Herculodge

Universal Radio Makes the Sangean PR-D5 the "Official" Replacement for the Super Radio

If you look for the GE/RCA Super Radio at Universal Radio, they will direct you to the Sangean PR-D5. I agree with their assessment of the PR-D5. Costing about $25 more than a Super Radio, the PR-D5 gets slightly better AM/FM reception, has dual speakers (not as big and loud as the Super Radio's but big enough), has digital tuner, presets, and comes in a more compact package. Also I found less background noise on AM with the PR-D5. Still not impressed? The build on the PR-D5 is far more refined, cleaner. In short, it's a far superior radio than the so-called Super Radio. Still not impressed? The PR-D5 has the biggest internal ferrite antenna available at 200 mm or 8 inches. It's my only radio that can get 710 ESPN AM with nor background birdy noise. Highly recommended. 

If you look for the GE/RCA Super Radio at Universal Radio, they will direct you to the Sangean PR-D5. I agree with their assessment of the PR-D5. Costing about $25 more than a Super Radio, the PR-D5 gets slightly better AM/FM reception, has dual speakers (not as big and loud as the Super Radio's but big enough), has digital tuner, presets, and comes in a more compact package. Also I found less background noise on AM with the PR-D5. Still not impressed? The build on the PR-D5 is far more refined, cleaner. In short, it's a far superior radio than the so-called Super Radio. Still not impressed? The PR-D5 has the biggest internal ferrite antenna available at 200 mm or 8 inches. It's my only radio that can get 710 ESPN AM with nor background birdy noise. Highly recommended. 

Shedding Light on the Compromised Sound Quality of the iPod and iTunes

Reader Cyril was kind enough to provide the following points about the compromised sound quality of iPod and iTunes:

Your comparison between your radio and your iPod may be confounding two effects: the effect of the compression of the original signal, and whatever each device is doing to the (decompressed) signal. Plus obviously the fact that you can't listen to the same source with both setups.

Basically, is it the iPod that compromises the fidelity, or the inadequate bitrate of the iTunes Music Store?
(Probably a bit of both.)

Some people seem to enjoy their MP3 players with the proper headphone/amp combination (http://www.slate.com/id/2113059/) -- maybe an upgrade in that direction (+ higher bitrate) would help address the compromise you point out.

More Information and Pics of the Grundig Satellite 750

Reader KR has provided the following info about the Tecsun version of the Grundig Satellite 750:

tecsun's marketing brochure with pics:

http://www.5bcl.com/Article/Class25/200807/2625.html

KR was also kind enough to provide the following:

from the grundig 750 yahoo group:

For those who do not read Chinese here is a summary of what is being said in the post.
Since they built the first unit in Oct 2007 they have made a serious effort listen to the feedback from the radio enthusiasts who participated in the trial. They have made ten different versions and sent them out to different places and environment to test the S2000's reception capabilities. About a month ago they have decided to use alloy metal knobs and add a 455Khz IF output......for DIY external sync detector, DSP tuner and DRM demodulation
The first batch of the real production is in progress and if everything is on track they should be able to deliver the first shipment soon. The first shipment will be only be available in 3 mayor cities in south China and some radio enthusiasts who participated in the trials. This will enable them to better track and discover any further issues that may not have surfaced so far.

Dear Herculodge: Has My Weak Grip Ruined Me?

Dear Herculodge,

Recently my boss took me to the golf course to play with an important client and when the client, a former all-state wrestler, shook my hand, he crushed it. I did all I could do not to scream but the client could tell I was in great pain. Rather than apologize, he called me a wussy and decided to hire another consulting firm for his business before marching off the golf course. My boss warned me that if I ever humiliate him again with my “weak grip” I’m finished. What have I done?

You’ve violated the Male Code, my son. For it is a taboo for man to offer a soggy, limp hand during the all-important Manly Handshake, what Men In The Know simply call the “Manshake.” If you or anyone doubts the importance of a dominant handshake, I would like to point out that there is a thriving Man Culture devoted to handshake strength. One of today’s great Masters of the Manly Handshake is John Wood, former defensive lineman from the University of Michigan. Additionally, John Wood specializes in obscure “lost” strength exercises once popular many decades ago, such as the one-armed snatch. He also trains men to crush high-grade steel cans with their bare hands and performs these shows of amazing hand strength at strength training seminars throughout the country. Reading John Wood’s website article “The Power of a Strong Handshake,” we can see that Wood, an astute observer of male psychology, knows that men are making all sorts of judgments about other men’s character, both consciously and unconsciously, during that crucial First Handshake.

 

Whether you realize it or not, your hands reveal many things about you. A good firm handshake is a universal sign of strength and assuredness which is why everyone (yes, you too ladies.) should have one. A firm (but not crushing) hand shake is a sign of mutual respect from both parties. The Handshake immediately sets the tone for any meeting. In fact, when John F. Kennedy was running for president of the United States, he commissioned a study to determine the most effective handshake.

Having strong hands, however, does NOT give you the right to crush the life out of someone else's hands when you first meet. I'm sure we've all had that experience at some point and it sure isn't fun. It us fun, though, when you shake hands with some "punk" who thinks he is going to show you how strong his hands really are. It is only then that I like to give em' "the crusher." The look on their faces is always priceless when they realize they are actually shaking hands with a vise. This only happens on rare, of course, occasions, but when it does happen, having a crusher grip really comes in handy. . . . Whether you were on the other side of a limp handshake or a bone crusher, you probably weren't feeling positive about the other person when it happened. Again, a solid handshake can make all the difference.

Handshake Master John Wood teaches men how to avoid the humiliation of a weak handshake. He promotes a very manly-named hand grip exerciser—the Captain of Crush Hand Gripper. Keep at least three of these grippers, one for your car, one for your home, and one for work so you can build your gripping strength and never suffer the loss of Man Points that results from having a limp handshake. Your manliness depends upon it. 

iPod Sound Suffers Serious Fidelity Compromise Even Compared to an $80 Radio

In an earlier post I explored the charge that the iPod suffers a significant compromise in fidelity and got reader responses that convinced me that the charge is true. However, for the last several months, I forgot about the iPod's sound challenges as I've listened blissfully to my playlists with great content. 

But then this morning, around 4 A.M., I woke up with my JBuds in my ears and grew sick of the playlist that had been droning in my brain all night. I put the JBuds in my $80 Sangean PR-D5, tuned to 103.1 FM, and was amazed at how warm, bright, and detailed the sound was. The PR-D5's dual speakers are just so-so, but stick the JBuds in the mini jack and the sound is amazing. The compromise of the iPod, while intellectually clear to me all these months, now became emotionally true. 

What's sad is that everything is going to MP3 and that my beloved playlists must be heard through the muffle of the iPod sound. 

Dear Herculodge: If I Opt for the Automatic Transmission, Will I Compromise My Masculinity?

Dear Mr. Man Points,

As traffic around town has steadily worsened and as sciatica pains shoot down my ass, I find I’ve lost my urge to pump a clutch pedal during my two-hour traffic-filled commute. I’ve therefore opted for an automatic transmission. Does this violate the Male Code?

Spare me your pathetic excuses for getting an automatic transmission, you Pillsbury Dough Boy. Few things in life feel more manly than zooming around town in a sporty car with a six-speed manual gear box, which in effect is a very empowering experience. It makes a man feel “one with the car,” it allows him to feel the engine’s power in ways that are not possible with the automatic, it affords him the pleasure of the low-end torque as he shifts from first to second gear and beyond, and most importantly it affirms to his male brethren that he refuses to compromise his car’s performance for nebbish convenience.

Loathsome philistines can’t be bothered with the masculine experience of shifting gears. The convenience and ease of an automatic compromises speed and “car connectedness.” As a result, it wastes the potential thrill of the BMW M5 or the Infiniti G37 coupe or the super charged Mini Cooper. What kind of man makes this compromise? An emasculated one. A man could be driving around town in his six-speed manual BMW M5, and as such he could be swinging breathtakingly huge elephant testicles. But pathetically, he opts to drive the same car, in the diminished automatic version, which renders his testicles sun-dried Brussels sprouts.

Moreover, a man who surrenders to the automatic version casts doubts on other aspects of his character. Does he squat when he pees? Does he scream falsetto during a surprise encounter with a spider? Does he cringe while gutting a trout?

Therefore, a man’s purchases a sport car with the automatic transmission, featuring “Agitronic Paddles,” which allow him to “shift” without a clutch, does not appease the contempt of his male friends who have told him repeatedly that in middle-age he must get a “fun” car, an automobile that generates adrenaline and heightened states of masculinity. To show their displeasure, they will not even come over to see his brand new seventy-thousand-dollar automobile. Let’s face it, when a man buys a new car, one of the purchase’s greatest pleasures is the opportunity to show off the car to his male friends, to watch them gawk at it, to envy him, to ask him questions about its specs, to “inspire” them to buy the same car, and to feel the power that such influence wields.

But a man who has “ruined” his car by opting for the automatic is now a pariah, a Judas of Male Society. Therefore, you should be warned that no matter how many good reasons you come up with for getting the automatic—you can’t eat a breakfast burrito and talk on your cell phone while shifting gears, your herniated disc makes it too painful to press down on the clutch through city traffic, the stop-and-go traffic is so horrendous that in ninety percent of your driving you can’t even get out of second gear and as such you feel “like a caged animal,” that being trapped in second gear causes road rage and a seething dyspepsia that counteracts the alleged advantages of manual shifting—you will not receive any sympathy. For a man in middle age with the resources to buy his dream car is expected to get it in a manual and no excuses in the world will save him from losing Man Points. 

Herculodge Top Pick for Radio Build Quality Goes to the Sangean WR-2

In a recent post in which I tried to give advice to the radio newbie who wants top performance for AM and FM, I neglected to recommend what I believe is the best made radio on the market--the Sangean WR-2. Because the WR-2 is a clock radio and not a table radio, I didn't include it in my recommendations, but as a reader pointed out there is no reason the WR-2 cannot be used as a table radio. I agree, especially since it is my judgment that the WR-2 is has the best build quality of any radio on the market.

I use my WR-2 in the office where it sits 6 feet from my computer and therefore avoids interference. Of course, it has remote. I moved it out of my bedroom because I needed it in the office and one FM station 89.3, while sounding great through the speakers, provided a low albeit discernible hiss through my J-Buds, evidencing a slightly compromised signal. Aside from that quibble, I give the WR-2 the highest recommendation. Also let me add that I detect no compromised signals in my office. 

I'd give second place in build quality to another Sangean, the PR-D5. 

Desperation at Costco Too Often Results in Parking Lot Fights

Let us not mince our words: The Costco on Skypark Drive in Torrance, California, is a battlefield of desperate souls, their blood roiling with angst and rage, as they move through the aisles amassing oversized bottles, boxes, and sacks of foodstuffs as if they were hoarding for some imminent famine. 

The aggression begins with the parking lot, which is always full. People fight for spaces and, according to the checker I spoke to yesterday, fist fights are all too common. 

The hostility is exacerbated by the store's poor design which has the exit and entrance at the same opening. Trying to get into the store can result in having a chunk of your heel hacked off by the shopping cart of the bellicose customer behind you. 

There is a general rudeness and competitiveness in the Costco shoppers unlike anything I've ever seen. My conversation with the Costco checker confirmed my sense of this. He said customers are always rude to him, that he's yelled at, and that he frequently sees fights between customers. 

The promise of abundance that Costco provides stirs a spirit of desperation and meanness in the Costco members. The malevolent spirit that pervades the store reminds me of the desperation Tobias Wolff describes in his short story "Smorgasbord":

They ducked their heads low to receive their food, and while they chewed it up they looked around suspiciously and circled their plates with their forearms. A big family to our left was the worst. There was something competitive and desperate about them; they seemed to be eating their way toward a condition where they would never have to eat again. You would have thought they were refugees from a great hunger, that outside these walls the land was afflicted with drought and barrenness.

Wolff has captured the spirit that afflicts the Costco shoppers who seem to be shopping their way toward a condition where they will never have to shop again. And indeed they act like "refugees from a great hunger" ready to fight anyone who might threaten their survival. 

Dear Herculodge: I Live in Radio Hell. Can You Help Me?

Dear Herculodge,

Over the years I have silently tolerated crappy radios some of which have big beautiful speakers, tons of bells and whistles, remote controls, bright illumination, nostalgic retro styles. Some are shaped like racing cars, others like phonographs. Some have CD players, MP3 players, HD. Some of them have so many do-dads I'm thinking they'll wash my spinach and spray the pesticides off my fruit. But, Herculodge, here is the rub: They all suffer woeful reception, with an emphasis on the word "woeful" going to AM. 

It occurred to me that the price tag of many of these radios exceeds $300, but they can't do the most basic thing I wanted them for: get strong AM/FM reception.

Is that too much to ask? If not, point me toward the right direction.

Dear Reader,

The first principle of radio advice is that there are no absolutes based on personal preference and environment conditions, which can impede reception of the very best radios. The second principle is that quality variation can make one person love a radio and another person hate the same radio.

Having laid out these caveats, we can still point to some strong performers as I write this in the summer of 2008. 

The first radio I will recommend is the strongest FM of any I've tested and the second strongest AM. The radio I'm referring to is the $139 C.Crane CSW, a rebadged version of the now defunct Kaito 2100. Is the radio perfect? No. The preset buttons don't depress easily and the sound is too flat and "harsh" for some. 

The second radio I will recommend has strong FM but not as strong as the CSW but the strongest AM I've ever tested. I'm speaking of the $80 Sangean PR-D5. Is this radio perfect? No. The dual speakers don't produce great, room-filling sound. But its world-leading 200 mm (8 inches) internal AM ferrite antenna makes it desirable in a world where AM quality is abysmally ignored. Also it is my judgment that the build quality and reliability of the PR-D5 is superior to the CSW. 

Another radio that has strong FM and AM but no presets is the $99 Eton S350 DL, which produces in my opinion better speaker sound than the two aforementioned radios. Its FM is better than the PR-D5's and tied or slightly less better than the CSW's. I suspect it will give you fewer reliability problems than the CSW in part because, lacking presets and other features, it has fewer buttons. As I post this, Amazon is selling my favorite color red version as a clearance for $90. If you don't need presets, this may be the radio that does the best of most things. 

Most likely you cannot lose with any of these 3 radios. Who knows? Perhaps you will get bitten by the radio bug, toss out your race car nostalgia radios and buy all 3 of my recommendations. 

Best Places To Live Harbor People with Low Body Mass Index

CNN Money has a list of 25 cities inhabited by people with the lowest body mass index. Marin and San Francisco are at the top of the heap. 

I'm from Northern California and from my experience you have no cachet or credibility of you're portly. These cities have a very rigid aesthetic and being slender is a huge part of the image you must have to fit in. 

What else ties these skinny-people cities together? They are considered "best places to live." I don't know if it's causation, correlation, or both, but it appears there is an inextricable link between a healthy slender physique and a high quality of life.