Category Archives: Radios

The Sony ICF-7600 analog receiver on eBay $49.99 shipped

Only last week a reader had asked me about a good analog shortwave receiver for her grandfather. Among a few other receivers (including the Sony ICF-SW11) I had recommended the original Sony ICF-7600 with the caveat that it’s a little long in the tooth (i.e. vintage), but would likely give him years of enjoyment if in good shape. I’ve only used this analog version of the ‘7600 once, but recall that it seemed quite sensitive.

This morning, I noticed the ‘7600 above–it comes with the original box and is being sold by a Seller with 100% positive feedback. I almost purchased it just to do a mini review, but am currently trying to downsize my collection, not add to it! (I also have a Tecsun S-8800 on the way for review.)

Click here to view on eBay.

Tom notes decrease in price of Grundig Satellit 750 on Amazon

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Tom Ally, who writes:

[Grundig/Eton] radios are going back down in price. [This] isn’t the lowest price I have seen for the Grundig Satellit 750, but now is a good time to get this model if you don’t have it as that is not a bad price!

Click here to view on Amazon.

Thanks for the tip, Tom! $296.99 US shipped is indeed a good price. Most retailer list them well into the $300 price range at time of posting.

Post Readers: Do you own the ‘750? Please comment on its performance.

Stampfl products on eBay

This morning, I noticed that the Swiss radio and Morse key manufacturer, Stampfl, is selling some of their products on eBay.

In particular, they’ve listed the Junior 1 shortwave radio receiver kit (above) and the STM-11 Classic Morse Code straight key (below).

Stampfl was founded by Heinz Stampfl (HB9KOC)–I’ve been following his work the past few years, especially fascinated with his SDR designs which are (sadly) only experimental and have never been put into production.

I’m particularly fascinated with the MICRO SWRX:

And the EXPERIMENTAL SWRX:

I’ve written Heinz more than once encouraging him to put these on the market. Of course, it’s an easy request coming from a consumer who doesn’t have to front the production costs and inherent overhead!

Heinz, if you’re reading this, why not do a Kickstarter campaign for one of your fine SDR designs?!

The Junior 1 receiver kit

The Stampfl Junior 1 shortwave receiver kit looks like a lot of fun not only to operate, but also to build and I’m sorely tempted to purchase one!

Here’s a video of the Junior 1 in action:

Click here to view on YouTube.

Click here to download the Junior 1 manual.

The Junior 1 is listed as an auction on eBay with a starting bid of $50 with $25 Economy Shipping to the US. The BuyItNow price is $70.

I think $95 US shipped is a fair price for what looks like a fascinating little receiver kit designed by an (obviously) talented engineer.

Click here to view on eBay.

Post readers: Have any of you built the Junior 1 or purchased any of Stampfl’s Morse Code keys? Please comment!

Mark spots shortwave radios in the series “Helix”

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mark Hirst, who writes:

I spotted a Sony ICF-SW7600GR in episode 5 of the Netflix bio-thriller ‘Helix‘:

On a roll, I spotted another shortwave radio [in a different scene].

You’ve got sharp eyes, Mark! Thank you for sharing.

Can anyone identify the solid-state receiver in the second screen shot?

I know I’ve seen this model before, but I can’t recall the make or manufacturer.

Propagation-Triggered Spectrum Recording

Many thanks to Jon Hudon of SDRplay who shared the following on the SDRplay Facebook page:

One of the SDRplay user community, Jukka, has started an interesting discussion on what he has called ‘propagation-triggered recording’ – he outlines the concept, and what he is doing, on our forum – see http://www.sdrplay.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1839

The idea is that you monitor signals to determine if conditions are particularly good and can thereby trigger an I/Q recording of a whole band during that particular propagation high point -Jukka welcomes more comments on this idea.

Many thanks, Jon. I would certainly be a fan of this as so many times I’ve missed fantastic band openings while travelling. It would be nothing short of brilliant to come home to automatic SDR spectrum recordings taken during prime propagation. At the moment, propagation is so dismal, rare openings are worth recording!

As Jon points out above, check out the SDRplay forum for more details.

Another review of the Tecsun S-8800

UPDATE: Click here to read our full review of the re-engineered Tecsun S-8800. Note that the review below refers to a first production run S-8800e model. 


In reply to our Tecsun S-8800e overview, SWLing Post contributor, Hymefly, comments:

I own this radio. Its performance on AM and shortwave is better than my Kaito 1103 and Sangean ATS-909x. My Grundig Satellit 750 beats it on SW. The 8800 is a bit better on AM than the 750, though.

The 8800 and my GE Super Radio 1 are just about equal on AM. The 8800 beats my Panasonic RF-2200 on SW, but not on AM. I didn’t compare it to my other radios on FM, as I really don’t listen to that band nor have any interest in it.

I did try out the FM band, though. It seems to have good sensitivity. The speaker provides good sound quality, but not “Super Radio” good. Display looks outdated. Not a fan of those amber/yellowish displays with spotty screen coverage. Not even close to the display on my 909x. But then again, no other radio comes close to the 909x’s display. Why can’t manufacturers implement nice bright white lit displays like the 909x?

The remote works ok. By the way, all comparisons were done utilizing each radios’ own built-in AM and telescopic antennas for SW. Overall, I can compare it more closely to the RF-2200, but with 8800 having slightly less sensitivity on AM and better on SW. The two even look almost the same. The 8800 seems to be an updated and refined modern design borrowed from the RF-2200. The RF-2200 has a more robust solid built, though. Overall, I give the 8800 a score of 7.5 [out of 10].

Thank you for your input, Hymefly. I’m pretty impressed the new S-8800 even comes close to the performance of the Super Radio 1 and the Panasonic RF-2200. I’m very curious what the price will be when the S-8800 hits eBay.

TECSUN S-8800e availability in Europe and Bertrand’s first impressions

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bertrand Stehle (F6GYY), who writes:

Hi Thomas,

The new SSB portable receiver TECSUN S-8800 has been available from Germany, since the beginning of 2017.

Supplier:https://www.wellenjagd.com/ has the S-8800e, a Europeen version.

I have one unit here and also being an owner of the PL-880, [I would describe it as] a better PL-880 with more features.

DSP filters on SSB: 0.5 – 1.2 – 2.3 – 3.0 and 4.0 kHz

DSP Filters on AM: 2.3 – 3.0 – 4.0 and 6.0 kHz

Long telescoping Antenna L = 92 cm

BNC Antenna socket

AM External antenna (500 Ohm ) on panel….with an internal /external antenna switch.

Main and fine tuning [much] like the PL-880 , but all metallic buttons, bigger and of better quality.

VFO main tuning knob is large and has a good feeling.
Line out is stereo ( 2 channels ) L and R
Separate bass and treble control
2X LiH Batteries 18650 ( no external power supply possible, no 12V socket). Batteries can be charged while the rx st still in use.

On this S-8800e–my first impressions:

  • Very sensitive on longwave… ( PL-880 was not )
  • Very good copy of ssb stations
  • RX does not get so quickly overloaded as the PL-880 does…
  • Quite bigger than the PL-880 => 27 cm X 17 cm, about 7cm thick.

Wow–many thanks for sharing your first impressions, Bertrand!

I’ve been waiting quite a while for the S-8800 to be released. I will have one on order soon and will do some comparisons with the PL-880 and PL-660.

As you discover more about this receiver, please share your impressions with us!

Anyone else have the S-8800?  Please comment!