Good morning!
I bought an Icom R-20 back in 2007, but I haven't used it much because so many of the agencies I monitor have gone digital. I fired it up for the first time in years yesterday, and I've been having fun playing with it again. It's a very decent receiver for AM and analog FM traffic, and mastering the complexity of its operating system can almost be enjoyable if you're in a good mood. If you're in a bad mood, you'll be better off digging out one of your old Radio Shack scanners.
At the moment, I'm using the three-AA-battery "spacer" that came with the radio, but I'd like to find the BC-149 A/D ac adapter that Icom made for it, but which was not included in the package I bought years ago.
I therefore have two questions:
1. Can anyone out there recommend an aftermarket ac adapter that can reliably replace the BC-149 A/D? HRO doesn't have them in stock anymore, and there seem to be quite a few online sources advertising replacements, but I don't want to experiment with an adapter that might fry my R-20. I suppose I could try calling Icom America . . .
2. Does anyone know if the radio will function properly if it's powered by an ac adapter for long periods of time? The R-20's instruction manual says it "regularly charges the installed battery pack," but that doesn't mean it will not overcharge the battery pack if it's left on for long periods of time. I'm prepared to leave the AA-battery spacer in place or remove it altogether if I can let the R-20 run for hours on a good ac adapter.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
-Johnnie (KC5IGH)
I bought an Icom R-20 back in 2007, but I haven't used it much because so many of the agencies I monitor have gone digital. I fired it up for the first time in years yesterday, and I've been having fun playing with it again. It's a very decent receiver for AM and analog FM traffic, and mastering the complexity of its operating system can almost be enjoyable if you're in a good mood. If you're in a bad mood, you'll be better off digging out one of your old Radio Shack scanners.
At the moment, I'm using the three-AA-battery "spacer" that came with the radio, but I'd like to find the BC-149 A/D ac adapter that Icom made for it, but which was not included in the package I bought years ago.
I therefore have two questions:
1. Can anyone out there recommend an aftermarket ac adapter that can reliably replace the BC-149 A/D? HRO doesn't have them in stock anymore, and there seem to be quite a few online sources advertising replacements, but I don't want to experiment with an adapter that might fry my R-20. I suppose I could try calling Icom America . . .
2. Does anyone know if the radio will function properly if it's powered by an ac adapter for long periods of time? The R-20's instruction manual says it "regularly charges the installed battery pack," but that doesn't mean it will not overcharge the battery pack if it's left on for long periods of time. I'm prepared to leave the AA-battery spacer in place or remove it altogether if I can let the R-20 run for hours on a good ac adapter.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
-Johnnie (KC5IGH)
