I often see posts on social media asking which is the best radio for doing POTA and SOTA work. Of course the very best advice would come from people like Thomas Witherspoon (K4SWL) and Julian White (OH8STN) who are experts in this area or John Harper AE5X who spends a great deal of time outdoors, but while you're here, you might as well see what I think 😂.
The main difference between SOTA and POTA is the fact that you can almost always drive to a POTA location in your car and operate from the vehicle or close to it. Most SOTA ops involve an uphill struggle to a summit, so all your equipment needs to be carried in a rucksack.
SOTA OPERATORS tend to focus sharply on the size and weight of their radio along with the current draw. The current draw matters greatly because it determines the size of the (potentially heavy) battery required to operate it. In addition to the radio and batteries, SOTA guys also have to lug around their antenna, mast, laptop/tablet, phone, food and drinks!
POTA OPERATORS also focus on the size and weight of their equipment, but it's obviously nowhere near as important, since they're (usually) only loading it into their vehicle.
Personally, I don't bother too much with either SOTA or POTA, but I do spend most of my radio-time in the great outdoors. That can involve me loading my rucksack and going on a hill walk or chucking some gear into the back of my car and driving to an elevated position not too far away. I also like to take my radio gear with me when I go on holiday in the UK.
So what's the best radio? Well as usual, I only talk about radios that I have owned and used - I don't feel that it's right to give opinions on equipment that you've not used personally.
By default, virtually all SOTA radios are QRP, providing 5-20W output and I've tried around half a dozenmodels...
ICOM IC-705 £1200
YAESU FTX-1F £1600
ELECRAFT KX2/3 £1800
YAESU FT-891 £600
XIEGU G90/6100 £390/530
FX-4CR £550
QMX PLUS £200
TR(u)SDR £100
For me, the Icom IC-705 is the reigning king! It provides a stunning array of features for just £1200 and has been leading the way for the last five years! Buy a 705 and you've pretty much got everything you need to enjoy radio at the top of a hillside or at home in the shack.
You'll get a superb, modern SDR all-mode receiver with a fabulous colour touchscreen, built-in front-facing speaker, a speaker-mic, built-in soundcard, QSO-Recorder, GPS, BlueTooth, Wi-Fi, CW & Phone memories, PSK decoder and HF, VHF, UHF, DSTAR with 10W output. AirBand and general coverage is included. Current drain is reasonable and weight is fair. Probably a little too bulky to take to the top of Everest 😂 but fine for most outings.
If you want to use the 705 at home with an amplifier, the most cost-effective way is to connect a Xiegu XPA125B to it. Not only will it give you 100W for 5W input, but it also gets you a superb built-in ATU with an impedance range of 10:1.
As you will see from the review, the 705 is very well supported by third-party software and hardware, making it even more appealing.
The Yaesu FTX-1F is the new kid on the block and has been in the making for a long time. It came along five years after the 705, costs £400 more and offers fewer features as standard 😲! Although I bought one, I'm not afraid to say that I was quite disappointed with Yaesu's efforts, especially considering that their designers new how high Icom had set the bar. Don't get me wrong - it's a lovely radio, but I was hoping that it would knock the 705 off its lofty perch with a long list of new and exciting features.
Sadly, upon release, the FTX-1F had a long list of bugs instead of new features! And in addition to the bugs, it also lacked GPS, BlueTooth and WiFi. Although you can pay more and add GPS and BlueTooth modules, you cannot add WiFi 😲. Incredible!
On the plus side, the FTX-1 includes the 4M band in the UK and has Dual Receive capability. However, that doesn't mean independent dual-receivers like you'd find on an FTM300, so you can't cross-band. Dual receive only works on VHF/UHF - not HF/HF. Where Icom offer DSTAR, Yaesu offer C4FM.
The FTX-1F is bigger and heavier than the 705 and it draws more current too, so it's unlikely to become a SOTA favourite! For POTA though, it's fine and there's an optional clip-on 100W amplifier with a (rather poor 3:1) built-in ATU.
Needless to say, the Yaesu FanBoys are calling this radio the "705 Slayer" which is just laughable 😂😁😂. If it had matched the 705 feature-list plus the 4M and Dual Receive, I'd agree, but it hasn't and it isn't, so calm down boys 😏. I ended up selling mine and haven't regretted it!
ELECRAFT have offered the KX3 for over a decade and it was the radio to have for SOTA or POTA, but as good as it is, times have moved on and operators are increasingly wanting to benefit from the handy features of the more modern radios. The popularity of the Elecraft has also declined in recent years because they've become more and more difficult to get hold of in Europe. UK Dealers eventually gave up on them and it's little wonder considering the eye-watering prices.
Make no mistake - the KX3 has a stunning receiver and there are many proud and happy owners - especially in America where they are manufactured, but I guess they're getting a little long in the tooth now and are in need of modernisation.
A firm favourite with many POTA operators (and a few SOTA guys too) is the fabulous YAESU FT-891. In a fairly compact form factor, it offers a 100W, All Mode HF/6M radio with a superb receiver and 32-bit DSP for around £600.
This radio has no faults as far as I could find, save the awkward menu system. It's fairly light for a 100W radio at 1.9kg and its slim profile (8x6x2") means that it fits easily inside most 'day bags'. I honestly loved this radio and regret selling it. Of course there's no VHF/UHF or digital modes with it and that's the only downside to it. If you've climbed hundreds of feet to get to a fabulous take-off point, you usually want to maximise your opportunities to make contacts - including VHF/UHF. But if you're happy with HF only, this radio has got to be considered! You can always carry a VHF/UHF HT.
XIEGU offer the G90 for the budget conscious operators out there and it's a cracking bit of kit, offering tremendous value for money! It's a 20W HF transceiver with a superb built-in ATU which is famous for being able to 'tune a wet noodle'. A sharp colour screen with built-in scope and waterfall completes the package.
The G90 hasn't got the best receiver in the world, but it is perfectly adequate when operated outdoors at a good take-off (which is almost certainly where it will be operated). Just remember though - no VHF/UHF.
Additionally, Xiegu offer the 6100 and more recently the 6200, but for me, they don't provide the same value for money and in the case of the 6100, there are way too many birdies! Stick with the wonderful G90 and spend the rest on a great portable antenna.
FX-4CR from BG2FX is an extremely compact HF radio offering a crisp colour screen, scope, waterfall and 20W output!
With an aluminium body, it is extremely light and can truly be called a pocket radio. The ergonomics are superb and it's just a joy to operate. It even has Bluetooth and can provide wireless digital operation! There's a built-in speaker and microphone and it weighs just 400g.
QMX PLUS from QRP-LABS is a superb 5W transceiver which provides you with 12 bands to work with and although it was originally restricted to CW & DIGITAL modes, it has recently been upgraded (via firmware) to include SSB! It can be ordered as a self-assembly kit or pre-assembled. Personally I went for the kit version and really enjoyed the challenge. It gives you so much more of a connection to a radio when you've built it yourself. If you want a pre-assembled QMX+ you can expect to be on the waiting list for around a year 😮
One of the very best features of the QMX is that it has POLAR MODULATION, something that (at the time of writing) is only implemented in one other transceiver - the £7000 Flex Aurora. This can effectively make your 5W transmitter perform like a 12Watter!
There's also an even smaller version called the QMX and that too is a very popular SOTA radio. This small, light 5W transceiver is one of the best value radios out there. It's worth noting that the QMX is much more difficult to build than the QMX+. If you ever see either one on the second-hand market, grab it!!
TR(u)SDR from DL2MAN is the one to go for if you have a very limited budget. It costs around £100 and is an amazing little radio for this money. It is feature-rich, super light and can even be ordered as a kit if you wish to save more money. It is a 5-Band radio and includes an informative OLED screen, intuitive operation, robust design, built-in diagnostic tools, CW Decoder, speaker and microphone! You can buy Hi and Lo Band versions. Just an amazing performer for its size and cost.
So there you have it! Sure, there others out there, but none that I have personally fancied buying. The only one that I was considering was the LAB-599 from Russia - that was until they decided to invade their neighbour, leading to the deaths of 100's of thousands of people. Sorry, I know you shouldn't bring this sort of stuff into a hobby, but it's just too big and too awful to ignore.
The other option of course is to go for a discontinued radio (secondhand) such as the Yaesu FT818 and that's not a bad option, but personally I'd rather save up for a few extra months and get the radio that I really desire instead of making do with some old tech which might have had a hard life already.
I hope this post has been of some use to people who are considering entering the world of outdoor radio ops. It's a starting point at least. If you have any comments, please leave them below.
Amateur Radio often takes me outdoors to some beautiful areas in search of a great take-off for my QRP transmissions. When I find somewhere, I often sit there thinking how good it would be to be able to record it with a short video and even benefit from a birds-eye view of the place.
And so I began to look at the idea of purchasing a drone. I’ve been considering this for quite some time to be honest, but my forced retirement and subsequent loss of income has held me back. I could, of course, have bought a cheap and cheerful device, but I know from a lifetime of buying tech that I wouldn’t have been happy.
Anyway, to cut a long story short, one of my mates bought a £900 drone with extras and almost immediately decided he wanted the bigger model in the range, so he had this new, unused one to dispose of. Thankfully, he offered it to me for a great price and so here we are!
The day before I picked up the package from my friend’s house, I obtained an OPERATOR-ID and a FLYER-ID online. The OID is simply a matter of paying £12 but the FID involves learning the CAA Drone and Model Aircraft Code and taking a very simple 40 question exam - weirdly at no cost.
In the UK, if your drone weighs less than 250g, you only need an Operator-ID, which is crazy! IMHO the Flyer-ID should be compulsory, since it does actually teach you something about flying a drone responsibly, whereas the OID teaches you nothing at all. Typical bureaucracy!😠
Another daft rule is that Public Liability Insurance is not a compulsory requirement for drones under 250g. Needless to say, I wanted to be insured and so membership of FPV-UK got me £5M worth of cover, plus some other benefits.
The drone in question is the DJI MINI 4 PRO FLY MORE. The “fly more“ means that it comes with extra batteries and a triple charger, allowing you to have approximately 90 minutes flying time - more on that later. In the box you get the drone, the controller, the batteries, a USB lead and some spare propeller blades. There’s also a little screwdriver included but it doesn’t look to be the best, so I’ll probably replace it with an alternative - the last thing I want to do is mess up the heads of those teeny tiny prop screws!
The drone was absolutely unused and as you’d find it in the shops. It came with its own carry bag which is a high quality item but (in my opinion) a tad too too small. Thankfully, I have a nice little Peli-1200 which turned out to be the ideal case, offering storage with protection from knocks and rain (not to mention security).
The Mini 4 Pro comes with a choice of two Controllers - one uses your mobile phone to act as a screen and the other has its own built-in screen. Thankfully, I have the latter, which is called the RC2 - it’s infinitely more useful. It also provides upgraded antennas (2 transmit, 4 receive) along with a bright 5.5” touchscreen.
Since my drone was secondhand, my first job was to get it registered and bound to my DJI Account and once that was done, the learning process could begin.
Both the drone and the controller have memory card slots, so I purchased a couple of MicroSD cards from DJI’s recommended list. I wanted a 256Gb for the drone because obviously this is where the movies and photos are stored. The RC2 Controller allows you to record everything that you see onscreen as you fly, so I figured I might as well install another 256Gb card in there too, so that if something happened to my drone’s card, I’ve always got a spare one with me. I should point out that the RC2 controller has its own inbuilt 32Gb storage and doesn’t necessarily need a separate memory card.
I was really quite nervous about my very first flight, so much so that I spent a long time watching training videos on YouTube, to avoid the common mistakes which befall many rookie pilots. I also took advantage of things like DJI’s Virtual Flying App which allows you (if nothing else) to get used to the controls.
My first ‘real’ flight was little more than a vertical take-off from the lawn to a grand height of 30 feet. I then immediately landed it - just to make sure I could! 😂
Once I felt safe that nothing bad was going to happen, I extended my aerial adventures bit by bit, including testing the Return To Home feature. My confidence built up slowly, but I remain cautious and avoid being too adventurous until I’ve gained some real experience and the controls become absolutely second nature.
So, let’s look at the MINI 4 PRO. It was launched just a couple of years ago and introduced some fantastic new features to the sub-250g arena including…
Omni-Directional Collision Avoidance
Advanced Return To Home System
Enhanced Camera System
Latest O4 Transmission System
New Rotating Gimbal for Vertical Shooting
2590mAh Battery - up to 34 mins flight time
4K Video at 100fps - Slow Motion
4K Video at 60fps
Night Shots Video
Maximum Speed of 36mph
48MP 1/1.3” CMOS Sensor
D-LOG M & HLG profiles
Active Track 360
Waypoint Flight
Cruise Control
Below is my very first (and slightly boring) video which I made around our holiday-park. Since then, the weather has been very poor - especially the winds, which make it very difficult to fly.
First drone video 😂😁😂
The MINI PRO 4 is aimed squarely at rank amateurs like me - people who want the convenience of a light, compact drone with plenty of flying aids for casual and occasional use on sunny, calm days. If you want to work in less than ideal weather conditions and have a more serious interest in drone flying, you need something bigger, perhaps from the Mavic range. Having said that, many 'professionals' have given the Mini4Pro high praise.
________________________
PROS
Beginner-friendly: The drone is easy to fly, even for those with no prior experience, and features user-friendly controls.
Safety features: It has omnidirectional obstacle avoidance and is designed to be safe for both beginners and experienced pilots.
High-quality video: The 1/1.3-inch sensor captures high-quality 4K video and great stills in various conditions.
Lightweight and compact: At under 250g, it is often exempt from complex registration and exams in many countries.
Improved tracking: ActiveTrack mode is refined, and a new jog wheel offers more control when following a subject.
Good value: With recent price reductions, it is now considered one of the best all-around value drones available.
CONS
Wind performance:
Its lightweight design can make it unstable in strong winds compared to larger drones.
Price: The initial cost was a barrier for some, though this has improved with a recent price drop.
Image quality: Some users report that higher-megapixel modes can produce noisy results, and a 12MP mode may be cleaner.
Obstacle avoidance limitations: While generally effective, some users have found it can struggle in specific situations, like with close-up tracking, and may not always prevent collisions.
SPECS
Takeoff Weight: < 249 g. Standard aircraft weight (including the Intelligent Flight Battery, propellers, and a microSD card). The actual product weight may vary due to differences in batch materials and external factors. Registration is not required in some countries and regions. Always check local laws and regulations before use. With the Intelligent Flight Battery Plus*, the aircraft will weigh more than 249 g. Always check and strictly abide by local laws and regulations before flying. The Intelligent Flight Battery Plus is not sold in Europe.
Dimensions: Folded (without propellers): 148×94×64 mm (L×W×H)
Unfolded (with propellers): 298×373×101 mm (L×W×H)
Max Ascent Speed: 5 m/s (S Mode), 5 m/s (N Mode), 3 m/s (C Mode)
Max Descent Speed: 5 m/s (S Mode), 5 m/s (N Mode), 3 m/s (C Mode)
Max Horizontal Speed (at sea level, no wind): 16 m/s (S Mode), 12 m/s (N Mode), 12 m/s (C Mode). The max horizontal speed is subject to dynamic local restrictions. Always abide by local laws and regulations when flying.
Operating Temperature: -10° to 40° C (14° to 104° F)
There’s no such thing as a perfect lightweight multiband antenna for outdoor use. I’ve tried lots of them over the last few years and the one which has brought me the most success is the SOTABEAMS 20/40 Bandhopper II Linked Dipole. But that covers just two bands.
I have another Sotabeams antenna called the BandSpringer Mini - an End-Fed which covers 7 bands, but for some reason it’s not been a raging success for me, so I seem to be on this never ending search for the holy grail.
Anyway, I decided to try something different - something which I’ve never tried before - an Off Centre Fed Dipole in the form of the MODEL 404UL from Aerial-51.
This Kevlar-strengthened antenna can handle up to 200W and yet it’s extremely light and compact, weighing just 400g including 40ft of coax! Having something which can handle so much power gives you a satisfying reassurance that your FT8 transmissions are not going to overheat the Balun even at 25W.
The antenna is just as simple to erect as the Bandhopper and although they recommend using something taller, I used my 7M Mast to great effect. You can see in the photo below how it looks. The 40ft coax allows you a great degree of flexibility in choosing where to operate from (a heated garage in this test-case, lol).
You can see that the profile of my Inverted-V is quite shallow compared to the 404UL diagram, but nevertheless, it really pulled in the signals.
QUICK SAMPLE OF THE 404/705
I’m keeping the antenna in this “test location” for another week and will update this page after that. I bought the 404 as a secondhand item and so luckily got it at a bargain price. The value for money was further enhanced by the WindCamp case it came in, plus a pair of mini-reels for winding in the elements (with their string supports) for quick storage and deployment.
After a while, I dumped the reels in favour of normal winders from SotaBeams.
Rather than wait until the end to reach my conclusion, I’m going to spit out my feelings about this radio right now!
It’s expensive (really expensive) and it’s somewhat disappointing😮
Now bear in mind that this is just my opinion. I'm not an Icom fanboy and I'm not a Yaesu hater - I've bought more Yaesu radios than any other make. And finally, I should point out that I only discuss radios that I've purchasedwith my own personal money.
Some people get really het-up when you fail to praise a product that they've just purchased - they're affronted by your 'negative' evaluation of what they've convinced themselves is the best thing since sliced bread! Lighten up guys!! It's an opinion! We've all got them and we're all entitled to them. What irks me, is when people blindly make outrageous claims like "This is a game-changer" or "There's nothing even comes close", when in fact, there's been something out there that is similar (and even better in some respects) for a few years!
When bringing something to market, most manufacturers would look very carefully at the competition and seek to beat them at their own game. Consider Icom’s 7610 - a magnificent radio which offered top-notch performance and an incredible feature list which set the standard for a £3k base station.
A few years later, Yaesu responded with their FT-DX101D and we all believed it would offer even more bang for the buck. It didn’t! Sure, it provided better LabFigures for the number chasers, and it was a beautiful bit of kit, but in many respects, it failed (IMHO). Instead of introducing new and innovative features, it lacked so many of the everyday useful features that the IC-7610 had provided years earlier, including a built-in Server for remote-control operation, a QSO Recorder and even a real time Clock 😮. And the ergonomics sucked by comparison!!
Well it seems that Yaesu have made the same mistake with the FTX-1. In 2019 Icom announced the ground-breaking IC-705 and it was peppered with new features which we all now take for granted, not to mention the most intuitive ergonomics ever! No wonder it was so successful! Meanwhile, Yaesu seemed happy to rely on sales of their 20+ year old FT817/818 design.
Yes, 5 YEARS LATER in 2024, Yaesu announced their new QRP Shack-In-A-Box and it was supposed to be available in the UK in early 2025. January, February, March, April, May, June, July came and went. Nothing! Every month, the release got pushed back again and again. Many people (including me) had pre-ordered the £1600 radio and had to wait patiently for Yaesu to stop moving the delivery goal-posts. My order eventually arrived early August 😮
Everyone was hoping for an IC-705 Slayer and nobody got one (except the delusional people who claimed the FTX was a "game changer"😂).
The FTX-1 immediately started life behind the IC-705….
NO BUILT-IN WIFI FOR REMOTE CONTROL
NO BUILT-IN BLUETOOTH
NO BUILT-IN GPS
It beggars belief that Yaesu would do this! It’s not like they didn’t know how high the bar was set. I wanted more from this new radio, not less!
So on top of having to pay £400 more for an FTX-1 than an IC-705, we also have to pay extra for the things which are already included with the 705. Pffft!
Although I already own an IC-705, I really fancied the idea of the FTX-1, not least because it would give me the option of using C4FM during my outings along with WIRES-X connectivity. Unfortunately, the Wires-X connectivity is not available until later this year😡.
I must admit that I was surprised by the size of the FTX - I guess we’d been hoping for something light and compact, but it is, in fact, larger and heavier than the 705😲. The overall appearance is very pleasing and the screen looks every bit as good as the Icom’s screen, including when operating outdoors in sunlight. The Touch-Sensitivity of the Yaesu is definitely poorer than the Icom.
I find the Yaesu ergonomics inferior to Icom’s but that's personal preference to some degree. That 3D waterfall however, is just ridiculously gimmicky - but as I've said before about 3DSS, it keeps theUnder-12's happy! Thankfully, the 2D waterfall is fine (although the options to adjust the colours of the panadapter are limited - you get just a basic number of chavvy colours to choose from).
A big positive for the FTX-1 is the inclusion of the 4M band (UK) and the two antenna ports -I guess the larger cabinet makes that easy to do and it’s a shame that Icom hadn’t done the same. It's a great pity that Yaesu chose to locate the HF BNC above the VHF/UHF BNC, because it means that you can't stick a vertical whip on the latter if you also have a HF antenna connected.
Neither the FTX-1 or the IC-705 has a built-in ATU and you really do have to shake your head at this omission, especially when Elecraft have been managing to squeeze a superb 20W ATU (and even batteries) into the tiny KX2 and KX3 transceivers for over a decade even though their cabinets are smaller! The Optima version does include an ATU but it can’t hold a candle to the Elecraft design or capability.
For just £250 😂, you can add an external Yaesu ATU to the Field radio but be aware that it can only handle 10W (so you're potentially always working at its limit) and it needs to be clipped to the back of the radio, adding more bulk. Since it cannot be used with any other radio, I definitely won't be buying one! I would recommend people buy the stunningly capable 20W Elecraft T1 ATU instead, or something like an LDG Z100 PLUS. Either of these will easily match a long wire, whereas the FC-80 will only cope with a 3:1 mismatch.
One thing I was excited about was Yaesu's claim that this radio was Dual Receive, allowing you to listen to two different frequencies at the same time. Sadly, this is not availableon two HF bands - it only works as HF/VHF, HF/UHF, VHF/VHF, VHF/UHF UHF/UHF and it's not full duplex!
There's one area of the new Yaesu which definitely shines - the audio! It is a great sounding radio thanks to the forward-facing speaker system they introduced on other radios like the FTM500but it doesn't include the AESS system. The 705 also has a speaker on the front of the panel, but it's not quite as rich sounding as the FTX. Having said that, the 705's audio is a little punchier which may help when listening to very weak signals. Tomatoes, Tomatoes! If you prefer to use headphones, then there's no difference between them.
Sharing the same antenna with a switch, I was able to run both radios side by side to compare the incoming signals. Both radios have good receivers and apart from the different audio tone between one and the other, I was unable to tell anyreal difference. They both picked up the weakest of signals and the S-Meter readings were very closely matched (no pre-amps on). Switching on the “SuperDX” increases signal strength without increasing noise - in fact, despite lighting up the waterfall, it seems to actually reduce the noise!
Where I could tell a difference between the FTX-1 and the 705 was on the bandscopes. On the 705 you could just about see a weak station (either on the scope, but more easily on the waterfall) but on the FTX-1 screen you could see no evidence of activity, even after adjusting the bandscope parameters. You could hear the weak station, but not see it. Hopefully this will be fixed with a firmware update.
There's no mention of it, but looking at the block diagrams, I'd say that the FTX-1 looks closer to the DX10 architecture, than the 710. Smarter people than me will no doubt correct me.
Moving around, changing settings on both radios showed me that the Icom was easier to work with than the Yaesu. Yes, I've had the Icom for four years and I'm very familiar with it, but even so, when I carried out an operation on the 705 and tried the same on the FTX, it was always more intuitive on the 705. There's quite a few 'quirks' in the Yaesu system that need sorting out and I don't doubt they'll be addressed quickly. Nevertheless, the Yaesu is a lovely radio and if it's your only one, you'll very quickly get used to it all.
A feature that I do like on the Yaesu is QMB which lets you very quickly store and recall a frequency. I use this when working QRP trying to break into a pileup. If I can't get through to the caller, I work elsewhere for a while until the pileup subsides and then go back to try again. QMB makes it easy to return to that frequency.
PMG is another handy feature common to modern Yaesu radios, It only works on VHF/UHF, but it stores your top five favourite frequencies and then scans them for activity.
The feel and quality of the FTX is good. As long as you keep that God-Awful 3D waterfall out of sight, you'll not feel like you're playing with a toy. All the buttons and rotaries feel good and operate smoothly. Because of the shape of the battery, the FTX-1 sits at a really useful angle, whereas the IC-705 needs a little prop.
The battery is a 6400mAh Li-ion which they reckon will last up to 9 hours on receive, which is pretty awesome. My IC-705 battery by comparison is only 3150mAh, but it has an RX period of 8 hours, so that suggests that the current consumption is almost twice as high on the FTX-1. Personally, I always carry an external LifePO4 13.2V 8400mAh battery when out and about.
YEASUFTX-1 OPTIMA
For those looking for a Portable and Base station, you can opt to spend a tad over £2,000 and invest in the OPTIMA version of the FTX-1. It's basically the same as the Field version but it has a 100W amplifier with a built-in ATU.
You can stick it in your shack at home and when you want to operate outdoors on a POTA/SOTA outing, just clip off the front panel and away you go! Well, I say 'clip off' but in reality there are five connection cables to release.
Some people have baulked at the £2069 asking price, but the fact is, you're getting a tailored 100W AMP/ATU for an extra £470 which will work not only on HF, but will also give you a juicy 50W on VHF/UHF. That's cheap!!!
This is the option I went for. It makes perfect sense to me. In fact, before the Optima was announced, I was seriously considering cancelling my FTX-1 pre-order because of the poor spec compared to the 705. I just found it hard to accept that this all new, all dancing radio didn't include WiFi for remote-control, Bluetooth or GPS. And even worse than having to pay extra for GPS, I had to have an ugly dongle sticking out of the side of my lovely FTX, begging to be snapped off, possibly causing damage to the radio 😲 And fitting the BlueTooth option involves sticking it to the radio with 3M double-sided tape!😲 God help you if you have to remove it for whatever reason.
Yaesu really annoy me with their penny-pinching antics, such as their well known rip-off SCU Leads, etc, and so it came as no surprise that you even have to pay extra for a little carry handle on the £2069 Optima 😡👿
Anyway, despite my apparent negativity(did I mention that the FTX-1 was launched without Wires-X connectivity and with broken APRS?), I committed to buying the Optima and to pay for it I sold my Elecraft KX3 and my SunSDR2DX. Am I happy I bought it? Yes! It really is a nice radio. I've seen lots of videos demonstrating many faults and glitches, but I'm hoping that all these faults will get sorted out in due course with firmware updates.
The FT-991A used to be one of my favourite radios but I couldn't live with its inability to run Wires-X directly on a PC. To me, the FTX-1 Optima is effectively the FT-991B and I very much welcome all the (long awaited) updates it brings to that particular radio.
Finally, as a ShortWave Listener radio, the FTX-1 does pretty well. It doesn't have quite the same receive range as a 705, but it includes everything that most SWL's would be interested in, including Ham, Broadcast, Air and Marine bands. The RX range is 30kHz-174MHz and 400MHz-470MHz, all modes!
I think the Optima will spend most of its life in my shack as a Base Station and the IC-705 will continue to spend most of its life in my RuckShack. No doubt I'll take the FTX-1 outdoors occasionally, but it's likely to be on POTA type outings rather than SOTA type.
I'll update this page when I've had the radio longer and after a real significant firmware update.
As far as I'm concerned, Yaesu marketed this as a premium Field Radio but dropped a Beta on us. Outrageous! Yes, all new radios have minor issues and if you paid a couple of hundred bucks for a budget Chinese radio, you'd likely be more tolerant of glitches, bugs and omissions, but when you're paying top dollar to one of the world's leading manufacturers, your expectations are (quite rightly) much higher.
What will annoy me is if all the initial-release faults can't be resolved by software changes and they quickly bring out an updated "Gen-2" model with new hardware. Oh boy, that better not happen!!
Thanks for visiting the page and (hopefully) leaving a comment below about your own experience/opinion.
73, Tom, M7MCQ.
ISSUES AT LAUNCH:
Poor APRS Reception
No APRS REPLY function
Non-Functioning WiresX
CW Sidetone noise on Optima
CW Memories lost
Occasional TX Fail - need to reset radio
Poor Bandscope sensitivity
Screen Tuning Cursor disappears - need to reset radio
Dodgy Menu operations
PTT dropping during transmission
Problematic Firmware Updates
Other!
UPDATE 1st OCTOBER 2025 <<<<
Up to now, I LIKE my FTX-1, but I 💕LOVE💕my IC-705!
Well, a couple of months have passed by and I have now got the Optima permanently 'plumbed in' to my tiny shack. Using Yaesu's overpriced separation kit, I've got the Optima AMP/ATU sat on a shelf a few feet away and the FTX-1 is sat on my desk. It works really well, allowing me to quickly disconnect the cables and take the radio outdoors for QRP play.
To be honest, I don't use the Optima ATU because it's next to useless if your antenna has a greater mismatch than 3:1 on some bands. Instead, I use a proper ATU - the LDG Z-100Plus. This makes light work of my ground-mounted HF80 Vertical right through from 160M to 6M! 😮😮😮
Since the Yaesu's modus-operandi is far from being intuitive, I have had to spend quite some time learning where everything is and how best to access the features/operations that I've needed. Gradually, it's becoming easier, but it's still quite annoying compared to an Icom.
Also, there are physical buttons on the radio which I barely use, with no option to reprogram them. For example, touching the N/W button switches the IF Filter from narrow to wide and holding it down for a while brings up the MODE selection screen. I don't know about you, but I change modes FAR more than I change the filter from narrow to wide! Why can't we swap the functions around???
Anyway, apart from those little moans, I am quite enjoying the FTX-1 and that S-DX feature works very well, allowing me to clearly hear weak signals that would otherwise have me spinning the dial.
The FTX-1 also seems to transmit a clean, punchy signal. I must admit that I do have the Mic Gain slightly raised and I've also have the Proc Level set at 40 today. Right or wrong, it's allowed me to bag me some good contacts including a KUWAIT QSO using just 10W plus a new country for me - Morocco.
I'm really starting to enjoy this radio, not least of all because it gives me HF, 6M, 4M, 2M, 70cm and C4FM capability all in one neat package. It sure is a fantastic replacement for an FT-991A. Hopefully, the remaining bugs will be sorted out and I'll be able to make full use of it.
UPDATE : At 20th October...the WIRES-X functionality has still not been addressed, which is quite annoying. I'm also having difficulty getting WSJT-X to work reliably 🙄
I'll be keeping my IC-705 for outdoor fun but living in NorthWest UK means that C4FM is infinitely more popular that DSTAR, so that's why I will sometimes take the FTX-1 out too.
Finally, I thought I'd mention a neat little dust cover that I found. It's a silicon Air-Fryer Liner 😀. It cost me £1 and is so easy to slip over the radio.
UPDATE : At 11 November...Yaesu dropped another firmware update which (surprise surprise) left many owners with MORE problems! And many existing issues unfixed! And rumour has it that WIRES-X has been pushed back to the end of the year 😡
UPDATE : At 10 December...FTX-1 now sold!
Yes, it’s gone. I was sick of hearing myself moan about it. I want to really enjoy a new radio that I invest in and I certainly don’t enjoy feeling dissatisfaction month after month.
Back to Icom! I love my IC-705 for field use and have decided to buy an IC-7300 MkII for the shack at home.
