My uncle got me a Toshiba shortwave radio back in the mid 70s. There were lots of things to listen to. I wish I still had it today. A shortwave can get you much more needed information than AM&FM can. It has a far more long range transmission than FM and farther than even AM does at night. In a SHTF situation it will be a vital tool to keep you informed of things happening around the world. And having good information can possibly save N your life. I will be getting another at some point this year.
Oh wow, I bet that 70s Toshiba still works pretty good today. I totally agree that a shortwave radio is going to be essential for SHTF. Those who don't have one will be pretty lost if they don't have a secure, permanent place to bunker down in.
Do it now get food and oxygen tabs. That will stretch out your food I have some thing bad to say that as I wanted to cut my children off they were trained to fall back on old dad. By there mother. In every life the must be cut off your nipples. My ole lady died and they @40 or better want to get under my roof. Had to shut the bank. Sorry to say you will have to close the bank of dad.. it got so bad I had to make decision to eat or not eat, drive car. Vs Walk. With a bad heart finally it came . It will hurt or cooperate. You are the captain of your fate or demise
Thank you for your points. You are correct on every one of these points. Oh, and especially when that internet connection goes out because the electricity grid goes down. That radio will work better than ever with no RF noise. Rather have the Shortwave portable. MW is medium wave, LW is longwave. They don’t have AM written because SW, LW, and MW are all the same modulation-AM. In most parts of the world shortwave is the superior format, it can cross borders, MW can to some extent. I can pick up the Netherlands Antilles on my MW band.
Comms have been a concern of ours. We're surrounded by hills and small setups just don't work here. My husband has been on our volunteer EMS board. Recently he signed up for one day shift a week. It came with an assigned radio that reaches at least county wide, maybe further. He gets alerts for our Sherriff's dept also, as well as text messages. What a blessing towards our preparedness goals. Thanks Grey for this video. Remember ya'll to Pray, Plan, Prep
Being able to be informed is very important. Usually I would like the analog version but I have never liked trying to find a station. I like the precision of the digital version and that you can save stations.
Oh yeah, small shortwave radios should be an essential. I shamefully don't have walkie talkies or a small radio, but growing up we always kept walkie talkies and an actual radio in the house. I do currently have a regular sized radio that can work on batteries just in case, and it's light and can be taken in the car if we need to leave in an emergency. I really do urge everyone to get even a standard radio at least (if you can't find a smaller, more portable one) because if internet and cell towers go out, you will still be able to get news updates about the situation on that radio. Even the standard ones (that you might put on a desk or dresser or whatever) can be pretty slender and lightweight, so they would absolutely be great to either keep in/tied to a bug out bag or in the back on your car. And when I was a kid in the 80s and 90s, it was actually recommended to have one in EVERY home strictly for emergencies, along with walkie-talkies. You honestly never know when you are going to NEED a radio on hand.
Years ago, before cell phone internet was a possibility, I had a Grundig miniature am/fm/sw radio. Nice, compact, held up amazingly well, would go for weeks on just three AAA batteries. I bought three more before radio shack went under and keep one in our get home bags. The sw had a few stations airing things not on the msm. I found that hooking some copper wire or tin foil to the antenna could really help reception- even then its not always reliable.
We need to pick one up, but for now we use an Icom 705. It lets us do park activations, but most importantly it allows my kids to learn and experiment with their General Class Licenses. Now the SDRPlay Dx was on sale, while requiring a computer, the capabilities are just amazing.
Technically both radios are digital since they both have a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) inside that detects the signal and turns it into audible sound. It has become the next big thing for analog radio in recent years as it's cheaper to produce since it requires fewer components and less space and also keeps a pretty stable signal with less drift and in some cases also keeps the noise level lower for weaker stations. However a big disadvantage is due to the principle of how these DSP chips receive the signal, they are not really all that good for DXing which means trying to find a really really weak far away station as the digital signal processor will have a hard time finding & detecting the signal and holding onto it. So if the signal is too weak it may or may not find it or stutter between silence and audio and can "glitch" a little. That is why for some purposes an all 100% analog circuit is still really useful. You can easily tell if a radio is DSP based or 100% analog since the DSP based Radios scan in a choppy way while 100% analog tuners gave no gaps when you turn the dial and are seemless which is of course god tor "tickling" a weak signal more clear. Battery runtime wise they are both more or less the same and still have the wayyyyyyy longest breath than DAB radios for examples which require far more power since they are basically little computers and require a lot of computing power to decode the digital radio signals into audio. So an analog radio for FM, MW/AM, SW and LW is always the better choice. Analog radio waves also are far more failsafe and can still be heard even if they are weak. If a digital DAB radio signal is too weak you hear either nothing at all or just a garbled digital glitch mess. So yeah, if you can get a analog radio (no matter if DSP or not) you are definitely having a VERY reliable way of receiving information and music from all around the world :) And no subscription service or internet connection needed either ;)
Truly appreciate all the information. I'm honestly a novice when it comes to radio tech. I understand the basics but looking forward to gaining more knowledge on this topic. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge. 👍
I think that anything that will help you to communicate with others is extremely useful. I’m playing with the idea of investing in a gps watch. There’s a solar powered one that I’m looking into. Water filters, food storage, walkie talkies. Thanks for the vid! I do need a shortwave radio for sure. I have crank emergency radios but those that you are mentioning would be much better
For longwave and mediumwave (aka AM) you don't need to extend the antenna since LW and MW/AM use the internal wire antenna that is wrapped around a ferrite rod. So if you tune to a station you get better results if you move the radio around and aim it towards the destination where the signal gets better. Kinda like you would with the swivel antenna for FM. And yes, with D-Cell batteries this radio will basically run for weeks.
One is none and two is one as they say.... Day to day radios and COMM's powered and ready with battery back up installed. An EMP and their all toast. So backup radio's and COMM's stored in a Faraday cage with batteries stored elsewhere. The frequency list that you briefly mentioned IMO is critical and should be stored on paper wherever you have your radios and COMM's stored. The more frequencies one can listen on and/or communicate on the better in any SHTF situation, natural or otherwise IMO.
I agree, I have a folder I've been working on for some time, I print out things like the frequency lists and added them to the communications section of the folder. Thank you for sharing your thoughts Chris 👍
When I was a kid 30 or 40 years ago there were many SW stations to listen to, but now there were only a few. I mostly listened to international channels such as BBC, VOA, Radio Nederlands, etc. There were music and news, and it was a joy to listen to music from around the world. But now most of radio stations have moved to internet or no longer operating. A sad reminder of how times have changed.
I will never buy a radio that has a 'captive' battery that can't be easily replaced. AA battery power is optimum due to various formulations being readily available. Both slide rule and digital display have their advantages, but I prefer digital for its accuracy. Great beginner video.
Greyman I think they are very important. A small one in the go bag and bigger ones around the house. I of course have some in the cage but I use one daily in my kitchen window. I have to say I like the analog and a hand crank ones better. The one in the kitchen even has solar.
I've got an old short wave radio my Dad built when I was a kid. He was an avid Ham radio operator and I used to know enough to pass the test years ago, but THAT'S all gone with age! Personally, I'd rather have an analog system, but don't know any other...
@@GreyManPrepping No, it's solid state. Lots of resisters, or whatever you call the round silver things, but no tubes! I haven't pulled it out in years, but probably should. If it works, I'm sure I'll get in trouble though, because I can't resist not speaking with others... Ham operators hate that!
OH! I also want to remind people that analog radios take up LESS battery power. No matter how new the batteries are on a digital radio, they will never last as long because the screen lights need power to work. BUT I think digital ones are a little easier on the finger joints, so carefully consider all of your options and your personal situation before you buy stuff. AND, if you end up with two because the first maybe isn't working so well for you, you can ALWAYS use that spare one as barter (I'm talking about true SHTF situation where food or ammo or fuel might be scarce). OR just keep it on hand as a good back up.
They both are nice. I think I'd stick with the old-school one. Guess with either one we better get some language translation books so we know what they are saying. 😂 Yeah I know your in the house. Remember those old old school transistor radios could fit in your pocket. Yes Grey I'm old. 😂 Bless you and Happy Easter. Remember the reason for this holiday. HE HAS RISEN 🙏❤️🙏
The 2nd one has single side band. You want to be able to listen to ham radio nets. Look at the hurricane response nets in north Carolina. Am radio was down for several days. Disaster relief net was immediate. Get a tecsun pl-330 and a baofeng, and you'll be good for less than $100 for both.
I'd definitely go digitally you'll get the actual channel number your tuning into and be able to communicate it with others when you have a dial you're just kinda guessing Dial's are usually off a bit
Im fixated with surfing the air waves at night on MW and SW. Also, discouraged, All im finding are ghost AM FM broadcasts from my local area, Religious fanatics and out tune languages I dont understand.. Patience is a must for SW, as is a above average quantity radio and free time..
So yes in regards to the NOAA band itself, but you can listen to spotter reports in real-time. There are spotters in the field and operators at the National Weather Service relaying reports as they happen.
Analog more hardy. How ever I get several. and with out batteries I seal up the rig with a oxygen tab then use foil to wrap around the rig. Put in amo cases. And put them on a ponie string so the kinfolk can't pinch a rig. Over time. Battery's? not carbon zink . Nicad or lithium or even motor cycle bats/ with solar cells. (Rechargabiles) To charge them ...the carbon zink gets used first. With each radio. I include a note pad/pen/pencils. And don't be surprised if you become a hub of local coms. Food hide it . You will be gifted. For your work. Good luck in comeing dust up comeing. De kv4li. Ps that how it went down in central Tennessee. A couple month ago. Even rading the auto parts store yeilds gator clamps to make bootsters for weaker rigs. 73 de kv4li hold a warm cup fore me hi hi.
Having a way to communicate is going to be a most important prep to have. If and when they implement those 15 min cities or creat zones in your area, I believe they’ll have check points to be be able to go any further without permission. They’ll have your license plates number too. Their not going to go thru all that trouble to allow anyone to go beyond their restrictions. So, if families live further out….no more going 🎶🎵over the river and thru the woods to Grandmother’s house we go🎵🎶. I know we’ll have our phones, but we will be monitored. Same will zoom. So to have one way for some privacy could help. However, this may not work in the future bc I hear they can find you by radio waves. Man…seems like the technology we enjoyed has turned against us! After typing my comment, I realize nothing may work. They’ll find ya…..how depressing….what do the people in Venezuela do??
Great comment, it's definitely a challenge. My group of folks is working on a secure form of communications something we used in the Army. It's called ATAK but in the civilian world, we have CivTAK. Something you may want to look into. 😁 I probably should do a video on it lol 😆
When somebody asks me "is it worth buying a shortwave radio these days", I always ask where they live. I pretty much tell Aussies and Kiwis not to bother unless they have the money and knowledge of how to build large external (to their house) antenna.
That's a great point. I have a rig myself that I can adapt and attach to lage antennas on city buildings. More so for a large-scale event. We have tested it in a few places and were truly surprised by the outcome.
I doubt there will ever be much on shortwave ! Most countries do not broadcast on shortwave any more ! Shortwave broadcasting is expensive ! Most are internet now ! Lots of shortwave transmitter sites worldwide do not even exist at present ! I a ham operator and have been a ham for many decades ! I remember when the shortwave bands were full of exotic countries broadcasting in English ! There a good chance the Spanish speaking station you tuned in is being broadcast from within the united states ! On shortwave am now there are but a few stations Radio China is broadcast towards the U.S. via transmitters located in cuba ! Several stations in the united states broadcasting primarily religious programming ! There just not much shortwave AM ! Even MW AM is going away ! Politics and sports are the main broadcasts ! On shortwave ! LW or longwave is not useful here perhaps in the united kingdom but not here ! The BBC still broadcasts now and again but I would just as soon get my news from the communist cubans or chinese ! IT would hold about as much truth either way :) Shortwave is a lot like analog television ! Likely no chance ! I a ham radio operator and enjoy radio as a means of communication ! I suggest to obtain a ham radio license and a inexpensive full coverage Transceiver ! The chinese make a bunch of inexpensive ham rigs ! Then you maybe have something that might be useful ! I do not mean to be such a downer ! Just facts are facts !
Hmmm, I called you out about your mistakes in the video and you delete my post? IE: Radios don't receive ham operators (no SSB) and no AM stations on LW as you claim. Just shows how you are only in this for the affiliate links and not doing this to impart accurate information.
Honestly Andrew I don't have a clue what you're talking about. Anything from viewers, UA-cam, mods, and yes myself can remove comments, or mark them as spam. That being said If I had an issue with your corrections to my video I would have done what I'm doing now. If I was that guy I would have blocked you from the channel, which you can see I have not. Ok, now that's out of the way. I will again clarify that im, not a HAM/radio expert. Maybe you are or have more experience with this topic. Thank you for sharing 👍 This was my first video on this topic and yep I'm human and will make mistakes which I discussed with my viewers on my live stream. So where did I get my info that's the next question. "The term AM is commonly used to cover both Medium Wave (MW) and Long Wave (LW). All AM radio stations broadcast in mono" Link will be provided in this comment. All in all brother why didn't you just shoot me an email and say hey Grey The information provided in the said video is off. Here's how it works. Then I could have created a pinned post to share with everyone giving you credit. And last where did I read the other information on listening to HAM was on another web page where I was researching information. Again I'm no expert. Here are the 2 sites: look forward to your follow-up. Have a blessed evening. "www.bbc.co.uk/reception/help-guides/fmmwlw-radio/what-is-medium-wave-mw-long-wave-lw-radio#:~:text=The%20term%20AM%20is%20commonly, Receiving%20MW%20and%20LW%20services www.hamuniverse.com/shortwave.html#:~:text=Shortwave%20radio%20receivers%20can%20pick,broadcasts%20and%20much%2C%20much%20more.
And just a heads up, I'm a pretty nice guy if you take a chance and get to know me. I like people with experience on certain topics to share their perspectives and views, especially if I made a mistake and it adds value to the video and helps others out, and even helps me out.
And my apologies I'm trying to answer all the concerns you stated in your comment. In regards to affiliate links, I did not get anything from this video outside of the 2 units to review. Those links were provided by the company, I don't get a dime from anyone using them. Like I said an email and we could have had a fun & productive conversation.
@@GreyManPrepping I'll try to keep this simple... If your AM/SW/LW/Air band radio does not have a button or switch that says 'SSB' you won't understand what HAM and CB radio operators are saying. You will hear them, but their voice will be garbled like they're talking underwater. This is because they use what is called Lower Side Band (LSB) or Upper Side Band (USB). It is a special part of the AM signal reserved for HAM and CB radio operators. So if there is no SSB button, there is no useful HAM reception, and no CB reception (if the CB is broadcasting on SSB).
@@andrewmcphee8965 I appreciate the information. I bought a CB radio for my vehicle and it's a Cobra 148 GTL it states 12-watt SSB. A local HAM guy had suggested it. I'd like to get into HAM radios so I plan to join a local group and study for the Tech license.🤞
A lot has to do with your area, antenna size, and some say the power of the radio. Some folks swear by them. I'm still a novice so still learning myself.
My uncle got me a Toshiba shortwave radio back in the mid 70s. There were lots of things to listen to. I wish I still had it today.
A shortwave can get you much more needed information than AM&FM can.
It has a far more long range transmission than FM and farther than even AM does at night.
In a SHTF situation it will be a vital tool to keep you informed of things happening around the world. And having good information can possibly save N your life.
I will be getting another at some point this year.
Thanks for the additional info. I didn't understand short wave.
Agreed my friend, im going to pin your comment to the top 😁🤘
Oh wow, I bet that 70s Toshiba still works pretty good today. I totally agree that a shortwave radio is going to be essential for SHTF. Those who don't have one will be pretty lost if they don't have a secure, permanent place to bunker down in.
Do it now get food and oxygen tabs. That will stretch out your food I have some thing bad to say that as I wanted to cut my children off they were trained to fall back on old dad. By there mother. In every life the must be cut off your nipples. My ole lady died and they @40 or better want to get under my roof. Had to shut the bank. Sorry to say you will have to close the bank of dad.. it got so bad I had to make decision to eat or not eat, drive car. Vs Walk. With a bad heart finally it came . It will hurt or cooperate. You are the captain of your fate or demise
Thank you for your points. You are correct on every one of these points. Oh, and especially when that internet connection goes out because the electricity grid goes down. That radio will work better than ever with no RF noise. Rather have the Shortwave portable. MW is medium wave, LW is longwave. They don’t have AM written because SW, LW, and MW are all the same modulation-AM. In most parts of the world shortwave is the superior format, it can cross borders, MW can to some extent. I can pick up the Netherlands Antilles on my MW band.
Comms have been a concern of ours. We're surrounded by hills and small setups just don't work here. My husband has been on our volunteer EMS board. Recently he signed up for one day shift a week. It came with an assigned radio that reaches at least county wide, maybe further. He gets alerts for our Sherriff's dept also, as well as text messages. What a blessing towards our preparedness goals. Thanks Grey for this video.
Remember ya'll to Pray, Plan, Prep
Hope you had a wonderful Easter JRC. I wonder what system they are using. Probably EDACS with repeaters. God bless 🙏
Good to have a radio with mixed bands there will always be someone broadcasting...
Great point 😁👍
Being able to be informed is very important. Usually I would like the analog version but I have never liked trying to find a station. I like the precision of the digital version and that you can save stations.
For me, it was the ability to save stations as well, for rapid access to important information. 😁👍
Good analysis and review of the radios and whatnot. 👍
Thanks! 👍
Oh yeah, small shortwave radios should be an essential. I shamefully don't have walkie talkies or a small radio, but growing up we always kept walkie talkies and an actual radio in the house. I do currently have a regular sized radio that can work on batteries just in case, and it's light and can be taken in the car if we need to leave in an emergency.
I really do urge everyone to get even a standard radio at least (if you can't find a smaller, more portable one) because if internet and cell towers go out, you will still be able to get news updates about the situation on that radio. Even the standard ones (that you might put on a desk or dresser or whatever) can be pretty slender and lightweight, so they would absolutely be great to either keep in/tied to a bug out bag or in the back on your car.
And when I was a kid in the 80s and 90s, it was actually recommended to have one in EVERY home strictly for emergencies, along with walkie-talkies. You honestly never know when you are going to NEED a radio on hand.
Thank you for such a great and informative comment 🙏
Years ago, before cell phone internet was a possibility, I had a Grundig miniature am/fm/sw radio. Nice, compact, held up amazingly well, would go for weeks on just three AAA batteries. I bought three more before radio shack went under and keep one in our get home bags. The sw had a few stations airing things not on the msm. I found that hooking some copper wire or tin foil to the antenna could really help reception- even then its not always reliable.
How I miss Radio Shack 👍
We need to pick one up, but for now we use an Icom 705. It lets us do park activations, but most importantly it allows my kids to learn and experiment with their General Class Licenses. Now the SDRPlay Dx was on sale, while requiring a computer, the capabilities are just amazing.
Sounds very interesting, and that's very cool that you have the kids involved 🤘🫡
Technically both radios are digital since they both have a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) inside that detects the signal and turns it into audible sound. It has become the next big thing for analog radio in recent years as it's cheaper to produce since it requires fewer components and less space and also keeps a pretty stable signal with less drift and in some cases also keeps the noise level lower for weaker stations. However a big disadvantage is due to the principle of how these DSP chips receive the signal, they are not really all that good for DXing which means trying to find a really really weak far away station as the digital signal processor will have a hard time finding & detecting the signal and holding onto it. So if the signal is too weak it may or may not find it or stutter between silence and audio and can "glitch" a little. That is why for some purposes an all 100% analog circuit is still really useful. You can easily tell if a radio is DSP based or 100% analog since the DSP based Radios scan in a choppy way while 100% analog tuners gave no gaps when you turn the dial and are seemless which is of course god tor "tickling" a weak signal more clear. Battery runtime wise they are both more or less the same and still have the wayyyyyyy longest breath than DAB radios for examples which require far more power since they are basically little computers and require a lot of computing power to decode the digital radio signals into audio. So an analog radio for FM, MW/AM, SW and LW is always the better choice. Analog radio waves also are far more failsafe and can still be heard even if they are weak. If a digital DAB radio signal is too weak you hear either nothing at all or just a garbled digital glitch mess. So yeah, if you can get a analog radio (no matter if DSP or not) you are definitely having a VERY reliable way of receiving information and music from all around the world :) And no subscription service or internet connection needed either ;)
Truly appreciate all the information. I'm honestly a novice when it comes to radio tech. I understand the basics but looking forward to gaining more knowledge on this topic. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge. 👍
A nice proper old school one is the Tecsun R-9700DX. Cheap ways to improve reception; on AM passive loop antenna and on FM/SW simple wire antenna
Thanks for the info! I'll be looking into this thank you 👍
I think that anything that will help you to communicate with others is extremely useful. I’m playing with the idea of investing in a gps watch. There’s a solar powered one that I’m looking into. Water filters, food storage, walkie talkies. Thanks for the vid! I do need a shortwave radio for sure. I have crank emergency radios but those that you are mentioning would be much better
The watch you're looking into sounds like my Garmin watch my wife got me for Christmas, I absolutely love it!
@@GreyManPrepping oh my gosh yes!! I’m so glad you like it! I’ve only seen it at the store but it looks amazing! Thanks!
I'm in a tornado area, so I think radios are very useful ❤️✝️ Happy Easter GreyMan and Family ✝️❤️🐇🐣
Yes they are and a very Happy Easter to you as well 😁💛
Great video brother ☕️☕️☕️🎯🎯🎯
Much appreciated my friend 🙏
I have an old school Crank radio. Comes very handy during hurricane season black outs.
I keep one in my truck as a backup as well. I'm a person with multiple redundancies 😆👍
For longwave and mediumwave (aka AM) you don't need to extend the antenna since LW and MW/AM use the internal wire antenna that is wrapped around a ferrite rod. So if you tune to a station you get better results if you move the radio around and aim it towards the destination where the signal gets better. Kinda like you would with the swivel antenna for FM. And yes, with D-Cell batteries this radio will basically run for weeks.
Thank you 👍
One is none and two is one as they say.... Day to day radios and COMM's powered and ready with battery back up installed. An EMP and their all toast. So backup radio's and COMM's stored in a Faraday cage with batteries stored elsewhere. The frequency list that you briefly mentioned IMO is critical and should be stored on paper wherever you have your radios and COMM's stored. The more frequencies one can listen on and/or communicate on the better in any SHTF situation, natural or otherwise IMO.
I agree, I have a folder I've been working on for some time, I print out things like the frequency lists and added them to the communications section of the folder. Thank you for sharing your thoughts Chris 👍
When I was a kid 30 or 40 years ago there were many SW stations to listen to, but now there were only a few. I mostly listened to international channels such as BBC, VOA, Radio Nederlands, etc. There were music and news, and it was a joy to listen to music from around the world. But now most of radio stations have moved to internet or no longer operating. A sad reminder of how times have changed.
@@bluestar2253 I agree I miss the old days as well. Good times
I will never buy a radio that has a 'captive' battery that can't be easily replaced. AA battery power is optimum due to various formulations being readily available. Both slide rule and digital display have their advantages, but I prefer digital for its accuracy. Great beginner video.
I really appreciate you sharing your thoughts on this! Thank you. Have a great weekend.
There was no internet, but we dreamed world on shortwave. Once we turned the dial, every touch gave us new encounter. 40years passed. all gone.
Great point. My grandfather used a shortwave radio all his life. The stories he used to tell us were very intriguing.
A portable, affordable solution. Smart! Analog, K.I.S.S.
Copy that 😁
Greyman I think they are very important. A small one in the go bag and bigger ones around the house. I of course have some in the cage but I use one daily in my kitchen window. I have to say I like the analog and a hand crank ones better. The one in the kitchen even has solar.
Really solar option that's awesome 👍
I've got an old short wave radio my Dad built when I was a kid. He was an avid Ham radio operator and I used to know enough to pass the test years ago, but THAT'S all gone with age! Personally, I'd rather have an analog system, but don't know any other...
Sounds like you have a classic on your hands, does it have tubes inside of it?
@@GreyManPrepping
No, it's solid state. Lots of resisters, or whatever you call the round silver things, but no tubes! I haven't pulled it out in years, but probably should. If it works, I'm sure I'll get in trouble though, because I can't resist not speaking with others... Ham operators hate that!
OH! I also want to remind people that analog radios take up LESS battery power. No matter how new the batteries are on a digital radio, they will never last as long because the screen lights need power to work. BUT I think digital ones are a little easier on the finger joints, so carefully consider all of your options and your personal situation before you buy stuff.
AND, if you end up with two because the first maybe isn't working so well for you, you can ALWAYS use that spare one as barter (I'm talking about true SHTF situation where food or ammo or fuel might be scarce). OR just keep it on hand as a good back up.
Great point!
Great idea
Thank you for your feedback 😁👍
They both are nice. I think I'd stick with the old-school one. Guess with either one we better get some language translation books so we know what they are saying. 😂 Yeah I know your in the house. Remember those old old school transistor radios could fit in your pocket. Yes Grey I'm old. 😂 Bless you and Happy Easter. Remember the reason for this holiday. HE HAS RISEN 🙏❤️🙏
That he has Linda, God bless you 🙏🙏
I have a portable ham radio. Just got my license but not very good with it yet. Mainly just talk to the locals.
Working on getting my license as well, Been meeting up locally with some of the HAM radio clubs. Lots of great info from those folks. 👍
Evening, I would like a shortwave, but it just hasn't been priority yet...just put out for the solar generator....one step at a time. 👍
Slow & steady brother. Things are definitely getting much more expensive but my paycheck hasn't changed lol 😆
@@GreyManPrepping same here. 😂😂😂
@@ericarnaud7983 😁🤘
The TR626 uses a DSP chip so it actually a digital tuner with an analog dial face.
@cfldriven Roger that! thanks for the additional information.
The 2nd one has single side band. You want to be able to listen to ham radio nets. Look at the hurricane response nets in north Carolina. Am radio was down for several days. Disaster relief net was immediate. Get a tecsun pl-330 and a baofeng, and you'll be good for less than $100 for both.
@@nickbernstein appreciate the info! I have dozens of the UV-5r's catch them when they are on sale. But I'll have to look into the tecsun pl 330.
Great video 👍
Always very appreciated brother 😁🤘
I'd definitely go digitally you'll get the actual channel number your tuning into and be able to communicate it with others when you have a dial you're just kinda guessing Dial's are usually off a bit
Great point Neil 👍 Thank you for sharing your perspective brother.
S2 underground has some great videos on different ways to communicate.
Yep subscribed to them, very useful information. I follow a few radio UA-camrs 😁
I'd rather have analog. Just don't trust everything digital. Definitely a need. Love radio.
Great point Diana 👍
I need some sort communication system. I’m looking at walkie-talkies, and maybe a CB radio.
Have a Happy Easter!
CB radios I think are great personally 😁 Happy Easter
Ok we're playing a drinking game during this video every time you hear and whatnot you have to do a shot 😊 😊
I noticed that too lol 😆 I think I have a nervous twitch or something, I get stuck in these sayimgs, trying to avoid the word uhm 🤣🤣
In a word? Yes.. 🙏🏻💪🙏🏻
😁👍
Would like to have one & learn
Very easy to learn especially the basic operations 😁👍
I don't know any preppers in my area. So I would not be communicating with anyone. I would use it for info.
Honestly, that is my main purpose for these as well. Information on what's going on locally and abroad 👍
I've been using my husband's ham radio to listen to shortwave. But i will eventually get a portable.
Hey, jeepgirl how are you 😁👋 I'm looking into a home base ham setup here soon myself.
@@GreyManPrepping look into yaesu and icom ham radios. Those are the brands my husband uses for his home base and portable hand helds.
If I were to purchase, I would go with analog. I have a small emergency radio but reception here is hit and miss.
The classic 😁👍
They're reasonably priced. Id get the dial radio. I miss dials, knobs and switches.
Yes AP I miss the old-school electronics, the nostalgia associated with it brings back great memories 😁
Yes I need a radio so we can communicate 👍
That we do brother. I have an a few ideas we'll have to test out 🫡
@@GreyManPrepping Sweet let me know.
@@jeffriffel4364 Will do brother. Happy Easter
@@GreyManPrepping HAPPY EASTER 🐣
Im fixated with surfing the air waves at night on MW and SW.
Also, discouraged, All im finding are ghost AM FM broadcasts from my local area, Religious fanatics and out tune languages I dont understand..
Patience is a must for SW, as is a above average quantity radio and free time..
I have a shortwave as well, I do get a lot of chatter on my CB base station setup. I hope to expand on my SW soon. 🤞
I used to belong to a radio emergency communication team and any radio as a benefit to have.
That's awesome Colleen 😁👍
Stock up on batteries
Absolutely
We were just researching radios!
Perfect timing lol 😆🤘
HAPPY EASTER GOD BLESS ✝️🐣🐇🙏
Same to you! God bless 🙏
It looks like neither radio picks up the U.S. weather radio frequencies (~162 MHz).
So yes in regards to the NOAA band itself, but you can listen to spotter reports in real-time. There are spotters in the field and operators at the National Weather Service relaying reports as they happen.
Look at what happened in Ukraine and whats happened in Gaza, what medium was unearthed and used to get vital coms to citizens. It was shortwave radio.
Well said 👍
Analog more hardy. How ever I get several. and with out batteries I seal up the rig with a oxygen tab then use foil to wrap around the rig. Put in amo cases. And put them on a ponie string so the kinfolk can't pinch a rig. Over time. Battery's? not carbon zink . Nicad or lithium or even motor cycle bats/ with solar cells. (Rechargabiles) To charge them ...the carbon zink gets used first. With each radio. I include a note pad/pen/pencils. And don't be surprised if you become a hub of local coms. Food hide it . You will be gifted. For your work. Good luck in comeing dust up comeing. De kv4li. Ps that how it went down in central Tennessee. A couple month ago. Even rading the auto parts store yeilds gator clamps to make bootsters for weaker rigs. 73 de kv4li hold a warm cup fore me hi hi.
I call your WhatNot and raise a SomeSuch
🤣 Yes lol
You got to turn the thing-a-ma-bob on the whatcha ma-call-it to get the sound to play on the doo-hickey and whatnot.
I hope someday I will have a communications receiver...although in my dream 😢
They are getting cheaper and cheaper, I'd also look at yard sales, goodwill, and flea markets have some really affordable options.
Hello
Having a way to communicate is going to be a most important prep to have. If and when they implement those 15 min cities or creat zones in your area, I believe they’ll have check points to be be able to go any further without permission. They’ll have your license plates number too. Their not going to go thru all that trouble to allow anyone to go beyond their restrictions. So, if families live further out….no more going 🎶🎵over the river and thru the woods to Grandmother’s house we go🎵🎶. I know we’ll have our phones, but we will be monitored. Same will zoom. So to have one way for some privacy could help. However, this may not work in the future bc I hear they can find you by radio waves. Man…seems like the technology we enjoyed has turned against us! After typing my comment, I realize nothing may work. They’ll find ya…..how depressing….what do the people in Venezuela do??
Great comment, it's definitely a challenge. My group of folks is working on a secure form of communications something we used in the Army. It's called ATAK but in the civilian world, we have CivTAK. Something you may want to look into. 😁 I probably should do a video on it lol 😆
Absolutely it's the most important!
Greetings
Hello & Happy Easter 😁
Can the "what nots" and your video will improve by 100%
@TheBarry1m I've tried 😆 used to be uhm's lol
@@GreyManPrepping LOL maybe you should try, "You Knows" (all in fun)
@@TheBarry1m 🤣🤣 possibly lol 👍
When somebody asks me "is it worth buying a shortwave radio these days", I always ask where they live. I pretty much tell Aussies and Kiwis not to bother unless they have the money and knowledge of how to build large external (to their house) antenna.
That's a great point. I have a rig myself that I can adapt and attach to lage antennas on city buildings. More so for a large-scale event. We have tested it in a few places and were truly surprised by the outcome.
I doubt there will ever be much on shortwave !
Most countries do not broadcast on shortwave any more !
Shortwave broadcasting is expensive !
Most are internet now !
Lots of shortwave transmitter sites worldwide do not even exist at present !
I a ham operator and have been a ham for many decades !
I remember when the shortwave bands were full of exotic countries broadcasting in English !
There a good chance the Spanish speaking station you tuned in is being broadcast from within the united states !
On shortwave am now there are but a few stations
Radio China is broadcast towards the U.S. via transmitters located in cuba !
Several stations in the united states broadcasting primarily religious programming !
There just not much shortwave AM !
Even MW AM is going away ! Politics and sports are the main broadcasts !
On shortwave !
LW or longwave is not useful here perhaps in the united kingdom but not here !
The BBC still broadcasts now and again but I would just as soon get my news from the communist cubans or chinese ! IT would hold about as much truth either way :)
Shortwave is a lot like analog television ! Likely no chance !
I a ham radio operator and enjoy radio as a means of communication !
I suggest to obtain a ham radio license and a inexpensive full coverage Transceiver !
The chinese make a bunch of inexpensive ham rigs !
Then you maybe have something that might be useful !
I do not mean to be such a downer !
Just facts are facts !
@frankartieta4887 I really appreciate all the information. Thank you. 👍
this video was a bit weird...and what not
@@12zaf1 It is what is or what not 🤣
No, buy a portable SDR. Much better.
Thanks for the advice!
@GreyManPrepping HI, when I said portable SDR, I mean the one with the 4-inch screen. The USB sdr is good too. Thanks for the heart. 🙂
@DV-ml4fm My pleasure and I'm currently looking at various models and doing a bot of research.
@@GreyManPrepping Cool! Good luck 🙂👍👍
@@DV-ml4fm Thank you!
Hmmm, I called you out about your mistakes in the video and you delete my post?
IE: Radios don't receive ham operators (no SSB) and no AM stations on LW as you claim.
Just shows how you are only in this for the affiliate links and not doing this to impart accurate information.
Honestly Andrew I don't have a clue what you're talking about. Anything from viewers, UA-cam, mods, and yes myself can remove comments, or mark them as spam. That being said If I had an issue with your corrections to my video I would have done what I'm doing now. If I was that guy I would have blocked you from the channel, which you can see I have not. Ok, now that's out of the way. I will again clarify that im, not a HAM/radio expert. Maybe you are or have more experience with this topic. Thank you for sharing 👍 This was my first video on this topic and yep I'm human and will make mistakes which I discussed with my viewers on my live stream. So where did I get my info that's the next question. "The term AM is commonly used to cover both Medium Wave (MW) and Long Wave (LW). All AM radio stations broadcast in mono" Link will be provided in this comment. All in all brother why didn't you just shoot me an email and say hey Grey The information provided in the said video is off. Here's how it works. Then I could have created a pinned post to share with everyone giving you credit. And last where did I read the other information on listening to HAM was on another web page where I was researching information. Again I'm no expert. Here are the 2 sites: look forward to your follow-up. Have a blessed evening.
"www.bbc.co.uk/reception/help-guides/fmmwlw-radio/what-is-medium-wave-mw-long-wave-lw-radio#:~:text=The%20term%20AM%20is%20commonly, Receiving%20MW%20and%20LW%20services
www.hamuniverse.com/shortwave.html#:~:text=Shortwave%20radio%20receivers%20can%20pick,broadcasts%20and%20much%2C%20much%20more.
And just a heads up, I'm a pretty nice guy if you take a chance and get to know me. I like people with experience on certain topics to share their perspectives and views, especially if I made a mistake and it adds value to the video and helps others out, and even helps me out.
And my apologies I'm trying to answer all the concerns you stated in your comment. In regards to affiliate links, I did not get anything from this video outside of the 2 units to review. Those links were provided by the company, I don't get a dime from anyone using them. Like I said an email and we could have had a fun & productive conversation.
@@GreyManPrepping I'll try to keep this simple...
If your AM/SW/LW/Air band radio does not have a button or switch that says 'SSB' you won't understand what HAM and CB radio operators are saying. You will hear them, but their voice will be garbled like they're talking underwater. This is because they use what is called Lower Side Band (LSB) or Upper Side Band (USB). It is a special part of the AM signal reserved for HAM and CB radio operators.
So if there is no SSB button, there is no useful HAM reception, and no CB reception (if the CB is broadcasting on SSB).
@@andrewmcphee8965 I appreciate the information. I bought a CB radio for my vehicle and it's a Cobra 148 GTL it states 12-watt SSB. A local HAM guy had suggested it. I'd like to get into HAM radios so I plan to join a local group and study for the Tech license.🤞
Giving everyone a heads up. Dont buy a short wave radio. All i hear is Spanish and church. What a waste of money
A lot has to do with your area, antenna size, and some say the power of the radio. Some folks swear by them. I'm still a novice so still learning myself.
@@GreyManPrepping Roger dat.
Hello