Wow, I didn't even know people still used that list over at mailman.qth.net
- I certainly don't
In case anyone is interested, this was Martin's post over there:
John,
Just my few observations as a Orion 565 owner (we don't call em Orion
1). I've had mine a good few years now and noticed a few things that
seem to be common to this radio. First you need to check out the Wiki
for the Orion, I'm sure Google will help there.
Performance wise it's pretty impressive. I have an Elecraft K3 side by
side with the Orion and it's the Orion that gets the most use. I just
like that big open space front panel, individual band keys with band
stacking and the mode dependant soft keys. The true dual receiver makes
Dxing easy and all the various tweaks means you can adjust it forever.
The noise blanker seems weak, it might just be mine but my TS-940, after
I adjusted it, would take out an S9 spark plug arc, as in no meter
movement. The Orion doesn't do so well for me, with both the software
and hardware blankers in operation it will have a go at line noise but
no better than any others I think and of course it only really works if
you keep the roofing filter set wide. The CW audio peaking filter in the
latest firmware is great, a real help.
Hardware wise there are a few points to note. The small encoders have
been seen to be iffy at times. It could just be connections but several
have noted issues with the actual encoders and these, in original guise
are not available. A few have had screen problems and again this
requires some work to get it replaced. Not impossible but original
screens are not available it seems. A failed processor chip would likely
render the radio toast, these are pure unobtainium, though I've only
ever heard of one real fried one. The power connector and fuse is a weak
point and can cause weird resets and brown outs. The power regulator
board has electrolytic capacitors that can fail leading to various
problems. In a JA rig any of the above would likely render the radio
scrap heap material but with a TenTec it's mostly fixable, processor aside.
It's a big box! I don't know if that was a marketing idea or what but
it's far bigger than it needs to be. Had the boards been arranged
vertically they could have kept the front panel the same size but made
the radio 6 inches deep. Now that would be cool.
It's a TenTec. I had never owned one before this, I have a few more now.
They work different to other radios, just something about the UI and how
you approach it that's just not how you would expect it to be if you're
coming from just plain JA boxes.
These are rigs you can work on and as time goes on that becomes more and
more likely a necessity but the performance potential makes that
worthwhile. This will help keep the resale values depressed, so actually
buying a few for a lifetime of spares could be a good move. I know
people who have done just that. It's a radio that will demand a fair bit
from you if you are to get the best out of it but it will reward with
some super performance. You just wont hear it in the first few hours,
days, or months but for those with the "Fu" its some radio.
I've kept away from the comments about where the company is heading,
it's clear that there are all sorts of things happening to try and
resurrect it to some level of it's former self and it's probably in the
hands of a guy more likely to succeed than anyone so hopefully there
will be more to come. The reality is that the current position as seen
by the ham radio gen-pop likely means that TenTec values could be down,
at least for a while, get em while you can. There's also a lot of good
stuff and support on this forum, the unofficial TenTec service centre :)
73
Martin, HS0ZED
On Thu, Mar 9, 2017 at 11:05 AM, Don Rasmussen via TenTec <
tentec@contesting.com> wrote:
> Super write up Martin.
> I always wanted an Orion, in it's day it was the only game in town,
> especially for those who liked to fiddle with parameters.
> These days most of the hardware is going SDR, if you dont have a PC/SDR
> offering, you will be competing with the IC7610.
> I dont know if Orion or K3 will hear any better than this new stuff.
> de Wb8yqj Don
> Date: Thu, 9 Mar 2017 08:45:08 +0300
> From: Martin Sole
> To: tentec@mailman.qth.net
>
> John,
>
> Just my few observations as a Orion 565 owner (we don't call em Orion
> 1). I've had mine a good few years now and noticed a few things that
> seem to be common to this radio. First you need to check out the Wiki
> for the Orion, I'm sure Google will help there.
> _______________________________________________
> TenTec mailing list
> TenTec@contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/tentec
>
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