Dear "Telamon,"

After all these years - I still find it incredible that many radio
hobbyists do not realize that the antenna is more important than the
radio!

While antennas and radios must be matched properly and carefully
(that's, of course, where experience and knowledge comes in), given my
"druthers," I'd rather set up my "radio shack" based primarily on the
antenna rather than the radio. That's precisely what I did with my
first Wellbrook ALA 330S. Frankly, I took a chance - based solely on
the reviews in PASSPORT TO WORLD BAND RADIO (and I'm sure glad I did!)
- and only after actually ordering the antenna did I decide to buy an
AOR AR7030 Plus. ( had originally thought that I would possibly buy
another Grundig Satellit 800 for use downstairs with the new Wellbrook
but then I decided that, since I was getting what was hopefully the
best antenna for my particular circumstances, for once in my life I
should have a real top-end radio. But the Wellbrook turned out to be
so good that I bought a second one for my upstairs Sat800 (with which
I had been using an AOR WL-500 Window Loop Antenna - a good unit but
not in the class of the Wellbrook).

I guess it's just "wishful thinking" on my part that more SWLers would
take the time and make the effort to learn just how important the
antenna is; these people would then certainly derive much more
pleasure from the hobby.

As always, the above is strictly my own opinion and, again as always,
it is rather lengthy. But YOUR answer to the gentleman making the
comment about the $400.00 antenna with his $200.00 radio - in only 14
words - says it all - clearly, concisely, and absolutely accurately.

Best,

Joe

On Apr 8, 9:32 pm, Telamon
wrote:

So to get my $200 AM radio to work I need a $400 antenna? Nice...


If you want your $200 dollar radio to work at its best then yes.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

I never have built an antenna before.Well, there have been times when I
have clipped a few feet of wire on to some radios that already had a
factory installed antenna, but that's not the same thing.Wire is cheap,
just ask dxAce.Take a look at his back yard antenna.I bet the most cost
of that antenna are the wooden post he bought to stick in the ground.

One of my old off the wall brand name cheapo AM/FM/Shortwave table model
radios (it was old when I bought it) I bought at a Goodwill store about
fourteen years ago, I clipped one end of an old lonnnnggg extension cord
to the radio's antenna.That extension cord was so lonnng, I draped that
cord from my radio and from my living room and through my dining room
and through where my dining room leads from my kitchen and along tha
hall and back to my living room over to my front door.That rig of a
so-called antenna worked pretty good for that old radio.
cuhulin

In article
,
Joe Analssandrini wrote:

Dear "Telamon,"

After all these years - I still find it incredible that many radio
hobbyists do not realize that the antenna is more important than the
radio!

The radio receiver does not actually receive the signal it discriminates
and demodulates. The antenna does the receiving. Some radios have the
antenna built in and in that case they are actually a receiving system.
The built in antenna could be a whip or a ferrite bar antenna but most
radios considered here need an external antenna or would benefit from
one. Here, if your requirements are easy, the antenna does not take much
in money or time to acquire or make respectively. If you should be more
demanding than going for the evening big guns then the antenna will
require more money and time. Skimp here and you will just get lousy
performance out of the radio no matter what it cost. That's the word
from rec.radio.shortwave.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California