http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ultralightdx/message/3547 On CCRadio 2, a member of the Yahoo Ultralight Group writes the following: "I talked to C. Crane Radio folks today...asked them if the new #2 version would have better selectivity than the earlier versions. In my case (on the old versions), a local on 1490 was heard from 1460 -1520. The woman said that the circuitry remains the same, and I would probably have the same problem. I asked about any improvement in sensitivity with the twin coil built in...she said that it would be minimal, maybe a 5% increase in signal (I imagine this to be a subjective statement). Richard Berler" ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Paul concludes: So it appears that this radio is little more than a bug-fix release of CCradio, plus the 2-meter ham band. But Kevin says the above info is incorrect. He writes: Not so fast! As Richard (the original poster of this thread) recently posted on the UltralightDX group, he checked back with someone at CCrane who was tech-knowledgeable, who stated that the sensitivity is now up to that of the PR-D5, and that what sounds like DSP or similar (it's hush-hush at the moment...) has tightened up the selectivity and effects the auto-tuning feature on AM. So, CCrane may have something here... Kevin
Paul has done some investigating and has come up with the following:
The CCrane site has some info on the 2 M ham band that is offered on this radio...I was hoping that this meant that SSB and selectable filters were on board. The info makes it clear that it is hearing FM signals on that band.
Oh Well.
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More from Richard (complete quote of what Kevin refers to):
I called Crane Radio back today, and got someone a bit more knowledgeable about the radio...someone that has tested the set daytime and night. He said that the sensitivity is noticeably better than the CCRadio plus (and said the Sangean PR-D5 is essentially the same as the plus in that regard) for daytime noon listening. Not night and day different, but better. I asked about the selectivity, and the "evaluation of the signal for several seconds followed by the selection of the strongest signal". He said that it was better than the plus, and that the evaluation of the signal was circuitry that did not exist in any other radio out there. I asked if it was DSP, and he said that they couldn't talk about it, that in the future, it would be discussed. I asked if this mystery circuitry would enhance selectivity, and he said that it does.
Well, I took the plunge, and ordered it. I sent my original CCradio back due to selectivity being to wide for serious listening or dx'ing near a local station's frequency. I'll do the same if this set isn't better than my PR-D5. My SONY ICF-S5W from 1980 is as sensitive as the PR-D5 if not a hair better, but is excellent regarding selectivity, and can tune continously across the band. The PR-D5 has it's plus side in coverage of the 1610-1700 dial range, presets, and digital display (wish it tuned in 1KHz increments, although it's lesser selectivity makes that not that worthwhile). It's selectivity, while better than the original CCrane Radio, is not up to the ICF-S5W's selectivity.
The set will ship the week of June 8th.
Posted by: Paul | May 22, 2009 at 05:44 PM