I have an FT-891 and I noticed I have to jack my mic gain way up to get any output on the radio. I am considering a Heil headset. I generally use apple ear pods to listen to the radio, so the experience might not be all that different. Anyway, I noticed there is an 2 different microphone offerings. Which one should I go with?
It's been a good few years since I looked at Bob Heil's stuff but there were two choices for the mic inserts. HC-5 was the normal frequency response insert and the HC-4 was the DX insert - a lot sharper sounding audio.
The iC Electret element is a condenser mic, and requires power from the radio. As far as I know, only Elecraft and Icom radios are designed to do that, so you'd want the Dynamic element. Remember to budget for the correct adaptor and some sort of PTT switch - I personally prefer a footswitch to keep my hands free for logging.
Yeah, they are nice. I was just hoping to upgrade the hand mic. Then I went down a rabbit hole. So I was thinking when out on the lawn I could go total old man style and use a headset. In the end it still means I have to do something with my HM-31. Maybe I'll just modify the HM-31.
So I bit the bullet and got the pro set 7. These things are super comfy and very good at blocking out the world around me. Thank you everyone for the input and recommendations.