Spartan Facilities Mean Slim Pickens for 2009 Radios

Speculating about the fate of the much anticipated Redsun 3100, I have received the following information from Paul:

Last I heard, directly from Redsun, was that the RP3000/RP3100 project was on hold. As mentioned inhttp://www.passband.com, even the larger Chinese radio manufacturers such as Tecsun or Degen may have only one engineer in charge of designing their radios!

Quote from http://www.passband.com/25th-anniversary-passport-now-available/#comments

"You’ve got to remember just how Spartan these Chinese facilities are. For example, there is reportedly only one engineer who designs all the world band radios at Tecsun, Degen et al. It’s surprisingly rudimentary, but they work hard and they work cheap, like the Japanese did 60 or so years back."

Comments

[Mike W]

I believe the gentleman in question is Mr. L. Zhou :

http://www.radiointel.com/review-hkfair2005.htm

He's the Yao Ming of radios, toiling away in relative obscurity.

[Paul]

Weird or mildly amusing radio photos:

http://www.5bcl.com/Article/Class1/200812/2975.html

[stetsi]

One designer-engineer eh? That may explain the persistence - over years and numerous model revisions - of certain absurd ergonomic/firmware features/flaws across the Degen/Tecsun range. Perhaps the chap is never challenged or advised by savvy, competitive colleagues/rivals (they don't exist); and maybe his unchallenged position enables him to ignore or dismiss user feedback.

[Angelo]

This all reminds me of...stock car racing! That's right, NASCAR. Back in the 1970's, there were Dodge Chargers, Pontiac Grand Prixs, Chevrolet Chevelles, Ford Torinos and Thunderbirds---they were all fast, but they were engineered completely differently, totally different parts bins, etc. They shared speed, but nothing else. Now, they call them Ford, Chevy and Dodge, but they all look like jellybeangs, all have similar parts and the "grilles" are decals. Similarly, back in the 70's, General Electric, Panasonic, Sony, Grundig, Zenith, etc., made nice radios that all looked and acted different. Now? If you ask me, most of the stuff coming out of China looks and behaves the same. It's a medium sized rectangular box with a digital display and lots of buttons on the keypad, made of cheap plastic. Like stock cars, they still put different names on them, but are they really different?

[Mike W]

So L. Zhou is actually the Al Unser or radios.

[Brian (Scooby214)]

A bit OT, but have any of you guys used a Part15 low-power transmitter with your radios?

I am considering purchasing one, such as the SSTran AMT3000. Any input is appreciated!

[gerald]

the chinese may work cheap and hard as the japanese did, but they dont turn out the quality the japanese did.

[Mike W]

Yes, Brian, I have a C. Crane FM transmitter that I use all the time to stream audio from my PC, and have used with XM radio and my Grundig Satellit 800 in the past.

I am quite happy with it. Some reviewers are unhappy with the range but I have found the range to be more than adequate for around the house or apartment.

My experience has been that the analog FM transmitters did not work for me but the digital C. Crane one has.

[Mike W]

I should have included there that I checked the PDF manual the C. Crane FM transmitter on their website and it does say that it complies with "Part 15 of the FCC rules", which I suppose has something to do with not being powerful enough to interfere with licensed broadcasters.

[herculodge]

Mike, forgive me for my ignorance. The FM transmitter is essentially an FM tuner with a telescopic antenna and I hook to headphone jack of a system, say, my Horizon Duo in aux mode and I listen to FM through the Duo?

[Brian (Scooby214)]

Jeff,

The transmitter allows one to "broadcast" audio to a radio. One would allow me to broadcast internet radio, mp3 player, etc. to my vintage radios for listening throughout the house.

I am actually considering getting an AM one such as the SSTran AMT3000, as it will allow me to also broadcast to my AM only radios. Plus, you can get greater range, while remaining Part 15 compliant, out of a good AM transmitter than out of an FM one. I will lose stereo and some frequency range, but will be able to get better usage of my AM radios.

[herculodge]

Am I broadcasting FM frequencies from the transmitter to my radio? I'm still a bit confused.

[Paul]

Yes, you transmit your signal on one FM frequency. This frequency typically corresponds to an unused channel (say 89.5 MHz which I think should be empty in the LA area).

The idea is to take, say an Internet radio broadcast, or a podcast on your Mac, and be able to listen to it on a real radio, rather than through your computer speakers. Of course you can transmit whatever you want ...

[herculodge]

Okay, now I get it. I used an FM transmitter when I had XM satellite radio in my car a few years ago. I hated it. Muffled sound quality. And bad signal under bridges and such.

[Paul]

I haven't had good luck with car FM transmitters either, except for one brand (which I can dig up if you want). But for home use, the CCrane one built by Sangean is excellent. It's range can be increased too (very easy). See

http://www.xmfan.com/viewtopic.php?t=3257&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

or

http://www.xm411.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=8151