Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've been a SWL (short Wave Listener) since the 70's and have owned most of the Grundig, Eton, Sangean and Sony radios. This one is the best performing "small" portable I've owned so far! It's nice to have actual tuning and volume knobs instead of the "up/down" buttons normally found on a radio of this size. The sound quality is good for it's size, but not as good as a bigger radio of course. I was surprised at the fact that it doesn't have a flip stand on the back. This radio uses a DSP chip, which gives it good performance for it's size and price point. I'm not going to compare it directly to larger portables that cost 5 times more, such as the Tecsun PL-990 or Tecsun H501, although it would equal them in some performance measures. I've compared it to other small & medium sized radios in the $100 - $150 price range. This is THE perfect travel radio! It has 850 memories, which is a ridiculous amount. I personally have never used more than 50-100, but it might be useful for someone out there. This is the first portable radio I've owned that has this many bandwidth settings. The bandwidths include 0.5 kHz, 1.2 kHz, 2.2 kHz, 2.5 kHz, 3.0 kHz, 3.5 kHz, 4.0 kHz, 5.0 kHz and 9.0 kHz. Note that the bandwidth selections vary depending on what band or mode you are using. A cool "hidden" feature is the "SSB calibration" feature. You can zero beat on a known accurate signal on USB and then hold down the USB button. The frequency readout will then "calibrate" and the last 2 digits will display 00, and be right on frequency. (some radios might be 20-50 Hertz off and need this calibration) Then, you can repeat the process on LSB. The smallest tuning step is 10HZ, which is just fine for tuning SSB signals. (I listen to SSB most of the time) Another unique feature is ETM+. How the ETM+ feature works is that every hour you can press and hold the ETM button to scan and automatically store stations that are receivable during that time. It then places the memories in 24 separate banks. I like that the radio uses a common BL-5C Lithium Ion battery (included) and is rechargeable by a standard USB Micro cable. (also included) The Nokia type BL-5C battery is available for under $10 for a pack of two, in case you need spares or if the original goes bad. I've had many devices that use this battery and they usually last 2-3 years. One disadvantage of the 5 volt USB power input is the fact that most 5 volt USB wall warts are "switching" power supplies and they will introduce some noise on the SW bands. Some are worse that others, so you may have to experiment with different brands. I ended up using one of those 5 volt phone charger battery packs if I need to charge it up while listening to it. If you want a super performer that can out perform any radio in it's price range and hold it's own against much more expensive radios, then this is it! Radio Comparison on 5/5/21: Well, I've owned the radio a few weeks now and I have a few more comments to add. I've compared this radio to my Grundig G6, Grundig G3, Sangean ATS-505 and a few others. Those radios are small / medium sized in the $100 - $150 price range. The PL-330 easily outperformed every radio in my collection on SW, AM & FM bands, with the exception of the Grundig G3 that was slightly more sensitive on the AM Broadcast band. The slightly better AM reception on the G3 is most likely due to the larger internal antenna. Unfortunately that "soft rubber coating" that was popular in the late 90's / early 2000's is starting to get real sticky on the two Grundig radios. Fortunately, the PL-330 has no such coating. DSP Radio comments 01/15/22: It's been several months since my last update and the radio continues to impress! I would like to address some complaints that this radio and "all DSP radios" exhibits "AGC pumping" on AM signals, selectivity issues and have "hollow sounding audio". I have not experienced "AGC pumping" and I do a lot of AM station listening at night. As for selectivity issues, I regularly listen to WABC 770 out of NYC with no interference, which is only 10Khz away from the "flame thrower" WJR 760 less than 20 miles from me. As for the "hollow sounding audio", this statement couldn't be further from the truth. This radio sounds better than any of my similar sized "NON-DSP" radios I have owned. Matter of fact, I recently reviewed three other small, inexpensive "DSP" SW radios, the SIHUADON R-108, the Retekess V115 and the PRUNUS J-160 and all have excellent sound quality! Interesting broadcast info 03/16/22: It appears that the covert "Spanish Numbers Stations" are back on the air. For the past 60 years, these stations are characterized as a woman's voice speaking a series of five-digit number sequences in Spanish. All available evidence indicates that these transmissions are connected to espionage activities. The first number stations were heard in World War 1 (in Morse Code) but were eventually transmitted in voice and became more widespread during the Cold War. The station I heard recently was on 9.065 MHz. At the end of the number string, there was a digital sound like a 56K modem connecting to the internet back in the 90's. These strange broadcasts have been also heard on 10.715 MHz, 11.715 MHz & 17.480 MHz. Pirate broadcasts can be heard between 6.815 to 6.970 MHz, with the most popular frequency being 6.925 MHz. Also, it is interesting to tune in the "Canada Trenton Military Weather Station" on 6754 kHz USB. (in the evening) Update on 01/22/23: It's been 10 months since my last update and there are no problems or issues to report. I'm still using the original factory battery and there is no noticeable degradation in run time. Final note: Now is a good time to buy a short wave radio because sun spot cycle #25 has started in 2020 and will peak in July 2025. In fact, this solar cycle is turning out to be better than predicted! The activity on the short wave bands will be much higher for the next few years. Unfortunately, by the time the next sunspot cycle occurs somewhere around the year 2035, shortwave radio may very well be extinct. So folks, this may be the last time to enjoy shortwave radio. I've see many reviews in the past few years where people buy short wave radios and give them bad reviews due to poor reception, when in fact nothing was wrong with the radios. Inexperienced users don't know that SW stations are not on the air 24/7 on the same frequency like typical AM/FM broadcast stations are. Instead, they operate on multiple bands throughout the day and rely on the ever-changing atmospheric conditions. A general rule of thumb for Short wave listening is that most stations transmit ABOVE 10 MHz in the day and BELOW 10 MHz at night. Short wave signals are "hit or miss", no matter how much money is spent on the radio. The reception will vary greatly from day to day. In other words, don't just expect to pick up several stations across the dial at any time of the day like you would on a regular AM/FM radio.