[Elecraft] The KX3 as a shortwave broadcast receiver

[Fred Smith]

How well do they transmit for you if needed while serving as a SW Receiver?
I have several Grundig,s and a Sangean excellent radios but cannot serve a
dual purpose or have the receiver of the KX3.


73,
Fred/N0AZZ
K3 Ser # 6730--KX3 # 2573--K2/100 # 6470-KAT100
P3/SVGA--KPA500--KAT500--W2



-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Jim Brown
Sent: Tuesday, July 16, 2013 9:38 AM
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The KX3 as a shortwave broadcast receiver

On 7/15/2013 6:41 PM, gteague wrote:
> great review! i read most every review and article you post.

Those looking for a broadcast receiver would do well to look at the Tecsun
product line, imported by the same folks who import Kaito. There are a dozen
or so models ranging in cost from about $45 to about $100. 
About half of them are DSP radios using a Silicon Labs chip, and yield
excellent performance on both AM and FM. Most of them cover LW (below the AM
broadcast band), all of them cover "short wave" broadcast bands, and a few
cover the part of the VHF spectrum used by aircraft.  A few models have
detectors for SSB. AM bandwidth is switchable to provide audio bandwidth in
several steps between 1 kHz and 6 kHz.

I have three radios using the Silicon Labs chips -- a $100 Sony
(discontinued, selling for $500 used if you can find them), a Tecsun 380
($45), and an Insignia FM-only HD radio sold by Best Buy ($50). The RF
performance can only be described as amazing.  Here in the Santa Cruz
mountains, I wanted to hear KQED from San Francisco, with a mountain between
us. With a long Yagi pointed at it, KQED was noisy on both my Technics
ST9030 and Carver TX11B, but nearly full quieting on all three DSP radios.
More impressive, the Technics and Carver heard full quieting signals from
1,000 W stations 50 miles away on 91.5 and 91.9, and nothing but noise on
91.7.  All three DSP radios hear a station on 91.7 nearly full quieting from
near San Luis Obispo, and off the back of the Yagi!

The Tecsun and Insignia radios run on AA batteries or a wall wart, can be
connected to an external antenna with a clip lead, and have a headphone
output that can feed a high quality audio system.  .BTW -- I also own three
of the GE Super Radio III, which is one of the best AM broadcast receivers
around. It was designed by a consortium of broadcast engineers in the 70s,
when they were trying to "save AM." It has a 10 kHz notch filter, and the IF
bandwidth is switchable to >20 kHz. It's been out of production since the
marketing turkeys who bought the RCA name bought the division of GE that
made it, but the original GE Super Radio is still around on the auction
sites.

Very thorough engineering reviews (and a lot of other great material) by
Brian Beezley, K6STI, of the Technics, Carver, and Sony receivers can be
found at http://ham-radio.com/k6sti/index.html

73, Jim K9YC
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