Icom ID-50A Manual page 5

The repeater memories come preprogrammed with an
impressive list of FM and D-STAR repeaters. You can
update the list, which I did after I noticed that a popu-
lar local FM repeater was missing for whatever rea-
son. I downloaded a more recent list from www.
dstarinfo.com/RepeaterDownloads.aspx, saved
the file to the microSD card, put the card into the
ID-50A, and imported the updated information. Icom
also offers repeater lists on their website. Thanks to
the built-in GPS receiver, the ID-50A also has the
ability to use the Near Me repeater function of the DR
mode for D-STAR and FM repeaters.
Many radios include speech assistance these days,
and just like with their previous model, Icom took an
additional step with the ID-50A. Through the menu
system you can turn on the speech annunciator and
select which information you want to hear spoken
aloud, such as frequencies only. In addition — and I
thought this was very cool — you can have the
speech function announce letters individually, such as
"A, B, C," or announce them phonetically ("Alfa, Bravo,
Charlie").
On the Air
I spent the first several minutes listening to the AM
aviation band. Even with just the rubber duck antenna,
reception was quite clear. I live in an area with a lot of
air traffic, so it didn't take long to find plenty of chatter.
And, of course, I had to try FM broadcast reception.
Once again, the clarity and sensitivity were impres-
sive. The ID-50A only receives in monoaural, but with
a single speaker that doesn't matter.
I noticed a small flashing symbol along the top of the
screen. That turned out to be the GPS status indicator,
and it flashes until the receiver acquires enough satel-
lite signals to determine your position. Even within my
aluminum-sided home, the ID-50A's GPS received
enough signals that it established a fix in less than 60
seconds.
44 June 2024 QST www.arrl.org
Cruising through the amateur bands was a pleasure
with the ID-50A. Reception seemed excellent, and I
also received good transmit audio reports through
several FM repeaters. I configured the display to show
2 meters as the top, main band and 70 centimeters as
the secondary band. It is easy, however, to flip this
arrangement as you wish, or display only a single
band.
The band scope feature made it easy to spot activity.
Even though the scope's waterfall display is strictly
monochrome, I found it highly intuitive to interpret.
When I saw an indication of a signal, I simply spun the
frequency selection knob to move the cursor to the
mark, and I heard the result (see Figure 1).
Speaking of listening, because the ID-50A sports two
independent receivers, the dual watch function is
particularly slick. This is true dual watch, with both
receivers monitored simultaneously. Unlike the dual
watch functionality you find in other radios, there is no
clicking or popping as the radio bounces from one
receiver to another. In the ID-50A, dual watch is as
seamless as it gets.
Programming with CS-50
While I found the menu system relatively useful for
memory programming, this task is far easier to ac-
complish with Icom's free CS-50 software for Win-
dows. With the USB cable connecting the ID-50A to
my computer, the CS-50 software established a virtual
COM port and quickly located the radio. I was then
able to read everything from the ID-50A, modify what-
ever items I desired (or add new information), and
finally write everything back to the radio (see Figure
2). You'll find the CS-50 application on Icom's website.
Figure 1 — The
ID-50A's band
scope display.
Figure 2 — Programming the ID-50A was a snap with Icom's
CS-50 software.