Dear Igor,
This is one of the problems I have had with my own Grundig Satellit
800 which I purchased new from Universal Radio and received in early
June 2000. My radio "lasted" three and a half years before I noticed
several problems, the same tuning knob problem you're having being one
of them.
I sent the radio back to Drake (it was by then, of course, out of
warranty) and it was returned apparently fixed. Unfortunately within a
year some other problems showed up including the tuning knob (encoder)
problem again. Back again to Drake - back to me apparently fixed. But
no - the sync circuit became obviously misaligned within another year
- and the tuning knob problem turned up again just like a bad penny.
Back again to Drake and again it came back apparently fixed and THIS
time it appears to have stayed fixed. (If you're keeping track, the
last fix took place in December 2005.)
Obviously, by this time, I was somewhat disenchanted with this radio
which I previously had liked very much. I STILL think its design is
one of the best ever! But its quality of parts and construction leave
a LOT to be desired. I am afraid its longevity will not reflect the
price paid for it.
In 2004 I purchased an AOR AR7030 Plus which was especially customized
for me by the factory; the purchase was through THE SHORTWAVE SHOP in
the UK. THIS radio is built like the proverbial tank.
Since I own this AOR and since I am somewhat less confident in the
durability of the Grundig Satellit 800, I do not use the latter with
anywhere near the frequency (no pun intended) that I did previously,
much preferring to listen via the AR7030 Plus, a MUCH better receiver
and one which is constructed to a very high standard (better sound
quality too).
Note that, in my opinion, price has little to do with quality of
construction - my Sony ICF-SW7600G/GRs are also built to a very high
construction standard and I won't be surprised if they are still going
strong long after my Satellit 800 is residing in the local landfill.
I believe that a "fix" for this encoder problem has been posted
somewhere on the web (I just checked the files at the Yahoo Satellit
800 group but no luck there) but I think that your best bet would be
to send the radio back to Drake. Telephone them, ask to speak with
Bill Frost, and tell him your problem. He will probably tell you to
send the radio to them and enclose a letter of explanation. Do this
and address the letter to Mr. Frost. Hopefully he will assign a
competent technician to work on your radio (and let's hope that the
tech is not having a "bad day!").
I do have to tell you that each time I sent the radio back to Drake it
cost me about $150.00 including shipping both ways. That's about
$450.00 in total for repairs to a $500.00 radio!
So, the next time my radio starts performing less than optimally, I
shall either "live with it" or dispatch the radio to that above-
mentioned landfill. My "fixing" days with this receiver are done.
But, as this may be the first time you've had a problem, it may be
wise and cost-effective for you to send the radio to Drake at least
this once as I indicated.
Best of luck,
Joe
On Jun 7, 2:00 am, Igor wrote:
I've owned a Satellit 800 for about 4 years. I've been using
it a lot lately and have started to notice a very odd, annoying
phenomenon with the tuning knob. Basically, when you turn it in one
direction, the frequency goes in the opposite direction, and it takes
several seconds and several tries to get it to go in the right
direction. Anyone else encounter this?
Apparently I'm not the only person to have experienced this:
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.r...0d1c302f7b3f29
"the most annoying problem being that theres some back-frequency
jumping occasionally when the tuning knob is being turned clockwise"
I can only assume that I went 4 years without noticing this because I
relied more on the slew buttons, keypad, and memories to get around
than on the tuning knob (unless the problem is recent).
Is there a fix?
Igor