Many thanks for SWLing Post contributor, Zack Schindler, who shares the following:
Sangean released a new MW/FM/HDRadio this year, the SG-108: https://www.sangean.com/products/product.asp?mid=261&cid=3
It seems to be identical to the HDR-14 except for the color https://www.sangean.com/products/product.asp?mid=230&cid=3.
I wonder if the receiver is any better than the HDR-14? I have an HDR-14 and am amazed by its performance every time I use it.
Thanks for the tip, Zack! I, too, love the HDR-14. I also love the fact the SG-108 still uses AA batteries as well.
The SG-108 is simply the HDR-14 in a white cabinet. The totally different product names suggest that they are intended for different distribution streams; there are other exmaples within the current Sangean product line.
Canada is hardly in trials. It’s been in use here for many years now. There are 14 Toronto area stations + 4 American stations broadcasting HD that I can receive in the car. Most have three HD channels and several ethnic stations have four HD channels active. My car is a 2016 model and has an HD radio.
If Sangean HD portable radios are anything like their DAB line I would look elsewhere. I own the Sangean HDR-18 and sold off my HDT-1 tuner for pennies. The main issue remains their HD line is devoid of any “DX” capability. My Sangean DAB radio was pretty “deaf” when using it in Europe – only the strongest MUXes would appear. For DAB DXing, the great Italian DXer Dario Monferini taught me these four letters: S-O-N-Y.
(Like many of the SWLIng blog readers , I too owned the great Sony XDR-1 HD tuner which of course died from poor CPU ventilation. If we could convince Sony to redesign that discontinued product we FM/HD nuts would be happier.)
Not a formal test, but my DPR-39 (em … er … “Pocket 390” – chosen mainly because of the use of replaceable batteries) did quite well on a trip to Switzerland using just the headset leads an antenna. Consistently got at least 50% more hits than a top rated British portable from Majority.
My main issue with many of the Sangean digital sets is the use of long-outdated display technology. Scrolling low-res alpha displays that convet little information, and the use of chipsets that don’t even support displaying the full alpha fields, make them frustrating to use.
Regarding the Sony XDR-F1, I’ve already had two of them upgraded for the ages by Dave (the “XDR Guy”) including PS rebuilt with ventilation, HD manual on-off switch, ultracapacitor memory backup, and replacement of the entire analog audio board with one having significantly higher specs among other things.
….unless these “new” radios can be AM/FM long distance (DX’ing) mean machines, then they are wasting their time, and they won’t sell! During the 1970’s and ’80’s, Panasonic R-2200 and Sony I feel-2010 were good at picking up and DX’ing AM/FM/shortwave/longwave/ air band / CW, but how can it be that this technology has been lost in the 21st century?
I wonder if this radio has a short battery life when listening to HD radio programs eg HD2. This is the complaint many use against true pure digital radio eg DAB+ Their solution is now to use Lithium rechargeable batteries like phones.
Pity it doesn’t have a colour screen to show album covers.
I don’t know why it has AM steps of 9 kHz which is not used in the Americas, as HD radio is unique to the USA & Mexico. Canada is only trials.
Battery life on the HDR-14 (and the NiceTex as well) is short regardless of mode.
Presumably the 9KHz/10KHZ switch is there because the analog AM and FM modes are usablel anywhere; that’s why it is still positioned as a travel portable.