C Crane CCRadio 3 CRANE AM/FM Radio Auto Alignment Procedure

[iMONITOR]

CCRadio 3 and CCRADIO-2E CRANE AM/FM Radio Auto Alignment Procedure


Important!!! I also recommend you perform the Auto Alignment Procedure as described in the manual. This will ensure top reception. I have tested several samples of the CC-2E and also the new CC-3 and all of them improved after this simple procedure. Here’s how:

Start with the radio on and tuned to the AM band.

Press and Hold the Clock button for about 4-5 seconds. The red WXA light will illuminate.

Tap the Clock button again. The radio will then start to align itself. The radio will begin to slowly count down from the top of the AM band down to 520.

Do not interrupt the process. It takes about 3 minutes to complete.

The last step is to press and release the reset button on the bottom of the radio with a paper clip when the alignment is complete.

[source]

Thank you Jay I somehow missed this information after purchasing my CCRadio 3

Bill

radiojayallen
Jay's Radio Reviews, Comparisons & Restorations

C. Crane CC-3 and CC-2E

CC Radio 3 – AM/FM/Weather/2 Meter Ham Band Radio With Bluetooth CC Radio 2E (Same Radio Without Bluetooth) C. Crane has added an upgrade to the CC-2E by adding Bluetooth in their new CC-3. I was l…

radiojayallen.com

 

[MDScanFan]

I bought a second hand 2E a while back and never received a manual. The only reason I knew about this procedure was from Jay's website. When I first applied the procedure I did notice a difference.

I love my 2E. It's the best AM portable I have. Probably the best FM portable I have as well.

 

[iMONITOR]

I bought a second hand 2E a while back and never received a manual. The only reason I knew about this procedure was from Jay's website. When I first applied the procedure I did notice a difference.

I love my 2E. It's the best AM portable I have. Probably the best FM portable I have as well.

I just did it this evening, haven't had time to test it yet. I've owned the CCR3 for about 6 months or so and I'm really impressed with it.

 

[Boombox]

Interesting. I wonder if there is a similar 'auto alignment' procedure for other DSP radios.

 

[MarkyM]

Interesting. I wonder if there is a similar 'auto alignment' procedure for other DSP radios.

I don't think so because I think what's happening here is that the radio is actually auto-tuning the built-in 8" "twin-coil" ferrite antenna for the selected frequency. Like if you somehow could have an automated motor drive on a Select-A-Tenna that would tune it's knob automatically for the frequency the radio is tuned to. I just got my CCR3 and it is by far the best MW radio I have ever had, nicely taking the place of my 35 year old GE Superradio II.

 

[Patch42]

I don't think so because I think what's happening here is that the radio is actually auto-tuning the built-in 8" "twin-coil" ferrite antenna for the selected frequency.

The auto alignment is different than auto-tuning the antenna. The CCR3/2E auto-tunes the antenna every time you change frequency.

Most radios have adjustments inside intended for peaking low frequency and high frequency reception. You typically inject a signal on a specific frequency and adjust the low frequency for max signal, then inject the high frequency signal and adjust that. You usually need to go back and forth between the two several times to get it just right. The auto alignment in the CCR3/2E is doing this for you automatically.

Given that it works through the whole frequency range it's possible it's determining and saving optimal settings for a lot more than just "high" and "low". The settings in a regular radio are usually a compromise that provides decent but non-optimal reception all across the dial. If the settings are done electronically under computer control, it's possible to have an optimal setting for every frequency. In normal use this probably isn't that much different than the normal compromise, but in fringe situations it should make a difference.

 

[MarkyM]

Ahh, OK, Thank you!

 

[N8FNR]

Got my CCra

CCRadio 3 and CCRADIO-2E CRANE AM/FM Radio Auto Alignment Procedure


Important!!! I also recommend you perform the Auto Alignment Procedure as described in the manual. This will ensure top reception. I have tested several samples of the CC-2E and also the new CC-3 and all of them improved after this simple procedure. Here’s how:

Start with the radio on and tuned to the AM band.

Press and Hold the Clock button for about 4-5 seconds. The red WXA light will illuminate.

Tap the Clock button again. The radio will then start to align itself. The radio will begin to slowly count down from the top of the AM band down to 520.

Do not interrupt the process. It takes about 3 minutes to complete.

The last step is to press and release the reset button on the bottom of the radio with a paper clip when the alignment is complete.

[source]

Thank you Jay I somehow missed this information after purchasing my CCRadio 3

Bill

radiojayallen
Jay's Radio Reviews, Comparisons & Restorations

C. Crane CC-3 and CC-2E

CC Radio 3 – AM/FM/Weather/2 Meter Ham Band Radio With Bluetooth CC Radio 2E (Same Radio Without Bluetooth) C. Crane has added an upgrade to the CC-2E by adding Bluetooth in their new CC-3. I was l…

radiojayallen.com

I got my CCradio 3 today from CCrane and did the Auto Alignment as I had also read about this on the RadioJayAllen site. But weirdly it is NOT in the manual, Ver 4.0.

https://ccrane.com/content/manuals/CCRadio-3-Enhanced-AM-FM-WX-2-Meter-Ham-Band-Radio-Instruction-Manual-2019.pdf

 

[Patch42]

Page 25.

 

[N8FNR]

Page 25.

Yeah I know. I have the PDF and for some reason it would not find the word "auto".

 

[Patch42]

They put it in a weird place. It should be with the regular instructions rather than buried in the FAQ.

 

[N8FNR]

They put it in a weird place. It should be with the regular instructions rather than buried in the FAQ.

Exactly. Since it should be done once you get the radio it should be one of the first pages.

 

[4nradio]

A DXer friend and I were discussing the alignment procedure last year. We both live in high signal areas in different states, and decided that the alignment can get "skewed" by strong local MW signals with our radios. We hit upon the idea of running the 2E/3 alignment routine with the radio inside of a shielded metal can.

I located a small metal trash can at a hardware store and bought it for this purpose. I placed the radio in the can, started the alignment, and as then quickly as I could I put the lid on the can. After waiting 3-4 minutes for the alignment to complete I took out the radio and tried using the automatic Twin Coil Tuning as usual. Voila! The radio settles down and peaks right on frequency nearly each and every time now, without "misses".

My guess is that the radio can more accurately peak and store its calibration values without interference from stong adjacent channels while in this DIY Faraday cage. Give it a try--maybe it'll improve the performance of the TC auto tuning on your CCradio 2E or 3 model.

 

[N8FNR]

A DXer friend and I were discussing the alignment procedure last year. We both live in high signal areas in different states, and decided that the alignment can get "skewed" by strong local MW signals with our radios. We hit upon the idea of running the 2E/3 alignment routine with the radio inside of a shielded metal can.

I located a small metal trash can at a hardware store and bought it for this purpose. I placed the radio in the can, started the alignment, and as then quickly as I could I put the lid on the can. After waiting 3-4 minutes for the alignment to complete I took out the radio and tried using the automatic Twin Coil Tuning as usual. Voila! The radio settles down and peaks right on frequency nearly each and every time now, without "misses".

My guess is that the radio can more accurately peak and store its calibration values without interference from stong adjacent channels while in this DIY Faraday cage. Give it a try--maybe it'll improve the performance of the TC auto tuning on your CCradio 2E or 3 model.

Great idea! I have some metal boxes and with try doing the calibration with them.

 

[N8FNR]

A DXer friend and I were discussing the alignment procedure last year. We both live in high signal areas in different states, and decided that the alignment can get "skewed" by strong local MW signals with our radios. We hit upon the idea of running the 2E/3 alignment routine with the radio inside of a shielded metal can.

I located a small metal trash can at a hardware store and bought it for this purpose. I placed the radio in the can, started the alignment, and as then quickly as I could I put the lid on the can. After waiting 3-4 minutes for the alignment to complete I took out the radio and tried using the automatic Twin Coil Tuning as usual. Voila! The radio settles down and peaks right on frequency nearly each and every time now, without "misses".

My guess is that the radio can more accurately peak and store its calibration values without interference from stong adjacent channels while in this DIY Faraday cage. Give it a try--maybe it'll improve the performance of the TC auto tuning on your CCradio 2E or 3 model.

I tied the calibration as you suggested and the radio seems quieter. I have a aluminum Halliburton case and I did the calibration in that.

 

[4nradio]

I'm glad to hear the shielding of the radio during its calibration helped out!

I have a Sangean PR-D3 at the moment (similar to the 2E, but with dual AM bandwidths). The D3 also benefits from the shielding during the alignment routine.