Jason Explains How He Eliminated Drift from His Grundig S350

 

(Re-post)

My black Grundig S350DL is amazing with no problems, much better than the red one I had a few years ago. The model surely suffers from quality control problems evidenced by Jason's Grundig S350 adventure:

I went back to Radio Shack last night intent on getting a GS450 and returning the Grundig G6 I bought on clearance a few weeks ago. I just did not like the rather tinny sound and weak shortwave on the G6 (The G8 seems better and I think that the ATS on the G8 is much, much better). Surprise, surprise - they show the GS450 in stock but cannot find it anywhere in the store and, even bigger surprise, the S350DL is still there and still marked at $49.

I weigh the otpions - dealing with the drift on the 350 vs. possibly having the FM crap out on the 450. I end up going with the S350DL. They ring it up and it comes up to $99. They have mislabeled the price on the shelf but give it to me at $49 anyway!! So, for the one year replacement, batteries and radio plus $10 coupon - I trade in the G6 and the 350 only costs me $2.22! I'm thinking - what a deal - since I had read reviews of the awesome FM on this model plus the great sound on shortwave and AM. I get it home and the tuning is an absolute mess.

The drift on AM was terrible! After 10 minutes, it is jumping all over the place - if you touch the radio, the sound mutes and the display goes nuts. I pack it up to take it back but then I decide to google the problem and find this: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Grundig-S350/message/4644 I do exactly what he says - I pull off the cover after unscrewing all of the screws (including the 2 in the battery compartment).

Only the speaker is attached to the front. I remove the three screws from the display and then tighten the two screws on the tuning wheels. They were barely loose - almost not noticable - so I was not too optimistic. I carefully got it all back together (the plastic pieces that hold the fabric handle on only go back on one certain way and were sort of a pain!). I cross my fingers, plug it in, and wow - a brand new radio. The tuning is perfect. Zero drift on FM and AM. AM sounds excellent.

I listened to Radio Australia here on 49 meters this morning and it was nice and strong just using the whip. Hardly any drift on SW - and I couldn't hear the drift - I only noticed it when I looked at the display. The sound is room-filling. I ended up listening to a fairly low-power FM station about 35 miles away that I typically have to listen to on the internet and it sounded just like it does in the car. I ran the radio for several hours just to make sure it would not warm up and go completely drifty or haywire and it is still perfect. I am very impressed and now I don't have to worry about the FM going bad. I'm not sure how often I will have to tighten those screws. The board appeared to have a manufacture date of 2007 so maybe the sitting around all of this time was the problem. We'll see.

I would like the memory pre-sets of the 450 but I don't think it's worth the $50 or the risk. Plus, the fast tuning on shortwave will allow me to quickly mine out the bands for signals and then use my KA-1103 as a companion for serious DX and SSB. I am lucky that Radio Shack honored the displayed $49 price on the 350DL but if they do end up going on clearance once the 450's are out every where, I think it would be a deal that is hard to beat.

 

Comments

[Ron]

I haven't heard much lately about the 450. Have they fixed the problems with that radio? Does anyone know?

[Chris]

$49? When was this?

[Steve]

The tuning knob on my 350 failed after a month or so. Got a replacement and it's still going after 6-8 months, but still acts wonky at times---for example, extending the whip causes the frequency to change.

There's still plenty of good things about the radio, the audio being chief among them.

It's too bad, though. Imagine if you had a radio of this design and audio quality, but with grown-up quality parts and reliable, consistent performance. I'd probably pay hundreds of dollars for such a radio. But I'm dreaming now I guess!

[vimal oberoi]

I don't know why i feel i have read this story some time back,is it reposted?

[vimal oberoi]

yes it was there in february
http://herculodge.typepad.com/herculodge/2011/02/12/index.html

[Harry]

Although indicated as 'Out of Stock', Radio Shack now lists the S350SL as a web only item at $150! Very good buy at $49.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11519503

[Keith Rennie]

You can sometimes find a 350DL at the Source Clearance stores like the one in Dixie Mall in Mississauga/Toronto for $49.

[Jimbo]

Treasure hunting at Goodwill store this morning and I pulled a Grundig S350DL out of the bin.It looked mint except for a couple batteries leaked some acid.I bought it for $3.99.Took it home and cleaned the acid out and luckily the acid was only on the plastic and not on any of the contacts or springs inside.Just wiped it out and now looks perfect.It has the loose tuner like others have mentioned but seems to work perfect.Every once in a while the ship comes in.