RS - DX 394 on e - bay
 

I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

kamalakar pasupuleti wrote:

I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

I checked out one a friend owned.

Here's a link with basic information about the radio. (Link says 302, but same page has 394)

http://www.dxing.com/rx/dx302.htm

They rate radios for "value" on a 1-5 star basis. The 394 gets 1 star.

Here's a link to the same site's table of contents with links to information about 100 or so of the more popular radios on the used market:

http://www.dxing.com/rx/rxindex.htm

Personally, if I was in the market for a budget priced table top I think I'd look at the Tentec RX-320. Better performance, and generally available for about $200-225 on the used market.

Hi,

Here's another review of it - a good one. I had one and I liked it but I got
a "B" model on the insistence of a ham friend of mine. My best friend now
has it and loves it. You'll get good and bad comments on it in this group
but I was never sorry I bought it. As to what you should pay for it, I
wouldn't go more than $100 - $125 for it. Also check to see if it has had
any modification to some. Some of these 394's an eBay have had the mods
done.

http://www.rnw.nl/realradio/dx394.html
--

Good Luck
Abb N
VE3003SWL
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

"kamalakar pasupuleti" wrote in message
om...
I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

as has been pointed out, the factory designed and supplied DX-394 is
full of problems. however there are some modifications that can fix
the 394. after that it is quite a full featured receiver if you pay no
more than $200. it is not worth $250 as I have seen some people pay.
at that point there are many other better values. but at $200 for a
modified one, that is a good value point.





(kamalakar pasupuleti) wrote in message . com...
I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

(kamalakar pasupuleti) wrote in message . com...
I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

I have maintained a graph of Monthly average selling prices for
DX-394's since late October on the website of the DX-394 special
interest group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RADIOSHACKDX394/ .
Join 560 other members to see what you can learn about it. Links to
reviews, a cavalcade of mods, etc.

Tom

I got mine a few years ago and I must say that it is the best of all the RS
short-wave radios that I have owned. That isn't saying much. A squelch
circuit would have been nice as that the radio is very noisy. It has next to
no filtering and when you tune manually it pops at every point 1 of a KC. I
also find that it has a drift on SSB that it has had from the first day. It
is ok if all you want to listen to is VOA or other AM stations but no good
for the good stuff on short-wave. I use mine as a spare rig and my Yeasu as
a primary. I wouldn't pay more then $50.00 for one.

"kamalakar pasupuleti" wrote in message
om...
I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

I just "built" one with two upgraded filters and some other bug fixes. it is
so superior to a stock unit ! the dual selectable filters are OUTSTANDING !
sold it for $205 including nice external speaker

I am the only one that I am aware of on the planet to build such an
outstanding 394. my other great 394 project was to build a portable capable
394. killer unit too !

got several more stock 394's coming so I can upgrade them too.

it is FUN to upgrade them and see how I have improved them !!!


Mike



"kamalakar pasupuleti" wrote in message
om...
I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

mike maghakian wrote:
I just "built" one with two upgraded filters and some
other bug fixes. it is so superior to a stock unit ! the
dual selectable filters are OUTSTANDING ! sold it for
$205 including nice external speaker

I am the only one that I am aware of on the planet to
build such an outstanding 394. my other great 394 project
was to build a portable capable 394. killer unit too !

got several more stock 394's coming so I can upgrade them
too.

it is FUN to upgrade them and see how I have improved
them !!!

Upgrading DX-394's has been sport for many years. A search of Usenet
postings in r.r.s in particular shows the first reported upgrade - the Kiwa
filter - in late 1995. There are some 6000 messages posted in Usenet that
refer to the DX-394 (some may be just in the signature) - another 2300 in
the RADIOSHACKDX394 Yahoo!Group. The late 90's saw a flurry of
improvements - most of the key ones - pioneered mainly by the legendary
Frank Cathell who seems to have moved on to astronomy and other interests. I
sparked another round starting in mid-2002, posted many to www.mods.dk and
consolidated everything I could find at the RADIOSHACKDX394 SIG and its
offspring, DX-394C, which concentrates on computer control conversions. Mike
Maghakian has stimulated a lot of discussion with his filter upgrades, here
in r.r.s. and the SIG. Another Mike, lowbander on ebay, has established a
solid reputation in doing cost-effective, intelligent upgrades, with over
500 DX-394 transactions on ebay.

In the last 5 months, DX-394's have sold on ebay for as little as $100 (a UK
auction last week) to as much as $275 for a modified one. You'll find my
average monthly price graph on the SIG website.

To the person who complained that his DX-394 is unstable in frequency: I
have 3 and they are all very stable - little apparent temperature drift and
quite solid through line voltage fluctuations.

Tom

all these issues are covered by easy fixes, if you don't want to do them
, then the DX-394 is NOT the radio for you. My 394 is selective (mod),
quiet (inherently), has no pops(mod) and is a very nice radio.

I would pay a lot lot more than $50 for one and buy a dozen at a time if
I could.


It is unfortunate that people like you spread so much misleading
information. It is the reason the 394 is SO misunderstood.


Mike




WG wrote:
I got mine a few years ago and I must say that it is the best of all the RS
short-wave radios that I have owned. That isn't saying much. A squelch
circuit would have been nice as that the radio is very noisy. It has next to
no filtering and when you tune manually it pops at every point 1 of a KC. I
also find that it has a drift on SSB that it has had from the first day. It
is ok if all you want to listen to is VOA or other AM stations but no good
for the good stuff on short-wave. I use mine as a spare rig and my Yeasu as
a primary. I wouldn't pay more then $50.00 for one.

"kamalakar pasupuleti" wrote in message
om...

I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

What is misleading about the truth. The rig is junk. You don't say what you
are comparing to. I have mine side by side with a Yeasu FT-100d and I must
say that even without the AM filter the Yeasu's receiver beats the 394's
hands down. You may want to look up some of the less then good reviews in
most of the radio publications. Radio Shack had to give them away at less
then 1/2 the list price in the last year of its run.

"Mike Maghakian" wrote in message
...
all these issues are covered by easy fixes, if you don't want to do them
, then the DX-394 is NOT the radio for you. My 394 is selective (mod),
quiet (inherently), has no pops(mod) and is a very nice radio.

I would pay a lot lot more than $50 for one and buy a dozen at a time if
I could.


It is unfortunate that people like you spread so much misleading
information. It is the reason the 394 is SO misunderstood.


Mike




WG wrote:
I got mine a few years ago and I must say that it is the best of all the
RS
short-wave radios that I have owned. That isn't saying much. A squelch
circuit would have been nice as that the radio is very noisy. It has
next to
no filtering and when you tune manually it pops at every point 1 of a
KC. I
also find that it has a drift on SSB that it has had from the first day.
It
is ok if all you want to listen to is VOA or other AM stations but no
good
for the good stuff on short-wave. I use mine as a spare rig and my Yeasu
as
a primary. I wouldn't pay more then $50.00 for one.

"kamalakar pasupuleti" wrote in message
om...

I find couple of Radio Shack DX 394 on e-bay , is it woth bidding
considering the technology . If yes how much should I bid ? Any
feedback is appreciated .

Kam

people get their R-75 modified to make it work. why not the same
leeway with the 394. judge a fixed one, not a stock one.


"WG" wrote in message news:ubA1c.65940$A12.16971@edtnps84...
What is misleading about the truth. The rig is junk. You don't say what you
are comparing to. I have mine side by side with a Yeasu FT-100d and I must
say that even without the AM filter the Yeasu's receiver beats the 394's
hands down. You may want to look up some of the less then good reviews in
most of the radio publications. Radio Shack had to give them away at less
then 1/2 the list price in the last year of its run.

WG wrote:
What is misleading about the truth. The rig is junk. You
don't say what you are comparing to. I have mine side by
side with a Yeasu FT-100d and I must say that even
without the AM filter the Yeasu's receiver beats the
394's hands down. You may want to look up some of the
less then good reviews in most of the radio publications.
Radio Shack had to give them away at less then 1/2 the
list price in the last year of its run.

If it's "junk",
- why do you keep it?
- why do you use it?
- why don't you give it someone who appreciates it?
- why don't you sell it?
- why don't you throw it out?
- why don't you improve it? You'll be pleasantly surprised at the results.
- why don't you do something about it?

Comparisons: I have a Drake R-4B, great radio in its day, but the DX-394
beats it hands down when it comes to warmup time and drift, speed and
convenience of tuning, sensitivity above 15MHz and frequency range covered.
The R-4B wins on immunity to overload and selectivity - both front end and
IF - and it smells (that could be positive or negative) of warm dust and
resins.

Reviews: both the ARRL Lab and the Radio Netherlands rated it good value for
money, 4 stars from the latter, when it was still selling for $300, before
upgrades. The majority of personal reviews on eHam.net agree; a small
minority of extremists rate it the way you do.

Radio Shack consistently sells off old stock at half price or less. Seven
years after it was introduced, Radio Shack Canada cleared them out at what
was then around US$85. Nothing unusual in that. That's what got me going
again in this hobby. Why was there leftover stock? Perhaps they
overestimated the potential market for mid-range, tabletop communications
receivers. I daresay that more than 10,000 were manufactured - a large
number for this market - hence the RADIOSHACKDX394 SIG is one of the largest
receiver-specific communities, exceeded only by the DX-398 SIG.

Tom

Mike Maghakian wrote:

all these issues are covered by easy fixes, if you don't want to do them
, then the DX-394 is NOT the radio for you. My 394 is selective (mod),
quiet (inherently), has no pops(mod) and is a very nice radio.

I would pay a lot lot more than $50 for one and buy a dozen at a time if
I could.

What are the main weak points of the DX-394 that need to be addressed to
make it a decent receiver?


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starman wrote:
Mike Maghakian wrote:

all these issues are covered by easy fixes, if you don't
want to do them , then the DX-394 is NOT the radio for
you. My 394 is selective (mod), quiet (inherently), has
no pops(mod) and is a very nice radio.

I would pay a lot lot more than $50 for one and buy a
dozen at a time if I could.

What are the main weak points of the DX-394 that need to
be addressed to make it a decent receiver?

By joining the RADIOSHACKDX394 SIG at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RADIOSHACKDX394/, you will automatically
receive the DX-394 FAQ and an index to over 50 mods. From the FAQ:

Best Mods
Much depends on your listening objectives and the radio frequency
environment in your area. The DX-394 is certainly deficient in the areas of
selectivity, overload and shielding so these are areas of improvement that
are probably of common interest and benefit. Other modifications may be of
more special interest. Here are the key mods and tips:
1. Frank Cathell's Crosstalk mods are a must to correct a design deficiency
in all models that results in strong stations 15-40 kHz away from the
desired frequency being detected as though they were on frequency.
2. One of the IF filter mods is also highly advisable - Frank's "Poor Man's
Kiwa" that changes the logic to force the narrower filter in all modes is
the easiest.
3. The DX-394 is susceptible to overload from strong signals and internally
generates multiple appearances of them. Countermeasures depend on the
desired frequency band and the frequencies of the offending signals:
a) For SW listening bothered by LW/MW overload, a 1.8 MHz outboard high pass
filter is a great start.
b) For SW listening suffering from SW overload, a passive pre-selector
(tuned or fixed bandpass) or a high quality active pre-selector may help on
SW bands removed from the interfering frequencies.
c) For LW and MW listening, it may be necessary to shield or disable the
built-in antenna and use a tuned loop external antenna for added selectivity
and directionality to discriminate against the strong signals.
d) An outboard attenuator may also be necessary in difficult conditions in
any of these cases.
Fortunately, apart from shielding or disabling the ferrite antenna, all of
these are tips, not modifications of the DX-394, but are covered under Mods
because overload is such a common problem.
4. Shielding is also essential for the suppression of interference picked up
from computers and CRT's operating in close proximity to the DX-394. Its
plastic case is useless in this respect - SW signals can be picked up even
with the whip antenna removed. Tom Holden's "Ultimate Shields" mod is among
the most effective for both RF and magnetic screening

Tom

Hi Tom,

I agree with you 1,000%. And I too saw the 4 star Radio Netherlands review
of the original DX-394 prior to buying it. Between that review and what my
ham friend thought of it (he had one of the original ones), I bought it. But
he insisted I find a "B" model since they were the same discontinued price
here in Cananda. That receiver basically brought me back into SWL. I loved
it contrary to the frequent put down in this newsgroup of that receiver. I
added good external speakers and eventually a DSP-40 unit to it. Eventually
I graduated to a Sat-800. Now my best friend has it and he too loves it. It
serves his needs quite well.
To each his/her own.

Take Care
Abb N
VE3003SWL
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

"Tom Holden" wrote in message
.. .
WG wrote:
What is misleading about the truth. The rig is junk. You
don't say what you are comparing to. I have mine side by
side with a Yeasu FT-100d and I must say that even
without the AM filter the Yeasu's receiver beats the
394's hands down. You may want to look up some of the
less then good reviews in most of the radio publications.
Radio Shack had to give them away at less then 1/2 the
list price in the last year of its run.

If it's "junk",
- why do you keep it?
- why do you use it?
- why don't you give it someone who appreciates it?
- why don't you sell it?
- why don't you throw it out?
- why don't you improve it? You'll be pleasantly surprised at the results.
- why don't you do something about it?

Comparisons: I have a Drake R-4B, great radio in its day, but the DX-394
beats it hands down when it comes to warmup time and drift, speed and
convenience of tuning, sensitivity above 15MHz and frequency range
covered.
The R-4B wins on immunity to overload and selectivity - both front end and
IF - and it smells (that could be positive or negative) of warm dust and
resins.

Reviews: both the ARRL Lab and the Radio Netherlands rated it good value
for
money, 4 stars from the latter, when it was still selling for $300, before
upgrades. The majority of personal reviews on eHam.net agree; a small
minority of extremists rate it the way you do.

Radio Shack consistently sells off old stock at half price or less. Seven
years after it was introduced, Radio Shack Canada cleared them out at what
was then around US$85. Nothing unusual in that. That's what got me going
again in this hobby. Why was there leftover stock? Perhaps they
overestimated the potential market for mid-range, tabletop communications
receivers. I daresay that more than 10,000 were manufactured - a large
number for this market - hence the RADIOSHACKDX394 SIG is one of the
largest
receiver-specific communities, exceeded only by the DX-398 SIG.

Tom

but think how much more you/your friend would like a "fixed" DX394.


Hi Tom,

I agree with you 1,000%. And I too saw the 4 star Radio Netherlands review
of the original DX-394 prior to buying it. Between that review and what my
ham friend thought of it (he had one of the original ones), I bought it. But
he insisted I find a "B" model since they were the same discontinued price
here in Cananda. That receiver basically brought me back into SWL. I loved
it contrary to the frequent put down in this newsgroup of that receiver. I
added good external speakers and eventually a DSP-40 unit to it. Eventually
I graduated to a Sat-800. Now my best friend has it and he too loves it. It
serves his needs quite well.
To each his/her own.

Take Care
Abb N
VE3003SWL
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

MY opinion is the following:


1) replace one or both of the IF filters, if both are done, a variable cap
must be added across X2 and a switch must be added to go between the
filters.
2) remove the purple wire and stop the tuning pops
3) add two caps for the Xtalk fix
4) add a cap to increase bass response
5) add a cap to further reduce AC hum

I would not do the hiss mod and I would either replace the speaker or use a
nice external one.

a lot of the other mods are a waste of time. I won't mention which they are
but I have tried most of them.

I think I recently made the worlds best DX-394 by doing all of these mods. I
used a Hi-Fi filter in the wide position, spec is 8/12. and a DX filter in
the narrow position, spec is 5/7. I can handle anything now

Mike


"starman" wrote in message
...
Mike Maghakian wrote:

all these issues are covered by easy fixes, if you don't want to do them
, then the DX-394 is NOT the radio for you. My 394 is selective (mod),
quiet (inherently), has no pops(mod) and is a very nice radio.

I would pay a lot lot more than $50 for one and buy a dozen at a time if
I could.

What are the main weak points of the DX-394 that need to be addressed to
make it a decent receiver?


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mike maghakian wrote:

MY opinion is the following:

1) replace one or both of the IF filters, if both are done, a variable cap
must be added across X2 and a switch must be added to go between the
filters.
2) remove the purple wire and stop the tuning pops
3) add two caps for the Xtalk fix
4) add a cap to increase bass response
5) add a cap to further reduce AC hum

I would not do the hiss mod and I would either replace the speaker or use a
nice external one.

a lot of the other mods are a waste of time. I won't mention which they are
but I have tried most of them.

I think I recently made the worlds best DX-394 by doing all of these mods. I
used a Hi-Fi filter in the wide position, spec is 8/12. and a DX filter in
the narrow position, spec is 5/7. I can handle anything now

Mike

What about the strong signal overloading (intermod's) that others have
mentioned?


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starman wrote:
mike maghakian wrote:

MY opinion is the following:

1) replace one or both of the IF filters, if both are
done, a variable cap must be added across X2 and a
switch must be added to go between the filters.
2) remove the purple wire and stop the tuning pops
3) add two caps for the Xtalk fix
4) add a cap to increase bass response
5) add a cap to further reduce AC hum

I would not do the hiss mod and I would either replace
the speaker or use a nice external one.

a lot of the other mods are a waste of time. I won't
mention which they are but I have tried most of them.

I think I recently made the worlds best DX-394 by doing
all of these mods. I used a Hi-Fi filter in the wide
position, spec is 8/12. and a DX filter in the narrow
position, spec is 5/7. I can handle anything now

Mike

What about the strong signal overloading (intermod's)
that others have mentioned?

That's a problem with every radio at some level, moreso with very sensitive
ones with wide tuning ranges and lower cost - that description fits the
DX-394. To the best of my knowledge, nobody has succeeded in making a marked
improvement to overload with internal mods. I experimented with increased
bias on the internal RF preselector switching diodes and obtained subtle
improvement. I have been wanting to replace them with PIN diodes but have
yet to source some suitable surface mount devices. However, I suspect the
main intermod generator is the RF amplifier or the 1st mixer.

Fortunately, huge improvement can be made by external pre-filtering; and
this is true for any receiver with an antenna input jack that suffers from
overload.

Mike, you are rightfully proud of your modified DX-394's but to assert it's
the "world's best DX-394" is an exaggeration. There are others who have
installed superior filters (narrower Collins mechanical, e.g. 2.3/4 to use
your notation) and have made the necessary changes so that the upper and
lower BFO frequencies and filter are properly aligned for true single
sideband, not the compromise you have made by placing the BFO in the middle
of the passband. That makes their modified DX-394 better than yours for
SSB/CW reception. And if that sharper filter is switchable for AM mode (a
trivial mod compared to replacing the filter), then it's better than yours
for picking out one sideband or the other in a crowded SWBC band where the
channel spacing is 5kHz.

To disparage other mods as a 'waste of time' is provocative. That reflects,
in part, your interests and values and perhaps your marketing objectives.
Elsewhere you have stated that you are not interested in SSB/CW and digital
modes - some of the other mods are of primary benefit to these modes. And to
make the claim of a "hi-fi" filter (the stock AM filter that is widely
denigrated for being too wide could be so described, too) and place so much
emphasis on audio improvements (bass and hum) without also recognising the
benefits to the quality of amplitude modulation reception of certain AGC
mods and the ANL Defeat mod seems to be inconsistent with achieving the
"best", even for AM.

"Best" for one person is not necessarily "best" for another. Cost ($ and
effort), location relative to powerful transmitters, bands/modes of
interest, etc. will all factor into each person's evaluation of a receiver
and the possible improvements that can be made.

Regards,
Tom