Several weeks ago, someone here recommended listening to a recent interview with receiver test guru Rob Sherwood. In it, the interviewer pressed Rob for a radio recommendation. At first he resisted but eventually gave three transceivers that he said "anybody would be very happy with". But when he compared them, instead of pointing to specs like dynamic range, sensitivity, receiver noise, &c., his deciding factors were interesting.
Speaking about one radio model, he said, "It's a good receiver, but it's got a really loud relay inside when you send CW." About a model from a different manufacturer, he said, "Great radio, but the spectrum display makes me dizzy." About another: "The speech processor doesn't work that well." And this went on. In other words, just like the rest of us, he believes there are lots of other factors that make or break a radio, many more than mere numbers or specs. (At one point Rob said, "I think I've created a monster," referring to The List.) This is why I have written here in the past that you have to get a radio into your hands before deciding whether it's any good; making your decision on the numbers alone doesn't give you any real idea how the radio performs. Don't write off a new radio just because it's in ninth place (or whatever) on The List. Don't be surprised if you don't like one of the "top radios" on The List. Be open to liking a radio or manufacturer farther down The List. That's what Rob Sherwood does. R, Al W6LX/4 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
