Hi!
Firstly an apology, I have been referring to this radio as the Sangean
ATS-405X, no such model number exists and the radio is in fact the
Sangean ATS-405, an upgraded Sangean ATS-404 if you like.
I've had the radio for a couple of days now and it hasn't taken me long
to realise that I'm dealing with an incredibly powerful receiving tool
indeed given the various options that can be configured.
The radio has many secondary functions that can be switched on and of
or adjusted to suit conditions at the time of listening, some of these
functions can enhance weak signal reception whilst other enhance the
listening experience from this radio.
At first I though the speaker of the ATS-405 sounded very odd, no bottom
and too brighter top, that all changed however when I discovered that I
had the "Music/Normal/News" tone switch in the "News" mode, why radio
manufacturers bother with this tone switch is a mystery to me but they
do and I'd always recommend using a radio in the "Music" mode, only my
personal preference. When the "Music" position was selected the sound
of the radio became enjoyable, not as much bottom as found in the Tecsun
PL880 but enough to satisfy from a small portable radio.
The ATS-405 has 3 band width settings on the AM broadcast band, I much
prefer the middle setting, the 6KHZ setting sounds a little too bright
for my taste however for log sessions listening to talk or sports
broadcasts then I can understand its appeal.
The local/DX distance control is in the form of a button rather than a
switch.
2 Alarms can be set for either radio or buzzer, I like the beeping of
the buzzer, a nice mid-range beep which is easy to hear.
So what about those extra controls I mentioned? I'll summaries those
below and thanks to Jay for assisting me in putting together the list.
The number buttons enable adjustment of the following functions when the
"Fine Tune" button of the radio is held, the radio beeps and you are
placed into the menu system of the radio, the number buttons have the
following functions.
1 - Squelch h
2 - T Mute (tuning muting)
3 - S-Mute (Soft Mute)
4 - 9/10K
5 - Step
6 - AGC
7 - RDS CT
8- 12/24 Hour
9 - Light
0 - Center Bottom - Memory Delete
Turning off the Tune Muting enables the user to hold down either up/down
and hear the radio as it steps up/down the band, some radios enable this
function whilst others do not but its good to see a radio that offers
the user the choice.
Disabling soft muting may enable the easy hearing of weaker stations
without specifically finding the perfect direction the radio should be
pointing in, again its good to see a radio finally offering a choice of
on/off for this function.
Setting the AGC level will certainly make a difference when trying to
find those weaker stations, set it to low when listening to local
stronger signals.
So how have I found performance? The radio is fast becoming a favourite
of mine for AM listening, weaker signals are well received and audio
quality makes them perfectly understandable, this radio has better AM
performance than the Tecsun PL-660 and PL-880, its on a par with some of
the best performing AM radio sets I have.
Reception of Short Wave is very good, I think the Tecsun sets are
slightly better but given the Sangean's price of $95 I think the
performance on Short Wave is a winning one.
FM is not quite as good as on my CC 2/E, Tecsun PL-880 or Sangean
ATS-909X but its good enough and I doubt too many people will find a
problem with it, certainly above the performance of most other radio
sets around.
to conclude I think - for a dedicated portable using DSP Technology at a
bargain basement price - Sangean have done a great job. I find myself
scratching my head looking for any serious flaws or for anything to
complain about and on both scores the reading comes to near zero.
The common "Birdy's" found on sets using the DSP chips aren't found
though the radio can exhibit some strange noises if its turned up to
full volume at times, again not a problem as most people I know just
don't turn their radio sets up to full volume.
The headphones output is superb, excellent quality particularly when
listening to stereo FM broadcasts.
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