VHF/DSCC Radio Recommendations

[upthesolent]

One advantage of being in England again (for a while) is that I was able to attend a course to get my short range radio licence. So, I am now officially an Operator - but what Radio? I am looking to spend £100 and looking through the ads, there seems to be quite a good choice of static radios which I will go for instead of a handheld.

I am guessing they are basically all the same so it will come down to price alone in making my choice - but, has anyone got a preference in this part of the market? Are some models better than their counterparts in this price bracket?

Ta.

p.s. For my part, I can endorse the Bridgemary Community School (Gosport) where I took my one day course. At just over 60 quid, which includes everything as well as the RYA handbook on VHF/DSC radio thrown in, it is excellent value.

 

[Salty John]

Sailing Today did a group test of DSC VHF radios last year. The winning 'bargain buy' was the M-Tech MT-500 (£99). It got 4 stars for performance and the full 5 stars for value for money.
The next cheapest radio, President MC-8000, got slammed.
Premium product award went to Icom for their IC-M603 and the best overall buy was the Navman 7200. Neither of these two is anywhere near your budget at £449 and £170 respectively.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I've just got an Icom 421 which is nice and solid and Icom alsways do well in comparisons. The only feature lacking is a rotary channel selector which is less fiddly than the scrolling buttons.

 

[Piers]

ICOM any day. Specialists who specialise in radio.

 

[repwoc]

i have an icom 421 and cant fault it plus you can get icoms repaired some cheaper ones you cant

 

[Sans Bateau]

Another vote for Icom, find the extra and buy a good one.

 

[pvb]

Can I add Standard Horizon to the list of respected brands? They're made by Yaesu - one of the world's leading radio makers.

Don't buy a cheap radio, you'll regret it. Just a few quid extra makes a big difference to quality. For around your budget, I'd suggest you look at the Standard Horizon GX1500E at £120 inc delivery, the Icom 411 (replacement for the 421) at £129 inc del, and the Navman 7200 at £150 inc del.

 

[JonBrooks]

Both the Icom and the Standard Horizon come with a three year warranty, a sure sign of being well made.

Also consider that the Standard offers the option of a second station remote mic for a little extra. With Icom its a fair step up in price to have this.

All the best