Sony ICF-5900W Questions

[mjolley]

(I thought this may belong in Vintage Solid State, but I get the feeling more people will know about this subject here.)

I recently picked up a Sony ICF-5900W from a thrift store because it looked like a well-built portable radio and I had always wanted to explore the SW bands, but never really found something suitable while looking for cast-off consumer electronics. While dirty, there's nothing broken or missing except for the battery door: it is held on with tape.

When I got it home, I realized it wouldn't turn on with battery power. I took a closer look and while the battery chamber looked clean, the negative battery terminal spring was covered in green corrosion...I hadn't noticed that since it was hidden deep inside the compartment. I noticed the unit had a jack for an AC adapter, and I was able to cobble one together from a 5v DC/700ma cell phone charger, and the plug from another donor AC adapter. The original Sony AC Adapter was 4.5v DC/300ma but I didn't think the additional .5v would burn anything out.

With the DIY AC Adapter the radio sprang into life and it certainly has no issues pulling in a signal, all of the switches and knobs turn without static. However, I don't really know enough about SW Radio to really use it, yet, so I was looking for some pointers there. I found a service manual for the radio, but not the user's manual, which would be helpful because I'm not sure what some of the switches are for!

I haven't found too much commentary on the radio, was it worth the $19 I paid for it? I'll be back with pictures once I get it cleaned up...it was just one of those things I couldn't walk away from, it just looked like a serious piece of gear.

 

[catman]

G'day mate, that radio should be fine for general short wave listening provided it is free of faults. I've had several similar Sony models in the past and they were all very good.

Although many broadcasters have now left the short wave bands (sadly) there is still much to listen to...I still do. I've been a fully licenced Ham Radio operator since 1985 and a keen SWL'er for many years before that.

In fact SWLing directly led me into Ham Radio. There is lots of good general short wave information here: http://www.mds975.co.uk/Content/dxshtwave.html Regards, Felix (vk4fuq) aka catman.

 

[mjolley]

Thanks for the replay catman, that link was pretty useful!

Now that I've found a user's manual and figured out how to tune to a specific frequency (Not exactly straightforward when there's two dials!), I've been interested by the wide range of what can be found on SW, even though it's really difficult to actually find a specific frequency or program (the analog tuning probably has something to do with that).

I was able to verify the receiver worked, and that the calibration wasn't too far off, by finding the time signal from WWV at 5000khz. The frequencies on either dial don't line up exactly, but it's nothing unusual if you've used analog tuners before. Through pure hunting around I stumbled upon broadcasts from Radio Havana and China Radio International.

Mostly though, I just find a lot of static. Signals rarely come in long enough for me to even know what I'm listening to before they disappear back into the static. I've read this receiver "doesn't like" being used with an AC adapter, a couple websites have said this introduces interference. However, the battery terminals on this unit are too corroded to use, so I have no choice.

I also think its various switches and dials need to be cleaned: I have to jiggle the band selector back and forth to get anything to come in on SW1 sometimes. Also, turning up the volume can make a signal disappear into static: you can watch the signal strength meter fall as you turn up the volume.

Based on what I've read, the problems with static and tuning are just inherent to SW, the way the signals travel make them very prone to drifting and interference, but I'm also sure there's room for improvement over this. I'm into electronics, but don't really have the know-how to take the unit apart to clean it, let alone adjust it, from the service manual it appears it'd be difficult to take apart/put back together. A lot of 'stuff' is packed into that case! I'd like to be able to clean out some of the corrosion and try it with batteries, but I'm not up to cracking the case open yet.

Anyway, to answer my own question from above...I think it was totally worth the $19, even if it's left me with a project/lust for more gear. Not that you really had to convince me to want more gear.

 

[catman]

G'day mate, purely by accident you might have picked a bad time to listen as the sun has been spewing out charged particles of late that have caused the Earth's ionosphere to become disturbed thereby severely affecting short wave radio propagation, but that all the fun of short wave!

Does that radio have external antenna inputs? Then a 'loop' type of antenna maybe useful as these kinds of antennas are 'quiet' on receive. Here is some stuff I've written on the subject. http://www.mds975.co.uk/Content/amateur_radio_antennas_03.html Regards, Felix (vk4fuq) aka catman.

 

[mjolley]

Ah yes I did hear there was a solar storm recently, it seems the sun has been active as of late! The ICF-5900W does indeed have external antenna inputs, that's something I'll certainly try later!

In a related note, I was talking about my theory that the speaker/audio amp was causing interference...well I plugged the radio into my computer through the radio's earphone jack (which cuts the internal speaker), and suddenly WWV is coming in static-free. There's now much, much less interference and I can just thumb through the dial and hear many stations that were nothing but static before.

I recorded and uploaded a portion of WWV's time signal (including the top-of-the-hour station ident) so I could show my friends what I do with my spare time, haha. You can listen to it here, if you'd like.

I guess that's part of the charm of vintage gear...discovering the unique way each piece of gear behaves based on how it's aged.

 

[catman]

G'day mate, all ok. Yes the time signal sounds good! Notice the female announcer on WWVH from Hawaii on the same frequency, just prior to the male voice announcement on WWV.

It seems likely that the various controls may have become noisy with time. Yes, it happens. If you're careful try spraying some general spray lubricant (I use WD-40) into the controls through the knobs and see if that helps. Use only sparingly though. Good luck mate. Yes short wave listening is fun! Regards, Felix (vk4fuq) aka catman.

 

[electroking]

If you listen to the WWV transmissions (not only on 5, but also 10 and 15 MHz),
you will get, among other things, reports on solar activity (at 18 minutes past
the hour IIRC). Another interesting target (in view of the distance) is Radio
Australia early in the morning on 9.580 MHz. I also recommend that you have
a look at a recent issue of the magazine 'Popular Communications', it contains
interesting articles and loggings (detailed listings with time and frequencies) of
stations actually heard by listeners. Be sure to learn of the UTC time
(as given by WWV), that is generally used to list times in logs. Happy listening!

 

[electroking]

Be sure to measure the actual voltage output of your adapter. +11% voltage (5.0
instead of 4.5) may be marginally acceptable, but if the adapter is poorly regulated,
it might go even higher and shorten the life of your fine radio. Good luck!

 

[catman]

G'day mate, yes good point about the voltage. In 'unregulated' supplies the actual output voltage will be mostly defined by the current being drawn by the appliance.

So if the current drawn is light, the actual voltage might be somewhat higher than expected and this could defintely cause circuit damage and poor operation if it is too high.

Yes, it's definitely worth measuring the voltage whilst in use. Regards, Felix (vk4fuq) aka catman.

 

[Mark Bridger]

I have just found mine which I purchased to take to sea in 1976. Anyone know where I can get a power adaptor?...110v or 240V (I am in the UK)