On 27 Nov 2005 04:55:58 -0800, "John S." wrote:


OregonMike wrote:
I'm planning to buy a new rcvr and would love some input on the current
scene.
Things that pop into my mind that are a must are


(1) SSB/CW reception
(2) Freq. read out (LCD or whatever)
(3) External antenna support
(4) High sensitiviy and selectivity

I haven't looked at SWL RCVRs in some time and don't really know much
of what's best to get with the ones I'm seeing available to buy online.
I'm not even keen on where the best place to buy on is. Any help or
input would be great!

Thanks,

OM

In addition to the several new radios mentioned you should give
consideration to buying a used receiver such as a Kenwood R-5000, Icom
R71a or one of the Japan Radios. The Kenwood R-5000 is my personal
favorite, but any of the three will provide excellent reception and
have several features that wil help extracting a signal from difficult
listening conditions.

Good luck in the search and be sure to mention the receiver you finally
choose.

Thanks for the reply..

I would guess that an r-5000 may be tough to lug around easily like to
the office, living room, patio, and wherenot ...


OM

OregonMike wrote:
On 27 Nov 2005 04:55:58 -0800, "John S." wrote:


OregonMike wrote:
I'm planning to buy a new rcvr and would love some input on the current
scene.
Things that pop into my mind that are a must are


(1) SSB/CW reception
(2) Freq. read out (LCD or whatever)
(3) External antenna support
(4) High sensitiviy and selectivity

I haven't looked at SWL RCVRs in some time and don't really know much
of what's best to get with the ones I'm seeing available to buy online.
I'm not even keen on where the best place to buy on is. Any help or
input would be great!

Thanks,

OM

In addition to the several new radios mentioned you should give
consideration to buying a used receiver such as a Kenwood R-5000, Icom
R71a or one of the Japan Radios. The Kenwood R-5000 is my personal
favorite, but any of the three will provide excellent reception and
have several features that wil help extracting a signal from difficult
listening conditions.

Good luck in the search and be sure to mention the receiver you finally
choose.

Thanks for the reply..

I would guess that an r-5000 may be tough to lug around easily like to
the office, living room, patio, and wherenot ...


OM

Wasn't aware of the portability issue. That said, the R-5000 runs
easily on 12 volts and a simple wire or an amplified whip antenna will
provide lots of signal.

To be honest, I would stay away from the high-priced receivers from
Eton/Grundig. Products from that company seem to have more than their
share of quality control problems so if you go with something from them
minimize your risk of loss by buying on the lower end.

Or, look at a Sony 7600 which is very portable, does ssb and voice very
well.

John S. wrote:
To be honest, I would stay away from the high-priced receivers from
Eton/Grundig. Products from that company seem to have more than their
share of quality control problems so if you go with something from them
minimize your risk of loss by buying on the lower end.


Very much an issue with the Satellit 800, which was put together by the
Tecsun folks in China; but I hadn't heard of quality control issues
with the E1, which is put together by your friends at Bharat
Electronics, an Indian manufacturer of defense and civil communications
products. The E1 has been out on the market for a number of months
now... have there been quality control issues to emerge?

This was one reason why I have opted to wait it out a bit before
purchasing an E1: to see if a shakedown was in order. Kept my fingers
crossed that this wouldn't be another Satellit 800, in that regard.
But from all indicators I've seen thus far, the E1 seems consistently
solid in build quality (thankfully).

junius wrote:
John S. wrote:
To be honest, I would stay away from the high-priced receivers from
Eton/Grundig. Products from that company seem to have more than their
share of quality control problems so if you go with something from them
minimize your risk of loss by buying on the lower end.


Very much an issue with the Satellit 800, which was put together by the
Tecsun folks in China; but I hadn't heard of quality control issues
with the E1, which is put together by your friends at Bharat
Electronics, an Indian manufacturer of defense and civil communications
products. The E1 has been out on the market for a number of months
now... have there been quality control issues to emerge?

This was one reason why I have opted to wait it out a bit before
purchasing an E1: to see if a shakedown was in order. Kept my fingers
crossed that this wouldn't be another Satellit 800, in that regard.
But from all indicators I've seen thus far, the E1 seems consistently
solid in build quality (thankfully).

The geographic location of the manufacturing facility is not the issue.
The willingness of a marketing and distribution operation like
Eton/Grundig to pay for and insist on strict quality control and good
quality components is really the issue. Their track record of
haphazard delivery schedules and poor quality in prior products does
not give me much assurance with this latest round of receivers. Maybe
things have changed, but I would not gamble that much money at this
point.

The Tecsun-Degen group are capable of producing good quality radios,
but quality costs money that Eton apparently was not willing to invest
in the 800 project.

John S. wrote:
The geographic location of the manufacturing facility is not the issue.

Indeed, geography as such isn't an issue. The fact that the product is
being put together by a manufacturer other than Tecsun-Degen could well
be.

The willingness of a marketing and distribution operation like
Eton/Grundig to pay for and insist on strict quality control and good
quality components is really the issue.

Shifting operations to Bharat Electronics Ltd could well be a part of
an Eton/Grundig insistence on a higher level of quality control where
this model is concerned.

Their track record of
haphazard delivery schedules and poor quality in prior products does
not give me much assurance with this latest round of receivers.

Thus far, their track record with quality control in this unit seems to
be a break from the ineptitude with the Satellite 800. Admitedly, the
delays on the release of the E1, on the other hand, were annoying and
certainly gave reason for pause.

Maybe
things have changed, but I would not gamble that much money at this
point.

Admittedly, the degree of risk aversion varies from consumer to
consumer, so I can understand if someone in the market for a premium
portable decided to wait it out a bit longer on this one. I've done so
myself, despite the fact that I was quite impressed by the sample I
borrowed from a friend.

The Tecsun-Degen group are capable of producing good quality radios,
but quality costs money that Eton apparently was not willing to invest
in the 800 project.

Maybe the Tecsun-Degen group are capable of putting together a decent
under $100 throwaway...I don't really know. Given their track record
in partnership with Eton/Grundig, I'd be extremely cautious with regard
to any premium set that they might put out.

Junius

junius wrote:
John S. wrote:
The geographic location of the manufacturing facility is not the issue.

Indeed, geography as such isn't an issue. The fact that the product is
being put together by a manufacturer other than Tecsun-Degen could well
be.

The willingness of a marketing and distribution operation like
Eton/Grundig to pay for and insist on strict quality control and good
quality components is really the issue.

Shifting operations to Bharat Electronics Ltd could well be a part of
an Eton/Grundig insistence on a higher level of quality control where
this model is concerned.

Their track record of
haphazard delivery schedules and poor quality in prior products does
not give me much assurance with this latest round of receivers.

Thus far, their track record with quality control in this unit seems to
be a break from the ineptitude with the Satellite 800. Admitedly, the
delays on the release of the E1, on the other hand, were annoying and
certainly gave reason for pause.

Maybe
things have changed, but I would not gamble that much money at this
point.

Admittedly, the degree of risk aversion varies from consumer to
consumer, so I can understand if someone in the market for a premium
portable decided to wait it out a bit longer on this one. I've done so
myself, despite the fact that I was quite impressed by the sample I
borrowed from a friend.

The Tecsun-Degen group are capable of producing good quality radios,
but quality costs money that Eton apparently was not willing to invest
in the 800 project.

Maybe the Tecsun-Degen group are capable of putting together a decent
under $100 throwaway...I don't really know. Given their track record
in partnership with Eton/Grundig, I'd be extremely cautious with regard
to any premium set that they might put out.

I've got a $60.00 Degen DE1103 that has had no QC problems - it works
every time. Indeed it is finshed well and the parts fit tightly. At
half the price of a Sony it is a steal. The memory system has some
limitations inherent with the design, but it works.

OTOH I have an Eton hand crank generator radio that feels downright
flimsy considering it sells for $40.00 Whether it is of Chinese or
Indian origin isn't as important as the wobbly grindy crank generator
which feels like it could come apart at the wrong time.


Junius