Losligato

I ordered a new shortwave radio last week and just finished a youtube review of it...

It is an excellent radio for touring

LeeG

excellent review. I missed it if you gave how long the battery lasts per charge using earphones. I was on a kayak trip on 9/11 and without a radio except for VHF hand held. This one looks perfect for traveling.

Losligato

Hi Lee,

Thanks. No I did not mention battery burn time. I have not worn it out yet, though I have had it plugged into the computer to figure out the Mp3 so that does not get me any closer to learning the answer....

According to the manufacturer the battery will last 8 hours while using the speaker with the volume at level 22. That is extremely loud. Right now I'm listening to the BBC at volume level 9. The draw is much lower from headphones so I would imagine the drawdown time would be several days of constant use at least.

LeeG

thx, sounds like a deal.

Dahon.Steve

Funny... I didn't hear any shortwave sound? LOL! I've had small "ShortWave" radios like this and all I could hear was static! They ended up being AM/FM radios.

gpsblake

Thanks for the review. I am a shortwave buff myself and have quite a few radios but not this one. My favorite for touring or going away is the Grundig G6 about the size of your radio. The G6 does well on shortwave, especially if you attach a simple speaker wire or a clip for an antenna. To me, the advantage of the G6 is that it takes 2 regular AA batteries versus having to find a place to recharge the radio. You can also put in rechargable AA batteries and the G6 will charge them for you at a wall socket. The G6 also can pick up sideband transmissions and longwave.

I do like your radio though with the mp3 player. Would be a real plus for trying to record pirate radio stations on shortwave or other programs that don't post podcast like Radio Habana's DXers unlimited.

I have the updated big brother to your DE1103, the Grundig G5, which is really the same radio, just different buttons and layout. G5 is my favorite for listening to hams. It is sort of big for touring though and too big for hiking. But it's a good radio.

gpsblake

Steve, could be several things. You could have a deaf radio or if you live in a major urban area which makes for really horrible shortwave listening conditions. Also the actual placement of the radio in your house can make a huge difference in reception. During the day, tune into 15000khz (WWV time signal) and move it around the house and you'll notice right away how moving the radio affects reception. At night, 5000khz is best to try this experiment. A simple 15 foot speaker wire will make a huge difference in reception also. We shortwave listeners are always playing around with our radios, trying to get the best signals. And it's an never ending process. Best wishes.

Losligato

Thanks Blake,

The G6 looks like a great little radio. The AA batteries would indeed be practical on tour. You could get lights that run off AA and recharge the batteries as needed.

antokelly

wow that is one smart looking radio,did you mention the price btw.might put that on my wishlist thanks.

Ekdog

Sounds like a nice little unit. I used to love listening to the BBC World Service on short wave. Too bad they no longer transmit to Europe and North Africa.

gpsblake

The 1125 goes for $79.99 plus shipping on amazon and it's shipped from Kaito in Arizona which is really reliable. The G6 is 99 bucks (although it does go on sale) and can be found at most Radio Shacks. Also the idea of being able to load up dozens of hours of mp3 on the 1125 is a huge plus also.

Ekdog: I hear ya... that stinks with the BBC

Spokesrider

Does it do bookmarks? I listen to audio books when riding. Long files. I need to bookmark the places (plural) where I left off listening so I can resume later. Very few MP3 players have this feature. I'm always interested in knowing which ones do have it.

Losligato

The MP3 capabilities are rather frustrating. I have not yet played with it enough to answer your question but I can say that it appears that the radio does not handle music and voice files in the same way as your typical cheap MP3 player. It seems to be designed more as a voice recorder and digital file repository. When I get it all figured out I will do a video on it.

rumrunn6

wow, who knew such a thing existed!