DXing with an inexpensive portable radio

[sam critter]

I'm retired and on a fixed income. I wanted to DX AM broadcast band stations using one of the current crop of inexpensive portable radios under $150.00. I freind let me use his Sangean PR-D5 and I was quite impressed.
RECEIVING SITUATION: in my home with the radio on the table, monitoring just with the radio's internal ferrite bar antenna.....
Here are my best (so far) stations (monitored from Tucson AZ):

CKBI 900 kHz Prince Albert SASK Canada @1450 miles away
CKWX 1130 kHz Vancouver BC Canada @ 1300 miles away
CBR 1010 kHz Calgary Alberta Canada @ 1300 miles away
KSTP 1500 kHz Minneapolis-St Paul MN @ 1300 miles away

What I'd like you to do is operate your radio under the same "receiving situation" and list: your radio, general location and your best long distance DX's.

I'm sure that most of us would like to know how other radio's perform and the best way to do that is to hear from those using them and what they can actually monitor under similar conditions.
Obviously none of the above stations come in loud and clear here. They fade in and out but all were heard giving their station ID.

So what is your radio capable of monitoring?

 

[Schroedingers Cat]

You never know how a radio will perform until you try it. Some radios, like Sonys, may use the same chip in all small sets, and regardless of purpose, it may perform well. For the price, the GE Super Radios are good if you can find them. Grundig has some reasonably priced radios, as does Tecsun, which I have never tried.

 

[Tom Wells]

I'd suggest STRONGLY that you accquire a radio made in the late 1930s if you can stand tube receivers, as during that period, the average receiver was designed to do AM and shortwave dx in a competetive mode.

Surely, there were cheap radios available during those years, but they were also the best years for the average radio
user to be concerned with (and pay for) the aspects that will best serve your current dx needs.

In such an OLD radio, look for a tuning capacitor ( the thing with all the variable-mesh plates ) that has 3 sections.
This assures you that there is a tuned rf gain amplifier built in, which makes the difference I refer to.
Such a radio may need proper alignment to work at its best, consider this cost in purchase but expect to
find that rf alignment on an ancient radio may never, ever need to be done agan, assuming other needed new parts are
attended to. Once the circuits are so aged, (again assuming non-failure) a tuning touch-up at 70 odd years should hold
"forever" on a receiver amp stage where no power handling happens.

If a "modern" design is a consideration, the GE Superadio is a very good choice.
It has a good sound that I like, but somehow I've never accquired one. ???
For that job, I have a 1950s Zenith Transoceanic.

Also, for the most bang for the buck, look up everything you can on loop anntennas.
A few turns of wire around any ferrite-bar radio can couple any loop or tuned-loop MW antenna
and the result on dx can be very satisfying.

 

[gar hi]

Welcome sam!

I've had the Sangean PR-D5 for three years and It's an awesome radio.

Here are some of my catches from Tampa at night.......

KOA Denver - 1520 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mNd2MnpTJ8

KSL Salt Lake City - 1883 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFOt2EGDZjo

KFI Los Angales - 2152 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgDnuvAkUD4

KNX Los Angeles - 2152 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQtwfmnf78

XEPE San Diego - 2085 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyoP_XEFSiE


Daytime from the Gulf coast in Dunedin...

KTRH Houston - 775 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WcH0JN1irg

WSHO New Orleans (only 1 kw) - 465 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djAgueBwbt0

Daytime from Santa Cruz, Calif ....

KFI Los Angeles - 300 miles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djAgueBwbt0

 

[rfry]

Just to note that with the exception of the AM radios in some of the new cars these days, probably the reception range of most AM broadcast receivers is more limited by the ambient r-f noise level in the AM broadcast band, rather than their sensitivity, or the field intensity produced by a distant radio station.

 

[FreddyE1977]

You never know how a radio will perform until you try it. Some radios, like Sonys, may use the same chip in all small sets, and regardless of purpose, it may perform well. For the price, the GE Super Radios are good if you can find them. Grundig has some reasonably priced radios, as does Tecsun, which I have never tried.

I have an extremely inexpensive Tecsun which I purchased online.
And I have to say, it's DX performance is quite good. I've been told
that a lot of these less expensive units are now designed for sale in
developing countries. And since there are power supply issues in many
of them where the major regional station may at best be running a kilowatt,
they are designed to handle weak signals well.

 

[ddsparxx]

Hello, sam.

I have some inexpensive portables from Sangean and Tecsuns. You may want to look at earliers threads in the DX/Reception board about portable radios. I have a Tecsun PL-606 that recently received am 1215 station from UK here in VA and a more expensive Sangean ATS 909X that heard am 1521 from Saudi Arabia while vacationing on the NC coast. Both were used with internal ferrite antennas. I was surprised to find the PL 606 was sensitive enough to hear the UK station considering the radio's small size and its ferrite stick being something like 3 inches long. The PR-D5's ferrite is 8 inches long.

 

[Steve Green NEPA]

Much depends on what/where you want to hear, Sam .... what fidelity you want .... what size restraints there are for the unit where you listen.

I recently bought a Grundig S450 for $90 from Radio Shack. It's about the same size as the GE Superadios. The Grundig's aegis is 'Field Radio', which to me is a misnomer ; a field radio should not require an external antenna.

But it's a cooker. So far I have not used it except barefoot ..... no external antennae and just with batteries ..... and am quite pleased. The GE Superadio II sounds a lot better for music, but in my esteem the Grundig is pretty darn close for sensitivity and selectivity. And if you're into 'listening to static' as my wife calls it, what's the difference? I have a few quarrels with it (the signal strength meter is slow) but they are minor ; no DXer needs to see the signal strength ; they can hear it just as easily.

But if you can cadge a GE Superadio II, do so. I actually bought the Grundig as a backup for the GE Superadio II.

 

[Steve Green NEPA]

One footnote : Avoid the GE Superadio THREE's. They're rubbish.

 

[boombox]

Actually, a lot of non-DX AM radios will work well, especially if you use an external loop. I have a Sony Dream Machine clock radio I bought at a thrift store a few years ago for a couple bucks. It has a 2 inch internal loopstick, which is its limiting factor. But the Sony IF chip inside has an RF amp built in -- you set a Select-A-Tenna near the radio, it pulls in DX very well. Even has decent selectivity.

The Sony SRF-59 headset radio can be purchased for as little as $17 in some stores and works really well. Excellent sensitivity and excellent selectivity. The IF chip has an RF amp built in, and it pulls in the stations well, esp. considering the 2 inch loopstick antenna. Place it near an external loop (like a Select-A-Tenna) and it really pulls in the stations. However, it can still pull in DX barefoot.

RE: Superadio 3's: From my experience, it depends on the year, and depends on the radio. Some early ones had dial backlash, and fidgety tuning. I got one a few years after it was introduced, and it had no dial backlash and worked fine. For a few years it was my only AM DX radio.

I've read that more recent Superadio 3's are mixed in performance. Some guys say they're poor radios, others say they're great.

 

[dxer720]

I have an early Superadio III & it works pretty well, but it's not as selective as I thought it should be.

I have 11 Tecsun radios. I think the Tecsun PL-660 is the best of the new portables, for about $100. I have the older & newer versions of this model. They both offer very good sensitivity & selectivity. The Tecsun's with DSP (digital signal processing) offer much better selectivity, but the sensitivity degrades if you are near strong stations. The PL-660 does not offer DSP.

I still get good results from my Panasonic RF-3100 from the early 1980's. however, it's AM band only goes up to about 1660.

 

[robotique]

Hello, sam.

I have some inexpensive portables from Sangean and Tecsuns. You may want to look at earliers threads in the DX/Reception board about portable radios. I have a Tecsun PL-606 that recently received am 1215 station from UK here in VA and a more expensive Sangean ATS 909X that heard am 1521 from Saudi Arabia while vacationing on the NC coast. Both were used with internal ferrite antennas. I was surprised to find the PL 606 was sensitive enough to hear the UK station considering the radio's small size and its ferrite stick being something like 3 inches long. The PR-D5's ferrite is 8 inches long.

WOW, that cheapo $50 performed that well? I'll have to pick one up

 

[robotique]

btw I have two CCrane CCRadios (first and second models) and a Sangean ATS505. I also do tabletop DXing (no added antenna or expensive setup).

 

[pianoplayer88key]

I too have an SRF-59 and have gotten some good results with it. Here's a few examples, all daytime reception...

990 XECL Mexicali, BN (KTMS Santa Barbara, CA way under), in backyard, barefoot then with Select-A-Tenna - KTMS is about 196.8 mi NW of me, sending about 16.74 watts toward me. XECL about 90.8 mi E of me and 5 kW omnidirectional.

1190 KGBN Anaheim, CA, in backyard, barefoot then with SAT - nulling local 1170 KCBQ (9.3 mi N of me, sending 112 kW toward me)

1340 KCLU Santa Barbara, CA, in backyard, barefoot then with SAT - KCLU is about 195 mi NW of me and 650 watts omnidirectional.

1110 KDIS Pasadena, CA, in backyard, barefoot - slight splash is heard from 1130 KSDO (10 kW, 6.3 mi N of me)


The next 3 were recorded at 32.79485 -117.2563, all barefoot:

990 KTMS (XECL underneath) - here KTMS is 181 mi distant and sends 16.4 watts toward that location. The PL-606 is heard in the 2nd part of this clip.

1340 KCLU - KCLU is 179.2 mi from here. The PL-606 is heard in the 2nd part of this clip.

1390 XEKT Tecate, BN & KLTX Long Beach, CA - two co-channel stations are heard at medium strength - in the daytime! (I'm wondering if it's possible with a good antenna & radio to have CKLW and XEROK duking it out at comparable strength at midday in June in Kansas City, MO, specifically just southeast of I-435/US-169? )


I also have a Tecsun PL-398mp which I find is fairly good, along with a couple other Tecsuns that can do fairly well too. For example, with the PL-380 and Select-A-Tenna a couple years ago I was able to dig out a weak signal from 594 JOAK even with 600 KOGO's 5 kW DA spewing IBOC hash at me from less than 8 miles away. I've also heard the Radio Disney outlet on 910 from Salt Lake City, even with Family Radio's co-channel KECR El Cajon on the air just 9.3 miles from me in practically the same direction. I'm in a KECR lobe and a Disney null. (KECR had some automation problems that weekend around Nov 2011, frequently with dead air, making it easier to bag SLC.)
I do wish my GE Superradio had better selectivity, though - my local 1170 KCBQ 9.3 mi N of me is making it almost impossible to get 1180 KERN, which is about 237 mi NNW of me, around midday. (The only way I can detect it is via a faint 1 kHz heterodyne in KCBQ's splash when I put another radio like my filter-modded SRF-M37W tuned to 730 next to the SR3.)

 

[ddsparxx]

WOW, that cheapo $50 performed that well? I'll have to pick one up

The Tecsun radio's DSP chip allows the IF bandwidth setting to its narrowest position, which I had on my PL-606. I think that allowed the 606 to perform that well. The radio has great FM as well.

 

[robotique]

WOW, that cheapo $50 performed that well? I'll have to pick one up

The Tecsun radio's DSP chip allows the IF bandwidth setting to its narrowest position, which I had on my PL-606. I think that allowed the 606 to perform that well. The radio has great FM as well.

Great to know!

 

[KR4BD]

For $50, the Tecsun PL-606 is an incredible performer for AM and FM. I have a GE Super-Radio and prefer the PL-606 for DXing. The GE sounds better, but does not have the separation capabilities that the PL-606 offers. I have travelled all over the U.S. Central America, Caribbean and Europe with the PL-606. Very compact and an outstanding performer for the money.

 

[cyberdad]

Sam....

For a great radio at a bargain price, you can't beat the GE Superradio II I picked up at a Church rummage sale a year and a half ago for a dollar! ;D

It's a great performer...even though it's 30 years old. But it's a little awkward to take with for a guy like me who travels frequently, so I mostly leave it at home and use it more as a speaker for my FM modulator than as a DX unit.

In all seriousness, you might want to check out the Sony AM/FM/Weather Band Walkman. Last I checked, they're going for $31 at Walmart.
It's a decent performer on FM and a really good one (for the price) on AM. Great audio quality and the weather band feature are plusses.
The next biggest negative for a DXer is lack of selectivity in the presence of very strong signals. So if you're planning to use the radio mainly in a location within a couple of miles from a local broadcast tower, I might be leery of it. Otherwise for an inexpensive, easy to take with you DXing radio, it's a good choice.

I actually have two of them. One stays at home. The other stays packed in my suitcase.

 

[sam critter]

Hi GAR FLY-- If you accomplished these DXs indoors, that's fantastic! It proves my theory in that MW dxing has alot to do with your specific location, local stations that you have to contend with and household RFI sources. I'm @ 60 miles from the Mexican border and the Sonoran stations are a DXers nightmare. They're all over the dial. Never the less you've demonstrated what the PR-D5 can do.

PIANOPLAYER88Key - I'm not into "daytime" MW dxing, so I'll ask a stupid question: What is the basic parameter for daytime dxing? @ 2 hours before my local sunset, KOA and KSL fade in (they're both @ 600 miles away) Around 1 hour before sunset KFAB in Omaha NE begins to fade in. (It's 1,000 miles away). As the sun here is still above the horizon, do these qualify for DAYTIME dx catches?

R.FRY -- Oh yes a car radio can be a very good DXing tool. When I drive around Tucson at nite, both KOA and KSL come in 5by5, along wth a host of other 50kw stations out to around 1,000 miles.

I appreciate the replies I'm getting, but can we be a little more specific as to what your radio can receive. My objective is to show others what you can DX, so as if they wish to buy a particular portable radio, they'll have a better idea of what it is capable of. This is in contrast to the radio ads or customer comments on sites such as Amazon.
One useful aspect of the customer replies is that it appears you have a 50/50 chance of getting a lemon right outof the box, or have the radio suffer a major fault in just a few weeks/months of operation. Quality control from these "overseas" manufactures are shoddy at best. (except for Sony). Is this typical? Your experiences in this matter would also be appreciated.
EX: I've had the PR-D5 for about 6 months and average 3-4 hours monitoring almost every nite. So far no problems. My friend who recommended it to me is on his second D5. After 6 months of operation it locked on frequency and wouldn't change freq. He received a replacement and in over 2 years of use has had no problems.

In my original thread I set a simple parameter: Indoor on its internal antenna, with no assists (such as an inductive loop or plug in external antennas). This demostrates what a specific radio can do right out of the box. Yes I realize that reception will greatly improve once you get out of the house (away from the household RFI sources) and add on an inductive loop or outside antenna. The question is how well does it perform with the radio in your lap while sitting in your favorite easy chair?

 

[FreddyE1977]

For a great radio at a bargain price, you can't beat the GE Superradio II I picked up at a Church rummage sale a year and a half ago for a dollar! ;D

I'm jealous. Have been looking for these.
Saw a bunch of them on a clearance table at a discount store going out of business sale
years ago. Were marked down to $28 a piece. Still kicking myself for not buying all of them.