Dayton (Xenia) Hamvention is under way and the show floor has already delivered a series of notable transceiver launches.
FlexRadio: Aurora™ Series & Adaptive Predistortion
FlexRadio has unveiled new Aurora™ Series – HF/6 m radios offering 500 W output and up to 90 % efficiency. At the same time, Adaptive Predistortion (ADP) is slated for release on the Flex-8000 line soon. FlexRadio kept me informed well in advance, so both Aurora and ADP compatibility are already in the works for SmartSDR. Exact availability will be announced; please refrain from requesting specific dates.
Icom IC-7760 enters the lineup
Icom’s recently revealed IC-7760 adds another flagship to its HF portfolio and is already supported by all SDR-Control variants.
Yaesu debuts the FTX-1 Field & Optima
The brand-new FTX-1 arrives in two flavours – QRP portable and 100 W full-power – covering HF/50/144/430 MHz in all modes. Initial reactions point to robust on-air performance but also highlight a premium price tag, feature parity gaps versus the IC-705, and the absence of an integrated LAN server. Remote-operation prospects remain uncertain pending clarification on support for the optional (and separately priced) SCU-LAN interface. As long as Yaesu doesn’t enable SCU-LAN support on the FTX-1, the transceiver cannot be integrated into my FT-Control apps.
Quiet boards at Kenwood & Elecraft
Apart from Kenwood’s TM-D750, no major product disclosures have surfaced from Kenwood or Elecraft so far.