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What Rig Should I Buy?

ARRL Technical Information Service page · TIS Menu page

A COMMONLY ASKED QUESTION:

What rig should I buy?

With so many radios, manufacturers and kit projects out there, it can be a confusing question for newcomers as well as seasoned radio amateurs. Here at ARRL HQ, many inquires come into the TIS department from people asking this question. Our job is to not tell you what radio to buy, but through our articles, show you how to choose one to suit your needs. Necomers wish for ease of operation, while contesters and serious DX'er require top performance. All hams must also consider the cost of the radio. A good start in the decision process is to read past and present ARRL Product Reviews. Read QST Product Reviews--In Depth, In English first, to understand what all of those "numbers" mean.

Additional information on this subject and related topics can be found in back issues of QST.

The ARRL has an extensive catalog of books and materials related to Amateur Radio.

Articles

 

Note: Some of the following articles are in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files. To view and print these files, you'll need a copy of Adobe's Acrobat Reader program. (Version 3.0 or later required). More information here.

Note:

 

Contact information for suppliers mentioned in the above articles should first be confirmed using TIS Address Database Search.

Typical TIS e-mail reply

Question:

 

I recently received a Tech license (no code) and am working toward upgrading. My next goal is a General license. I have not bought a radio yet as I am interested in HF. While surfing the net I ran across your article entitled "What Rig Should I Buy?". I enjoyed it very much. It contained a lot of good information.

I am investigating the used radios for sale, as they are more in line with what I was thinking about paying. I am reluctant to spend $800 - $1200 for a first time rig. Maybe later. I was thinking more in the line of $200 - $500. I have been looking at a trader magazine but I am not familiar enough with different models to know the difference.

Another article that I read suggested staying with certain models of Drake or Collins if purchasing a 10 year old radio to avoid problems with certain models.

I was hoping you could recommend a couple of models that I might begin to look at. I would like a AC/DC capable radio with at least 50 watts or better yet 100. This may not be feasible, but that is what I think I would like. I would like it capable of 80 - 10 meters (SSB & CW). 6 and 2 meter capability would be nice, I think, but not necessary. Also a built in antenna tuner would be very nice, as I would like to use a single wire dipole. As far as filters or other bells and whistles, I don't know enough at this point to even care about them, much less talk about them.

If you could provide me with a few dependable older makes and models that might fit this criteria, I would greatly appreciate it.

Answer:

 

First, let me say that $200-500 is enough to get you a decent "starter" radio. The bad news is that due to their value to collectors, you won't find a good Drake or Collins in this price range (especially not the Collins).

Second, I wouldn't recommend getting a rig with a built-in antenna tuner. You want to be able to use a variety of antennas when starting out (since you'll want to experiment to see what works best) and the internal tuners have a limited tuning range. Besides which, having a built-in tuner ups the going price of an older rig considerably. So, I suggest looking for a tunerless rig and a good used external tuner.

The inclusion of 6M and 2M in HF rigs is fairly recent, so it is also unlikely that you can find one that does those in your price range. Those limitations aside, your budget leaves literally dozens of rigs to choose from. Although your funds are limited, I would strongly suggest picking up the ARRL Radio Buyers Sourcebook Volume 1 (and Volume 2 if funds permit). This book contains reviews of over 100 rigs that you'll find at hamfests and for sale online. It won't tell you what the going prices are, but it will help you narrow down the field to just a few. Once you have a couple of good selections, then some internet searching will uncover any information on possible problems with the rigs.

Web Links:

 

Note: Some of the articles on the following page are in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files. [NB: Many of these files are large -- up to several megabytes.] To view and print these files, you'll need a copy of Adobe's Acrobat Reader program. (Version 3.0 or later required). More information here.

 

Article Reprints:

 

You can get a photocopy of any ARRL published article for $3 ($5 for nonmembers) for each article requested. Contact the ARRL Technical Department (reprints@arrl.org ), 1-860-594-0390) if you wish to get photocopies.

 

This information was prepared as a membership service by the American Radio Relay League, Inc., Technical Information Service, 225 Main St., Newington, CT 06111 (860) 594-0214. Email: tis@arrl.org (Internet). ARRL HQ is glad to provide this information on the Web free of charge as a service to League members and affiliated clubs.

If you have any questions concerning the reproduction or distribution of this material, please contact:

 


Page last modified: 03:23 PM, 07 Dec 2007 ET
Page author: tis@arrl.org
Copyright © 2007, American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved.