Re: [IRCA] New Portable Receiver?

[Guy Atkins <dx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Thomas,

I recently bought a ATS-909X and I like it a lot, especially after a couple
of modifications.

I removed the tuning wheel "detent", following the guidance in the files
section of the ATS-909X Yahoo Group. Most users of this radio find this mod
to be an improvement. Then I installed a 450 kHz I.F., 2.8 kHz Murata
filter as a pin-for-pin substitute for the stock narrow filter. It is ICOM
part number 2020001470, and costs about $10 from ICOM America in Bellevue,
WA. This filter was originally a narrow filter in the PCR-1000, PCR-1500,
and PCR-2500 ICOM receivers. It works great as an upgrade filter for the
ATS-909X however, and SSB modes perform even better now. The radio tunes in
40 Hz steps and the circuitry is definitely stable enough for SSB use.

There are further mods documented in the Yahoo Group, including one to
improve AGC performance on SSB with not too much impact on AM mode.

The even, bright white backlighting of the Sangean's LCD is the best I've
ever seen in a portable, and the radio is full of other nice touches too.
For instance, the radio has a built-in smart charger that can full charge
high capacity NiMh batteries in four hours, and then safely shut down the
charging... unlike other radios that use a simple trickle charge for many
hours on end. I'm using Sanyo Eneloop AA batteries in the ATS-909X and I
expect I'll find the combination very convenient.

I'm not into FM DXing, but the radio's FM section seems very good and I
find the RDS readout fun and helpful to use.

Some early reviews of this radio when it first came to market revealed a
few flaws and rough edges in its operation. These have been taken care of
through the newest firmware version (1.23).

Sound quality is excellent on the ATS-909X, too, and the radio obviously
benefits from low noise internal circuitry. Also, the Sangean is fairly
overload resistant and plays well with full size antennas, loops, and
random wires.

I've read that this radio responds very well to antenna tuners like your
Grove TUN4. Evidently this receiver likes a bit of a ground or
counterpoise, so keep that in mind if you buy one of these. Also, the 1/8"
jack for the antenna is configured differently for SW versus LW/MW
reception: use the TIP of a stereo plug for the external antenna wire when
using it on shortwave, and the RING position for MW and LW. This is
documented in the Sangean ATS-909X Yahoo Group and/or the Super ATS-909X
Yahoo Group.

73,

Guy Atkins
Puyallup, WA


------------------------------------

> Message: 5
> Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2013 14:43:19 -0500
> From: "Thomas F Giella NZ4O" <nz4o@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: "Medium Wave Circle" <mwcircle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,    "IRCA"
>         <irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: [IRCA] New Portable Receiver?
> Message-ID: <B1824931963F48BDB3DF354A46EEAAA6@Radio>
> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
>         reply-type=original
>
> I use a Sangean ATS-909 as my main portable radio when I'm out and about
> doing road side DXpeditions on LW, MW and SW. I'm looking to replace it
> with
> a new one that's a little more modern.
>
> At times I would also hook it up to my amateur radio antennas here in the
> radio shack via a Grove TUN4 preselector. I'm considering a Sangean
> ATS-909X
> as a replacement.
>
> Any comments/recommendations would be appreciated!
>
> 73 & GUD DX,
> Thomas F. Giella NZ4O
> Lakeland, FL, USA
> nz4o@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
>
>
>
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