HFU HF Underground
General Category => General Radio Discussion => Topic started by: ChrisSmolinski on January 08, 2014, 1147 UTC
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Shares are down more than 7% amid a mysterious rush of bearish activity. 'The sharks are starting to circle,' one trader says.
http://money.msn.com/top-stocks/post--is-this-the-end-for-radioshack (http://money.msn.com/top-stocks/post--is-this-the-end-for-radioshack)
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Heh, Rat Shack met its demise years ago here and pulled out. Analysts were universally agreed on the reason - the company forgot their core reason for existence: Geeks.
Good riddance. All hail Mouser, Digikey and Amazon!
Peace!
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Yea its a shame. The radio shack over here has 1 multiband receiver. The rest is all cell phones and other tvs. There's nothing there remotely related to a radio except that one lone sw radio- which looked like it was a piece crap anyway.
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They had some bonds in the market that were selling for WAY below par several months back which was a tipoff of problems to come. I've dreaded going in there for several years now. Generally its a Sunday afternoon, I need a common part that I stupidly ran out of, and I have to fend off numerous enthusiastic and clueless salespeople attempting to sell me a cellphone contract as I make my way to those ever-shrinking parts cases in the rear of the store. There are 4 locations close to me and its the same song and dance in all of them - so it MUST be softheaded corporate foolishness. You just can't stay in business when you have alienated your "bread and butter" customers and then continue to ignore that fact over and over and over again... for years. That's why I never bit on those cheap Radio Shack bond offerings. I figured it was just a matter of time. I hope this gives Fry's and others the impetus to open more stores.
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Selling retail to hobbyists has to be a tough business today, with the overhead. There's not many of us, and we're ordering the bulk of our components mail order. There are still some indie electronics parts stores, I recall Baynesville Electronics near Baltimore (although I have not been there in probably 15 years). They sold a lot of packaged Jameco stuff (components and such) and the prices were what you'd expect from retail, several times mail order. The gap is probably even larger today. I'm not sure what need Radio Shack fills today, which may partly explain why they're in such sad shape.
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Even though I could mail order stuff all day long, I do enjoy spending time browsing through my local shop. It's like looking through somebody's garage for parts. You can get lost in there. I've spent hours just finding stuff and wondering what I could do with this or that. It's across town from me, so if I have to, I may go to Radio Shack down the street, but it's really rare. I duck in, in full "NOIDONTWANTACELLPHONE" mode, and when they see that I'm going through those two little cabinets of components in back, they leave me alone, lest I ask them a question about what any of that stuff does.
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It's sad, because how Radio Shack is now pretty much sums up the current state of the hobby. I remember getting their huge catalogue in the early and mid '70's and it had page after page of radio stuff. Just CB's alone was probably 5 pages. Stereos? Perhaps 25 pages. Electronic components? Everything was there. Then it all began to change. Now it's TV's and computers. That's all.
Now I search garage sales for old Radio Shack CB's and stereos. They were common in the '70's and '80's. Now, not so much so. And it turns out that some of their high end stuff was pretty damn good. For a generation looking for souvenirs of a very much happier time they are cherished keepsakes. But their lower end stuff was crap. Still is.
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There are still some indie electronics parts stores, I recall Baynesville Electronics near Baltimore I'm not sure what need Radio Shack fills today, which may partly explain why they're in such sad shape.
This is all quite ironic, really. Back in the 60s and 70s there were many local indie Mom and Pop stores dealing in parts. Radio Shack creeped into town and slowly strangled them all out of existence. Then they went to chasing fads. Many of my favorite mail order suppliers nowadays are nothing more than Mom and Pop shops that were smart enough to start up and maintain an Internet presence. All Electronics, Hosfelt, BG Micro, Fair Radio, et al still have brick and mortar locations yet are kicking "The Shack" to the curb. The pendulum keeps swinging.
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Since Radio Shack started in Boston, we've had them around here since the early 1960's. I remember when they bought Allied Electronics and then
Tandy Leather bought them and some of the stores are split between Tandy leather and Radio Shack. The best product they had were the "TRF" AM Radios,
and of course, let's not forget the battery card, for one free battery a month!
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LOL! Yup, the free battery card, I remember it well.
I guess this is a sign I better use that Rat Shack gift card I got Xmas before they shut down.
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I've had a love/hate relationship with Radio Shack over the years. I'd love to browse through the radios, scanners (bought my first "crystal" scanner, each crystal for one frequency). My problem was that they would sometimes have only 1 item of a product, which was a returned piece. It would then be put back on the shelves. I would buy it and there would be pieces missing. I could only surmise that when I returned it, it would get "re-packaged" and sold again!
My second observation was that their mark-up prices were just horrible. A pair of $300.00 stereo speakers listed one week, would be re-listed for $99.95. The way I saw it, "Why the hell would I spend the full price of $300 one week and see the same speakers for $99? I can only imagine that the Shack STILL made money selling them for $99, so prices were inflated to begin with! :(
Still though, RS was and is still the place for radio components, soldering irons, etc. Just don't ask for help though.
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My fav was the "lifetime" warranty vacuum tubes ;)
RGG
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Yes the lifetime tubes with the gold tips. I've still got a bunch of them working in some old boatanchors around here!
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Man, remembering their catalog all through the 70s. Brings back plenty of memories :-\
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My second observation was that their mark-up prices were just horrible.
I worked for them in their final years as Radio Shack in .ca and the markups were just phenomenal. Problem was on the POPULAR items (TV's and computers), they lost their shirt trying to be competitive. Less than 3% GPM on those while batteries were the highest at 65-80%, depending on type.
Peace!
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I worked for them in their final years as Radio Shack in .ca ......
Do you remember SPIFFs? I worked for them for one summer and spiffs (cash bonus on certain products) were an extra way to make money for the employee. SPIFFs on big CB base stations were huge as were those for the first computers. Once in a while I'll ask an employee and they are still around, but not worth much.
The Chicago area had a bit of a problem with drug sales out of some stores. In order to get a job, you had to pass a lie detector test and at least half the questions related to drugs.
Z
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ok - heres one from an old man:
i still go there for things like audio patch cords (like 1/4" phono plugs to rca, etc).
so may i ask can you guys recommend a good online place i could check out?
thx in advance
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ok - heres one from an old man:
i still go there for things like audio patch cords (like 1/4" phono plugs to rca, etc).
so may i ask can you guys recommend a good online place i could check out?
thx in advance
Monoprice.com
Z
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I agree with Zane, go with Monoprice. Its the same Chinese crap, but its damn near next to cost.
As far as connectors go, Digikey or Mouser, whoever is cheaper. Switchcraft or Neutrik, no substitutes please :)
+-RH
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Here is a site with the old RatShack catalogs
http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com/catalog_directory.html
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I worked for them in their final years as Radio Shack in .ca ......
Do you remember SPIFFs? I worked for them for one summer and spiffs (cash bonus on certain products) were an extra way to make money for the employee. SPIFFs on big CB base stations were huge as were those for the first computers. Once in a while I'll ask an employee and they are still around, but not worth much.
Yup! and when I helped a manager friend out a few years ago, they pretty much were only on cell phones and long-term contracts.
The Chicago area had a bit of a problem with drug sales out of some stores. In order to get a job, you had to pass a lie detector test and at least half the questions related to drugs.
Z
Theft here. They do a credit check and social media investigation through Backcheck services. I don't have a Facebook or any social media, so they didn't know what to think of me.
Peace!
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Theft here. They do a credit check and social media investigation through Backcheck services. I don't have a Facebook or any social media, so they didn't know what to think of me.
Geez cm! And I thought I was the last luddite on the planet without a social networking presence. Nice to meet someone else who is resisting the ever-creeping digital mold that's growing on everything... ;)
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I'm there with you two fellas.
I've never owned a cellphone either. Nothing but glorified walkie-talkies any jughead with a scanner and the right software can decrypt and listen in on.
I'm headin' out to the backyard to practice my smoke signals.
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I'm there with you two fellas.
I've never owned a cellphone either. Nothing but glorified walkie-talkies any jughead with a scanner and the right software can decrypt and listen in on.
I'm headin' out to the backyard to practice my smoke signals.
I'm with ya brother Pigmeat. Because I'm acting caregiver for my elderly Mother I have a cheapskate TracFone that I keep active for 7 bucks a month. Except for that and an old bag phone I had back in the 90s when I lived in an off-grid cabin, I've never owned one either.
So now me and the spaniel are heading out to the burn barrel to fire it up and sked with you. The progressive nannies in Albany have made them illegal to burn trash in but they never outlawed QSOs...
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I do miss walking into Radio Shack and finding components I really needed. Now, they have a few drawers, with almost nothing in them. When I hit the door and am asked "Can I help you find something", I laugh inside, and kindly reply "No, I'm good thanks". Like the 18 year old kid even stocks those drawers, and if he does, he's oblivious to what the stuff is. I'm tempted to ask for a 1.21 gigawatt flux capacitor, but I'm not that cruel. If I need a quick antenna adapter from China, I'm usually in luck.
Mouser is my favorite place to shop now. They ship VERY fast, and have EVERYTHING a research vessel might require. I have even gotten samples from time to time, free of charge. They rock... 8)
Yep, "Cell Phone Shack" is comatose...time to pull the plug.
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Mouser is my favorite place to shop now. They ship VERY fast, and have EVERYTHING a research vessel might require. I have even gotten samples from time to time, free of charge. They rock... 8)
Mouser is also my favorite place. They frequently upgrade your shipping, if your order is large enough. I ordered a bunch of parts the other day, picked (and paid for) ground shipping, and it arrived the next day.
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thx thx thx
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have 2 fairly decent stocked rat shacks in the area one is still just rat shack the other is in a auto parts store
hope one of them can stay open
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http://www.theonion.com/articles/even-ceo-cant-figure-out-how-radioshack-still-in-b,2190/?ref=auto
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Thanks BDM for the link to the old catalogs of Radio Shock! Bring back some interesting memories. Why, there was my old 23 channel CB base station, the Realistic Navaho---gaad, what memories!
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Im with yall on this except for the fact that i can run to the shack to pick up a few resistors i need right now,instead of ordering them or driving 40miles to my local electrical supply store.They look at me like im a thief when they ask me if i need help and i say nope i got it and walk past them,hahaha.
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I used to go into Radio Shack all the time back in the 1980's. Then they stopped sending out the catalogs, and then stopped sending the flyers, and then they stopped carrying so many radios, and then they stopped carrying as much home audio stuff, and then they got rid of their CB and Ham stuff.... and became a glorified cell phone store.
Which I suppose is o.k., except they have a lot more competition now as a cell phone store than they did as a radio / stereo / computer / electronics hobby store.
Sometime in the late 1990's I just quit going there, except to stop in now and then to get some small parts.
The last major purchase I made at a Radio Shack was last year. I got the Radio Shack "PLL Synthesized World Receiver", which is a Sangean ATS-505 in Radio Shack clothing.
I had read about this radio on the 'net, and even though I didn't really need another radio, the price was cheap enough (about $80), so I decided to buy one and try it out. It works well -- compares well to most of my other digital portables.
My other reason for buying it was more sentimental than the price, I suppose. I had this feeling that it would be the last Radio Shack branded SW radio, ever.
Hopefully, that doesn't turn out to be true, but who knows?
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Thanks BDM for the link to the old catalogs of Radio Shock! Bring back some interesting memories. Why, there was my old 23 channel CB base station, the Realistic Navaho---gaad, what memories!
Yes it sure does. I remember dreaming of purchasing a TRC-101B 23 channel hand-held back in the day. That thing (seemed like a super radio in my early teens) was on my wish list for an easy 3 or 4 years, but being over $100 beans, it stayed just a dream. Then the 40 channel sets came out. By that time I purchased a used 40 channel mobile, power supply and 1/2 Rat Shack GP antenna. Some used coax and I was in business :)
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I started SW listening with a small portable radio we had in the house when I was a kid, but my first real radio was a Radio Shack DX-160. Followed by a DX-300. Wow! Digital Readout!
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Yeah, the good ol' DX-160.
How many of us SWL's cut our teeth on that gem (or any other Radio Shack SW radio, for that matter!).
Pop Comm's predecessor Communications World used to have pics of readers with their rigs, and it seemed half of them had a DX-160.
It was my dream radio for years, then I got one Christmas maybe 1977. It was a mainstay for years. Even after I got higher quality radios (FRG-7, DX-440) I still used it on MW and the ham bands (where its selectivity seemed to have an edge, even if it did drift a bit). Got my only LW DX on it, too, using a loop.
I still use it now and then, on MW.
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My DX-160 was a Christmas gift as well. 1978 I believe. I was asking for one of the Radio Shack Archer SW radio kits, and was incredibly surprised to find a DX-160 under the tree. I had a lot of fun that morning, listening to stuff. The DX-160 was a trade in on the DX-300. I later sold the DX-300 to get a Kenwood R-1000, then sold that when I got the Icom R71A. I never tended to collect radios as you can tell, but traded them in. I kept the R71A when I got the NRD-545, though. The R71A is in the basement workshop, so I have something to listen to down there.
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Guess I better chime in. Bought my dx-398 half off shortly after "9-11". It's still runnin' good except the speaker is SHOT & I mean SHOT! Real tinny sounding so now use a cannibalized speaker, don't remember where I got it. Personally I'm surprised Albertsons & Kmart locally haven't closed shop...especially Kmart. Every time I use their bathroom on a walk-about-town the place is like a ghost town. And ALL that cheap third-world labor stuff just hanging there collecting dust & sh*t. Thank you NAFTA/Clinton!
Bought a Pro-2004 way back & it succumbed to faulty solder work. The weird readouts were kinda interesting, though.
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Chipping in here too. I got my DX-398 as an eighteenth birthday gift in September of 2002. Yes, you now know my age. :) I still have it, and it still works perfectly well almost twelve years later. The last segment or so of the antenna is broken off and the battery compartment door went missing at a NASWA get-together the summer before last due to me dropping it someplace when changing batteries, but neither of those is a real issue at all. The sensitivity on MW and LW really is excellent with that little radio; if I'm doing any serious MW or LW DX, chances are I'll fish it out.
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Once upon a time, Radio Shack sold a damned fine Moog-style synthesizer, the MG-1. Well-built compared to stuff today, very useable.
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The Radio Shack DX-160. I got mine in 1976 or 1977, and carried it around with me for many years, and many moves. I tapped a frequency counter into it, and subtracted or added what ever the IF was to come up with what frequency I was on. I could never quite get the hang of the bandspread, You had to set the main dial perfectly to get the bandspread to be accurate. I remember that I had a big help from a Heathkit marker generator, that put out a signal (harmonic) every 100 khz or so. That helped find my way around 31, 25 and 19 meters back in the day.
The DX160 was excellent for domestic MW DX.
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I still own radio shack radio- its an analog AM/FM/WX radio. I like the WX band a lot. The radio that started my love for radio was my dads Realistic DX-372. The telescopic whip broke off but i still loved that radio. But, the problem is no one sees the point or purpose of shortwave. The kids in my school have absolutley no idea what shortwave is, and some don't even know what AM radio is!!!!! I mean, what the hell is there not to love about dx'ing and picking up R.F Whatever late at night? That's what I live for, and hence that's why I run the radio club in my high school.
I had an idea that if people from radio shack wanted to make more money- they could go around to the local schools and give a basic assembly on radio in general. You know, touch on shortwave, dx'ing (if the people at radio shack even know about that). Either that, or Apple makes the iPhone 6SW, an iPhone with a basic shortwave reciever built -in so you can tune the bands on the iPhone. Maybe then SW would become popular again, but that would probably A. Never, ever, happen and B. A telescopic antenna on the iPhone? Thats QRM rampent!