AM-FM-SSB-CW 10 & 12 Meter Mobile Radio

I've had this radio for about a month and I've tried it in both the mobile and the base. The radio itself has performed flawlessly. The major reports from the locals about this radio tend to be about how "CLEAN" the audio sounds.

While not as loud as my other radios - the RCI still has plenty of audio. The stock mike actually works okay and has the up/down buttons which are nice if you can't easily reach the radio controls in a mobile install.

The radio itself is pretty big - the newer DX models only have heat sinks on the middle bottom section of the radio not across the whole radio as in the older 2970 version. The bottom case piece also has a small box which contains a cooling fan. The radio is heavy but feels very solid.

The display is bright green and works well at night, during the day you can turn off the back light function and just run a regular LCD. The LCD is okay - I'd say a freq counter on a Magnum S9 or similar is easier to read - especially at an angle. If you are looking from above or below at an angle it can be hard to see the display.

The controls are easy and although some may be intimidated by the many buttons, each one serves only 1 or 2 purposes and are not difficult to master. The RF Power control can turn the deadkey down to 2-3 watts and the radio can swing to 100+ from there or you can turn down the mic gain for less swing.

The knobs are a dual design with an inner knob and an outer knob control - the outer ones are a little hard to use but still are functional. This radio has some cool scan functions - you can scan the entire range of the radio or you can have it just scan pre-programmed memory frequencies that you put in.

If you don't like using a freq display it can also change to a basic two digit CB display - but in this mode you can only access the regular 40 channels and memory mode is not available.

The modes are changable by a knob - (the radio does not display the current mode on the LCD, something which I do not like. My Omegaforce would tell me if I was in AM USB LSB etc., but on the 2970dx you have to look at the physical knob.)

On AM the radio is loud with lots of swing. With my radio I only adjusted modulation slightly - on high power the radio will deadkey 50 watts and swing to 140 watts. SSB swing is to around 120 currently (I have not adjusted for SSB output). SSB performance is excellent with great audio quality on the incoming stations and no drift whatsoever.

I added a Golden Eagle D104 microphone to the radio and everyone said my audio increased a lot. It matches up very well and gives clean clear and LOUD audio. The modulation from the D104 really makes the radio swing nicely and catches all the highs and lows.

This radio stays much cooler than my other 2 pill radio (Cobra 200 GTL DX). I'm guessing it's because of the better heatsink design and the internal fan.

Receive is excellent and you will be able to hear all the stations - the only downside on the receive is these radios definitely have some "white noise" in the background. With an old cobra 148 gtl you can put it on the base and switch on the ANL and almost think the radio is off because you'll have little to no background noise.....NOT so with a 2970dx - there is always a small background hiss, it can be a little annoying when talking to those very quiet stations.

The roger beep is short and not annoying.

Overall I like this radio a lot. It offers high power and excellent transmit and receive all in one package. The cooling fan makes sure it doesn't overheat and the SMT board means it should last a long time. RCI offers a 2 year warranty on this radio which is pretty rare in an industry where most warranties are only 1 year. I haven't had a chance to talk skip on this radio yet, but with 100+ watts output on AM and SSB I'm sure I won't have any trouble making contacts.

As with all radios only time will tell on the durability - but with a 2 year warranty from RCI I feel secure in my purchase.





SPECIFICATIONS AND FACTORY DETAILS

Once converted covers 11 meters as well

- 10 & 12 Meter Bands (11 meter as well once converted)
- Large Frequency Display with Dimmer
- Improved Receiver Design
- New Green Backlite Display
- Variable Output Power Control
- Active Frequency Scanner
- Receiver Clarifier (±0.5kHz)
- Ten Programmable Frequencies
- Noise Blanker/ANL Circuitry
- Frequency Selector Lockout
- Programmable Repeater Offset
- Public Address Feature

RCI-2970DX Specifications
General
Frequency Range Once converted
24.0000 - 29.6999 MHz
Tuning Steps
1 MHz, 100 KHz, 10 KHz, 1 KHz, 100 Hz
Emission
USB, LSB, CW, AM, FM
Frequency Tolerance
0.005%
Frequency Control
Microprocessor / Phase-Locked-Loop Synthesizer
Frequency Stability
0.001%
Operating Temperature Range
-10 ºC to + 50 ºC
Meter Function
RF Output, RX Signal Strength, Modulation, SWR
(LCD Display Indicates Relative Values)
Input Voltage
13.8 Vdc
Microphone
400 W Dynamic PTT - 6 Pin
Size (W x D x H)
2970DX - 7" x 9" x 3-7/8"
Weight
2970DX - 7 lb 6 oz
Shipping Weight
2970DX - 11 lb

Transmitter

RF Power Output
RCI-2970DX - 50 Watts RMS: CW / AM / FM
150 Watts: SSB (PEP)
Current Draw @ Full Power
RCI-2970DX - 18 Amps
Modes
USB, LSB, CW, AM, FM, PA
CW Keying
Semi break-in
Carrier Suppression
- 50 dB
Spurious Emission
- 50 dB
Antenna Connector
UHF Type, 50 W
Receiver
Sensitivity
AM / CW: 0.5 µV for 10 db SINAD
FM: 0.25 µV for 12 db SINAD
SSB: 0.15 µV for 10 db SINAD
Selectivity
- 55db
Image Rejection Ratio
- 65 db
Audio Output Power
2.5 Watts @ 10% THD into 8 W
The new DX models have retained the operating features of its popular predecessors, including programmable repeater offset and capabilities for a CTCSS tone option - great for increasing repeater activity on 10 meters - and receiver scanning for quick search of active frequencies. The units offer three methods of frequency selection, non-volatile memory to store and scan up to ten favorite frequencies, and front panel frequency selector lockout.
In addition, the DX Series offers an impressive array of design and performance improvements:
- An improved receiver: designed for increased sensitivity and image rejections.
- A double FET balanced mixer: for improved receiver intermodulation rejection.
- New power supply protection: and temperature compensation for improved stability and reliability over wide temperature ranges.
- Surface mount components: for increased resistance to shock and vibration.
- Improved display lighting: for easy reading in a wide range of light conditions.
- Variable Power Output from 150 watts to 2 watts - great for PSK-31 operation.