Amateur Radio

    Australasia's largest authorised amateur radio dealer. We hold
over 28 authorised dealerships! We stock, sell & service more
amateur radio equipment than any other dealer in Australasia!!
 Importing, selling & servicing amateur radios for over 48 years!
We can professionally service virtually all the products we sell!
We do not sell any radios which can transmit in the 60m band.
Payment accepted only in Australian dollars. We list and quote
prices in Aust. dollars! We don't program or modify any radios.
We can't guarantee delivery times. We don't personally deliver.
We can airmail, air-courier or airfreight, at an extra cost, those
products which we send free-freight, e.g. new amateur radios,
as we choose surface mail/road freight to send such products.
We rarely recommend amateurs buy a new PCB for any radio.
We ensure new power supplies we sell are not "RF noisy", hi!

Please note; Ross of Strictly Ham advised us on 14-04-23 he's
retiring. Yes, contact Ross if you have any outstanding orders.
Yes, we're buying many products from Ross to help him retire.
See info on Strictly Ham's website re his planned retirement.
We have most listed products in stock almost all of the time.
We are ready, willing and capable of supporting customers of
Strictly Ham at any time & particularly so when Ross retires!

PLEASE NOTE; SHOP HOURS ARE 9am~4pm, Monday~Friday!

YES, AMEX, MASTERCARD & VISACARD ARE WELCOME HERE!
YES, MOST PRODUCTS CAN BE AIRMAILED TO NEW ZEALAND!

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SHOP NOTICE

WE'RE MOVING SHOP CLOSER TO CAMDEN, NSW.
THE NEW SHOP LOCATION WILL BE ANNOUNCED
AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

OUR CURRENT SHOP LOCATION CLOSED AT
4pm, FRIDAY, 6th DECEMBER, 2024, FOR
EARLY CHRISTMAS & NEW YEAR HOLIDAYS
AND FOR SETTING UP THE NEW SHOP.

THE NEW SHOP SHOULD BE OPEN LATE
JANUARY OR EARLY FEBRUARY

EMAIL ADDRESS; radioandrews@hotmail.com
WILL CONTINUE UNINTERRUPTED!

RADIOS & RELATED PRODUCTS SERVICING
ALSO CONTINUES UNINTERRUPTED... 

OUR INTERIM MOBILE PHONE NUMBER
WILL BE POSTED HERE SOON...

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***NEW YAESU CASHBACK!!***
 

YAESU INSTANT CASHBACK PROMOTION SAVINGS HERE;

*FTDX-101MP...A$250

**FTDX-101D...A$250

FTDX-10...A$150

FT-710 AESS...A$150

FT-710 Field...A$150

FT-5DR...A$50

Instant Cashback applies to new sales of above transceivers from 25-10-2024 to 20-01-2025.
Instant Cashback takes <1 picosecond. You
must provide your name & address to qualify.
*FTDX-101MP is out of stock until early Nov.!
**FTDX-101D is out of stock & Cashback will
apply only if FTDX-101D is in stock by 20-01-25.

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NEW! IC-7760 TRANSCEIVER!

Full control head with separate RF deck. Full
200W RF output! Dual independent receivers
feature outstanding 3-stage front-end designs!

Place your order with A$2,000 deposit to secure.
IC-7760 A$9995 (RRP $11,750). Due Nov/Dec.
Icom Australia has confirmed our 1st order.
Free freight Australia-wide!

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AUTHORISED ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER

FOR ICOM AMATEUR RADIOS, UHF CB

AND VHF MARINE RADIOS, SCANNING

AND COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVERS!

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FIVE (5) YEAR WARRANTY AND FREE FREIGHT
AUSTRALIA-WIDE FOR ALMOST ALL NEW
ICOM  AMATEUR RADIO TRANSCEIVERS!

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AUTHORISED YAESU FACTORY-DIRECT IMPORTER

AUTHORISED YAESU SALES & SERVICE DEALER

AUTHORISED YAESU SERVICE CENTRE

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All-new YAESU FTX-1F coming!
Absolutely outstanding design!!

HF-6m-2m-70cm all-mode Field transceiver
with SDR technology & 3DSS display. TWO
independent receivers provide simultaneous
dual-band receive! Up to 9 hours of operation
and 6W RF o/p w/included 5670mA/h Li-ion
battery. Use external p/s for 10W RF o/p.
Auto antenna tuner & cooling fan optional.
Due early 2025.

 Price...A$2000~A$2500? Due early 2025.
Place your no obligation, no deposit, order.
We will contact you when shipment arrives.


FREE freight in Australia & 3-year warranty

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NEW YAESU FT-710 FIELD...A$1749
less A$150 Instant Cashback = $1599!

100W HF/6m SDR transceiver w/ATU

Plenty in stock!

FREE freight in Australia & 3-year warranty

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NEW! YAESU FTM-150Rasp...A$629

2m/70cm twinband mobile transceiver
features V+V, U+U, V+U, U+V receive,
amazing Evolving Super-DX audio
DSP, 55W/50W output! Early 2025

FREE freight in Australia & 3-year warranty

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FREE! YAESU 2024 CAP WITH EVERY NEW YAESU
TRANSCEIVER OR ACCESSORY SOLD fr. A$299 UP!


See our YAESU page -->

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Please note that we do not program or modify any radios!
We airmail/aircourier to New Zealand, not sea/airfreight!
We list, quote and accept Australia dollars only!

Order by phone; 02 9688 4301/9636 9060/9896 8972,
 by email; radioandrews@hotmail.com or by mail;
P.O. Box 240, Pendle Hill, NSW, 2145.

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!

Special limited-time offers of power supplies with selected transceivers!
See our Yaesu amateur radio page...
 

NEW YAESU FTDX-10 HF+6m
double-conversion superhet
direct sampling hybrid SDR
100W transceiver w/ATU!

 

YAESU FTDX-10...A$2399

PLENTY IN STOCK!

Shipment here!


Free freight Australia-wide and
3-year warranty, of course!

Authorised YAESU factory-direct importer!

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!

Special limited-time offers of power supplies with selected transceivers!
See our Icom amateur radio page...

 


ICOM IC-7300...A$1649

Plenty in stock!

HF+6m 100W RF sampling
SDR transceiver w/ATU

Free freight Australia-wide
and Icom *5-year warranty!
*Info at Icom Australia's website

FIVE YEAR WARRANTY BY
ICOM AUSTRALIA*

Free freight Australia-wide, too!
Why pay freight elsewhere?

Authorised ICOM Australia dealer!
 

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!


ICOM IC-7100...$1849

Plenty in stock!

HF+6m+2m+70cm all-mode
remote controller transceiver

Free freight Australia-wide
and Icom *5-year warranty!!
*Info at Icom Australia's website

FIVE YEAR WARRANTY BY
ICOM AUSTRALIA*

Free freight Australia-wide, too!
Why pay freight elsewhere?

Authorised ICOM Australia dealer!

 

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!

Special limited-time offers of power supplies with selected transceivers!
See our Icom amateur radio page...

 


ICOM IC-9700...A$2599

Plenty in stock!

New 2m+70cm+23cm RF and
IF sampling SDR transceiver

Free freight Australia-wide
and Icom *5-year warranty!!
*Info at Icom Australia's website

FIVE YEAR WARRANTY BY
ICOM AUSTRALIA*

Free freight Australia-wide, too!
Why pay freight elsewhere?

RF output; 100W on 2m, 75W on 70cm & 10W on 23cm.
YES, includes 23cm band operation (it's not an option)!

Authorised ICOM Australia dealer!

 

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!



ALINCO DJ-MD5XEG ...$499 AUD

NEW DIGITAL DMR/FM 5W
2m/70cm amateur radio
 transceiver with colour
display and GPS!

DJ-MD5XEG --> In stock!

Shipment here!

Free freight Australia-wide!

ONE-YEAR FACTORY-BACKED WARRANTY!


Learn More

Features include:

  • Analogue FM...and Digital DMR Tier I & Tier II
  • Transmits 144~148MHz (2m band) and 430~450MHz (70cm band)
  • Receives 136~174MHz and 400~480MHz. Has 1W audio o/p
  • FM Broadcast band receive with 100 memory channels and VFO
  • Selectable 5W, 2.5W, 1W & 0.2W RF output on 2m & 70cm
  • Displays DMR ID, callsign, name and geographical info
  • Programmable up to 4,000ch., 250 zones w/250ch. per zone
  • GPS receiver inbuilt
  • Real 2-slot DMR operation!
  • Frequency stability +/-2.5ppm
  • Digital channel spacing of 12.5kHz
  • DMR Tier II 2-slot TDMA technology
  • Digital recorder records up to 14 hours
  • Analog channel spacing of 12.5kHz or 25kHz
  • Programmable auto repeater shift in VFO mode
  • Mixed mode operation. Includes VOX operation
  • Dot matrix highly-visible full-colour 45mm backlit LCD
  • Uses DVSI's AMB+2 vocoder for clear 1W audio output
  • Text messaging with 100 pre-programmable text messages
  • CTCSS (analogue only), DCS, DTMF, 2-tone, 5-tone; en/decode
  • Includes EBP-88 Lithium-ion 7.4V @ 1700mA/h battery, EA-228
    SMA rubber antenna, EDC-189A charging cradle, wrist strap, EBC-34 belt clip, ERW-21 mini-USB to USB PC cable & approved AC charger!
  • Will not transmit on UHF CB
  • We don't program any radios
  • Frequency programming software is NOT available from us or from Alinco
  • Options are at extra cost
  • DJ-MD5 options; EMS-76 speaker-mic, EME-56A earphone-mic and EBP-87 Lithium-ion 7.4V @1500mA/h battery

 Free freight
Australia-wide!

 

These are amateur radio transceivers - NOT UHF CB transceivers!


NEW MODEL --> In stock!

ALINCO DR-MD520...A$849

Shipment here!
 
DMR/FM 55W/40W dual-band
2m/70cm mobile transceiver

...with GPS & APRS support!

ONE-YEAR ALINCO WARRANTY!

Free freight Australia-wide!

Learn More

Outstanding features include:

  • DR-MD520 has DMR Tier 1 & Tier II plus analogue FM modes
  • 55W RF output on 2m band (144~148MHz)
  • 40W RF output on 70cm band (430~450MHz)
  • GPS receive built-in. Automatic GPS date & time calibration
  • 4,000 channels, 250 zones, 250 scan lists
  • 10,000 talk groups, 250 Radio ID & 300,000 Digital contacts list
  • Large 1.77"/45mm full-colour LCD displays DMR ID, callsign, name
    and geographical information
  • Preset digital encryption codes
  • Automatic repeater roaming feature
  • Automatic Analogue and Digital mode switching
  • Easy import of DMR contact database (world-wide)
  • Commercial radio cross-modulation, inter-modulation and strong
    signal handling receive performance!
  • Multiple wideband receive frequency ranges; 76~108MHz, 136MHz~174MHz (FMN mode) and 400~480MHz (FMN mode)
  • Outstanding receive sensitivity
  • FM Broadcast band receive with 100 memory channels & VFO
  • Automatic date & time calibration by GPS
  • Manually programmable Side and Hot keys
  • Four RF power output levels;
    55W/25W/10W/1W in the 2m band and
    40W/25W/10W/1W in the 70cm band
  • Programmable auto repeater shift in VFO mode
  • Includes illuminated EMS-88 DTMF handmic with mic hanger
  • DR-MD520 also includes; ADFM78 MMB (mobile mounting bracket)
    with mounting screws, etc., ADUA38 DC plug and lead assembly,
    ERW-21 PC interface cable assembly, EA0289 GPS antenna,
    two spare 15A fuses and printed operating manual
  • Signalling; CTCSS/DCS/DTMF/2-tone/5-tone encode and decode!
  • CTCSS tone and DCS scan
  • Recording time; 4 hours
  • Channel spacings; Analogue: 12.5/25kHz, Digital: 12.5kHz
  • Audio output; 2W
  • Audio distortion; <5%
  • Requires 13.8Vdc @ approx. 12A max.
  • Dimensions; 141w x 40h x 188d mm
  • Weight; 1.04kg.
  • Information above is subject to confirmation and updating!
  • Options are at extra cost
  • Options will be listed soon...
  • Some option parts may not initially be available
  • Using the Alinco DR-MD520 with 3rd party microphone may cause
    permanent damage to the radio which would thereby void warranty
  • We highly recommend you option our shipping insurance at 2% of
    the value of the shipment when ordering as we are not responsible
    for loss or damage caused by circumstances beyond our control!!

 

ANDREWS COMMUNICATIONS IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE WE
HAVE QUALIFIED AS A TOP 10 ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER
FOR THE 2023/2024 FINANCIAL YEAR!
 

ANDREWS COMMUNICATIONS IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE WE
HAVE QUALIFIED AS A TOP 10 ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER
FOR THE 2022/2023 FINANCIAL YEAR!
 

ANDREWS COMMUNICATIONS IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE WE
HAVE QUALIFIED AS A TOP 10 ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER
FOR THE 2020/2021 FINANCIAL YEAR!
 

ICOM SALES AND SERVICE

No other authorised Icom Australia ham dealer comes close to our truly outstanding Icom servicing record
of >99% success rate over the
past 47 years, along with 100%
of all technical issues solved...and
our technical advice is top-notch!
 


ANDREWS COMMUNICATIONS
IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE WE
HAVE QUALIFIED AS A TOP 10
ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER FOR
2019/2020 FINANCIAL YEAR!

 


IMPORTANT NOTES

Please choose products carefully or firstly ask us re their suitability,
as lately we have noticed more customers are ordering incorrect,
non-matching or unsuitable products for their application and/or
performance expectations. We may charge to rectify customer-
caused firmware issues. We have also noticed customers are more
often ordering incorrect part numbers and/or improperly installing
parts ordered from us, therefore causing more issues! We have
>99% repair success record over 47 years. Repairs guaranteed!
  
Please use a high quality, well regulated and filtered power supply
with new transceivers! Lately, we've noticed increasing numbers
of amateurs are employing old, low quality, poorly regulated
inadequately filtered and/or insufficiently current rated AC to
DC power supplies! We're also finding some amateurs are using
antennas with little to no ground plane or counterpoise or proper
RF earthing. Note; a thin and/or long wire will not provide a low
impedance path to ground. Newer, more digitised transceivers
are more susceptible to RF intrusion than older, less digitised
transceivers. Please check your antennas & cables as we are
receiving more and more radios which have no proven faults.
 



Did you know that in far northern Norway (Tromso) in mid-winter the sky can be pitch-black at 2:30pm, just like midnight in Sydney?
 


Super-strong communications tower coated in many layers of radial ice, located in Finnish Lapland about 200klm north of the Arctic Circle,
with the sun over the horizon at 1:30pm. Temperature was -35˚C!
 


Glass igloos in Finnish Lapland are
at several locations, mostly south
of Ivalo airport. This is the highest latitude airport in the world which provides a regular commercial passenger jet service.
 
Finnish Lapland is one of the best holiday destinations in the world!

Enjoy reindeer sleigh rides, husky
dog sled rides, snow motor-biking, snow-mobiling, ice fishing, skiing
and more. If you don't have a truly wonderful time something's wrong!
 
Finnish amateur radio stations are amongst the biggest and best in
the world, too! Search OH8X...

Lee in windswept snow in Donavaly, Slovakia, in late December, 2019.

 

Lee in Iceland standing in the valley created by the diverging Eurasian & North American tectonic plates.
The summer holiday Houses of Parliament are in the background.
 

Lee deep underground within the amazing salt caves of Krackow, Poland, in late December, 2019.

Lee at BMW World, Munich, Germany in late December, 2018.
 

Lee with falcon and handler in Budapest, Hungary, in late
December, 2019

 

Gary's portable station on a Port Macquarie hotel's balcony, 2024



Lee in a powerful jet-boat about to
go underneath the Iguarzu Falls (Argentina/Brazil), which are the largest waterfalls in the world.
Everyone gets soaked...

 

The Torreon (observatory) circa 1450AD at Machu Picchu in Peru;
for worshipping the sun god Inti.
 



Lee visited Machu Picchu in Peru several years ago.


Lee and Cameron exhibiting our
wide range of products at a
CCARC Wyong amateur radio
field day several years ago.
Currently, we're not exhibiting
our products at any field day,
we're sorry to say.

Lee, Tony, Luke and Cameron (left to right in foreground) at the 2014 CCARC Wyong amateur radio field day. Currently, we're not exhibiting
our products at any field day,
we're sorry to say.

 



Lee standing underneath the statue of Christ the Redeemer, which overlooks Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

 

Cameron on our stand at a Wyong amateur radio field day exalting the virtues of our range of antennas...
 



Lee with statue of a fire-fighting
dog in Tokyo.

Lee riding a horse in Argentina.
 

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Permitted equipment for amateur radio use

We have received numerous enquiries lately re permitted equipment for amateur radio use. The W.I.A. has information on this subject at  www.wia.org.au/licenses/licensing/amateurequipment/

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WARRANTY SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

ALL NEW ICOM, YAESU, ALINCO and KENWOOD ACCESSORIES sold by us (Andrews Communications Systems) are warranted against faults in parts or workmanship for a period of one year from the original purchase date.
This warranty is limited to repairing or replacing only the faulty part/s during the warranty period and will be void if the equipment has been modified, misused, altered, substituted, damaged or operated outside the specified operating parameters, conditions and duty cycle...and specifically excludes any consequential or subsequent damage, etc.

Customer-caused or environment-caused or installation-caused damage is
not covered by any warranty, of course. Beware of any non-servicing dealers
who cannot repair any high-tech amateur transceivers to original factory specifications even though they may claim they are authorised to do so.  
 
Please do NOT write <fragile> on anything you send to us as doing so greatly increases the risk of damage. Please try to "double-box" all items sent to us.

Beware of any "backyard" dealers (i.e. dealers with no store-front) who may not offer any warranty, as they claim "private sale". Many of those dealers will not guarantee in writing that any product they sell is genuinely new. 

NOTE: Warranty repairs are completed by us at no cost to our customers - of course! Simply include a copy of your receipt and a note describing the fault condition and your contact details, such as your name, address, phone number and email address (if available) when sending the product to us. We retain two of Australia's best amateur radio technicians. We have excellent service information, including service information which is dealer-restricted. Our numerous worldwide suppliers support us to the absolute maximum.

Proudly supporting amateur radio to the maximum on a commercial basis by providing the lowest prices, stocking the widest range of products and introducing the longest warranties - since the 13th of December, 1976.

Please choose products carefully as we do not refund if you incorrectly choose. We do not sell products on a trial, test, evaluation or approval basis. Approved product returns will incur a restocking fee of 20% plus all other relevant costs. We import specially ordered products only after full payment is received. Please ensure you order the correct and appropriate product/s in order to avoid additional costs and delays in supplying you the correct and appropriate product. When ordering software please ensure you order the software that is applicable to your radio or telescope. When ordering plugs please tell us to which coaxial cable type/model/size you intend fitting them.

Please choose products carefully or firstly ask us re their suitability, as lately we have noticed more customers are ordering incorrect, non-matching or unsuitable products for their application and/or performance expectations.

We require 100% payment "up-front" for accessories and parts which we must specially import for you - once we confirm we can supply those products.

A sales receipt copy must accompany each warranty claim
Include your name, address, email and phone number
 
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CURRENTLY, WE CANNOT PROVIDE ANY CHARGEABLE REPAIR SERVICE AS OUR TECHNICIANS ARE OVERLOADED WITH BOTH CHARGEABLE AND WARRANTY REPAIR WORK. WE DO NOT PROVIDE REPAIR QUOTES!!

WE DO NOT REPAIR PCBs (printed circuit boards), individual parts,
sub-assemblies, parts of radios, etc.!
WE DO NOT REPAIR ANY RADIOS WHERE CUSTOMERS SUPPLY US WITH
A REMOTE FRONT PANEL, BUT NOT THE RADIO...OR VICE-VERSA!
WE REPAIR ONLY COMPLETE RADIOS, AMPLIFIERS, ANTENNA TUNERS, POWER SUPPLIES, ETC., WHICH WE ORIGINALLY SOLD.

We offer the following policies regarding chargeable repair servicing;

1. We only repair products that were originally purchased new from us less than than 20 years ago. We do not repair anything older than 20 years.

2. A repair form is not required. Simply tell us your name, address, phone number and state the fault with the product prior to sending us the product.

3. We normally do not charge a fee for those few repairs not completed. However, a small fee may be charged, depending upon how much time our outstanding technician has spend investigating and determining the fault/s.

4. Our service warranty is for a period of three months from the date of completion of repairs and applies only to those part/s of products we repair.

5. We no longer repair any valve/tube type amateur radios of any model!

6. Our labour charge is A$200.00 per hour inc. GST and it is charged in 1/2 hour increments. Minimum charge is A$100.00 inc. GST, i.e. 1/2 an hour.

8. We do NOT provide quotes. We work to pre-agreed limits or estimates.
No-one complains about our service charges - or our servicing expertise, hi!

9. We normally do not charge an inspection fee, but there are exceptions.

10. We reserve the right to limit the quantity and type of products accepted.

11. Our repair success rate is around 99%. It is not 100% because some parts can be impossible to obtain or the product is uneconomical to repair.

12. We repair to original factory specifications or better! Non-technical competitors don't realise that many products can be easily upgraded by us.  

13. We no longer repair any 27MHz AM CB or AM CB or UHF CB radios!

14. Our technicians will only repair products on a chargeable basis or on a warranty basis which have been sold by us. If not sold by us, we don't repair.

15. All repairs which are sent to our outstanding technicians for repair will attract a minimum charge of A$75 when found to be faultless during testing! 

16. In most instances, around 90% of chargeable repairs are successfully completed for less than A$200 - including parts, labour and GST. Repairs requiring RF output/driver, PLL (etc.) devices will increase the repair cost!

17. We will not accept repairs for which a customer imposes an unrealistically low cost limit. E.g. a limit of $50 to repair an all-mode, all-band transceiver!

18. We reserve the right to refuse, or accept, any chargeable repairs.

19. Warranty repairs are limited to rectifying manufacturers' faults in parts or workmanship. Warranty cover is NOT insurance cover! Acts of God are not warranty covered. We never offer any warranty replacement guarantees.

20. Our excellent technicians are often too busy to accept chargeable repairs. Warranty repairs always take priority over chargeable repairs.

21. Chargeable repairs can take take several months to successfully complete, which occurs when required special parts take months to obtain.

22. We can't compete on pricing and/or delivery timing of general parts, components, ICs., LCDs, etc., as parts supply is not our specialty. So, if you can find better parts pricing and/or delivery timing elsewhere, "go for it".

23. We are receiving increasing numbers of enquiries from customers wanting to buy new and complete printed circuit from us. However, our truly outstanding RF technician can repair almost all circuit boards, anyway. Many circuit boards in all-mode, all-band, transceivers can cost over $500...    

LEE'S BASIC RADIO NOTES


    4-pin 20A DC lead       6-pin 20A DC lead       3-pin AC IEC lead             

Please ensure your DC-operated transceiver is connected properly and in the correct polarity to an appropriate DC output power supply (i.e. of correct voltage, of sufficient current capacity, of good-regulation and is adequately and properly filtered), otherwise your transceiver may be damaged or not switch on! Customer-caused damage due to customers connecting an inappropriate power supply to any product is not covered by any warranty. Rectifying such customer-caused damage will be on a fully chargeable basis!

Your AC-operated transceiver will be severely damaged if you try powering it from a DC power source. Conversely, your DC-operated transceiver will be severely damaged if you try powering it from an AC source! If you purchase a transceiver and suitable power supply from us please ensure you connect the power supply's DC output to the transceiver's DC input.

If your AC-only transceiver has a very low current DC output socket fitted for powering that transceiver's optional accessories, then do NOT try powering your AC-only transceiver by connecting an external DC power supply to this low DC current output socket!! Doing so will cause severe damage, which is not covered by any warranty, of course! Linear amplifiers do NOT have a DC or AC power output socket fitted for powering a transceiver, of course!

When adding an accessory in-line with your transceiver's coaxial cable, such as an swr/rf meter or linear amplifier, please ensure you use a short length of coaxial cable lead (with plugs fitted) to connect that accessory in-line. The optimum length of a relatively short coaxial cable for use within amateur, commercial, marine and CB radio bands is fully accepted as being 90cm (3 ft.) long. This fact has been proven worldwide countless thousands of times.

Please note that most automatic antenna tuners (ATUs) which are built into commercially manufactured amateur radio transceivers have a somewhat limited impedance tuning range of about 16 ohms to 150 ohms, i.e. up to 3:1 swr. As the antenna's capacitive reactance or inductive reactive increases then the ATU's tuning range reduces. In these cases, if the antenna's swr is <3:1 the ATU may not tune, or have difficulty tuning.

Do NOT transmit, say 200W, of RF carrier into an antenna which is rated to safely accept a maximum of only, say 65W of RF carrier. The antenna will most probably be damaged, along your transmitter or amplifier due to the antenna overheating, or arcing, etc. The antenna's SWR will almost certainly increase dramatically and may go up to an unacceptably high level!

The same situation applies when transmitting in SSB mode, such as if you transmit many hundreds of watts p.e.p. of RF power in SSB mode into an antenna rated to safely accept a maximum of, say 130W p.e.p. SSB. These situations are similar to placing a 3-tonne load into a vehicle rated to safely accept a maximum load of 1-tonne and then expect no damage to the vehicle will result! NEVER transmit more RF power into an antenna than the safe maximum RF power rating of the antenna. Any damage caused will void any warranty on your transmitter, transceiver and/or amplifier, as such damage will be deemed to have been caused solely by the operator.  

We recommend installing a 4:1 balun between your transceiver and antenna if you plan to erect a wire type antenna, as such antennas often have a high impedance feed point. Even if your transceiver has an internally fitted ATU or you have an external ATU, using a 4:1 balun will allow a smooth intermediary impedance transformation, therefore making it easier for your ATU to tune. Most modern external ATUs have CPU/relay selected fixed capacitors and inductors. Some ATUs will tune from 6~900 ohms!!

If you have, e.g. a 2m long inductively loaded vertical antenna tuned for, say 10m, but you want to operate it on 80m then your transceiver's inbuilt ATU will probably NOT be able to reduce the apparent swr to less than 2:1. Never transmit into an swr of greater than 2:1 as device damage may result!

Please do not transmit when you discover your coaxial cable is full of water or your antenna's balun is open circuit or your antenna's beta match is not connected - resulting in an swr >6:1 and very poor receiving performance!!!
An antenna tuner reduces apparent swr. It cannot rectify antenna problems.

We recommend you carefully read the specifications printed in your new transceiver's handbook before you assume your transceiver is not performing. The RF output of many HF SSB transceivers is not exactly 100W per band on SSB/CW. Also, the RF carrier output should be much lower than 100W in AM mode. Peak RF power output on AM is 4 times the RF carrier power output. So, set the RF carrier output level to 25% of peak RF output, to allow undistorted 100% modulation when transmitting in AM mode. 

Please be careful to not drive 50W of RF power into amplifiers which accept a maximum RF input power level of only, say 5W. Please do not cut and re-terminate coax patch leads into shorter lengths than we supply (especially as per your order), as doing so may cause serious matching, tuning and instability problems with your transceiver and amplifier. Please note that desensitization will likely occur if you have two antennas spaced horizontally within 1~2m of each other and you transmit into one antenna (e.g. on UHF) whilst receiving on the other antenna (e.g. on VHF) at the same time...
Please do some technical research before making conclusions/assumptions.

Did you know that we received thirty-two (32) Yaesu radios for repair under Yaesu factory warranty after we automatically became a fully authorised Yaesu factory-direct sales AND service dealer? Our fully qualified, highly skilled and super knowledgeable radio technicians successfully repaired 90% of them within 3 weeks, with the remainder repaired after we received parts!!!

We require full payment "up-front" for any/all parts orders as we are finding increasing numbers of customers are ordering parts from us and other suppliers simultaneously, then cancelling their orders with us if other suppliers can supply faster or cheaper. Any/all parts orders we receive are irrevocable. Most 50~100W RF power o/p transistors are A$50~A$100 ea.

Please note that radio manufacturers around the world must order their parts from parts manufacturers 3 months or more in advance. For some specialised parts, we must wait 3 months to be supplied those parts.

Please do not keep telling us you can buy whatever cheaper from eBay and other auction websites, as we have known this since the internet started up.
We often check our major competitors' websites for products and prices!

Remember, customer-caused or environment-caused damage is not covered by any warranty! If you have questions in this regard then please ask us.  This includes (but not limited to) reverse polarity and over-voltage operation!
This is similar to someone filling up their petrol car with diesel then claiming warranty cover when the engine becomes damaged due to their actions!

Please confirm change of address with us well in advance of such a change.

Please note that we have most extensive radio knowledge and experience, so we can easily assist you. Please don't assume we have little knowledge...

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                            INSURANCE AND SHIPPING NOTES

Insurance cover for goods in transit is available from us for only $2 per $100 value of goods. Please advise us if you require this option when ordering.

Please consider insurance because we are not responsible for loss of parcels or damage sustained by parcels - the carrier is responsible! We do pack well!
Please do NOT write <fragile> on anything you send to us as doing so greatly increases the risk of damage. Please try to "double-box" all items sent to us.

Please note that you must pay for the cost of sending your radio and/or accessories back to you. It is the purchaser's responsibility and at the purchaser's expense under warranty and non-warranty repair conditions to pay for freight/postage both to-and-from the repairer. Btw, we are receiving an increasing number of radios and accessories being sent to us under warranty claim which actually prove to be faultless. 

Please ensure the product you purchase will actually fit into, or onto, your vehicle. Some long and/or bulky products cannot be carried by some cars. Again, this is only a suggestion, not a directive. We do not sell products on a trial, evaluation, test or approval basis. We are not responsible for your change of mind, such as if you purchased a product that you now don't want.

We pioneered express delivery service over 45 years ago! It is not unusual for customers to receive products within 12~18 hours of placing an order... 

We provide what is most probably the fastest and best mail order service for amateur radio, CB radio, telescope and binocular products in Australia.
Our generous "Free freight Australia wide" offers apply only to destinations within continental Australia and the island of Tasmania. Others excluded.   

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 ***ATTENTION NEW ZEALAND AMATEUR RADIO OPERATORS***

WE ARE THE ONLY YAESU FACTORY-AUTHORISED AMATEUR
RADIO SALES AND SERVICE DEALER FOR NEW ZEALAND!!

YOU SHOULD CHECK WITH NZ AUTHORITIES BEFORE IMPORTING!

THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO BUY AMATEUR RADIO PRODUCTS FROM ANDREWS COMMUNICATIONS!

The only brand of amateur radio products authorised
Australian amateur radio dealers are NOT allowed
to sent to New Zealand is the ICOM brand.


AS WE ARE A FULLY AUTHORISED ICOM AUSTRALIA DEALER WE ARE
AUTHORISED TO SELL ICOM PRODUCTS ONLY WITHIN AUSTRALIA.

We have regularly attended New Zealand amateur radio field days and have often air-freighted stock in for those field days. We greatly appreciate the response we receive from our valued New Zealand customers, every time!

We sold at the 2009 Wellington Radio Expo in Upper Hutt, which was held on Saturday, 28th March, 2009 and we thank all those who purchased from us!

We have airmailed, air-freighted and sea-freighted thousands of amateur radios, receivers, accessories, etc., to New Zealand over the past 44 years!

Please tell us by which transport method you want your shipment sent to you. Do not assume we will send it by any particular method. We mostly airmail shipments to NZ. We can sent shipments by virtually any transport method you nominate. We are happy to send you freight quotes - ask us!

Why wait weeks or months for delivery and pay high prices in New Zealand for your new transceiver, then be forced to settle for only a one year warranty? Please keep in mind that NZ GST is normally payable on shipments of NZ$400 and up in declared value.

We do NOT undervalue any goods/shipments. Please don't ask us to do so as refusal often offends. You will have to find a shonky dealer for devaluations!

Due to recent regulation changes, amateur radio operators or suppliers that want to supply radio transmitters in NZ must apply for a Licence to Supply Radio Transmitters either as an individual or organisation. Suppliers are defined as; persons in NZ that import, manufacture, distribute, sell or install.

Orders over A$200 in value receive priority processing.
Please remember to add A$25 for our bank's handling fee when sending funds to our bank (Westpac), such as by T/T, by bank draft, etc.
Our minimum charge for airmailing products to New Zealand is A$26.   
 
Airmailed parcels average one week delivery time to New Zealand. Please
note that due to ourselves being appointed authorised Icom Australia
dealers we are allowed to sell Icom products only within Australia. 

We accept payments only in Australian dollars - including by credit card, etc.
Please ensure you have sufficient funds or credit when ordering by credit card as we no longer phone overseas to advise customers of failed transactions.
Also, please double-check your credit card details, etc., before ordering!
Please read them to us correctly and don't tell us your EFTPOS card details.

Please ensure your fax machine is operating when requesting us to fax you.
You are responsible for freight both ways when sending us warranty repairs.
Please ensure you quote your correct name, etc., when placing orders.

Please check with your local freight and customs agent to determine all the costs involved in importing the product/s you may want into New Zealand before placing an order with us, in order to save us both time and trouble...

Your credit card provider will apply the cost of your purchase from us to your credit card account in NZD at the prevailing exchange rate on the day they debit your account. We do not know the exact NZD amount they will debit.
We do not have any order forms. Please contact us direct to order products. 

New Zealand customers MUST pay freight costs both ways (i.e. from NZ to AUS and from AUS to NZ) for ALL repairs and MUST also pay for ALL incidental costs, such as those from New Zealand or Australian Customs...

Please do some research re which products you may be interested in purchasing, as that often saves a lot of time and effort for both of us. This advice also applies to Australian customers, too! We accept only Australian currency. We do not accept NZD currency or any other currencies, sorry.
Please try not to change your mind re the product, payment or delivery, etc.
Doing so may cause problems, e.g. delaying the shipment, higher costs, etc.

Australia Post offers three services beyond airmailing; signature upon delivery, tracking and "extra cover" (insurance). These services are; Express Courier International Merchandise,  Express Courier International Documents and simply Express Post International. These services cost more than the basic airmailing cost. See www.auspost.com.au for detailed information.

Express airmail shipments to New Zealand require the NZ customer's mobile phone number, so that Australia Post can SMS details to the NZ customer.

Please note that whereby a product is over one metre in length, it can't be airmailed to NZ. It must be airfreighted or air couriered or sea freighted.

The minimum cost to airfreight one or two Andrews or Diamond X50 2m/70cm antennas to NZ is A$120, even though they only weigh ~2kg. ea. These can't be airmailed because they're over 1m long at about 1.7m long.

Products which are both bulky and heavy can cost over A$300 to airfreight to NZ. Items which are heavy and long can cost over A$300 to airfreight to NZ.
 
Products which either exceed 20kg. in weight, or which exceed A$2,000 in value, cannot be airmailed!! Those items must be airfreighted or air couriered or sea freighted. Beware of dodgy Australian suppliers who deliberately undervalue shipments, as you may be subject to NZ Customs legal action!

Due to recent regulation changes, amateur radio operators or suppliers that want to supply radio transmitters in NZ must apply for a Licence to Supply Radio Transmitters either as an individual or organisation. Suppliers are defined as; persons in NZ that import, manufacture, distribute, sell or install.

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Wonderful 6m DX openings to Europe, Asia, Japan... 

Did you know that the 6m (50MHz) amateur band is opening often to Europe, Russia, Japan, South Korea and has even opened to South America?
The mode most often used for these predominantly very weak signal contacts (which are often in the range of -12dB to -20dB S/N ratio) is FT8.
This is super-exciting news and was totally unexpected at this near-low point in the current sunspot cycle. We wish all Australian/New Zealand amateurs can enjoy this wonderful propagation on 6m to the absolute maximum.
As at 16-07-21 we have good stocks of Diamond CP-62 double-5/8 wave 6m band verticals. These are a great option where a beam can't be installed. However, please don't expect the CP-62 and other 6m verticals to perform like large beams antennas when trying to make extra-long haul contacts.
The most successful long-haul AUS/NZ 6m DX'ers use either one extra-long boom yagi antenna (9~12 elements) OR two/four medium boom length yagis (5~7 elements) in a stacked (2 yagis) or H-frame (4 yagis) configuration.  

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SYDNEY 23CM REPEATER NEWS

A new and well-located high power 23cm repeater was recently installed on the Optus/Citadel Tower, 799 Pacific Highway, Chatswood, NSW. Its output frequency is 1273.2MHz and its input frequency is 1293.2MHz. Power output is 30W! Its 4.5dB gain antenna comprises four "in-line" vertically stacked  dipoles. Compton, VK2HRX, Stuart, VK2ZX and WICEN made this happen!!

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Compliments (unsolicited) recently received...

We receive many compliments annually and publish some from time to time.

Lee, VK2ANS, says Australians should be proud to know that we have Ninja, shark fighting, Rubik's cube, drone racing, etc., world champions.

Beth, VK2AO, said she is very happy with our service, super-wide range of products, super-competitiveness, service back-up and advice. 02/12/11.

Gary, VK2ZKT, said by email on 26-03-12;
"I just wanted to say what fantastic, friendly and swift service I received from your staff for the purchase of the coaxial switch and swr meter. The goods arrived overnight to my address in country NSW. Well done. The swr meter is fantastic and the coaxial switch from Avair is well built. Andrews has excelled yet again".

Graeme said by email on 06-08-13;
"Hi Lee, a big thank you to you mate, amp going well, nicely placed 20 - 30 watts out for the radio and a nice clean 400 watts out...and a huge hug from the Missus too, hi - so that's for you, too! All the very best now, Graeme".

Alan said by email on 29-05-14;
Hi Lee, I wish to thank you for the very fast service in relation to my order which I placed only yesterday. It arrived here in good order early this morning. It's been some time since we met. It was about 1977, when your store was located in Maroubra. During the years, I have always relied on you to provide me with my communications equipment, including Yaesu, Kenwood, Icom and Alinco, which I am happy to say have all served me well. Wishing you and your business all the best for the future. Regards, Alan.

Mike in New Zealand said by email on 02-12-14...
Hi Cameron,
My DR-635T radio turned up here today safe and sound and I'm rapt!
I've un-packed it and everything is where it should be.
The radio is actually a wee bit smaller than I'd imagined it to be, but that's just me.
Hey, thank you very much for a really painless purchase from you guys. Like I said earlier in the piece, I'm always quite hesitant about buying stuff from overseas places, but this has been a breeze.
Regards, Mike.

Dennis said by email on 04-02-15...
Hello Cameron and Lee, Just wanting to say "thank you" for your time and your "as always" excellent service while emailing you guys with regards to my purchase of the Uniden BCD-536PT scanner. Having dealt with you guys since the early 1980s, I always remember going into Lee's tiny shop at Maroubra, which was filled from floor to roof with dozens and dozens of CB radios, linear amplifiers, antennas, power supplies, etc., in order to purchase the latest CB radio first thing on a Saturday morning. I'm very happy knowing the excellent service I received back then is still the same excellent service that is given to customers today!! Thanks for your help, Dennis. 

Gary said by email on 07-03-17...
Hi, Lee. Just a quick note to thank you and the team at the shop for the fast sales and delivery of my recent purchases. I ordered a bhi NES10-2 Noise Reduction speaker late in the afternoon and the speaker was at the front door the very next day. A few days prior I ordered some ladder line and that also arrived overnight from your shop to me located in country NSW.
It just goes to show that it is all about STOCK and you absolutely live up to that claim as the biggest in the business. Very happy customer. Thank you. Regards. Gary, Bellingen.

Tony said by email on 19-05-2020...
Hi Lee, I wish to compliment your sales staff with their help and sales of LDG atu, Alinco p/s, Icom desk mic and battery for Icom H/H recently. Thanks to Cameron and Luke. 73s, Tony.

Ben said by email on 04-06-20...I just wanted to say a big thank you for organising the replacement (of a telescope part) which was faulty from when I bought it new. It now works flawlessly. Thanks again, Luke.

Nick said by email on 22-06-20...The OLEDs arrived last week, took 2 hours to replace them. Once again, thank you very much. You guys are awesome.
Regards. Nick Wallace. ZL1IU.

We receive many, many, compliments annually and publish some of them from time to time..

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MOST IMPORTANT CONSUMER INFORMATION

Andrews Communications was indeed instrumental in creating increased benefits for Australian and New Zealand amateurs, in many areas!  

We are the reason why radio amateurs enjoy low prices on radios and more!

We introduced ALL the longer warranty periods on ALL the major brands of amateur radios and we hold more stock than any amateur radio competitor!!
ALL our competitors were forced to extend warranty periods due to us.

We are the reason why Australian and New Zealand radio amateurs enjoy LONGER warranty periods on all major brands of amateur radio transceivers.

We were instrumental in persuading numerous Chinese radio manufacturers to produce amateur radio transceivers for the benefit of amateurs worldwide!
 
We are a fully factory authorised sales AND servicing importer/dealer for many amateur radio product manufacturers! Yes, you can shop with absolute confidence at Andrews Communications!

Andrews Communications is Australia's ONLY fully factory authorised sales AND servicing & importing dealer for various telescope manufacturers, too!

We continue to firmly believe we provide the best amateur radio repair service in Australia, since 1976! Our super-successful repair rate (>99%) in repairing well over 30,000 amateur radios and related products over the past 47 years is well known in the amateur radio community, world-wide.

ICOM owners are absolutely delighted with our ICOM authorised dealership appointment. ICOM Australia approached us due to our excellent sales & service history. We have already received many congratulations re our ICOM appointment! All our customers are extremely happy with our appointment.
We have super successfully serviced ICOM products for over 47 years to >99% success rate!! No other authorised Icom Australia amateur radio dealer comes close to our absolutely outstanding Icom servicing history!!

We are a fully authorised Yaesu Japan service centre, along with RF Repairs and VK Radio Repairs. Yes, you are welcome to send your warranty and non-warranty Yaesu repairs to any of these three fully authorised Yaesu Japan service centres in Australia. We are happy to repair radios under Yaesu Japan Factory Authorised warranty...for free, of course!

The standard Yaesu factory-supported 3-year warranty period for Yaesu amateur radio transceivers is fully transferable.

Yaesu owners are absolutely delighted with our Yaesu Japan warranty service. We have already received many congratulations from our many thousands of Yaesu customers re our Yaesu Japan appointment!! In fact, ALL our customers are absolutely delighted with our appointment. With over 47 years of super successfully servicing Yaesu products our service is the best!
Andrews Communications must be Australia's biggest and best authorised amateur radio sales and servicing dealer as none have come close to our Yaesu repair knowledge, skill, expertise and stock levels over 47+ years, hi!!

All our brand new products are 100% guaranteed to be truly brand new!!
We have imported to the absolute maximum for 47+ years and continue to support all our imports with our own high-tech in-house repair service.

Very few of our customers are in doubt over the stock levels of products which we advertise on our website, as most products have their stock levels and availabilities indicated and our website is updated every business day!

Lee has been a licensed amateur radio operator since 1967. He has successfully repaired thousands of radios (99% success rate), built scores of antennas and made dozens of high power linear amplifiers (to 4kW o/p), etc.

Another recent development is that some new customers who purchase new antennas, then install them, find their new antenna's SWR levels are super-high on many, if not all, bands they cover. They then think the antenna's faulty and demand a replacement antenna, without allowing the dealer to test their antenna. As soon as possible, the concerned dealer then sets up the supposedly-faulty antenna and often (>80% of instances) discovers its SWR levels are very low on all bands!! If the customer then buys a second same model of antenna from another supplier (when the original supplier has no replacement stock), we then wish both the customer and the supplier "The Best of British Luck" in trying to resolve the situation. It's obviously a faulty installation that's causing high to very high antenna SWR issues!!

Lee has been a licensed amateur radio operator since 1967. He has successfully repaired thousands of radios (99% success rate), built scores of antennas and made dozens of high power linear amplifiers (to 4kW o/p), etc.


Andrews Communications Systems
Shop 8, 41-51 Bathurst St, Greystanes, NSW 2145
Telephone: (02) 9636 9060, (02) 9688 4301, (02) 9896 8972