Category Archives: Antennas

Radios With Rotatable AM Antennas?

The Panasonic RF-2200 sports a rotatable AM/MW antenna

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who writes:

With your broad knowledge of radios, wondering if you can add anything to this list of portable radios, past and present, that have 360 degree rotatable directional AM ferrite antennas. Reason is I am looking for an AM portable for the nightstand for nulling out unwanted AM stations while also doing a little DXing.

The list I have from data mining the ‘Net is:

New models with rotatable AM antennas:

CountyCom GP5/SSB,

Tecsun PL-360,

Grundig Satellite 750,

Older (vintage) models:

Panasonic RF-2200,

Panasonic RF-1150,

Panasonic RF-877,

Panasonic RF-1180

most RDF (Radio Direction Finder) radios that were used on boats

“Boom Box” variety:

Radio Shack 12- 795,

Emerson MBR-1,

Rhapsody RY-610.

[RDF radios] are kind of big, however Raytheon, Ray Jefferson, and Nova-Tech did have smaller model RDFs that could be considered table-tops).

The alternative is to build or buy a passive indoor antenna.

Maybe readers know of other models?

Thank you for your inquiry, Mario! I will do a little research of my own because you listed every model (and more) I could think of off the top of my head.

Post readers: Please comment with any models we could add to this list.

I will take all of the suggestions and make a master list to post here on the SWLing Post so it’ll be easier for others to research in the future. I’m pretty sure this question has come up before.

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The brilliant little Tecsun PL-310ET: serious DXing on a budget – part 1

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Hi there, a good friend of mine Mr Thomas Brogan mentioned to me recently that his little Tecsun PL-310ET was proving to be an excellent receiver and that it would suit my DXpedition activities. Now, as someone who likes to push the envelope of performance with sophisticated portables, usually coupled to very large antennas, a cheap little Tecsun might not have been an abvious choice for my next purchase. However, Mr Brogan (who has an excellent Youtube channel by the same name – check out his wonderful collection of vintage and modern receivers) previously suggested I buy, for similar reasons, the Sony ICF-SW100. That little masterpiece of electronics turned out to be one of the best receivers I’ve ever owned. I felt compelled to take notice because Tom never gets this stuff wrong! A few days later I found myself in Maplins – again – and there it was on the shelf at just under £40, so I bought one.

I got back into shortwave listening about 18 months ago, after many years of inactivity whilst my poor Sangean ATS-803A rotted away in the garden shed and Sony ICF-7600G long-gone via eBay. To start all over again, I bought a Tecsun PL-360. What a great little portable that turned out to be – there are over 100 reception videos on my YouTube channel demonstrating how it continually performed above and beyond the very modest price tag. I even managed to hear ABC Northern Territories 4835 kHz on it once – simply amazing for a receiver under £30. Given my extensive experience with the PL-360 and having learned the PL-310ET shared the same DSP chip, I was expecting the same, or at least very similar performance and the only real benefit to upgrading to the PL-310ET was the direct frequency access. However, I was wrong about that!

The brilliant Tecsun PL-360 got me back into shortwave radio for less than £30

About a week after buying the PL-310ET, I managed to get out on a DXpedition and with 30 metres of wire attached to it via the external antenna socket, I started tuning around the SW bands. Quite simply, I was amazed at the sensitivity and selectivity of this diminutive little portable. With the proven DSP receiver chip and a number of audio bandwidth filter options from 1 to 6 kHz, coupled with direct frequency access via the keypad, it was a joy to use and listen to. In just over an hour I had copied signals from North Korea, including their internal service KCBS Pyongyang, Zanzibar BC, ABC Northern Territories (at the first attempt!), Zambia NBC Radio 1, Radio Oromiya and Radio Amhara from Ethiopia, amongst others. Brilliant stuff and clearly demonstrating that the overall hardware/software package with the PL-310ET is a step up in performance over the PL-360 and capable of proper DX for a very modest outlay. Interestingly, in a conversation with Thomas Witherspoon regarding the PL-310ET, he reminded me that it was one of his go-to radios for travelling and confirmed it’s excellent performance. I would definitely recommend this radio to novices and experts alike.

Reception videos follow below, with more to come in part 2; I hope you enjoy them. Thanks for watching/listening and I wish you all excellent DX!

Clint Gouveia is the author of this post and a regular contributor to the SWLing Post. Clint actively publishes videos of his shortwave radio excursions on his YouTube channel: Oxford Shortwave Log. Clint is based in Oxfordshire, England.

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Review of the DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna

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(Image source: DoxyTronics)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who shares the following guest post:

Review: DoxyTronics Portable HF Magnetic Loop 8020CA

-by Troy Riedel

Before I purchased the DoxyTronics 8020CA antenna, I emailed the owner/manufacturer and asked if he felt this antenna would be a good choice with the radios that I own. He promptly and courteously answered my question and I purchased the antenna on September 30th. I received the antenna approximately 6-days after I ordered it.

The DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna

I have been evaluating the antenna for 5-6 weeks mostly on my Grundig Satellit 750 and my Grundig G3. I have used other portables but the two aforementioned Grundigs were the radios I used most.

The antenna control box has a ¼-20 hole on the bottom so it can be mounted to a video camera tripod. The assembled antenna weighs 3 lbs. I tried using a light duty DSLR tripod that I own, however that was nowhere near sturdy enough. I had to use a heavier duty tripod (Ravelli AVT) that I use for astronomical purposes. This Ravelli has a weight capacity of 16 lbs and it easily supported the antenna. I’m confident a much smaller and lighter duty tripod than the Ravelli could be used, I simply don’t own anything in-between as my astronomical binoculars and binocular telescopes weigh 5 – 14 lbs.

The 8020CA Antenna consists of a large tuning knob and control box. The control box has switch settings of 3-5 Mhz and 5-15 Mhz. In testing, I found that I could “tune” up to 17.840 MHz. No batteries are needed to operate.

The antenna worked equally well with all of the “portable” radios that I tested (I am a SWL’er, not a ham).

I can summarize the antenna’s performance as this: it is not a magic elixir that will allow you to capture signals too faint to recognize without the antenna attached, but it definitely enhances the signal and “stabilizes” it to the point where the level of the signal remains relatively constant (less peaks & troughs in signal strength).

Hopefully you can hear what I have summarized and concluded. I have included a two and one-half minute recording of the following:

Radio: Grundig Satellit 750
Recorder: RadioShack 140-214
Freq: 7.310 MHz
BW: Wide
Broadcaster: Radio Romania International
Date of Recording: 15NOV2016
Time: 2309 – 2313 UTC

Audio Player

00:00

Use Up/Down Arrow keys to increase or decrease volume.

Click here to download as an MP3.

00:00 – 00:30: 8020CA Antenna Attached
00:30 – 01:00: Radio’s Whip Antenna
01:00 – 01:30: 8020CA Antenna Attached
01:30 – 02:00: Radio’s Whip Antenna
02:00 – 02:30: This last 30-second segment is with the 8020CA attached, however I am panning the Ravelli tripod 360-degrees in the horizontal. You will hopefully notice that there is a “sweet spot” where the signal and reception is the best of the entire 2:30 recording. I had set-up the antenna and I completed a quick, test recording of Radio Romania. But conditions changed slightly and the best signal during the recoding was approximately 50-60-degrees away from where the best reception was earlier. This is a positive for the antenna: you can pan the tripod head where the antenna sits to null and/or find the best signal.

Note: this is my first shortwave and radio-related review I have ever done. I have done many astronomical reviews – where I have much more experience – so please be kind towards this first attempt.

No worries, Troy! We’re kind and appreciative here–especially since guest posts are all about sharing our experiences and experimentation!

I must say, the DoxyTronics loop is doing a fine job mitigating the local QRM/interference that is easily heard when only the telescopic whip is being used. I’m also impressed that a passive loop this modest in size has so much gain without amplification.

Thanks, again, Troy for sharing your review!

Click here to view and/or purchase the DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna.

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Which is the best? Sony ICF-2001D/2010 or ICF-SW77? The halfway score

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Hi there, here is a summary of the first half of tests comparing the Sony ICF-2001D against it’s replacement the ICF-SW77. Both receivers are widely acknowledged as being amongst the best shortwave portables ever made, but how close are they in performance? Is there a clear winner after the first 8 reception tests? I hope you enjoy the summary video. Links to the first half of reception tests follow again, below, whilst the second half will follow in a separate post. Thanks and good DX to all.

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Oxford Shortwave Log: DXing in the tropical rainforest of Pará, Brazil – part 2

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Hi there, here is part 2 of my reception videos taken in the tropical rainforest of Pará, Northern Brazil. As I mentioned in my previous post, I took a Tecsun PL-680 with me on the trip because I didn’t want to risk losing or trashing one of my precious vintage portables but also because of the following:

It can handle a longwire very well without overloading (I actually only used a 5 metre wire)
An excellent synchronous detection circuit and audio bandwidth filtering options
Excellent sensitivity, as demonstrated by the many DX reception videos on YouTube
If it got lost or damaged it would be a pain, but not difficult to replace

So, what can you hear in the jungle? Part 2 of my group of reception videos follow below – I hope you enjoy them.

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: RMI Overcomer Ministry 11530 kHz

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: Radio Tamazuj 11650 kHz, Madagascar

Tropical rainforest SW in Pará, Brazil: Radio Nacional Brasilia 11780 khz

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: R Aparecida 11855 khz (TX distance 2430 km)

Tropical rainforest SW in Pará, Brazil: R Brasil Central 11815 kHz, Goiania

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: Voice of Turkey 11980 kHz

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: Radio Dabanga 13800 kHz, Madagascar

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Oxford Shortwave Log: dxing in the tropical rainforest of Pará, Brazil – part 1

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Hi there, I was fortunate enough recently for my work to take me to a very remote area of tropical rainforest in Pará, Northern Brazil and of course, I travelled with a shortwave radio. In fact I take a portable with me everywhere – even to work – just in case. During this trip I was using a Tecsun PL-680, for very specific reasons:

It can handle a longwire very well without overloading (I actually only used a 5 metre wire)
An excellent synchronous detection circuit and audio bandwidth filtering options
Excellent sensitivity, as demonstrating by the many DX reception videos on YouTube
If it got lost or damaged it would be a pain of course, but not difficult to replace

Although effectively travelling on business, I was hoping to find the time for a DXing session because I felt it would be really interesting to find out what could be heard on shortwave (and medium wave for that matter) out in the jungle, in the middle of nowhere! The environment was challenging – around 37/38 degrees C during the day and still 33 degrees C at 2 am, all day and night, every day and night! Furthermore, as you might imagine for a tropical location, the place was crawling with bugs lol, including mosquitos and thus a number of vaccinations were necessary, prior to the trip. Several days after arriving, I eventually managed to find the time for a DXing session in the jungle (with another the following week in Barcarena, on the coast).

So, what can you hear in the jungle? Part 1 of my group of reception videos follow below – I hope you enjoy them.

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: Radio Romania International 7335 kHz

Tropical rainforest SW in Pará, Brazil: Radio Nacional Brazilia 6180 kHz

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: WHRI 7385 kHz, Cypress Creek, Georgia, USA

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: Radio Mediterranee 9575 kHz, Nador, Morocco

Tropical rainforest DX in Pará, Brazil: EWTN (WEWN) 11520 kHz Vandiver, Alabama, USA

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Oxford Shortwave Log 200 metre Beverage antenna: further MW and SW reception videos

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Hi there, further to my previous post regarding the initial testing of the Medium Wave Circle-design 200 metre Beverage antenna at the woods in Oxford, UK, I am pleased to share further reception videos for both the medium wave and shortwave bands. For medium wave, I operated the FDM DUO via a laptop and the FDN-SW2 software, recorded the entire band at the top of the hour and retrospectiively analysed the signals. For shortwave I utillised the FDM DUO as a standalone receiver, routing the audio via the excellent Bose Soundlink Mini 2 speaker.

As a quick recap, the antenna was terminated at the ‘front end’ with a 650 Ohm resistor into a 1 metre-long, permanent copper earthing rod that I had previously driven into the ground, away from the route taken by the general public. The actual wire was orientated in a generally westerly direction, and thus nulling signals propagating from the east. At the receiver end, I utillised my self-built transformer, wound for a 50 Ohm input impedance (14 turns on the primary), thus making the entire set-up suitable for the Elad FDM DUO. It was quite a pain to set up, taking over an hour to deploy, however, the results were very promising. A scematic diagram follows below.

Links to the next group of reception videos follow:

The reception from VOCM St. Johns, Newfoundland & Labrador and WRCA Waltham, Massachusetts was unprecidented and another indication that the 200 metre Beverage configuration is demonstrating excellent SNR performance. Similarly, the reception of Radio Nacional Brazilia was an improvement on any signal I’d previously recorded with any receiver or antenna. Finally, the signal received from Radio Huanta 2000 – one of the more exotic stations on the Tropical Band and rarely heard in Europe – delivered discernible audio with this set-up, whereas previously I had only ever observed a carrier. All-in-all a very pleasing result, with more reception videos using this antenna set-up to follow in the coming weeks.

Right now I’m uploading SW and MW reception videos to my YouTube channel, recorded during my two week trip to Pará in Northern Brazil – it was really interesting to check out what can be heard on the radio in the middle of what is a very remote area of tropical rainforest. I hope you find the time to take a look. In the meantime, thank you for watching/ listening and I wish you all good DX.