It depends on how much you have available to spend, but here are my 
choices.  I have all of these.  Icom 718.  For its cost one heck of a 
radio.  You'll need an external tuner and an optional voice board.  It 
does have keypad entry and the voice gives freq and signal strength. 
Menus don't speak.  Still a very usable radio and nice for the cost.

Next would be the Kenwood 480.  Optional voice board, has built in tuner 
and speaks menus and such.  It has the control head separate, but i 
bought the mounting plate so all can be mounted together.  I haven't 
looked, but I think the 718 is around $800 and the 480 often on sale for 
around $1100, just guessing.

Nextis the Kenwood 590.  Very good dsl and built in tuner.  With 
optional voice all speak very well.  The 718 I think only goes up 
through ten, but the two kenwoods cover 6 as well.

If you want 2 and 440 coverage as well, consider the Kenwood 2000. 
Speaks very well.  In my opinion, the dsl isn't as good as the 590 but 
covers a lot of bands with dual receive on 2 and 440.  HTH.
73
Butch
WA0VJR
Node 3148
Wallace, ks.


On Mon, 12 Dec 
2011, John Miller wrote:

> Most of the Kenwood radios, all now I believe actually will give you menu
> feedback, frequency, almost all you need. Icom radios do everything but the
> menus. Some even have the speech synth built in, others you have to add it
> but there's no need to have it tied to a computer, I've never liked that and
> refuse to get a radio that has to be tied to a computer all the time for me
> to use it.
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "David thurmond" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Monday, December 12, 2011 8:36 AM
> Subject: Recommendations for Beginner HF Rig
>
>
>> All,
>>
>> I expect that this topic has been discussed over and over, so my
>> apologies in advance.  I am looking to buy my first HF rig, but I have
>> no idea what the best way to access the equipment is, and what
>> features on a particular model would be best.
>>
>> I have seen that speech processing is available on some higher-end
>> models, but is this really the way to go?  Is it just as good to
>> purchase a lower-end model that works with Ham Radio Deluxe, or will
>> any software available to control the rig through the PC work with a
>> screen reader?  I hate the thought that I am dependent on my PC to
>> access my rig, but if that makes operating more enjoyable, then that's
>> what I'll do!
>>
>> Lots of rigs seem to offer very basic speech capabilities, such as
>> parroting back frequency selection, but I think I want something much
>> more comprehensive than that.  So, what are experienced folks in the
>> real world using to make their equipment accessible for a blind user,
>> and how?
>>
>> Many thanks!
>>
>> David Thurmond, KK4ADV
>
>