I owned all three R8 series Drakes and found the original R8 inferior in
SSB/ECSS performance to the R8A/B
Also the ergonomics on the original R8 were not very good.
An Icom R75 will run rings around the old R8 on SSB.
--
John Plimmer, Montagu, Western Cape Province, South Africa
South 33 d 47 m 32 s, East 20 d 07 m 32 s
RX Icom IC-756 PRO III with MW mods
Drake SW8 & ERGO software
Sony 7600D GE SRIII
BW XCR 30, Braun T1000, Sangean 818 & 803A.
GE circa 50's radiogram
Antenna's RF Systems DX 1 Pro, Datong AD-270
Kiwa MW Loop
http://www.dxing.info/about/dxers/plimmer.dx

"Telamon" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"John Plimmer" wrote:

The R8 and R8E are the same, the "E" denoting the European version
that had certain frequencies blocked. The R8 is a fine radio but a
bit dated by today's standards, but if you pick one up at a good
price you will be very satisfied.

Snip

What do you mean by "dated by today's standards"?

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

dxAce wrote:
Michael Lawson wrote:

"John Plimmer" wrote in message
...
The R8 and R8E are the same, the "E" denoting the European version
that had
certain frequencies blocked.
The R8 is a fine radio but a bit dated by today's standards, but if
you pick
one up at a good price you will be very satisfied.

Dated in a relative sense; there were some tweaks
between the R8 and R8A, but unless you really
want the improved ergonomics of the A, you can
do just fine with a regular R8. Ace acquired an
A about a half a year ago, and he didn't notice
too much of a difference between it and his regular
R8. (Did I get that right, Ace?)

No, and I sold it, do wonder sometimes why I did that though! Still
operating the R7, R8 and R8B.

dxAce
Michigan
USA

I have the 'A' and it's a terrific receiver, especially for weak signals.
The audio, as with all Drakes, is very good.

--
Brian Denley
http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html

In article ,
"Brian Denley" wrote:

dxAce wrote:
Michael Lawson wrote:

"John Plimmer" wrote in message
... The R8 and R8E are the
same, the "E" denoting the European version that had certain
frequencies blocked. The R8 is a fine radio but a bit dated by
today's standards, but if you pick one up at a good price you will
be very satisfied.

Dated in a relative sense; there were some tweaks between the R8
and R8A, but unless you really want the improved ergonomics of the
A, you can do just fine with a regular R8. Ace acquired an A
about a half a year ago, and he didn't notice too much of a
difference between it and his regular R8. (Did I get that right,
Ace?)

No, and I sold it, do wonder sometimes why I did that though! Still
operating the R7, R8 and R8B.

dxAce Michigan USA

I have the 'A' and it's a terrific receiver, especially for weak
signals. The audio, as with all Drakes, is very good.

You need to be right on frequency for a sync detector to operate
optimally, which would be important for weak signals or signals that
are fading deeply. For strong signals you just need to be close. Maybe
some peoples experience is colored by not being right on the stations
frequency. Most broadcasters are right on frequency but some are not
and for best performance you should zero beat them first and then sync
to the station. Sync performance varies between radios under tough
conditions.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

In article ,
"John Plimmer" wrote:

I owned all three R8 series Drakes and found the original R8 inferior
in SSB/ECSS performance to the R8A/B Also the ergonomics on the
original R8 were not very good. An Icom R75 will run rings around the
old R8 on SSB. --

John Plimmer, Montagu, Western Cape Province, South Africa
South 33 d 47 m 32 s, East 20 d 07 m 32 s
RX Icom IC-756 PRO III with MW mods
Drake SW8 & ERGO software
Sony 7600D GE SRIII
BW XCR 30, Braun T1000, Sangean 818 & 803A.
GE circa 50's radiogram
Antenna's RF Systems DX 1 Pro, Datong AD-270
Kiwa MW Loop
http://www.dxing.info/about/dxers/plimmer.dx

"Telamon" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"John Plimmer" wrote:

The R8 and R8E are the same, the "E" denoting the European version
that had certain frequencies blocked. The R8 is a fine radio but a
bit dated by today's standards, but if you pick one up at a good
price you will be very satisfied.

Snip

What do you mean by "dated by today's standards"?

I thought you meant the R8B. I see you mean the R8.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California