Sony ICF-SW7600GR AM/FM Shortwave World Band Receiver with Single Side Band Reception | List Price: $199.99
Discount Price: $133.60
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Brand: Sony
Binding: Electronics
Warranty: 1 year warranty
Features: - PLL digital tuner receives FM, MW/AM, shortwave and longwave
- MY-memory tuning memorizes and scans up to 100 frequencies
- Four tuning methods: direct, manual, scan and preset
- World clock and dual clock functions; built-in timer
- Label presets with 6 alphanumeric letters
A major disappointment. [Posted on 2008-10-16]
I did a great deal of research before choosing the Sony ICF- SW7600GR to replace a still working, but held together with tape, Realistic DX-370. The vast majority of the reviews I have read at Amazon and elsewhere are quite positive for this radio. The annual publication, Passport to World Band Radio, describes it as "One of the great values in a meaningful world band radio.", and gives the Sony ICF-SW7600GR it's, "Passport's Choice" designation, indicating they believe it to be, "La creme de la creme".
My personal experience with the Sony ICF-SW7600GR does not substantiate this opinion. With the Sony, I can receive AM and FM commercial local broadcast stations quite well, better than my Realistic DX-370, but intelligible shortwave or SSB reception is non existent. Addition of the accessory AN-71 antenna only increases the sound of the unintelligible noisy, (signals/broadcasts?), punctuations heard at scanning stops while maneuvering through the various meter bands. Even my old Realistic DX-370 picks up some SW broadcasts with just it's whip antenna at the same locations within the concrete confines of my condominium.
A call to the local Sony facility here in Honolulu lead to the suggestion from a technician that I should perhaps read the manual more carefully. I wouldn't discount the possibility that I am missing some important step or function in the operation of this radio, but I have indeed read, re-read and studied the manual like no other manual before.
This is very frustrating. I had such high hopes for the Sony. Any suggestions as to what I may be missing or doing wrong?
Yesterday, a friend of mine brought over his Eton E1 XM radio to show me, which exhibited truly amazing SW performance on the patio of my condominium. If I can't resolve the performance problems I'm having with this Sony ICF-SW7600GR, I'm going to spring for the Eton E1 XM.
what happened Sony? [Posted on 2008-10-30]
Despite high ratings in Passport I received two duds in a row which had to be returned. I've been buying Sony products for many years and it's pretty disappointing. Seems like Japanese manufactured goods are going the way of U.S. manufactured good. I hear Sony has decided to get out of the short wave radio business. Can't imagine why. Guess I'll buy a Kaito from China.
Top Notch Portable Shortwave Radio [Posted on 2008-10-31]
This one replaced an older version that I had. It is everything that I want for travel and around the house: a carrying case, antenna adapter for better reception(when needed)and it's built very solidly. In Houston, when we were out of power for two weeks due to Hurricane Ike, this little gem fit the bill with great reception and sound, bringing me joy in the dark nights. I just wish that we still got the BBC World Service in North America!!
Excellent performance but beware of costly spare parts! [Posted on 2008-11-01]
I've had the Sony ICS-SW7600GR shortwave radio for almost a year, and it has performed flawlessly. My only hesitation is that the speaker sound is somewhat thin, but it does sound much, much better with headphones.
The radio cabinet is very compact and almost too thin. In fact, it is so thin that it fell off my counter with the FM/SW whip antenna fully extended and the antenna got bent and eventually broke. From this I learned that the radio is more stable when it is resting at an angle on its built-in fold-out back support.
I called Sony Parts and they wanted $51 plus tax and shipping for the whip antenna! (About a third the price of the radio!). I found an identical Sony antenna on the Internet for $17. I bought this one and it fits perfectly.
Excellent radio, especially if you also get the accessory antenna [Posted on 2008-11-03]
I have had mine for a couple of years now, so I have had ample time to play with it and sort through it's idiosyncrasies. So this review is a bit late in the offing.
I don't know how Sony managed to stuff so many features into such a small package. Well, I do know because the thing must weigh 10 pounds (not really). Seriously though, I have diving weights that are lighter than this radio, it is a real brick. If it becomes necessary to do so, you can wield the thing as a bludgeon, like the old Nikon cameras from the 60's and 70's. So be careful not to drop it on your foot unless you are wearing steel-toes.
The synchronous selectable sideband feature is GREAT. It actually works and locks on to "iffy" signals very solidly, something radios costing 10x+ as much as the Sony still cannot get right. And the single sideband also works fairly well, even if the trimmer pot is a bit touchy, at least on my radio. And 100 presets are nice, although I can never remember what they are since you cannot put any kind of alphanumeric information along with the preset frequency.
OK, things to complain about. MW frequencies stop at 1620 kHz (oops). And it is not possible to do a full-spectrum scan without switching bands. And even then you miss the stuff between the bands unless you know the "trick" to make it scan between bands. Compared to my other radios it EATS batteries at a pretty good rate. And there is no really good AC power supply available for the thing which is guaranteed not to hum. There should be some sort of indication on the display that the antenna attenuator is "On", that has caused me grief on occasion. And the controls on the sides are damned crowded, but that is only because there are so many features crammed into such a small package. And to get REALLY good SW reception you need to get one of the accessory AN-LP1 active antennas, which are no longer available in the US (oops again). I got mine from a fellow in Japan off of EBay for a very reasonable price (<$100 new in box) with unbelievably fast shipment via EMS, the Japanese post office. The antenna actually shipped faster than the radio, and the radio came from one state away, not halfway around the world.
But in spite of these minor shortcomings, which are really just annoying idiosyncrasies and not actual faults in the equipment, I give it a good solid 5 stars. You will not find a radio that does as much as well as this one for less than 2-3 times the price.
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