Buying a Radio

[match]

for many years I've had a wee battery-powered fm radio which I've taken camping with me (bought in a pound shop many years ago) but its finally given up the ghost, and I'd like to buy a replacement. However, not being an impoverished student any more, I can go looking away from pound shops

Ideally I'd like something thats small and lightweight, has a good battery life (or is wind-up or easy to charge), has good reception, covering a wide range of frequencies - FM/AM/LW as a minimum - SW and even CB/HAM frequencies would be great (receiving, not transmitting that is!).

So - where do I start? Any recommendations?

 

[Squidders]

Maybe start at: http://www.windup-products.com/shop/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=3

 

[DoctorSpoon]

For ages I had a little Roberts travel radio that had superb reception (AM/FM/LW/SW) and ran off 2AA batteries for ever. It finally got broken by t'other half putting it away without folding the aerial away and I've never found a suitable replacement. I really, really wish I'd fixed it rather than trying to buy a new one.

With the new ones I've bought I've found the digital tuning a pain when you're in areas with poor reception - it doesn't seem to recognise perfectly audible signals and you can spend hours poking the little buttons trying to find what you want. With old fashioned tuning you just twiddle the knob and hear when you're in the right area.

 

[Dougster]

Am I right in thinking that analogue radio signals are to end soon too? Might be worth looking at the portable Aldi digital radios.

 

[Jared]

Grundig Mini 300?

http://www.etoncorp.com/product_card/?p_ProductDbId=6289

Ah no LW

 

[DoctorSpoon]

Am I right in thinking that analogue radio signals are to end soon too? Might be worth looking at the portable Aldi digital radios.

Not too soon I hope. We've no digital signal here and none planned for the foreseeable future - the contract's only just been handed out for Derbyshire and they are only going to cover major areas of population. It makes me mad - those folk already have perfectly good FM reception and now they'll get digital too. We've rubbish reception and no plans for digital.

Grundig Mini 300?

http://www.etoncorp.com/product_card/?p_ProductDbId=6289

Ah no LW

Cool radio, but I'm deeply suspicious of 'analogue tuning with digital frequency readout'...

 

[Jared]

Cool radio, but I'm deeply suspicious of 'analogue tuning with digital frequency readout'...

The Mini 100 has analogue readout, but most reviews seem to rate the 300 higher.

http://www.etoncorp.com/product_card/?p_ProductDbId=6250

The other option is to look at wideband receivers

http://icomamerica.com/en/products/receivers/handheld/r5/default.aspx
http://www.yaesu.com/?cmd=DisplayProducts&DivisionID=65&ProdCatID=103

 

[match]

The other option is to look at wideband receivers

Whats the legal status of such things? I've got it in my head that they're illegal, but does that only apply to certain types of devices/certain uses?

EDIT: Just checked up here:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radiocomms/ifi/enforcement/ofw156x

It seems they are legal if they are receive only, and as long as you only listen to things you're meant to listen to (i.e CB/FM/weather = good, police = bad)

So I'll change my question - whats the battery life like on such things? Does it vary according to what you're listening to?

Seems a potential good idea, since on some occasions other folk have walkie-talkies etc and its nice to stay in the loop... Now to go investigate prices...

 

[Jared]

Whats the legal status of such things? I've got it in my head that they're illegal, but does that only apply to certain types of devices/certain uses?

EDIT: Just checked up here:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radiocomms/ifi/enforcement/ofw156x

It seems they are legal if they are receive only, and as long as you only listen to things you're meant to listen to (i.e CB/FM/weather = good, police = bad)

So I'll change my question - whats the battery life like on such things? Does it vary according to what you're listening to?

Seems a potential good idea, since on some occasions other folk have walkie-talkies etc and its nice to stay in the loop... Now to go investigate prices...

Yeah, legal to own one, don't require a license, just got to be careful what you listen to.

 

[Anthony Micallef]

I've got a Roberts radio that has manual tuning, its brilliant and only cost £15 however it doesnt have SW.

This is what you need though http://www.robertsradio.co.uk/pages/R9962.html

 

[Doc]

Most shortwave ham transmissions use single sideband or morse, and cannot be adequately received on an ordinary shortwave radio. If you want to hear hams, you need a radio with 'SSB' or 'BFO'.

Shortwave is worth having. I have been camping high in the Cairngorms and all I could get on MW/LW or VHF FM was RTE. I would have had plenty of choices of station with SW.

Be aware at this stage in the sunspot cycle you'll hear nothing on shortwave frequencies above about 10MHZ after dark.

The Sony Sw100 is lovely, tiny, clamshell design, covers all of shortwave, and receives SSB. 12 hours battery life on AA batts. Expensive +++++ http://www.sony.co.uk/view/ShowProd...mageType=Main&category=RAD+Worldband+Receiver

I have a Eton/Grundig FR-200 'Emergency radio'. Wind up, totally analogue, 3 AAs last almost forever, integral torch, but no SSB. A bit big. It is cheap and gets good reviews on eham: http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/2573 Bear in mind that the reviewers are mostly licensed amateurs who have passed exams in radio engineering and know exactly what a third order intercept point is.

Newly launched is the Yaesu VX3R http://www.yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cm...E26635C7E1F02500D9&DivisionID=65&isArchived=0
This is actually a VHF/UHF transceiver for licensed amateurs (although radios like this could be modified to transmit elsewhere eg marine band in dire emergency) However it does have very broad band receive, so it is a vhf/uhf scanner as well as a MW/SW/FM receiver. Receiver performance is not as good as a dedicated receiver. Of course, if you get your amateur radio license, you could use it talk to other amateur stations, either direct or via the network of unmanned repeater stations.

PM me if I can be of help.

 

[DoctorSpoon]

Thanks Doc - I like the look of that Grundig one! Let's see if I get any spending money for xmas...

 

[demographic]

I have a little radio that I sometimes use on site, its got a turn knob thing that tunes it in and another that turns it on and does the volume and its great, only problem is its not very loud so...

I bought a fancy all singing all dancing wideband reciever thing with radio alarm, digital tuning and countdown timer thing for about a tenner of so from Netto.

As it switches on with the touch of a button, it also changes the countdown timer thing with a button, it switches itsself on and off at seeming random times and resets it's self after being picked up in the wrong manner and is a complete and total waste of time.

One morning I arrived at work with it blaring away in the back of the van after it had touched something in my toolbox and very shortly afterwards it described a perfect parabolic arc into the skip never to be seen again

The little radio with two knobs is king again

 

[DoctorSpoon]

The little radio with two knobs is king again

hooray!

 

[Mikey P]

Sony SWF100 has follwed me on ops and holidays all over the world. Yes, it costs but you generally get what you pay for and the direct conversion option and SSB option prove most useful...

The only thing to come close for compact usefulness is the free wind-up/solar/battery/mains radios they hand out in Afghanistan - they are awesome!

 

[Doc]

I wonder if those are the Baygen wind up radios. And yes, the Sony SW100 is a cracking bit of kit - it will receive everything a PRC320 (military SW transceiver) will at a tiny fraction of the weight.

If money is no object, I would definitely regard the Sony SW100 as the best compact radio. I do note that the Grundig Mini 300 that Jared mentioned gets super reviews. It is under £20 in the USA - not sure how much it goes for here.

I have used a Grundig Yacht Boy 400 portable and it works well on SW, and receives SSB ham radio and SSB MF marine broadcasts very well for a small radio. But reception is no better than the Sony, and the Sony has superior ergonomics.

I would never travel abroad without a SW radio. I found the BBC World Service a great alternative to Doordashan (Indian TV) when I was over there. I know of one person who was in Kiev when Chernobyl went up. It was only through the World Service of the BBC that he knew what was going on.

Anyone visiting the less stable parts of the world should seriously think about packing a good but small SW radio. The most reliable and respected stations for impartial news are the BBC World Service and Radio Netherlands.

Its worth noting that the official recommendation in the Government booklet 'Preparing for Emergencies' is that every household should have a battery powered radio and a supply of batteries. They are very cheap now and it is worth checking you have one and it works. This is common sense rather than wacky TEOTWAWKI survivalism.

 

[Jared]

I do note that the Grundig Mini 300 that Jared mentioned gets super reviews. It is under £20 in the USA - not sure how much it goes for here.

Unfortunately we get "ripped off" again.. they're around £25.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=45961&doy=19m12&C=SO&U=strat15
http://www.nevadaradio.co.uk/acatalog/eton-mini300.html

Another radio, http://www.countycomm.com/gp4light.htm , though not many reviews on it, but apparently made for the US State Department diplomatic corp, so people have access to news out in the field. The battery life of 150 hrs at 40% Volume on 2AAs is interesting, and presumbly lasts long if using an ear piece.

 

[Soloman]

Ive just bought a Design go radio from currys.
I until recently had a tiny fm/sw sony that cost 100 quid 14 years ago so when that gave up the ghost i dreaded the price of a replacement.
Design go about 100mmx 20mmx50mm,fm and 8 sw bands clock and alarm.
I dont expect another 14 years but for 19.99 i cant moan.
Soloman.

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=120198055409&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=002

Maybe one of these ??

(dont know seller etc etc)

 

[match]

Another radio, http://www.countycomm.com/gp4light.htm , though not many reviews on it, but apparently made for the US State Department diplomatic corp, so people have access to news out in the field. The battery life of 150 hrs at 40% Volume on 2AAs is interesting, and presumbly lasts long if using an ear piece.

Looks very nice actually - just what I'm looking for. I'll see about ordering one from the US - Country Comm doesn't ship to the UK, but there seem to be other suppliers selling it who might deliver to the UK - seems a very reasonable price!

A review of it here:

http://ledmuseum.candlepower.us/third/gp4l.htm

and a video of it from the manufacturer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jxwX_RmwZ8