The FT-991 is an traditional superheterodine quadri-bands! The new IC-7300 adopt the latest RF direct sampling method (BPF >A/D >FPGA >DSP >D/A – see the Icom block-diagram below) and it is equipped with a high-performance real-time band scope on large TFT display!
RF Direct Sampling System — A First in Amateur Radio*
Instead of the conventional superheterodyne system, the IC-7300 utilizes the RF direct sampling system — a first in an amateur radio transceiver. This technology is seen in Software Defined Radios and other radio equipment. RF signals are mostly processed through the FPGA (Field-Programmable GRate Array), making it possible to eliminate physical mixer and filter devices and offer a high performance real-time spectrum scope in a compact body. * Researched by Icom, among major amateur radio manufactures.
This is the first SDR from one of the big three (Icom/Kenwood/Yaesu), it's definetely a good step in the right direction. Looks to be aimed at field operations, competing with the Yaesu FT-991. Still not sure about the price, the 150.000yen price tag seems a bit low and might be for the cheapest of the series, the 10W model. Also covers the 70MHz band, by the way.
ReplyDeleteSo? The Icom 7200 has its receive demod functionality in firmware... This isn't much of a new concept.
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