Re: [IRCA] [am] Palstar receiver

["Craig Healy" <bubba@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The Palstar was shipped back for repair and upgrade yesterday.  It was
replaced in the truck by a Kenwood TS-680 ham tranceiver.  Comparisons:

The sensitivity of the Palstar is better on the MW band (500-1600KHz) due to
an internal pad in the Kenwood.  Someday I'll figure where it is and remove
it.  Sensitivity on longwave and above 1600 is as good or better than the
Palstar.  The noise blanker is useful in the truck under some circumstances.
Tuning ease is about equal.  Overload resistance is about equal.

The two DX Engineering preamps make the Kenwood perfectly useable in the
truck.  Without them it's deaf as a post, especially on MW.

To be honest, I don't think that the advantages of the Kenwood are
significant enough for me to carve out room for a rig twice the size of the
Palstar.  When it comes back, the Kenwood is out. I do not believe that
there is any station that I can hear on the Kenwood that the Palstar could
not, and vice versa.  What has made the difference is the preamps and loop
antennas.  I have tried the Kenwood in the truck before, and it was useless.
Even semi-locals were not listenable.

I suppose I could try the Drake R8B in the truck, but that's somewhat larger
than the Kenwood, and easily two or three times the Palstar footprint.
Maybe for a one-shot deal sometime.

Craig Healy
Providence, RI

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