Hello All,

Has anyone on this list had and experience with the Icom R5 or Icom R10...
Just curious how they perform in this area (band)?  I'm flirting with
getting a handheld exclusively for the band.

Thanks in advance.

Dennis Moore

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