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Originally Posted by
Due to the return policy of the company it was ordered from (universal
radio) I need to decide quickly if I'll be returning/exchanging it.
The question that comes up is that, if I do exchange it, would I be
better off upgrading to a different radio? Aesthetic appeal aside, the
Eton E1 seems to have good reviews everywhere. But is the difference
in sensitivity enough to justify the extra money?
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Peter:
Regarding the E1, I would recommend paying careful attention to the portability aspect. For me, price was the main consideration when buying my first receiver (Kaito 1102) but the portability turned out to be a great advantage.
Have you listened to the radio in the AM and FM bands? How does it sound there? How does it compare to other AM / FM radios? I'm asking to help determine if the noise reception is specific to shortwave or if it affects the radio as a whole.
If you tune the radio to a weak/noisy shortwave broadcast, are there reception differences when you're holding onto the radio compared to when you're not touching it?
My hunch is that upgrading to a more powerful radio would not provide dramatically clearer reception. If you're just trying to improve shortwave reception, that's probably not a wise investment.
The best indicator would be if you could get your hands on a radio known to receive strong broadcasts in your area and do a side-by-side test.
Failing that, if you can make a risk-free exchange with Universal Radio, try a different radio. The Kaito 1103 gets excellent reviews (see radiointel.com for a review and a mention in Phil's Portable Radio Guide 2005). A radio like that should give you clear reception once you have minimized interference sources.