KB2GOM
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Darn good suggestion!
Which currently available SW portable is most sensitive . . . on its own whip antenna?
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KB2GOM
Active Member
Excellent info. Thanks!
The Main tuning knob in AM Mode is 5 Khz steps I see no way to change it
The Fine Tuning in AM Mode is 1 Khz
In SSB
Main =1 Khz
Fine tuning = 10 Hz
If I find a way to change it from 5Khz to 1 I will post here
The Fine Tuning in AM Mode is 1 Khz
In SSB
Main =1 Khz
Fine tuning = 10 Hz
If I find a way to change it from 5Khz to 1 I will post here
I've had decent results the the Eton Executive Satellit on its whip antenna. Overall though, I've never really been satisfied with any portables performance on a whip only. I always have a length of wire that I can deploy ... even if sitting on the front porch. 
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Mike
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Mike
I've noticed this on my ATS909X (not the X2), as well. The odd thing is that if I switch the tone control from "Normal" to "News", it often greatly increases the volume on LSB, especially on weak signals, while cutting some of the high tones and noise. I think I've noticed the same thing on USB, for that matter. It's is even more noticeable while running the radio on battery power, but I usually run it on the AC adapter. At any rate, I always have to crank down the volume before I change to one of the AM SWBC stations, or the audio will be loud enough to damage my hearing (I always listen with earbuds).
I forgot to mention that the only time the ATS-909X seems deaf on HF (a common complaint) is when I run it on batteries with just the whip antenna. Using the 23-ft. wire antenna helps a bit in that case. On AC power, however, it makes no difference whether I connect the wire antenna or not, the receiver seems much more sensitive, so I guess battery power doesn't provide enough voltage, even with brand-new alkalines.
What the Sangean really suffers from is the lack of noise reduction. A narrower IF filter, or some sort of passband tuning would help with that. So would a noise blanker for static from appliances and car ignitions, or anything else that generates sparks. The noise blanker on the R75 even silences some lightning crashes. I never shut it off.
What the Sangean really suffers from is the lack of noise reduction. A narrower IF filter, or some sort of passband tuning would help with that. So would a noise blanker for static from appliances and car ignitions, or anything else that generates sparks. The noise blanker on the R75 even silences some lightning crashes. I never shut it off.
KB2GOM
Active Member
I've had decent results the the Eton Executive Satellit on its whip antenna. Overall though, I've never really been satisfied with any portables performance on a whip only. I always have a length of wire that I can deploy ... even if sitting on the front porch.
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Mike
If you are listening in SSB, do you get muting between the tuning steps . . . "chuffing"?
KB2GOM
Active Member
I like your avatar image. Does the name Janos Skorzeny strike a familiar note?
I have the service manual for the ATS-909X. The technical specs are there in detail, although difficult for a non-tech person like myself to understand.
Of course, I've no intention of ever poking around inside the radio, especially without the necessary test equipment, not to mention technical expertise. Besides, there's nothing wrong with it. Any flaws it might have are there by design.
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It does mute between steps in both Fast and Slow tuning mode. There is no muting in Fine mode. There does not appear to be a decent explanation of exactly what Fine mode is other than it's +/- 100. Past that, then your guess is as good as mine. I've yet to see the displayed freq change in Fine mode, so my assumption is that the Fine tuning is +/- .01 .
Thanks for that tip!
News Setting helps a lot on LSB/USB! (On my 909X2)
I wonder if DSP is causing that behavior. I'm still not clear on where DSP is used in the radio, i.e. just the audio, or perhaps the IF circuits, as well. At any rate, it looks like the upgrade has added some features without changing the basic circuit design of the 909X. Does yours suddenly reboot the CPU occasionally? Mine does that once a month or so, especially if I've been doing a lot of dial spinning.
I have never had that happen
It just shuts off spontaneously, but doesn't reset the memories or cause any problems, except for having to reset the clock once I power it back up. This is a lot like the well-known "blue screen of death" in Windows, which happens infrequently, but at random times. It doesn't harm any data, but I can't establish a pattern for when it happens. The computer seems to have a mind of its own. Fortunately my own mind doesn't behave that way, or I'd be in big trouble.
Just happened to me yesterday, for the first time on my 909X. Really caught me off guard.
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Mike
Must be a bug in the firmware. At least I now know it isn't just my radio. Does yours have firmware version P01? That's what mine has. You can find out by pressing the Enter button while the radio is off.
This is one of the things that I don't like about these modern digital radios. Radio technology may have greatly advanced in the years since I discovered shortwave radio in the late 1950s, but at least those old analog radios weren't subject to the whims of microprocessors.
KB2GOM
Active Member
Well, you know what the coders say: "To err is human, but to really screw things up, you need a wicked fast processor."
KB2GOM
Active Member
FWIW, I have had no incidents of my CCrane Skywave spontaneously switching off.
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