|
New to Ham Radio?
My Profile
Community
Articles
Forums
News
Reviews
Friends Remembered
Speak Out
Strays
Survey Question
Operating
Contesting
DX Cluster Spots
Propagation
Resources
Calendar
Classifieds
Ham Exams
Ham Links
List Archives
News Articles
Product Reviews
QSL Managers
Site Info
eHam Help (FAQ)
Support the site
The eHam Team
Advertising Info
Vision Statement
About eHam.net
|
You can
write your own review of the Redsun RP2100.
|
KB0GXM
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Nov 6, 2009 08:04
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Geat Radio
|
Time owned: 6 to 12 months
|
I wanted a portable radio, mostly for MW, to replace my Superadio III.
The 2100 is a hot receiver, adjustable bandwidth and has a good FM side. I don't know too much about the SW, but overall this is a good replacement for the III.
|
|
OLLIEOXEN27
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Nov 4, 2009 12:37
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Good with nits
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
The Redsun RP2100 works best on AM. On shortwave the radio is unusually suseptible to RF noise, hash, and or synthesizer noise even on batteries. Recently I listened to All India Radio on 9445 in the afternoon. It was very readable on my Grundig G8 but the Redsun had trouble with it. I think it's actually the radio's noise floor.
I would in no way compare this radio to a tabletop set on SW. It's well worth the price on medium wave though.
|
|
KA9ZMZ
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Aug 20, 2009 06:25
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Great SW Radio
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
I have been an SWL all my life. In recent years I have used a Sony 7600 and a Sangean 505. They were good radios and I got a lot of use out of them but they were not as fun or fun to listen to as the 2100. I have always gone for potability over sound. While considering which radio to get this time, it was between the Tecsun pl600 or the 2100. I decided I might like the better sound. I was right. It is a pleasure.
I would like to also say that the ordering process and time for shipping and delivery were amazingly short. I was surprised at how it was shipped though. The box that the radio is originally packaged in for the store shelf has a thine layer of bubble wrap around it. Then green paper with string on the outside. When I opened the box the styrofoam inside was pretty busted up but the radio was fine.
|
|
KC7JBB
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Dec 1, 2008 00:06
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Great Radio
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
My 2100 happens to be the C.Crane version, so I guess I could have posted in either the Kaito or Redsun section. I will not rehash all the technical attributes, as they have been pretty well covered.
First let me say I really enjoy this radio. I have always liked this size of radio, you get a descent size speaker( = good audio), generally you have buttons and controls large enough to make operation easy, and the radio is stable when sitting on a table.
Shortwave is very good, as good as my 1103, SSB is great, allthough I dont use it much but I did want the capability. Mostly I listen to AM radio and the 2100 excels at that. It is just a great radio for whatever your use.
The 2100's size, audio quality, and sensativity remind me of my Satellit 400, and since they dont make those great Grundigs anymore we can still have something that performs very much like it. Did I say it was a great radio? :)
73's
KC7JBB
|
|
NWLORAX
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Nov 20, 2008 19:22
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Amazing for the Price
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
|
I took the plunge this month and bought one via eBay. The receiver has very low noise, at least on battery power. The FM has a bit of noise, but that is likely because Bremerton (QTH) doesn't have many Seattle broadcasting towers pointed in this direction. I dx on the bcb with a passive external tuned antenna (DE-200, I think). The number of stations I can pull in is extensive-Colorado, Utah, California, Manitoba, Oregon, Idaho and hopefully one day, some Japanese or Korean dx. Short wave is very good, slightly more sensitive than my DE1103, I think, and the external BFO (also by Tecsun/Redsun) has finer tuning than the 1103. The RP2100 is a table top sort of radio, and can't directly compare with the 1103, which fits into a pocket. The only things that could make this any better would be a 2.4 KHz and a 500 Hz filter for ssb and digital mode reception.
|
|
N3OJD
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Sep 22, 2008 20:08
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
RP2100 vs. ICF-SW7600GR
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
Here's a P.S. to the review below. I tried comparing my old tried-and-true portable Sony ICF-SW7600GR to the RP2100 in combination with the Tquchina SSB Adapter. An hour listening to 80M sideband led me to the conclusion that the RP2100+SSB Adapter blows the Sony out of the water.
The '2100+SSB was consistently stable on frequency with less background hiss and more listenable signal. That's not to say that one radio might miss a signal that the other would hear. It's just that the Redsun was easier listening all around for any length of time.
You may want to ride the RF gain on the Redsun for the least distorted SSB audio so if you don't like to fiddle, this set-up may not be for you.
Also keep in mind that the '2100 + outboard SSB adapter is NOT a portable by any means. The combination takes a fair amount of desktop real estate whereas the '7600 will fit in just about any suitcase. But none the less the '2100 is an interesting discovery and as I say below, a heck of a lot of fun.
|
|
KG6TAG
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Jul 25, 2008 00:33
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Great value
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
I just purchased this radio for $60 and had a friend carry it back from China after a business trip.
Pros:
Very good sensitivity on shortwave and Medium Wave (AM). This radio is far superior comparing whip to whip with my Sony 7600G, and Grundig YB 300PE. I have yet to try it on a long wire.
No muting when tuning
Nice filter bandwidths (someone else said they were 10 KHz and 5 KHz which seems reasonable)
Very responsive Bass and Treble controls
RF Gain control
Very good AGC
Very good audio quality
Local/DX (attenuator presumably)
External antenna connectors
Slow and Fast tuning speeds with "Qtune" which allows push-button jumps to the beginning of the next short wave band segment
Cons:
No SSB - Easily resolved for about $12 and a little soldering fun from TenTec: http://radio.tentec.com/kits/fun/1050
Very annoying tuning bleeps/pops across about 1/2 of the total bandwidth of the radio, and occurring on every tuning increment.
Rather odd memories
Summary -
As much as I hate the tuning bleeps, the sensitivity, selectivity, audio quality, and cost of this radio make it a winner in my book. It is far more enjoyable than my Sony 7600G which has just never really impressed me a lot, even with the synch detector. If you purchase this radio, be sure to join the Yahoo group to find out how to turn off annoying key and end-of-band beeps among other things.
Note this radio is the same as:
http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/6603
http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/6603
73,
Dave
|
|
KD7RDZI2
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Sep 29, 2007 12:42
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
STEAL THIS RADIO!!!!
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
This is a very different receiver from others. It covers continuously the spectrum from 520 Khz to 30Mhz and FM broadcasting.
It has two connectors clearly stated to be a 50 ohm (for dipoles, verticals, active antennas etc) and 500 ohm terminals (for antennas such as longwires, semirhombic antennas, folded dipoles without impedance transformers etc). No portable I have, such as degen de1103 and Sangean 909 have it. In this respect is similar to the Drake R8 and other tabletop.
It is a dual coversion receiver with the first IF very high in frequency and the second mixer at 455 Khz. In this respect is similar to good portables such as the Degen de 1103 and the Sangean 909.
IF filters are 10 Khz and 5 Khz. They seem to have a good shape. You might think that they are too wide. However they are perfect for AM shortwave, AM mediumwave. AM demodulation is far better than any other receiver I ever heard, included the Drake R8 and the Drake 2C.
Amazingly it has a IF output at 455 Khz. No need to make any modication. Just connect this radio to your PC through a 455 Khz or 450 IF mixer from the IF output (I use a SAT-Schneider mixer based on a cheap NE602), run a software for DRM such as DREAM and you have DRM, LSB, USB, CW and FM with digital filters wide as much as you like from few hertz to 10 Khz. This radio becomes a truly SDR!!!
Audio for AM from the speaker is superb. FM is great.
The radio seems to be very sensitive as the others, yet it seems to be a quiet receiver such as the Degen and the Sangean.
Still it overloads with big external antennas. Similar problem of the Degen and the Sangean. Drake receivers and tabletop in general are better in this. There are two options: use the attenuators in the radio (it has a 20db attenuator and RF Gain of about further 30db). Otherwise, try buying or making passband filters or preselector. A preselector is the best long term investment you can probably do when you use large nonresonant antennas.
Battery: you can use AA and/or D rechargeble batteries. They are expensive but you can have up to 10 Ampere in your radio and bring it with you for a long listening.
|
|
KC5IIE
|
Rating: 5/5
|
May 26, 2007 06:15
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
fantastic!
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
|
I purchased the Kaito KA-2100 incarnation of the Redsun about a month ago and I've been amazed at its performance since I've aquired it. I can echo John Plimmer's comments about it, I've compared it along side of more elaborate receivers I own and it holds its own when connected to an external antenna, an inverted - L here. It handles strong signals without overloading, and copies weak signals great, namely this morning I copied signals in the tropical bands just as well as my Satellit 800. Here in the American Midwest we need all the sensitivity we can muster and the KA-2100 really delivers. I cant wait for the more advanced version of this radio to be introduced, selectable sync detection and a keypad would make this radio a real winner. Best receiver value under $400no doubt!
|
|
ALANWONG1
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Apr 12, 2007 23:11
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Best Bang for the Bucks!
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
As my personal budget is not great, i currently only own a Degen DE103, Icom IC-R75 and the Redsun RP2100...
Upon comparing a pocket size radio, portable and a tabletop, i would say the RP2100 performs just as well as the R75 even though it lacks of a Sync Detection feature which would not be missed if you used the RP2100 for tuning in to fairly strong AM Stations...
The only thing to remember is that if one has a budget for an antenna tuner + balun (ie. impedence transformer), the RP2100 would perform much much better when attached to a long wire antenna where fairly weak stations will come alive!!!..
|
|
If you have any questions, problems, or suggestions about Reviews,
please email your Reviews Manager.
|
|
|
