Yaesu Fusion has been established in the West of Ireland by the Limerick Radio Club on both 2 metres and 70cms. The Limerick Repeater has been operational on System Fusion for over a year and more recently the 70cms Repeater has been installed. Wires-X is not connected so the Limerick Repeaters are specifically just acting as Repeaters and not able to connect to the rest of the world. Donegal also has a Fusion Repeater and this is connected to the Wires-X system.
Yaesu Fusion radios are Dual Band and Dual Mode which makes them more versatile. As a result it is possible to experiment with direct point to point simplex communication. Regrettably not a lot of individuals have the equipment as yet and there are also rival modes like DMR and perhaps the older D-Star.
Using a DV Megga Bluestack or a DV4Mini, it is possible to connect into some of the many Yaesu Fusion Talkrooms. There a huge number and each area of the world has its own designated area or indeed some common or shared areas.
Of late there has been a number of talkrooms linked together in the UK resulting in a huge increase in activity in one particular area. It has even been possible to cross conect from DMR to Fusion a vice versa. Sometimes up to 80+ have linked ot this area.
The DV4Mini set up for Yaesu Fusion
Using a DV Megga Bluestack or a DV4Mini, it is possible to connect into some of the many Yaesu Fusion Talkrooms. There a huge number and each area of the world has its own designated area or indeed some common or shared areas.
Of late there has been a number of talkrooms linked together in the UK resulting in a huge increase in activity in one particular area. It has even been possible to cross conect from DMR to Fusion a vice versa. Sometimes up to 80+ have linked ot this area.
A screen grab of a busy Yaesu Fusion Talk Room from the DV4Mini Control Panel
So far there have been no Fusion contacts on the Limerick Repeater despite a number of E-mails requesting a sked to try the system out. The transmissions do go through the Repeater without any problem but alas no replies.Undoubtedly this area will increase in activity as more become involved.
The initial feeling is that Yaesu Fusion does have better quality over the other modes. Most of the equipment is dual band so there is an opportunity to work through more repeaters and gateways. Fusion does lend itself to more point to point simplex communication on both 2 metres and 70cms. Repeater and gateway activity may also promote this mode.
The Disadvantage with Fusion is that it is a propriety mode and cannot be copied by any other company other than Yaesu. DMR may possibly become more popular with the number of cheaper Chinese tranceivers and handhelds. DMR is more of an open source mode and not confined to any one manufacturer making it more attractive. A bit like Betamax and VHS - which standard will ultimately win. It is possible that there are still other Digital systems that have not yet been released.
