Red Wave Radio

I got my Degen/Kaito 1102 form lypin on ebay.

It's simple fantastic.

I can't realize how Degen engineers are able to design this fantastic
piece of technology at an incredible low price.

Degen 1102 it's a must have!

Careful about using superlatives here :-)

The 1102 has definite performance shortcomings (most notably in immunity to
overload) although overall its performance is very good for the price,
size, and low battery consumption.

Quote:>I can't realize how Degen engineers are able to design this fantastic
>piece of technology at an incredible low price.

Cheap labor I'm sure. It's also cheap because you are buying an item that
has not been marked up by a US distributor (Kaito) or dealer, and not
supported by a US warranty. However - the cheap eBay prices for Degen
imports has driven the prices on US Kaito versions down, so the consumer
wins there too.

Quote:>Degen 1102 it's a must have!

Agreed. Despite its design shortcomings (which all portables do) it does
incredibly well for the price, and is a terrific bargain.

Quote:> I got my Degen/Kaito 1102 form lypin on ebay.

> It's simple fantastic.

> I can't realize how Degen engineers are able to design this
fantastic
> piece of technology at an incredible low price.

> Degen 1102 it's a must have!

Would I be betraying incredible cynicism in wondering if a few of the
endor***ts for this radio might be, shall we say, financially
motivated?

Just a bit cynical. :-) But it's worth questioning, I guess.

I've had my Kaito 1102 for about a month---not from lipyn (from whom I
ordered a Degen BCL-2000 and got excellent turnaround) but from
Radios4you (because I was anxious and wanted it quick---they complied
admirably).

It's an excellent portable for its size and price, IMHO, and I'm very
happy with it. Nobody has paid me to say so, either.

I'm able to pick up stations on the 1102 that I can't get from any of my
other portables, just off the whip, and it's a very good option when I'm
away from my tabletop receivers. It's not a DX machine of course, and
overloading may be a problem in some areas (it hasn't been one for my
unit) but I'm really impressed by it.

----

Yes

Quote:> I got my Degen/Kaito 1102 form lypin on ebay.

> It's simple fantastic.

> I can't realize how Degen engineers are able to design this fantastic
> piece of technology at an incredible low price.

> Degen 1102 it's a must have!

Does it have SSB??

Yes it has SSB

However if I read Ulis Fleming's review of the radio, you have to go
thru an excercise to get TO SSB, using page 9 of memory or something
like that...If it's not intuitive (ie. idiotproof) I dont want it.

yodar

Actually it's not very complicated
Press "P" (page), press "9". You're in page 9.
Enter the frequency you want, press the SSB button.
Voila.

Quote:> > However if I read Ulis Fleming's review of the radio, you have to go
> > thru an excercise to get TO SSB, using page 9 of memory or something
> > like that...If it's not intuitive (ie. idiotproof) I dont want it.

> > yodar
> Actually it's not very complicated
> Press "P" (page), press "9". You're in page 9.
> Enter the frequency you want, press the SSB button.
> Voila.

I might add that after you've done that once, page 9 stays in SSB mode
unless you press the button again to take it out of SSB

Quote:> > However if I read Ulis Fleming's review of the radio, you have to go
> > thru an excercise to get TO SSB, using page 9 of memory or something
> > like that...If it's not intuitive (ie. idiotproof) I dont want it.

> > yodar
> Actually it's not very complicated
> Press "P" (page), press "9". You're in page 9.
> Enter the frequency you want, press the SSB button.
> Voila.

Sometimes I don't know what freq I want.  I just want to go into SSB and
scan.  Pick up some cool stuff that  way.
Does it have adjustible BFO or an LSB/USB switch?

Boy, was I truly e***d to recieve this little wonder in my mailbox. On
a clear night, you can actually hear VOA! It's excellent on batteries
too,and damn if I still have the same ones I put in last Thankgiving!
Gotta go now, after clipping an external antenna, BBC's signal is
starting to come in...

<<<<SNIP>>>>.

Quote:

> > Degen 1102 it's a must have!

> Would I be betraying incredible cynicism in wondering if a few of the
> endor***ts for this radio might be, shall we say, financially
> motivated?

It crossed my mind as well -- but having read Ulis Fleming's review at
http://www.redwaveradio.com/ I figured I was going in with my eyes wide open.

I insisted on buying the Kaito version from RadioLabs, because I wanted a US
warranty (from an actual radio dealer) and did not want to hassle with a 220
to 110 adapter (especially because I keep reading about people with
malfunctioning adapters).

The Kaito 1102 really is an amazing little radio.  The more time I spend
with it, the more I like it.

I would definitely choose it as the best compact portable available for less
than $220 (which would buy two of these with plenty of money left over --
even after shipping next-day).  I do hear people gushing about the sound on
the unit's speaker, and I do have to say that they must not have much of an
ear for quality sound.  It's barely adequate.  However, it's all relative, I
guess -- the KA1102's speaker does sound a little better than the one in my
Sony SW07, (which is a $300+ radio).  Forget it even has a speaker -- it's a
walkman.

The radio is about the size of the typical portable cassette version of
walkman-style radios (just a little bit thinner -- but just as hefty).

This radio is meant for "walkman"-type headphones.  That's where it shines.
In fact, the manual even says not to turn on the "FM Bass" feature if you're
listening on the speaker.   But when you listen to FM Stereo on headphones
with the Bass feature on -- it ROCKS.   So, basically you're getting an
AM/FM/SW walkman that has an unbelievably sensitive whip antenna and truly
excellent memory features (that rival an ATS-909) -- the ultimate
radio-based walkman for radio geeks on the road.

It's meant to be on the move -- It charges its own NIMH batteries (but not
automatically -- you have to tell it how many hours to charge them).

It will load 20 stations (in whichever band you want) into memory page "0"
if you tell it to.

It will get SSB.

It is intuitive to use -- the way things work on this radio make sense.

You can mix different kinds (bands) of stations on the same page -- great
for a "favorites" page, for instance.

It has timers and alarms.

It will switch from 10 to 9 Khz stepping on MW for trips abroad.  It will
keep you entertained for hours on end.

It will cost you  80 bucks.
http://www.redwaveradio.com/

-- Stinger