I thought intermitent speaker sound only happened to old vintage radios. Purchased 6 and a half years ago, my beloved Sangean WR-2 is on the fritz with speaker sound fading in and out. It works fine through the earbuds. I like the radio a lot and will either replace it or get the Sangean RCR-9 for its smaller footprint. I'd love to know how the RCR-9 compares to the RCR-3 for FM reception. Why is the latter model more expensive?
But honestly I think I'll miss the WR-2.
Final thoughts: I only play the speaker 10 percent of the time. I'm thinking I'll just keep it for now.
Maybe the headphone jack is worn out. I believe it's supposed to mute the speaker when you use headphones. Perhaps it's not unmuting the speaker properly, making the speaker sound intermittent.
Posted by: Gary | July 25, 2014 at 01:39 PM
That's possible. I don't know what to do. After reading how buggy the RCR clock radios by Sangean are on Amazon, I don't know what I'll buy if anything.
Posted by: herculodge | July 25, 2014 at 01:50 PM
Might be cheaper just to replace the speaker, if that's the problem. However if you use the headphone jack a lot then Gary is probably right. Might be just the headphone jack. They are easy enough to replace, if you know what you are doing that is.
Posted by: Stan | July 25, 2014 at 03:30 PM
Would your friend Ed -- the radio collector -- know someone who could diagnose and fix the problem?
Posted by: Gary | July 25, 2014 at 05:34 PM
Ed recommends an electronic store one mile from my house that might be able to fix it. But what cost I do not know.
Posted by: herculodge | July 25, 2014 at 06:10 PM
Jeff,
Just try spraying a quick shot of de-Oxit into the headphone jack. Then plug/unplug the phones jack a few times. See if that improves the speaker connection.
Posted by: Ed S. | July 28, 2014 at 05:57 PM
I'll try that, Ed. Thanks. I should add the problem has stopped. I'm wondering if I had the earbud plug on but not in the jack. In any event, if it happens again, I'll try your advice.
Posted by: herculodge | July 28, 2014 at 09:14 PM
I've had only bad experiences with Sangean radios: An SG-622 with assembly quality so poor that the volume knob and battery cover would fall off. An ATS-404 that refused to power up. The infamous WR-12 that sounded like it was wrapped in a blanket and placed at the bottom of an oil drum...
Tell me if my luck is that bad, or if quality control is not their strong suit.
Posted by: Jack Marshall | July 29, 2014 at 05:38 AM