Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

"John S." wrote:

Daniel wrote:
I recently discovered the joy of shortwave listening with my new
Sangean ATS909.

Now I want to listen to shortwave while commuting on the train. My
ATS909 is too big for that, is there a small and good radio to carry in
a backpack? I can't use a telescopic antenna in a backpack, but is
there a chance of receiving the major broadcasters (e.g. Deutsche Welle
and BBC in Europe), despite the small antenna, metallic train and
electromagnetic disturbances from the train?

If necessary I could run a bit of wire inside the rucksack :-)

Shortwave reception will be pretty tough on a train, even sitting next
to a window. You will probably have lots of electrical interference.
Give it a try - who knows. Your best chances for catching shortwave
signals will of course be a night. FM reception should be ok though.

Yeah, those SW bands sure are dead in the daytime, nary a signal to be caught.
:-)

dxAce
Michigan
USA

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

When using the DE31 with the supplied clips (alligator clips, without
teeth), such as with the DE1105, make sure that you connect the ground
clip as well! You can connect it to the battery ground, or the ground
of the headphone jack. Making the ground connection really lowers the
noise level alot (apparent on some frequencies much more than others)!

I just went through this a few weeks ago...(grounding... no, I haven't
tried it on a train...) I wonder, in this day and age, if connecting
the DE31 against a train window, will raise a few security eyebrows...



Daniel wrote:
wrote:
Suggest you check out the Degen DE1105;

while it does not have SSB, and does not go below 5800 or above 26000

it is very small, does have double reduction, 1,000 memories; and is
very sensitive;

Ordered! Looking forward to trying it out. Some eBay-dealer offers a
DE31 loop antenna with it.

Is it correct that a loop antenna works with the H-field which is less
susceptible to electromagnetic interference?

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

wrote:

When using the DE31 with the supplied clips (alligator clips, without
teeth), such as with the DE1105, make sure that you connect the ground
clip as well! You can connect it to the battery ground, or the ground
of the headphone jack. Making the ground connection really lowers the
noise level alot (apparent on some frequencies much more than others)!

I just went through this a few weeks ago...(grounding... no, I haven't
tried it on a train...) I wonder, in this day and age, if connecting
the DE31 against a train window, will raise a few security eyebrows...

Just make sure you've one of the stations transmitting Koran recitations tuned
in...

....and you'll be vacationing in Gitmo before you know it.

It's a pretty nice place, I've been there twice.

dxAce
Michigan
USA

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

dxAce wrote:
"John S." wrote:

Daniel wrote:
I recently discovered the joy of shortwave listening with my new
Sangean ATS909.

Now I want to listen to shortwave while commuting on the train. My
ATS909 is too big for that, is there a small and good radio to carry in
a backpack? I can't use a telescopic antenna in a backpack, but is
there a chance of receiving the major broadcasters (e.g. Deutsche Welle
and BBC in Europe), despite the small antenna, metallic train and
electromagnetic disturbances from the train?

If necessary I could run a bit of wire inside the rucksack :-)

Shortwave reception will be pretty tough on a train, even sitting next
to a window. You will probably have lots of electrical interference.
Give it a try - who knows. Your best chances for catching shortwave
signals will of course be a night. FM reception should be ok though.

Yeah, those SW bands sure are dead in the daytime, nary a signal to be caught.
:-)

Well, there are some things to be caught during the day. But dxing
with a portable while travelling in a train is like dxing from the
front seat of your car. Only a few powerhouses will make it through
that blanket of electronic noise.


dxAce
Michigan
USA

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

eyeballing Gitmo. www.cryptome.org/index.html
I guess the closest I have ever been to Gitmo was Key Largo,Florida.
cuhulin

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

wrote:
Suggest you check out the Degen DE1105;

while it does not have SSB, and does not go below 5800 or above 26000

it is very small, does have double reduction, 1,000 memories; and is
very sensitive;

http://www.radiointel.com/review-degende1105.htm

I just received my new DE1105:

- small and light

- basic functionality is easy to operate

- advanced functionality (copying station pages, setting alarms etc.)
is not intuitive, you need to spend half an hour with the manual

- good backlight for display and keys so you can operate it in the dark

- the DE31 antenna I got with the eBay offer helps a lot, but
interestingly more so when the DE31's amplifier is turned off

- selectivity almost as good as its big brother Sangean ATS909

I also bought a GP-4L radio for USD 20 which is even smaller and
lighter:

http://www.countycomm.com/gp4light.htm

- analog tuning with digital frequency display is handy to quickly
search a band

- worse selectivity than the DE1105, strong stations must be not be
close or you hear nothing

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

Small radio for backpack; reception in train?
 

I answered the question in the DE31 thread... quoting myself:

" DE1105 and DE31

At first, I took a wire and connected it to the negative battery
terminal and the clip... it did help remove alot of the excess noise...

but then I couldn't close the battery cover.


I have since purchased a solder mini-plug (a couple of dollars) from
radio shack (they didn't have the non-solder, which I would've
preferred). I take off the cover of the plug and clip the ground clip
from the antenna to the long connector of the plug. I then plug the
jack into the headphone jack, until I feel resistance, so that only the

ground is connected. (No soldering involved). I plan on eventually
snipping the bottom of the plug.


Again, as others have said, make sure that the amp/tuner is on the
correct side of the wire/antenna and fine tune it well. "





Daniel wrote:
wrote:
When using the DE31 with the supplied clips (alligator clips, without
teeth), such as with the DE1105, make sure that you connect the ground
clip as well! You can connect it to the battery ground, or the ground
of the headphone jack. Making the ground connection really lowers the
noise level alot (apparent on some frequencies much more than others)!

I connected the black ground clip of the DE31 to the battery ground of
the DE1105 with a bit of aluminium. It didn't help. What am I doing
wrong?