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Here is my "Master List" of SHORTWAVE HF Receivers owned since 1977. Note : Number giver in " ( # ) " after the model, indicate how many samples actually owned.

Please note: I no longer own most of these (like 99% of this list), and questions to these receivers I may not be able answer. Here for the general information only and nothing more. NO....none of this below is "For Sale" as a few have come to think for some reason.

This list includes portables as well as table top sets. Yes, my fingers have passed over many sets over the years. As you can tell by scanning down the list, I'm not a "Valve" (Tube) lover , and have not owned any..sorry.

* DRAKE SSR-1 (with GILFER Frequency counter)
My first "Real" SW Receiver in 1977. Analog display, a bit before the hit of "Digital Readout" sets (at least at a good price). I added a e-tek "Gilfer" GAR-7 frequency counter to it (which blew out LED displays and display driver IC's like popcorn). This gave me a LED display for Khz's. The SSR-1 was not actually not made by Drake, in Japan with Drake's name on the front. Did not have a SO-239 antenna connector, just 2 "posts" for connections. A well made set but was loaded with birdies.

* PANASONIC RF-2800
My first SW portable (1978), and a set with LED digital display on board to boot. A big beast, and was very drifty, so never used it all that much. But was great to have a solid idea where you are tuned to. Remember this was in 1978.

* YAESU FRG-7000 (with Gilfer Mods)
My second "Table Top" , with the tighter Gilfer filter installed. I actually regreted changing the Yaesu filter as the audio really suffered. Was a time trying to keep all of the lamps operating in this set. There were many, and burned bright. Was not a real easy job to replace as you had to take the entire front bezel off to get to the soldered in lamps. The on board clock was very accrate, would not loose a "second" in months. A pre-selector radio (that is a preselector needed to be adjusted). I tuned in stations like the "Voice Of Chile" and "Radio Gabon" (both in English) on this set. A bit of the synthesizer noise would bleed into the audio chain, but a switch was eaisly pushed to turn off the LED's (noise would totally go away).

* SONY ICF-2001 (Perry Ferrell's import unit)
Well after drooling in the 1980 WRTH (back cover), I was wondering in January of 1980 "Why can't I purchase one of these in the US ??". I contacted Perry Ferrell at Gilfer and it so happend had a unit that he had just done evaluating (was wondering to carry it or not) and was about to sell it ?? He had imported it direct from Japan. So I grabbed it, the instructions were in Japanese but was pretty easy to figure it out. This was in Feb of 1980, and Sony USA started selling the ICF-2001 in the US in June of the same year. Of course my sample suffered the push button gremlin (failures) about a year later which is a very common problem with the ICF-2001's.

* KENWOOD R-1000 (3)
Have had 3 samples of the R-1000 over the years. The first one "brand new" was around late 1980 or so and has to go down for the worse case of the frequency display being off. Even after adjusting it to match up in the lower end of a 1 Mhz band, by the time you got to the other end, it might have been off my 4 or 5 khz. This was unacceptable to me and left my shack fairly quickly. It did have pretty good audio however, except for a REAL SLOW AGC. Don't remember if this was a updated sample (capacitor change). Yes, it had a.........R-E-A-L-L-Y.......S-l-ooooo-w.......decay rate. In later 2008-early 2009 we had much better luck with 2 used "later 1982" made samples. Frequency display was on (AM mode) and the AGC was much better. Great audio with the 12 Khz + filter. So my first one must have just been a dud ?? In my view the R-1000 was Kenwood's best general coverage they made (even without the memories..etc). Note that the digital display quality varied on this and the R-2000 even out of the factory brand new (uneven lit display). See the misc. page for a repair tip on the R-1000.

* YAESU FRG-7 (2 Samples, one with Gilfer Mods)
This receiver was very well made. I don't think Yaesu will again make a receiver like this one again. This was one solid radio. Worked good too. A set of good batteries, provided you kept the lamps off, would last a long time. Another preselector radio, analog readout. Really GOOD samples are getting hard to find. Fair to Poor samples are very common even these days. The sample with the Gilfer filter change had poor audio quality (narrower IF filter) to me.

* SONY ICR-4800 (Sony's first micro set)
A radio's size that equaled the performance...."Tiny"...It was neat having a radio this size, but images and whistles were all over the place. Very limited SW receive coverage. Single conversion and no FM broadcast. Was not cheap for the day either (about $ 100.00). But a few good memories anyway.

* JAPAN RADIO CO. NRD-515 (With NCM-515 KeyPad Controller)
This was the first JRC radio that I owned, as is the case with alot of pepole. It's die-cast front panel made it look and feel like a "real" radio. Worked very good for SSB and RTTY signals. Audio quality using AM Mode for MW or SW Broadcast signals, well FORGET IT !!! It was sort like trying to listen to a radio with about 5 blankets thrown over the top of it (gee, maybe that's why Larry Magne used the term "Woolly" ?). And this was in the 6 Khz filter bandwidth. I can remember I tried to clean things up a bit by removing a couple of capacitors that were in the input to the audio amplifer stage. This did help slightly, however it also gave me alot of hiss. So that did not work. If you used manual ECSS with Broadcast Signals, this worked with good results. I can also remember the sample I had, the tuning knob seized up most of the time (BRAND NEW), that it would get so tight that you could no longer turn it unless you gave it a good flip the other way. This was in the very early days of optical encoders, and JRC had to "roll" their own. This JRC was not modular construction and a good part of the RF/IF sections of the radio were on a single PC board. I did not get it with the Memory Unit, but did purchase it with the NCM-515 Keypad .

* ICOM IC-R70
A very well made set. A bit weird to operate, say going from one Mhz band to another. When it came out, was the only general coverage tabletop receiver from Japan that had a IF notch filter. Did not suffer from the excessive distortion in the audio that the IC-R71 had, but a very high background hiss level in the audio made me sell this one. Again it was a weird to use.

* ICOM IC-R71 (TRIPLE ARF !)
The ICOM IC-R71 must go down as the "WORST" receiver for audio quality I have ever owned ! The battery backed RAM operation software was another big problem for me with this set. When the Lithium Battery Dies, so does the set, and NO it will NOT come back to life with a battery change, it needs to go back to ICOM and get reprogrammed (well not anymore you can't) !. Pretty stupid idea here, ICOM was not too smart when this set was on the drawing board !!

* SONY CRF-1
Drooling in the 1980 WRTH again. Was shown on the same Sony ad with the ICF-2001. The Sony CRF-1 has a metal botton and a painted plastic top. This was a weird receiver to say the least. Performance was good, however in my view the ICF-2010 (ICF-2001D) beats it out easy. It goes down for the biggest "pain in the rump" as far as ease of operation I have ever used on a SW receiver , portable or tabletop. Every 100 khz you had to pull the knob out to slide over to the next 100 khz segment (then push it back in). Only so-so dynamic range, good sensitivity but the CRF-1's real downside is it had a very noisy synthesizer. Another set that required a pre-selector to be tuned, and was pretty sharp. It did have a preselector bypass switch, but did not work well when out of line. These can be had in the used market once in awhile for excessive prices, but beware as the 4 weird panel (dial) lamps burned out fast and the volume control were known to fail more than not. WARNING : Synthesizer failure is very common with the CRF-1 and the main "Sony Custom IC" that fails can no longer be had. The analog power supply went into the empty battery cavity (yes it's a normal analog supply being used here, not a switching type).

* JAPAN RADIO CO. NRD-525 (2)
Owned a couple of these. Actually have had the chance to use about 4 samples of this set over the years. I noticed a pretty good swing in the audio quality area between all 4 sets used. The overall distortion in the AM mode varied. My feeling that this was due to alignment at the factory, too much IF gain ?? Yes, cutting back the RF Gain control did help somewhat, BUT not totally . The INTERNAL "IF Gain" trimmer pot I feel may have been up too high ?? However it's something I never checked out for sure. The "AUX" filter opening (about 12 khz or so) on a Stock 525 when on the right "In the Clear" signal using this bandwidth...the radio sounded very nice. But as many already know, using any other filter, the NRD-525's "hiss" problem will drive you out of the room.

* KENWOOD R-11 (TOSHIBA RF-P11)
Little analog bandspread set. Made for Kenwood by Toshiba. Batteries would last forever. The only real gremlin that I can remember was the radio had a bad "Bandswitch Bleed" problem. If I was in the 41 meter band, I could still hear the 49 Meter loud and clear. This set actually had a REAL old style S-Meter on it. Also had a record jack on it !! If it was not for that bandswitch bleed problem...I would still have this one.

* SANGEAN ATS-803 (was not the "A" version)
This was one of the early versions of this set. The units display would always revert back to the clock. So could not have the frequency displayed all of the time. Tuning knob had a cheap feel to it, felt like it was going to fall off. But for the biggest bang for the buck..it was useable. Audio was onlty so-so even with the bass and treble controls.

* SONY ICF-2010 (4)
Before I had a AOR AR7030, this was my best receiver in the Sync Dectector dept. But it's sync detector is still no slouch. I like the one button memory presets. Tuning knob was a bit slow with this set (no 5 khz step, 1 Khz only in Fast) for SW broadcasting. But is the BEST SW receiver that Sony has ever made in my view ! Purchase a plastic tilt stand from Universal Radio in Ohio and the set will be much easier to use along with being able to see the display eaiser. Excellent sensitivity, well chosen IF filtering for broadcast listening (SSB is too wide however), and very easy to use. But the real plus to the ICF-2010 is the excellent sync detector. The front end FET's can be damaged from static when connected to a external antenna, even with the later versions. (Was sold as the ICF-2001D outside North America)

* SONY ICF-SW1 (2)
A real digital pocket SW radio. Eats batteries, but was a fun radio to play with. 5 khz steps only and AM mode. These sets have a trait of drifting off frequency after aging and capacitor failures (in the audio section) are VERY common as well. But no clam shell to have to worry about failing.

* SANGEAN MS-101A
Used it around the house for general use. SW had poor sensitivity. A set of batteries last about 6 months. Single conversion set, so di-da's all over the place. It served me well for many years anyway.

* MAGNAVOX D-2935
This set remined me of the Panasonic RF-2800, about the same size. However this set was very stable, and had a keypad. The biggest drawback of this set: The keypad was of the membrane type. Due to the narrow IF filter used (it was a later model), the audio quality was quite poor.

* SONY ICF-PRO80
As Larry Magne said about this "Brick" handheld set.."If you like Puzzles...you will love this set"...and he is 100% correct here, is a royal pain to use. But for it's day, was the only set in this package with SSB reception, even if that part of the radio was only fair it did work fine. I would like to see manfactures to develop a set in the style of the PRO-80,with a REAL Tuning KNOB and some REAL performance. Oh yes, ALOT smaller..like pocket size..the PRO-80 was indeed about the size of a real brick. Very high current requirement too and also suffered from audio capacitor failures as did with the ICF-SW1.

* SONY ICF-SW20
Intresting analog pocket set, but was as hissy as a mad snake. No SW coverage below the 49 meter band (below 5.9 Mhz). Dual conversion (455 khz and 10.7 Mhz). Just too limited SW coverage.

* JAPAN RADIO CO.NRD-535D (2)
The 535 to me was the best that JRC had made so far (well until I grabbed a NRD-545 anyway). However, after purchasing a AOR AR7030 this NRD went out of my Shack pronto. The JRC trait of poor audio continued in the 535 but no "hiss" as was in the 525. But I did a side by side test, same antenna, and as much of the same settings as I could. I was understanding the audio on a weak signal on the AR7030, where as I could not make out 1 word on the JRC NRD-535. Sync Detector and Notch Filter were useless on the "NRD" as well. Well could go on, a generally very well made receiver, but poor audio made me part with it. Another gremlin with both samples was the buzz from the microprocessor and or display that irked into the receiver. This issue was never cured in it's lifetime while on the market.

* ICOM IC-R9000 (2)
This gem covers the entire spectrum, well at least the part we would be listening to. At a little over 44 lbs (20 kg) you do not want to carry one very far,the size with the weight of this beast makes it hard to handle. The paint chips very eaisly (after owning 2 of these, I know this first hand with the cabinet. As the reports have said over the years, this radio does indeed run VERY H-O-T. One cause is the power supply transistor, and bridge rectifier mounted on the rear heat sink. But other area's on the bottom receiver boards create lots of heat too. I have used an external power supply to power the radio (only as a test) and it makes a diffrence in the heat. Has a super "Notch" filter, very deep and sharp. Very easy to use. The AM mode audio is OK, however distortion is in there making it a bit ruff to listen to hour after hour. Distortion on SSB signals is almost nil (ALOT better).The "line" output is low in level, I used to use a mic mixer to boost this up.

NOTE : The R-9000 can suffer from the nasty "VCO" issues that plauged most Icom sets in this era. VCO capacitors (and perhpas even more) will have to be replaced out. Yes, it affects SW bands as well !! Very expensive to repair. Of course the other bug-a-boo is the CRT (if you don't have a later LCD version). By now any sample that has been used, as can be figured due to age/heat stress....it's going to be a high failure issue.

* SONY ICF-SW77 (Newer Version)
Great set for the person who has a hard time keeping track of SW broadcasting schedules. Works great in this area. Sync circuit is not so good when compared to the older ICF-2010 (ICF-2001D outside North America). Lots of distortion, sync actually degrades audio on many signals. Tuning Knob is actually a disc that you "push On" to tune, gets old very quickly for the band scanner. But for the person who just wants to push a button and be there..this set would "fill the bill" real well. Line out is a bit too weak for a tape recorder. The front panel is all sprayed painted plastic....could show wear real fast, even the buttons have sprayed paint on them !!! Also can suffer from those nasty capacitor failures. Ugh !! A real Sony dud in general !!!

* SONY ICF-SW7600G
Another Sony set with a fairly "poor" sync circuit and only one bandwidth filter. But was OK. No tuning knob

* DRAKE R-4245 (It's a R-7A and RV-75 Vfo in a Tan Cabinet)
I'm not sure why this receiver became so highly rated ?? It's nothing more than a R-7A with a RV-75 VFO unit , oh yes in a pretty tacky looking tan cabinet. Very good dynamic range, sensitivity, and the synthesized VFO made the receiver stable after a 15 min or so warm up. Was far from being "commerical". Would never handle the daily demand of a heavy commerical user. The audio quality, when comparing to today's receivers, was very poor. Excessive distortion in AM reception mode. My ears could not take much over 30 min's of listening to SW AM broadcasting stations. SSB was much better. Ran hot.

* SONY ICF-SW100 (2, early version and one near final production)
About as small as you can get. If you need it super small and SSB and sync detection too, this is the ONLY set that will cut it. Be aware that problems happen with early samples with a couple of ribbon cables that connect the halfs. If you don't see the little cut out in the hinge area it's a early one. Don't expect any good audio out of this radio either, but with a nickel sized speaker, that can be expected. But the audio I feel is really comprised by the too narrow IF filter (has only one audio bandwidth filter). The early sample had a very hissy trait (MUCH worse than the SW1). However with the later one , this hiss issue was cleared up.

* AOR AR7030 (8 Total , 6 Plus / 2 Standard)
A communications receiver with about the best audio that you will find, but also has the worst ergonomics that you can think of too. I still like this set very much, but with the many parts quality problems, I have a sour taste in my mouth even to this day. 4 of the 8 (6 if you count the 2 sour ones out of the box brand new I received) samples that I have owned have failed either in some way ,say 6 to 8 months-light use. I guess if you are handy and maybe don't mind fixing the set as you take it out of the box "Brand New", I guess this may not matter ?? Again this is a great receiver, but just understand the fact that the receiver does not have a good track record for using certain parts that could fail. New, was a very expensive for what you got as well at $ 1500. US for a plus version. Be sure and check out the review if you have not been there already. N9EWO's Review on the AOR AR7030

* KENWOOD R-2000 (2)
Was a good, very easy to use tabletop receiver. Had weird sensitivity curves. SSB step not fine enough (50 hz). Poor dynamic range. Audio while OK, had above average distortion. I find the R-1000 to sound much better and a tad better dynamic range. The ATT switch tends to get dirty (just like with the R-1000).

* JAPAN RADIO CO. NRD-93 (With NDH-93 Scanning Unit)
The champ of all JRC receivers. Quality of construction in this set was outstanding. High quality parts used, for example the volume/RF gain controls etc, were top drawer. No consumer crap used here. Audio was better (still not the greatest) then any other JRC set I have ever used , up until the NRD-545. But still not up to the AR7030. Good news is that the 93 has excellent ECSS, and when used..AM signals sound very good. I tried a Sherwood SE-3 with this set..but distortion was present (Yep, tried diffrent "IF" levels too). But when compared to modern day sets...the 93 is "Long in the Tooth", as it was on the drawing board in the early 80's. Sensitivity being only good not outstanding. To me, internally the construction and parts used (except for the above average variable controls) in it's circuits and pc boards are about the same say to a NRD-545. The front panel construction is way above average. Made a weird "whine" sound that came from the switching power supply section after it warmed up for awhile, this would drive me nuts in short order. This is the main reason I did not keep this one. The more current NRD-301A suffers from this same problem. See my page on the NRD-93

* JAPAN RADIO CO. NRD-545 DSP Receiver (2)
A very well made receiver. The audio is MUCH more crisp than the NRD-535 or NRD-93 ever were .The way you select the IF bandwidth filtering is excellent. However the audio suffers from 2 very weird DSP sounds on broadcast signals (SW or MW). See sure and see my page devoted to this set . I generally still love the NRD-545 even with it's quirks. It's still the best JRC receiver ever made in my view.

* WATKINS JOHNSON HF-1000A DSP Receiver / WJ8711A (3)
As is with the JRC NRD-545 above this is a IF DSP set. DSP not only works in the IF filtering area, but also in detection/AGC/Noise Blanker. Triple conversion as with the NRD-545 as well. This set can kick butt as far as pulling out the signal out of the muck. However it suffers from it's own gremlins. It does not suffer from the "Burps" and "Ticks" that plauge the NRD-545. It MUST be used with good coax feedline and remote antenna, as it creates it's own "buzzie-buzzies" that can irk back into the received signal if this is not done. Another minor gremlin is that SSB reception can have clipping problems on strong signals (not always).

These sets have been discontinued and no longer sold new. Outside cabinet and controls feel (and the weight) like a cheap low end american car.

See the page devoted to this receiver. BEST SW / HF RECEIVER EVER made in my view !!!

UPDATE : I had a chance to test the WJ8711A side by side with a Icom IC-R9500 and the WJ still won with super weak signals. Not by a major difference mind you , but when you count the hairs right down to audio recovery (hearing the spoken word), the WJ still came out on top.

* SANGEAN ATS-909/RADIO SHACK DX-398 Portable
Works pretty good using it with a external outdoor antenna. The whip sensitivity on SW lacks big time however. Nice "fine" DIGITAL tuning steps of 40 Hz, with OK SSB (at portable standards). But still not fine enough for real serious work. Tuning Knob and keypad both have very good feel. Line out jack provided, NOTE: This is a stereo jack (manual is wrong) and if you do not use a stereo plug into this "Line Jack", it will short out the middle ring connection on this 1/8" stereo phone jack and speaker will distort. So a bit of warning on that one (you seen this info here FIRST !!). As most have said the "flip stand" is a joke and will indeed break (have already seen this one personally). Don't use it, purchase one of the aftermarket stands from Universal Radio in Ohio. FM broadcast really rocks on this set, great sensitivity and selectivity. Slurps batteries up fast !!! The narrow "Wide" bandwidth" filter does not help this sets fair to poor audio. The "Narrow" bandwidth filter is too wide for real SSB signals.

* VERTEX-STANDARD-YAESU VR-5000 Wide-Band Receiver (2)
OK, this is a wide band "all frequency - all mode - in one box receiver" and I understand that. So its a very low price for such a set. So with that in mind it works and is fun. Has nasty poor dynamic range with any real antenna. Overloading can be PROPERLY controlled on HF with a EXTERNAL VARIABLE ATTENUATOR. A super neat spectrum display that works OK provided it has not launched into overload. Phase noise is also in the nasty poor area too, so manual ECSS is out of the question. Not a set for performance or for ease of use , but with the proper VARIABLE attenuator is most useable on HF (external outdoor antenna). NOTE : Early versions suffered from total lockups and the included unregulated AC wall power supply is garbage. See my page on the VR-5000, for more info.

* LOWE HF-250 (with all options, Non E version)
This receiver is ALMOST the cleanest sounding shortwave set I have EVER had my hands on (with the sync mode in use). It's sync handles fading distortion extremely well too. The downside with the HF-250's audio is it suffers from a level of low frequency "rumble" that totally ruins the gains. This was more noticable with the Sync on but also exists in the virgin AM mode as well. The HF-250 also had a real quirky microprocessor (a known issue that happens to all of them) that would lock the entire receiver up once in awhile when pushing buttons. This was a "bloody" pain in the rump when it happened. Also a chore to even switch modes. One has to push a mode button, push 2 more to toggle around the loop to the mode you want and then punch the mode button AGAIN. Tuning steps were also not good for any bandscanning. It was too slow unless you press and continue to HOLD a fast button. The remote control was also weird to use. Good.....but not so good afterall. The AR7030 is a much better (and actually a much more software stable) receiver.

* JAPAN RADIO CO. NRD-345 (Later Sample)
A JRC receiver that has 2 VFO's and a tilt bail with table protection pads. Of course both lacking in ALL other JRC sets ever made. Solid construction with a steel cabinet. Excellent RF performance, super easy of use , nice LCD display and even a real s-meter. Suffers from the typical JRC trait of poor audio with AM signals even in wide bandwidth (muffled), SSB has very good audio with no distortion or hiss at all. In my view here with SSB signals it's way better over the AOR AR7030. Also very good manual ECSS. Sync detection however is a major joke (just like with the Icom IC-R75). Includes a regulated floor wart that is a bit under rated for current (the USA 117VAC one at least is). A nice litttle receiver from JRC, but not for listening to broadcast stations. See my page on the NRD-345

* PERSEUS "Direct Sampling" HF Receiver
This is a PC connected (Microsoft XP , Vista or above) "Black Box - Direct Conversion" 100% DSP receiver. It requires a computer with some real horsepower to work right and a USB 2.0 or above port. Computer should at least use a 1.5 Ghz processor and 512 MB of memory and that's really at the "min." bottom and it will not work 100% right this way. I would say at least a Intel Pentium DUAL CORE processor in the 3 Ghz area and at least 1 GB of memory (or better). Once that is done THEN sit down for some very good performance. Of course there are NO IF stages in this type of receiver. Better than MOST (but not all) "hybrid" DSP IF receivers. The spectrum scope is the BEST I have ever used. The IC-R9000 and YES even the current IC-R9500 look like total GARBAGE when compared to the Perseus's EXCELLENT scope !! You can even record a chunk of the spectrum in "real time" for later playback. Better have a HUGE hard drive however. Has excellent sync detection and on board DRM mode too, and endless number of QUALITY bandwidths with nice wide ones too (that I like and require in a HF receiver).

However one of its MAJOR bugs is its (other than the high cost) is the very weak signal sensitivity and noise floor. It's not quite what it could have been and for deep down extremely weak DX signals, which still makes the WJ8711A the "king of HF receivers" to my ears !! Also can suffer from self-generated gremlins which is its REAL drawback !! We found this one to be very sour after awhile !! I have a full review on another page.

* DEGEN DE1121 (2)
The Degen DE1121 is the only PORTABLE receiver on the planet that can give on board "MP3 recordings" in the SW band that actually works properly. Receiver section works good too including dual bandwidths, and has SSB mode to boot. It's MAJOR down side is that it is NOT easy to use and takes time and lots of patience to learn the strange menu layout. and general operation. It can lock up once in awhile too.The usual Degen "Quality Control" warning has to be stressed, it's highly variable (more like POOR) . Full review here.

* DEGEN DE1123 (2)
The ill-conceived Degen DE1123 DSP Radio-MP3 Player-Wav Recorder. A great idea for the pocket but it comes up way short in a number of area's. Downright lousy receiver on SW. See review here.

* DEGEN DE1125
Updated version of the DE1123 above. Well not much of any improvement (some parts are worse). Another one that is almost worthless on SW. More lousy Degen quality control too. See mini-review here (bottom of page).

* GRUNDIG G6
Another Degen made set. Nice "near pocket set" that has SSB too with 20 hz fine tuning steps (but only fair performance here). Nice tuning wheel. Sensitivity can vary greatly from sample to sample (even more poor Degen quality control) . Memory operation is weird and dosen't operate properly. See full review here

* UNIWAVE DI-WAVE 100 (Very Rare)
"Di-Wave 100" DRM Receiver from UniWave. Our sample came from the first pre-production run of 300 (or less ?) samples. Works great for dedicated DRM use, but is a real pain for any general SW listening. Performance on "analog" SW is good , however excessive audio distortion is a real problem in this mode. Rumor has it that this project was discontinued just before any real production samples were made ? My full review here.

* ETON E1
The closest portable EVER to the Sony ICF-2010 (if not a dead heat). Designed by R.L. Drake, rumored to have used Tecsun Chinese parts and made in India, but gives for some fantasic performance. 3 metal cased IF filters. Excellent sync detector and PBT. As many know it's the extremely POOR quality control that killed this one. You should use this receiver with a good REGULATED 9 VOLT power supply at the proper current (not the "over voltage" garbage wall-wart supply that come with it). Can suffer from the sticky case trait (due to it's "rubberized" painted cabinet). See my review for more details.

* DEGEN DE1126 / DE1127 (2)
While no where near perfect , the pocket size Degen DE1126 "Radio-MP3 Player-Wav Recorder" is a improvement over the DE1123 and DE1125 models (as listed above). At least better off air record and at least useable on SW now (still has AGC issues). MW stinks, but FM is near excellent . MP3 player has shuffle mode. Microprocessor gremlins with weak off air recordings get mixed in. With the smaller DE1127 variant , on both tested samples we experenced a weird excessive current draw issue , this was not noticed with the bit larger DE1126 model. Shorter (and super thin) antenna reduces the FM sensitivity too. See the full review for details (bottom of this page). Same POOR Degen quality overall .

* GRUNDIG G2 Reporter (a.k.a. : DEGEN DE1128) (2)
OK, this is ANOTHER Degen designed and made "Radio-MP3 Player-Wav Recorder" set. Based on the DE1123, DE1125 and DE1126/1127 sets but larger. Has a line input and external Micro-SD card slot. Uses the same BC-5L lithium ion battery. Battery operation only. Here we have 2 speakers which gives for great stereo effect and punchy audio . SW receiver performance is actually much improved with the AGC issues pretty much fixed. Digital Recording and Playback suffered from dropouts on both units which is a real "deal killer" for me. But no more digital noises mixed in off air recordings (now is clean). FM performance is fantasic , MW is downright lousy !! See the entire review here.

Above is my "Master List" of SHORTWAVE HF Receivers owned since 1977, in order as received.

Please note: I no longer own most of these (like 99% of this list), and questions to these receivers I may not be able answer. Here for the general information only and nothing more. None of this is "For Sale" as a few have come to think for some reason.

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