Gary's Replacement CCRadio-EP Fares Worse Than the Original Defective Unit

I received my replacement CCRadio-EP today (to replace the defective one he received last week).

Unfortunately, AM is not nearly as sensitive as it is on the first unit. Not even a trace of the LAX TIS station on 530 kHz comes in on the replacement unit, and this comes in clearly on the original unit and on the PR-D5. The Simi Valley TIS station, on the same frequency but about 90 degrees in azimuth from the LAX TIS, comes in weakly with the wide filter, but with no change in signal strength over almost 1/2" of the tuning dial, which is very strange. With the narrow filter, it doesn't come in at all. This station comes in strongly on the PR-D5. Another minus is that the dial calibration is way off on the replacement unit.

FM is even worse than on the first unit. Vast ranges of the band have absolutely no receivable signals. Only the very strongest stations are received with good quality. The band is filled with good signals on the PR-D5 and CCRadio-SW.

On the plus side, the tuning knob has no slop like it does on the first unit, but without decent reception this doesn't really matter much.

The speaker grill is missing some paint (chipped off) and has a sharp point where the grill meets the plastic cabinet at the top. It almost looks like someone tried to pry it off.

This is too bad. I guess I'll just cut my losses with the two defective units and get refunds for both of them. Now I can understand the wide variation in reviews on Amazon. I believe it's possible to get a good CCRadio-EP, as some people have, but it's also possible to get a bad one, as I have (twice).

Comments

[Gary]

Jeff - I'd actually say the replacement unit fares worse, since the AM reception on the first one worked very well, but both units are apparently defective.

[herculodge]

Gary, you're right. I changed the post's title to reflect that. Thanks.

[Angelo]

Very disturbing. I've been a cheerleader for the CC-EP since it was released----as I pre-ordered, got one early and have enjoyed it from day one. Lack of quality control and inconsistency isn't acceptable on a basic radio that sells for over $20.00----and it certainly isn't acceptable on one that goes for near $70.00. Seems to me a lot of products these days are shoddy. I've been in the market lately for an Air Hockey table for my 7 year old son and I to have some fun with----so I've been reading the reviews. It's amazing to me to read about pre-drilled holes not lining up----electronic scoring not working---wobbly legs----right out of the box. And this is on items costing hundreds of dollars. People have talked about spending an hour and a half building the table----to find out components are missing or aren't sized correctly----at that point, what do you do, break it down, re-box it and return it and try again?

[Bill Bush]

A friend got one last year. It is very, very good. I'm sorry to hear of the QC problems, as I was considering one, not that I need it, of course, but it just looks so nice in a classic way, and John's sounds so good. Maybe they'll get it back together.

[dorpmuller]

Glad I waited. Stick with vintage...

[twitter.com/karldotcom]

You tested these all at the same time? What is your location?

>>>Unfortunately, AM is not nearly as sensitive as it is on the first unit. Not even a trace of the LAX TIS station on 530 kHz comes in on the replacement unit, and this comes in clearly on the original unit and on the PR-D5.

[Gary]

Yes, I tested them at the same time, from Simi Valley, CA.

[Karl Dahlquist]

It does seem that CCRANE offerings have diminished since the whole Chris Justice incident....or perhaps there is just more information out there on the internet that was harder to find before?

[Gary]

According to John Wilder at C. Crane, based on the serial numbers of the two CCRadio-EP units that I got from Amazon, they are old stock, not current stock. In fact, the second one has some cosmetic damage that makes me think it was a returned unit. I'm still deciding whether to get a pre-tested unit directly from C. Crane. With shipping and CA sales tax, it would be about $99, which is over 50% higher than the Amazon price.

[vimal oberoi]

''Universal Radio has priced the Bonito 1102S RadioJet very competitively''
http://swling.com/blog/2012/05/universal-radio-has-priced-the-bonito-1102s-radiojet-very-competitively/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheSwlingPost+%28The+SWLing+Post%29

[Gary]

John Wilder at C. Crane was kind enough to exchange my second defective CCRadio-EP that came from Amazon. I have received the tested, replacement unit. My initial assessment of this one is that it is very good.

The AM reception is excellent (at least as good as the first unit I had). It easily picks up the LAX TIS station on 530 kHz, and is slightly more sensitive than my PR-D5. The twin-coil fine tuning control has a substantial effect on some signals, and its action seems more symmetrical than with the other two units.

The FM reception is not in the same league as the CCRadio-SW, but it is good (the first unit was distorted on all stations; the second unit was very insensitive, unable to pick up any but the strongest stations). One issue is that the FM tuning is pretty touchy, much more so than the AM tuning -- it requires the dexterity of a safe cracker. At least this CCRadio-EP picks up the stations I want to listen to on FM. Having a tilting and rotating FM whip antenna is useful, especially for difficult signals.

The dial calibration is good; it reads a little low on AM, but is somewhat more accurate on FM.

Cosmetically, this replacement unit looks very good. The main tuning knob turns easily, and has no play in it like the first unit did. The twin-coil fine tuning knob rubbed slightly on the case, but this was easily remedied by pulling the knob out slightly (I think the first unit had this issue as well).

If you want an inexpensive radio that is an excellent performer on AM, I can definitely recommend the CCRadio-EP. Just keep in mind the comments of others regarding the radio's performance in close proximity to AM transmitters. I live in Simi Valley, so this is not an issue for me.

For FM it's not quite as compelling, but it's certainly more than adequate enough for my purposes.

As with the two defective units, the sound quality is quite good, and the full range bass and treble controls allow reasonable tailoring of the sound. On AM, the CCR-EP sounds far better than the PR-D5 (it's not even close). I think I even prefer it over the CCRadio-SW on AM. On FM, the later sounds better to me, as it's capable of more powerful and deeper bass.

I find that having analog tuning (continuously adjustable) is a plus for receiving AM IBOC (digital) signals like KFI. On my PR-D5 and CCRadio-SW, there is a hiss that can't be tuned out on KFI. With the CCRadio-EP, careful tuning and adjustment of the twin-coil knob can minimize the hiss.

In any case, it seems that the key to receiving a good CCRadio-EP is getting a tested unit from C. Crane.

[Dannibal]

Hey Guys:
I did get a good EP. I am impressed with the quietness of the unit ( I am in an area of realtively low power stations)as well as both the sensistivity and selectivity.

However, the cheap handle broke. Everytime I picked it up by the handle I wondered if it was going to break since it rather bounced about.

I sent CCrane a message asking whether they have replacements. Anyone else with this problem?