| Author |
Message |
    
Radiohead
New member
Username: Radiohead
Post Number: 1
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Friday, March 18, 2005 - 9:56 pm: | 
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Hi, I'm looking to puchase a new mobile rig and have narrowed it down to 4 units.
1. Magnum S-9
2. Ranger 6900 turbo
3. Ranger 2970DX
4. President Jackson
The only one I have experience with is the Jackson since I owned one about 15 years ago. I'd like to hear about the pros and cons. Looking forward to hear from you! |
Bruce
Senior Member
Username: Bruce
Post Number: 2364
Registered: 9-2003
| | Posted on Friday, March 18, 2005 - 11:03 pm: |
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Radiohead ...
If your a ham go with the 257 haveing used htx-10 for years on 10 meters this radio sounds EVEN better SHINES on ssb and works well on am/fm too.
$169 bucks well spent. |
Stickshift
Intermediate Member
Username: Stickshift
Post Number: 200
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 5:10 am: |
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Radiohead,
I agree with Bruce. The Magnum 257 is a VERY good radio. It's priced right and will do a bang up job on all modes. Highly recomended. Radiohead, by the way, any chance you like the musical group with the same name as yourself? They are one of my favorites. |
Radiohead
New member
Username: Radiohead
Post Number: 2
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 7:52 am: |
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No I'm not much of a Radiohead fan. What do you guys think about the Magnum Omega Force S-45?
Thank you |
Mikefromms
Advanced Member
Username: Mikefromms
Post Number: 502
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 8:53 am: |
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For the price, I continue to be facinated at what the Magnum 257 can do. It has some features the more expensive radios have. I have talked just as far on this radio set up on a power supply as I did on the big Galaxy 2517 I used to own. It is loud and clear and has a pretty blue lit face. Once you learn how it operates I think you can move around on it with ease. It really shines on all modes and is less than $200. I keep asking myself, did this company make a mistake in their pricing? It is worth $300. Put an amp with it and there is no radio for 10 or 11 meters costing twice as much that will outshine it. At least it's close enough to debate. However, I do wish it had the big round meter with the needle. The meter it has is huge but a bar type. I've learned to live with and like it ok. Hey, that's the only set back in my book!
mikefromms |
Patzerozero
Advanced Member
Username: Patzerozero
Post Number: 584
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 11:09 am: |
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radiohead, jackson's haven't been made in years.
6900 turbo & 2970 are both 100-150 watt radios, my preference is the 6900 & what i feel is better receive, & it's more 'cb-like', & probably easier to operate in a mobile environment.
my personal preference, however, is the S9 & it's even better yet receiver.
have a deltaforce, the receiver is very sensitive, with lots of white noise however. i believe the omegas receiver is the same, but it's transmit is more on the line of the S9. quiet receive is important to me, so i chose the S9, over my 1st choice 6900(& it's 1/2 brother connex4800) & distant 2nd, the omega.
if you ever plan on adding an amp, choose the radio wisely, & based on what kind of wattage you may like to have. your 1st 3 choices aren't neccessarily easy to find amplifier mates for. |
Mikefromms
Advanced Member
Username: Mikefromms
Post Number: 512
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 11:43 am: |
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Is there really that much difference in the recieve of the S-9 and th 257?
Mikefromms |
Racer_x
Intermediate Member
Username: Racer_x
Post Number: 179
Registered: 2-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 19, 2005 - 12:21 pm: |
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I have nothing against any of the radios you've listed, but I noticed one radio there is made by Uniden (President Jackson) and I can't recommend any radio of this class over one made by Uniden. It may not have the feature set that some of the other radio have, but it'll work year after year. If I used "export radios" I'd buy one. |
Patzerozero
Advanced Member
Username: Patzerozero
Post Number: 588
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 12:27 am: |
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the president jackson actually is still available from a french website. supposedly. but seeing as i neither read nor speak french, i'm not sure what it said. there is a distributor in the US that advertises the jackson, jfk & washington, but has none in stock & isn't sure when they'll
get 'em.
whether or not the president jackson available in europe is made by uniden, i can't answer that racer. but it is an export, & the 1 US distributor advertising it has it for just $25 less then the S9.
808 can probably answer better for you mikefromms as i've never owned a 257. i do say the S9 is quieter then the delta, though i can ALMOST hear on the delta what the S9 hears. i just don't like all that white noise at 2AM when the band is DEAD. |
Radiohead
New member
Username: Radiohead
Post Number: 3
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 3:20 am: |
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I'd like to thank you all for your opinions. I don't know which radio I'll be purchasing yet and still reading all the reviews on this forum. Hope to here more opinions from you.
73's, Lou |
Kilowatt
Intermediate Member
Username: Kilowatt
Post Number: 124
Registered: 2-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 4:37 am: |
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The President Jackson is still being marketed by President Electronics Group of France. In my opinion, it is the best of all of the radios you have listed.
They are available in the U.S., but are VERY expensive compared to a lot of exports. HOWEVER, you get what you pay for.
The Magnum S-9 is a distant second, and the two Rangers would tie at third.
Why? The Jackson has the best noise blanker and AM receive. I've had one since 1988, and it is still going strong.
I've also had a S-9, and it is o.k.
The Rangers (at least the ones I've owned) are sub-standard. The noise blankers don't work well, and they just don't have the quality "feel" that the Presidents and Magnum S-9s do.
Just my two-cents and personal observations. |
Hotwire
Intermediate Member
Username: Hotwire
Post Number: 205
Registered: 1-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 11:07 am: |
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Connex 4800: super loud crisp and clean audio
Drives amps very good
simple basic and easy to use |
Brewdirect
Member
Username: Brewdirect
Post Number: 69
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 2:05 pm: |
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If you got the dough.... S-9 or Ranger 2970DX
Both will out talk the Magnum 257.
I own a Magnum 257..great radio..but those other ones will out talk it. |
Kilowatt
Intermediate Member
Username: Kilowatt
Post Number: 126
Registered: 2-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 5:28 pm: |
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I like the Connex 4800 too! My neighbor has one in his tow truck, and it does a great job for him. |
Bigbob
Senior Member
Username: Bigbob
Post Number: 1813
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 7:43 pm: |
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Be very careful with european companies selling jacksons,many of these are cheap quality knock-offs,they got the looks but don't have the guts.73's Bigbob |
Usa2112
Junior Member
Username: Usa2112
Post Number: 35
Registered: 2-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 9:04 pm: |
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I have an origional Jackson with a dial-a-watt installed.All features work well.The front cover is warn and does have scratches.Honestly though I would only sell it to turn around and buy an S-9 |
Patzerozero
Advanced Member
Username: Patzerozero
Post Number: 592
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 9:41 pm: |
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'whether or not the president jackson available in europe is made by uniden, i can't answer that'.
as you state bigbob, i have also heard that those available in europe are not real. but i do not know for sure.
also, the rap against the export jackson & its PB042 chassis was that it was dual conversion only on FM, & it's AM reciver was very POOR. its slightly different filtering then the export grant & export 148gtl-dx (PC999 & PB 010 chassis)
accounted for the quieter receive. it was quieter because it didn't hear, & then they filtered down the white noise. to appease those who only knew 'dual conversion' was better, they installed a single mrf477 final, to give the appearance of more output then the dual 1969 finals in the grant,(single 1969 in the cobra). it too was an attempt to cover up its shortcomings. they went with controlled carrier modulation, a cheaper alternative to the high level AM, & therefore the grant & cobra had much punchier AM audio. for SSBers, the jackson was also susceptible to front end overload & audio distortion on even mildly strong SSB signals. an AGC mod to solve that should be done. and because of the final amplifier section in the jackson using the single 477 as opposed to dual 1969's, it's ALC needs to be tweaked, as it is set, when a predetermined power level is reached, the ALC sensor causes a mic audio level reduction & therefore a decrease in power output. kinda like, why put a governor on the high output 477?
so, in truth, the jackson wasn't that great of a radio. the REAL president grant export is the radio to search out. up until recently, there was a superstar grant export available. it was a copy of the real grant export, and as such functioned the same. whether or not it was built to the same standards is not known to me.
i remember being told that president electronics group of france has no connection to uniden, but am not sure of the truth in that. as for your 1988 jackson, kilowatt, that's why it's still going strong. the silver face with the black box were the originals & the best. the all black face that still say president on the front were just made in a different factory. the all black face that say superstar (both jackson & grant) are the copies and PROBABLY still decent. |
Pointman
Intermediate Member
Username: Pointman
Post Number: 122
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 8:46 pm: |
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One the Presidents website in the upper right hand corner there is a place to change the website from French to English. I believe you can contact them for where to buy here in the US.
They look like VERY nice radios.
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Kilowatt
Intermediate Member
Username: Kilowatt
Post Number: 132
Registered: 2-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, March 20, 2005 - 11:21 pm: |
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Ohhhh ok, I wasn't aware of the different Jacksons... Ok, then. I learn something new every day if I'm lucky ;-)
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Patzerozero
Advanced Member
Username: Patzerozero
Post Number: 598
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 12:01 pm: |
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hmmmm, pointman, i just went to the 1 i know of, it's all in french & i don't see anything in the upper right hand corner.
anyway, i actually found about 10 places in the US that advertise them, only 1 would i ever consider purchasing from, & the ones i checked are out of stock, but have them on order...also the ones that would confirm, said thay have the blackface jackson's, even though their sites show the old silver face.
Usa2112's picture shows YES the original jackson, the better one, the silver face.
my choice, if i could find 1, would be the grant due to it's all around better design.
not to say yours doesn't do the job for you, 2112...
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Usa2112
Junior Member
Username: Usa2112
Post Number: 40
Registered: 2-2005
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 7:54 pm: |
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I had a Grant back in the day.I would say it nearly exactly the same as a 148gtl of the time,except for the receieve,not dual conversion like the 148 so it was very noisy.But a great lookin radio and loads of audio weather with a Silver Eagle or a D104-M6.I liked the way it looked more than the 148.Bigger channel selector,center meter. |
Radiohead
New member
Username: Radiohead
Post Number: 4
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 26, 2005 - 4:49 am: |
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Thank you all for your replies. I ended up buying something not on my list, a Galaxy 95T. Don't know if I like it yet though. Lots of power and features but I can't seem to find a good match with a handheld mic. I've tried 4 mics total. I'll list them in order from best sounding to worst sounding.
1.Astatic D-104 TUG9 (base mic,clearest of the bunch)
2.the Galaxy stock mic it came with
3.Astatic Road Devil (louder than the D-104 M6C but not clear)
4.Astatic D-104 M6C (too tinny, no bottom end)
I can live with the TUG9 but sometimes we ragchew into the wee hours of the morning so a base mic is not practical. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Lou |
Red_fish
New member
Username: Red_fish
Post Number: 8
Registered: 1-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 26, 2005 - 9:23 am: |
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What about a Road King 56? I've got a 95T and the RK sounds best for my voice. |
Hotwire
Intermediate Member
Username: Hotwire
Post Number: 212
Registered: 1-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 26, 2005 - 10:31 am: |
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Was just talking to a guy last night who was using a 95T with a RK 56. Radiohead he sounded top shelf. Loud and clear with lots of bottom end sound.
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Vtwinn
Junior Member
Username: Vtwinn
Post Number: 37
Registered: 8-2004
| | Posted on Monday, March 28, 2005 - 12:36 pm: |
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I use a 636 mike on my 95T and allways get back good reports |
Bigbob
Senior Member
Username: Bigbob
Post Number: 1814
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Monday, March 28, 2005 - 6:06 pm: |
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oooooo a 95T,gotta get me one a them,them's nice radios,YEHAW.Bigbob |
Karatebutcher
Senior Member
Username: Karatebutcher
Post Number: 1933
Registered: 7-2002
| | Posted on Monday, March 28, 2005 - 8:26 pm: |
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Hello Big Bob |
Radiohead
New member
Username: Radiohead
Post Number: 6
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Monday, March 28, 2005 - 11:53 pm: |
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I picked up an Astatic 636, so far the best sounding mic out of the bunch I've tried. Maybe I'll give the road king a try too. Thanks! |
Mikefromms
Advanced Member
Username: Mikefromms
Post Number: 526
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 - 11:56 am: |
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If you get a chance, try a Superstar DM-452. It is cheap and works magic on radios.
mikefromms |
Bigbob
Senior Member
Username: Bigbob
Post Number: 1815
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Friday, April 01, 2005 - 4:52 am: |
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Hello,K.B.,butcher anything with karate lately,hehe,I kill me.Bigbob |
Pointman
Intermediate Member
Username: Pointman
Post Number: 129
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 01, 2005 - 7:09 pm: |
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"hmmmm, pointman, i just went to the 1 i know of, it's all in french & i don't see anything in the upper right hand corner."
Go to the President-Electronics.com home page from any search engine, I use Yahoo.
Upper right hand corner of the page is a half American half British Flag and next to it it says "English Version". Click on it and the page changes to English and the flag changes to a French Flag that says "version francaise".
Click on it again and the page goes back to French.
If you need the link send me an E-mail and I will send you a link to the page that I have that allows you to do this.
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Patzerozero
Advanced Member
Username: Patzerozero
Post Number: 665
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Monday, April 04, 2005 - 3:37 pm: |
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hmmmm, 'site actuellement indisponible'.
i got that site from yahoo, aol, ask jeeves, dogpile, google...
makes no never mind, a jackson isn't at the top of my 'to get' list anyways... |
Goat373
Junior Member
Username: Goat373
Post Number: 36
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Friday, September 16, 2005 - 6:55 pm: |
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i bought a silver face jackson for 80 bucks from an AM'er at a keydown in my area....i loved it, i did the improvement mods to it and it shined on SSB...sold it for 150 to buy a 257 and am more than satisfied |
