Portable SSB Receiver

[barnakiel]

Why does it need to be portable?


Are you going to use it on the beach? Then why not a vhf radio or a sat radio?


If you use it on the boat only, it does not have to be portable.


We have the NASA unit. It is OK but not brilliant (only one memory slot and not backlit screen nor backlit buttons.


We use laptop for fax.



b.

[slug]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Why does it need to be portable?


Are you going to use it on the beach? Then why not a vhf radio or a sat radio?


If you use it on the boat only, it does not have to be portable.


We have the NASA unit. It is OK but not brilliant (only one memory slot and not backlit screen nor backlit buttons.


We use laptop for fax.





b.

You can move a portable into your cabin and listen to BBC world service

A portable can be brought on deck , tuned to the radio beacon and use as an RDF

A portable is not subject to electric system noise

[Time2Go]

Original poster here,
The reason I want a portable are many fold
so in no particular order
Off Grid Use, ie not plugged in or attached to anything
On Boat Use to listen to various nets and receive
weather fax via BlackCat software
Battery powered
Easily transported in a crew bag
Also living in the Hurricane Band to use as a
back up communications receiver at home.
There are more but I think you
get the jist
Cheers
Neil
Thanx to all who have responded

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by slug

You can move a portable into your cabin and listen to BBC world service

A portable can be brought on deck , tuned to the radio beacon and use as an RDF

A portable is not subject to electric system noise

Ah. Big boat. I see. In ours, we play the ssb at the nav table and you hear it everywhere (one cabin boat).


BTW are there still any radio beacons left? I tried to tune in last time approaching Caribbean from the East and I found not a single one ...


b.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Ah. Big boat. I see. In ours, we play the ssb at the nav table and you hear it everywhere (one cabin boat).


BTW are there still any radio beacons left? I tried to tune in last time approaching Caribbean from the East and I found not a single one ...


b.

Local coastal AM broadcast stations????? Got to be careful of shore reflectance especially at dawn and dusk!!!

[slug]

Originally Posted by Wotname

Local coastal AM broadcast stations????? Got to be careful of shore reflectance especially at dawn and dusk!!!

When crossing the atlantic the AM station on Mt Pico Azores comes booming in

Obviously the ferrite bar ant in your portable is not a scientific instrument but it does give useful direction info

[El Pinguino]

I own and have owned a selection of portable SSB radios and currently own amongst others a Sony 7600GR, a Sangean ATS909 ( not the 'X',) and a Tecsun PL880.

Without going into the finer detail of technical specs and sound quality on FM, etc etc ... the pick of the bunch is the Tecsun 880....

Simply because you can 'dial in' a precise ssb frequency to 0.1 kHz ... very handy if you are wanting to receive wefax.

A search here on CF should turn up some previous stuff from me on the subject

[flyingnut40]

I have a Grundig G3 World Traveler and it works well. Not sure if still available though.

Look at this on eBay
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Grundig-Glo....m46890.l49292

[flyingnut40]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Grundig-Glo....m46890.l49292

[flyingnut40]

Any of the grinding yacht boy series could be worth considering but the G3 has digital display and works well for the money. Has SSB mode as well.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Wotname

Local coastal AM broadcast stations????? Got to be careful of shore reflectance especially at dawn and dusk!!!

Negative.


Someone said radio beacons I asked where are they?


I do not think there is a single AM radio station left in the Windwards. Maybe Antigua, not sure though.


And with Am masts one must know where they are located, and since they are not in the list of radio aids they are useless for radio-location.


b.

[wsmurdoch]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Negative. Someone said radio beacons I asked where are they? .... And with Am masts one must know where they are located, and since they are not in the list of radio aids they are useless for radio-location.

I don't know if the Aero RDF stations are still there, but they are on the charts. AM radio stations are also on the charts. The Tecsum PL-880 has LW and AM, so it may be able to locate the stations. I've never tried. I have an old Lokata 7 handheld direction finder that I have not even had on the boat since forever.

Bill

[Time2Go]

Many thanx to all who chimed in.
Have read many older threads that some have pointed to.
I have decided to purchase a Tecsun PL 88
I am not a Radio Head but will try and report back
my thoughts after a few months of fiddling
Cheers
Neil

[wsmurdoch]

I noticed that Amazon and some of the other usual suppliers list the Tecsun PL880 as "not available" although Universal Radio does have them in stock. It leaves me wondering about the status of the new Tecsun PL990. Google turns up some information but not much of value.

Bill

[Time2Go]

Bought at Universal for 159.00
Amazon listed at 209.00 didn’t check
if they were available
50 bucks is 50 bucks,, I’d rather have in my
pocket than in Jeff Bezos
Know nothing of the 990
Cheers
Neil