Hi Les!
I bought a TH-D74A when they became available at the Phoenix HRO store just over a month ago. Unlike what was being said at Dayton earlier this year, the TH-D74A is not capable of cross-band full- duplex operation like the TH-D72 and TH-D7 HTs. With that said, the HT has a lot going for it, like also including the 222 MHz band and an all-mode receiver from the TH-F6A, D-Star (this appears to work very similar to how Icom's ID-51A operates in D-Star mode), an audio recorder, and more. Dave KB1PVH listed the link where I have been posting my comments about this radio as I have used it on the satellites. The packet/APRS functionality is also good, but with the ISS packet station down and NO-84's digipeater only activated infrequently, it may be a while before packet is available via satellite.
73!
Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/ Twitter: @WD9EWK
On Sun, Oct 30, 2016 at 11:37 PM, Les Rayburn les@highnoonfilm.com wrote:
I’m sure this must have come up before, but unfortunately I missed the discussion.
Curious if anyone on the list has tried the new Kenwood TH-D74A for satellite work on the FM birds? Is the rig truly dual-band like the TH-D72A?
73,
Les Rayburn, N1LF