Sangean ATS-909X2 First Impressions & Bandwidth Info

[W8WCA]

Another note: At some times when I put my hand over the display the volume does change (up)

I only notice it when there is no signal: Like now for 3330.0 (CHU) no sign of chu but a bit of a tone and it increases when I put my hand over the display

All this (Low Volume on SSB - one Filter on SSB - and I will still keep it!

I just like this!

 

[GB46]

It is not in the book but it also has a mixed display where it shows both but no LabelView attachment 100100

Maybe they could have made that display scroll sideways to fit everything in. That's what happens in the world clock feature when a city's name is too long to display. It would have been nice even without the S-unit and S/N. I've had to be creative in coming up with abbreviations for my page names. They're organized in categories, and I reserved one page for stations I haven't yet identified or that don't fit in any of the categories. "Miscellaneous" had to be shortened to "Misc.", but then I decided on "Whatever", which fits perfectly.

 

[GB46]

Another note: At some times when I put my hand over the display the volume does change (up)

I only notice it when there is no signal: Like now for 3330.0 (CHU) no sign of chu but a bit of a tone and it increases when I put my hand over the display

All this (Low Volume on SSB - one Filter on SSB - and I will still keep it!

I just like this!

Sounds like the radio may be using you as an antenna. The odd thing about mine is that if I'm on battery and decide to use AC, the signal increases as I approach the power jack with the adapter plug, even before I actually insert it. Proximity does weird things with my handheld scanner, too. It covers HF (only in AM mode), and a weak signal will get a lot stronger if I bring the scanner near my other radios, even if they're off at the time.

Anyway, I like mine, too; the few shortcomings are trivial.

As for CHU, I can never pick it up on 3330 here, and the few times I hear it on 7850 it's still quite weak. 14670 rarely comes in, even when things are hopping on the 20 meter ham band.

 

[W8WCA]

As for CHU, I can never pick it up on 3330 here, and the few times I hear it on 7850 it's still quite weak. 14670 rarely comes in, even when things are hopping on the 20 meter ham band.

Yes I rarely hear 14670 can't recall the last time even with my SDR-IQ or IC-7100 / 6BTV Vetrical or outdoor off center fed dipole

 

[GB46]

In my case it's because I'm partially blocked to the east by several mountain ranges, which makes reception from Ontario pretty difficult. Also, European stations, if they come in at all here, are usually very weak, even when the gray line is available on both ends. Most of those signals have to reach me via the polar route, too. My best shot is to the south or southwest, with the exception of Brazil in the southeast direction. Naturally, Asian stations are pretty strong during our morning hours, as well as New Zealand.

 

[W8WCA]

I have a Jamesco Linier Wall Wort Power Supply coming next week will report on that

 

[hth999]

Something to watch out for. I just got my 909x2 today. In the manual on page 9, under " Setting the Tuning Step " There is a paragraph pertaining to Quick Tuning. You hold down the enter button and at the same time start tuning with tuning wheel. In SW, it jumps to 100 kHz steps. Sounds good right ? But mine got stuck in this feature. I could not get it out of this mode. So I had to reset the radio, now it's back to normal. I went back to shortwave and did the same procedure, and this time it worked okay. In other words, once I let go of both buttons tuning resumed to normal. Just watch out for this. If anyone has a way to get OUT of this quick tuning, please let me know. I would have call Sangean, but it's Sunday.

 

[GB46]

I have a Jamesco Linier Wall Wort Power Supply coming next week will report on that

Does the adapter that came with your 909X2 put out DC instead of the AC to AC one that came with my 909X? If it's AC to DC, then it's one of those switching adapters. They sure are noisy, like the wall wart that was included with my R75 more than 20 years ago; a terrible choice by Icom. I ended up replacing it with a 4 amp linear supply, which is nice and quiet.

 

[W8WCA]

Mine is 9VDC Center Positive

 

[GB46]

Mine is 9VDC Center Positive

At some time in the past that was changed from AC to AC, and it has caused some confusion. My manual calls for a 9VAC supply, which came with the radio and works fine, but the jack is labeled 9VDC in, with the center pin indicated as positive. The manual is correct in this case, but it incorrectly states that the slow tuning step on SSB is 40 kHz (Yikes!) when it's actually 40 Hz. Luckily their advertising had it correct, otherwise nobody would have bought the radio. There needs to be better communication between the people who write these manuals and the radio's designers.

Manuals are always a source of amusement for me. A warning is printed very prominently on the outside of the back cover: "Shock hazard - do not open" So maybe I shouldn't have opened that manual.

 

[perseus68]

Interesting review here:

Sangean ATS-909X2 AM/LW/FM/SW/Air Radio

The ATS-909X2 is the third generation of a well-known series of top-of-the-line multiband portable radios from Sangean. The immediate predecessor was the ATS-909X which replaced the earlier ATS-909…

radiojayallen.com

 

[ka3jjz]

And another review, thanks to SWLing.com for the alert. This one from Dave Zantow N9EWO....

N9EWO Review - Sangean ATS-909X2

Sangean ATS-909X2 Review

www.qsl.net

Apart from some of the bandwidth choices, it seems Sangean hit a near-home run with this portable.

Mike

 

[Boombox]

Good to hear that the 909X2 is a good performer..... Just in time for the sunspots. This may be our last cycle to hear SW broadcast stations.

 

[W8WCA]

Oh I need to post a update:

Turns out my 909X2 was defective and same for it's AC Adapter!

I rec'd the new 909X2 and it had no hum at all with the supplied AC Adapter and the volume does not change when i place my hand over the speaker/Keypad area

 

[ka3jjz]

Dan H's review of the Sangean with the updated firmware (ver 073)

Sangean ATS-909X2: Dan’s final evaluation post firmware upgrade

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who provides his final evaluation of the new Sangean ATS-909X2: This should be the last update for my multi-part introduction to the new Sangean ATS-90…

swling.com

Note that Universal - which I thought had closed down - is listed as a 'retailer'. I will write Tom on this....Mike

 

[ka3jjz]

This is what I got from Tom, but don't expect this to last long...

Good question: So Universal is still in business but Fred and Barb essentially operate out of home. Their inventory primarily includes shortwave portables, radios, and accessories. No more transceivers from the big three.

I don't think they'll do this for many years, but I got the impression they may continue operating for a little while.

Mike

 

[GB46]

Good to hear that the 909X2 is a good performer..... Just in time for the sunspots. This may be our last cycle to hear SW broadcast stations.

I'm beginning to get slightly better reception of them in the evening than usual. The Voice of Greece is often usable now after being totally inaudible here for months at a time. Radio Romania International has recently hit S-9 at my location, though with the usual rapid fading.

 

[GB46]

Oh I need to post a update:

Turns out my 909X2 was defective and same for it's AC Adapter!

I rec'd the new 909X2 and it had no hum at all with the supplied AC Adapter and the volume does not change when i place my hand over the speaker/Keypad area

Great news! I'm surprised that your first one was defective, but I guess there can be a lemon in any product line, regardless of the price range or reputation. Cars are a prime example.

 

[ka3jjz]

Price drop on Amazon - per SWLing.com

Radio Deal: Sangean ATS-909X2 price drop on Amazon

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors, Toy Riedel and Robert Gulley, who note that the price of the Sangean ATS-909X2 has dropped to $259.49 on Amazon.com. Amazon pricing is dynamic, so could cha…

swling.com

Damn - and I'm still out of work!

Mike

 

[Boombox]

I'm beginning to get slightly better reception of them in the evening than usual. The Voice of Greece is often usable now after being totally inaudible here for months at a time. Radio Romania International has recently hit S-9 at my location, though with the usual rapid fading.

I got a grainy, unreadable Voice of Greece a few nights back. along with Cuba and Marti, and Brother Stair (on readable signals) in a couple places, but last night and during the late morning this morning it was basically zilch. 31, 25, 19 meters dead. Unreadable RNZI on 49 meters. Semi-readable Marti in the 25 meter band was all there was to cut through the static.

The fact that a few nights ago I heard maybe 15-20 signals at all (even though some weren't readable) was an improvement over what there's been most nights I've checked over the past four years.

Either way, I hope the sunspots improve before the stations disappear completely. If I had the spare money I'd consider getting a 909X2, but I don't have the spare money, and to be honest I probably need another SW radio like I need an extra hole in the head.... Still, nice to see Sangean putting out something new that apparently has some improvements.