Tuning is greatly enhanced by a spectrum analyser on the front panel. The four selectivity options switch in sharp or wide filters which offer good shape factors, enabling you to pick out signals you want. Sensitivity throughout the coverage, not just on shortwave, is more than adequate.

We were somewhat surprised to find that the R9000 has no synchronous detection capability. And with a dynamic range of 102 dB using the narrow SSB filter, this radio is not seriously desensitised by powerful radio signals operating near the frequency you are trying to listen to.

The lower the background noise, the easier it is to pick out the weak signals. The background synthesizer noise is so low that you immediately notice how quiet some portions of the bands really are. The main reason for buying such a radio is the performance. The keyboard software is rather user unfriendly too. Likewise, the R9000 would be easier to operate if a separate accessory was available so you could tap in the numbers on a horizontal keypad. No one uses a calculator by standing up vertically and trying to punch in numbers. We asked several people to try it out, and most complained that because the keys are small and close together its easy to punch in a wrong number. Whilst the menus on the screen are simple to use, the keyboard on the set is poorly designed.

Menu information on the screen gives you options, and you select them using the 6 function keys just underneath. Icom uses the screen to simplify access to radios 1000 memory channels, its video-recorder style timer, and its extensive scanning system. You can jump up the dial in 100 kHz steps at a time, or select any one of 8 other tuning steps down to the very fine 10 Hz increments. When you first switch on it shows the frequency the radio is tuned to, within a resolution of 10 Hz, and the tuning step that has been selected on the main rotary tuning knob. The focal point of the receiver is an orange coloured cathode ray tube. The IC-781 been around much longer, but our tests show the R9000 is not just the 781 without the transmitter section. USA government agencies may still purchase the receiver.Īt first glance, the ICOM ham radio transceiver called the IC-781 looks very similar to the R9000. Further, in the USA the IC-R9000 is no longer sold to the public due to laws that now prohibit monitoring cellular telephone calls. Note there are regional variations of this receiver.

Icom ic 8500