cobalt pet shortwave / mediumwave weblog

21 August 2007

mailbag: eton s350dl replacement

Here's a question that was posted a few weeks ago to my general comments and questions page. I hope the original poster is still seeking advice; sorry for the lag time.

I've had an Eton S350DL for about a year right now and it's frustrating having to replace it every seven months due to a whole list of problems (drastic jumps when tuning frequencies, an antenna that won't stay upright, etc.) It's probably no help either that I use it almost every day. What would you recommend as a suitable but not too expensive replacement?


Many radio fans like the Redsun RP2100 / Kaito KA2100 for its strong reception, drift-free digital tuning, and audio quality. It may still be too early to comment on its durability. This site collected user reviews for the RP2100 / KA2100. Also worth noting is that C.Crane is selling an RP2100 look-alike that has been modded with their twin coil ferrite antenna, although I'm curious to learn if that is worth the extra cost.

Sangean and Tivoli make tabletop receivers that may provide more durability, but probably don't rank in the same category as either the S350DL or the RP2100/KA2100 for signal strength. I couldn't determine whether AM, FM, or shortwave was the top priority for the replacement.

Would anyone like to add detail or recommend another radio?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

For AM dxing and FM, Universal Radio seems to like the Sangean PR-D5. Else get a twin coil ferrite antenna from CCrane and use it with any receiver for AM DX.

For shortwave and AM/FM the Degen DE1103 or Eton E5/G5 are good, and so is the Redsun RP2100.

Anonymous said...

Well I'v heard both good and bad about the S350.
Myself I'm looking into getting a 1103 or G5 and running it through a Tivoli Model 1 or a Recepter am/fm radio. http://msn-cnet.com.com/radios/boston-acoustics-recepter-radio/4505-7875_7-30606594.html?tag=pdtl-list

Something you can to with a $4 audio cable and Aux-in on the table model,to get strong audio.
The Tivoli looks/sounds great, but isn't know for it's great receive. The BAR is a radio of choice at the moment. Digital,mono and powerful.
If you are looking for something cheaper I'd look at Super Radio III.
Other than that I'm waiting for the next version of the 2100.

Anonymous said...

http://www.sangean.com/product.php?model=PR-D5
Specs on the aformentioned PR-D5 must have a misprint: could this radio be 2.5' high?
The radio looks like Sangean Sondio model, without the Weather band and with stereo not mono speaker.

Anonymous said...

I've had the Sangean PR-D5 for two weeks and am glad to report that this digital wonder gets better AM/FM reception than my Eton S350.

I've posted my review on my Herculodge website.

Herculodge