Re: [IRCA] Sony SRF-M97 Ultralight Radio.. Not for Serious AM DX!

["Tim Kridel" <tim@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I'd like more info, too. I was considering the M97 not for DXing, but rather
for casual listening while walking or biking. So as long as I can pick up,
say, KMOX 120 miles away, that's about all of the DX ability I'd need.

I've seen a couple of reviews that have said that finish and construction
seem cheap, so I'd like some more input on that.

Thanks.

-----Original Message-----
From: irca-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:irca-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of satya@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tuesday, February 05, 2008 10:19 AM
To: Mailing list for the International Radio Club of America
Subject: Re: [IRCA] Sony SRF-M97 Ultralight Radio.. Not for Serious AM DX!

Hi Gary:

Sorry about the M97 - it sure looks good, though!  Like a cub reporter on
the lookout for information, would it be possible to get a full rating on
this tiny guy?  My guess is:

C Sensitivity
B Selectivity
B Nulling
B AGC
B Audio
C Defects (lotsa images?)
B Tuning noise (tuning muting and/or delay?)
A Quality control

Could you correct me where I'm wrong???

Thanks!

Kevin



> Hello All,
>
>      In the never-ending quest to separate the  contenders from the
> pretenders, a digital Sony SRF-M97 was recently purchased  from a Hong
> Kong vendor on
> eBay, at the rather inflated price of  $68.49 including shipping (but not
> nearly as inflated as Amazon's price of  $158.33 plus $8.38 shipping, from
> Wall
> Street Photo).   Unfortunately, high prices don't always indicate high
> performance.
>
>      The SRF-M97's big problem on AM is its  microscopic antenna.. less
> than
> 1 inch in length.  It just doesn't have the  RF circuitry to compensate
> for
> its tiny (3.25 x 1.3 x .6 inches)  cabinet.  Sensitivity is well off from
> the
> $15 SRF-59, and to make matters  worse, the SRF-M97 only tunes up to 1610
> kHz.
> This radio has fairly  decent selectivity and nulling ability, but that
> won't
> get you very far  without better sensitivity.
>
>      FM stereo performance seems to have been the  primary objective of
> Sony
> in this "Ultralighter" model, which actually does look  exactly the same
> size,
> shape and color of a cigarette lighter.  It has  decent FM sensitivity and
> audio quality for its size, making it the digital  equivalent of the
> SRF-S84, a
> similar-sized analog portable with the same  CXA1129 IC chip as the SRF-59
> (but nowhere near the SRF-59's performance).
>
>      In summary, unless you absolutely must have  one of the smallest FM
> stereo receivers around, it is recommended that you  pass on this "Made in
> China"
> model, and go for the superbly designed, Made in  Japan SRF-T615 instead.
>
>
>                  73,  Gary DeBock
>
>
>
> **************Biggest Grammy Award surprises of all time on AOL Music.
>
(http://music.aol.com/grammys/pictures/never-won-a-grammy?NCID=aolcmp0030000
00025
> 48)
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