I was thinking about using 1kHz tuning; this way, the radio would be more
universal. No need to worry about 9 or 10kHz steps if this is done. With
my current units, you can connect an untuned 6 foot loop directly to the the
50 Ohm antenna input, and the results are pretty dramatic. From my location
in the Chicago area, I can receive WLW, on 700kHz, with an S8 signal level.
WJR, on 760kHz, comes in at about an S7, while on 610kHz, I can receive
Kansas City Missouri, and the Ohil station fighting each other, at an S7
signal level. If I want to listen to MW, I don't even bother using my
AOR7030, Palstar R30, Icom R75, or Yaesu
FRG100...........................none of them is as hot.
Radioman390 wrote in message
...
I would prefer a table radio like a Tivoli or old KLH21


Ceratinly some DRM capability, or a place to add a plug-in card which
could be
either DRM, C-QUAM stereo, or the digital AM (IBOC or Kahn?).

Depending on how the digital standard goes, at least the RF could be
constant.

10/9 khz tuning (US vs Euro)

Noise blanker

Before I implement a noise blanker, I want to develop a NB design that I
have been slowly working on..............this would be a Quadrature type.
The advantage to this type is that it would have dynamically variable
blanking width, with a null of right around 50dB. Still working on that one

An input for a loop antenna

An input with DC phantom power for an outdoor active antenna

Maybe an antenna switch to switch between lop and other antenna, or two
loops.

Good tone controls

Perhaps something like the old Scott DYNAURAL circuit which shaped the
flatness
of the audio depending on signal strength, or something like Worcester's
AM
circuit which made the IF passband narrower as the signal strength
decreased.

Good speaker!

Amen!

Pete

Gregg wrote in message
. ..
Behold, Radioman390 signaled from keyed 4-1000A filament:

I would prefer a table radio like a Tivoli or old KLH21


Ceratinly some DRM capability, or a place to add a plug-in card which
could be either DRM, C-QUAM stereo, or the digital AM (IBOC or Kahn?).

Depending on how the digital standard goes, at least the RF could be
constant.

10/9 khz tuning (US vs Euro)

Noise blanker

An input for a loop antenna

An input with DC phantom power for an outdoor active antenna

Maybe an antenna switch to switch between lop and other antenna, or two
loops.

Good tone controls

Perhaps something like the old Scott DYNAURAL circuit which shaped the
flatness of the audio depending on signal strength, or something like
Worcester's AM circuit which made the IF passband narrower as the signal
strength decreased.

Good speaker!

I agree with everything here, except I would make the IF selection
manual. Most purists want to be in control of their machine and will
likely open the box and manually modify it....if buy it at all.

IF BW of 2.5KHz 6KHz and 10KHz per side band for itelligibillity through
audio quality.

Good crystal or mechanical filters too, not crappy ceramic thingies, as
they are certainly not flat in their passband and would require manual
audio EQ to compensate for the midrange hump.

Actually, if you terminate those ceramic types properly, the passband ripple
is less than 1.5dB.

Oh and please, as a former serviceman, paste the schematic on the inside
of the box like the old days :-)

I do plan on making schematics available..............the one thing that
perturbs me these days is the high price that one must pay for circuit
information. Oh, did I tell everybody that there will be no tuning
adjustments required. We may even warp the 2nd LO through software.


--
Gregg
*Perhaps it's useful, even if it can't be SPICE'd*
Visit the GeeK Zone - http://geek.scorpiorising.ca

Pete, I have no doubt that you can do it, but it strikes me that your
radio will need to be darned good to beat CCrane's "CCRadio Plus."
Maybe others will disagree, so I'm ready for the education I deserve
if that's the case. However, as it stands now, I'm pretty impressed
with that commercially available receiver.

Randy (WA4FJF)

Let me talk to my genie about that one!

Pete

Radioman390 wrote in message
...
DRM readout to ID stations, songs, etc

I meant RDS, and while we're at it, why not have a little memory button
which
would remember a song title when you press it, for later review?

Those do sound like good ideas, but I think that with what you are asking
for, the price would probably be around the 250 dollar range. The clock
function is pretty cool, but I am still working on my ultra cool clock, that
changes color throughout the spectrum as the day progresses. I was thinking
of that one for another product. I've got a dozen products on the burner
right now. It's pretty cool, working for an employer that wants to do these
kinds of things.

Pete

Clifton T. Sharp Jr. wrote in message
...
[posted and mailed.]

Pete KE9OA wrote:
My employer has given me the go ahead to design a new product. If there
is
enough interest, I will design a new MW receiver for the market. What
would
you be more interested in......................a small table top type,
or a
portable?

You know UL rating is easier when you use a wall wart. Go for a portable
even if it's a little on the large side.

Performance wise, I am talking about something like that of an AOR7030.
I don't think that I would be inplementing Sync Detection,

Aw, Pete, go that extra mile.

but a couple of
I.F. bandwidths could be possible.

Yes, please.

Definitely, double conversion, and
digital readout, with good audio quality.
Would you want any presets?

With digital readout, presets shouldn't be that expensive. The more
electronically-controlled functions, the easier to do presets, thus
adding bells and whistles. Extra points for IF bandwidth stored with
station, supercool for bass/treble stored. Including a clock? Wanna
be spiffy? Preset for timezone displayed. Easy, cheap, and marketing
will love having a feature no one else has.

How about target price?

A really hot MW receiver isn't a mass-market product. This ain't gonna be
cheap. Don't make it ridiculous. $150 might be a nice target for a really
hot unit. $39 if it comes pre-misaligned like other super radios.

Do you want a built in
antenna, or external antenna only?

A cheapo loopstick built in for general use, external input for the
serious DXer.

High and low impedance antenna inputs?

I know you won't forget to protect 'em against static etc.

How about a built in tunable preselector?

Probably worth it. RF gain control, too.

A switch and a cap gives you AGC slow/fast control, hint hint. And show
us how *real* AGC works, not that phony auto-stifle lots of designers
come up with.

Selectable 1 KHz tuning resolution. Don't forget 9 KHz if Europe might
be interested.

One alarm timer, one or two "on" timers, and a "sleep" timer that can be
set without having to turn the damn radio off and back on.

Audio line out.

DreamFeature [tm]: two low-Z antenna inputs, one with a unity-gain
variable
phase shift 0-90+ degrees. You're Superman if you can do that one cheaply.
Doesn't have to be precisely calibrated, only the range (not the dial
position) is important; only us tweakers will use it.

--
"Here, Outlook Express, run this program." "Okay, stranger."

Thanks Kent....................I want to do something so cool, that even non
DXers will want to buy it.

Pete

Kent wrote in message
...
If you do a hot MW receiver for about $150, I will place the first order!

"Clifton T. Sharp Jr." wrote in message
...
[posted and mailed.]

Pete KE9OA wrote:
My employer has given me the go ahead to design a new product. If
there
is
enough interest, I will design a new MW receiver for the market. What
would
you be more interested in......................a small table top type,
or a
portable?

You know UL rating is easier when you use a wall wart. Go for a portable
even if it's a little on the large side.

Performance wise, I am talking about something like that of an
AOR7030.
I don't think that I would be inplementing Sync Detection,

Aw, Pete, go that extra mile.

but a couple of
I.F. bandwidths could be possible.

Yes, please.

Definitely, double conversion, and
digital readout, with good audio quality.
Would you want any presets?

With digital readout, presets shouldn't be that expensive. The more
electronically-controlled functions, the easier to do presets, thus
adding bells and whistles. Extra points for IF bandwidth stored with
station, supercool for bass/treble stored. Including a clock? Wanna
be spiffy? Preset for timezone displayed. Easy, cheap, and marketing
will love having a feature no one else has.

How about target price?

A really hot MW receiver isn't a mass-market product. This ain't gonna
be
cheap. Don't make it ridiculous. $150 might be a nice target for a
really
hot unit. $39 if it comes pre-misaligned like other super radios.

Do you want a built in
antenna, or external antenna only?

A cheapo loopstick built in for general use, external input for the
serious DXer.

High and low impedance antenna inputs?

I know you won't forget to protect 'em against static etc.

How about a built in tunable preselector?

Probably worth it. RF gain control, too.

A switch and a cap gives you AGC slow/fast control, hint hint. And show
us how *real* AGC works, not that phony auto-stifle lots of designers
come up with.

Selectable 1 KHz tuning resolution. Don't forget 9 KHz if Europe might
be interested.

One alarm timer, one or two "on" timers, and a "sleep" timer that can be
set without having to turn the damn radio off and back on.

Audio line out.

DreamFeature [tm]: two low-Z antenna inputs, one with a unity-gain
variable
phase shift 0-90+ degrees. You're Superman if you can do that one
cheaply.
Doesn't have to be precisely calibrated, only the range (not the dial
position) is important; only us tweakers will use it.

--
"Here, Outlook Express, run this program." "Okay, stranger."

Thanks Dale.................I am definitely going for this one. I will be
developing an RF AGC loop, so this unit will be very overload resistant.
Also, since the AGC loop will originate in the I.F. strip, after the
filtering, strong, out of passband signals will not capture the AGC bus.
You see how yours works...............picture it at the next step.

Pete

Dale Parfitt wrote in message
...


Kent wrote:

If you do a hot MW receiver for about $150, I will place the first
order!

and you had to ask, Pete! Just build it- they will come.

73,
Dale W4OP

I was thinking about that NRD515. Actually, I wanted to get one for a long
time, until I started building my own receivers
I plan to have the audio amplifier running in a wide bandwidth mode, so the
product will have a nice "hi-fi" sound.

Pete

RFCOMMSYS wrote in message
...
Pete KE9OA said ---


My employer has given me the go ahead to design a new product. If there
is
enough interest, I will design a new MW receiver for the market. What
would
you be more interested in.....................


Tabletop with large knobs and enough weight , not some tiny 5-ounce radio
that
slides all over the desk when you push a button.

Real knobs and buttons, no stupid menu driven radio. I want a radio, not a
computer.
No stupid clock.

Sideband selectable synchronous detector. If not, then SSB capability with
ANALOG fine tuning for manual ECSS.

Actually, analog manual fine tuning would be a good idea regardless,
unless the
digital tuner could be tuned in 1 hz steps.

Passband tuning.

A REALLY GOOD noise blanker.

Tunable notch filter.

AGC off/fast/med/slow

A real illuminated S-meter

Really good audio. Not hissy, muddy, or weak.

Filters: 10/6/4/3 khz

Radio should NOT radiate any noise into my loop antenna nearby on the
desk.
Digital displays can radiate horrendous noise if not designed correctly.

Both coax and "wire" antenna inputs.

IF output port.

Line out.

If it's a portable with internal ferrite rod antenna, provide a switch to
disengage internal antenna when using an external antenna.

Would be very nice if it received longwave (LW, VLF) too. If so, would
require
SSB or CW and a narrow filter for DXing beacons.

Presets would be nice, but not necessary.

Don't care if digital display isn't fancy, only need LEDs for frequency as
long
as other functions are indicated by knob positions.

Hint: Think JRC NRD-515 for style and ergonomics.

Thanks Hank................................we were just talking about that
VLF through MW tuning range this afternoon. Now, as far as OCXOs, when I
was working for Motorola, the general price quotes were in the 500 to 800
dollar range. TCXOs were a little bit cheaper, in the 50 to 80 dollar
range, and this is with a 5ppm drift rate. 1ppm units were in the 100
dollar range.
Henry Kolesnik wrote in message
...
Pete
For layout of the knobs and controls take a look at the old Bearcat
DX-1000
and refine that ergonomically. A front panel engineered properly wouldn't
require a manual on how to operate it. If you can make it portable so
much
the better but include a bnc for a 50 ohm antenna. If its portable make
it
so it can be installed in some kind of enclosure that makes it a desktop
unit. While your designing why not make the desk top with plug in modules
that can be upgraded with options and shrink that design to one board for
a
somewhat less feature rich portable. I'll bet there's a market if you can
make the price right. Options would include ocxo, vlf, filters, synch
det,
uhf conv, scannning, more memories, 10 Hz readout, then 1 hz
readout...spectrum scope, timer, etc. A person should be able to afford
the
stripped down unit and listen and then as budget permits add the desired
modules. Repairs would be module swaps.
Best of luck in doing it.

Hank, I appreciate the input.............I knew that there was demand for
this type of unit. While all of these options are good, especially the
upgradable topology, I think that development costs would be quite high. I
was thinking about something a little bit "leaner", although with
superlative performance.

Pete
73
hank wd5jfr
"Pete KE9OA" wrote in message
...
My employer has given me the go ahead to design a new product. If there
is
enough interest, I will design a new MW receiver for the market. What
would
you be more interested in......................a small table top type,
or
a
portable?
Performance wise, I am talking about something like that of an AOR7030.
I don't think that I would be inplementing Sync Detection, but a couple
of
I.F. bandwidths could be possible. Definitely, double conversion, and
digital readout, with good audio quality.
Would you want any presets? How about target price? Do you want a
built
in
antenna, or external antenna only? High and low impedance antenna
inputs?
How about a built in tunable preselector?
E-mail me directly, and we will see what happens. Any of you who have
built
any of me receivers know what I am talking about...............I plan to
take the design to the next couple of steps up in performance.

Pete

I want to thank all of you for your input.................I will be copying
all of these replies into a Word document, and presenting them to my
employer tomorrow morning. Hopefully, we can make this thing really fly. I
am really excited about some of the refinements that some of the folks at
work have brought up. We had a design meeting that lasted almost 2 hours
this evening, so I think that things look good. Oh, one more
thing......................I believe that we will be selling directly to the
public initially, instead of going to distributers. Once we get this
product to market, I will be there to provide technical support, answer any
questions, etc. Thanks again, folks! You are a great bunch!

Pete

Henry Kolesnik wrote in message
...
Pete
For layout of the knobs and controls take a look at the old Bearcat
DX-1000
and refine that ergonomically. A front panel engineered properly wouldn't
require a manual on how to operate it. If you can make it portable so
much
the better but include a bnc for a 50 ohm antenna. If its portable make
it
so it can be installed in some kind of enclosure that makes it a desktop
unit. While your designing why not make the desk top with plug in modules
that can be upgraded with options and shrink that design to one board for
a
somewhat less feature rich portable. I'll bet there's a market if you can
make the price right. Options would include ocxo, vlf, filters, synch
det,
uhf conv, scannning, more memories, 10 Hz readout, then 1 hz
readout...spectrum scope, timer, etc. A person should be able to afford
the
stripped down unit and listen and then as budget permits add the desired
modules. Repairs would be module swaps.
Best of luck in doing it.
73
hank wd5jfr
"Pete KE9OA" wrote in message
...
My employer has given me the go ahead to design a new product. If there
is
enough interest, I will design a new MW receiver for the market. What
would
you be more interested in......................a small table top type,
or
a
portable?
Performance wise, I am talking about something like that of an AOR7030.
I don't think that I would be inplementing Sync Detection, but a couple
of
I.F. bandwidths could be possible. Definitely, double conversion, and
digital readout, with good audio quality.
Would you want any presets? How about target price? Do you want a
built
in
antenna, or external antenna only? High and low impedance antenna
inputs?
How about a built in tunable preselector?
E-mail me directly, and we will see what happens. Any of you who have
built
any of me receivers know what I am talking about...............I plan to
take the design to the next couple of steps up in performance.

Pete