RadioBanter - Highly Sensitive AM *and* FM Radio

wrote:

I'm originally from Ohio and now live 1/2 way between Atlanta and
Athens, Georgia. When they assigned frequencies, this was almost
literally Deliverance territory. Athens has no FM stations, save the
university's public radio station, that can reach more than a few miles
outside the community. In addition, the AM band during the day is
virtually silent between my home and Athens where I teach at UGA.

Can someone suggest a radio that has a very, highly sensitive
antenna/receiver for BOTH AM and FM radio? (I worked at WTVN-AM in
Columbus, Ohio 1981-1983 and remember the station's program director
had what looked like an ordinary transistor radio, especially in size,
but he was picking up AM stations all over the dial *in the daytime.*

Any suggestions? Sure, I'd like it to sound, nice, too, and I couldn't
mind having it for my daily walking exercise.

I know it's out there somewhere. (I don't need SW but won't be
surprised if that's and add-on I can't opt out of having.)

Dr. Bruce in Dacula, GA

P.S. Yes, I have XM radio at home, but I want to be able to pull in
weak broadcast signals anyway.

Get a passive MW loop antenna, for AM (Select-a-tenna, Terk Loop, Radio
Shack had one but I think no longer does), which is just a coil and
variable capacitor that matches impedance so even a dead AM radio springs
to life in the daytime, if you put it next to the radio and tune it to
the frequency desired.

You can easily build one but the parts, if you don't have a junk box,
will run you some money too, after considering all the materials, and
the construction won't be as nice.

The Sangean DT200V is a pocket-sized radio that's sensitive for its
size ; later models (DT300VW) are smaller but less sensitive.

The more sensitive the radio, the less a MW loop helps, by the way. Once
you're hearing ambient propagating noise above the internal noise of
the receiver, you don't gain anything by making it louder.

The Sony 7600GR with a MW loop is a good daytime arrangement, and has
valuable synch detection, letting you cut out interference from one
adjacent channel. It's a little insensitive without the MW loop.

--
Ron Hardin

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.