Great post Jerry!
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jerry Volpe" <kg6tt@arrl.net>
To: <tentec@contesting.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 04, 2006 1:41 PM
Subject: Re: [TenTec] Lousy eHam review?
> It is too bad that the poster did not bother to try to explain himself.
> And of course the '0' rating is a dead giveaway of someone who is having
> a very bad day. :) However I think there is a tendency to 'circle the
> wagons' whenever someone speaks out against the fold!
>
> I don't think that there is anyone who actually knows me that could say
> that I am not a Ten-Tec fan. I currently have and use twelve different
> Ten-Tec transceivers and amplifiers in my shack and had my first Ten-Tec
> well over 30 years ago. And I always enjoy an opportunity to 'share the
> Ten-Tec' experience with others. It was rather amazing to see two very
> experienced CW contesters at Field Day who had never seen a Ten-Tec
> before. They were amazed at how well the Omni-IV+ worked... how
> intuitive too. Fact is that there are probably hundreds of thousands of
> hams in the US who have never actually seen a Ten-Tec in person. Shame.
> Having said that, and getting back on topic, let me add my own
> observations and experiences regarding the Jupiter and more importantly
> perhaps some recent shifts in attitudes and abilities at Ten-Tec. Some
> of my own 'Jupiter' experiences genuinely soured me a bit and have
> actually kept me from investing in an Orion as yet.
>
> 1. I bought a new Jupiter a bit over two years ago and used it as my
> primary rig for six months. Used it every day. Fought the RF demons et
> al. There were aspects of the Jupiter that I did appreciate.
> Nevertheless I had many dissatisfactions. Far too many for a rig that
> cost me nearly $2000 delivered (ps, speaker, keypad, etc). So when
> someone volunteered an even trade.... my Jupiter for their Omni-VI+ it
> didn't take me long to say yes and I have never looked back! I LOVE the
> Omni-VI+. It nicely fills the need in my shack for a serious DX and
> contest machine. There is simply no comparison between it and the
> Jupiter. Now of course Ten-Tec will be the first to say you can't
> compare Apples and Oranges. Yet I say you can as the same money a ham
> has to spend for the Jupiter will net them the Omni-VI+ (topic for a
> different discussion).
>
> In fact, of all the Ten-Tec rigs that I have owned then sold or traded
> only two come to mind as non-regrets.... the Jupiter and its brother the
> RX-350. Never-the-less I would not give either a '0' rating, but
> probably a '3' and feel comfortable doing so. Had Ten-Tec sold these for
> about $400 less I would probably rate them a '4'. Remember, my opinion.
>
> 2. This part bothers me far more than the quirks of the Jupiter.... the
> subtle but very apparent shift in attitudes at Ten-Tec these last years.
> Technical support and development appears to be generally strong, yet
> there is a sense that they are 'over tasked' and I think it shows at
> times. In addition there appears to be a slow reduction of Ten-Tec
> offerings as well. Inside information suggests that a key developer
> responsible for the core of Ten-Tec's DSP technology left the company.
> This had to have an impact. It did when I worked as an engineer at
> Heathkit and someone with a unique skillset to a product development
> left the company. It is also my sense that the Orion project seriously
> depleted other Ten-Tec enterprises for the past perhaps three years,
> maybe four.... and to me that is unfortunate. I guess for Orion and
> Orion II owners though it only seems fair. I have my doubts though as
> there are far larger markets that could be addressed more effectively.
>
> Lastly there is a sense of marketing insincerity taking place at
> Ten-Tec. Who writes their ad copy??? One only needs to look at the
> Jupiter (and previous Pegasus) ads and the trumpeted statements like
> "Never Gets Old...... New Updates"... blah, blah, blah. Yet those of us
> who bought the RX-350 (which hasn't seen an update since 2002 and has
> definite 'bugs'.... yes BUGs) only to be told that development ceased on
> this product some time back yet the 'forward thinking' ads continue....
> And the Pegasus?... And the Jupiter? Yes there was finally a mild
> firmware update to the Jupiter earlier this year, but it was rather mild
> and inconsequential overall. Oh let us not forget the original Orion
> owners who would still like to finally benefit from the version 2
> firmware work and have a genuinely stable and reliable Orion (1), but
> there most certainly hasn't been a lock-step in development between the
> two transceivers. Maybe this means nothing. Maybe it simply means that
> there are limited resources and the lion's share goes to the darling of
> the moment. Maybe it explains why so many Orion owners are dumping a one
> or two year old transceiver to buy the newer version. My gosh! We have
> become Icom!
>
> Have a great Fourth of July!
>
> Jerry, KG6TT
> Fairfield, CA
>
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