Something tells me that these companies stopped making these for a reason, whether it be cost, software glitches or maybe nobody liked them. Would love to hear some answers.
The dedicated computer controlled, traditional superhet, radio was relatively short lived, but that probably just has to do with timing, technology moving forward and changing customer expectations and wants.
If you look at Icom you will see they no longer make any low cost mobile / base use receivers, like the PCR-1500. Or for that matter the R-75. Right now the only receivers you can buy from Icom are hand held or relatively expensive desktop models. The same can be said of TenTec, unless you want a high end 340 or commercial 331 you are out of luck.
Winradio, however, still makes a computer controlled radio (CCR), as well as SDRs. Yes, their CCRs are called SDRs in their sales literature, but things get a little muddy there.
The WR-305, 313, and 315, use a DSP in the final narrow IF (25 kHz width). So while it can be argued they are "SDR", the same could be said of many radios that are often just called "DSP". For example, the Yaesu FT-2000 digitized the final IF (30 kHz width), just like the WinRadios, but no one ever really called that an SDR.
WinRadio also makes true, DDC, (Direct Digital Conversion) SDRs, like the WR-G31DDC, G33DDC, and G35DDC.
So what is the line between SDR and DSP radios? I don't think there really is one, it is just marketing. In my opinion anything that uses a DSP before the audio section could be called an SDR. However, people in the hobby community have become used to SDRs being tied to a computer to operate. But SDR radios not tied to a separate computer, like the Icom R8600, Elecraft KX3, or the upcoming Yaesu FT-DX101D, are no less SDRs than things like the RFSpace NetSDR, the WinRadio G31/33/35, SDRPlay, Flex-6700, etc.
SDR, both external computer tied and stand alone, are the way things are going. The day of the purely superhet traditional radio, computer controlled or stand alone, is passing. And that is OK.
I jumped on the computer interfaced SDR bandwagon eagerly, once it became somewhat affordable at the hobby level, since I was exposed to similar devices in professional service way before they were available for hobby use. For listening I basically have been primarily computer interfaced SDR based for about 10 years now. I mean, my main receivers in the shack have been SDRs that long, with waterfalls and interfaces on computer screens. I still use traditional receivers also, but mostly just to set on a given signal and watch / record it.
On the ham side of things I still use more traditional configuration radios. I mean, yes, I have a Flex 5000a, but I prefer to spin the dial on my Yaesu FTDX 5000. But then, both of those are arguably SDRs, however one can stand alone without being tied to a computer.
T!
Topic: Computer Run Shortwave (Read 4080 times)
