[Elecraft] Short Wave Receiver

[WW2PT]

As an SWL since childhood, this is a subject near and dear to my  
heart... :-)

After JRC and Drake abandoned the consumer HF receiver market there  
has been a dearth of great tabletop receivers for the SWL. There are  
commercial receivers but they cost multi-kilobucks, leaving little in  
the middle between pro receivers and portables -- Icom R75 being the  
only amateur manufacturer to offer any HF receivers, and I never cared  
for their past offerings like the R71A and R72. I know many non-ham  
SWLs who are using transceivers in order to get the advanced features  
needed for serious SWLing (good filtering, noise reduction, notch,  
passband shift, etc) without having to spend upwards of $4000 for a  
pro box.

I don't know that removing the transmitter section from the K3 and  
repackaging it as a receiver would knock enough off the price of a  
basic K3 with KBPF3 and a 6 kHz filter (approx. $1700) to make it a  
worthwhile venture for Elecraft. The $1700 price is actually quite  
attractive, considering that's about what a JRC NRD-535D sold for  
nearly 20 years ago. I've recommended the K3 to several SWLs recently;  
whether any of them bought one is uncertain, but the price tag  
certainly didn't scare anyone away.

73,
Paul WW2PT


On Feb 17, 2010, at 3:29 PM, Doug Turnbull wrote:

> Hi Eric and Elecrafters,
>     I have just installed my second RX with the KBPF3.   I am just now
> listening to the shortwave broadcast bands and using the 13 KHz NBFM  
> filter
> and 6 kHz AM filter am surprised at how good the radio does with a  
> pair of
> micro KLH HiFi Speakers for SWLing.   This is not my normal hobby  
> but I
> wonder if as others have suggested if Elecrafter may have a ready made
> product for a market which may be larger than the ham market.   A  
> top end
> SWL receiver might not be too difficult for Elecraft to eventually  
> add to
> their product line.