Icom IC-718 HF Transceiver

Technical description IC-718

The Icom IC-718 is a compact all-mode transceiver that covers the amateur radio bands from 160 m to 10 m. With a 4-element system in the first receive mixer, the device offers excellent reception characteristics, especially in environments with close interference signals. The double conversion superheterodyne design minimizes unwanted interference, resulting in improved signal fidelity.

A special feature of the IC-718 is the FPGA-based (Field Programmable Gate Array) digital filter system. It offers five selectable IF filter widths without the need to purchase additional filters. The standard available widths are:

• 6 kHz: Wide standard filter
  
• 2.4 kHz: Normal standard filter (narrow for AM)
• In addition, a third width can be selected from five options to suit your personal operating style.

The device has a noise reduction function that effectively filters out strong background noise, ensuring an excellent signal-to-noise ratio, especially in the SSB and AM ranges.

An IF shift function allows the center frequency of the IF passband to be shifted electronically to reduce adjacent interference. The standard microphone compressor ensures increased audio output, which is particularly advantageous in difficult propagation conditions. The front-mounted speaker ensures excellent intelligibility.

Application description IC-718

The Icom IC-718's compact design (240 x 95 x 239 mm) makes it the ideal shortwave transceiver for use when traveling or on vacation. With a user-friendly interface, the device is particularly suitable for newcomers to shortwave radio who are looking for simple, classic operation and reliable performance. Thanks to the clear arrangement of the controls, it is quick to learn even for less experienced users. The LCD is also very well structured and provides information at a glance about the set operating frequency, the strength of the incoming signal, the relative transmission power and various status information. Direct frequency entry is possible via the keyboard.

Another advantage of the IC-718 is the powerful FPGA-based filter system that utilizes digital signal processing to enable flexible adjustment of the IF filter widths. This allows radio amateurs to choose between different filter widths without additional hardware, in order to optimally adjust the receive signal to the respective operating mode or interference situation. This not only offers greater versatility, but also contributes to improved signal quality and interference suppression.

However, the IC-718 not only offers valuable support for beginners, but is also an excellent choice as a second radio for experienced radio amateurs due to its extensive features and robust performance. Whether on vacation or as an additional radio in the home shack, the Icom IC-718 is versatile and provides a reliable solution for operating on shortwave.