Heath HW-9

[Robert S. Capon]

Hi Folks-

Regarding the HW-9 as compared to the QRP+, I have both rigs, and I think
you're comparing apples to oranges.

The HW-9 has good sensitivity.  You can hear a lot of signals with it, have
fun, and work plenty of QRP DX.  It lacks the sensitivity of the QRP plus and
other more modern rigs, but I don't think that would prevent you from
enjoying the radio.  The HW-9 has very good sensitivity and plenty of audio,
but it lacks "superlative" sensitivity.  The HW-9 is my choice if you
especially like working QRP DX behind the nostalgic green or brown panels of
the Heathkit QRP series.

Probably the biggest practical problem for heavy day-to-day use of the HW-9
is the backlash of the tuning mechanism, which turns out to be no small
problem because you can quickly lose a handle on your operating frequency.

If you're looking for superlative sensitivity, the QRP plus has its own
well-documented problems.  Reliability has been a big problem for me.  In
addition, loud signals bleed into the passband like crazy, wiping out light
signals, making the radio difficult to use during contests (in my opinion).
 The company "fixed" this by building an RF Gain control, enabling the
operator to turn down RF Gain to eliminate the bleed.  But I find this fix
unsatisfactory on a rig in this price range.

For my money, I like the Wilderness Sierra, the OHR-400, and the Argonaut
509.  These radios have superlative sensitivity and selectivity.  However,
when I want to just have an old fashioned great time behind the dial of a
radio that says "Heath", I use the HW-9!

73,

Rob, W3DX