In article ,
"Michael" wrote:


"john" wrote in message
ups.com...
just wondering i don't own a drake r8, r8a or r8b, but i am thinking of
purchasing an r8 or r8a. does anyone use this radio for dxing NDB's and
how does it perform on longwave. i'm also reading alot about the r75 as
a pure dx radio, especially with the mods, but it seems the drake never
gets the heads up vs the r75 as a pure dxer. it also seems that the
drake is the better BCB listening radio due to its better audio. i
would love to hear from someone who owns both. and has compared them in
this respect.

thx, john


Hiya... I have an R75 with all the Kiwa mods. Even without the Kiwa mods,
the R75 is a decent radio for program listening. Don't let anyone tell you
otherwise. The criticisms of the R75's audio are really overstated. I've
found that the Kiwa audio mod helps out a bit, but it isn't a tremendous
improvement. You'll no doubt get Drake fans spewing out all kinds garbage
about the R75 "making a good door stop", but the absurd and inflammatory
nature of their statements are their own indictment.

Snip

Well I should hope so. I though the sarcasm was obvious not unlike the
rest of your post.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

Michael wrote:

"john" wrote in message
ups.com...
just wondering i don't own a drake r8, r8a or r8b, but i am thinking of
purchasing an r8 or r8a. does anyone use this radio for dxing NDB's and
how does it perform on longwave. i'm also reading alot about the r75 as
a pure dx radio, especially with the mods, but it seems the drake never
gets the heads up vs the r75 as a pure dxer. it also seems that the
drake is the better BCB listening radio due to its better audio. i
would love to hear from someone who owns both. and has compared them in
this respect.

thx, john

Hiya... I have an R75 with all the Kiwa mods. Even without the Kiwa mods,
the R75 is a decent radio for program listening. Don't let anyone tell you
otherwise. The criticisms of the R75's audio are really overstated. I've
found that the Kiwa audio mod helps out a bit, but it isn't a tremendous
improvement. You'll no doubt get Drake fans spewing out all kinds garbage
about the R75 "making a good door stop", but the absurd and inflammatory
nature of their statements are their own indictment. They don't like the
idea of a $500.00 dollar radio outperforming one that they paid $1,800.00
for. I've also used each and every one of the R8 series radios. They are
not... I repeat... NOT as good for DX'ing as is the R75.

Your DX'ing must be a lot different from my DX'ing...

That isn't brand
loyalty, that is a fact.

Nah, it's just your opinion.

The R8's with their warm audio and ssb selectable
sycn is absolutely superlative for program listening. BUT.... That doesn't
mean that the R75 is a bad radio for program listening. It's adequate to
good. And... Once again... You don't need the friggin mods. When I really
want to dress up the audio from my R75, I run it through my PC's sound card.
I have a five point surround sound speaker set up with a full software
equalizer and effects package. If I use ssb ecss tuning to listen to a
weak or messy broadcast signal with my R75 or with any other radio, I run it
through my sound card and use my software mixer/effects to make it sound as
full and robust as if it was is AM mode. I have a number of mixer/effects
presets that I have set up just for that exact purpose. Not to mention, if
you get a broadcast that is too muffled or too tinny or has too much mid
range, all you have to do is more a few sliders on the mixer and viola... A
comfortable broadcast to listen to. So... I can get my R75 to sound great
for broadcast, but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the R75.

Hmmmm.. you tell us how great the R75 is then you turn around and tell us about
all the tricks required to make it sound right. PC, sound card, mixer, sliders,
and even a viola!

Very interesting.

dxAce
Michigan
USA

Drake R7, R8, R8A and R8B.

In article ,
dxAce wrote:

Michael wrote:

"john" wrote in message
ups.com...
just wondering i don't own a drake r8, r8a or r8b, but i am
thinking of purchasing an r8 or r8a. does anyone use this radio
for dxing NDB's and how does it perform on longwave. i'm also
reading alot about the r75 as a pure dx radio, especially with
the mods, but it seems the drake never gets the heads up vs the
r75 as a pure dxer. it also seems that the drake is the better
BCB listening radio due to its better audio. i would love to hear
from someone who owns both. and has compared them in this
respect.

thx, john

Hiya... I have an R75 with all the Kiwa mods. Even without the
Kiwa mods, the R75 is a decent radio for program listening. Don't
let anyone tell you otherwise. The criticisms of the R75's audio
are really overstated. I've found that the Kiwa audio mod helps
out a bit, but it isn't a tremendous improvement. You'll no doubt
get Drake fans spewing out all kinds garbage about the R75 "making
a good door stop", but the absurd and inflammatory nature of their
statements are their own indictment. They don't like the idea of a
$500.00 dollar radio outperforming one that they paid $1,800.00
for. I've also used each and every one of the R8 series radios.
They are not... I repeat... NOT as good for DX'ing as is the R75.

Your DX'ing must be a lot different from my DX'ing...

That isn't brand loyalty, that is a fact.

Nah, it's just your opinion.

The R8's with their warm audio and ssb selectable sycn is
absolutely superlative for program listening. BUT.... That doesn't
mean that the R75 is a bad radio for program listening. It's
adequate to good. And... Once again... You don't need the friggin
mods. When I really want to dress up the audio from my R75, I run
it through my PC's sound card. I have a five point surround sound
speaker set up with a full software equalizer and effects package.
If I use ssb ecss tuning to listen to a weak or messy broadcast
signal with my R75 or with any other radio, I run it through my
sound card and use my software mixer/effects to make it sound as
full and robust as if it was is AM mode. I have a number of
mixer/effects presets that I have set up just for that exact
purpose. Not to mention, if you get a broadcast that is too
muffled or too tinny or has too much mid range, all you have to do
is more a few sliders on the mixer and viola... A comfortable
broadcast to listen to. So... I can get my R75 to sound great for
broadcast, but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the
R75.

Hmmmm.. you tell us how great the R75 is then you turn around and
tell us about all the tricks required to make it sound right. PC,
sound card, mixer, sliders, and even a viola!

Very interesting.

Actually very amusing.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

John Plimmer wrote:
Michael wrote:
"but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the R75."

An R8 may not perform up to a R75, but the R8A/B will outperform it.
Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's


I have owned both the ICOM R75 & R8B *Note this is B revision and not
what OP asked for.

I had to sell the Drake R8B in order to pay for a thumb reconnecting
operation. I wouldn't have gotten near enough money I needed for a
thumb reconnection by selling the ICOM. So you see when you get
yourself into a real big jam and need cash then it is better to have
the Drake R8B than the ICOM.

The Drake R8B is a serious radio out of the box. The Icom R75 ( I am
told) has some potential, but to tell the truth it really isn't so good
of a radio. It sounds very bad on AM. I send audio from headphone
jack into a pair of amplified pc speakers, but even with the wide
filter it is still muddy. Crappy audio. I don't have the same setup
that Michael has and sounds like his setup sounds good. I wonder where
he picks off the audio. The Drake sounded really nice. It has a good
sync detector and very nice filter selection. The real reason I sold
the Drake was because I knew I would replace it with another serious
radio. A newer Racal, or a Harris 590A, or maybe I think it is a
Ten-Tec RX340 that that fella Phil likes so much. Probably the Harris.
I couldn't justify having two very expensive radios in the shack so
the R75 is just here as a backup radio until I get cash flow to buy
another real radio.

73
NEO

"John Plimmer" wrote in message
...
Michael wrote:
"but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the R75."

An R8 may not perform up to a R75, but the R8A/B will outperform it.
Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's


Your off the mark here. Way off. I've used both radio's side by side with
the same antenna. The R75 is a better DX'ing radio. Better for utility and
better for DX'ing. The people that dispute this are "fans" of the Drake
radios. Key word here "fans". Like a person who keeps going to see Boston
loose to NY. The keep loosing, but they still love thier team. Also....
Your statement "Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's" further
demonstrates just how far off the mark you are. If a "Top" DX'er or a
professional with a job to do selected his gear, it wouldent be an R8
series. He'd pick one of his WJ's off the rack. At the very least, he'd
take an ICOM 746Pro or somthing at least as capable. While your
contemplating your next post, put "Take Me Out To the Ball Game" in your CD
player and have yourself a hot dog.

Michael

Michael wrote:
"John Plimmer" wrote in message
...
Michael wrote:
"but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the R75."

An R8 may not perform up to a R75, but the R8A/B will outperform it.
Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's


Your off the mark here. Way off. I've used both radio's side by side with
the same antenna. The R75 is a better DX'ing radio. Better for utility and
better for DX'ing. The people that dispute this are "fans" of the Drake
radios. Key word here "fans". Like a person who keeps going to see Boston
loose to NY. The keep loosing, but they still love thier team. Also....
Your statement "Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's" further
demonstrates just how far off the mark you are. If a "Top" DX'er or a
professional with a job to do selected his gear, it wouldent be an R8
series. He'd pick one of his WJ's off the rack. At the very least, he'd
take an ICOM 746Pro or somthing at least as capable. While your
contemplating your next post, put "Take Me Out To the Ball Game" in your CD
player and have yourself a hot dog.

Michael

Where ya been friend. I think Boston beat the Evil Empire a year ago
and went on to win the World Series. As I recall the Red Sox may have
been down 3 games and won 4 in a row as well.

73
NEO
Uxbridge, MA

"Telamon" wrote in message
...
In article ,
dxAce wrote:

Michael wrote:

"john" wrote in message
ups.com...
just wondering i don't own a drake r8, r8a or r8b, but i am
thinking of purchasing an r8 or r8a. does anyone use this radio
for dxing NDB's and how does it perform on longwave. i'm also
reading alot about the r75 as a pure dx radio, especially with
the mods, but it seems the drake never gets the heads up vs the
r75 as a pure dxer. it also seems that the drake is the better
BCB listening radio due to its better audio. i would love to hear
from someone who owns both. and has compared them in this
respect.

thx, john

Hiya... I have an R75 with all the Kiwa mods. Even without the
Kiwa mods, the R75 is a decent radio for program listening. Don't
let anyone tell you otherwise. The criticisms of the R75's audio
are really overstated. I've found that the Kiwa audio mod helps
out a bit, but it isn't a tremendous improvement. You'll no doubt
get Drake fans spewing out all kinds garbage about the R75 "making
a good door stop", but the absurd and inflammatory nature of their
statements are their own indictment. They don't like the idea of a
$500.00 dollar radio outperforming one that they paid $1,800.00
for. I've also used each and every one of the R8 series radios.
They are not... I repeat... NOT as good for DX'ing as is the R75.

Your DX'ing must be a lot different from my DX'ing...

That isn't brand loyalty, that is a fact.

Nah, it's just your opinion.

The R8's with their warm audio and ssb selectable sycn is
absolutely superlative for program listening. BUT.... That doesn't
mean that the R75 is a bad radio for program listening. It's
adequate to good. And... Once again... You don't need the friggin
mods. When I really want to dress up the audio from my R75, I run
it through my PC's sound card. I have a five point surround sound
speaker set up with a full software equalizer and effects package.
If I use ssb ecss tuning to listen to a weak or messy broadcast
signal with my R75 or with any other radio, I run it through my
sound card and use my software mixer/effects to make it sound as
full and robust as if it was is AM mode. I have a number of
mixer/effects presets that I have set up just for that exact
purpose. Not to mention, if you get a broadcast that is too
muffled or too tinny or has too much mid range, all you have to do
is more a few sliders on the mixer and viola... A comfortable
broadcast to listen to. So... I can get my R75 to sound great for
broadcast, but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like the
R75.

Hmmmm.. you tell us how great the R75 is then you turn around and
tell us about all the tricks required to make it sound right. PC,
sound card, mixer, sliders, and even a viola!

Very interesting.

Actually very amusing.


"Interesting" was the better choice. No question you'll get conditions that
your R8b's synch wont help with. If you spend any time at all listening to
SW, you'd learn that your first day on the dial. Not to mention, you'll
find all kinds of over or undermodulated broadcasts. And plenty of them
with too much bottom or too much top. If you spent a day in your life
listening, you'd know that. No matter how slick your R8b sounds listening
to a clean broadcast or one with a minimal amount of distortion or intermod,
most of what is out there sounds far from desirable given the nature of sw.
Using your sound card and a full software equalizer and effects set up on
your PC to mix signals is not only an outstanding tool, once you've gotten
good with it, you'd consider it to be an essential part of your sw listening
gear. You would really be amazed at what you could do just by rolling over
or boosting part of the audio. That doesn't even include things like reverb
or audio level clipping. I'm astounded that it hasn't become the norm.

Michael

In article ,
"Michael" wrote:

"John Plimmer" wrote in message
...
Michael wrote: "but I cant get the R8 to perform for DX'ing like
the R75."

An R8 may not perform up to a R75, but the R8A/B will outperform
it. Some of the top DXer's in the world use R8A/B's


Your off the mark here. Way off. I've used both radio's side by
side with the same antenna. The R75 is a better DX'ing radio. Better
for utility and better for DX'ing. The people that dispute this are
"fans" of the Drake radios. Key word here "fans". Like a person who
keeps going to see Boston loose to NY. The keep loosing, but they
still love thier team. Also.... Your statement "Some of the top
DXer's in the world use R8A/B's" further demonstrates just how far
off the mark you are. If a "Top" DX'er or a professional with a job
to do selected his gear, it wouldent be an R8 series. He'd pick one
of his WJ's off the rack. At the very least, he'd take an ICOM
746Pro or somthing at least as capable. While your contemplating
your next post, put "Take Me Out To the Ball Game" in your CD player
and have yourself a hot dog.

I think the main problem here is that there has been so much BS posted
here by a few people in the past about the R75 and Drake R8B that I for
one turn a deaf ear to posts such as yours. The R75 is a tar'ed and
feathered radio.

The radios specifications just do not support your suppositions. That's
the way it is Michael.

A professional would not pick a Drake R8B or a ICOM 746 pro. He would
pick an RX340, one of the Watkins Johnson radios, or another make of
radio in that caliber.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

For One and All,

I needs a Drake R8B + I want a Drake R8B

Help Buy Me a Drake R8B = Send Me a Dollar for 'my' Drake R8B !

Send That Dollar To :

Can I Get a RL Drake R8B Radio Check ! ! !
{ I Know - It's In The eMail }

just for the fun of it - buy buy for now ~ RHF

On Sun, 31 Dec 2006 23:43:00 GMT, "David Eduardo"
wrote:


Back in the early 70's, I was using an adapted parametric equalizer to aid
in DXing. I had it connected to the output of my R390 by Hammarlund and
output it to a low noise amplifier that had a headphone out. This allowed me
to do some very nice things on adjacent channels, like adjusting the audio
to match the desired station and not the interfering one, or to narrow the
bandwidth of the audio to make the weaker signal less covered by splatter...
or to remove lower frequency hets that added to the interference.

At that time, the only good parametrics were designed for broadcast and
sound reinforcement use, so matching levels and impedances was a big issue,
but I found that using this sort of device (the eq can amp cost more than
the R390, which I had bought new) on MW and tropical band DX made all the
difference in the world.

I believe only Collins made the R-390.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Massenburg