At the Tokyo Ham Fair in August earlier this year, KENWOOD dropped a bombshell when it unveiled a new compact HF + 6m transceiver which they say will be available for cashed up hams in 2010.

For KENWOOD fans who’ve settled for obsolete technology for almost a decade while companies such as ICOM and Yaesu have put smiles on the faces of their radio hobby mates with a range of jaw-dropping new rigs, this is fantastic news!

My best info about KENWOOD’s HF radio plans is that next year (probably at Dayton 2010) they’ll unleash a new mid-priced radio (about 2000€) to replace the TS-570 series. “Let’s just hope it’s got a bit of the TS-950 in it though to jazz up the flat bits!” I hear someone shouting from the shack.

After that, I’ve also heard that they’ll start designing a new flag-ship, high-end HF + 6m radio (about 4000/5000€) to rival the Yaesu rigs which could hit the shelves as early as 2011. For KENWOOD fans, in my opinion, this should be the one worth hanging out for! Providing you’ve got a spare $15—$20,000 AUS that is or are prepared to divorce the YL.

By all reports, the new HF + 6 m transceiver by KENWOOD incorporates the latest advancements in HF radio design, developed, like I said before, from the previous TS-570D (G) models.

The latest goss indicates these strengths:

* A mid-class transceiver with new operator-engineered features
* New menu to user feature
* New IF DSP with selection of Hi/Low cut DSP slope tune and VBT (Variable Band Tuning) that alters passband width, for rejection of nearby signals
* A front panel with a new design with new style for the knobs and buttons

Why Wait for 010/11?

These days, there are only 3 radios to choose from if you’re a KENWOOD fan — the TS-480, TS-2000 and/or TS-480HX. And that must be bloody frustrating given the stuff on the market from other companies!

KENWOOD’s TS-2000, while a terrific radio, has been out on the radio comms market for some time now and is slipping in technology. Also, the 480 rigs are outstanding portable rigs but as a base they come up shorter than a white man playing NBL.

So why wait for something that hasn’t even been named yet? A short answer to that is that you’ve waited for 10 years so another 6—12 months isn’t going to kill you is it?!?!?!?!

In conclusion, I’m glad to see that KENWOOD is staying in the HF field to challenge the market again as there were rumours they were backing out of amateur radio all together. And like them or not, a good HF Kenwood rig on the market means a healthy hobby for all — just as a winning Man U team means a healthy European Soccer League.

It will be interesting to see what the final features, performance and price of this you-beaut new rig will be though, especially in light of ICOM’s announcement of the soon to be released IC-9100 which appears to be a competitor to the old TS-2000/X.

I guess we’ll have to just wait and see!

73 de Darren
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