need a new shortwave receiver

[BobH260]

My old Sony SW7600G is dying. Sensitivity is very low, local AM broadcast stations are very weak. FM works fine.

I can hardly hear WWV ! The SW bands are all quite quiet. We use it to listen to Chris Parker's weather broadcasts and general SWL for news etc.

What are others using these days ? (I heard the newer Sony replacement was not as good ?) This one may be repairable but I have no idea where to send it for a tune-up.

thanks for any advice, Bob

[Vasco]

My SW7600GR is about ten years old. Still going strong. Had the model before it for ten years too. If this one goes I'll replace it with another one. The salt air gets to them eventually. Don't think they're worth repairing.

Some folks like Sangeans but I got their PR-D7 for am/fm and I'm not too impressed. No lock on the damn thing and it goes off in my luggage.

[Hud3]

Here's an earlier discussion on the topic...

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ver-18165.html

[El Pinguino]

The Tecsun 660 is a handy radio at a good price , has good SSB reception and is good for Wefax reception. I've bought quite a bit of stuff from Anon-co, good people to deal with Tecsun PL660 PLL FM Stereo MW LW SW SSB AIR Band Black Color PL 660 Radio | eBay

Or if you are feeling adventurous you could spring for a Tecsun 880 Tecsun PL 880 PLL Multi Conversion AM FM Longwave Shortwave SSB Radio Receiver | eBay
Cheers,
Frank

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by Vasco

My SW7600GR is about ten years old. Still going strong. Had the model before it for ten years too. If this one goes I'll replace it with another one. The salt air gets to them eventually. Don't think they're worth repairing.

Some folks like Sangeans but I got their PR-D7 for am/fm and I'm not too impressed. No lock on the damn thing and it goes off in my luggage.

Rick, ever try opening up the case and giving a light coating of conformal spray? That and sealing some leads can do wonders in keeping the salt air out.

I even do it with a few items here in Lake Ontario. Of course, it invalidates the warranty, but with a 100 buck item, what do you have to lose (if you are careful).

An interesting read here: Conformal Coatings for Electronic Circuit Board Protection | AI Technology, Inc.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by S/V Alchemy

Rick, ever try opening up the case and giving a light coating of conformal spray? That and sealing some leads can do wonders in keeping the salt air out.

I even do it with a few items here in Lake Ontario. Of course, it invalidates the warranty, but with a 100 buck item, what do you have to lose (if you are careful).

An interesting read here: Conformal Coatings for Electronic Circuit Board Protection | AI Technology, Inc.

Good tip. With my luck I'd bugger it up opening it.

[ohdrinkboy]

I've had several...all good.
Grundig Yachtboy YB400
Grundig Sateliite 800
Sony ICF 2010

Had these lower end models which are for home
Grundig Yachtboy YB-550PE
Tecsun PL-230 (appears the same as the Grundig YB-550PE, but came from overseas)

The best by far has been the Grundig Sateliite 800....much larger though. If you have the space that would be my choice.

[BobH260]

thanks for all the great information, I will check out a few of these........

Bob

[onestepcsy37]

Originally Posted by S/V Alchemy

Rick, ever try opening up the case and giving a light coating of conformal spray?

been doing that for years and i think it works. i bought a cheap inverter 10 years ago, sprayed it internally with 'corrosion x' and it's worked flawlessy ever since. i do that to other things like alternators and almost anything electrical/electronic that i think will get salt air exposure, including small outboard motors.