mike schrieb:

Hey group,

I own a Sony ICF-SW7600GR and have been very happy with it.

Thinking I am ready to graduate to a tabletop model such as a grundig
Satellite. I want the most bang for the buck.

Will the move be worth my money?
Will I be able to pull in more stations?

Should I buy a Winradio instead?

Do keep in mind that a computer based rx will always require this
eternal source of interference (and noise) to be on - and I don't think
bedside listening is very comfortable with one of those. They do,
however, have some advantages - adding new modes is not a problem when
the implementation is like the one on the WR-G303i, which leaves
demodulation to the host computer (which has to be reasonably fast for
this, of course). So yes to a computer based receiver if you're after
DRM and utility stations; if you're more interested in broadcasting and
hams in SSB, better go for a conventional receiver.
In terms of those, it's a good idea to spend at least 2...3 times as
much if you want to get a noticeable improvement over the old receiver.
This would mean some US$500...600 in this case. In that price range, you
can get portables like the Sony ICF-SW77, semi-portables like
Grundig/Tecsun Satellit 800 (I'd always get a new one, since a number of
issues have been worked out over time), Drake SW-8, Lowe HF-150 and
Palstar R30C, and several older tabletops (say, a Kenwood R-5000 or AOR
AR3030, perhaps a Drake R-8A or JRC NRD-525). They all have their pros
and cons (for example, the Satellit 800 sounds good, but is big and
bulky, while the NRD-525 is a nice DX rig even today but suffers from
"JRC like" audio), you'll have to research a bit before deciding on one.

Stephan
--
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