Kenwood TH-F6A Hand-held Tri-band Transceiver
This unit is my first experience with Kenwood products and I must say I am very much impressed at how much is packed into this tiny HT. Out of the box, the TH-F6A is solidly assembled and feels very comfortable in the hand.
The battery life is fantastic, especially when you are
running low power. The multiple power out settings really conserve battery
life. I can hit most of the repeaters I frequent with low (L) power and it
seems like I can operate regularly for a 3-4 days before charging is required.
No other HT I have ever owned has even come close (HTX202, HTX404, ADI
AT-600HP). I also really like the selectable single/dual-band receive feature.
This really comes in handy when you are in QSO and the second band starts
barking (just turn the offending VFO off).
In dual-receive mode, it's great to monitor your favorite
local ham frequency while simultaneously scanning your local public safety
freqs. The built-in AM bar antenna comes in handy for local AM broadcast
reception, although it doesn't do much for HF monitoring (not that I thought it
would). Interfaced with my G5RV and with the attenuator feature enabled, HF
reception is actually pretty decent (all-mode receive is another great feature
of this HT), although I don't think I will be abandoning my IC-706MKII for this
purpose any time soon.
The transmitted audio is really nice considering the size
of the microphone element. The received audio seems thinner than the VX-5r, but
it is acceptable, again considering the size of the unit. The thin audio is
definitely a function of the small speaker as interfacing an external speaker
gives very full audio.
To wrap it all up, I absolutely love this rig! I have
never used a multiple band HT as much as I've used this one since getting it in
December, 2001. It's rare when a day goes by that I don't turn it on for some
purpose. If you like the features and can afford the price, you will not be
disappointed in this well-designed HT. One of the best to hit the market in a
long time. Kenwood certainly has a winner here! Good job, Kenwood.
In fairness, here is a list of possible caveats:
Ø Buttons on the front panel are small and closely spaced. Fat fingered hams beware (or have a pencil handy-hi hi).
Ø
Battery doesn't support drop-in charger. Minor in my
opinion, but important to some.
Ø
Supplied rubber duck antenna doesn't seem to perform as
well on the 220 band as it does on 2m and 70cm. The Nil-Jon Super-M more than
makes up for this when operating mobile on all bands.
Ø
Received audio slightly thinner than the VX-5r, although
broadcast FM seems cleaner and less overdriven.
The Super-M is also a highly regarded mobile scanner
antenna so you can make full use of the wideband scanning features built into
the TH-F6A. I occasionally have to use my Wife's vehicle (which has no radio
equipment) and the Super-M on a magnet mount really fits the bill. Getting the
TH-F6A's 5W outside of the vehicle really makes a difference! If you plan to
use the TH-F6A in your vehicle, this is the best aftermarket item in my
opinion. I use it, and I LOVE IT!
73 to all from W8CWE