Herculodge

Let's Hope It's True: The New Sangean ATS-909X Coming in November of This Year

Thanks to Tom for this great news. For radiophiles, the up and coming Sangean ATS-909X, featured on Universal Radio, is equivalent to a new version of the BMW M5. No price mentioned yet, but I'll be pre-ordering mine and hope it arrives around my birthday. Here are the specs from the Universal Radio site:

The ATS-909X is the new flagship of the Sangean line. It packs features and performance into a very compact and stylish package. Coverage includes all long wave (153-519 kHz), medium wave (520-1710 kHz) and all shortwave frequencies (1711-29999 kHz). FM and FM stereo to the headphone jack is also available (87.5-108 MHz). The new enlarged LCD features a bright white LED for excellent clarity.

Shortwave performance is enhanced with a wide-narrow bandwidth switch and excellent single side band performance (SSB tuning to 40 Hz steps via fine tuning). Five tuning methods are featured:  direct keypad entry, manual tuning, auto scan, manual up-down tuning, memory recall or manual knob tuning.

This new model is expected November 2010.

Thanks to Tom for this great news. For radiophiles, the up and coming Sangean ATS-909X, featured on Universal Radio, is equivalent to a new version of the BMW M5. No price mentioned yet, but I'll be pre-ordering mine and hope it arrives around my birthday. Here are the specs from the Universal Radio site:

The ATS-909X is the new flagship of the Sangean line. It packs features and performance into a very compact and stylish package. Coverage includes all long wave (153-519 kHz), medium wave (520-1710 kHz) and all shortwave frequencies (1711-29999 kHz). FM and FM stereo to the headphone jack is also available (87.5-108 MHz). The new enlarged LCD features a bright white LED for excellent clarity.

Shortwave performance is enhanced with a wide-narrow bandwidth switch and excellent single side band performance (SSB tuning to 40 Hz steps via fine tuning). Five tuning methods are featured:  direct keypad entry, manual tuning, auto scan, manual up-down tuning, memory recall or manual knob tuning.

This new model is expected November 2010.

Good Match for Your Receiver: Behringer Ultracoustic AT108 15-Watt Guitar Amp

Mike M recommends this Behringer Ultracoustic AT108, $70 on Walmart website, for upgrading the sound on your radio receiver.

Refurbished M-Audio Studiophile AV30 Stereo Desktop Speakers for $65 Shipped:

Thanks, Paul, for apprising us of this sale. I happen to own these and they sound great and their shape is such that they don't knock over, another plus:

Refurbished M-Audio Studiophile AV30 Stereo Desktop Speakers for $65 Shipped:
http://www.woot.com

Amazon reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000SDLNKA/

Great upgrade from standard 2.1 computer speakers. Note that these come with a 1 year warranty from M-Audio.

Tom Says a "Slew of New Sangean Radios Arriving Soon"

My interest in the Sangean WR-5 compelled me to re-post this:

Tom has apprised us of the "slew of new Sangean radios," not the least of which is the Sangean WR-5, a wood cabinet radio with iPod dock, RDS, 6 presets each for AM and FM and telescopic FM antenna, easily the one I want the most. 

Sony CFS-43 Buy Now $70 Plus $25 Shipping

Solid looking Sony CFS-43 in good working order. Here's an even better deal on a CFS-45, about $20 less. 

Manly Watch Sighting for Under $130: Nautica N145596

This Nautica sports watch features a 52 mm bezel and luminescent markers on the dial with a rubber strap. The price is $129.95 with free shipping from this eBay seller. I should confess here that I bought one from this seller and expect the watch to arrive in a few days. I'll report on it then. 

Gary Reports Weak AM Performance on His Sangean LB-100

While I'm getting strong AM on my Sangean LB-100, Gary reports otherwise (environmental factors at work here?):

I finally bought a Sangean LB-100. I'm surprised at just how weak the AM reception is. Even the strongest local stations that I regularly listen to -- KFI and KNX -- have an excessive amount of hiss. My CCRadio-SW and Sangean WR-2 get far better reception. Even my little Tecsun PL-380 has better AM sensitivity. The LB-100 doesn't seem to be any more sensitive than my little Sangean DT-400W, which is pretty amazing considering the size difference between the two. The LB-100 has about a 3" ferrite bar, but the one in the DT-400W is much shorter.

When using the LB-100 with my Black Box tunable, passive loop -- a rectangular loop similar in performance to the Terk loop -- the AM is much better, and totally hiss free on the stronger stations. I hadn't intended on using the LB-100 with a passive loop, as this reduces the convenience quite a bit, since you have to move the loop around with the radio, and re-tune the loop for each station.

I find that the LB-100 has a little too much upper bass for talk radio, but it's acceptable. I probably wouldn't be happy with the U3's sound quality on talk radio. I apparently prefer less bass on AM than Jeff does. This is one reason why radios with significant bass response should have a bass control instead of just a tone (treble) control. Of course, the LB-100 has neither.

On the plus side, the FM sensitivity of the LB-100 seems quite good, even with the little rubber duck antenna. And the sound with FM music is very pleasing.

I'm not sure if the AM performance of my LB-100 is typical or not. I'll have to decide whether to keep it or return it. This is pretty disappointing.

First Look: Manly Watch in Blue: Invicta Force Chrono

I've been wanting a blue watch, something manly, though. I had been looking at $600 watches until this $159 Invicta Force caught my eye (These photos expand into better detailed close-ups if you click on them).

 

Good build quality. This is a big watch at 52mm across the bezel, but it's not too heavy on my 8-inch wrist. Good leather strap. Numbers easy to read. One striking feature of this watch is the bezel globe, which has a magnifying effect on the dial, making an already big watch look even bigger and more high impact. A lot of drama and high-profile, if you're looking for such a thing. 

 

I'll wear this as a casual watch. I think Invicta did a good job on this one and Amazon is selling this at an attractive price. 

 
 

Nostalgic Longing for This Radio Style: Fine Example of Mid-1960s Panasonic Transistor Radio

No scratchy controls. Just an excellent example of the highest style of its time: This Panasonic RF-800 transistor AM/FM radio. Low bid now. But if I had to guess, I'd say the bidding will get robust. 

Great Comparison of Various Shortwave Portable Radios

Thanks, Paul:

Absolutely great comparison of various shortwave portables:
http://www.fenu-radio.ch/index11.htm

If you can decipher the translation page in English, you'll find there is no clear winner. Every radio seems to have its strengths and weaknesses. Or for a better translation, try Google.