Secretly made by Sony - Inside the 5 Core radio

[@vwestlife]

*Correction:* The unknown music station is actually 830 WCRN from Worcester, Massachusetts, not 920 kHz as I said in the video. They play '60s-'80s music from 7:00 PM to 4:00 AM (Eastern time).

[@DriveInFreak]

It's nice to see that they're still getting it done. I'm at and on an AM music station myself. There's not a lot of us left.

[@TheMordecailover569]

@@DriveInFreak And what station might that be for nearby listeners?

[@Cameron5540]

I used to listen to 830 wcrn alot when I was younger, funny to see it here

[@ObsessionoftheMonth]

now you just need to do some mods to it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/omfQq5aNlpuUac0

[@circuitblog01]

Thank you for posting I posted a video on the original panasonic from 2 years a go it has a transformer amplifire out put circuit and the rf/ if circuit is (AN) series This one use the cxa1619 normal pins and there is an smd type of the same ic it is made in china under license from sony corp I work in cxa1xxxx alot and the cool thing that the volume pot dos not control the audio signal it dos control a voltage and the voltage it is feed to an elctronic volume control circuit that feed it to the in chip amplifire

[@skarumuru]

These cost 10-12$ in India. Good to know these sets reached US of A, there is still a huge cottage industry in India and radio listening is still very big in rural areas. I built quite a few of these with AF113 and AC128 transistors( old BEL India numbers) in my days mid 70s prior to CXA made appearance. Most of the capacitor and transformer s are still hand built in India in small workshop s with not more than 5-8 people. Good old days.

[@andygozzo72]

ac128s were very common germanium types here in the uk and eu, early 60s to early 70s, japanese equivalent 2sb56, dunno a usa equivalent off hand, never come across af113 but plenty of af114/115/116/117 and similar af124 to 127

[@vinsan98]

Hi @Srinivasa, I'm From Maharashtra, India and I can't seem to find the Radio on any Indian e-commerce site of any such. Do yoy know where can I buy this radio online? Thank you.

[@KMon1111IND]

​@@vinsan98 search in local small electronic stores neither the e-commerce nor the big electronic stores will have these. About 12 years ago I bought one analogue pocket radio from such a store.

[@stanwbaker]

1. My T-22 arrived two days ago and I've already broken the top section of the antenna. A new record. 2. I'm all the way down in Kentucky and CFZM sounds even better on my T-22. May as well be listening to Stereo 89 WLS in 1984.

[@veerapvvp8200]

From where u get it?

[@rootbrian4815]

Guess you've got to replace the antenna, or jam a precision long screwdriver into the hole (must fit snug) like I once did. LOL

[@Georgew2777]

I got a tecsun and the antenna snapped off. I just measured it and ordered a higher quality antenna off ebay

[@RandomRetr0]

Plenty of room inside to mod. 1) Add an earphone socket 2) Add an external antenna socket/bypass the ferrite rod for shortwave reception 3) Add a charger/charger port

[@hugoromeyn4582]

Be careful when you modify anything near the ferrite rod. In some receivers (not all) that part is also in use as a pre-selector. Modifying that can cause a different inductance and "out of sync" operation between the local oscillator and the pre-selector. (They are both simultaneously tuned by two variable capacitors in the tuning cap block). Result will be a very poor of even no reception. If you are not sure about how the circuitry was designed, leave everything connected the way it is and put a coupling coil on the rod itself. That coil can be connected to an external antenna. You can safely experiment with the number of turns of the coil, to find the best coupling between your external antenna and the receiver itself.

[@heedmywarning2792]

no bluetooth?

[@RandomRetr0]

@@heedmywarning2792 Bluetooth is an abomination 😂

[@erzahler1930]

@@heedmywarning2792 Bluetooth negates the whole idea of this receiver.

[@erzahler1930]

@@hugoromeyn4582 Better yet, find an early-70's transistorized AM receiver with a dual-ganged, air-gap tuning capacitor. All discrete components, no chips (except maybe an occasional voltage regulator). Nothing but transistors, resistors, capacitors, I.F. reactor coils, power and output transformers, and a big, honkin' speaker. Add a jack for an external long-wire antenna, and you're in business! 📻👍

[@thewrightwilliams]

Bought one based on your last video and I cannot believe how good this thing works for something that looks so cheap. It is straight up the best sounding AM radio I have ever used.

[@dracoony]

Isn't it to Hi-Fi for Black Metal then? ;)

[@jamesslick4790]

Analog is the best for MW and SW (AM) radio IMHO. Any one of my "vintage" analog pocket radios beat my newer and supposedly "better" digital based radios for AM reception. I am definitely going to get one of these!

[@qwertykeyboard5901]

@@jamesslick4790 even my really cheap and nasty sentry radio sounds good on am due to it using an analog radio on a chip.

[@jamesslick4790]

@@qwertykeyboard5901 Yep. Digital processors cause interference on AM. Some can't be heard due to the frequency, But it "masks" the incoming signal. AM and (SW) need analog! Digital radios that ARE OK on AM and SW are EXPENSIVE. A cheap $20 analog AM radio will pull in AM DX stations far better than $100 digital ones!

[@hadireg]

very famous chip indeed, many of the multiband receivers in late 90's were holding an cxa1619 in a smaller package. glad to see they're still in use.

[@nickwallette6201]

I wonder if they're still being made? I checked DigiKey, and I'm not surprised to find I can't buy one there. I don't know Sony's procurement process though. Retail standalone parts houses are probably not their typical avenue.

[@vwestlife]

The CXA1619 has been discontinued. 5 Core either bought up a large stock of remaining inventory, or may even be using used chips reclaimed from recycled radios.

[@hadireg]

@@vwestlife Yeah that's likely what's happening! allowing another life for those ICs in a real analog receiver, that's a winner recycling 🙂

[@VENUGPL1]

These chips are available most of the local Indian electronic spare part shops just for a half €....all new... some shops sells cd1619 ic instead of cxa, maybe a copied version

[@mjouwbuis]

@@VENUGPL1 CD1619 is likely a Chinese clone of this chip.

[@bobriemersma]

Almost seems like somebody bought some old factory tooling, molds, etc. and cobbled some modifications to start making radios with it again.

[@claudiodiaz9752]

The poor result of the mold could actually be a indication that the molds are old. In my country there is a discontinued train model toy that still has many fans due to nostalgia. By massive request, the toy company retrieved the old molds and made a limited edition of said toy, and you could clearly notice the difference by comparing the new and the old parts, the old ones are much smoother.

[@Eddies_Bra-att-ha-grejer]

@@claudiodiaz9752 The same with Unicomp keyboards. They recently made new tooling because the worn out molds impacted quality too much.

[@jonlouis2582]

Right. I want one.

[@OzRetrocomp]

India is famous for buying proven designs and tooling, and then manufacturing products for decades after said product's EOL in Western markets. Royal Enfield motorcycles and the Hindustan Ambassador (a car that was in production from the early 1960s until the early 2010s, based on a 1950s Morris from England) are just two of the better known examples. As well as a 5 Core radio, I also want a Royal Enfield. Go figure.

[@irtbmtind89]

@@claudiodiaz9752 When companies in Southern Europe like Lima and Mehano would use the same tooling for decades you could definitely see the difference between otherwise identical models of different eras. I think modern train models have too short runs for this to be a thing anymore (and they are way too expensive now unfortunately).

[@gunnerl9315]

*slaps cover of battery compartment* This bad boy can fit 1 power supply

[@OzRetrocomp]

I love how simple and effective this radio is, it seems like such an honest product. It looks like there's very little to go wrong. Even if a component _does_ fail, the components look cheap and easy to replace. I wonder if that eBay seller delivers to Australia...

[@hagen-p]

In the cold war times, it was recommended to keep such a simple radio at home for emergencies. Their circuits are so simple and robust that they have a good chance to survive even the electromagnetic pulse (EMP) of a nuclear strike. Most more complex circuits will be killed by an EMP.

[@andygozzo72]

its possible to make an even simpler am radio using a 'trf' chip/circuit, but has worse selectivity ,so a strong signal can swamp out nearby weaker signals , but perfectly ok if you just want to pick up a strong/local station

[@curtchase3730]

There should be a badge exclaiming "ONE Transistor" LOL.

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

"ONE Transistor solid state" :]

[@SarahRWilson]

The one transistor is likely an RF amplifier for the shortwave band.

[@ianuragaggarwal]

Solid state one transistor

[@douglasallen9428]

Nothing beats waking up on a Thursday morning and watching a new VWestlife video.......

[@emilycampbell6375]

agreed, his videos are so comfy and relaxing to watch

[@paulkane2391]

A good sounding radio - I don't need one, but I'm glad they're still available.

[@pradeepkumarpanda7626]

More than two dozen local radio manufacturers in India are using Sony CXA 1619 chip along with 2 transistors. And these radios are available in India at throw away price. This Sony chip is available in India at $0.5 (fifty cents). But possessing these radios are not seen prestigious in India. So only farmers and small shop keepers buy them.

[@JohnAudioTech]

The Panasonic RF 2400 (not the D version) uses this chip. A very good radio with good sound quality.

[@amritavaroy2778]

Tell me, how did you find it?!!? I'm from India and 46 years old and never seen this radio in India in my life!!!!! I'm pretty aware of almost all of the electronics brands that were and are available in India. For eg. the now non-existing Bush, Murphy, Philips and others... but never seen this thing. A nice surprise indeed!!

[@anirbannaskar7665]

CXA1619 was the most popular chip used for these 'analog' purpose in India until analog fm was replaced by PLL Synthesisers embedded in all in one USB chips. I would say it was a fabulous chip and produced robust reception with minimal passive components. They were also used in some mid-cheap 'hifi' systems accompanied with a stereo demultiplexer. These chips are still available in a readymade plug and play fm kit in India at a price of approximately 50 cents (USD). Now it is upto speculation whether it is really SONY or not!

[@donpalmera]

I'm not sure why something having a sony chip in it is surprising. Sony video encoders are in everything including rival products like the sega saturn. The semiconductor unit and consumer products units aren't the same thing.

[@bened22]

Yeah, it was just a little click bait.

[@Broken_Yugo]

Surprising they went for a quality solution in such a cheap looking product and not some Chinese knockoff chip. I expected to see a mystery chip or nothing but transistors and IF cans.

[@westelaudio943]

@@Broken_Yugo Discrete transistor construction would be more expensive than even a branded chip.

[@needleontherecord]

Usually anything Indian made go for the cheapest and lowest quality components. That’s why this is a surprise having a Sony chip.

[@okbridges]

According to the datasheet this uses the traditional 455kc IF frequency on the AM band. It also features AVC on the AM band, and AFC on FM band for stable, drift free reception. Pretty good for what it is!

[@DolganoFF]

In current Sony lineup, at least the ICF-306 is based on the same chip (they have smaller P26 and P36 - not sure if those are analog or digital tuners, but the 306 is analog for sure). This radio is 2 band AM/FM, the finish is much better than the 5 Core and it sounds very well. Can be had for not much more money (and no far away shipping...)

[@dilipdas5777]

And what about sony Icf 19?

[@uxwbill]

A third battery was the first thing I thought of, especially as the cord was clearly intended to be detachable. I've never seen a radio with a detachable cord also equipped to store the cord. Still, I'm pretty sure it was a law that the cord compartment on a radio could not be big enough to comfortably store the cord without jumping up and down on the radio to get it packed in there. The shortwave on my example works great, but the speaker sounds like it's either blown or binding.

[@jordanch68]

Lift the board and check the solder connections, they missed 6 connections on mine.

[@horseathalt7308]

@uxwbill Also notice the battery spring terminal. They clearly stretched it to match the two battery cell length

[@fixman88]

@@jordanch68 I got one last year and if I remember right it had some issues, so I put it aside to look at it later. If it can work as well as the video indicates I need to open mine up and take a look.

[@LightTheUnicorn]

Sweet! It may not look all that great on the outside, but it sure does seem to have a solid heart!

[@Melmelbaton]

song: 🎵It's time to move to another track🎵 vwestlife: changes track on his 8-track player I love a good visual pun

[@OzRetrocomp]

I saw (heard?) what Kevin did there lol

[@markanderson350]

Lots of canadian content in this. Ian thomas on a canadian station, yes it's time. Click. They are quite a good station too. Lots of educational shows like gardening, repairing cars, finance etc.

[@kareno8634]

Noting that is a way One Knows you [were] Really -here- Hear.

[@reginaldobsb2]

That circuit board brought me memories... I used to repair portable radios back in the 1990's and I saw many boards that looked pretty much the same.

[@hagen-p]

Memories for me, too. When I started with electronics at 12 years, having not much money, I asked a local radio shop if they had some 'broken devices' (=that were not worthwhile to repair or that people did not pick up) for me, to take apart, learn from them, and use for parts. They were nice and gave me quite a few ones (over the course of a few years, before everything became highly integrated). Some of the devices worked fine, maybe the repair was just too expensive for the owner, or they got a new one and did not bother to pick it up. (One memorable clock-radio served me well a couple of years until finally the mechanical clock mechanism broke - the motor became unbearably loud - and then I would finally disassemble it and get some components out.) I got a lot of passive and active components from these radios for my own experiments. And it was good soldering practice. Got a lot of respect for some of the mechanical designs, too.

[@VENUGPL1]

This chip is so popular in India used in most of the local brands and DIY circuit boards...sound quality is exceptional...some people use the the built-in amplifier inside the chip and some uses separate high wattage amps

[@joeblow8593]

4:06 Look at CF1 on the circuit board, there are two spots for a CF2 and a CF3. The CF3 spot has a jumper on it. My guess is that CF2 and CF3 could have been for two additional FM ceramic filters. Some are asking "so what"? Well, if you have more FM ceramic filters in the radio. The radio should be more selective on FM. If you replace the existing 230 khz Ceramic Filter with a 180 khz or 150 khz filter, your radio will be much more selective than before and should be better for FM Dxing. What that means for you is, you should be able to pick up the Philadelphia FM stations (like 98.1 WOGL) right next to your NYC and Central NJ locals (WMGQ 98.3) with just one simple ceramic FM filter change.

[@jordanch68]

The CXA1619BM/BS datasheet has the values for CF1, CF2, and CF3 and shows the circuit. This IC was designed to use them so it may be worthwhile to add them and see how it works. I've got two of these radios so I can compare the difference.

[@saintmichael1779]

"Everybody Plays the Fool" (The Main Ingredient) was popular in my senior year of high school. It's got a hook that once it's in your head is there to stay.

[@subzeroarctics1299]

There's something warm and comforting about it for sure

[@edmardearaujocavalcanticav6924]

Onde encontro o produto a venda aqui em Recife - Pe.

[@briangoldberg4439]

"It's good to know that someone didn't sneak in here and replace it." lmao

[@hagen-p]

A quick look at 5core.com reveals that they do all sorts of audio products, and also make their own speakers.

[@BessieBopOrBach]

Your Toronto fans appreciate the Toronto representation, vwestlife! Fun fact: the proprietor of that radio station, Moses Znaimer, inspired the protagonist of the David Cronenberg movie Videodrome!

[@techbaffle]

They seem to sell 5 Core radios on the Walmart and Sears website too! Says on their eBay page that they've been around since 1984. Would be interesting to find out more about the company - can't find much about it.

[@DinukaD]

Sony CXA series is very popular among both 3rd party and armature radio units. No surprise at all!

[@mjouwbuis]

CXA series? That also includes most analogue chips for TV sets, cassette decks, DVD and video players, professional electronics, etc. You might want to be more specific ;-)

[@gordonfreeman320]

What a fun video! Glad someone still makes decent cost-effective analogue radios!

[@jordanch68]

I installed the SFU-455B (CF3) and I believe it did help the selectivity and stability on AM. The installed CF for FM at CF1 is ok as it is. The open spot for CF2 should be for the CDA 10.7 CF (CF3 on the CXA1619BS data sheet) but will involve cutting some traces and running a couple bodge wires. I have this CF but not installed it yet. The datasheet also indicates an antenna filter (part PFWE8) which I have not been able to find anywhere. Also I bought a few of these radios and one had a bad Yellow IF can with an open secondary, they cut the trace leading to the IC and jumpered both secondary pins back to the primary effectively eliminating that IF stage. I was able to find replacement IF cans and installed one of those (this IF can has no capacitor on primary or secondary). The rough alignment I did was to listen for the band of static on SW and adjust it so that the static falls within the range of the dial scale. These IF cans are getting hard to find now as well so it may be a good idea to get a few (red, black, white, yellow) when you can find them. I also followed the datasheet and added a tuning indicator LED (as shown int he data sheet (both resistors at 1K ohms these adjust the LED brightness and dimming speed) and installed it in the corner gap opening between the dial string right behind the red 5 Core logo on the T-291.

[@anirbanbiswas693]

Great video bro! You know, I am from India, and I must say I have never heard about this brand before. I searched up on 5 Core radios and they simply are just not available on any online store here in India. Went on their official website, and though the radio is listed on there, the price is in USD rather than Indian Rupees - I guess the company has decided to market to a foreign audience, and maybe that makes sense since radios do not have a market anymore here in India, I don't see anyone buying a radioset in 2021 (except for nostalgia's sake). As far as AM-FM radios are concerned, one old Indian brand that comes to mind is Santosh - I think they still make radios, though I have no idea if they are analog units.

[@geraldscott4302]

I'm in the U.S. and haven't listened to local commercial radio (AM and FM) in decades. Nothing on but trash. I have a large collection of my favorite music, mostly from the '60s and '70s on cassette and 8 track tapes. I do still listen to shortwave, I have a dedicated late 1960s tube type SW radio.

[@dilipdas5777]

​@@geraldscott4302 what's difference between tube type and modern IC based radios?

[@billpotter9716]

Nice to see the full-size variable capacitor. I am guessing they are kind of hard to mass-manufacture hence why most radios go with digital tuning.

[@bricanban]

HAHA! Thanks for the WLNG plug! Yes I did tell him to stay way from CARTS!

[@pixoariz]

I could never get over the ones that clicked into noisy fast forward mode. What was THAT about?

[@jimmartin7881]

THE CANNON!! How cool is that?! Even though I moved off the island to upstate NY I still listen to the 5 o'clock whistle and WLNG every day.

[@ruskreeder2434]

I purchased one from Amazon. It's truly an excellent radio that I love. Again, a fine review.

[@Pdraver333]

Ordered one after I saw the first video. I got it yesterday, two days after I placed the order on eBay! Thanks for opening it up. I was thinking of doing that myself, now I don't have to. Even though it's a little crude, it seems to be a pretty good performer for the money.

[@igorszamaszow171]

I wouldn't be surprised if the entire circuit board happens to be lifted from an old Sony product. It can also explain 4.5V and a "spare" cell -- as if they were working on something else, and then decided to use an existing design which just works perfectly on 3V.

[@AaronOfMpls]

As someone else commented, 5 Core is probably re-using molds from an older radio that had more discrete components instead of that chip -- and needed 4.5 volts to run them.

[@MrDuncl]

A good component manufacturer will supply information like that. One of Sony's many business activities is as a component supplier. They sell far more cellphone camera modules than they sell phones themselves.

[@horseathalt7308]

Quite a few sony portables from the 90s used 4.5v as power

[@jamesslick4790]

@@horseathalt7308 Yep, And it drove me crazy. I would buy a 4 pack of batteries and ALWAYS misplace the 4th one, so I was wasting 25% of my battery budget. I used to think they were in cahoots with the battery companies, LOL

[@horseathalt7308]

@@jamesslick4790 sony offered there own branded batteries. Probably made by someone else but also offered their own sony ac adapter which provided exactly 4.5v and the correct jack too. I think they sold tons of those.

[@johnruschmeyer5769]

Nice to see a radio with a honking long ferrite bar on the AM antenna. That probably goes a long way to explain why it receives as well as it does. I'm kind of curious as to whether it could be improved by changing the position of the coil on the bar and by tweaking the tuning capacitor.

[@jordanch68]

I noted in the first video that the screen print on the pcb has the coil on the other side. I flipped mine around and think that it helped slightly but that could be my imagination. It doesn't seem right to me that the coil is so close to the strong magnet of the speaker or that it's hanging out in space like that where it could be damaged, the ferrite antenna should be secured with some hot glue to keep it from coming out, it's only held in with wax and like you said it isn't a small bar.

[@Broken_Yugo]

I bet this was redesigned at some point to use the chip solution, and that may not have been the first revision based on the case design. The 4.5 volt version probably was all discrete transistors.

[@OzRetrocomp]

That was my first thought as well. Seems like somewhere along the line, 5 Core revised this radio to reduce power consumption. This is very thoughtful and important, given how many people in India have very little disposable income. I imagine many people probably had to save up for months to buy their radio, and probably couldn't afford to keep it running if it chewed through batteries.

[@Broken_Yugo]

@@OzRetrocomp I'd guess the goal wasn't about power consumption, nor does higher voltage mean more power used. More about cost reduction, building a superhet FM broadcast receiver out of discretes the old fashioned way is labor intensive compared to the chip. As I understand it older battery powered transistor radio circuits used higher voltages to accommodate cheaper lower current transistors in the audio amp stage(P=IV and all). If they were really concerned about cheap operation a external power input would have been maintained.

[@MrDuncl]

@@OzRetrocomp An odd number of batteries is always awkward as well. D cells are usually sold in pairs which means remembering where you put the spare one.

[@mjouwbuis]

or another chip.

[@hagen-p]

@@OzRetrocomp Looks like the chip runs on anything from 2V to 7.5V, so you could also power it with a single Li-Ion cell. Or with solar power. Nice design!

[@stephen1r2]

It even has 5 tuning cores just like they said. It really needs a nicer case, AC-DC board, and an amp to actually use that speaker

[@johnstone7697]

The IC can output about 1/2 watt into 4 ohms, which is more than good enough for a portable radio. Most older transistor sets had considerably less power.

[@lesrogers7310]

The spring that forms the earth connection to the battery on the left seems very stretched. They are usually coiled much tighter, and sit much closer to the battery. This suggests to me that they did indeed plan for a further cell, especially as the space left over is too small for one.

[@MTNDEWGANG]

Might pick it up for the novelty. Stuff like this wont be around forever.

[@twocvbloke]

Can't beat a genuine Sorny or Panaphonics, just be careful of those Magnetbox ones though... :P

[@KevinAllOver]

This video has the best soundtrack.

[@dashcamandy2242]

2:11 - She comes down from Yellow Mountain... On a dark, flat land she rides... On a pony she named Wiiildfiiiiiiiiirrre... 5:50 - Abbey Road, No Jacket Required, Best of The Doobies, Can't Slow Down... All outstanding albums. You definitely got me giggling right at the end. You clever bugger! :-)

[@Kylefassbinderful]

LOL ok, I'll admit I thought the compartment could fit a power cord. Boy was I wrong lol

[@OzRetrocomp]

It'd probably fit if it was an AC-only radio, so I don't blame anyone for putting forward the cord storage hypothesis.

[@teekay_1]

There is a datasheet out there for this radio from Sony which is pretty interesting. There is also a surface mount version of this chip CXA1619BM. Neither are available for small orders (apparently), as the data sheet is marked to contact Sony Sales for availability.

[@mjouwbuis]

Probably for the chip, not for the radio.

[@realitybites4649]

Ask for a sample for testing purposes, many chip manufacturers will send you some.

[@iBendThings]

I think you're looking for Zoomer radio, a Toronto station. They broadcast on FM 96.7 and AM 740. I was surprised you can receive a Toronto station from where you are.

[@vwestlife]

They come in very well via nighttime skywave (skip).

[@OzRetrocomp]

I thought Zoomers only listened to Spotify lol

[@tvradio1972]

So that's why this radio performed well. You can't go wrong with a radio made with Sony parts.

[@mrnmrn1]

Well, I'm not impressed at all by the sensitivity of my ICF-7600DA, and its design which uses two 74HC138 demuxes to *directly* switch between the SW RF filters. I think the series resistance and stray capacitances among its outputs might contribute to its mediocre performance on SW, but it's FM performance is not great either. It's quite alarming that they didn't even specify the sensitivity on any band in the manual.

[@pradeepkumarpanda7626]

Only the Chip and circuit is Sony, not other parts. Other parts are made in India by small manufacturers.

[@klafong1]

Look closely at the circuit board, and it becomes apparent that some components have been deleted as cost cutting measures. Two ceramic filters are missing (one has a jumper clearly visible). The good treble response on AM is a side-effect of this. However, Shango066 reviewed one of these radios, and he found that stations "bled" excessively. This specimen performs much better. Possibly, the engineers came up with a design revision that allowed the AM section to develop acceptable selectivity without using a ceramic filter. If I had to take an educated guess regarding the function of the five adjustable cores in the radio, it would be: -MW local oscillator -SW local oscillator -SW RF -MW IF -FM quadrature detector

[@DeLorean4]

They filled in the old DC-in ports but left all of the old incorrect text because adding material to the part involves machining the cavity which is fairly cheap, whereas removing the text requires welding the cavity and then re-machining it which is more expensive.

[@ritmo1130]

Great job! This is the first time I watch your channel and really enjoyed it! AM radio is still great to listen.

[@rogerb5615]

I bought one based on this video. FM reception here n the boonies is excellent. After dark, if one's willing to put up with fiddly tuning and no bandspread, SW is also excellent. Recommended!

[@onebadrc]

Mine arrived yesterday. Thanks for opening yours up.

[@fenech97]

This chip was probably used in India's latest successful moon mission. Well done India, you have many intelligent people .

[@LakeNipissing]

Living in NE Ontario, I listen to CF Zee M 740 all the time. Great tunes, and their all-night jukebox is awesome. Although the new commercial free 1220 CFAJ from Niagara Falls has been winning me over, running an "anything goes" 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s playlist with Top 40 hits and unusual stuff like the Pink Panther theme, Neil Diamond - Love on the Rocks, Styx - Mr Roboto, Men at Work - Overkill, Moody Blues - Gemini Dream, Bee Gees - How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Beach Boys - I Get Around, Prince - Purple Rain, Ambrosia - You're the only woman.

[@fixman88]

That lineup reminds me of Uptown 1010 WMIN in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. They call themselves 'Ring a Ding Radio', and play a lot of stuff from the Big Band era all the way up to the 90s...but no Rock or Disco. The play a lot of Swing stuff and The Rat Pack and Sinatra. Now if you want Album Rock there's WXYG 'The Goat' or WVAL 800 for Classic Country (they've been broadcasting since 1963!) ...and they're all owned by the same company and broadcast out of the same building.

[@LakeNipissing]

@@fixman88 Starting a week ago, CFAJ is still commercial-free 'test broadcast', and now with an online stream: 'Classic1220'

[@GeorgeGeorge-xj2bc]

Who could imagine that.Few years ago it was impossible for me to find in my local shops to buy the special thread used for tuning to replace a broken one in a vintage hi-fi set.

[@randyc8171]

I just received my T-22. Fabulous AM and FM reception. Tunes in AM stations my other radios only dream about.

[@Georgew2777]

What about shortwave reception?

[@maxiboyfm3a]

My Denon cassette deck has Sony Dolby S chips in it too. Would you be able to to a teardown of the other radio to compare the synth tuner to a full analogue tuner?

[@vwestlife]

I already returned the Panasonic radio because I was so unsatisfied with it. But Fran Blanche did a review and teardown of the Retekess TR-604 radio I also showed in the previous video.

[@deffunc]

@@vwestlife This one, I believe: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sITPmplqpZKIgq8

[@peacearchwa5103]

@@vwestlife Glad that you returned the unit. Its performance was mediocre and that's one way for the manufacturer to know that.

[@westelaudio943]

Few companies can make their own chips. But having a good brand of chip doesn't exempt you from good curcuit design. In a radio the chip really only does the IF and other RF amp stages aswell as the detector and AF output. All the IF transformers and oscillator coils, the PCB layout etc. have to be well thought out too.

[@tomsimpson3322]

Laughed out loud at the original speaker joke.....always good fun watching your videos. Keep up the good work, all the best from Scotland (-:

[@Edman_79]

The space on the back may be for e.g. the 9V battery to store settings in a different model? I've got old portable SONY cassette player with that.

[@hagen-p]

(a) On 5core.com (vintage audio section) you can see they call this radio TC-22 or T-291. Looks like they sell it worldwide. (b) The radio back shows mold parts for "4.5V" and for "AC 220V". Changing the design to use only two cells is a big improvement - batteries are often sold in packs of two or four. Inconvenient if a device needs three cells. The empty space in the battery compartment, and the unused space for an AC transformer shows that plastic case mold designs were often used for multiple product versions. E.g., one stationary verdsion with AC 220V, one with external low-voltage power jack, and one for battery-only operation. Quite common in the past. Molds are expensive to make. (c) Sony Corporation has a semiconductor barnch that produces and sells integrated circuits. That the radio chip is from Sony does not mean at all they produced the whole unit. Maybe 5core made or bought the design and just produces the radios. You can buy the CXA1619BS in bulk, if your want. Nice chip, by the looks of it. Works from 2V up to ca. 7.5V, so you could power it with 4.5V with out any harm for the chip.

[@asanaya94]

It surprising how many devices you can find Sony branded components in them. Great simple radio!!

[@SlinkyStoney]

My last dumpster dive, I found a portable electric fan with AM/FM radio built-in and can do operate at AC or battery. It has the same Sony chip on it. Very sensitive receiver, it can pick up probably Chinese AM broadcast or some SE Asian am at night.

[@fixman88]

That reminds me of the radio I found in a hidden garbage dump in the woods back in the 1980s; the tape player didn't work but the radio still did.

[@LakeNipissing]

Incidentally the CF *ZM* 740 is from "Zoomer Media", owned by Moses Znaimer, who likes using 'MZ' (his initials) and 'ZM' (his company) in the station calls.

[@LTHanlon]

Be careful when turning on the radio. The volume knob was in the "on" position in both new units I purchased. I almost snapped the knob off by turning it too far to the right. Likewise, the selector on the back doesn't align with the band indicators especially well, so exercise caution when switching it.

[@ajc5869]

i’ve owned my 5core T-291 for two weeks now and I really love it. It’s just such a piece of crap but so good at the same time. Yes it arrived with the ferrite bar broken off and loose in the case, I zip tied it in place and it made me love it even more. It just strikes that balance of quirky, cool and crappy so well. I like it so much that I ordered some rechargeable D batteries for it. I’ll keep this thing around for a while.

[@alextirrellRI]

That's some of the best sounding AM I've heard in quite a while. My modern tuners in my hifi and car can't seem to pick up much of anything, or they mask weak signals.

[@channelsixtysix066]

Shango's was broken in transit, floaties all in the cabinet. The pcb had broken allowing the antenna to flop around. His was the other model, T-291, with the tasteful extra nomenclature on the front. It did sort work, but the selectivity was abominable.

[@synchro505]

What a great follow-up to an already great original video. VWestlife content at its finest.

[@jimc9823]

Picked up one of these and love it. Sounds very good for the price.

[@Frank_42]

As it was said on Saturday Night Live, "You can put your weed in there!"

[@old-fashionedcoughypot]

Noice

[@probnotstech]

CFRW! Winnipeg represent :D The last thing I need is to buy another radio, but man oh man am I ever tempted.

[@LakeNipissing]

I just posted above, I still have my 13 CFRW card, from when I was living north of Winnipeg in Selkirk.

[@dougbrowning82]

That was an old spot. It's been TSN 1290 for years. They might be in for another change, they lost the Jets to CJOB this year.

[@shango066]

I just made a video on this today inspired by your first video.

[@michaeljackson5938]

BIGGEST FAN OF SHANGO066 WHY NO EOL FOR 2021 😢😢😢

[@mrnmrn1]

@@michaeljackson5938 There was an EOL, although it was probably in late 2020, it went down very soon after he uploaded it, I should have downloaded it instantly.

[@LakeNipissing]

5:40 . . . What is this interlude??? I used to live in Winnipeg. I still have my 13 CFRW Listener Card somewhere!! Although it got a bit damaged on some of the edges when we used it to jimmy some door latches at the high school in the 1980s to get up to the projection booth catwalks above the auditorium... but that's another story.

[@Manny_News_Blogs_Tutorials]

1:41 that radio was designed only to accept 3 volts batteries (2x 1.5v AA). The compartment you're referring to was meant for storing the long AC cord with narrow L-shaped angled down AC plug if built in AC 220 power transformer was not omitted in that radio. That's how my old GE Superadio's compartment was designed, at least for most vintage radios at the time. And also that could've been a very selective radio for weak signal reception if ceramic filter CF2 for FM and a 455 Khz filter CF3 were not omitted.

[@vwestlife]

Obviously you didn't watch the video!

[@Manny_News_Blogs_Tutorials]

@@vwestlife I did finished watching this video, including your previous video "search for true analog radio" which you keep on pointing out that same compartment. That's why I'm commenting now on this video with respect to that particular concern at 1:41 because I'm not convinced that it was for a third battery option. The plug you tested doesn't fit because you're looking at the wrong plug. Use a narrower L-shaped angled down AC plug and it will fit nicely, along with a thinner and more flexible AC wire would coil inside. That's a typical design for older transistor radios with built in power supply. Going down to the technical aspect, bear in mind that 3 volts unregulated power supply bears 4.5 to 5 volts (transformer voltage is greater than 3 volts AC when measured at the output, converting to DC by adding a rectifier and filter capacitor may further increase the voltage). There will always be a voltage drop with a load, so 4.5 volts DC is suggested for power supply assuming you're using unregulated power brick adapter. 3 pcs AA alkaline on the other hand would yield fixed non-fluctuating 4.5 volts and the radio may heat up due to overvoltage outside the factory design parameter. Using high capacity regulated DC voltage such as those of alkaline battery should be fixed to 3 volts because battery voltage never drops unless depleted, that's why 3 volts was the suggested rating if battery operated. Besides, the compartment with divider you are referring to is shorter a single AA battery won't fit.

[@Manny_News_Blogs_Tutorials]

BTW: I'm a vintage gadget restorer, and I know that particular chassis design from radios of the past. Yes for modders you may cut the divider as an option to add another AA battery. But that's not simply the manufacturer's intention as they did not include a notch in the compartment which will originally fit a positive terminal for that additional battery option.

[@Manny_News_Blogs_Tutorials]

Also may I add that most radio chassis were machine crafted or molded. So there's little chance for errors unless the manufacturer used a different chassis not intended for this model. Moreover, any hand-made modifications to the chassis should be easily noticeable (that additional divider if intentionally put in place, the absence of a notch to move the positive terminal to that empty battery compartment, the voltage ratings at the back panel, etc). But so far in this video I could not see any such marks or indication that the casing was modified.

[@centermass3454]

based on your recomendation I bought the 5 Core TC-22 and will be using it this weekend. Thanks.

[@frankgroening9139]

nice radio! thanks to open and show us! Greetings from Argentina!

[@maltoNitho]

That ending tho, right in the feels somehow.

[@corranda]

Thanks for sharing this find! Just ordered mine today!

[@coondogtheman]

I have a (half) Sony Dream Machine alarm clock that has this radio chip in it. Radio works very well except AM no ferrite antenna.

[@wisteela]

Amazing. I may have to get one of these depending on what that will be like for here in the UK.

[@defaultuserid1559]

Mine should be here tomorrow. Edit: The radio had no physical damage but the dial pointer was jammed, so I had to open it up to put it back on the track. It works better on AM than yours for some reason. The FM antenna broke right away but seems to work as good as yours with a test lead as a replacement. SW is useless. The worst thing was the smell after unboxing it. It had to go outside and sit in the sun for a few hours to get rid of the burnt plastic odor. Overall, good bang for the buck if you get a good one and can fix minor QC issues.

[@cabasse_music]

"its good to know someone didn't sneak in here and replace it" - ya got me

[@simonbeasley989]

Thanks for taking it apart! That explains why it's so good. I'm by no means a worshipper of everything Sony but remember they had analogue radio absolutely nailed back in the 80s and 90s when we bought analogue radios.

[@onefatstratcat]

yep.. I had one of these with the black market non-original speaker installed and it just wasn't very good :)

[@cjmarsh504]

I see it's a very robust radio, despite of the quality molding

[@iulianispas8634]

That cip is find in many Sony walkmens , my WM-F2085 had one of those cips in, also i find it in a later MATSHUI portable radio full analog muti band radio with very good reviews

[@thevacdude]

Thanks for the video, Kevin.

[@RC-nq7mg]

13CFRW? Are you from Manitoba? CFRW lived on 1290KHz for years until it was chewed up by a crappy sports network that tried their best and failed miserably to compete with CJOB. I think it recently folded and switched back to broadcasting music.

[@madprophetus]

I'm surprised India (or anywhere outside the US) uses AM/FM on the same frequency bands that we do. Never really thought of it until I saw this video.

[@shc75]

4:46 No AM crystal filters CF2 and CF3???

[@johnstone7697]

The Sony chip itself dates back to at least 1999, and I highly doubt this would be a current production item. DIP through hole chips are pretty much a thing of the past, having long given way to SMD types. And the physical construction of this radio really screams "last century". Probably enough surplus stock of the chip lying around to keep this model alive for a while. Performance certainly seems decent, but hardly state of the art for an AM radio. Where the technical performance of analog radios is concerned, I think we reached the peak in the early 1970's. Everything since then points to cost savings and simpler production. The cheap digital sets also appear to be pure junk, as evidenced by the fact that this crude set beats the snot out of the fancy "retro" Panasonic. My go to portable is a Grundig 6001 Satellit 210 from 1972. As analog portable radios go, it doesn't get much better than this.

[@DriveInFreak]

Nice long AM ferrite bar. I need yet another radio like I need another hole in my head, but I'm tempted for sure. BTW; The station playing that off the wall Ian Thomas record tells me that it's Canadian. That's Canadian content filler for sure. Up there they have to play at least one Canadian record out of three, thus you'll hear things that you'd never hear on a US station (no matter how vast their library) just to keep from playing the same records over, and over, and over again. EDIT: I didn't notice that you had changed the station back. Never mind. DOH!

[@LakeNipissing]

Regarding the odious "CanCon" (Candian Content) rules from the CRTC (like FCC in the US), they essentially only apply during daytime hours. The 'filler' goes away during CFZM's 'All Night Jukebox" from 1AM to 6AM.

[@DriveInFreak]

@@LakeNipissing The funny thing is that they used to run "Beaver Hours" in the middle of the night to make up for the content all at one time. They can't d that anymore, obviously. I'm kind of surprised the border blasters never really were a thing. Maybe there's laws against Canadian outfits advertising on US stations. Nothing against Canadian Music (don't get me wrong), there's just not a lot of it.

[@LakeNipissing]

@@DriveInFreak I can tell you in the 1980s and 1990s (prior to internet options), we were fed up with the endless CanCon filler jammed down our throats, which is half of the reason I got interested in tuners, receivers, and decent FM antennas... to get *amazing* American Rhythmic / CHR stations the likes of which did not exist north of the border. Majic 102 (WMJQ), Kiss 98.5 (WKSE) and Power 93.7 (WBLK) had a *huge* following in the Toronto area, and Majic 102 with its 110,000 Watt transmitter could be received pretty good in Northeastern Ontario 200+ miles away. Similarly when I was living north of Winnipeg in the early 1990s, Grand Forks, ND with 1/10 of the population of Winnipeg had more and better stations, like XL93 (KKXL) and Hot 96 (KQHT). This was a pretty easy task for 120+ mile reception, being flat, open prairie along the Red River. 93.7 WDAY from Fargo, which was even further south was easy to receive. I have dozens and dozens of hours of tape recordings from the above listed stations from 1989 to 1994. The radio ID / jingles were *_brilliant_* back then! I still love this era of "high school / college" music so much I listen to "Old School 104.7" KQIE live stream all the time, which is one of the few stations with this format.

[@horseathalt7308]

@@LakeNipissing i love that old sctv skit where they do canfax

[@DriveInFreak]

@@LakeNipissing When Wolfman Jack was still blasting 500KW out of Mexico he was HUGE up there. He was so big up there that's he's only had two hit records and both of them where Canadian acts...The Guess Who and The Stampeders. If AM was still a viable option I think that someone could make a fortune with a border blaster. Why AM? It covers a lot more ground than FM. It's why AM hung on a lot longer in Canada and Australia than it did in most other places, ans why AM Stereo (though admittedly an overall failure) was more accepted there. I had quite a few listeners in The Maritimes when I did overnights on 540 WGTO (Orlando...yes, salt water is really, REALLY good for AM signals). Ever since than I've had this odd fantasy or running a border blast....dispute the fact that I'm a native Floridian that didn't see snow until I was in my 30s, thus I would possibly freeze to death, or at lest lose some toes...lol. I almost took a gig at a station in in Saint John, NB years ago (a 50KW AM that no longer exists was looking to flip from country to rock), but turned it down do to not knowing how to deal with the cold and the extremely expensive cigarettes. Being Floridian I've had a lot of fun with Canadian folks. thus have a bit of a soft spot for Canada and the (not to throw everybody into one category) the fine folks up there.

[@Ciborium]

I'm guessing the upgraded version, the T-291 with a SW receiver, is also an analog radio of the same [internal] quality?

[@DerekPower]

You really are the technical guru for the vapour scene 😁

[@arunkumarsawant6523]

Dear Sir, Please send circuit of True analog radio and where components would be available.

[@jamesslick4790]

I didn't know that ANYONE was making actual analog radios today. I'm going to have to get one! 👍😊👍

[@pauljs75]

Neat that a radio from India has some interesting features despite it's modest aspects and re-using a molding for some previous product that has been blanked out. Somehow managed to end up with some weird Chinesium radio that's kind of odd as well. (Suntone model RR632?) Styled like a brick CB radio, ok-ish sound quality, a bit harsh on batteries (uses 4xAA), but despite seeming all wonky from a design perspective it pulls in some stations like a champ even though the knob for tuning can seem finicky. If the battery life weren't so mediocre, it'd almost be acceptable due to the reception despite having other things against it.