GE superadio III score $5

[Lefty]

I've been reading for years about this radio but never came across one until last weekend. Found it at a near by thrift marked for $5, but it did have a few issues. If it hadn't been for the rep that this radio has I would have left it for someone else as I'm certainly not short of other projects or space for more stuff.

Anyway issues were:

Missing battery cover, not sure how I will deal with this but something with Velcro might work.

Non functioning power switch. Checking the web sites that deal with this famous radio it seems to be a common failure. This one had fallen apart and someone had just soldered the switch wires together so it was always powered up. That wouldn't be cool for battery operation which if I keep this radio is because it would make a good emergency radio. Anyway searching through my parts junk pile I found a push-on push-off switch that was a close match to the original. I installed it but the existing switch button cover wouldn't quite fit so I went with a different switch knob that works fine if not stock.

Last problem was an intermittent that would cause the radio to power off and on anytime you moved or tapped the case. I first thought that the soldered power wires might be the cause but it turned out to be a broken trace on the PCB that I was able to re-solder and now everything is solid.

So what do I think of the radio as a whole? Well I can understand the rep it has. The large speaker and tweeter gives it very solid volume and tone. I was listening to a baseball game and was amazed to be able to hear the wack of the ball off the bat, I hadn't heard that sound on a radio (mostly from the car radio) in years and always assumed it was my aged hearing, but that sound is back

Seems to not have any of the Bridie's and crackles and noise that many portable AM/FM radios seem to pick up. I haven't tried any late night DX hunting yet but can tell this is also a very sensitive radio. I like it a lot and for $5 I couldn't be happier with this find.

Now to check out sites for possible mods on this rig.

Lefty

[Celt]

Here's a good place to start. http://mysite.verizon.net/vze20h45/r.../gesr_faq.html
I tweaked the tuning and a few other things on mine to make it better. The radio will play damn near forever on a fresh set of alkaline D cells. As far as the missing battery cover, contact GE CS. Bet they can supply you with one.

[Sandy G]

The earlier versions are almost legendary amongst MW DXers... Rivalling some of my beloved boatanchors....

[Acoustic]

I've got two III's and I had an original. Great radio's for DXing. To bad other than sports talk there's not much left on the AM band I am interested in. Back when I went to a lot of Royals games I used to have one with me all the time. After sundown I was able to get the games from Chicago, Dallas, Minneapolis, St Louis in the stadium almost at will. Freaked a lot of people out!

[Dave A]

Lefty,

This is a truely Superadio with it's wideband AM in operation. You can get the full AM +10kc/-10kc signal where all the good audio is. Most modern receivers chop this off with parts economy and give you the AM sound we are used to. FM is spot-on.

Now it is back on the market as the RCA RP7887 for around $45 at Amazon and others. Same vendor...new badge. A few searches for opinions seem to say the same thing as the GE version. Great sound etc. But it still has the problem of a mis-aligned AM dial scale. It can be off by quite a bit. 610kz may show as 680kz. There are web sites showing how to re-align it, but taking the case apart can be a problem. It may never go back together.

But now with HD radio (not High Def but Hybrid Digital) being transmitted during daylight hours by many stations, the outer 5kz of the full signal on either side of center is the digital realm. There goes half of your wide-band during the day. Night-time is still ok when the digital shuts down and where the best DX is anyway.

I would save the parts search and get a new one for a starter. $45 is a tank of gas anymore. And then I would start looking for the Superadio I and II. I prefer the II. They have real tuners, the III is a slug-coil. Any one of them sucks in signals from distant stations. And there is even a boom-box version with a casette player not promoted as a Superadio, but has the chassis and speakers. I found two dead ones of those for $2 total at a swap meet and swapped parts to make one work. Earphone connector board as I remember.

Dave A

Agreed, go for a SR II. I lucked out last month and found a near mint one for the same price of $5. I did not know much at all about this radio, I am into old transistor radios. but when I got it home, cleaned off the dust and turned it on just as it turned dark outside, "wow" is all I can say as I slowly tuned accross the AM band, FM is great too.

Gary KY8M

[FoolForARadio]

You got a good radio. Tune in a World Series game on AM and just feel lucky!

[compucat]

I have a Superadio II and it is great. Mine is still in mint condition but not currently working. I switched it on one day and the AM band was nothing but static. I believe the Field Effect Transistor in the RF stage is out. I have heard this is not uncommon. When working it was the best radio for DXing and high fidelity in a portable. Plus the I and II versions have that great Seventies portable radio look. I keep mine in the original box with the packing and instructions. I bought it new in 1991. I may just have to get it down and try to fix it.

[Ultra-Hog]

I have an early Radio Shack version of the SuperRadio that looks like it is just a re-branded version of the GE. As far as I can tell it is identical. The AM section works great but the FM is scratchy whenever you move the tuning dial. The FM works, it's just noisy when you tune it. I also have a couple of the later model GE SuperRadios. (My wife thinks that I have a radio fetish. Guilty as charged, and always have been!)

If anyone would like to have the Radio Shack version, make a donation to AK (or become a Subscriber if you are not already a Subscriber) and I will send the radio to you at no charge. I will pay for the shipping. The amount doesn't matter, that is entirely up to you and I don't want or need to know. Your word is good enough simply that you did. Ideally it would be nice to see it go to someone that doesn't already have one of these radios and is willing to work with the FM problem or just live with it as it is. I don't want to turn this into a "Dollars and Sense" thing. I just would like to see it go to a good home. Send me a PM if you are interested. I will edit this post and state that it has been taken if it does go.

[gearhound]

My father bought the original version (refurbished) when he worked for GE.
I still listen to it at work.

Steve

[stereofisher]

One of the best deals out there. Can be had new for $50 and its one of the best buys around. Good AM and FM reception. Great work radio, if you break it get another! Would love have one like you got. Parts are still available.

Eric