I have an ongoing project to compare some PLL Superhet radios I have, a Grundig G4000A, Kaito KA-1101, Sangean ATS-909, Tecsun PL-660 and Tecsun PL-990. I’ve had some bad luck with my last TWO visits to the park, interrupted by lawn mowing. Things are moving slowly, but I am collecting impressions.
I went out on the patio about 14:05 UTC (10:05 AM EDT) here in Palmyra, Virginia, with the purpose of comparing the group. I typically start any comparison process like this by doing a quick band scan with my Qodosen DX-286 because I want to see what’s on the air before getting all the radios out to test. I use that radio because its scans are fast, sensitive and accurate.
Today I did the scan, using the modest telescopic antenna on the DX-286; the first station that was stored was a somewhat weak one on 6000 kHz. It wasn’t strong enough to pick up the language but clearly people were talking.
I grabbed my Sangean ATS-909, tuned to 6000 and there was nothing. On the PL-660 and PL-990 nothing. Was this some spurious signal? I plugged in my WUP antenna (20 feet wire up a tree) and there was nothing on the ATS-909, but after a while I heard something faint on the PL-990. Yes, it was a real station.
After time, the signal got stronger, and with the external antenna, all the radios eventually got it. I could tell the program was in Spanish, so I’m calling it Radio Habana Cuba (not China Radio International). Interestingly, the previous owner of my Sangean ATS-909 had programmed 6000 kHz on a memory page labeled “Cuba.”
The signal improved until it abruptly shut down around 14:22. Clearly, the DX-286 outclassed the other radios in this comparison.
Here’s a video. The signal gets stronger towards the end.
I want to do some testing with the MLA-30+ on these older radios. I gave it a shot this morning with the Sangean ATS-909 and received a good signal from Radio Marti (presumably broadcasting from the USAGM facility in Greenville, North Carolina). Here’s what that sounded like.
Thanks to a contributor on Official SWL Channel Facebook group, I learned of an interesting target, Radio Nikkei from Japan on 6055 kHz. I got up really early this morning and caught it in the back yard on my Wire Up The Tree (WUT) antenna.
I’ve receive a signal generator that will allow me to do some more precise testing. Shortwave radio stations fade in and out and that makes things difficult.