A Shortwave Radio Buying Guide

Shortwave radio listening (SWLing) is a fun hobby if conditions are right and you're listening with a nice radio. Unfortunately shortwave radios are not inexpensive. A good portable usually costs $200, and a good tabletop model can go up to $4000. For this writeup I will focus on radios in the $200 -- $1500 range.

Portable radios are usually 14cm x 20cm x 3cm. Portables usually contain one speaker of modest quality, with FM stereo headphone output. Advantages: Smaller size, travel ability, self contained antenna, battery power. Disadvantages: Mediocre audio quality, frequency coverage, tuning resolution (large tuning steps, 5 khz instead of 1 khz), battery power.

Tabletop radios are usually 20 cm x 24 cm x 8cm. Since tabletops use external power and external antennas, their sensitivity and selectivity are enhanced with the cost of portability. In other words, tabletops can hear more stations and distinguish between them more easily. Advantages: marked increase in ability to recieve signals and discriminate between them. Greater tuning resolution. Can recieve single sideband (SSB) signals for ham radio communications. Can be used with a ham radio transmitter as a station reciever. Advanced tuning features (passband tuning, notch, noise reduction, synchronous detection) that make ferreting out stations even easier. Disadvantages: No battery option. Little portability. High level of feature sophistication on many models. No FM radio coverage, in most models.

Required features

Digital readout. Unless you want to use an antique radio this is a must for modern listening.

Direct frequency keying. Allows the user to dial in frequencies without tuning a knob.

1 kHz tuning. Though broadcast stations use 5 kHz spacing for the most part, ham radio operators, pirate, and clandestine stations use whatever frequency they can get.


Desireable features

Synchronous Detection. A computer algorithm that isolates signals on an individual sideband and cancels out noise from an adjacent station.

Notch, Passband Tuning, Noise Reduction. Tools that allow a listener to weed out weak stations. Great for hunting long distance (DX) stations, not necessary to listen to the BBC and other megawatt broadcasters.

Selectable filters. Unlike less expensive radios, tabletops will allow for multiple filter selection and the ability to add more filters. Filters enable greater stations separation at the risk of destroying audio.

Ham transmitter interface. If you are a ham radio operator, radios of the same make can be used with one another as a transmitter/reciever pair.


Reciever suggestions:

A great beginner radio is the Sony SW7600GR. This portable can be got at $150 on sale with used/refurbished units on eBay. The Sony sports good audio with good synchronous detection, a rare feature at this price and on any portable. Sonys are known for good selection/sensitivity and overall build quality.

The classic portable is the Sony '2010/'2001. This radio was perhaps the longest produced consumer electronic device, marketed from 1983 to 2001. If a clean '2010 can be got on eBay, I suggest you snap it up. This radio was the first, of any radio, to feature synchronous detection. The 2010 also has great filter shaping and selectivity. Quite a large radio (size of a college textbook) and heavy, nevertheless SWLs talk of the '2010 in reverential tones. In my opinion and the opinion of many, the best portable ever made. Replaced by the Sony SW77, which for many is not equivalent and besides, extremely complex to operate with computer menus, no tuning knob, and full of "automatic everything" for tuning controls.

A great tabletop is the Icom IC-R75. Icom, a speciality communications manufacturer, has produced a tabletop at $500 which is not the best but has a selection of good qualities at an unbeatable price. Specs on SSB are excellent, audio quality is good with external speakers, and the frequency readout is precise at 1 Hz! But, the synchronous does not work at all, though there is individual sideband selection with superb noise cancellation through passband tuning and a digital notch. If you are a independent type, then this radio offers a lot of flexibility. If you just want to chill and listen to the big broadcasters, this radio is too fussy.

An alternative is the Grundig Satellit 800, priced nearly the same as the Icom. This radio, also marketed as the Tecsun includes synchronous detection (that works!) and very pleasant audio without the learning curve of the Icom. The major downside is very poor build quality, so I suggest the Icom merely for durability. Yet ease of use and great audio lends this radio to effortless broadcast listening. Have fun and tell me what stations you get!