Category Archives: Deals

Blinq Deal: Sony ICF-SW7600GR $98.89 shipped

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Blinq.com has another “open box” deal on the Sony ICF-SW7600GR.

As I mentioned last time one of these surfaced on Blinq, this is a great deal for an excellent radio.

Actually, if you’re clever (!) you can buy this ‘7600GR for $89.90 shipped…

If you’ve never visited Blinq.com, or if you open their website in a private/incognito window, Blinq will typically pop up a window offering 10% off for new shoppers as long as you subscribe to their newsletter. You then receive a coupon code via email you can use with the first order.

Click here to view the open box Sony ICF-SW7600GR on Blinq.com.

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Open Box Deal: Sony ICF-SW7600GR $98.89 shipped

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Blinq.com has an “open box” deal on one of my favorite shortwave portables: the Sony ICF-SW7600GR. Though this receiver has been on the market for many years, its AGC, synchronous detector, and selectivity are still benchmark. Check out how it was favored by readers in this blind comparison. The ‘7600GR also has a dedicated and stable line-out port; one of the reasons it’s still my receiver of choice for field recordings. Ergonomics and the lack of a tuning wheel/knob are my only real complaints about the ‘7600GR.

I almost snatched this deal up–if for no other reason than to have a spare unit–but I’d rather give someone here in the SWLing Post community a chance to add this to their collection. The ICF-SW7600GR typically sells for $130-140 new and $90-110 used. It appears there’s only one in stock.

Actually, if you’re clever (!) you can buy this ‘7600GR for $89.90 shipped…

Click here to view the open box Sony ICF-SW7600GR on Blinq.com.

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Woot Deal: Lenovo Rugged ThinkPad 11E-G2 11.6″ $199

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After several failed attempts to use a Dell 7″ Windows tablet with my SDRs and D-Star DVAP, I decided to purchase either a Surface Pro (like my pal Mark Fahey used at the SWLing Post DXpedition) or a small Windows notebook computer.

This morning, I noticed a good deal on Woot.com: a Lenovo Rugged ThinkPad 11E-G2 11.6″ for $199 US. Woot actually had an identical deal about two weeks ago and I passed on it–since then, I’ve read mostly positive reviews about this notebook.

I’m a fan of Intel processors, but I’m pretty sure this AMD quad core processor combined with the speed of an internal solid state drive should handle most of my SDR spectrum recording needs. The Thinkpad also has a USB 2 and USB 3 port for external storage.

This small notebook is also MIL-SPEC Tested and comes with a full one year Levono warranty.

So I bit the bullet about 15 minutes ago.

I have purchased several items through Woot (hard drives, tools, telephones, etc.) and have only had good experiences.

If you’re interested in this deal, you must act quickly. It will only last until Woot sells out of inventory or the end of the day today (whichever comes first).

Click here to view on Woot.com.

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A few radio deals worth consideration

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This morning, I checked a few retailers for “Cyber Monday” deals and took notes along the way. Some of the best finds came from Blinq, a retailer I’ve purchased from a number of times.

Note that Blinq products are often open box, used or refurbished–please check the product description before purchasing. On the plus side, Blinq makes the return process hassle-free if you’re not happy with the purchase.

Important: Today only, use the coupon code SUPERCYBER and Blinq will take an additional 15% off the listed price at checkout.

Tecsun PL-390 DSP Digital AM/FM/LW Shortwave Radio with Dual Speakers: $55.09
Sony SRF-18 Portable AM/ FM Radio: $25.99
Sony SRF-59 with Over the Head Stereo Headphones & Passive Portable Speakers – Plus Sony Rechargeable Batteries with Recharger: $37.99
Sony SRF-S84 SRF-S84/S Portable AM/FM Walkman Radio $34.59
Sangean LB-100 Compact AM/FM Ultra Rugged Radio Receiver $73.69

There are many more radio listings on Blinq.com–use this search to help locate them. I also noted a number of Baofeng handheld transceivers and accessories.

After Peter’s assessment of the Sony SRF-18, I’m very tempted to purchase one.

The Sony SRF-59 package (above) is also very nice–especially since finding the recently discontinued ’59 for a good price is becoming more difficult.

Please comment if you note any other good radio deals today! At time of posting, most radio retailers haven’t updated their sites since Black Friday.

Updates

Ron notes that “CountyComm has extended their ‘buy a GP5, get the 17 buck custom
carry case for free’ offer through today, November 30th.”

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Elad FDM-S2 on sale $499 US

Ken’s low-profile, low-cost vertical antenna

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Ken’s antenna “deployed” in his back yard.

SWLing Post reader, Ken Hansen (N2VIP), writes:

A few months ago I purchased a couple S9V18 18′ vertical antennas for $65 at cheapham.com, with the intention of deploying a quick HF aerial at my HOA-laden home for ham radio use. I found they work great for SWL.

The S9V18 antenna is made to slip over a 1″ o.d. pipe driven into the ground at least a foot, with 12″ of the pipe rising off the ground. You can pound a two foot pipe half-way into the ground, or do as I did and fill a bucket with cement and stick the pipe in that half-way.

This is a ‘close-up’ of the bucket. Note the plate the ground radials are attached to–it’s from Home Depot, it’s a bus bar designed to bond the ground wire for each circuit in a breaker box.

After adding a reasonable ground plane of 8x 14 ga wire cut about 15′ long I hooked up a 4:1 balun and ran it to my Kenwood TS-570D.

What I found was the aerial not only worked well on 20 meters, it also made a great shortwave aerial! Stations were booming in here in Texas at night.

The antenna slides over the pipe sticking out of the concrete in the bucket. Here is a picture of the bucket before the antenna base is slipped over it.

My ‘discovery’ was that a nice, modest vertical antenna can really improve reception on SW bands…

Cheapham.com sells the S9V18 antenna on close out for $35/each, the 2′ pipe is a few dollars more, add in a bit of coax and a modest ground plane and you can really up your SWL ‘game’.

Antenna on closeout:

http://www.cheapham.com/s9-v18-18-vertical-antenna-closeout/

I suggest anyone buying this antenna seriously consider buying additional clamps at the same time, they are just a few dollars and will help extend the life of the antenna:

http://www.cheapham.com/products/S9V18-Replacement-Clamps.html

For shortwave broadcast listening a direct connection without balun would probably suffice, but I used an LDG 4:1 balun to support multi-band ham transmitting:

http://www.cheapham.com/rba-4-1-voltage-balun/

Just thought I’d share my ‘discovery’…

And we thank you for sharing your discovery, Ken! This is a great, simple solution for those who cannot erect a permanent “high-profile” antenna. I’m especially impressed with how budget-friendly your solution is, Ken.

Post Readers: If you have other suggestions for inexpensive low-profile antennas, please contact me or comment below!

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Tecsun R-911: $15.80 with free shipping at Amazon

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Many thanks to SWLing Post reader “RCXB” who comments:

“Another radio deal, if you don’t mind the writing in Chinese, you can get a Tecsun R-911 for just $15.80… A couple dollars cheaper than its already-cheap re-branded Kaito WRX911 namesake that everyone raves about.”

As of this morning, there are still Tecsun R-911s in stock at this price.

While the “911” series of analog shortwave receivers (i.e. Tecsun R-911, Kaito WRX911) isn’t going to win any awards for outstanding performance, they are capable little radios for the price.

I have a Kaito WRX911 (above) and often use it as a low-end benchmark for inexpensive portables like the DE321. The WRX911 is a decent little mediumwave receiver as well; I especially love the fact that it does a decent job nulling unwanted signals as you turn the radio body.

Perhaps the best thing about the ‘911 series is that they’re dead simple to use. No manual needed. Just turn it on and tune around!

If you’re looking for a great shortwave receiver, skip this deal. If you’re looking for an inexpensive radio to keep in your car’s glove compartment, home emergency kit, or camping pack, click here to check out the Tecsun R-911 on Amazon.

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