Radio Listening As A Hobby - Meandering Thoughts

I was born in 1964, growing up in the 1960's, 70's and 80's.  It was a time before the internet as we know it, and most of that was before cable TV was even widely available.  Radios - and analog TVs with antennas outside the house - were the magic boxes that brought us news and entertainment.  I loved listening to radios in particular.  Sorry to use the word "magic" here again so quickly, but that is how it felt turning the dial on my little transistor pocket radio, or on my bedside clock radio, listening to the voices and the music.  Somehow those signals were just out there in the air - no wires or fiber bringing them to the house, just signals in the ether.

I especially liked to tune around the AM band at night - what radio folks call the Medium Wave (MW) band, when my radio would come alive with signals from far away.  Here in southeast Georgia, there were only one or two local stations, plus a few I could pick up from Brunswick, GA to the north or Jacksonville, FL to the south, that I could reliably hear during the day.  But at night I'd get stations from Atlanta, Cincinnati, New Orleans and other places.  

In the late 1980's - when I was in my mid 20's - I "discovered" shortwave radio.  I bought a Realistic DX-440 from Radio Shack, a fairly nice radio at the time, and quickly became hooked on shortwave.  The DX-440 was actually manufactured by Sangean and sold under their own brand name as the ATS-803A.  A reasonably advanced and full-featured model, the DX-440 could tune the entire shortwave band continuously, featured digital tuning, single-sideband reception with an analog beat frequency oscillator (BFO) knob, had a huge telescoping whip for decent reception, and an external antenna jack.  I spent many, many hours with that radio, often sitting outside at night listening to whatever I could pull in.

And what an incredible number of stations and types of programming one could hear in those days!  Nearly every nation ran some kind of shortwave broadcasting station, many of them intentionally beaming signals towards North America and in English.  Every year I bought the new edition of a book called Passport To World Band Radio, a book that listed nearly all the listenable stations along with a lot of information about specific programs.  Each night I could tune in Deutsche Welle from Germany, Radio France Internationale, Radio Denmark, the Voice of America, and of course the gold-standard British Broadcasting Corporation.  I could hear news from just about any corner of the globe - with different national and regional slants - as well as music, radio plays and dramas, sports, science and education programs, just about anything imaginable.

In the late 1990s I bought a new shortwave radio, a Sony ICF-SW77.  This was a huge upgrade from my old Realistic DX-440, although I have to admit it didn't bring in a LOT more stations.  I had yet to really learn - and understand - the importance of a proper external antenna, and the telescoping whips on portable shortwaves are a pretty serious compromise.  In addition to their relatively short length, using such a radio on the whip indoors picks up all kinds of noise from household electronics.   Still, I enjoyed using the SW77 and had a blast fiddling with its features.

For a time I drifted away from the hobby; life intervened, there were other things to do.  It was around 2007 that my interest was rekindled, and I was rather disappointed to learn that shortwave listening simply wasn't what it used to be.  

Radios were not the problem.  Although some of the older, venerable manufacturers were exiting the market, others were staying in and making some fine equipment.  There was also quite a market for used radios, and through EBay I have acquired a number of radios I had long coveted since my youth.  There have even been exciting new models from several manufacturers just in the last 5 years!

The problem was that shortwave broadcasters themselves were largely abandoning the field.  In some cases national governments just stopped broadcasting entirely, while others greatly curtailed their activities and in particular stopped broadcasting towards North America.  The "why" was never a big mystery - there were just easier, cheaper, more effective ways to reach more listeners using other means.  The internet is of course the biggest contributor here.  Once the internet was built out to the point it could reliably carry audio streams, it was pretty much the death knell for shortwave. There were other factors - the advent of satellite radio from Sirius and XM brought another method for reaching our population.

Over the last two decades, things have grown steadily worse, with good news being pretty rare.  There are at present only a dozen or so nations left broadcasting anything to North America on shortwave.  There are some privately owned stations here in the US - about 90% of their content consisting of religious programming, and the remaining 10% being split between rather extreme, hard-right conspiracy talkers and a few music programs.  On a really good night - if the capricious laws of physics allow - I can get some backspatter radiation from the BBC and faintly hear one of their few remaining broadcasts, usually intended for somewhere in Africa or Asia.

And I really struggled with all this.  I don't think I knew I was struggling, not consciously - but I wanted to bring back the days when I could hear more.  I continued to invest in radios, some new and some old.  I purchased and installed a longwire antenna with a balun and coax feedline to get strong, clear signals into my radios (it really does wonders with what there is left on the airwaves).  I bought books - not that many are still published, but each year I buy the World Radio Television Handbook, and when new editions are released The Wordwide Listening Guide, and the Pirate Radio Annual. I have paid for subscriptions to downloadable frequency lists.

As my ability to hear "more" on shortwave has reached its limit, I have branched out from listening to broadcasts, into listening to "utility" signals, like the air traffic control stations that work the planes out over the Atlantic ocean.  And I've gone back to listening more to MW AM, checking around at night to see what distant stations I can hear.

Just this year I have bought two radios, several little connectors and wires for things, and today I found myself ordering the latest edition of the Worldwide Listening Guide, and I guess that is when it really struck me: shortwave broadcasting is dead.  You can argue with me about how you heard Greece last night and it won't make a bit of difference.  The many hours I spent tuning around the bands, pulling in dozens of stations every night, those times are lost now to the past and to fading memory.

My latest radio is the Tecsun PL-990x, a real gem.  It tunes the shortwave broadcast bands as well as any radio I've owned in 30 years in the hobby, it's performance on single-sideband is remarkable.  It has the ability to use an external antenna for MW AM, so my outdoor longwire can be used on that band and works a little of the old magic.  The radio is a fine FM receiver.  It also is a Bluetooth speaker so I can stream to it from my phone or tablet.  

I also think it very likely that the PL-990x will be the last of my radio purchases.  There is just no sense in continuing to spend money on radios for shortwave - we have hit the state of the art at a time when there is just not much worth hearing.  I will continue to listen, to what little there is.  I'll delve into the utility stuff when the mood strikes.  I will try to rekindle my love of radio with MW AM.  But no more new radios, antennas, or books - because none of them will bring the stations back on the air, and without them, the rest is just stuff.

Comparing C. Crane Skywave SSB & Digitech AR-1780

I have a collection of portable shortwave radios - it's grown pretty rapidly in recent years as I've finally reached a stage in my career where I can indulge a little.  This of course proves the universe has a perverse sense of humor since there's less and less to be heard on "shortwave", especially the broadcast bands, but I digress.  All of these little radios are broad coverage communications receivers that cover longwave, mediumwave (AM), shortwave (usually with SSB), FM broadcast, and some of them have VHF air band which I actually enjoy using.

Two of my favorite small, travel-size portables are the C. Crane Skywave SSB, and the Digitech AR-1780.  Note, the AR-1780 is nearly identical to the XHData D-808, and I have other posts on this site about it.  What prompted me to write today is my Skywave SSB was recently broken (maybe a post for another time) and I shall not be able to buy a new one for a few weeks.  This has led me to use the AR-1780 a good bit more, and to think hard about what I like, and dislike, about both radios.

Now there are a lot of similarities between these radios.  The general consensus on the interwebs seems to be that the Chinese manufacturer of the AR-1780 cribbed much of the design from the Skywave SSB.  I am not sure if there's proof of that, but you'll see it repeated on multiple web sites.  The radios almost certainly use some of the same DSP components.  Among the similarities:

1. Both radios cover LW, MW, SW (with SSB), FM, and VHF AIR band.
2. Both radios have unusually good AIR band performance.
3. Both radios offer 500 memories, and the memory allocations, page functions, etc. all work identically on both radios.
4. Button operation and even location are very similar (though not identical).

But there are some differences, and some of them are kind of important in real world usage:

1. The Skywave SSB operates on only two AA batteries, whereas the AR-1780 uses four.  This could be important if you are traveling.
2. The Skywave has a relatively short telescoping whip which limits sensitivity, especially on shortwave.  The whip on the AR-1780 is longer and you can tell from the performance. See next note.
3. The Skywave lacks an external antenna jack.  Given that the whip is so short, this really hampers the ability to improve reception with an external antenna.  You can, of course, clip a length of wire to the whip.  The AR-1780 has an antenna jack, and plugging in an external antenna helps with MW, SW, and AIR band.  I have read some suggestions it doesn't help on anything but shortwave, but I can tell you in real-world usage that it helps with the other bands.
4. The AR-1780 outperforms the Skywave on MW AM pretty handily.
5. The Skywave SSB has the ability to scan one bank of up to 10 AIR band memories, which is a major plus for monitoring multiple frequencies.   The AR-1780 does not do this and I am sorely missing it right now.
6. The Skywave SSB can tune all of the NOAA weather radio frequencies.  The AR-1780 doesn't have them.  And not only does the Skywave have them, it is one of the best performing weather radios I have ever owned.
7. The AR-1780 has RDS display on FM, which is a "nice to have".  The Skywave SSB does not.
8. The Skywave SSB is significantly more expensive than the AR-1780, running about $170 (not including shipping - if you have Amazon Prime the shipping is no charge), while the AR-1780 runs about $120 including shipping from wherever you have to get it (mostly available either from Jaycar's US site, or various Ebay dealers).

I am not sure this list gets anyone to "the" answer, if you were looking for a clear choice between the two radios.  I think the AR-1780 is probably the better value, but if NOAA weather is important, and if you like the AIR band scanning on the Skywave, the premium you pay for it may be worth it.  I like both radios; the AR-1780 is a little better for me indoors where the ability to plug in my external antennas helps a lot, while the Skywave is super nice for sitting outside on the patio and letting the scanner run through my AIR band frequencies.

XHDATA D-808 Radio - Some Observations On Usability

I recently purchased a XHDATA D-808 World Band radio.  It's generating a fair amount of "buzz" in the shortwave listening community due to its low cost (less than $70 US) and an impressive feature list:

• Frequency coverage - longwave, mediumwave AM, shortwave WITH SSB and covering the "full" shortwave range, FM, and air band.  
• Small size (just about pocket-size)
• 500 memories (100 for each of the bands)
• FM RDS capability
• Helpful tuning features including direct frequency entry, a variable "speed" tuning knob, a separate fine-tuning "wheel", up/down slewing buttons
• External antenna jack

Also of note, unlike the nearly identical Digitech AR-1780, the D-808 ships with a soft faux-leather pouch, external wire antenna, rechargeable battery, and USB cable for charging, and at half the price of the AR-1780.

Further, the radio performs fairly well for a set of such a low price.  While I don't find performance on any band to be stellar, the D-808 certainly is capable of pulling in stations, especially with a suitable external antenna for SW and SW/SSB use.

This is not intended to be a full review of the radio; rather I wanted to share some observations on the usability factors, in particular those which I find to be lacking.  For some reason, very few radio reviewers seem to spend any time on ergonomics, or on the actual implementation of the controls that have to be used to operate the device.  Personally I find these things to be key to my long-term enjoyment of a radio, and strongly impact the likelihood that I will want to use a radio on a day-to-day basis.  I am more likely to USE and ENJOY a radio that is easy to tune, has decent auto-scanning capabilities, a sane memory preset scheme, etc. even if the radio isn't quite as strong a performer on every band.

The first thing I want to note is that the D-808 was implemented with buttons that are flush with the front of the case, and which require very firm presses to engage.  Combined with their small size and cramped arrangement, pressing them is simply uncomfortable.  My radio usually sits on a plastic picnic-style table and the radio slides around all over the table when I try to press buttons unless I hold onto it with the other hand.  This is a poor design decision that negatively impacts using this radio, especially as other design issues pretty much require a LOT of button pressing - and I'll come back to it again and again.

A nice feature of this radio is that is actually has a tuning knob, often absent from cheaper shortwave portables.  But this one has strong "stops" so it doesn't turning smoothly - each turn requires you to apply enough force to overcome the friction.  And the radio mutes with every turn, so it's pretty miserable for a casual session of "tuning around" a band.

As is the case with nearly all portable digital radios, the numeric keypad does double duty allowing entry of frequencies or access to memories.  On the D-808, the radio is always in a mode where the default action of pressing a number button is to call up a memory location.  Several negative (to my way of thinking) consequences arise as a result:

• Because every keypress instantly pulls up a memory, the memory "pages" or banks must be limited to 10 memories apiece.  So if you wanted to program in all the MWARA frequencies, you would have to split these over many memory pages.  Then to tune through them you have to do extra keypresses to get from page to page.
• In order to directly enter a frequency you have to first press a "freq" button since otherwise pressing the button would tune a preset station.  As with most shortwave radios you also have to press the freq button AGAIN at the end of any entry that doesn't use up all the available digits (basically any SW frequency under 10000). These extra button presses, combined with the poor button design (see above) makes frequency entry a laborious process.

There are of course other ways to tune; one helpful feature allows the D-808 to auto-tune-and-store frequencies in a band.  Here again, there are implementation issues - 

• The radio seems to have a high threshold for recognizing a signal, so it "finds" far fewer frequencies than it can actually tune. To be really clear on that point, I can tune frequencies manually that are perfectly listenable but the D-808 doesn't find them when auto-tuning.  I have compared this function with a number of other portables and ALL of them find more frequencies than the D-808.  Note, the same inability to recognize a listenable frequency while scanning also affects scanning with the slewing buttons.
• If you do happen to find a bunch of frequencies, they will be stored across multiple pages (see above issues with the small page size).
• The auto-tuned frequencies are always stored starting in page 0 preset 0 for the chosen band and work up from there, so if you want to manually program memories, you need to put them on a high page.  There is no option to have found frequencies added to the existing list, it always overwrites. 

One final note on frequency memories - there is no way to access (tune) a preset other than pressing the associated key on the number pad (possibly AFTER doing additional keypresses to pull up the correct page).  You can't scan through a bank of stored frequencies.  You can't move from one to the next with the slewing buttons, nor with the tuning knob.  As with everything else requiring the use of button presses on this radio, this is a pain.

As for performance, despite many reviews giving the D-808 high marks, I find it to be only average, but it's also hard to gauge due to the usability impediments I've been describing.  For example, how do you measure shortwave performance?  Unless you have bench test equipment, you mainly test it by seeing how many stations you can pick up under various conditions (on the whip, with some kind of external antenna, indoors vs. outdoors, different times of day, etc.) and listening to them.  But consider:

• Manual band-scanning sucks on this radio - the tuning knob is not comfortable for a long session moving through a band and the muting is bad
• Using either the slewing/scanning buttons or the auto-tuning, the radio seems to require such strong signals that it finds very few stations - even when you KNOW the signal is there and you KNOW the D-808 is capable of tuning it
• Auto-tuning stations and having them stored results in the frustrating experience of pressing buttons to step through them and having to switch pages

In short, in order to see what I can pick up with this radio I'm mostly spending time looking at EIBI schedules or the like, trying to figure out what ought to be tunable, and manually entering frequency after frequency.  It's very hard to compare how well this radio performs next to a radio that is much easier to use, like various models from Tecsun and Eton/Grundig.  

The end result of all these observations is that I'm again looking for a radio that hits closer to my sweet spot for features, performance and usability.  The D-808 will likely be the next radio I list on E-bay.

Comparing the Digitech AR1780 to the XHDATA D-808

12/06/18 - this post has been updated to include more current information about pricing and availability - which affect the value proposition - and to correct a couple of factual errors.

Shortwave enthusiasts learn this lesson very early - all shortwave radios are the culmination of a combination of compromises.  Price, size/portability, reliability, frequency coverage, features, and vendor support all vary from one make and model to the next.  Further, putting a value on a number of these items is a subjective process - a radio's count of memories is a fixed number, but how important that number is varies from person to person.

Not surprisingly, we tend to group radios with similar sets of features, sizes, and prices into groups and compare them to one another.  But on occasion the shortwave industry presents us with virtually identical models from different brands or companies.  Sometimes these are manufactured in the same place by the same people and just branded differently.  And you'd expect those devices to really and truly be "the same".

Recently it was noted that the new XHDATA D-808 radio appeared to be identical to the Digitech AR-1780.  Both radios are of interest due to the following items on the set of scales mentioned above:

• Frequency coverage is good - broad coverage of the shortwave band, longwave, mediumwave AM, FM broadcast band, and AIR band (a small range of VHF frequencies used by airports and airlines)
• Single Sideband (SSB) capability - important for listening to Hams and some utility broadcasts
• Small form factor
• Built-in whip antenna and external antenna jack
• Built-in battery charger
• Relatively low prices (see below)

There are also a couple of items that are not so hot - one is from a company (Digitech) that has a decidedly low reputation, the other from a company most of us here in the states never heard of (XHDATA).  And speaking of "here in the states", both radios have to be ordered from overseas suppliers and shipped to the US.

It isn't my intention to do a full review of either set here, though - but rather to list the similarities and differences.  And the similarities are STRONG:

• Nearly identical size, shape and weight (the weight WITH BATTERIES is identical, while the D-808 is slightly larger in a couple of dimensions)
• Identical placement and labeling of buttons, knobs, and jacks on the radios with only a couple of exceptions, explained below
• The built-in whips are the same size, same length and number of elements
• The radios seem to use identical circuitry / DSP chips and have identical functions (indeed the manuals, both really slim and not too informative, are word-for-word the same)
• As you would expect the display readouts are identical save for the backlight color

But there ARE differences:

• The AR-1780 runs about $125 US plus shipping (I got mine on sale so that was about what I paid including shipping).  The D-808 runs about $69 US, including shipping (I got mine on sale at $49 including shipping).  This difference alone is driving a LOT of interest in the D-808 Over time the price of the D-808 has gone up considerably since the original post.  It is no longer possible to purchase direct from China.  You can only get it through a few E-bay sellers who are routing it through Israel.  With shipping it runs anywhere from $120 to $140.  The E-bay sellers of the AR-1780 have taken to jacking up shipping prices so that radio is even more expensive.  However if you purchase the AR-1780 through the US web site of Jaycar, you can get it for a decent price and shipping only adds about $15.
• Aside from the radio itself, the AR-1780 ships with the manual, and...nothing else.  No batteries, no charging cables or devices, no earbuds, no external antenna, and no carrying case.  I'll come back to the lack of any power supply of any kind shortly.  By contrast, the D-808 ships with a soft faux-leather carrying pouch, a rechargeable battery, a USB charging cable, and a wire antenna that can be plugged into the available jack on the radio.  Given that the radio is already half the price of the AR-1780, these extras create an even stronger  a slight advantage for the D-808.
• The AR-1780 uses 4 AA cells, and does have circuitry to charge Ni-MH batteries inside the unit.  It does not come with any batteries - I have plenty of Sanyo Eneloops so that's not such a big issue - but the radio also does not include a charger and/or charging cable.  This is a pain since the AR-1780 uses an odd 7V charger.  Again, I use an external charger for my Eneloops.  In short, the fact that the unit can theoretically be run by an external power source and charge batteries inside is pretty much moot for the average buyer.  Compare this to the D-808, which uses a larger 18650 Li-Ion cell, and uses a standard micro-USB port to to charge.  The radio even ships with a micro-USB cable - not that you probably don't already have a bunch of them laying around, but it's nice to have it included.  You can charge this off an available computer port or wall-wart or whatever you have that can charge USB.   The different charger options for these radios results in one of the only real physical differences between the radios which is the power jack.
• The power button itself is located in a different spot on each radio - just to the left of the display on the AR-1780, just to the right on the D-808
• The buttons used on these radios are different, and this is the first downside for the D-808.  On the AR-1780 they are raised and very tactile.  On the D-808 they are flush with the case making them somewhat more of a pain to press (and impossible to to use the radio by feel - these are simple enough radios you could probably learn to operate the AR-1780 in the dark, but with flush buttons on the D-808 that would be a non-starter).
• The black case used on the AR-1780 shows the silk-screened labels (some of which uses a dark orange ink in places) on the buttons and the case itself clearly.  The D-808 uses identical colors but on a grey case and the reddish orange labeling is super hard to read unless you hold the radio at an odd angle.  Advantage here goes to the AR-1780.
• The screens used different color back-lighting - amber on the AR-1780, blueish-white on the D-808.  

So - weighing pros and cons, the radios are pretty much identical in terms of form and function and features with a slight usability edge to the AR-1780 based on easier to feel and press buttons and easier to read silk-screened labeling.  

The D-808 is a MUCH somewhat better VALUE proposition based on having identical features and performance and including the battery, charging cable, external wire antenna, and carrying pouch, for HALF the same price of the AR-1780.  

What else?  Here are some TOTALLY SUBJECTIVE observations....

• I prefer the black case of the AR-1780 to the grey used by the D-808.
• I prefer the raised buttons on the AR-1780 to the flush ones on the D-808.
• For some reason the AR-1780 *feels* like it weighs more (and mentally this equates to feeling more solidly built) than the D-808, even though I have weighed them both at 11.5 ounces including their batteries.  I think this is because the AR-1780 is very slightly smaller in a couple of dimensions so having the same weight in a little smaller packages makes it denser.
• The first few hours of playing with the D-808 I was sure it was defective - it seemed to struggle to pick up the same stations as the AR-1780, the signal strength displays were reading way lower, and I was thinking about boxing it up and contacting the seller to return it.  But I removed the battery for a while, put it back in, and it has been perfect (compared to the AR-1780) ever since. 
• Likewise the audio quality of the D-808 seemed much worse at first, but I think I may have had different bandwidth settings chosen.  At any rate I no longer notice any difference.

Recommendation - I find ergonomics make a huge difference to my enjoyment of SWLing.  If a radio is a pin in the rear to use, I just won't  use it, no matter how it performs.  I think the AR-1780 has the edge here and it's the one I kept out of the two radios.  

Final note - neither of these radios would get a strong recommendation from me regardless of price.  They are both decent performers but the memories are a pain in the rear to program and to access, entering frequencies is also a pain, and there are just better choices out there (especially for the price point).  See the TECSUN PL-660/680 to understand what I mean.