SF401-PLUS 27Mhz-3000Mhz Radio Portable Frequency Counter Meter SF-401 with CTCCSS/DCS Decoder

Très pratique

My unit works and properly reports the TX frequency and CTCSS tone, if sending, as indicated in the manual. Attenuation was off and you really need to get the supplied antenna next to the TX antenna to get a reading. Please review my notes below carefully. DMR was the only mode to provide a frequency reading when the meter was set to digital. P25 and C4FM (Yaesu Fusion) could be identified only when set to analog. I tested the following all with correct frequency results: - 10 meter band using analog FM - 6 meter band using analog FM - 2 meter band using analog FM/P25/C4FM - 70 cm band using analog FM/P25/C4FM - 33 cm band using analog FM - 70 cm band using digital DMR I am pleased with the function of this meter and that it charges via USB as well. Still, if your unit appears to not be working after it powers up, you probably do not have the antenna literally next to or touching the TX antenna. I also tested by adjusting the "RF detect level" in the settings and moving it from 5 to 40. It did not appear to make a difference on the close proximity needed of the TX antenna to the meter antenna.

This is a cheap frequency counter and it works well for what it is, just don't expect it to rival a $500 machine. It picks up everything, I tried it with my FRS radio to map it to use paired with a GMRS radio. It worked great, then I tried on a second radio and it was all over the place. That was until I realized my phone was next to it. Moved my phone away and it was back to working great. You have to be careful and aware of what it around it. Also for picking up tones, you have to hold the TX button for a moment to get the tones. It picks up frequency really quick, tones take another few seconds to read.

C était pour un ami qui est très content

Review of the SF401 Plus. I only need this to use on the 2 meter ham band. I did test this with a Kenwood TH-F6 hand held unit set to 1/2 watt transmit power on 2 meters and this is what I discovered. 1) The Ctcss frequencies captured were spot on. 2) The frequency counter reading was about .6 mhz low. 3) The 'frq offset' adjustment only gave me about +/- 4 hertz, not nearly enough. Conclusions: 1)The frequency accuracy claimed is off by 600kc, there is no way to zero the unit effectively. 2)The Ctcss decoding is absolutely accurate. The SF401 PLUS worked about as well as I expected and is a useful tool for sniffing out unknown ctcss tones. Its use as a frequency counter might not be so good. Being off .6mhz at 147mhz is worse than advertised but actually is not too bad for a $50 RF tool. The sensitivity seems pretty low. I tried running the 'Rf detect level' up and down, not much of an improvement, with my 1/2 watt transmitter, I needed to have the antennas within about a foot to get a good reading. I would actually recommend this to a friend, after explaining what I have discovered. Enjoy, de K6WGX Oxnard CA