[D555]

In an odd reversal of trends, Sony has decided to introduce the SRF-M97 into the USA market:

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTE...&TabName=specs

Sony's last few high-end gumpack radios were not sold in the USA by the company.

I'll be on the lookout.

Paul

 

[blessingx]

This is great. Thanks for the info.

 

[D555]

I'm disappointed.

According to the Sony USA SRF-M97 manual the radio is rated at only 2mw per channel -- half the rating of the SRF-M10.

Paul

 

[enjoythemusic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by D555 I'm disappointed. According to the Sony USA SRF-M97 manual the radio is rated at only 2mw per channel -- half the rating of the SRF-M10. Paul

Hi Paul. Love the D555... have two of them here

On a slightly different note, this thread had me looking for my old FM walkman, the SRF-4 (as seen at http://digitalmemories.org/arm/radio.../sony_srf4.jpg ). Funny looking unit and all, but hey it WAS the Big 80's when this was released

Cleaned the battery contacts, put in some new AAA batteries... This thing has POWER OUTPUT and amazingly drove the Sennheiser HD-600 to good level

OK, rolled off highs, but good dynamics and sound (for FM). Bass was impressive from this little thing, and no there was not any 'bass boost' feature on it. The clarity is very good and the local/DX switch worked well to get 'distant' stations.

So is newer REALLY better???

 

[D555]

Newer is not necessarily better -- as least with some performance aspects.

Generally, the older equipment is going to have greater current output resulting in a punchier, more natual sound. On the other hand the older equipment may not have as long battery life and be larger in size.

Another nice sounding vintage pocket radio is the Sony SRF-A1. Strong output, very low hiss -- even the AM sounds great. The FM rf section is mediocre resulting in images on much of the dial. The DX switch is OK if a bit too aggressive. The high notes hold up surprisingly well.

Paul

 

[insomniac]

Interesting that I don't post the battery life on the thing. New Sony units usually have insane battery life and they're usually eager to point that out.

 

[Edwood]

I love my Xin modded SRF-S84.

I wonder if the SRF-M97 is is moddable?

Probably too many integrated components.

-Ed

 

[swiego]

I've seen a lot of SRF-M10s on eBay and wonder how they've compared.

e.g.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...763176688&rd=1

 

[D555]

If the M97 has any similarity to M10's construction, I would say modification would be *extremely* difficult -- and that's putting it mildly. There is no wasted space internally. The M10 has two, very thin dual layer boards connected by a ribbon cable. A thin, molded piece of plastic is between the layers to prevent shorting out. Components are surface mount and many components are no larger than a grain of salt. The M10 is amazing piece of miniturized technology. The 5mm height can electrolytic capacitors that Xin utilizes in the other radios would not fit at all -- not a single one.

In my view: while the M10 sound is pretty good, the reception quality is poor/fair in urban areas. The 4mw output is kind of weak. My guess is that the M97, having half the power output (2mw), would sound thin with only the "bass boost" to give the impression of bigger sound. Radios with much more wattage do not have to resort to "bass boost" tricks.

Paul