As an owner of two PCR-100s, I'll tell you what I've found about the
PCR.
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If you're going to use it most for HF AM or RTTY or SSB get the DSP
option. It's not the best DSP in the world, but you'd have to spend
$400 on an outboard unit to do a lot better. Plus- it's controlled
with the radio software. No extra knobs to hunt for. Run the whole
radio by mouse. The automatic notch filter is very effective at
killing squeals. It is possible to feed the audio from the PCR-1000
into your computer sound card and do all your processing in the
computer.
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If you're going to be using it most for FM, and VHF/UHF you won't
really need the DSP.
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In any case, you're going to need a good outside antenna. The antenna
that comes with the radio is good for listening to local stations and
not much else. Put a real antenna on the radio. A good all directions
antenna for 30 MHz and up is a discone. You can find them anywhere
from $29 to $200. Rule on discones is, the bigger the physical height
of the assembled antenna, the lower the frequency it will work well
at. A little 18 inch high discone won't really start working well
until it gets up to 150 MHz. You're loosing signals from 0 - 150 MHz.
A 6 foot tall discone with a loaded top stinger antenna will work well
from 30 MHz or so up to over 1300 MHz which is top for the PCR-1000..
I'd like to have a 60 foot tall discone. grin
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Download a few different software packages and see what they look
like and work like. Most everyone has a version that'll run as a demo
without a radio.

Google: "PCR-1000 software" for a bunch of choices.

Icom's software isn't the best, nor is the Bonito software they had a
special on and gave it to you with the radio. I personally use
TalkPCR. I know people that won't use anything but Icoms software. I
know people that wouldn't use it unless you were aiming a gun at them.
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I use my PCR-1000s a lot. One is my radio in my office, the other is
in my shop. I regularly receive Weather Faxes on HF. When I hook up a
yagi to the one in the shop and fiddle with aiming for 5 or 10 minutes
I can pull a WeatherFax off a satellite. I really need to build a
computer controlled aiming device for the antenna. It's a pain aiming
by hand. I've heard the ISS using the same yagi.
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I live near Quantico Marine Corps base, the CIA and a remote
transmitter site used by the Pentagon.

The Marines are fun to listen to, especially early on a Monday
Morning... Lots of complaining about hangovers, who was sleeping with
who, and did you see the new bargirl at the Korean bar and restaurant
in town type things. Of course they get down to business when the
officers show up- but it's monday, and they're not early and not quite
on-the-bounce yet either.
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Everything but the groundskeepers at the CIA is encrypted. Typical
traffic sounds like:
Bzzzzzzzzzzz--bleep-bleep-bleep--bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzz--bleep...bleep
Bzzzzzzzzzzz--bleep-bleep-bleep--bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzz--bleep...bleep.....
.....bleep-bleep- "Lawnmower 12 broke down by the South gare, Going to
need a front tire here." ...bleep-bleep--- ........ ---bleep-bleep
"Okay 'mower 12. I'll send Fred over there with a spare and a jack
as soon as he's back from 'mower 3 outta gas call."...bleep-bleep...
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The remote transmitter site for the Pentagon regularly transmits on
any frequency you can imagine. Always at high power. Most of it's
encrypted digital traffic. They have an 'antenna farm' that's 1/2
mile square. It's fun listening to the radio techs chatter when
getting ready to switch to an encrypted mode or when they're working
on the transmitters.
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I've only managed to hear and decode one HAM packet station on 2
meters. There aren't many around here.
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I've heard 'live feeds' from radio station remote operations. Those
guys really are different people when they're talking and thinking no
one is listening.
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I live in a rather rural area, and the police are hilarious around
here. All of them. State, County and City. One local K-9 Officer has
a bad habit of chewing on the radio microphone if he's left alone. The
dog's partner will hear the awful noise on his handheld radio and in
between the noises, he'll say "Officer Dusty! Stop that NOW." Usually
the noises cease. Officer Dusty also likes to talk on the radio. He
will bark furiously if his partner talks more than a few seconds at a
time.
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I like my PCR-1000s. I think you'd like one too.
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One other thing. The US Gov't must like them too. The "Predator"
unmanned reconnisance aircraft carries PCR-1000s. It was one of those
PCRs that found the cave Osama was using a cell phone from.
Unfortunately, he moved to another cave before they got steel on
target a couple hours later.

RadioNerd


On Thu, 04 Sep 2003 23:42:26 GMT, "Michael"
wrote:

Hiya...

I'm on the cusp of buying an ICOM-PCR-1000. I already have an R-75 for
short wave listening, but now I want to delve into FM and the higher
frequencies. I also want to receive and decode weather sat images direct
from the low earth orbiting satellites.

No question, the item seems to be packed with capabilities for it's money,
but, I'm still a bit unsure of using a PC controlled receiver.

Can any PCR-1000 users offer any commentary on their experience with it,
especially the interface ???

Thanx in advance.