ID-880H_review_QST_2010.pdf

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1、 50 January2010 Reviewed by Gary Pearce, KN4AQ QST Contributing Author “Several articles in this issue of our magazine point the way toward the most sig- nificant development that has ever occurred in amateur radiotelephony: . so immense are these advantages that we are convinced that a speedy revol

2、ution in our equipment and our operating practices is imminent and certain.”1 Sigh. Digital voice advocates may dream about an endorsement like this, but theyre not likely to see one soon. There are advan- tages to digital voice, but not everyone sees them as head and shoulders above analog at least

3、 not yet. The words quoted above came from the January 1948 QST editorial, and of course refer to single sideband. Experimental SSB appeared on the ham bands in 1947. In 1948, QST began running articles explaining what the “immense advantages” were over AM, how to build a transmitter and how to tune

4、 a receiver. Two years later, a QST column estimated that about 50 hams were actually on the air with SSB.2 At the three-year point, that column chides the hams who “just aint in- terested,” but by September 1952 they can no longer keep up with all the hams using this new mode. In that issue, two ad

5、s appeared for the first two commercial SSB transmit- ters, including the Central Electronics 10A. Over the next few years, some of the better known brands of the day introduced their own sideband products, but AM transmitters were still the rule. Heathkit launched the legendary DX-100 CW and AM pho

6、ne only in 1955. The “speedy revolution” was still underway when I fired up my own (used) DX-100 for the first time in 1965, and I had plenty of AM company. Against this backdrop, I want to give credit to ICOM, as it inches no, as it strides out on the D-STAR branch alone among the major manufacture

7、rs, nearly a decade after the Japan Amateur Radio League (JARL) and ICOM launched the mode. ICOM has continued to introduce new and improved ICOM ID-880H Dual Band Transceiver with D-STAR 1K.B.Warner,W1EH,“SingleSideband,”It SeemstoUs., QST,Jan1948,pp11-12. 2B.Goodman,W1DX,“OntheAirwithSingle Sideba

8、nd,”QST,Jan1950,pp38,114. D-STAR radios, the latest being the ID- 880H mobile, which Ill review here, and the IC-80AD handheld, reviewed last month.3 “New and improved” is particularly apt for the 880H, an update of ICOMs first dual band D-STAR mobile, the ID-800H. That ra- dio suffered from a confu

9、sing programming structure and memory limitations. Ive never memorized the arcane sequence of button- pushes and knob twists needed to program new D-STAR channels into my 800H. So when the ID-880H arrived, the test to see how much I could do before I cracked the manual took on special significance.

10、Im happy to report that I was able to use and program the radio in both analog and digital modes, making local and linked D-STAR repeater contacts, all with ease. My experience with ICOMs newer radios such as the IC-2820H mobile and IC-92AD handheld helped. With that base of knowledge, the ID- 880Hs

11、 menu system was more consistent and intuitive. I didnt have trouble until I opened the manual and tried to follow the step-by- steps, which I often found confusing. TheBasics The ID-880H is a one band at a time dual band mobile, with up to 50 W output on both 2 meters and 70 cm in analog FM and D-S

12、TAR digital modes. The receiver covers a big slug of VHF and UHF (118 to 174 MHz and 230 to 550 MHz), but manages to miss the 222 MHz ham band. UHF coverage adds 800 to 999 MHz with the cell phone frequen- cies deleted. Physically the ID-880H is fairly small. Its a little wider than the 800H, accomm

13、odating a wider display and a sixth button below the display (see Figure 1). A new D-STAR data jack was added to the rear. The front panel snaps off to become a small control head. An 11 foot separation cable is included for the head, but the mi- crophone plugs into the radio body, not the head, and

14、 the mic extension is optional. A CAT-5 Ethernet cable and a double female RJ-45 adapter work fine to extend the mic. The only step backward in layout is that the labels indicating the primary function of the six buttons below the display are no longer on the backlit buttons. They are now printed on

15、 the panel just above the buttons, but the unlit print is small and hard to read in my shack. At night in a mobile they disappear completely, so memorize them. The secondary (push and hold) functions of the buttons are clearly displayed as on-screen menu items. The secondary functions, and their lab

16、els, change as you navigate through options and menus. The display was one of the ID-800Hs biggest selling points and one of its serious limitations. Users liked the big, bright charac- ters that are easy to see in any light and at any angle (it does fade from below). But it could show only six char

17、acters. The ID-880Hs display is wider, though a touch shorter, and it shows eight characters. The last two on the right are shrunk a bit to make room for some top row icons. Its a bit more cluttered with that new menu row along the bottom. The main characters are a little smaller than the 800Hs, but

18、 theyre still plenty big. High-EndAnalogFeatures The 880H is typical of the high end analog radios. It has more features than youll ever use, 1000 memories and flex- ible bank and scan systems for all those memories. Typical of todays radios, there are not enough buttons and knobs to con- trol all t

19、hose features, so it goes deep into multiple functions and menus. The set and forget functions (such as backlight color) are usually buried deeper into menus, while the more frequently adjusted items (power 3S.Ford,WB8IMY,“ICOMIC-80ADDualBand HandheldTransceiver,”ProductReview, QST,Dec2009,pp40-42.

20、January2010 51 Figure1Compare theID-880Hdisplaywith theolderID-800Hbelow. The880Hiswider,abit morecluttered,butstill easytoread.The880H displaycanshoweight characterscomparedto theID-800Hssix.The ID-880Hhasoneextra button,butthebutton labelsareprintedon thepanelanddisappear inthedark.Thebottom rowof

21、iconsshowsthe buttonssecondary(push andhold)functions. Bottom Line Key Measurements Summary Priceandfeatureswillmakethe ICOMID-880HapopularVHF/UHFdual bandmobileradiowithD-STARdigital andanalogFMcapabilitybuiltin. 2 M 70 cm *Measurement noise limited at value shown. Key:* Off Scale PR044 14 Snd 2.46

22、 Audio Output (W) 60120 Img Image Rejection (dB) 92 137* 60 135 IF 93 IF Rejection (dB) 89 ChRej 5090 65 Adjacent Channel Rejection (dB) 67 4070 I3 Rx 6520 kHz* Receiver 3rd-Order Dynamic Range (dB) 6720 kHz* I3 Rx 7610 MHz 90 Receiver 3rd-Order Dynamic Range (dB) 7910 MHz 0.250.1 SINAD 0.14 Receive

23、r Sensitivity (12dB SINAD, V) 0.14 level, repeater offset, tone) get dedicated primary or secondary function buttons. One programming change I like is the way some items are selected. For example, tone squelch options used to be selected by multiple button pushes through a choice of OFF, EN- CODEONL

24、Y, ENCODE-DECODE, POCKET BEEPand back to OFF. Tone squelch options multiplied a few years ago with the addition of digital coded squelch (DTCS), and a DTCS pocket-beep option. That made for a lot of button pushing. With the ID-880H, you push and hold the TONE button under the display just once and t

25、hen turn the dial to select the clearly labeled tone mode (Figure 2). And theres a new tone mode selection TSQL-R. ICOM calls it “reverse tone squelch.” It lets you reject a signal with one specific tone (your radio stays silent when it hears a signal with that tone) while being able to listen to al

26、l other signals on the channel sending any other tone, or no tone. I do have a few minor complaints. I didnt notice any problems, but a technically in- clined friend finds his 880H receiver prone to intermodulation interference on a good base station antenna eight miles from a clus- ter of broadcast

27、 and two way laden 2000 foot towers. Dynamic range and adjacent chan- nel rejection measurements from the ARRL Lab came in a few dB lower than the some- what more expensive IC-2820H reviewed in November 2007.4 If you hear intermod, the 10 dB attenuator that kicks in when you advance the squelch cont

28、rol might help. My next issue is the thin transmit audio. We are not police dispatchers. We rag-chew. Can we work our way back to a little more pleasant fidelity? I guess Ive gotten used to it. I hear plenty of ID-880H radios on the air and I dont give it a second thought anymore, but better audio w

29、ould be nice. ICOM notes, that the default level is designed to reduce background noise pickup, but an adjustment is provided to increase level, if not frequency response. Finally, yet another generation of ICOM radios turn the automatic repeater offset func- tion off for the five channels between 1

30、45.11 and 145.19. The ARRL national band plan developed long ago calls for linear translators (such as the OSCAR satellites, but on the ground) in this little part of the band. There are none. This spectrum is full of locally coordinated conventional FM repeaters ev- erywhere in North America, but y

31、oull lose your automatic offset when you dial them in. Memory channels hold the offset, of course. D-STARontheID-880H Good analog operation is expected, but youre here for D-STAR. And as I mentioned earlier, this radio is good news. I keep saying that D-STAR has a short but steep learning curve. A f

32、riend recently disagreed, reminding me that you only have to learn the four call sign mantra MY (my call), UR (your call), RPT1 (local repeater station ID) and RPT2 (local gateway station ID) and youre mostly there. You enter ham radioish call signs in these fields of the radio by punching buttons a

33、nd twisting the dial, and these call signs tell repeaters and other radios what to do. See Figure 3. Heres an example. Im on the KR4RDU D-STAR repeater in Chapel Hill, North Caro- lina. I want see whats up on the KI4WXS machine down in Charlotte. I put these four call signs into my radio: MY KN4AQ U

34、R KI4WXSCL RPT1 KR4RDU B RPT 2 KR4RDU G I punch my PTT button, and the repeater sets up the link. Youd do something like this on most analog linked repeater systems by pushing DTMF buttons. I have a YouTube video that demonstrates D-STAR program- ming on my Web site (see www.ARVideo N the demo focus

35、es on the IC-2820, it will help make this fuzzy concept clear for all D- STAR radios. If you do “speak” D-STAR, youll move into the ID-880H easily. Menus for setting the four call signs and other options are more intuitive, and have much better prompts and cues than did the 800H. One of the buttons

36、on the front panel is now assigned to take you directly to the call sign lists (yay!). Still, there are the usual and D-STAR means more than the usual bewildering array of settings and menu options. Some of the menu labels are more cryptic (EDITRAUT) than others (SOUNDS). A push of the MENU key almo

37、st always bails you out to the main display. DRMode:ReadtheManual IfYouCan Steep or not, D-STAR does have a learning 4S.Ford,WB8IMY,“ICOMIC-2820HDualBand FMTransceiver,”ProductReview,QST,Nov 2007,pp74-77. 52 January2010 curve. Master that, and you still have some menu manipulation every time you wan

38、t to do something beyond talking on the local repeater. Each D-STAR radio has special memory lists of call signs that you can fill up, then scroll through to pluck entries for those four magic call sign fields. To handle situations that I encounter frequently, such as “link to Charlotte,” I put ever

39、ything into a regular channel memory. To make that link, then, I simply turn to that memory and push Table 2 ICOM ID-880H, serial number 0501331 Manufacturers Specifications Measured in ARRL Lab Frequencycoverage:Receive,118-173.995,Receiveandtransmit,asspecified. 230-549.995,810-823.990,849-868.990

40、, 894-999.990MHz;transmit,144-148, 430-450MHz. Modes:FM,FMnarrow,AM(receiveonly),DV.Asspecified. Powerrequirements:13.8Vdc15%.Receive,Receive:standby,0.33A;nosignal, standby,0.9A;maximumaudio,1.2A;maximumaudio,0.53A. transmit,VHF,11.5A;UHF,12.5ATransmit(high/medium/low): (max,highpower).146MHz,10.6/

41、5.5/3.6A; 440MHz,11.4/5.9/3.5A. Receiver Receiver Dynamic Testing FMsensitivity:12dBSINAD,118-174MHz,For12dBSINAD,146MHz,0.14V; 0.16V;230-260MHz,0.56V;260-300MHz,440MHz,0.14V;902MHz,0.18V. 0.32V;300-400MHz,0.22V;400-550MHz, 0.16V;810-1000MHz,0.45V. AMsensitivity:10dBS/N,118-174MHz,0.5V;10dBS+N/N,1-k

42、Hz,30%modulation, 230-260,1.8V;300-350MHz,0.79V;350-120MHz,0.41V;146MHz,0.38V 400MHz,0.63V;400-550MHz,0.56V;440MHz,0.46V;902MHz,0.68V. 810MHz,n/a. DVsensitivity:VHF(144-148MHzonly),0.35V;Nottested. UHF(430-450MHzonly),0.35V. FMtwo-tone,third-orderIMDdynamicrange:20kHzoffset:146MHz,67dB; Notspecified

43、.440MHz,65dB;902MHz,60dB.* 10MHzoffset:146MHz,79dB; 440MHz,76dB. FMtwo-tone,second-orderIMDdynamicrange:146MHz,74dB. Notspecified. Adjacent-channelrejection:Notspecified.20kHzoffset:146MHz,67dB; 440MHz,65dB;902MHz,60dB. Spuriousresponse:60dB.*IFrejection,146MHz,89dB; 440MHz,93dB;902MHz,135dB. Imager

44、ejection,146MHz,92dB; 440MHz,137dB;902MHz,8dB. Squelchsensitivity:2Wat10%THDinto8.2.46Wat10%THDinto8; 1.5%THDat1VRMS. Transmitter Transmitter Dynamic Testing Poweroutput:VHFandUHF,50Whigh;With13.8Vdc(high,medium,low): 15Wmedium;5Wlow.VHF,53/16/6W,UHF,53/16/5W. Spurioussignalandharmonicsuppression:VH

45、F,70dB;UHF,70dB. 60dB.MeetsFCCrequirements. Transmit-receiveturnaroundtime(PTTreleaseSquelchon,S9signal,VHF,102ms; to50%offullaudiooutput):Notspecified. UHF,96ms. Receive-transmitturnaroundtime(“txdelay”):VHF,46ms;UHF,46ms. Notspecified. Size(height,width,depth):1.65.97.8inches;weight,3pounds,14ounc

46、es (includingmicrophoneandmobilemountingbracket). Price:ID-880Htransceiver,$500;OPC-1529Rserialdatacable,$25;OPC-478UCUSB cloningcable,$55;OPC-440micextensioncable,$80. Currentconsumptionwastypically40mAhigherinDVreceivemode. NoPN9/GMSKsignalgeneratorwasavailablefortesting. *20kHzmeasurementswerenoi

47、selimited. *Guaranteed144-148MHzand430-450MHzrangesonly. the PTT button. With the ID-880H mobile and its handheld companion, the IC-80AD, ICOM has intro- duced a new way to handle D-STAR manipu- lation called DR Mode. Once you learn it, it does make things easier, but it has confused a lot of hams w

48、ho thought they knew the ins and outs of D-STAR pretty well. One said she was told that DR Mode was for Japanese hams, and US hams should ignore it. Several 880H owners I talked to do just that. It took me several hours of quality time with the manual and poking buttons on the radio to get DR Mode f

49、igured out. The manual could use some narrative description telling you a little about what youre going to do, and what you should see when youre done. More instruction would make a long manual even longer, and once youve figured it out, the instructions seem more obvious, but it would ease the pain initially. DR Mode is worth the trouble. It gives you 300 more memory slots for D-STAR repeaters, and a different way to fetch up call signs from the UR and RPT lists. Get used to it, and it might make your D-STAR experience smoother. DRMode“Breaks”DPlus andtheDV