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IC-746 FAQ
3.2
Antennas
3.2.1
What antenna should I use with the IC-746?
Short Answer
Any antenna you want.
Long Answer
Seriously. ANY antenna will work with the IC-746, with the proper interfacing. People
have even made contacts using dummy loads.
Antennas are probably the most uniquely individualistic aspect of any ham station. Antenna
selection is a BIG topic; much too big to deal with in an FAQ (at least for this one).
The IC-746 has 50 ohm, unbalanced, coaxial RF outputs. With the automatic ATU capable
of handling SWR mismatches of up to 3:1 on HF (and 2.5:1 on 6 meters), you have a wide
variety of choices available to you.
There are many excellent books on the topic; the ARRL has a couple dozen of them. A good
one to start with is:
The ARRL Antenna Book
At over 800 pages (and over 1,000 antennas), you're sure to find SOMETHING that fits your
style and budget.
For more information, try hanging out on one of over 50 e-mail groups on the topic at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IcomRadio
or visit one of the hundreds of antenna oriented WWW sites indexed by AC6V:
http://www.ac6v.com/antprojects.htm
http://www.ac6v.com/antprojects.htm
or follow along with the discussions on the newsgroup:
news:rec.radio.amateur.antenna
or visit the on-line antenna magazine:
or, you could just put up a trusty old dipole.
Just be sure you do use an antenna. The IC-746 does not like to transmit into an open load
(no connected antenna). It will put an undue (and possibly fatal) strain on your output
transistors.
Page 28 of 113
2003-02-08