The one item you will want when "hamming" it on marine nets, is the ability to rapidly change the frequency by small incriments. Ie: you call another station on 7268 Mhz (Water Way net)--and he says "meet me at 7281, up". You will turn the DIAL to 7281 on the VFO (Vairiable Frequency Oscillator) and then inch up by .1mhz to find a clear channel where you can talk. This is the feature missing on most marine SSB radios--on these you have to enter a frequency by a keypad, or pushing an arrow--it is faster and more convienty by the old fashion dial method. You may have to hunt up and down to find the person you want to chat with. There are a number of marine nets on marine SSB also. My solution was to have both a ham and marine SSB on my cruising boats.--cross modification. There does not seem to be much enforcement currently--but the criteria is that the marine set be within 60 hz of set frequency. I know of hams using modified sets on Marine SSB being ticketed by FCC asking to provide documentation that their marine SSB was calibrated and aligned properly (which meant they had to run out and buy a marine SSB) I have not heard of this happening recently. I have used ham radios on boats since 1979 and my last rig spent 5 years aboard a boat cruising from 59 degrees North to below the equator--and still works fine--a Kenwod 160. This was a bottom of the line radio, but with a very good antenna and an amp, I was able to talk to a boat almost every day as he circumnaviaged. $$$ does not always make the best radio.... Each of the ham radio manufactuers make top of the line: Icom, Kenwood and Yeasu--I have owned each brand and they all have strong points. I would look at all of the ham radio--before shelling out $2800 for the radio alone take a trip to a good dealer like HRO and play with the the different radio's on line--an article at: http://members.fortunecity.com/swradios/756pro2.html, shows up some potential weaknesses with the reciever--but this is for short wave--and broad cast listening--as for transmitter output--putting a 500 watt 12 volt amp, on a $ 550 Icom 718 radio will give a better signal- With the 756 Pro, you are paying for a lot of bells and whistles....more for the contester in my opinion. Go look at some of the radios available--and play...Also you will have to find what the mods are on the 756 to use it in an emergency on Marine SSB--most of the older radios were cutting a wire or a diode. Out of the box marine ssb frequencies are blocked. Check: http://members.fortunecity.com/xe1bef/icom-mod.htm 73's KA6PKB Bob Austin