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#1
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if you look at the price of a satellit 800 on ebay right now you will see
that they are an incredible deal, there really are no other choices at $200-$300 many have sold at or BELOW $300, a real steal of a deal. it is still my main receiver from my collection of over 100 receivers. best combination of features and performance for the MONEY. only the Lowe HF-225 is used when the ultimate in sound is required with its attached 3 way altec lansing speaker system. http://search-completed.ebay.com/satellit-800 |
#2
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On Wed, 5 Apr 2006 18:02:58 -0700, "mike maghakian"
wrote: if you look at the price of a satellit 800 on ebay right now you will see that they are an incredible deal, there really are no other choices at $200-$300 many have sold at or BELOW $300, a real steal of a deal. it is still my main receiver from my collection of over 100 receivers. best combination of features and performance for the MONEY. only the Lowe HF-225 is used when the ultimate in sound is required with its attached 3 way altec lansing speaker system. http://search-completed.ebay.com/satellit-800 Pin a rose on your nose. |
#3
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Sony 7600GR Radio.
cuhulin |
#4
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go back to howard stern you asshole
"David" wrote in message ... On Wed, 5 Apr 2006 18:02:58 -0700, "mike maghakian" wrote: if you look at the price of a satellit 800 on ebay right now you will see that they are an incredible deal, there really are no other choices at $200-$300 many have sold at or BELOW $300, a real steal of a deal. it is still my main receiver from my collection of over 100 receivers. best combination of features and performance for the MONEY. only the Lowe HF-225 is used when the ultimate in sound is required with its attached 3 way altec lansing speaker system. http://search-completed.ebay.com/satellit-800 Pin a rose on your nose. |
#5
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Dear Mike,
I always thought the Grundig Satellit 800 was a "steal" at its list price ($499.00) when it was NEW. There was, and still is, nothing in its price class that offered its combination of performance - both in sound and reception quality, flexibility, and ease of use. Only its quality of construction was somewhat lacking. That said, after almost six years (and two trips to Drake - one "major," one "minor"), it still soldiers on, used every day. Connected to a Wellbrook ALA 330S (mounted in my attic atop a Radio Shack rotator) it offers about 95% of the performance of my AOR AR7030 Plus (though, of course, it's that last 5% that really counts when the going is tough). At $200 - $300, it is almost a "no-brainer" to buy. Even if there is something wrong with the radio (what do some of these eBay sellers DO to their equipment anyway?), and as long as the defect(s) is/are minor, Drake can put the radio in like-new condition for very little (relatively-speaking) money. There's still no SW radio offering its capabilities at anywhere near its price. I do not think that these prices will last long. In a relatively short time, especially if there are no other comparable radios offered (let's hold our breath for the Degen DE-1108), I believe the price of the Satellit 800 will go up, possibly way up. As always, just my opinion. Best, Joe |
#6
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![]() "Joe Analssandrini" wrote in message ups.com... Dear Mike, I always thought the Grundig Satellit 800 was a "steal" at its list price ($499.00) when it was NEW. There was, and still is, nothing in its price class that offered its combination of performance - both in sound and reception quality, flexibility, and ease of use. Only its What about the Eton E1? quality of construction was somewhat lacking. That said, after almost six years (and two trips to Drake - one "major," one "minor"), it still soldiers on, used every day. Connected to a Wellbrook ALA 330S (mounted in my attic atop a Radio Shack rotator) it offers about 95% of the performance of my AOR AR7030 Plus (though, of course, it's that last 5% that really counts when the going is tough). At $200 - $300, it is almost a "no-brainer" to buy. Even if there is something wrong with the radio (what do some of these eBay sellers DO to their equipment anyway?), and as long as the defect(s) is/are minor, Drake can put the radio in like-new condition for very little (relatively-speaking) money. There's still no SW radio offering its capabilities at anywhere near its price. I do not think that these prices will last long. In a relatively short time, especially if there are no other comparable radios offered (let's hold our breath for the Degen DE-1108), I believe the price of the Satellit 800 will go up, possibly way up. As always, just my opinion. Best, Joe |
#7
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Dear DeWayne,
I have not seen the Eton E1, not being interested in it for the following reasons: 1) PASSPORT claims its sound quality is okay but not great. (Of course I cannot confirm this.) The Satellit 800's sound is, as you know, very, very good. When you're trying to ID a weak transmission or you're listening to a program for an hour or more, you want the best sound quality possible. That's where my AOR AR7030 Plus REALLY shines - it has the best sound quality of any shortwave receiver I have ever heard and the Grundig Satellit is a close second. Think about that: the Satellit was priced, even new, one-third to one-fourth the price of an AR7030 yet it offers about 95% of its performance and sound quality. AND the Satellit is portable! 2) It has only one external antenna connection, not three as on the Satellit 800. 3) It has no Air Band (I have found this to be very useful) and I have absolutely no interest in any "pay" radio service. 4) A fairly large "portable" radio with no handle? This makes no sense. 5) No internal ferrite antenna for MW and this is, in fact, due to a lot of digital "hash" generated within the receiver. This is poor design, in my opinion. Overall, PASSPORT and every other review I have read are very positive about the E1 but the limitations mentioned above preclude me from considering it. The Grundig Satellit 800 has NONE of the above problems and is STILL the only radio of which I'm aware that can be used as a tabletop (with virtually all of the advantages of same) and as a portable (with all of the advantages portables offer except the ability to take it on an airplane). And at its current offered (eBay) price of $200-300 (and even considering that you may have to send it off to Drake for perhaps another $100) it is the best buy in shortwave radio right now. I realize that most of you will disagree with me (and with Mike) but that's my opinion! Best, Joe |
#8
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On 7 Apr 2006 12:16:16 -0700, "Joe Analssandrini"
wrote: Dear DeWayne, I have not seen the Eton E1, not being interested in it for the Overall, PASSPORT and every other review I have read are very positive about the E1 but the limitations mentioned above preclude me from considering it. The Grundig Satellit 800 has NONE of the above problems and is STILL the only radio of which I'm aware that can be used as a tabletop (with virtually all of the advantages of same) and as a portable (with all of the advantages portables offer except the ability to take it on an airplane). And at its current offered (eBay) price of $200-300 (and even considering that you may have to send it off to Drake for perhaps another $100) it is the best buy in shortwave radio right now. I realize that most of you will disagree with me (and with Mike) but that's my opinion! The S-800 is poorly built. You think a 7030 sounds better with a top firing speaker? |
#9
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Dear David,
As far as I am concerned, NO currently-available SW radio sounds good with its built-in speaker with the exception of the Satellit 800. I use an inexpensive ($29.95) RCA (Radio Shack Cat. # 40-5000) speaker with my AR7030 Plus. This sounds quite good on news/talk shows. For music, I run the sound through my stereophonic system which consists, in part, of Hafler electronics (pre-amp and amp) and a pair of Klipschorn speakers. The sound thus afforded has to be heard to be believed. The AOR used via my stereo system sounds much better than the Satellit 800 run through the same system, but as for the built-in speaker, the Satellit 800 wins hands down. Frankly it has always been my thought that shortwave radios should eschew having built-in speakers just as in the "old days" and let the user buy either a "matching" external speaker (made by the radio manufacturer) or an "aftermarket" one - the buyer's choice. An external speaker, properly enclosed and baffled, will ALWAYS sound better than one built into a radio though, as I said previously, the sound from the Satellit 800"s speaker is pretty darned good. You can listen to it for hours on end. I know of no other shortwave radio about which I could say the same. Best, Joe |
#10
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![]() Joe Analssandrini wrote: Dear DeWayne, I have not seen the Eton E1, not being interested in it for the following reasons: 1) PASSPORT claims its sound quality is okay but not great. (Of course I cannot confirm this.) The Satellit 800's sound is, as you know, very, very good. When you're trying to ID a weak transmission or you're listening to a program for an hour or more, you want the best sound quality possible. That's where my AOR AR7030 Plus REALLY shines - it has the best sound quality of any shortwave receiver I have ever heard and the Grundig Satellit is a close second. Think about that: the Satellit was priced, even new, one-third to one-fourth the price of an AR7030 yet it offers about 95% of its performance and sound quality. AND the Satellit is portable! I've been fairly pleased with the audio quality on the E1. Of course, I use this radio as a portable, primarily: as in, "let's take this boy on the road and do some shortwave listening, if time permits." And for that purpose, it has supplanted my SW77 and '2010. Yes, the '800 is portable in that it's a self-contained unit that can run off of internally installed batteries; but in the real world, I'm not likely to be carrying it along with me on the road. Heck, I had to go to Ikea to pick up something to sit the '800 on, such is its size. Really, the E1's peer group would logically be the other premium grade lap-portables: SW77, '2010, Satellit 700, Satellit 500. The Satellits may indeed have an edge in sound quality. The E1 definitely sounds better than the SW77 and '2010. And in terms of selectivity, the E1 bests any in this grouping. Coupling the sync detector w/the passband tuning truly gives the E1 a real performance edge over these other portables where selectivity is concerned. Furthermore, the sync detector on the E1 functions as flawlessly as any I've encountered. Certainly better than the Sonys. Some folks have observed that the Sonys might have an edge over the E1 in terms of sensitivity. Perhaps so, although not by much, and even this is noticeable only on occasion. Moreover, the E1 is much more capable of handling a "real" antenna than your Sonys...especially the '2010 which overloads more horrendously than the SW77. Bottom line, I string up an antenna of some sort with my E1 more often than not, no matter where I take it; and I hear more with the E1 than I would with my Sonys. Even off the whip, the E1 is a great performer, for that matter. 2) It has only one external antenna connection, not three as on the Satellit 800. More antenna connections are a convenience. And the PAL connector is an annoying inconvenience. 3) It has no Air Band (I have found this to be very useful) and I have absolutely no interest in any "pay" radio service. Never had much use for the Air Band. And I have no interest in XM (Sirius has the better channel line-up). If I did have an interest in XM, I would get a cheap plug-n-play unit which would offer a wider range of listening options (in car applicability, remote control, etc); I would not use the E1 for satellite radio listening. 4) A fairly large "portable" radio with no handle? This makes no sense. Given its dimensions, I'd say the carrying strap option would be better for the E1. But they didn't include it. That said, since I actually use this radio for portable applications, I have a case so that I can carry this radio about without it getting knocked about. And, of course, the case has a handle: Pelican 1450 case...I already had it for my SW77 (which had a carrying strap; but in carrying a $500 portable about, you want some protection for your radio, right?). I simply ordered a new foam insert to cut for the E1's dimensions (room for a few accessories, too). 5) No internal ferrite antenna for MW and this is, in fact, due to a lot of digital "hash" generated within the receiver. This is poor design, in my opinion. A major complaint, and a valid one. I'm not much into MW DXing, though. Overall, PASSPORT and every other review I have read are very positive about the E1 but the limitations mentioned above preclude me from considering it. The Grundig Satellit 800 has NONE of the above problems and is STILL the only radio of which I'm aware that can be used as a tabletop (with virtually all of the advantages of same) and as a portable (with all of the advantages portables offer except the ability to take it on an airplane). Well... Perhaps the inability to take the Sat 800 on an airplane isn't the only portability disadvantage that radio have vis-a-vis mid-sized to compact portables. The Satellit 800, like the Drake SW8, is not very easy on batteries at all. By contrast, the E1 is quite decent on batteries. If going on a short weekend trip, I'm far less likely to take along the Sat 800 precisely because of its size and because I often listen in places where there's no access to AC power. In any case, the Drake SW8, despite its rather large size, is certainly more portable than the Sat 800 and it more sturdy in its construction (let's face it, the Sat 800 isn't of the kind of construction where you'd feel comfortable with it taking even a slight knock; it's no surprise that Universal recommends triple boxing this radio); and performance-wise the SW8 does have an edge over the Satellit 800. So... on occasion where I am making a trip where I fully intend to get in some serious shortwave listening, I'd take the SW8 and a few decent antennae (along with a couple of D-cell 12 packs). On such occasions, I'll take the E1 along, as well, for that matter, since I like to alternate between two radios and compare when doing more "serious" listening. Given its much smaller size, I'll chuck the E1 along frequently (as I used to with the 'SW77 or '2010) on short excursions on which its questionable as to whether I'll get any listening time in or not. For air travel, though, I likely would not take the E1 along, unless I were spending more than, say, 6 weeks away from home. In any case, I suppose the need for portability and what, exactly, is portable varies from person to person. I do a helluva lot of listening away from home; so, naturally, I like to take along a radio that's going to afford the most in way of performance. For a lot of folks who do the majority of their listening from home, I'm sure this is less of an issue. I know that there are some who consider the E1 to be priced too highly. That's fine. Perhaps it is by one standard or another. In any case, I have found it worth the price because it nicely fills an important niche for me. Sure, I could have paid 500 + x and gotten an Icom R75. But I have no need for an R75. I have a number of tabletop sets, including a Drake R8B. While, true, I can hook a tabletop up to a large SLA battery and take them out on excursions (and I have on a few occasions), it's not particularly convenient, and it's not something you'd just chuck in the car on a whim. For me, the E1's convenient and self-contained package (no NEED for external accessories unless you want to use them) and excellent shortwave performance make it an outstanding choice for the purposes toward which I employ this radio. And at its current offered (eBay) price of $200-300 (and even considering that you may have to send it off to Drake for perhaps another $100) it is the best buy in shortwave radio right now. I'll agree that the Sat 800 can be an exceptional buy on eBay...a lot of performance for the price paid. I realize that most of you will disagree with me (and with Mike) but that's my opinion! Thanks for sharing your opinions, Joe. It's always with interest that I read your postings, as you tend to put a great deal of thought into your assessments. Regards, Junius |
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