Sangean PR-D5 VS. Grundig S450DLX
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- čas přidán 8. 09. 2024
- I compare the AM reception of two high end radios. One is the sangean PRD5 and the other is a much more expensive Grundig S450DLX. Ive never been happy with the daytime AM reception of the grundig, especially considering that it was nearly $200 to purchase it. The sangean has a much better sound and better reception at less the half that price (&65.00)
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BC when you're doing the nighttime AM reception tests with that Grundig it makes my scalp tingle. That's how I got into shortwave listening as a child. Now I'm amateur radio operator, KM4LDI. The sound of the late night AM radio and the propagation just pierces my radio soul😀
Ive been an AM DXer all my life. I would go to sleep as a child with an am radio under the covers with me searching out the signals. I have a ham radio but failed the test twice. I cant seem to pack enough anwsers into my head to pass it.
Me too. I had a rocket radio with one earpiece. The antenna was clipped to my bed spring. I was in WI and loved to listen to WBZ in Boston until way too late at night.
Ron Hicks Me too! Although im not an amatuer operator, I still am a radio enthusiast, i especially enjoy late night dxing, shortwave listening, etc, even listening to some of the amatuer bands when they are open. It may sound wierd but I even enjoy just listening to the radio in the car when traveling, I get a thrill hearing stations fade out as I travel, but also just seeing how far they will go, the further the better. Also listening for local A.M stations to reduce power and change antenna (radiation patterns) at sunset.
I've owned the PR-D15 for 3 1/2 years and really like it. Looks a lot like your D5. Paid $87 and it's now $74. It also has treble and bass and fine tuning and recharges the batteries when it's off but plugged in.
Cheryl in Oklahoma they seem to be very well made radios.
I'm researching radios now. Two weeks ago when there were a hundred hurricanes out in the gulf, I started thinking about battery powered radios again. I gave mine to my mom, and bought one for my brother. Now it's time to get one for me.
I tried an experiment on the Sangean AM band using a Tecsun AN200 loop antenna it allows you to pull even weaker stations and eliminate all or most of the static noise on a distant AM station. It inductively links to the radio's AM ferrite antenna and fine tunes and boosts the signal strength. I thought it was worth the $30 to reduce AM static on distant stations. I really like the radio too.
Several years ago, I bought the PR-D5 for my sister who we just built a new addition and porch onto their house...I researched several AM/FM receivers and loved this one cause of it's dual power options and stereo sound...It didn't disappoint any of us...I collect HF rigs, so I had a leg up on my decision with radios...You're video though shows a few reasons as to why you experience poor AM or known as the Medium Wave Band...The Grundig S450 is primarily an HF rig and like any receiver, it uses an internal ferret rod loop antenna and size and quality of the ferret rod makes for a big difference in reception...With the Sangean being just Am/Fm, I'd bet more detail to the internal antenna and also to the amplifying section of the radio is used...So it's to say that the PR-D5 with it primary purpose is focused on commercial, spends more effort to bring a higher quality to those bands...The S-450, although not one that I own, is not a bad HF receiver...I can't speak for the DeWALT, but have never heard much good said about them...But adding a wire and then running that wire along with electrical wiring is not a good idea...First I doubt if it's even close to being resonate with the FM band and because it uses the internal ferret loop stick for AM, does nothing for that bands reception...Also for AM (MW) reception, you've got florescent lighting near by, which interferes terribly with an AM transmission...Also as someone had mentioned, the use of an capacitor tuned loop that would couple with the loop stick within each of the radios, helps a ton in bringing in AM reception...And yes, clear channel stationed can up their power to 50,000 watts after a certain time of the evening, so that along with enhanced propagation at night is why you begin to hear those flame thrower stations...So the PR-D5 is a super nice receiver for AM/FM reception and would certainly give it a thumbs up...I'm sure by now you sold or got rid of the S-450, but they aren't a bad HF receiver in their own right...Sangean for the most part is a quality brand of Chinese receivers, but based outta Taiwan...They also make some good quality HF receivers and in the past, several of their rigs were re-branded for Radio Shack, now defunct...
glk001 thanks for the info.
Hey there Mr. Truck N Blades - I'm a 40+ year radio vet and so I enjoyed your video. I own over 50 radios of all kinds and am kind of a geek about "DXing" - which is just sitting down with a radio and going thru the AM (or FM) band to see what I can pick up - especially after sunset. For example, I'm about 1500 miles west of Minneapolis, yet I can occasionally pick up AM 1500 KSTP waaaaaay out here in north central Washington on a few AM/FM portable radios I own. I'm about 140 miles east of Seattle. I also can sometimes pick up KFI-AM and KNX-AM from Los Angeles and that's about 1200 miles south of me.
I just bought a "like-new" used Sangean PR-D5 on eBay (got it for less than $50) and it arrives Tuesday. I'm excited to get it. That radio has one of the longest ferrite antennas for AM in most portable radios made, so I'm excited to do some DXing with it. The main reason I bought it though is because it's not easy to find stereo portable radios and that's what I wanted. I do own a couple of Grundig radios - not that specific one you have in this video, but we do have one at the radio station I work at, so I'm familiar with it. The DeWalt radio - well, they are not known for their radios. Anytime you have a company like a DeWalt - who make drills and other power tools - bring out a radio....well..... LOL
I know it's been a long time since this video was filmed, so - what do you say now? It's been nearly 5 years since you did this review.
I still have it and I use it mostly for talk radio on the AM band in my shop. I was a long haul trucker starting in 1977. Long before satellite radio. I spent a lot of time carefully tu I g the dual desperately looking for another human to listen to. AM has a fond place in my heart. Dave Nemo, art bell, rolly James,and yes, DR dimento.
@@bctruck Excellent! That's great that 5 years later and you're still enjoying it. I believe mine is arriving tomorrow now, so here's hoping I have the same success!
I recently bought one and was also impressed with the reception of far away stations. My only complaint is lack of a case or carrying strap. I like to carry it around places and have almost dropped it due to lack of strap. I checked everywhere but no one carries it.
For am you can also use a LOOP antenna.
Tecsun makes one that does very well.
You got one of the best radios for am. Another one is a C.Cane.
Try the Loop antenna. They are not very expensive.
I have the same Grundig, the bummer is where I am there is ONE AM station we can pick up from Vegas, but the Grundig just pulls it in like no ones business. I got a new Sangean ATS 909 X for my storeroom and put the Grundig in the garage in my work bench area, and its still pretty decent. Good review. BTW it was funny I was reading the posts about Art Bell and listening to him talk on the ham radio here lol he lives right down the street from me.
Iridium242 you live in parump? I knew he was a ham operator. I remember him talking about an antenna array he built that inexplicably produced electricity.
Yup, I am in Pahrump. First time we came here to look for houses I tried to find his house just to see his antenna, never did see it until we moved here later lol but I talk to him on the local chat frequency. I remember that when he was talking about having to ground the antenna poles because of all the electricity he was picking up off it.
Iridium242 its baffling my how antennas can produce electricity. I’m thinking tesla may have been on to something.
good timing for me, I've been looking for a GOOD am radio. Thanks for the video
I ordered it this morning, looking forward to getting it.
still have mine and still happy with it.
I have the white pr5 and it is one my best , if not the best am bc radio I own. It beats my c crane cc+ my sattelite750' and they are good. Runs on battery's also so good for power outages.
Others mentioned Shop Lights....downside for florescent but severe impact on AM reception. The newer electronic ballasts seem to be nosier. Also those "wall wart" AC adaptors can be a source of noise too if they are multi- input voltage type and use "switching voltage converter" technology.I'm not 100% clear if LED bulbs are better noise wise as they have to convert the higher voltage and most likely have "switchers" in them as well.I know the Grundig has the ability to use external outdoor antennas which maybe something you want to look into.
The Grundig is on its way to a freind in the philipines. The sangean is doing a great job.
Just got a Sangean PRD5 from Radio Shack for 79.00. Sounds great for its size.
The DeWalt depends on the testosterone element of its appearance rather than the quality of its internals. Nice video.
Good vid! Had a Grundig S450DLX. that died on me. Buyin' a Sangean PR-D19BK.
Use the AM RF Gain control on the Grundig, it may bring down the local interference that you are picking up on the lower end of the AM Broadcast Band. Also, try the Narrow setting on the AM/FM knob, it will restrict the bandwidth of the received audio. For talk radio, I am sure you will prefer the N or Narrow setting as opposed to the W or Wide setting. I think if you will experiment with these settings you will find that you prefer the Grundig. Also, the radios may use a built in antenna that is directional. It will pick up the stations that are perpendicular to the antenna and reject stations that aren't.
Iv experimented with all the settings . Its not a bad radio, in fact I think they are equal in reception. I do think the sangean has a better tone though.
The telescoping antenna is for FM, AM antenna is a carbon bar inside the radio.
roguesquatcher I knew that!! When I raised the antenna, it was to see the FM reception.
An easy DIY AM radio antenna is just a halo of a couple of layers copper wire and lay that on the radio. Search DIY AM radio antenna
My radio was getting about 80 stations when I was staying out in the tent, but when I tried to use it in my house, I couldn't get anything. My house is made of concrete with a whole bunch of rebar in the cores. I thought that my radio was broke. I probably just need to put some effort into hooking up some outdoor antennas.
I still use this radio in my shop. It pulls in the AM talk radio that I like to listen to.
I feel like I need to confess. Since starting to research which radio is best for me, I have decided that I am just going to go ahead and get every radio that I have seen on CZcams. It's kind of like going to car shows. (This week the casinos are putting on a classic car get together, called Crusin The Coast) When I'm down there, I want every car that I see. After all, gadget addiction is a man thing, and I am still just a man.
AM radio is mostly commercials and phone numbers, phone numbers, phone numbers. I listen with one hand on the mute button. I enjoy talk radio for the few minutes of talk an hour you get.
I just cant stand "classic rock" anymore. its the same music over and over and over. I tried classical and i lijke the fact that id you turn a machine on for a few minutes, you havent missed anything on the radio, but talk is what I listen to now. Im buy myself for 90% of the day and its nice to hear another voice.
Thanks for the comparison appreciate it. God Bless
I bought two different sangean radios at hammersmith in sister bay wisconsin one of them shows the artist even the name of the fm station and the name of the song
We found a dewalt radio on the bypass while going around town in the fire truck someone proubley throwed it out the window.
Your probably right!
My shower radio is made by sangean. Works great and it’s water proof
That’s one place I didn’t think I needed a radio.
Now I want one of those Sangean radios..... and sweet potato fries too! Thanks a lot!
1 year later and I find myself here again. But, I'm finally going to order this sweet little radio... and still wanting sweet potato fries. Thanks again!😆
Sangean also is a very high quality radio 📻❗️
Stereo sound for sure. AM can be a finicky thing even in the city.
During the day, there are only two stations I get that are talk. At night, this thing really pulls in the stations.
I have to use an app to get my local NPR station and it's FM! AM is totally dead, but that's fine with me. Merry Christmas!
John TheFrugalFatGuy merry Christmas John!
I have a cheap SONY transistor that has gotten excellent reception but after a couple of years the volume control has gone wobbly and I can't recommend it anymore. I get great reception and a lot of channels from my old car radio in the 94 Corolla. I listen to Pandora a lot now and can get it on my Kidle Fire.
Robb's Homemade Life I’ll look into pandora. The radio in my truck has lousy am reception.
i am a tech dummy but I think if you have wifi with your IPS you should be able to use the computer to acess digital radio. Just use a cheap pad or even kindle fire and acess the web and get the radio stations digitally, you might need to get some good computer speakers but I think digital would be the way to go. I am sure there are a lot of solutions I am not aware of as i am still a tech dinosaur.
Robb's Homemade Life I have a tablet and a laptop but the problem is my WiFi isn’t strong enough to reach my shop.
Brad, I have not used this device but i think it might help you get your wifi into your shop.
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i have the dewalt radio i been using it in my shop for years love it
you must live near or in a town.
Yes "Breaux Bridge Louisiana"
been to the crawfish festival many times. I ive in sibley,east of bossier city.
oh ok, i never visited northern Louisiana the furthest i been is alexandria
I used to work in crowley. I pulled a tanker for the John boys.
First! Why is that so fun to say? It means nothing and I never use to do it but somehow I find it fun. Anyway, Merry Christmas my friend.
Merry christmas wyatt!
I have come very close to putting a bullet through my POS DeWalt radio, the same as your model, several times. What an effen disappointment. Good luck with your new radio. 👍👍
It is very disappointing. This radio is one of the straws on the camels back that made me start moving into makita tools. I have at least 1000 bucks worth of dewalt tools in my shop. When they quit, im done with dewalt.
BCtruck, rebuild, repair,repurpose we are on the very same page as I have also begun transitioning to Makita. I may or not ask if anyone wants them for free. Why give them disappointment. My trash bin looks very appealing.
Is that one of those radios from C Crane company? I always used to hear their commercials on AM and how most new radios use the minimum technology on the AM side and focus on FM to save money. Sounds like you found a winner :-) I still want to get an old tube radio from when AM is all there was. I have heard you can pick up stations at night from all over the place.
ProFreedom556 when I did this video, one of the stations was out of Biloxi Mississippi and the other was Nashville Tn. Both are several hundred miles from me.
here around my country, nobody is doing am anymore. and the talk is that the government is going to licence the am frequencies to data transmition as the radio station will not pay for it any more
Well they’ve done that to some television channels here but so far no talk of doing that to AM radio
i get terrible a.m. reception where i live. i'm relatively close to my favorite radio station. (about 50 miles) at night, it's almost impossible to get anything on the a.m. dial. instead, i get many american channels, much further away. so, i did some research and decided upon a; sangean hdr-16 hd radio. it's a little pricey, but i expect many years of life out of it. hopefully, my choice was a good one.
I had a new radio in the Peterbilt.. It would take that radio a full 30 minutes to start working on AM. Fm was instantaneous. on radio you have to know the broadcast schedule. sometimes they boost the signal at night. sunlight drives HF radio signals into the ground. Thats why night time AM talk radio is still king. I miss Art Bell and tales of the weird. cheap entertainment for the OTR trucker.
I wear a worktunes head set. I was working in a place where I could see the individual rungs and color changes on the tower and couldnt pick up the stations being broadcast.
Randy J art bell helped me put many miles on my truck.
Hate to tell you this now that you have bought a new radio but the best reception and sound Will come from your broadband either through your computer or your cellphone. Just download a radio app. I listen to BBC London, American talkback and some of my local stations, I ditched my AM and FM radios years back because of the poor sound quality. Also you do not use much broadband to listen to radio. I my shed I plug my cellphone into a gutar amplifier and the sound is ausome. Hope this helps. Cheers
Just red the comments and you said you have no Wi-Fi in your shed. Well I use a thing called "power lan". You plug it in the wall socket and then plug a lan cable to the router. In the shed you plug one in the wall and a lan cable to your laptop. Presto broadband in your shed. Broadband over power cables 10 out of 10
Paulman50 my shop and home are on separate meters. Taxes ya know. I’m gonna look into talk radio apps.
That shouldn't matter as long as they are on the same transformer. I have two spare 110 volt ones that wont work over here, I'll post them to you.
Oh man! Do t do that. I’ll bet I could buy them here for less than the postage. I’m definitely going to look into it. Thanks for the offer though!
You might want to try picking up WSB-750 AM at night, it is a super powerful talk/news station in Atlanta.
Ill look for it right now.
I picked it up. Its a rush rerun.
Thanks.
I use I heart radio for on the road it keeps me in room to my local channels on the road like talk radio
okie-dokie acres I’ll check it out. Thanks!
BCtruck, rebuild, repair,repurpose If o could send you the app I would but it's free from Google play
Check out ccrane radios they specialize in AM radios that realy pull in the signals and shortwave.
Ive read comparisons and reviews and aparently this sangean (which C Crane sells) has better reception than the c crane radios.
BCtruck, rebuild, repair,repurpose oh ok
I like the sound from the Sangen also ;-)) The Grundig sounded too tinny to me :-}
That was my feeling. to tinny and the sangean sounded great on fM.
Have you considered adding an antenna tower outside your shop?
TheDisorderly1 I have.
Try tunin radio on your smart phone app You will be abele to get just about any a.m. station very clear. 73 KF2WG
what is the name of a good app?
tune in is the name of the app. great app as long as you have good cell reception or good wifi internet
I've been chasing my tail in my shop too . . . reception is bad plus it's getting more difficult to find a ballgame. I enjoy listening to a game while I tinker, maybe those days are gone. Anybody know of a proven AM/FM antenna for the shop?
whoolph C Crane company sells something that is supposed to dramatically increase AM reception.
_Which radio has better sensitivity to the AM band. Sangean PR-D5 or Grundig. Thank you very much._
The sangean
_thank you very much. I have a Sangean ATS 909X and I am not happy with the AM frequency. weaker radio stations cannot be heard due to static interference.With the Sony icf-sw7600gr there is no interference on the AM frequency._
Are there any small AM/FM outdoor antennas on the market that you could mount to the outside of the shop?
Ive tried a few and none that work well enough to justify the cost. this sangean does a great job of pulling in the stations though.
Sounds like a good value for the money. I'll have to look at the various models they sell, as I also like listening to shortwave radio because you never know what station you might pick up from one day to the next. For me thats part of the fun. I'm still trying to find a good Ham Radio License Test study guide. I'll pass along the the book name and/or internet link when I come across it.
Old people's music? HEY! I resemble that remark! I do wonder what made you think DeWalt would make a good radio? Seems an odd company for radios to me. I like the new radio. I listen to stuff thru the computer because I am inside a metal building and get no reception for radio or phone.
If I had better wifi reception in my shop, I would just listen on my lap top.
Man if I had the money I would buy that shortwave Grundig off of you😀
BC, can you pick up 700 WLW at night ? Out of Cincinnati. That my local talk station and supposedly you can pick it up in 38 states at night. Hosts ATN
Ill check tonight.
I can't pick up ANY radio stations on my car radio here. I bought an AM/FM radio and I could get a few AM stations, kinda, but not good enough. I gave the radio away. I shoulda bought a decent radio when I was in the US last year.
American Expat In The Philippines if I could find a place that would ship to you, I would give you the grundig.
Hmm... I'd take that radio. You could maybe send it registered US mail. You'd have to pack it VERY well because the mail is unreliable here, and packages from foreign countries have a "funny" way of opening themselves.
American Expat In The Philippines email me your address. After Christmas I’ll send it. Bctruck@gmail.com
Hi. How is the build quality on the sangean? Thank you for your time.
Shai Will it appears to be very well built and sound quality is awesome,especially for a smallish radio.
BCtruck, rebuild, repair,repurpose Im still deciding on this one or the Sangean PR-D15.
I was bidding on a 450xl on ebay. I hope I don't win. Wish I ran into you video a day ago.
Just tune in that short wave and listen to radio iraq. Just make sure the antenna is pointing towards mecca.
Right now there are bearded men trying to figure out how to bring the religion of peace to you.
They just need to look in Tennessee. LOL
I still have the factory AM radio in my truck. I listen to Coast to Coast ever so often. ... Did you know you can have your own legal, low power radio station on either AM or FM? (low power being the key words) Just look up Part15.us and hava look. No joke. I saved the site some years back when I heard about it. I can see it now. Your neighbors can tune in to BCAM and listen to you talkin up a storm. :-)
Great idea! My talk show theme would be about aches and pains and those damn kids that won’t stay off my grass. 😂
I had a dewalt radio it went into the trash
Good place for it.
Bc let me no if you ever get a cheaper pair of head phone radio for your lawn tractor no need to spend a lot for that i live way out of city can get on radio s but not on small things to put on ears for the tractor sucks listening to that for over three hours to do the lawn instead of music LOL ... thanks have a good day .. †
Ill tell you what I do. I have blue tooth ear phones. I put them in my ears. put my shooting muffs over them and I can hear my music just fine when Im mowing.
its not so much hearing the music its picking up the stations it is hard and at times you hear it one way turn around the other way and it is gone lol
Fluorescent lights!
Uncle Bucks Forge I’ll try it without the last gets on next time I’m in my shop. Thanks
My shop lights interfer withthte radio
One more reason I am making the transition to LEDs
Just be sure to get the higher end LED's, I've bought a couple of shitty ones in the past, and they are just as bad as cfl's.
The last one I bought was for over my bench. Now I have to work with sunglasses on.
Hé les gars, quand vous faites des essais, faites de vrais essais, autrement dit, parlez moins et montez le son des produits testés !
Sangean is worse on the AM band.
Thats totally false. Sangean makes some of the best MW receivers.