On 16/06/2010 6:32 AM, RHF wrote:
On Jun 15, 5:24 am, m wrote:
dave wrote:
You can get a nice SDR-IQ black box, a laptop, a USB sound card, and a
nice set of active speakers for less than an R8B. better performance, too.

This seems to be a good example of such an item.

http://www.scannermaster.com/SDR_IQ_.../43-501312.htm

mike

Mike [M II],

Many would still ask . . . Where's the Knob ?

For many old time Shortwave Listeners (SWLs)

Listening to the Radio had a certain 'feel' to it.

The word you're looking for is "mystique".

Plus Turning-the-Knob on a Radio with an
Analog Dial/Scale often brought the awe
and joy of 'discovery' to the Radio Listener.

I got that from the first crystal set I built. I was amazed at how
something so simple could pull in radio stations from far away, and that
wasn't even shortwave! I didn't even consider the deficiencies of the
medium such as lack of selectivity. I would listen for hours even when
the content of the programs was lacking, such was my fascination with
the medium.

While keying in a Frequency Number or
having the Computer Scan and Log lacks
the 'bond' between a Man and His Radio.

It depends upon the era you grew up in. To the tech savvy kids of today,
keying in a frequency number is as natural as keying in a phone number
on their cell phones.

from an age when people knew that
real radios 'glowed' in the dark ~ RHF
{and a young boy's eyes were wide with
amazement far into the wee hours of the
morning}
.
I'm betting there was a lot more interesting stuff to listen to in those
days! TV has had a degenerative effect on the mystique of far flung
cultures. Why listen to it on the radio when you can see it all on the
news or the documentary channels. Kids these days just don't see the
point of shortwave radio. They want high definition 3D realism. That and
the total lack of patience with anything that isn't 100% perfect and
totally store bought. Fading dx signals, no time for that! You have to
build it before you can use it? Get outta here!!

You would have more success with kids from third world countries than
you would with kids from our tech-savvy world.

Krypsis