Can some one give me an honest opion of the flex radio compared to other SDR

ZS5WEE · June 2023

I have ordered an icom 7851 about 2-year ago which I have not received till now and am now considering moving to flex. the question here is will I be sorry or not

KD0RC · June 2023

I completely agree with Don. Other Flex advantages to consider (not a comprehensive list, just things that occur to me at the moment...).

The Flex is great at remote operation. I use if this way from my camper (caravan).
The Flex 6400 has two concurrent receivers (using one shared antenna) and the Flex 6600 has 4 concurrent receivers (using two independent antennas). Each receiver can have its own panadapter window making cross-band operation very easy. It is also a good way to keep an eye on band activity on other bands while you are operating on one band.
The 6400 has a dedicated transverter port and RX only port and the 6600 has two of each.
The Flex can operate in Full Duplex. This makes the 6600 a great SO2R or satellite rig. I also use this feature to adjust my mic audio.
Knobs and buttons are available as an option (Maestro).

I am not familiar with the 7851, so I don't know how many of these items it has in common with the Flex radios.

In my case, I was able to operate a buddy's Flex 6400 for a couple of hours to see if I would like it. I immediately ordered one after that. If possible, try to find someone who will let you look at theirs. It will be pretty obvious if the rig is for you or not.

You might also want to check out some of the videos on YouTube by Mike, VA3MW, Ken, NM9P and others. That will give you some idea of the operation of the radio.

Best of luck with your decision!

ZS5WEE · June 2023

Thanks, I am starting to lean towards the Flex.

bahillen · June 2023

i have had a 6600 for many years. It has a lot of capabilities that are way ahead of the other radios. The others have finally get into the SDR arena.

It can depend on what you are comfortable with technically. It also depends on what you want to use your radio for. Rag chewing, CW, DX, digital, etc.

if you are a CW operator that uses QSK a lot Flex may not be you best choice. That is due to TR switching design.

I have had my Flex radio 7 years and have had continuing new features, enhancements, new hardware like the PGXL and bug resolutions. Support 3 rd party developers are excellent and dynamic.

I was at Dayton Hamvention and you see many older but functional radios being sold and traded. I haven’t had to buy a series of latest radios as I just get a software update and have a state of the are radio that is not obsolete.

Radios seem to be a personal preference and some love a Brand or hate them.

73

Bill

W9JJB

AA1SS · June 2023

I have had Flex since they came out with the 3000. Ive had just about every radio they made. Bought . . . Sold . . . Bought . . . Sold . . . Bought . . . Sold . . . Bought and keeping. There are a lot of nice radio's out there and I've had just about every one . . . ASK THE WIFE HiHI . . . I keep going back to the flex. I like the ability to have 2 computers and a Maestro connected and can monitor 2 receivers on one computer and running 2 receivers of ft-8 on another machine. Can't compare

VE7ATJ_Don · June 2023

Hi...I guess I'll jump in first. I'm sure others will follow.

The real difference I find in hams regarding whether they 'love' their rigs or not, is not so much the specs -- almost all radios on the market today FARRRR exceed the capabilities of the human ear and are WAY more sensitive and selective than they were back in the 70's and 80's.

What it usually comes down to is the user interface -- do you 'like' interacting with the radio? Do the controls function and position/presentation make sense to you? Does the radio 'look good' to you?

The biggest difference I see in hams regarding the Flex interface is typically the 'knobs vs. no-knobs' discussion. Lot's of hams love twiddling the knobs and buttons of their radios and find that the most comfortable interface. Personally, I like using the computer screen. And I LOOOOOVVVVEEEE the panadapter view of the radio spectrum! Flex addressed much of the earlier 'knobs' concerns with the Maestro and the M series radios.

Also, consider interfaces to other software and the digital modes. In this area, Flex is a good deal ahead of the competition (IMHO :-) )

So, bottom line, both radios will do a great job for you. And sticking with an SDR is a good choice as it provides maximum flexibility in the future. It really comes down to what feels most comfortable to you. If you have a long personal experience with ICOM, you're probably used to how ICOM does things and switching to a Flex will be a bit of a journey, albeit I found it quite enjoyable with this community helping me.

Can some one give me an honest opion of the flex radio compared to other SDR

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