What would you use?
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k9rzz
Member
Apples and oranges. One is $99 the other is $250 ... you get what you pay for.
What's more important to YOU - low price and small size, or more performance regardless of size?
What's more important to YOU - low price and small size, or more performance regardless of size?
majoco
Stirrer
What for?
Broadcast, utility, CW, data, hams.
Where for?
Desktop, bedside, portable?
Are you looking to buy - there's many more choices than that - and the price is inflated by having the Grundig badge on the front. They're made by a contractor in China. Search EPay and you'll find the original article at half the price.
Broadcast, utility, CW, data, hams.
Where for?
Desktop, bedside, portable?
Are you looking to buy - there's many more choices than that - and the price is inflated by having the Grundig badge on the front. They're made by a contractor in China. Search EPay and you'll find the original article at half the price.
I Would be using it for SWL, Ham and AM Dx'ing.
size does matter a bit. I don't want a monster SW radio but also do not want a radio the size of a pea.
Does anyone have a Grundig G6? How is it? I know it is newer than the sat 500 with out the synch.
size does matter a bit. I don't want a monster SW radio but also do not want a radio the size of a pea.
Does anyone have a Grundig G6? How is it? I know it is newer than the sat 500 with out the synch.
Token
Member
The Sattelit 500 is not a Chinese made rebadge. But then again the 500 has not been made since about 1992 (at a guess, at least that is the last time I remember seeing one new), so I would think the OP is talking about a used radio in that case.
The 500 would be my specific choice, it has a very good front end compared to the G6, much less prone to images and overload. And it just has a better feel to it, more substantial and pleasing.
T!
Token
Member
And that is the problem. The G6 is very sensitive, in fact too sensitive when used with a good external antenna. Many portables are to try and make up for working on the small whip antenna.
Yes, there is such a thing as "too sensitive", particularly when combined with poor image rejection, such as most micro or ultra light portables. Perhaps a better term would be it is possible to be needlesly sensitive and thus cause other operational problems.
If you do not intend to use an external antenna then there are many portables that will work OK. But, you also will not receive a lot of what you want to hear. The best, most expensive, whiz-bang radio in the World will not perform worth a darn without a good antenna, and a 2 foot whip is not a good antenna at HF frequencies.
Also, you asked in your other thread about military communications. To that end you will need a good antenna, milcoms are not often 500 kW powerhouses such as is found for SWL BC stations.
What you want is a solid front end, good image rejection, high stability, and good filtering, all with "enough" sensitvity. The 500 will deliver those better than the G6, however the 500 does have a couple of issues. The AMS is not very good, and it tends to overload to instability on SSB signals if you are not carefull.
If you are going to use the radio you select with the built in whip or at best a few feet of random wire than the G6 might be the ticket. But then you will not hear much of what you want. If you plan to use a good antenna, something with real aperature, then the 500 would be my choice...at least if I was making the decision and only could select from among those two. Then again, I would not be limiting myself to those two radios if I could help it. I am not saying theya re bad, just that they can be bettered....quite easily, but nothing is free, performance cost.
T!
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Last weekend Fry's in CA was selling the Grundig 4000 for $26.33. I bought one but am thinking I should have gotten another before they're gone.
Last weekend Fry's in CA was selling the Grundig 4000 for $26.33. I bought one but am thinking I should have gotten another before they're gone.
Thanks for the info. I favor the Satellit 500 more than the G6. I just thought that if the G6 Was "Newer" thus better but I guess not... It is small tho...
I did have a Sat 800, Eton E1 and a Sat750 and I was not impressed with them so I sold them on ebay.
And seeing the reviews on eham about the 500 VS G6, The 500 wins.
Actually the reviews for the Sat 500 is BETTER than the above radio's... All of them.
AMS? The sync is not like the 700 but I could live with that.
The 500 only has 42 memories but I could also live with that, I never used the memories in the other radio's anyways.
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But that is walk in not internet, Right?
I heard those are good but I'm sticking to the Satellit 500.
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Correct (walk-in). For $26.33 I couldn't pass it up. Threw the reel-out longwire up on the 4th floor of my hotel room the other day and amateur SSB on 40 and 80 rolled in. Too many nearby power lines generating hash, though.
Correct (walk-in). For $26.33 I couldn't pass it up. Threw the reel-out longwire up on the 4th floor of my hotel room the other day and amateur SSB on 40 and 80 rolled in. Too many nearby power lines generating hash, though.
I have my satellit 500, I was thinking of selling it.
That is why I asked "What would you use" B/C the satellit 500 is great but I thought that a newer radio would be better.
I bought a G6 at Rat shack for 39.00 and tried it against the 500.
the noise floor on the G6 is ok but I think the Sat 500 is more of a worthy radio, it felt like the G6 as a toy compared to the sat 500.
I was (for the first time in SW) undecicive weather to keep the 500 or sell it.
I decided to keep it and brought the G6 back.
I've had the bug to buy a new radio and sell the 500 but dealing with the sat 800, eton e1 and the satellit 750 it seems to me that the 500 pulls in more stations than the above radio's even tho it is 21 years old.
I was not happy with the 800, e1, 750 each for a particular reasons.
When I bought the Satellit 500 off of ebay it was not working, I found the problem and fixed it it was a simple fix. The 500 off the whip is more sensitive and low noise floor than the 800, e1, and 750 and the 750 had image problems with SW and mw.
I guess I was having a problem with the latest and greatest syndrome. I bought a power supply from RS and the 500 hooked up to the mains made alot of noise too much so I keep it on batteries and the noise is now where near the power supply plugged in.
I did have a Sanyo Rp-8880, I've had it since I was 11, that was 1978, and it just stopped working this past summer and it would of cost about 300.00 to fix but the front end on those radio's were not good but it did work for 33 years... Great radio BTW and the tecsun was ok but sold that also.
The last picture is of my shack but I sold the grecom scanner and the grundig G5, the g5 was ok but sounded tinny.
So I have the Satellit 500, Radio Shack pro 107 and the Grundig mini 300.
eHam gave the 500 5.0 reviews.. http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/525
That is why I asked "What would you use" B/C the satellit 500 is great but I thought that a newer radio would be better.
I bought a G6 at Rat shack for 39.00 and tried it against the 500.
the noise floor on the G6 is ok but I think the Sat 500 is more of a worthy radio, it felt like the G6 as a toy compared to the sat 500.
I was (for the first time in SW) undecicive weather to keep the 500 or sell it.
I decided to keep it and brought the G6 back.
I've had the bug to buy a new radio and sell the 500 but dealing with the sat 800, eton e1 and the satellit 750 it seems to me that the 500 pulls in more stations than the above radio's even tho it is 21 years old.
I was not happy with the 800, e1, 750 each for a particular reasons.
When I bought the Satellit 500 off of ebay it was not working, I found the problem and fixed it it was a simple fix. The 500 off the whip is more sensitive and low noise floor than the 800, e1, and 750 and the 750 had image problems with SW and mw.
I guess I was having a problem with the latest and greatest syndrome. I bought a power supply from RS and the 500 hooked up to the mains made alot of noise too much so I keep it on batteries and the noise is now where near the power supply plugged in.
I did have a Sanyo Rp-8880, I've had it since I was 11, that was 1978, and it just stopped working this past summer and it would of cost about 300.00 to fix but the front end on those radio's were not good but it did work for 33 years... Great radio BTW and the tecsun was ok but sold that also.
The last picture is of my shack but I sold the grecom scanner and the grundig G5, the g5 was ok but sounded tinny.
So I have the Satellit 500, Radio Shack pro 107 and the Grundig mini 300.
eHam gave the 500 5.0 reviews.. http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/525
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gpsblake
Member
I can comment on the G6. It does very well with international broadcasters and my unit never overloads even with a 50 foot random wire. And the 5khz/1khz tuning option is very good.
The three cons, is that (at least my unit) only has USB working right and you have to tune 2khz higher than the freq to receive it. And that the speaker doesn't sound real good although it's a small radio. It does rather good using headphones. And the FM reception isn't that good, again this is a small radio.
I just wonder if it is my unit or a flaw in the G6 that prevents LSB reception (hams in lower bands).
The three cons, is that (at least my unit) only has USB working right and you have to tune 2khz higher than the freq to receive it. And that the speaker doesn't sound real good although it's a small radio. It does rather good using headphones. And the FM reception isn't that good, again this is a small radio.
I just wonder if it is my unit or a flaw in the G6 that prevents LSB reception (hams in lower bands).
I could not pickup SSB when I had the the G6. But on my Sat 500 I can really really good.
I did a comparson between both and the sat 500 wins.
gpsblake
Member
well on the three categories, yes the 500 would win easily. But your comparing a radio the size of a pack of cards to a radio that's 10 times larger. But the G6 will pick up every broadcaster the 500 (and every other radio on the planet) the same. Perhaps even more with the G6 consider how sensitive it is. And the battery life of the G6 is just plain awesome.
I personally would recommend the G5 or Kaito De1103. That does an incredible job on broadcasting, and both USB and LSB signals. Easy to take the output and convert faxes, PSK31, and other formats via software. Wide-narrow switch works very well. You can also plug it into a very nice stereo system like a Bose, and get outstanding sound.
I had a G5, I bought it at radio shack for $31.00, the salesperson said the bezel was scratched found out it had the plastic sticker for protection peeled it off and it was like new, but compared to my 500 it was noisey as hell.
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