IC-M804: “Beyond the horizon”

Of course, for a seasoned amateur radio operator, communication beyond the horizon is hardly news worth sharing. You can make it to California from Sydney with a five watts handheld, with a whip, pedestrian mobile.

But this is not how professional maritime communication works. Having a reliable communication with a port station while trying to stay afloat in swell, when your own life and the lives of fellow crew members depends on that contact is not a matter of amateurism.

Professional communication requires and relies on a dedicated, purposely engineered and purposely manufactured professional equipment. The ICOM M804 is exactly that kind of radio.

The transmitter covers a wide range of frequencies, from MF and up 1.6MHz to 27.5MHz in marine dedicated bands. Power output: from 85W under 4MHz to 125W above. No CW! USB/FSK/AFSK is the marine mode standard. There are numerous other differences between a pro radio and a ham radio. For example, M804 has the GNSS receiver which includes GPS, GLONASS and SBAS functions. Your position data, course, speed and UTC data can be received with a simple connection to the supplied GNSS antenna. The dedicated DSC watch-keeping receiver continuously scans the six distress channels in rotation, with a total of 100 MMSI numbers. On transmit, in an emergency, by pressing the large independent Distress button, a digital Distress signal is sent with GNSS coordinates and calls for help to other ships or coast stations.

The head (“controller”) is even waterproof to a 1m depth for 30 minutes. Again, not your kids-stuff HF transceiver, but a dedicated pro radio.

In case you need one: in stock, available for immediate delivery. RRP: $5,000.