Customer Reviews

Sony ICF-SW7600GR AM/FM Shortwave World Band Receiver with Single Side Band Reception, plus External Plug-in Antenna

5 star:		(113)
4 star:		(55)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

For many reasons this is absolutely the best valued shortwave receiver on the market.

1. Synchronous detector! It enables the radio to lock
onto signals with tenacity. It reduces fading and noise and
enables you to eliminate interference by selecting a sideband
on the other side of the interfering signal. On the SW7600GR
it works very well. No other radio at this price has sync
detector.

2. Build quality. Made in Japan. The radio even feels
robust. It is.

3. Sensitivity.

4. Great portability.

Of course there are also some liabilities.

Sound through the little speaker is not as good as some
competing products. But given that this little Sony blows
the competitors away in almost all other respects,
this is a minor quibble. The sound isn't bad; it just
isn't room filling. As a personal radio this isn't such
a liability. Plus, you can always use earphones or connect
to auxiliary speakers (Cambridge Soundworks?).

The memory system is simple, without alphabetic labels.
There is no tuning dial, just jog buttons for scanning
the bands. Simplicity makes for easy operation, though.

FM reception is respectable (much better than the very
expensive big brother the Sony ICF-SW77). Standard AM
reception is good, possibly very good. But if you are
interested in DXing the AM bands, you already have a
GE Super Radio.

It doesn't have an AC adaptor (and you should AVOID buying
the horrible--and horribly expensive--official Sony adaptor).
If you want to power from AC, get an inexpensive one. I power
mine with rechargeable NiMH batteries which work better than
alkalines and can be reused hundreds of times. Buy two
sets of batteries and you'll always have a set charged and
ready to go. Battery drain is respectively low and the unit
functions perfectly on the slightly lower voltage NiMHs.

As a travel radio, or as an introduction to shortwave, I can't
think of a better unit. Probably the best recommendation for
the 7600GR is that in spite of all the laudable reviews, using
one for the first time still surprises. Originally priced
at just under $200 US, current street prices make this an
incredible value.

Now for the bad news. Sony is getting out of the world band
radio business. These little gems may soon be unavailable.
So if you're interested in the 7600GR, now is the time.

I am fairly new to SW radios. I bought a Grunding S350 and was annoyed with the drift . I would tune into a station and it would slowly tune out. I returned it and bought a Grunding YB400PE. It was much better that S350 but the SSB performance was dismal. Also I just could not lock on to some weak signals or to a station that was very close to a more powerful station.

I went in for the sony 7600GR and have been very happy. The synchronous detection helps a lot. You can select between LSB and USB when doing synchronous detection. This helps you with those pesky neighbouring stations.If it is on the Lower freq. choose USB and vice versa.

The audio quality is a little inferior to the YB400. It also does not have a handy snooze button. But I am yet to meet a person who buys SW radios for audio quality or as an alarm clock.
The YB400 comes with a AC mains power adapter but the sony does not. The Reel antenna is included in both.

If you are looking for a radio that can tune into weak signals ,provide SSB functionality , synchronous detection , variable attenuation to drown out noisy interference then this is the adio for you. A keeper.

I bought this radio after trying out several Grundig portables including the YB400. The Grundigs were all cheaply made and have less than desirable reception.

Furthermore, I bought the AN-LP1 loop antenna made by Sony. This must be the perfect set up for someone that does not want to pay loads of money but still wants a "very" satisfying SWL experience. I love mine and would recommend it to anyone. Especially if you travel alot like me for you business. Portable and Powerful!

Finally, you will be suprised how easy it is to learn and operate. Most of the buttons I figured out without the user manual. However, there are a few nifty items I found in the user manual so don't forget to read it.

I have been using the 7600 (no suffix), the grand-daddy of the 7600GR since its debut in 1992. That's close to 14 years of faithful, problem-free service until it finally died on me recently. I was sad to see it go but was all prepared to look for a better alternative. After ploughing through numerous reviews both online and off, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that its direct descendant, the 7600GR, still rates among the top portable receivers today. They are practically identical aside from some pretty superficial changes. I did appreciate the 100 station presets. That's useful for someone who uses it for listening to shortwave stations which change frequencies a lot depending on the time of day and the season. Aside from that, little else has changed. Reception-wise they're close to identical. But far from a fault, it's an indication of how well designed the 7600 was in the first place. I've seldom seen electronic appliances staying practically the same after more than a decade in service and still retain close to top spot in consumer reviews. Sony deserves congratulations for that.

In terms of build quality, I can attest to their ruggedness. These babies were built to last. My trusty old 7600 has been on the open ocean, baked in the sun, drenched in rain (wrapped in plastic of course), subjected to leaky batteries, dropped several times, and given dutiful, uncomplaining service for over a decade. Where can you find electronic equipment built like that these days?

There has been a lot of unhappiness with regards to the absence of an adaptor/transformer for the 7600GR. The original accompanying adaptors in the American market, initially the AC-E90HG and then the AC-E60A were noted to be unshielded, giving rise to RF interference with MW/SW listening. After Sony recalled them, it seems Sony did not replace the adaptor as part of the standard package in America. After reading reviews about the adaptor I had quite decided against buying it. However I managed to get the 7600GR while in Singapore 2 months ago. It was a direct Japanese import and it came with a new AC-adaptor. I'm not sure if this version is properly shielded but I've not noticed any increased interference with SW listening viz. AC-power and batteries. Note that this package is not the one offered on Amazon. My only complaint is that my original 7600's adaptor/transformer came with a 12-foot long cable meaning I could place it anywhere in the room. The new adaptor for the 7600GR is barely 6-feet in length. Also, my original 7600 came with ear-phones for stereo listening on FM. The new 7600GR does not.

Reception, as far as I can tell, is no different from the old model despite the addition of the highly rated "synchronous detector" circuit. That's in part because after so many years, I know exactly which stations I want to listen to and no longer go searching for them. I listen to both SW and FM. Stations I tune to include the BBC, Radio Australia, Radio New Zealand and occasionally Deutsche Welle and Nederlands. They sound the same on both.

These days, with the internet, you no longer have to slowly scan for stations on SW. The easiest way is to go to their websites, download their frequency charts and just directly program them into the preset memory. Actually, many stations also broadcast online. So much easier than in the past. But with a certain loss of that old mystique, anticipation and sense of adventure.

I'd like to correct a statement made in one of the prior reviews. Removing the batteries for more than 60secs will not erase the station presets. The presets are stored in EEPROM which will not be erased with any power loss. What will be erased is the current time on the radio's clock but that's very easily reset.

The built-in "tin-can" speaker is the only part of the 7600 that I dislike. Unfortunately that has not improved. But with the proliferation of cheap, fairly good quality desktop speakers to connect to, you are spoilt for choice. I bought mine together with the $99 Klipsch 2.0 Ultra. The resultant sound is as good as you can hope to get from a world band receiver. For private listening at night, I prefer Sennheisers. They make a world of difference especially when listening to FM stereo.


Some appreciative words for Sony. I managed to get my trusty old 7600 repaired in Singapore at the local Sony outlet for the equivalent of about $40. Dirt cheap for what they replaced: the worn out crystal, DC transformer, over a dozen capacitors and an equal number of switches. What I appreciated most was the fact that they repaired it with no questions asked, despite the fact that it was over 10 years old, had no proof of purchase, no warranty and was no longer in production. If you want to know what makes a loyal customer, it is a company that stands by its product. Now I am the happy owner of 2 perfectly serviceable portable receivers, one for home and one for travel.

It's unclear when it all began - somewhere in the last couple of decades, the quality worldband radio receiver slowly faded away. The great names on the shortwave units of yesteryear are now either slapping their badges on drugstore-discount South Asian made devices, or have stopped making radios altogether. The solid metal, the dials and switches, the detailed engineering, all drifted away and replaced with toy-grade plastic, fewer features, and "let's see how cheap we can build it" design. With the exception of one -

At first glance, you know right away that the made-in-Japan Sony ICF-SW7600GR is definitely not available at your corner shoppe, much less your local electronics store - the interface consists of 27 buttons, 5 switches, and 3 knobs. There are two clocks and two alarms. There's two output jacks (headphone, line out) right next to the antenna jack. The whip antenna is nearly a full yard in length. Serious, indeed. But as intimidating as it all seems at first, the flowchart-logical layout is very efficient, and anyone who's ever wished their radio had something more than just a Stereo-Mono switch to get a weak signal is accommodated in more ways than one.

The seriousness continues when you pick up the 7600GR. Though it's considered a "coat pocket" portable, it feels as though it's filled with concrete or perhaps lead shot. If weight is a sign of quality, the 7600GR makes itself unabashedly clear, weighing in at just over 15 iPod Nanos (1 and 1/3 pounds). The positive-click buttons would be at home in a luxury car, the knobs turn smoothly, and switches move confidently into position. Nothing is loose or rattles, everything is buttoned-down and solid. You could say it feels German, but they stopped making portable radios long ago...

Yet all the forethought and engineering that went into the exterior is just the prelude to what's on the inside. This would still be a top-tier portable just on it's receiver components alone, but Sony goes a step further, piling on the professional tuning features (one of which, the Synchronous Detector, is not found on portables from any other manufacturer). The 7600GR is a veritable box of solutions to the all-too-common radio reception problems; the "This weak station is being drowned out by a powerful station" problem, the "This station is almost clear except for a weak station in the background" problem, the "How can I get rid of this high-pitched interference" problem, etc. Without getting too technical, this is a very sensitive receiver on its own, and should reception fall short, there's a barrage of trick electronic tuning tools to try out.

Of course no radio is perfect, and the 7600GR isn't immune. There's no knob for tuning, which is all done by buttons. The case is too small for high-fidelity sound from the speaker. The backlight is for the display only, not the buttons. But this is all nitpicking in light of pure tuner power; You won't miss the tuning knob when you get that one near-impossible station that no other radio you've tried can get.

If you browse around the internet for 7600GR reviews from experienced radio technicians, you'll find that they essentially come in two categories: the first is "I kept having problem x with radio y, so I just went and got a 7600GR" and the second is "I spent more on my radio rig than I did my car, so when I needed a portable I got a 7600GR." There aren't any lengthy tirades about technical issues or design failures, just page after page of happy owners, sharing their techniques and experiences. Another Amazon reviewer noted that the Sony is the "Best shortwave radio under $200", but this is really selling it short - portable shortwave radios only go up to about $200, and (not counting used units) there aren't any more until you reach the very technical world of tabletop receivers starting at $500. So in reality, *This is the best shortwave radio under $500.*

The key to the 7600GR's success is time. The original ICF-SW7600 was introduced way back in 1977, and since then has gone through a miasma of subtle design changes and technical innovations. So as other manufacturers try to find cheaper ways to produce their all-new models, Sony has been slowly honing and refining this single design all along for over 25 years. You can be confident when you hold the 7600GR that it's the time-tested culmination of over a quarter century of engineering and design. Five stars for Sony's instant classic.

I have noted a number of reviews mentioning that the Sony ICF-SW7600GR, in my opinion the finest small portable short wave receiver available at the present time, does not come with an AC adapter.

I own three (3) of these receivers (as well as two of its predecessor receiver the ICF-SW7600G).

Believe me, you do not need (or even want) an AC adapter. This radio is extremely easy on batteries and, if you use NiMH rechargeables, as I do, your battery costs in the long run will be very, very low.

With portable radios, AC adapters, in general, cause more problems than they are worth. They often add noise which is what you DON'T want with weak short wave signals.

In my opinion, with this, or any other small portable short wave radio, rechargeable batteries are the way to go.

Amazon's current price ($128.84), if that includes shipping, is a bargain.

This radio is a wonderful "starter" short wave radio, yet it is one that the purchaser will never outgrow.

It is also the best small portable for MW (AM broadcast) DXing. It even has a line output to feed its signal to a stereo system.

Do not ignore this radio just because of the lack of an AC adapter!

I am not new to the world of DXing. Within the last few years I've owned both a Yachtboy 400 receiver and a Realistic DX receiver and have found the shortwave experience to be very pleasurable.

I chose the Sony 7600GR based on reviews I read on the web and must say I am not disappointed. In particular, I read a review comparing the Yachtboy and a comparable Sangean receiver with the Sony. The point that swayed me to the Sony is its low power consumption. I use it exclusively on rechargable AA batteries (I have two sets of 4 batteries each) and am extremely satisfied with the duration of their before-recharging life. Though I've not recorded the actual time I can play before recharging becomes necessary, my sense is that it's around 20 hours.

From my backyard on Long Island, New York, using the the radio's whip antenna, unaided, I have received stations from halfway around the world (New Zealand, Australia, Vietnam) as well as the Middle East (Egypt, UAR) and Europe. The Caribbean and South America are also fertile SW environments. I was particularly interested in getting Russia, which is a snap. My 13-year-old niece, who is totally immersed in new technology (computer, i-Pod, etc.), often joins me outside (we use a splitter to listen on separate headphones) and has become my 'navigator'. She will suggest a country and we will use the SW guide included with the radio and go hunting!

If I have a complaint, and this is a minor one, it is that in scanning mode the program will stop for only three seconds on a captured signal before it moves on. That doesn't give you much time to decide if you want to listen or not. I have found that if you hit the 'direct' button on the display pad this pauses the scanning cycle and then you'll have all the time you need to make a decision. A more serious complaint is that when you replace the batteries, you have just 60 seconds to install them before all the presets are erased. I can replace the batteries in 30 seconds, so this is not an issue with me, but for others it might be a hassle.

The reviews stated the audio quality of the speaker is not as good as it could be. I have found that using headphones remedies this. Actually, I think this 'problem' is way overstated. I use the radio to listen late at night on both AM and FM, before I go to sleep, and have no complaints about the sound.

I bought this radio knowing you can spend as much as you want on desktops and various antenna arrays and computer-integrated control and obviously get better performance. But for the money (less than $150) and convenience, it is hard to see how you could do better than the Sony 7600GR. It affords the average person a simple, straightforward and easy introduction to world-wide radio, which I find to be vital, intriguing and not-at-all replaceable by the World Wide Web.

Tim Baralis
Commack, NY, USA

In "Passport to World Band Radio" it is one of their top choices in portables along with the Grundig YB400PE. The price difference is small (YB 129 SONY 149) but the Grundig comes with an AC adapter included, which is important if you do a lot of listening. When comparing both side by side ( I own both ) I feel that the Grundif has the best sound. But The reason I bought the SONY is because it has great reception and SSB. SO what that the Grundig has better sound if you can't listen to the stations that the SONY can pickup and weed out the bad costations. Only more expensive models comes with SSB, and this SONY is well priced. If sound is a concern I use good headphones which makes all the difference. I would recommend the AN-LP1 antenna to go with it, it is the best loop for portables out there, but it definetly puts the 7600 at a different level when you can pick up a lot more stations. The Grundig is cheaply made in China. My YB 300 broke down within months of use to the point that is was more expensive to fix it than to buy a new one. SONY is a brand one can trust. THe only drawbacks is that the sony buttons on the side (SSB , VOLUME, ...) are hard to get to and it can be at first a bit dificult to use advanced features. Other than that it is definetly the best bang for your buck.

The SW7600 has some outstanding features that no other radio in its price class can challenge . Most importantly it has Synchronous tuning which is generally only found on high price professional models .This function allows you to always get a clean locked in signal even on the weakest signals . It has a sleak design and well laid out controls . Lots of memory presets and extras like a line out and ext antenna input and an excellent side band set up . The sound is excellent when using headphones . My only knock is that the built in speaker is adequate , nothing special . It has past my performance tests in that I can pull in SW and AM stations that are not audible on the equvilant Grundig and Sangean models. Best in its class!

I am not a radio hobbyist and defiantly not a radio professional. I love this radio because the realm of global radio is made available. With the Sony ICF-SW7600GR radio you have access to ALL the broadcast frequencies. This radio is easy to operate and has ALL the important technology(Synchronous Detection, a MUST have and SSB) to dial into any broadcasted radio signal being sent from anywhere. Right out of the box this radio pulls in an incredible wealth of exciting and interesting things(as I'm writing this I am listening to 2 ham radio operators talk to each other) like navigational beacons, ham operators, aircraft communications, CB radio and various world broadcasts like China International Radio, Voice of Canada plus a multitude of others! With the 7600GR it's easy to zone in on a signal then fine tune it to maximum reception. Whether you intend to search the waves for what may be out there or you want to tune into specific broadcasts from any country around the world the 7600GR makes it easy and extremely enjoyable! The radio is light weight and the buttons are laid out in a perfect fashion for searching the waves and fine tuning. I can hold this radio for may hours, working the controls to search the air waves with no problem. It's easy to operate and all the technology really works with you. The backlit screen makes the display easy to read even in the dark. The INCLUDED case also looks very nice and keeps your radio clean and protected. The buttons are well laid out and the screen has a very good viewing range. The speaker does sound good for a portable radio. The reception is very good right out of the box even without the INCLUDED reel antenna. I researched this radio and the Sangean ATS-909. I was leaning towards the ATS-909 but it didn't have Synchronous Detection, which I now know I could simply NOT do without! It's a great feature, don't buy a World Band radio without it. The tuner on the 7600GR is also great. You can dial in a specific frequency via the number pad, or scan with the push button tune buttons. Tune in steps or 1 kHz fine tune, add the SSB (Single Side Band, BOTH Upper Side Band and Lower Side Band) and you can tune within the 1 kHz you are listening too. It's fantastic for picking out those weak signals and really homing in on them. This radio has all the features(and some extras) of much more costly Shortwave (World Band) radios.

THIS IS TRULY THE BEST RADIO IN THE UNDER AND UP TO $200 RANGE!

This is the best investment I have ever made. I simply LOVE the Sony ICF-SW7600GR! I recommend it to you too!