I have had a few. The only ones that didnt work...arrived not working...with missing menu options, bad power cords that blink on and off. The others work a hard life. Not one has died in 4 years of daily use. You get more than what you pay for.
Have you noticed 10 watts as being a hinderance? It's a toss between this or a th-9000 and I don't know if I need more power or more frequencies. Eventually I would like a quad band like the th-9800
The radio does support 2.5 khz step but only when programmed with chirp. There is a know issue that there software wont support it. Also With the new firmware 1.03 there is no longer a single memory bank its now dual. I quote directly from the added insert when I received my radio. "dual memory banks: before upgrade, there was only one channel bank with three VFO channels and 199MR Channels; after upgrade, channel A and B have one bank each - with three VFO channels + 99MR Channels each. VFO-A stores to channel bank A and VFO-B stores to bank B." Just note you cant change the firmware its a one time flash process does at the factory. I found this FAQ quite useful and answered a lot of questions: www.miklor.com/VV898/VV-FAQ.php
How are you able to power the radio indoors? I cannot find an AC Power Adapter that has the unique connector that this radio does. I was told to look for a 'YV 1230" power adapter but no luck. Everyone seems to be able to use it indoors and i cannot found out how. thanks!
It uses a standard "T" style connector. There are adapters available that will allow you to connect to an external power supply, and an AC to DC power supply such as the Wouxun SPS31WIN or TYT TH-1380 will easily connect to it. These are often used to convert a mobile radio for operation as a base station. www.buytwowayradios.com/tyt-th-1380.html .
The video was produced over six years ago, and at the time it did retail at $150. Since then other models of this series were introduced and the prices on all of them dropped considerably (These models were discontinued on our site over a year ago). Leixen even produced two backpack versions . ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0GfhmRcfLv0.html
The VV-898 hand speaker mic uses a 6P6C (six position six contact) modular connector and is wired specifically for this radio. Other brands of speaker mics with modular connectors may not work well or at all.
These radios are compatable with Kenwood mics. www.miklor.com/COM/Review_VV898.php The stock mic on these are ok, but the audio may sound like talking through a metal can. The PTT can be a bitwonky, doesn't always transmitt when you press it. And the number pad buttons do not like to work in cold weather.
Just as a heads up for you, anytime someone in a video says "Like I said before" that's when I stop watching. I already heard that part and if the rest of the video is going to be something I already saw and heard then that's enough for me. In this particular video it occurred early, at approximately 48 seconds. I was interested in the contents, but not enough to hear everything over and over again.
Details on programming the VV-898, including the username and password to run the software, are in this article. www.buytwowayradios.com/blog/2015/12/a_closer_look_at_the_leixen_vv-898.aspx
Yeahhh...there are these things called SWR. Vhf radios rarely have that feature built in, but on almost every above bottom of display case CB Radio. Not necessarily your fault, but the mic switch or corresponding relay is commonly reviewed as "weak", and I have just been researching these for the past 15 minutes.
There are several power supplies available that would work with the VV-898. It also depends on whether or not you plan to power the radio by itself, or with other radios. This article may help. www.buytwowayradios.com/blog/2020/04/choosing-the-right-size-power-supply-for-your-radio.html
