Sony SRF-M35...excellent am/fm pocket portable!
May 26, 2002 at 4:22 PM Post #16 of 59
Again Fixup, and others considering the SRF-M35, a-noise is present in EVERY emplifier, but b-I have NEVER heard amplifier-related (or "ground" related,if you insist) noise on the SRF-M35, and submit that perhaps Fixup has come across one or more particularly bad samples. I own THREE SRF-M35s, and all are DEAD QUIET through my Koss Sporta Pros, KSC-35s, KSC-50, Sony MDR-7506, and Sony EX-70lp. I mean NO (audible) noise (although of course there IS noise in this, and every other analog device...it's just too low to be audible).

I was speaking of rf-related noise in my review, but I will repeat that one of the reasons I like MY SRF-M35 so much is that it REFUSES to let noise intrude on my fm listening, including when listening to distant stations. It (quite properly) blends weak and/or multipath-prone signals gracefully to mono. And the audio quality of the am section is really quite surprising, with (at least) an octave more hf information present than with most am radios. Even if you only listen to news, sports, and talk shows on am, you'll be surprised at how much more listenable they sound thanks to the expanded audio bandwidth. And if you live in an area such as mine, where the fm stations all are playing "cookie-cutter" formats, with no musical variety, and no surprises, but with a few small-town am stations within a 50 mile radius playing music that the fms just won't touch, then the SRF-M35 can bring a world of LISTENABLE (though not stereo) music where otherwise there would be none! Imagine that! An "am/fm stereo" radio which actually pays some attention to how am SOUNDS!

I'm curious, has ANYONE other than Fixup encountered the noise that he speaks of with the SRF-35? I certainly haven't, and am wondering (aloud) if he just got a bum sample, or maybe two!
 
May 26, 2002 at 7:47 PM Post #17 of 59
has anybody used or heard of the panasonic RF-SW70 shockwave digital radio?? Its $80 canadian...its one of the few radios that i've found locally that *seem* to be of good quality...

my local radioshacks dont carry good radios, the sony store doesnt have those good lighter size radios, and i have no idea where to find that aiwa lighter radio or any sangeans...

this is one of the few radios i have found that i *think* mite have good reception and/or sound....well, probably not sound but maybe good reception...

anyone seen it???

1212070l.jpg
 
May 26, 2002 at 8:35 PM Post #18 of 59
By far the best portable I have owned is the Sony ICF-2010. If you tire of AM or FM you can string out the provided antenna and listen to the world.
 
May 28, 2002 at 4:36 AM Post #19 of 59
Hi Mike,

As you insisted that you heard no noise from M35, I went to my local Longs Drug store and bought a M35 again. You were right, either the one I tried before was defective or Sony fixed the problem in newer products. This M35 is clean, sensitive and sounds good! I'll be auditing it more and looking inside it to see if I can make it even any better like I did to SRF-59 and -S83.

I'm glad that my voice was heard by Sony. In additon to this improvement in M35, I also noticed that the de-emphasis capacitors in newer SRF-59 have been changed from 0.022uf to 0.015, which makes it sound not as dark as SRF-49 was. Sony should go further and change them to 0.01uf and also change the 47uf capacitors to 220uf. If they do, then SRF-59 will be perfect and I'll be out of business.

Ltucci, I did not try the DT-200 or maybe I did if RadioShack sells it under a different name. After trying the DT-110 (because Headroom recommended it) and the ones in RS (Sangean makes radios for RS, Aiwa, Roberts, Sharper Image, etc.), I concluded that Sangean is still second to Sony on radios and Sony is still the radio king. Therefore I did not try more Sangean stuff. Although I don't like other Sony audio stuff - its receiver, headphone, Walkman, MD, etc., I do like Sony radios because they are indeed the best (at least after some mods). For other stuff, I think, the best MD goes to Sharp, CD goes to Panasonic, Walkman goes to Aiwa, headphone goes to Koss and receiver goes to NAD.

"Sony" was the name of a pocket radio imported from Japan about 50 years ago. That radio was so popular in USA, the company changed its name to "Sony". Half century passed and Sony is still the king of radio.

Headroom's choice on DT-110 over a Sony does not neccessarily mean Sangean is better than Sony. You guys here all knew that Headroom never mention any Sony stuff.
 
May 28, 2002 at 4:56 AM Post #20 of 59
I'm glad that your further investigation into the SRF-M35 revealed it to be as quiet and sensitive as what I found. The alternative COULD have been that there's noise there that Im too damn old and deaf to hear! LOL

Take care!
Mike
 
May 28, 2002 at 5:03 AM Post #21 of 59
So, guys, in actual, "What you actually hear when you listen to music" sound quality (and sensitivity, and all of that other jazz too) of these things, both with and without mods, what is *the absolute best*?

As I *sniff* lost my modded srf-59 on an airplane, I am thinking of buying another portable radio (I need a source for my speakers, you know?)....

....so, what's everyone's conclusion?
 
May 28, 2002 at 5:16 AM Post #22 of 59
Quote:

Originally posted by Fixup
The main problem of M35 is its background noise. Try turn the volume all way down and see what you hear - very audiable "si si si..."


I'm not sure I follow you. You say that at low volumes your M35 agrees with you in Spanish?
 
May 28, 2002 at 5:23 AM Post #23 of 59
He he, COULD be my ears are now too old to hear the noise! But I did try it with both ER4P and Koss portaPro. Actually, there is still some hiss but no longer lound enough to be a problem. In comparason, the SRF-S83 has no hiss at all.

Forgot to mention: SRF-M35 is on sale in Longs Drug stores for $29.99.
 
May 28, 2002 at 5:23 AM Post #24 of 59
Quote:

Originally posted by Tweertinelle


I'm not sure I follow you. You say that at low volumes your M35 agrees with you in Spanish?


Well, would it be a "See" noise, or a "Sih" noise...?
 
May 28, 2002 at 5:29 AM Post #25 of 59
Quote:

Originally posted by Gluegun


Well, would it be a "See" noise, or a "Sih" noise...?


Since I don't actually own a defective M35, I have no flunging idea what Fixup's old radio was saying. For all I know, it could have been a stutterer and was attempting to whisper "See here!" or, alternately, "see. . . hear . . . ."
 
May 28, 2002 at 6:08 AM Post #26 of 59
Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Walker
Imagine that! An "am/fm stereo" radio which actually pays some attention to how am SOUNDS!


Mike,

I just ordered the little Grundig e-Traveller VII that you mentioned. Does it's AM sound compare well with the Sony M35?

smily_headphones1.gif
 
May 28, 2002 at 11:25 AM Post #27 of 59
Rick G I find the am on the E-Traveller VII to have a little less high end, and low end extension. But (on mine) the distortion is quite low (have you noticed how high the am distortion is on some radios?), and the overall sound quite listenable.

One thing you'll notice is that, although it has a speaker, for anything approaching quality listening one should think of the E-Traveller VII as a headphone (only) radio.

I will tell you a lil' trick that I discovered, however. Note that there are "vents" for the speaker on both the front AND back of the radio. If you place the radio on the clear, plastic stand that came with it, the "back-wave" from the speaker diaphram radiates through a hole, and into the plastic stand, creating a sort of bass-reflex configuration which makes the radio sound MUCH bigger! I discovered this quite by accident while playing with the radio, and was surprised that it's not covered in the owner's manual!

FM reception in my E-Traveller VII is quite good. Ditto sound quality, particularly considering size, price, and all that's offered (in terms of features, etc.) If you're a shortwave fan, you might want to consider investing in a roll-up pocket shortwave antenna to attach to the E-Traveller VII's "whip" antenna for daytime, and weak signal conditions. It can make a BIG difference (with weak/fading stations) for very little money. Or you could make your own with an alligator clip and 15-20 feet or insulated wire.

Don't get me wrong, the shortwave sensitivity of the E-Traveller VII is fully as good as many full size portables, the Sangean ATS-909, for instance. But ALL portables can benefit from an attached antenna wire, particularly when listening in the daytime, and to signals weaker than those of the major "Powerhouse" stations.
 
May 31, 2002 at 7:15 AM Post #29 of 59
I have a new article on pocket radios including Sony SRF-59, M35, S83, M95, Aiwa CR-LD120 and Sangean DT-110. The mods I did to M35 does make a difference. Mike, if you like, you can send one of your M35s to me and I'll do the mods for you and you can compare the two. I find that M35 sounds more articulate and punchy with more energy after the mods. Thick, really thick, you cannot believe the sound is from a portable.

http://www.fixup.net/tips/pktradio/pktradio.htm
 
May 31, 2002 at 11:14 AM Post #30 of 59
Fixup, I tried your site, but the link seems to be broken (or perhaps net is congested, although it's only a little after 7am EDT). I'll try later.

My local store still has some M-35s at 50 percent off. I may buy one specifically to send for your mod, out of curiosity.
 

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