{"id":23728,"date":"2017-02-02T09:42:46","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T13:42:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=23728"},"modified":"2017-02-02T09:42:46","modified_gmt":"2017-02-02T13:42:46","slug":"yaesu-vx-3r-monitoring-atc-over-a-cup-of-coffee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/yaesu-vx-3r-monitoring-atc-over-a-cup-of-coffee\/","title":{"rendered":"Yaesu VX-3R: Monitoring ATC over a cup of coffee"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While I have a number of amateur radio handheld radios, one of my favorites is the recently-discontinued\u00a0Yaesu VX-3R<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Saturday\u00a0morning, I took my father to the his local regional airport’s caf\u00e9 (KHKY). It’s a frequent stop when I’m in town visiting.<\/p>\n

While sipping coffee, talking with friends and watching GA\u00a0aircraft land and take off, I tuned to the airport’s tower. It was a pretty busy morning air traffic-wise and it was\u00a0fun to monitor communications from our table with a view of the runway.<\/p>\n

While the little VX-3R lacks the power output of larger\u00a0HTs, and doesn’t include digital modes like D-Star or DMR, it is dual-band (2M\/70cm) and its wideband receiver covers the shortwave, FM and MW broadcast bands in a pinch. Best of all, the VX-3R is amazingly<\/em> portable<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I take the VX-3R everywhere in my compact EDC (Everyday Carry) pack:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

My Everyday Carry (EDC) pack, loaded with all of the essentials.<\/p><\/div>\n

I’ve used this little radio while traveling (hitting local repeaters and even simplex), I’ve monitored live air support during a local forest fire<\/a>, and, on a moment’s notice, even caught an ARISS contact<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This week,\u00a0I decided it might make sense to purchase another VX-3R to carry in the glove compartment of my truck. Since I already know my way around this radio, and since I already have the software and programming cable through\u00a0RT Systems-<\/a>-it seems to make sense.<\/p>\n

I checked the price at Universal Radio<\/a>\u00a0only to find the following notice:<\/p>\n

AVAILABILITY UPDATE: <\/strong>
\nThis model is being discontinued. We expect one more shipment in late February which will fill our back-orders. \u00a0We are not accepting additional orders at this time.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

DX Engineering, Ham Radio Outlet and GigaParts also show no stock.<\/p>\n

I feel like $139 was a bargain for this versatile amateur HT.<\/p>\n

Late last night, a “New Open Box” unit appeared on eBay<\/a> for $119 shipped. The seller had 100% positive feedback, so I snagged it.<\/p>\n

If you’re interested in the VX-3R, your best bet will be to check with radio retailers like Universal Radio<\/a> and Ham Radio Outlet <\/a>for used\/demo units.<\/p>\n

Of course, you might also follow a VX-3R search on eBay.<\/a><\/p>\n

Post<\/em> readers:<\/strong> Any other VX-3R owners in our community? Any other fans of monitoring ATC\/aviation traffic?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While I have a number of amateur radio handheld radios, one of my favorites is the recently-discontinued\u00a0Yaesu VX-3R. Saturday\u00a0morning, I took my father to the his local regional airport’s caf\u00e9 (KHKY). It’s a frequent stop when I’m in town visiting. While sipping coffee, talking with friends and watching GA\u00a0aircraft land and take off, I tuned […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[545,3,26,5803,43],"tags":[4936,4443,4423,5893,4424,5892,4862,4859,4860],"class_list":["post-23728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ham-radio","category-news","category-radios","category-scanners","category-shortwave-radio","tag-aviation-monitoring","tag-aviation-receivers","tag-edc","tag-everyday-carry","tag-everyday-carry-radios","tag-khky","tag-vx-3r","tag-yaesu","tag-yaesu-vx-3r"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-6aI","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":23953,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/daves-yaesu-vx-3r-notes\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":0},"title":"Dave’s Yaesu VX-3R notes","author":"Thomas","date":"February 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who shares the following in reply to my recent post about the Yaesu VX-3R: Yes, it\u2019s indeed true the VX-3R is discontinued and is already pretty much sold out. Rumors of a VX-4R has been around for years and let's hope that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "EDC"","block_context":{"text":"EDC","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/edc\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Yaesu-VX-3R-closeup-1024x641.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Yaesu-VX-3R-closeup-1024x641.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Yaesu-VX-3R-closeup-1024x641.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14277,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/08\/shortwave-portables-that-are-pc-programmable\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":1},"title":"Shortwave portables that are PC-programmable?","author":"Thomas","date":"August 3, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"SWLing Post reader, Mark, recently contact me with the following question: \"What portable shortwave radios under $300 have an option to have their memories programmed using a computer?\" I replied to Mark that I can't think of a single shortwave portable that can be programmed via computer--at least, not a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tecsun-PL-680-MW","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680-MW.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680-MW.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680-MW.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17822,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/03\/listening-to-the-international-space-station-ariss-with-a-yaesu-vx-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":2},"title":"Listening to the International Space Station (ARISS) with a Yaesu VX-3","author":"Thomas","date":"March 19, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, my buddy Eric (WD8RIF) sent the following message: \"Take your girls outside with an HT and listen to the ARISS pass in just about 10 minutes.\u00a0The downlink freq is 145.800.\" Though I was in the middle of another project, I took Eric's advice: I grabbed my Yaesu VX-3, corralled\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "FM"","block_context":{"text":"FM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/fm\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"ISS","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/ISS.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/ISS.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/ISS.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23963,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/the-versatile-kenwood-th-f6a\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":3},"title":"The versatile Kenwood TH-F6A","author":"Thomas","date":"February 5, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In reply to my recent post about the Yaesu VX-3R, SWLing Post reader Tha Dood comments: [The Yaesu VX-3R]\u00a0is a neat little HT, but the Kenwood TH-F6A is way more versatile. How? Full 5W on 2m, 222MHz, and 440MHz, and will RX 150KHz to 1.3GHz in AM, FM, FM wide,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Kenwood-TH-F6-Front.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":31816,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/05\/everyday-carry-my-edc-packs-and-radio-kit\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":4},"title":"Everyday Carry: My EDC packs and radio kit","author":"Thomas","date":"May 1, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"SWLing Post contributor, Matt, writes: Thomas: I know you're a self-proclaimed pack geek and so am I! You published a photo of your EDC pouch\u00a0in a post last year. Just a teaser really! What is that pouch and I assume you have a larger carry bag as well? Can you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Maxpedition-Fatty-Pocket-Organizer-Yaesu-VX-3R-e1525174092226.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Maxpedition-Fatty-Pocket-Organizer-Yaesu-VX-3R-e1525174092226.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Maxpedition-Fatty-Pocket-Organizer-Yaesu-VX-3R-e1525174092226.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36394,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/03\/ivan-checks-out-the-kenwood-th-d74s-mediumwave-performance\/","url_meta":{"origin":23728,"position":5},"title":"Ivan checks out the Kenwood TH-D74’s mediumwave performance","author":"Thomas","date":"March 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ivan (NO2CW), who writes: One category of receivers not much talked about are the wideband handhelds. I first owned one of those in 1992 when I paid a ton of money for an AOR-1000. Not only did it cost me a lot but I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Kenwood-HT-AM-Dial.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Kenwood-HT-AM-Dial.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Kenwood-HT-AM-Dial.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Kenwood-HT-AM-Dial.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23728"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23728\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}