Is this the TRX-305? We might not know until the Tokyo Ham Radio Fair.
According to Dave Zantow (N9EWO), AOR plans to announce two new products this year at the Tokyo Ham Radio Fair: the AR-DV1 receiver and the TRX-305 transceiver.
For more information, check out the news section onDave’s website.
SWLing Post reader, Ed, writes:
“It looks like the new SW/AM/FM/Air Skywave radio from C.Crane will be delayed according to their website. The new date for release will be October 31st. But, you can reserve yours now to avoid the rush that is sure to come.”
I hope to review this radio shortly after its release. Click here to view the CC Skywave on C.Crane’s website.
The CC Skywave is the latest shortwave portable from the manufacturer and retailer, C. Crane. While this radio’s form factor looks a lot like the CCRadio-SWP, you can tell, based on features, that this is a complete re-design internally. Indeed, the Skywave sports an NOAA weather radio–and an aviation band–as well as AM/FM and shortwave.
Here are the features C. Crane lists for the CC Skywave:
The Skywave is now available to order on the C. Crane website. Since availability is scheduled for July 14, 2014, ordering online is a means of reserving your unit. I would expect C. Crane to ship on time; this is a retailer with a good track record.
I do hope to review the Skywave in the coming weeks. Update: Click here to read a full review of the CC Skywave.
Regarding shortwave in automobiles, Andrea Borgnino points out that the Smart car (manufactured by Mercedes Benz) also has a shortwave radio option.
Check out the following video Andrea shares:
SWLing Post reader, Bob, has a relative who works for BMW in the United States. Recently, Bob learned that some models of BMWs shipped to South Africa have a shortwave radio option. He followed up with this photo of the radio display [see above].
Wow, what a fab idea! Not only would I love to have a factory-installed shortwave radio in my car, but I must admit that I love the simple design of this digital radio dial: elegant, clean, and just a tad retro and sci-fi, all at once.
Now if I could simply afford the BMW…Sigh!
Several SWLing Post readers have been asking about the availability of the new Etón shortwave radio product line.
I’m pleased to report that I can confirm these availability dates for retailers, suggesting that these Etón units may be ready to ship on these dates:
This morning, while scanning the 31 meter band, I noticed a DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) signal on 9,890 kHz. Normally, I ignore most DRM signals because the amount of signal strength needed to properly decode the mode (here in the US) is simply too low for pleasant, artifact-free copy.
Still, I thought I’d give the new Elad FDM-S2 a try, so I changed mode from AM to DRM.
To my amazement, the FDM-S2 quickly decoded the signal and produced excellent audio from Radio New Zealand International.
I assumed the decoding lock would not hold, but I was wrong; indeed, I believe there were only one or two significant drops in the 40+ minutes I listened. This may be a very good sign from the FDM-S2, even if propagation was above average.
I’m not a big DRM listener, but that’s mainly because there is so little to hear on the bands. The real test will be All India Radio in DRM–I’ve never managed to get a consistent lock on them from here in eastern North America.
Still, I’m pleased as punch that I can so easily copy RNZI–one of my favorite international broadcasters–in DRM.
Here’s a recording of the broadcast starting at 11:18 UTC on June 14, 2014. Click here to download the the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below: