Icom Radio Operator's Guide
From baseline operator to full capability. This guide skips the basics and focuses on the features that experienced operators miss — filters, memories, digital modes, satellite, and POTA. All three radios, one guide.
1. Signal Filters
These radios have multiple layers of filtering that work in sequence. Understanding each layer lets you tune precisely to any noise environment.
Describe what you're hearing and get a specific recommendation.
What's the primary problem?
Your primary bandwidth control. Each of the three filter slots can be customized to a different width and shape per mode. Cycle all three with one button press.
- SSB voice: Wide (~2.4 kHz, soft shape) for natural audio; narrow to 1.8 kHz on crowded bands
- FT8: Use 2.8–3.0 kHz so your PC software sees the full FT8 segment at once
- AM: Stay at Wide (6 kHz) for good audio; narrow only if adjacent channels interfere
Shifts the passband up or down in frequency to push an interfering station outside your filter window — without changing your FIL preset. On the IC-7300 and IC-9700 it's the INNER/OUTER knob pair on the front panel. On the IC-705, access via the FUNCTION menu.
DSP algorithm that distinguishes between noise and voice patterns, then suppresses the noise. Reduces the hiss under a signal and raises perceived intelligibility.
- Level 1–5: Subtle. Good starting point, audio quality mostly preserved
- Level 6–10: Aggressive. Noticeably reduces hiss; slight processed quality
- Level 11–15: Maximum. Audio can sound "watery" — only when intelligibility matters more than fidelity
Removes a single narrow slice of audio to kill a carrier whistle, heterodyne, or unwanted CW tone.
- Auto Notch (AN): Finds and notches tonal interference automatically. Best for a persistent carrier. Caution: will also notch desired CW signals.
- Manual Notch (MN): You place the notch at an exact audio frequency. More surgical. Hold NOTCH button to adjust.
Targets impulse noise — clicks and buzzing from power lines, motors, vehicle ignition. Blanks the receiver momentarily when a pulse is detected. Most effective against repetitive pulse noise; NR handles broadband noise.
| Problem | Tool | Starting point |
|---|---|---|
| Background hiss | NR | Level 3–6 |
| Carrier whistle / tone | Auto Notch → Manual Notch | AN first; MN if needed |
| Adjacent station bleeding in | PBT | Shift passband away |
| Crowded band, multiple signals | Narrow IF Filter | FIL 2 or FIL 3, sharp shape |
| Power line buzz / ignition clicks | NB | Level 3–5 |
| Poor intelligibility overall | NR + Narrow IF Filter | Combine at moderate levels |
2. Memory Programming
The key to memory management is the group system. The goal: reach any frequency in 2–3 button presses, not by scrolling through a list of 200 entries.
Click any group to expand example frequencies and programming notes.
- Step 1 — Read: Connect USB, open RT Systems for your radio, File › Read from Radio
- Step 2 — Build: Each row = one channel. Assign group number, name (16 chars max), frequency, mode, offset direction, CTCSS tone
- Step 3 — Write: File › Write to Radio. Save your .icf file as a backup
Tag individual channels across all groups as ★1, ★2, or ★3. Run a Select Memory Scan that only scans your starred channels — far faster than scanning all entries when you just need your top 10–15 most-used frequencies.
3. Voice Clarity & Audio
These are different controls. RF Gain sets how much the receiver amplifies the incoming signal. On SSB and AM, reducing it slightly can actually improve signal-to-noise ratio — even though the S-meter reads lower, audio can sound cleaner.
- SSB/AM on noisy bands: Try backing RF Gain to ~70–80%
- FM repeater work: Keep RF Gain at max; let Squelch handle gating
Volume recovers quickly after a strong signal. Best during pile-ups, contests, or when many stations are cycling rapidly. Can cause slight noise pumping on quiet SSB.
Good general-purpose setting for most SSB. Balances recovery speed and audio stability. A sensible default for typical operating conditions.
Volume changes gradually. Best for stable single-station contacts and AM listening. Can hold gain down too long during brief signal dropouts.
For POTA SSB contacts with good signal levels, use Slow AGC. For repeater scanning, use Fast.
The TX EQ shapes your transmitted audio. The default flat response works fine, but this curve improves intelligibility through noise:
| Frequency | Setting | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 100 Hz | −3 to −6 dB | Reduce low-frequency rumble |
| 400 Hz | 0 dB | Leave flat |
| 1 kHz | +1 to +2 dB | Midrange intelligibility boost |
| 2 kHz | +2 to +3 dB | Presence — adds clarity and cut |
| 3 kHz | +1 dB | Top-end detail |
Reduces the dynamic range of your voice, increasing average power without exceeding limits. Makes your signal effectively louder to the receiving station. Particularly useful for the IC-705 at 10W on POTA.
- 8–12 dB: Useful range for most SSB. Watch the COMP meter.
- Above 15 dB: Can cause distortion and audio fatigue at the other end.
| Parameter | Recommended | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| VOX Gain | 30–50% | Voice triggers TX; room noise does not |
| Anti-VOX | Raise if needed | Prevents speaker audio from triggering TX |
| VOX Delay | 0.3–0.5s | Prevents dead air before other station responds |
| Voice Delay | SHORT or MID | Prevents first syllable clipping on TX |
4. Front Panel Controls
Opens a context-sensitive menu that changes based on your current mode and screen. Often the fastest path to what you need without digging into SET menus.
- In Memory mode: Copy to VFO, Edit Memory, Clear Memory
- In VFO mode: Copy VFO to Memory, Split mode setup
- On Scope screen: Scope settings, Reference level reset
| Function | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| RIT | Shifts receive frequency without moving transmit. ±9.99 kHz range. | Station is slightly off your TX frequency |
| SPLIT | Sets TX and RX to completely different frequencies | DX pile-ups — DX station transmits on one freq, listens on another |
- P.AMP: Adds ~10 dB of gain before the receiver. Use for weak-signal HF work. Don't use when strong signals are present.
- ATT 10 dB / 20 dB: Reduces input signal. Use when strong local signals overload the receiver or cause intermodulation distortion.
Secondary adjustment knob — its function changes with context. Adjusts NR level when NR is active, NB level when NB is active, VOX gain when adjusting VOX. Default idle state: RF power output.
Fast-acting noise reduction specifically for AM mode. Reduces click-type impulse noise without affecting audio bandwidth. Enable when listening to AM on HF.
- Page 1: NR, NB, ANF (Auto Notch), NOTCH, COMP, VOXG
- Page 2: DUP (Duplex), TONE, TSQL, DTCS, CW controls
- Hold any tile for 1 second to open its adjustment screen
- Internal battery: ~2–3 hours mixed TX/RX at 5W. External 12V / 5–10 Ah recommended for full activations.
- Screen dimming: SET › Function › Backlight — set to Auto or low level
- RX current reduction: SET › Function › RX Monitor
The IC-9700 has three independent receiver hardware sets (144, 430, 1200 MHz) and can receive on two bands simultaneously.
- Press MAIN/SUB to switch which band you're actively tuning
- DUALWATCH: hear both MAIN and SUB audio at once
- Meters, scope, and controls always apply to the currently selected MAIN band
5. FT8 Setup & Operation
FT8 requires specific radio settings that differ from normal SSB. The radio is essentially passing audio to your PC — any processing you apply degrades what WSJT-X can decode.
Check off each item before your first FT8 transmission.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Rig | Icom IC-7300 / IC-9700 / IC-705 |
| CAT Port | Virtual COM port assigned to your radio |
| Baud Rate | 9600 |
| Data Bits / Stop Bits | 8 / 1, Handshake: None |
| PTT Method | CAT |
6. Spectrum Scope & Waterfall
The built-in spectrum scope makes you a faster, more situationally aware operator. You can see band conditions, identify activity, and spot interference before it reaches your audio.
- Vertical axis: Signal strength. Horizontal axis: Frequency around your current VFO
- Waterfall: Time scrolls upward — bright signals are strong, faint lines are weak
- SSB voice transmissions appear as brief bright spikes. FT8 shows regular 15-second bursts of narrow signals clustered in the FT8 segment
| Setting | Path | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sweep Speed | SCOPE › [SPEED] | Fast for searching; Slow averages sweeps to reveal weak signals |
| Reference Level | SCOPE › [REF] | −20 to +20 dB display scaling only — does not affect actual signal levels |
| CENTER vs. FIXED | SCOPE › [CNT/FIX] | CENTER moves with VFO; FIXED shows a static frequency range |
| Max Hold | SCOPE › SET › Max Hold | 10s Hold is a good default — shows recent peak activity |
7. AM Mode
- IF Filter: Stay at Wide (6 kHz) unless adjacent-channel interference forces narrowing — audio fidelity degrades more noticeably on AM than SSB when you narrow
- AGC: Set to Slow for AM. AM signals tend to be more stable and Slow gives more natural audio
- DNL (IC-7300): Enable for AM to reduce click impulse noise without affecting bandwidth
- NR at Level 4–6: Useful for weaker AM stations; above that, audio quality noticeably degrades
- TX EQ: A slight low-frequency boost (200–400 Hz) gives AM a warm, full sound. Reduce above 3 kHz.
- Compressor: Modest compression (6–8 dB) increases average modulation. More causes over-modulation distortion.
8. IC-9700 Satellite Operation
The IC-9700 is one of the best amateur satellite radios available out of the box. It natively handles the two key challenges of satellite operating: full-duplex and Doppler correction.
- Linear transponder satellites receive your uplink and retransmit it on the downlink. You hear yourself come back through the satellite.
- Full duplex: Transmit and receive simultaneously on different bands. The IC-9700 does this natively. Most other radios cannot.
- Doppler shift: As the satellite moves toward you, received frequency shifts higher; moving away, it shifts lower — by several kHz. The 9700 links both VFOs so tuning one adjusts the other automatically.
Display shows MAIN and SUB frequencies. Assign one band as uplink, one as downlink.
| Uplink (you transmit) | 145.850 MHz |
| Downlink (you receive) | 436.795 MHz |
| Uplink CTCSS tone | 67.0 Hz — required to open SO-50 |
During the pass, tune the downlink VFO to follow your own voice or a CW beacon. The uplink adjusts automatically by the inverse amount. Gpredict (free, open-source) connected via CI-V automates this completely throughout the entire pass.
9. POTA Operations — IC-705
Parks on the Air activations require a minimum of 10 contacts from a qualifying park. The IC-705 is purpose-built for this.
| Parameter | Setting |
|---|---|
| Power | 10W (good conditions) / 5W (conserving battery) |
| FIL 1 / FIL 2 / FIL 3 | 2.4 kHz soft / 1.8 kHz sharp / 1.2 kHz sharp |
| AGC | Slow (good conditions) / Mid (pile-up) |
| Compressor | On, 8–10 dB |
| Mic Gain | 55–60% — ALC touching but not pinned |
| NR | Off (good conditions) / Level 4–6 (noisy band) |
| NB | On if near vehicle electronics or power lines |
| VOX | Off — use PTT for field use |
| Scope | CENTER mode, ±25 kHz span, waterfall on |
- Self-spot on the POTA website or app with your callsign, park number, frequency, and mode
- CQ format: "CQ POTA, CQ POTA, this is [callsign], [callsign], listening"
- Log with date, time (UTC), callsign, band, mode. HAMRS or Hamlog apps work well on a phone.
- Minimum 10 contacts to count as a valid activation
- Maine has excellent POTA parks — the Androscoggin River area has several close to Auburn
10. Quick Reference
| Function | Access |
|---|---|
| IF Filter Select | Front panel FILTER button |
| IF Filter Customize | SET › Function › [Mode] Filter › FIL1/2/3 |
| NR Level | NR button — hold to adjust |
| Notch Filter | NOTCH button — hold to adjust frequency |
| Noise Blanker | NB button — hold to adjust level |
| TX Equalizer | SET › Function › TX EQ |
| Mic Gain | SET › Connectors › Microphone Gain |
| AGC Speed | FUNCTION › [AGC] — hold = Fast/Mid/Slow |
| Speech Compressor | FUNCTION › [COMP] |
| USB Audio Levels | SET › Connectors › USB Audio |
| Memory Mode | M.CH / V-M button |
| Satellite Mode (9700) | Hold [MAIN/SUB] for 1 second |
| Function | Access |
|---|---|
| NR / NB / Notch | FUNCTION › touchscreen tiles (Page 1) |
| VOX Settings | FUNCTION › [VOX] tile › hold for settings |
| Backlight / Power Save | SET › Function › Display |
| USB Audio (FT8) | SET › Connectors › USB AF Output/Input Level |
| CI-V Baud Rate | SET › Connectors › CI-V › CI-V USB Baud Rate |
| GPS Settings | SET › GPS |
| Wi-Fi / Remote | SET › WLAN Set |
11. Operating Scenarios
Click any scenario to expand its configuration snapshot.