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October 1997 75

via the menu.

The

button activates the Dual Watch

function. Dual watch sets the radio up to pe-

riodically check the VFO B frequency for

activity while you’re tuned to VFO A. In

theory, this sounds great. In practice, using

dual watch requires enabling the squelch.

This means that you hear nothing on either

frequency unless there’s a signal. When the

radio hears a signal on the VFO B frequency,

it breaks the squelch and goes to that fre-

quency. Some users were disappointed to find

out that this was not a true dual-receive func-

tion, but more like a priority scanning sys-

tem. Since it works only while the receiver is

squelched, it might be useful for times when

the operator is otherwise occupied.

A keypad dominates the area to the imme-

diate right of the VFO A (main tuning) knob.

It’s used primarily for one-touch band selec-

tion. The FT-920 stacks the last two sets of

parameters for each band into memory regis-

ters. You also can use it for direct frequency

entry on either VFO, and it controls memory

selection for the digital voice recorder and

the CW memory keyer. For FM, the keypad

serves as a DTMF keyboard.

The

REC

and

PLAY

buttons work for both

the digital voice recorder and the CW memory

keyer. The radio has

and

DOWN

keys for

rapid frequency excursions or to step through

the memories—whichever is selected.

Green

and red

light/button combi-

nations flank both VFO knobs. Pressing one

or the other sets the VFO in use for either

transmitting or receiving. These replace the

“split” buttons on many other transceivers

and are very intuitive. Just touch the one you

want for transmit or receive. This should

minimize use of the wrong VFO in pileups

and contests!

Beneath the

VFO B

tuning knob are the

clarifier (RIT) and keyer controls.

and

clarifier may be selected independently, and

the

CLEAR

button lets you return to the origi-

nal frequency. Clarifier tuning is via the

VFO

tuning knob; users were split on whether

they liked this doubling up.

Momentarily pressing the

TUNER

switch

activates the automatic antenna tuner, which

can be enabled via the menu to work on re-

ceive, if desired. Holding the button in for a

half second activates the automatic match-

ing mode. The tuner works on all bands, in-

cluding 6 meters. It operates very quickly and

quietly.

Yaesu says the tuner can match from ap-

proximately 17 to 150 Ω. Power is automati-

cally reduced to 50 W while tuning. The LCD

display indicates the tuner’s operation, and

mode (TX, RX or both). The tuner automati-

cally stores settings of less than 1.5:1 SWR,

but does not store those above that level. This

prevents storing an undesirable setting, such

as inadvertently trying to tune your 20 meter

antenna on 10 meters.

The FT-920 also has IF

SHIFT

. The con-

trol has a range of ±1.2 kHz.

Controls involved with CW operation are

clustered along the lower right apron. A

SPOT

switch activates a spotting tone to zero

beat CW signals (set the level using the

SIDETONE

knob). Having the sidetone level

on the front panel was a nice touch; too often,

this is hidden away inside or on a menu some-

where. A

PITCH

control adjusts CW offset in

50-Hz steps between approximately 300 and

1050 Hz. Switches control the CW keyer and

selection of full CW break-in operation, and

there’s a small pot for keyer speed control.

Most users felt the

VFO B

and DSP knobs

obscured the clarifier and keyer controls,

making them harder to use.

Thanks for the Memories

The FT-920 has 99 standard memories,

five quick memory bank (QMB) memories, 10

split-frequency channels, 11 call channels and

a set of band-edge memories for program-

mable memory scanning. In addition to oper-

ating frequency and mode, standard and split

memory channels can store filter bandwidth,

clarifier (RIT) information, antenna selection,

antenna tuner status, repeater shift, CTCSS

tone, alphanumeric labels and lock switch sta-

tus (some restrictions apply on what can be

stored in QMB and band-edge memories).

Press the

QMB STO

button to store up to

five “quick memories,” which are stacked as

they are entered and recalled by pressing the

QMB RCL

button until the desired memory

appears. This is great for contesting or for the

DXer who wants to check multiple pileups.

A few reviewers cited the

QMB

memories

among those features they liked most. It’s a

feature I also found handy.

The

MEM CH

switch changes the

VFO B

knob from VFO operation to memory chan-

nel selection. You can divide the standard

memory area into as many as four groups, if

you like. The

MEM GROUP

switch accesses

memory channels within a designated group,

to reduce selection time if you only need to

keep an eye on a few particular channels.

You can apply seven character alphanu-

meric names to all memory channels except

the quick memory bank channels. The

DIS-

PLAY

button lets you swap the VFO B fre-

quency display for alphanumeric memory

names the operator may have plugged into

memory.

DSP Delights

The DSP works at audio frequencies

rather than at a low-frequency IF, as it does

in some other transceivers (including big

brother FT-1000MP). Execution of the DSP

functions was excellent.

The heart of the radio’s DSP features is a

prominent set of concentric

LOW CUT/HIGH

CUT

controls on the righthand side of the

panel. You activate this part of the DSP by

pushing the

DSP

button, then use the

LOW

CUT/HIGH CUT

to set your passband cutoff

frequencies. Many users found this imple-

mentation very convenient, and the DSP

worked so well you had to remind yourself

that it was only working at audio and after the

AGC. As Yaesu points out in the FT-920

manual, strong signals outside the DSP pass-

band still can pump the AGC. The

LOW CUT/

HIGH CUT

controls are designed to move

through half rotation for best results, and I

preferred the

HIGH CUT

control at 12 o’clock

and the

LOW CUT

control at 8 o’clock. These

settings conformed the passband to my tastes,

both on CW and SSB.

Through a menu setting, you can have the

display provide a graphical representation of

the relative audio passband. The

NOTCH

but-

ton activates the automatic DSP notch, handy

for nulling out those pesky carriers on SSB.

You don’t have to push the DSP button to use

it. The notch captures the offending hetero-

dynes and lowers them to a tolerable level—

in most cases totally eliminating them.

Touching up the

LOW CUT/HIGH CUT

con-

trols can eliminate any residual heterodynes

in most cases. The lack of an IF notch may be

a problem on CW for some operators.

The

knob adjusts the level of the DSP-

based noise reduction—super for cutting

down on “background” noise. Again, you

don’t have to press the

DSP

button to enable

noise reduction. Simply rotating the front

panel control brings it into play, and the re-

ceiver is most comfortable to listen to with at

least a little bit cranked in. The DSP NR can

help reduce operator fatigue during long op-

erating periods.

Digital Voices

It was a pleasant surprise to find a digital

voice recorder as a standard feature of this

midrange radio. It’s something you’d cer-

tainly expect to find only in a top-of-the-line

set. The DVR records both incoming audio

(16 seconds worth) plus four outgoing mes-

sages. To record incoming audio, you touch

the

REC

button, then the

50 MHz

key on the

keypad. The received audio plays through the

monitor—so you can bask in the glow of

hearing that rare DX station you just worked

come back to you again and again.

Recording outgoing messages is easy, but

the instructions in our FT-920 manual were

incorrect, and when we’d attempt to air the

message, it would hang up for several sec-

onds in transmit. After Yaesu told us that the

correct way to stop recording was to press

the

REC

button again, the message would

play back properly. The manual indicates

that outgoing message buffers are 16 seconds

apiece. We timed two buffers at approxi-

mately 8 seconds each and two at approxi-

mately 4 seconds each, however.

Some users did not like the fact that you

had to first momentarily press the

PLAY

but-

ton, then quickly select the proper memory

buffer to air your message. If you don’t press

the memory key (1-4) fast enough, the

memory key will revert to its original func-

tion, and you’ll probably find yourself on

another band altogether.

It is not possible to control the digital

voice recorder via computer.

For audio processing, the FT-920 uses a

digital speech compressor at audio level. This

is a break with Yaesu tradition, as most past

offerings have used RF clipping. Activating

the

PROC

switch and adjusting the compres-

sion level is all that is necessary for adjust-

ment. We found that turning the

COMP

con-

trol to around 3 o’clock yielded optimum

results.

In addition to the audio processor, you

can use the menu to select four different DSP

voice pattern contours. On the air reviews

were mixed on how well the four digital con-

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