Shortwave/SSB radio review and discussion

[s/v Faith]

Shortwave radio review and discussion

  One of the things that Rose and I really came to rely on was our shortwave radio.  I had researched various brands and read all I could about them, and then bought the Kaito 1103.  It's alarm was set to make sure we were awake to listen to Chris Parker's weather net every morning it was on.

Kaito 1103 specs from Kaito site;



  Now, I do not believe that a ham set, or even an SSB transceiver is a requirement onboard a small boat, but I have to say that a good shortwave receiver, capable of decoding SSB transmitions is an important peeve of gear.

  When you are close enough to the US, you can still get NOAA on the VHF, but that was good for about 75 miles on a good day (for us).  Others use more advanced methods, some you have to subscribe to, to get their info.  I bet that XM weather is nice, but don't care for the equipment requirements or the monthly subscription fees.

  I admit I had not gone much beyond buying the gear before we left US waters... this was not a good idea.  While I have a pretty strong background in electronics, especially communication's I struggled to get the right combination to get a reliable signal.

  The ham guys, and most everyone I checked with had nothing but praise for the Kaito 1103.  Read some reviews on Ham.net here.  It is also marketed as the Degen 1103, and tested against the standards seems to perform well.  The Sony's are great radios, less so the old standard which is the Grundig Yachtboy.... which no longer is much of a contender according to many of the the radio guys, but still seems to be popular talking to other cruisers in anchorages in the Bahamas.

Both cost more then the better rated Kaito which a quick search shows can easily be had online for less then a boat buck.  There is also a 1102 model, which many like.  Whatever radion you go with make sure it has the SSB (USB/LSB) decoder... I have a YB300 that does nothave this.  It is ok for news, but not IMHO a cruising radio.  The Kaito also have a solid feel, not like the cheap plastic feel that Grundig has adopted (my Yachtboy YB300 is positively cheap feeling compared to the kaito)

  I had great success with my dodger frame as an antenna... which was surprising since I had less success with long (even tuned) antennas I tried to hoist up into the rigging.

  One thing I did not try, but do not hesitate to recommend would be following James Baldwin's advice on his web page.  He mentioned this page to me when we visited them, I later wished I had taken the time to put one together before I left.  The link is; Aerial Tricks  -  making a dipole antenna for your SSB radio
(with notes on SSB receivers and RF ground planes)
by James Baldwin

[newt]

 I am new to this SSB/Ham thing.
Why would you only get a receiver? Is this a backup to your SSB receiver and sender? Don't you want to send also when out on sea? How much $$ more does it cost to get the complete outfit (and get certified)? Finally, how bout just going with Sat phones and internet? How much more would that cost?
There- I think that is enough questions for one day- I'll go back to looking at the wind forecast and stop bothering you. ;)

[s/v Faith]

I am new to this SSB/Ham thing.
Why would you only get a receiver? Is this a backup to your SSB receiver and sender? Don't you want to send also when out on sea? How much $$ more does it cost to get the complete outfit (and get certified)? Finally, how bout just going with Sat phones and internet? How much more would that cost?
There- I think that is enough questions for one day- I'll go back to looking at the wind forecast and stop bothering you. ;)

  The receiver is goo enough to get what you end up wanting to know.  Wx info was what we were interested in.

To receive, all you need is the radio, which can run on AA batteries or 12vdc.  You can add an antenna to get better reception.

  From there, it is just a question of how far away from the KISS principal you want to go... spend more money, time, energy, and space... for.

  To xmit, you need a much more expensive radio, a tuner, and a dedicated antenna... much more money, space, and labor intensive.  Even if you elect to do it you probably still want a small portable receiver to pick up wx (and maybe a time tick).

  Offshore email adds another level of complexity... not interested in working that hard for comms myself.  I could not really picture using it on a small boat in the real world myself... but I think that, and sat phones have been talked about in this thread.

[AdriftAtSea]

Your power requirements and capital investment skyrocket if you want an SSB transceiver.  An SSB receiver is relatively inexpensive... under $300 or so for a really good one... an SSB transciever is going to be at least three-to-four times that for the radio, antenna, tuner, and ground plane.  A receiver uses very little power, and some can be powered via solar or AA batteries.  An SSB transceiver uses a massive amount of power if transmitting.

[newt]

Thanks guys, the tread was exactly what I was looking for. I don't know why I didn't see it earlier. (Grog to ya for helping me out!)

[hearsejr]

S/V Faith, how much does the one you bought cost?

[s/v Faith]

S/V Faith, how much does the one you bought cost?

Bill,

  I seem to remember paying ~$135-150 for mine maybe a year and a half ago.  A Quick search shows they are now available for less then $100. ($80-100, plus shipping).  If you can find the Degen 1103 it is the same radio, but the Degen brand was for Asians markets and for some reason was running less when I bought mine. 

[hearsejr]

kewl thanks. I'm thinking that I like the idea of a portable shortwave Radio for weather warnings.

Bill

[Auspicious]

An SSB transceiver uses a massive amount of power if transmitting.

My Icom M802 draws almost 2 amps when *receiving*. I have a shortwave receiver on my shopping list specifically to reduce power consumption receiving weather faxes and listening to BBC / VOA / AFN.

sail fast, dave
S/V Auspicious

[s/v Faith]

Dave,

  You might want to take a look at Reviews Summary for Kaito KA1103.  The hardcore ham guys really like it.

[AdriftAtSea]

darn...didn't think it drew that much in receive mode.

An SSB transceiver uses a massive amount of power if transmitting.

My Icom M802 draws almost 2 amps when *receiving*. I have a shortwave receiver on my shopping list specifically to reduce power consumption receiving weather faxes and listening to BBC / VOA / AFN.

sail fast, dave
S/V Auspicious

[Shipscarver]

Anyone have a handy-dandy list of recommended frenquiencies I should print out and keep by the squawk-box?

[s/v Faith]

I really like my Kaito 1103.  Once I got the hang of using the antenna (and the dodger frame as an antenna) I was able to get Chris Parker's weather pretty reliably.  Of course propagation is the variable that no one can control, but I did at least as well as those with installed SSB / HAM sets.

  The problem was that I did not want to bring the Kaito out on deck for listening to 'the voice of the Bahamas' or other radio programs.

  I see now the Degen / Kaito 1103 is available on Ebay for about half of what I paid.  I will probably pick up another one and let my Yachtboy go like I did the SiTek (I have NEVER liked the Yachtboy, and since it lacks SSB it is not really worthy of a place onboard).  Even if I get another 1103, it still leaves me with non-waterproof gear in the cockpit.

Rose got me a shower radio a few years ago, and I used it for a while but the sound is pretty tinny.


  What would be nice would be to find either a good waterproof AM/FM radio, or a waterproof AM/FM/SW/SSB radio.


Anyone know of one?

[Captain Smollett]

I'm interested in getting a Kaito, so the weatherproofing issue is of interest to me as well.

Dumb question: is there an external speaker jack?

If not, couldn't one be wired in pretty easily?  Then run a lead to the cockpit with a weatherproof speaker and call it a day.  Perhaps not ideal (volume control, freq adjust, etc is still down below), but workable.

[s/v Faith]

Yes, the Kaito / Degen is an excellent radio.

  I doubt I will find anything I like more (at least for SSB).

  It does have an external speaker jack.  I like to be able to just keep the radio accessible so I can adjust the volume etc. at will.

  I have considered an installed radio, WM has had some pretty good deals on marine radio packages with speakers and USB inputs for stored music.... I am not really wanting to install another system onboard.  I think a radio is pretty KISS and would like to avoid something more complicated.

 

[skylark]

I had an Icom 718 which worked well as a ham radio and a general coverage receiver, but it died, I guess I shouldn't have left it in the boat over the winter.  I recently got a Kenwood TS-130S off of ebay for about $250 delivered, however it does not have general coverage, it only picks up ham frequencies.  I have not tried it in the boat yet. 

I run a 20m dipole hauled up with a halyard.  I can tie it to the side of the boat just aft of the spreaders, but it seems to work better if I pull it back to the pushpit.  Its in the way of the mainsail, so thats not a good permanent choice.  I'm thinking about using a wood pole to hold it out aft of the aft stay, the further the better.  I also have a 17m dipole.

I am interested in using PSK or other data for email or weatherfax, but have not tried it yet.  Mainly I listen to 14.300Mhz, the Maritime net.

[s/v Faith]

Paul,

   I am not really interested in a transceiver, or an installed radio.  I used to be, but don't really want to 'go there' right now.

  Where do you find room for your Kenwood TS-130S?

Looks like a pretty big space commitment to me.



I know your Icom was not exactly pocket size;



But the Kenwood is going to take up some room.  (Looks like a cool unit though).  ;D

[skylark]

More interior pics here, but warning for slow connections, there are many large pics on this page:

http://cruisenews.net/tanzer/22V2005/

Its too bad the Kenwood does not receive all general shortwave bands.  I have only had it a few days and am still working on an antenna at home, so I don't know everything about it yet.  Maybe it reaches the 49m broadcast band, which is one of the more useful general coverage bands.   I will probably want to bring a general coverage shortwave receiver as a backup, I consider a portable SW receiver as an important piece of equipment in my seabag, along with a GPS, compass, knife, multitool, etc.  If I had to choose between a receiver and a ham transceiver, I would get a receiver.  However in an emergency, a transceiver would be useful.

[Auspicious]

The Kenwood is a decent radio. It was designed as an entry-level offering and general coverage receive was left out as part of the effort to keep the price down.

All you're going to get is the 41 meter stuff from Region 1 and 3 and even that will disappear over the next year or so. The ITU has rationalized the band-plan worldwide and the shortwave broadcast between 7.1 and 7.3 MHz that overlaps the Region 2 (us) 40m amateur band is being moved. I don't recall the exact schedule.

[Captain Smollett]

Got my Kaito 1103 for Christmas (yea First Mate...what a gal)!!

Been playing with it for only a couple of hours and so far I love it.  I've not used many SW receivers before but I have used some.

So far, from inside a house in central North Carolina and with the integral antenna, I've picked up:

An English speaking station from Bangkok, Thailand

A dude in Southern California with a 25 degree directional aimed East that was blowing my ears off

AFN from Key West...loud n clear

Cruisers Roll call on the Atlantic Maritime Mobile

VOA

BBC (multiple stations)

Canadian Radio International

And many others.


I also learned something I did not catch at first.  It will tune any SW frequencies from 1710-29999 kHz; I initially thought it would only tune freqs in the bands listed on the screen, but that's not true.

The interface was a little counter-intuitive for me at first, but I've gotten used to it.  Beyond that, what a tremendous unit for less than $100.  Now to d/l some weatherfax software, hook 'er up to see how she does with that.

Well pleased...thanks, Craig, for bringing this unit to my attention.  Great KISS friendly workable solution for the Wx issue.  Grog to you!