Re: [IRCA] Gary DeBock interview in the New Yorker..(SRF-39FP)

[d1028gary@xxxxxxx]

-----Original Message-----
From: coffee_canuck <coffeecanuck@xxxxxxxxx>
To: Mailing list for the International Radio Club of America 
<irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: irca <irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thu, Jan 16, 2014 6:04 pm
Subject: [IRCA] Gary DeBock interview in the New Yorker...

http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/elements/2014/01/the-ipod-of-prison-sony-radio.html?utm_source=www&utm_medium=tw&utm_campaign=20140116 

Thanks Colin, Eric and Steve,
 
For those interested in the full email interview with the New Yorker's Josh Hunt regarding the Sony SRF-39FP "Prison Radio," it is pasted below. All during the correspondence, I was wondering how a promising young writer like Josh could possibly have any interest in a pocket Sony transistor radio with a thumb wheel tuning dial... but it turned out that he had some real world "personal experience" with the model :-)
 
73, Gary DeBock (in Puyallup, WA, USA)
 

Hello Joshua,
 
<<<   I was told that you are the expert on the Sony SRF-39FP radio in North America. 
 I’m pleased to meet you and thankful for your time.   >>>
 
Well, thanks for the compliment. It's probably true that I've had more exposure to the radio than anyone else (who has managed to stay out of prison, that is).
 
<<<   Basically, the article is highlighting the fact that for prison inmates, radio 
 is still king, and that among them, the Sony SRF-39FP is kind of the king of 
 portable prison radios. The problem is that Sony doesn’t want to cooperate much 
 with the article, as it associates their company with prison. That makes PR 
 people gun-shy.   >>>
 
Sony's lack of cooperation is probably also related to the fact that their SRF-39FP model is based on mid-1990's technology, and is hardly a model that is likely to turn around their lackluster financial situation.
 
<<<   So, what can you tell me about the SRF-39FP? For instance, what year did it 
 first appear? Do you have any idea how many units have been produced throughout 
 the years or where it fits in the context of Sony walkman-style radios? What 
 makes it special and unique?   >>>
 
The Sony SRF-39FP is just one member of a family of analog AM-FM "Walkman" pocket radios introduced by Sony around 1995. The primary innovation (and attraction) of these radios is the CXA1129N integrated circuit, a "radio on a chip" breakthrough which provided unprecedented sensitivity, selectivity and image rejection on the AM band. This breakthrough CXA1129N chip is the master component in the entire Sony analog "Walkman" family, which includes the SRF-29, SRF-39, SRF-39FP, SRF-49, SRF-59 (the most widely marketed model) and the SRF-S84.
 
My own fascination with these radios was based on the casual purchase of a $17 Sony SRF-59 model in November of 2007, which shocked me with the reception of three Japanese and Korean AM stations (594-JOAK, 747-JOIB and 972-HLCA) all the way across the Pacific Ocean to my home in Puyallup, Washington. Having received extensive Navy training in electronics, I was extremely interested in how Sony could possibly pack such performance in a small pocket radio, and then market it for the ridiculously low price of $17. The CXA1129N chip was the reason-- and the radio instantly became a "cult item" among those of us in the "Ultralight Radio" Yahoo group in late 2007.
 
Despite its dubious user market, the SRF-39FP is actually the top-of-the-line member of this Sony analog "Walkman" family, with higher quality components than the SRF-59. Sony apparently had a contract to manufacture the SRF-39FP for the California prison system starting around 2002, and of course with the "booming" customer base, Sony had every incentive to ensure top performance in every model. Unlike the SRF-59 the SRF-39FP "Prison radio" almost always comes out of Sony's Chinese factories in top alignment, and has high quality components that will last indefinitely. Both the radio's case and the supplied ear phones are completely transparent to make it impossible for prisoners to hide contraband, giving the radio a bizarre "naked" appearance (unique in the Sony analog Walkman class). As far as I know, the first SRF-39FP models to be available for prison use appeared in California around 2002. 
 
The Sony SRF-39FP "Prison Radio" became a very big hit in our Ultralight Radio Yahoo group in early 2008, although it was only available through eBay sellers, who would only ship the radio to purchasers in the USA. Apparently these eBay sellers had supply sources in the California prison system, since the radios were always sold with the same packing material, original instructions, and refusal to sell outside of the USA. The going rate for the new SRF-39FP radios on eBay was a reasonable $25 in early 2008, but it has since jumped to about $40. The eBay sellers' refusal to sell these popular radios outside of the USA created a serious demand for them in Canada and elsewhere, but these Canadian hobbyists were out of luck unless they could find a purchaser in the USA to assist in their procurement. I personally shipped about 15 of them to Canada, where they became extremely popular as AM DXing (long distance reception) radios.
 
Currently the SRF-39FP retains its popularity as the top-of-the-line Sony analog "Walkman" radio, and although it continues to be in very demand in Canada, Europe and elsewhere, the eBay sellers continue to market the radios only in the USA. Part of the radio's charm is the extremely limited supply, apparently provided only by sellers who have siphoned off the radios from the California prison supply system, and who are paranoid about international sales. To my knowledge, Sony has never marketed the radios to the general public, so at least in this one ironic aspect, it's probably a unique form of "contraband" to those of us who have never broken the law :-)
 
73 and Best Wishes,
Gary DeBock
Ultralight Radio Group Co-Founder (in Puyallup, WA, USA)
 
. ----Original Message-----
 From: Joshua Hunt <joshhunt@xxxxxxx>
 To: d1028gary <d1028gary@xxxxxxx>
 Sent: Tue, Jan 7, 2014 6:37 pm
 Subject: SRF-39FP info for New Yorker article



Gary,

I was told that you are the expert on the Sony SRF-39FP radio in North America. 
I’m pleased to meet you and thankful for your time.

I’m a journalist working on an article all about the Sony SRF-39FP, for The New 
Yorker’s technology blog. 

Basically, the article is highlighting the fact that for prison inmates, radio 
is still king, and that among them, the Sony SRF-39FP is kind of the king of 
portable prison radios. The problem is that Sony doesn’t want to cooperate much 
with the article, as it associates their company with prison. That makes PR 
people gun-shy.

So, what can you tell me about the SRF-39FP? For instance, what year did it 
first appear? Do you have any idea how many units have been produced throughout 
the years or where it fits in the context of Sony walkman-style radios? What 
makes it special and unique?

I’d love to hear any and all facts that you can offer. I also talk about its 
secondary market amongst DXers in the article, so feel free to comment on that 
as well.

Thanks.

Joshua Hunt



 

 





 



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