Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most of
which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various needs
and I thought my experience might be of interest to those bitten by the
"gotta have it" bug.
PRINCIPLES
1. There is no radio that will do everything you want.
2. You need lots of carefully chosen radios to do different things. (
show this to the wife)
3. There are many ways to sneak a new radio into the house. ("What?
this old thing? Why I have had it for years! Wives are never quite
sure as all radios look the same to them) Avoid the dreaded lament, "
You had lots of money 1982, You went and let that Collins make a fool
of you, Why don't you do right, Like the other men do, Get out of
here and get me some money too! As if I had a money tree out back or
something to fend off the incessant demands for food, rent, heat and
other things irrelevant to SWL. But I digress.

BEST ALLROUND : SONY SW7600G. Good sensitivity on SW, AM, and FM.
Clear tone. The antenna whip, and mini jacks are not robust and are
hard to fix. The synchronous detector makes all the difference under
severe fade conditions.

BEST PORTABLE: GRUNDIG S350. Good sensitivity on SW, AM and FM. Clear
tone. Handy size to grab onto and take to the yard or bath. Known as
the "shifty 350" because of its horrible drift on AM and SW.

BEST TONE: GENERAL ELECTRIC SUPERADIO II . Superb tone, excellent
sensitivity, easy to align, a bit heavy, but puts out lot of sound
outdoors. Drifts on AM. I had a GE Superadio III at one time and I
disliked it so much I gave it away. I am not sure exactly why I
disliked it, it received ok, and sounded good, but the tuning was like
skating on thin ice. And it was very tricky to align.

BEST OLD ANALOG: GRUNDIG YACHT BOY206: Near the last of the
European-made SW radios. sensitive, all the SW bands nicely bandspread
for easy tuning, compact, good tone, long battery life, quiet circuits,
really all that is needed for SW listening. I use it to scan the bands
quickly.

BEST MINI: ETON E100: Good for walks or to slip in a pocket. Sensitive,
clear tone, state of the art, tiny push buttons, complicated menus, a
remarkable no compromise miniature. The only trouble is that it is so
small I tend to lose it.

If it is possible to limit your SW radio collection to five radios,
these would be a good long-term selection
But I must go. My wife has arrived and is demanding to know why I am
wasting my time on this thing when there are 3749 chores to do and her
mother was right: I am a good for nothing lazy layabout bum and she
should have married Raoul who became a lawyer AND a doctorl and I must
think of an answer which is difficult because she is probably right.
In haste and 73

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

On 21 Mar 2006 12:48:28 -0800, "ve3..." wrote:




Single conversion?

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Old Boatanchors.
cuhulin

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

ve3... wrote:
Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most of
which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various needs
and I thought my experience might be of interest to those bitten by the
"gotta have it" bug.
PRINCIPLES
1. There is no radio that will do everything you want.
2. You need lots of carefully chosen radios to do different things. (
show this to the wife)
3. There are many ways to sneak a new radio into the house. ("What?
this old thing? Why I have had it for years! Wives are never quite
sure as all radios look the same to them) Avoid the dreaded lament, "
You had lots of money 1982, You went and let that Collins make a fool
of you, Why don't you do right, Like the other men do, Get out of
here and get me some money too! As if I had a money tree out back or
something to fend off the incessant demands for food, rent, heat and
other things irrelevant to SWL. But I digress.

BEST ALLROUND : SONY SW7600G. Good sensitivity on SW, AM, and FM.
Clear tone. The antenna whip, and mini jacks are not robust and are
hard to fix. The synchronous detector makes all the difference under
severe fade conditions.

BEST PORTABLE: GRUNDIG S350. Good sensitivity on SW, AM and FM. Clear
tone. Handy size to grab onto and take to the yard or bath. Known as
the "shifty 350" because of its horrible drift on AM and SW.

BEST TONE: GENERAL ELECTRIC SUPERADIO II . Superb tone, excellent
sensitivity, easy to align, a bit heavy, but puts out lot of sound
outdoors. Drifts on AM. I had a GE Superadio III at one time and I
disliked it so much I gave it away. I am not sure exactly why I
disliked it, it received ok, and sounded good, but the tuning was like
skating on thin ice. And it was very tricky to align.

BEST OLD ANALOG: GRUNDIG YACHT BOY206: Near the last of the
European-made SW radios. sensitive, all the SW bands nicely bandspread
for easy tuning, compact, good tone, long battery life, quiet circuits,
really all that is needed for SW listening. I use it to scan the bands
quickly.

BEST MINI: ETON E100: Good for walks or to slip in a pocket. Sensitive,
clear tone, state of the art, tiny push buttons, complicated menus, a
remarkable no compromise miniature. The only trouble is that it is so
small I tend to lose it.

If it is possible to limit your SW radio collection to five radios,
these would be a good long-term selection
But I must go. My wife has arrived and is demanding to know why I am
wasting my time on this thing when there are 3749 chores to do and her
mother was right: I am a good for nothing lazy layabout bum and she
should have married Raoul who became a lawyer AND a doctorl and I must
think of an answer which is difficult because she is probably right.
In haste and 73

There have been so many good portables, portatops and tabletops in the
past 30 years that coming up with a consensus list would be all but
impossible.

For sheer audio quality the old Panasonic RF5000b would be very hard to
beat on any band. And I'll leave my list there.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

"ve3..." wrote in message
ups.com...
Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most of
which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various needs
and I thought my experience might be of interest to those bitten by the
"gotta have it" bug.
PRINCIPLES

Good grief- none of those would make it anywhere close to my short list.
That's what makes the hobby interesting I suppose.
Dale W4OP

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Radio reviews this,radio reviews that,,,, heck,they even do reviews on
those cheap two bit made in China radios.I bought a new Panasonic
RF-2600 AM/FM/Shortwave radio at a Service Mercandise store about 23
years ago,I still own that radio too.I wonder why those big shot radio
reviewers haven't done a radio review of a Panasonic RF-2600 radio? I
have looked on the internet before,I haven't seen a review of that model
radio yet.

No matter though,I am the best reviewer of my radios.
cuhulin

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

In article . com,
"ve3..." wrote:

Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most of
which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various needs
and I thought my experience might be of interest to those bitten by the
"gotta have it" bug.
PRINCIPLES
1. There is no radio that will do everything you want.
2. You need lots of carefully chosen radios to do different things. (
show this to the wife)
3. There are many ways to sneak a new radio into the house. ("What?
this old thing? Why I have had it for years! Wives are never quite
sure as all radios look the same to them) Avoid the dreaded lament, "
You had lots of money 1982, You went and let that Collins make a fool
of you, Why don't you do right, Like the other men do, Get out of
here and get me some money too! As if I had a money tree out back or
something to fend off the incessant demands for food, rent, heat and
other things irrelevant to SWL. But I digress.

BEST ALLROUND : SONY SW7600G. Good sensitivity on SW, AM, and FM.
Clear tone. The antenna whip, and mini jacks are not robust and are
hard to fix. The synchronous detector makes all the difference under
severe fade conditions.

BEST PORTABLE: GRUNDIG S350. Good sensitivity on SW, AM and FM. Clear
tone. Handy size to grab onto and take to the yard or bath. Known as
the "shifty 350" because of its horrible drift on AM and SW.

BEST TONE: GENERAL ELECTRIC SUPERADIO II . Superb tone, excellent
sensitivity, easy to align, a bit heavy, but puts out lot of sound
outdoors. Drifts on AM. I had a GE Superadio III at one time and I
disliked it so much I gave it away. I am not sure exactly why I
disliked it, it received ok, and sounded good, but the tuning was like
skating on thin ice. And it was very tricky to align.

BEST OLD ANALOG: GRUNDIG YACHT BOY206: Near the last of the
European-made SW radios. sensitive, all the SW bands nicely bandspread
for easy tuning, compact, good tone, long battery life, quiet circuits,
really all that is needed for SW listening. I use it to scan the bands
quickly.

BEST MINI: ETON E100: Good for walks or to slip in a pocket. Sensitive,
clear tone, state of the art, tiny push buttons, complicated menus, a
remarkable no compromise miniature. The only trouble is that it is so
small I tend to lose it.

If it is possible to limit your SW radio collection to five radios,
these would be a good long-term selection
But I must go. My wife has arrived and is demanding to know why I am
wasting my time on this thing when there are 3749 chores to do and her
mother was right: I am a good for nothing lazy layabout bum and she
should have married Raoul who became a lawyer AND a doctorl and I must
think of an answer which is difficult because she is probably right.
In haste and 73

Maybe, but what kind of wimpy-ass radios does Raoul have?

Greg

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

"ve3..." wrote:

Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most of
which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various needs
and I thought my experience might be of interest to those bitten by the
"gotta have it" bug.

Well, my radio collection has been distilled down to the keepers, but
I don't know that I will claim that they are ultimate keepers since
the one I've had the longest has been with me only 9 years.

Not enough time, in my opinion, to consider it a "forever" radio. For
all I know, it may still die of some flaw.

BTW, R-392, IC-R8500, RX-340.

R-392: Built like a tank, weatherproof, easy to repair.

IC-R8500: Excellent fundamentals, built like a tank. Possible fatal
flaw: component in PLL often blows out, but I've not had it happen to
me.

RX-340: Built reasonably well, does just about everything you could
ask of a radio.

--
Eric F. Richards

"Nature abhors a vacuum tube." -- Myron Glass,
often attributed to J. R. Pierce, Bell Labs, c. 1940

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Three that didn't make the cut

The radios I selected were inexpensive and easily found and still work
after 10 years abuse and are pretty good at their niche. Three that I
still use off and on but don't recommend as keepers are the DX-394, the
DX 398, and the Zenith 3000.

DX 394. I got this one on sale at Radio Shack for $140 and couldn't
turn it down. I use it as a bedside radio and it works ok but the
modifications required to overcome the well-known engineering
deficiencies are more than I want to get into. I removed the "chuffing"
circuit (easy). Of course, it is not a portable.

DX-398. Art Bell was touting these in 90's as "awesome, incredible, the
last radio you will ever have to buy" It was the biggest disappointment
of any radio. At $200 it was not cheap like I usually get. Basically,
its shortwave performance on the whip sucks. It has been desensitised
for some reason and in my area is useless. I think they may have made
it for the European market where signals are strong and overloading is
a problem. It performs well on AM and FM and ironically I still use it
to listen to Art Bell and Co.. I have the 18 pushbuttons lined up with
various clear channel stations that carry Coast to Coast and as one
station fades I punch up one that is still readable until it fades and
so on. At least I didn't buy it from C.C.Crane so that is some
consolation. The bail is very flimsy and has broken off (typical) and
the battery cover is lightly fastened in place and falls off if you
look at it sideways. I have put some Scotch Magic Tape as a hinge that
holds the cover in place. It is too large to fit in the hand
comfortably and should have a strap of some sort.

Zenith TransOceanic 3000. A fine radio and fun to play with but its too
BIG and HEAVY. Weightlifters would like this model but I got tired of
lugging it around and finding a place big enough to sit it. It looked
good in those National Geographic ads on a sailboat surrounded by
nautical types in dress whites so you can get a vicarious vibe from
1960. Sensitive, nicely bandspread, and easy to fix.

There are way too many lesser breeds that I won't mention





























Zenith TransOceanic 3000.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

ve3... wrote:
Over the years I have purchased way too many short wave radios, most
of which ended up in the garage. A few I keep at hand for various
needs and I thought my experience might be of interest to those
bitten by the "gotta have it" bug.
PRINCIPLES
1. There is no radio that will do everything you want.
2. You need lots of carefully chosen radios to do different things. (
show this to the wife)
3. There are many ways to sneak a new radio into the house. ("What?
this old thing? Why I have had it for years! Wives are never quite
sure as all radios look the same to them) Avoid the dreaded lament, "
You had lots of money 1982, You went and let that Collins make a fool
of you, Why don't you do right, Like the other men do, Get out of
here and get me some money too! As if I had a money tree out back or
something to fend off the incessant demands for food, rent, heat and
other things irrelevant to SWL. But I digress.


BEST PORTABLE: GRUNDIG S350. Good sensitivity on SW, AM and FM. Clear
tone. Handy size to grab onto and take to the yard or bath. Known as
the "shifty 350" because of its horrible drift on AM and SW.

!!!!!!!

That may be the worst list of radio I have ever seen.

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

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

How about them Drake and Ten-Tec and Palstar and the best of all (in my
opinion) the Watkins Johnson Radios? Disclaimer: I dont own any of those
Radios.
cuhulin

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Brian Denley wrote:

!!!!!!!

That may be the worst list of radio I have ever seen.

--
Brian Denley
http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html
************************************************** *************
What part of INEXPENSIVE don't you understand?

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

ve3... wrote:
Brian Denley wrote:

!!!!!!!

That may be the worst list of radio I have ever seen.

--
Brian Denley
http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html
************************************************** *************
What part of INEXPENSIVE don't you understand?



I can't find the word 'inexpensive' in your post. Can you?

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

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Old Boat Anchors.
cuhulin

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Brian Denley wrote:
ve3... wrote:
Brian Denley wrote:

!!!!!!!

That may be the worst list of radio I have ever seen.

--
Brian Denley
http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html
************************************************** *************
What part of INEXPENSIVE don't you understand?



I can't find the word 'inexpensive' in your post. Can you?

I suggest that you read the whole thread before you post critical
remarks.

Post 17 Mar 22 11:46 am
"The radios I selected were INEXPENSIVE (emphasis added) and pretty
good at their niche."

This group receives many inquiries from beginners who don't have a
lot of money to spend and who are interested in inexpensive ( there's
that word again) radios to try out the hobby. In my introduction I
always try to indicate the people who might be interested in the post.
Obviously, those who have a Bellwhistle 7000 (that being the price)
will not be interested but I think newcomers should be encouraged. The
group also receives a number of help requsts from owners whose
expensive radios have broken down. I stand
by my list of beginner's radios, some of which are still on the market,
and others easily available. They are inexpensive, represent good
value, are trouble-free with some having been in service for ten
trouble-free years. Economics state that you always get the cheapest
thing that will do the job. All the rest is ego.

Now that you are cringing in abject humiliation, I suggest that you
help out 5 newcomers to atone for your sin of rush to judgement.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

On 25 Mar 2006 07:56:59 -0800, "ve3..." wrote:



Post 17 Mar 22 11:46 am
"The radios I selected were INEXPENSIVE (emphasis added) and pretty
good at their niche."

This group receives many inquiries from beginners who don't have a
lot of money to spend and who are interested in inexpensive ( there's
that word again) radios to try out the hobby. In my introduction I
always try to indicate the people who might be interested in the post.
Obviously, those who have a Bellwhistle 7000 (that being the price)
will not be interested but I think newcomers should be encouraged. The
group also receives a number of help requsts from owners whose
expensive radios have broken down. I stand
by my list of beginner's radios, some of which are still on the market,
and others easily available. They are inexpensive, represent good
value, are trouble-free with some having been in service for ten
trouble-free years. Economics state that you always get the cheapest
thing that will do the job. All the rest is ego.

The term ''false economy'' leaps to mind...

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Being a newcomer to SWL'ing, these are my entries:

1- RS DX-398, $100 paid for it, very good RX on a suspended 50' wire; I
take this one to the Adirondacks.
2- Grundig S350, $0 paid for it (a gift), good sound, doesn't drift as
mush as people say; I use this one on the porch.
3- Grundig FR200, $0 paid for it, decent sound, does the job; I take
this one camping (no electricity).

Having a business to run I get only an hour or two per week to listen.
They all have their purpose and the prices were right.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

"false economy" is a term used to describe a cheap good that will not
perform as required. The error lies in not specifying the exact
perfomance required. Professionals determine exact performance
specifications and make sure the item just meets those specs and no
more. To go beyond the requirements is a waste of scarce and limited
resources. For example, there is no need to pay for sideband if it is
not required. Similarly, shoddy parts and workmanship would cause an
item to fail before its specified service life of, say, 20 years.
The phrase, "use the cheapest thing that will do the job" implies
that one has given much thought as to exactly what the job is. Look
around at all the tall buildings in town. Architects and structural
engineers have designed them to be just strong enough to meet
specifications. If they overdesigned them, they would be replaced by
engineers who came in with a cheaper bid that still met specifications.
With reference to short-wave listening, a newcomer who just wanted
to listen to the BBC, RCI, and The Power Hour would be quite happy with
a Grundig S350 or even a Grundig Yacht Boy 206 for $25 from ebay. At
least he has some evidence that the models on my list are not prone to
break down. I am sure that some of the new Chinese radios represent
good value but I have not had any first-hand experience with them and
they have not been on the market long enough to determine their service
life.
If people used "the cheapest thing that will do the job" principle
in their own lives, they might find that, for example, a Hummer goes
way beyond their needs and the resources freed up could be better used
in topping up a retirement fund or paying off debt. But that takes me
off topic.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

With reference to short-wave listening, a
newcomer who just wanted
to listen to the BBC, RCI, and The Power Hour would be quite happy
with a Grundig S350 or even a Grundig Yacht Boy 206 for $25 from
ebay. At least he has some evidence that the models on my list are
not prone to break down. I am sure that some of the new Chinese
radios represent good value but I have not had any first-hand
experience with them and they have not been on the market long enough
to determine their service life.

The S350 is is giant step backward in shortwave receivers. The Sony 7600
blows it away in technology and performance for the money.
And I still can't find the word 'inexpensive' in your original post. We are
seeing a lot of lower quality chinese knockoffs of late but (thankfully)
nothing at crude as the 350.

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

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

Brian Denley wrote:
With reference to short-wave listening, a
newcomer who just wanted
to listen to the BBC, RCI, and The Power Hour would be quite happy
with a Grundig S350 or even a Grundig Yacht Boy 206 for $25 from
ebay. At least he has some evidence that the models on my list are
not prone to break down. I am sure that some of the new Chinese
radios represent good value but I have not had any first-hand
experience with them and they have not been on the market long enough
to determine their service life.

The S350 is is giant step backward in shortwave receivers. The Sony 7600
blows it away in technology and performance for the money.
And I still can't find the word 'inexpensive' in your original post. We are
seeing a lot of lower quality chinese knockoffs of late but (thankfully)
nothing at crude as the 350.

--
************************************************** ******************************************
We will just have to disagree. I think that you should read the whole
thread before making a critical post. For example, I wonder how you
could make a critical post that had any merit on , say, the 272 posts
on IBOC of Mar 2 2006 without carefully reading the whole thread.

There are some who agree with your opinion that the Grundig S350 is a
poor radio. But not many. I would refer you to eham where the great
majority of the 48 reviews were favourable.
www.eham.net/reviews/detail/3112. This review would also be of
interest to S350 owners as some of the posts have operating tips and
modifications.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

I prefer the RF-2600 to the S350. My RF-2600 is minimally less drifty
than my (early model) S350. Also, I find the selectivity of the
RF-2600 to be a bit better than that of the S350. Being analog rather
than synthesized models, both are nice and quiet (you're not going to
suffer chuffing and a high noise floor). Also, both are quite
sensitive off the whip. Both have pleasant audio and dual tone
controls. The RF-2600 has a BFO control for reception of SSB, whereas
the S350 is devoid of SSB reception. That said, SSB reception on the
RF-2600 is not particularly great; I'm sure the $60 Chinese portables
of today do a much better job of it. Both the S350 and the RF-2600
have image problems. I find that the S350 is far more prone to
overload than the RF-2600. Also, my S350 sometimes even drifts on FM,
whereas I've not had that occur with my RF-2600. I purchased the S350
some months after the radio was released. As a fan of Panasonic
portables like the RF-2200, 2600, 2800/2900, the S350 had some
carry-over appeal. I bought my RF-2600 used off eBay. It's in decent
shape, and thankfully (unlike with Cuhulin's '2600) reception on this
radio has never required anything being wedge into the cabinet.

A good condition, used RF-2600 on eBAy is, of course, likely to go for
a fair bit more than a new S350.

If I had given the choice again (and even knowing that the S350s made
now have less drift), I probably wouldn't opt for the S350. But it
does have pleasant audio, and it's good on batteries. I can understand
how it might appeal to someone who's wanting to kick back and listen to
some strong incoming broadcasts. I use my S350 primarily for FM and MW
listening.

junius




Hal (nospam) wrote:
wrote in news:16559-44209EF2-2248@storefull-
3256.bay.webtv.net:

Radio reviews this,radio reviews that,,,, heck,they even do reviews on
those cheap two bit made in China radios.I bought a new Panasonic
RF-2600 AM/FM/Shortwave radio at a Service Mercandise store about 23
years ago,I still own that radio too.I wonder why those big shot radio
reviewers haven't done a radio review of a Panasonic RF-2600 radio? I
have looked on the internet before,I haven't seen a review of that model
radio yet.

No matter though,I am the best reviewer of my radios.
cuhulin


Go to eham.net and do a review. They don't care if they are old.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

ve3... wrote:
For example, I wonder how you
could make a critical post that had any merit on , say, the 272 posts
on IBOC of Mar 2 2006 without carefully reading the whole thread.

You'll have to interpret that for me. I don't remember commenting on that
thread. In any case what you and I disagree on (respectfully on my part) is
whether all of those radios are 'keepers'. I believe that any modern
shortwave receiver, even including small portables, must have a minimum set
of tools for the user. The Sony 7600 meets those requirements and for a
good price and I agree with your assessment that it's the best all around.
Still, however, I find the S350 to be a poor rendition of a modern shortwave
portable and I don't think I have held a cheaper feeling radio. It's true
tha I don't have many portables, as I favor the desktop sets, but the two I
have owned: SW8 and ICF-SW55 were solidly built and excellent performers.
--
Brian Denley
http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

I did a quick scan of Universal's used and sold list and found that
the last three 2600's had sold for $249, $269, and $239. Not exactly in
the same league as the $100

S350.One of the criteria for my list was that the radios sould be
currently on the market or easily available. I am sure that the RF 2600
is a good radio but it is too expesive for my list and hard to find.

Keepers: Shortwave Radios That Last
 

ve3... wrote:
I did a quick scan of Universal's used and sold list and found that
the last three 2600's had sold for $249, $269, and $239.

Yeah, it's true, Universal's prices on used radios can be worse than
those on eBay.

Not exactly in
the same league as the $100

Nope, it's not. I acknowledged earlier that the '2600 would run ya
higher. I compared the two simply because of design similarities and
because they had both been discussed in this thread.


S350.One of the criteria for my list was that the radios sould be
currently on the market or easily available. I am sure that the RF 2600
is a good radio but it is too expesive for my list and hard to find.

Yep, the '2600 is a fun radio. But for most shortwave listeners, it's
unlikely to have great appeal, unless there's a significant nostalgia
factor at play...

A good Sony ICF-SW7600GR or even some of the Kaito/Degen portables
would offer much more band for the buck.

Best of listenin' to ya...

Junius