cheap radio to listen to atc??
stephen ca dalfollo-daley
i'm hoping y'all can help me out.....later this year i think i will buy
a transceiver like the icom a-22 or the similar sporty's model
rather than a gps (it can wait and i would like to hone my skills),
but right now i would like toget a simple radio...i'll save the big
bucks for a real back up tranceiver
what i would like to find is a reasonable priced radio with
which i can listen to atc with....to practice the phrasing,
cadence, etc......
i know there is the sporty's jd-100 which is just a receiver but
i was looking for something more reasonable..like in the $50-$75
range....not the $150 range....
is there a suggested radio that is on the general market taht can be had
at a reasonable price and does the job w/o paying $porty's??
i would love to hear any ino you have...
stephen
Les Sparks
I suggest looking for a handheld scanner. I do not know the exact pricing
range of scanners, but this would probably be your only option in the
$50-$75 range. Almost any scanner will receive the aviation frequency
range.
Les Sparks, CFI, Woodstock Builder
less...@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/woodglider/
stephen ca dalfollo-daley <dalf...@mci2000.com> wrote in article
<34CD88A...@mci2000.com>...
Ron Natalie
Les Sparks wrote:
>
> I suggest looking for a handheld scanner. I do not know the exact pricing
> range of scanners, but this would probably be your only option in the
> $50-$75 range. Almost any scanner will receive the aviation frequency
> range.
>
Be very careful. That last statement is *NOT* true. Many scanners
(especially the cheap ones) omit the aviation frequencies. Make
sure the scanner has 112-130 MHz.
For casual listening, scanners do a much better job than aviation
tranceivers. The transcievers scan functions pretty much suck,
they were designed to be set to a frequency and left there.
I use my radio snack scanner not only to monitor ATC, but
the local fire departments, and I haul it along with my portable
intercom and headsets to NASCAR races so Margy and I can listen
to the drivers as well as talk to each other over the noise.
Sean Franklin
Les Sparks wrote in message <01bd2b30$b7b83810$aa1af6a8@ussg-sparkle1-0>...
>I suggest looking for a handheld scanner. I do not know the exact pricing
>range of scanners, but this would probably be your only option in the
>$50-$75 range. Almost any scanner will receive the aviation frequency
>range.
You are better off if you find a scanner that explicitly indicates
"Aircraft" band... while many will tune into the proper frequency, most
inexpensive "Police" scanners are designed only with FM circuitry...
Aircraft operate on AM. Same frequencies, different methods of operation.
I'm sure Jim Weir can explain it much better than I, but I can say that
there is a huge difference between my 2 receivers - one with AM, one
without. Both pick up aircraft, but the AM one does much better, and the
non-AM gets lots of interference from radio or TV stations.
--
Sean Franklin
Indianapolis / Plymouth, Indiana
Bill Beekman
Check Rec.Radio.Scanner and see if anyone is selling a used low end scanner.
Make sure the scanner has aircraft band.
Bill
Jerry Bransford
Stephen,
This may have already been covered but just be aware of the problems
receiving transmissions in the VHF aircraft band while you're on the
ground.
If your antenna doesn't have a clear 'view' of whoever it is you want to
listen to, you're not going to hear them. For example... if there's a
hill or mountain between your receiving antenna and the control tower's
transmitting antenna, you're not going to hear anything the tower is
saying. You'll hear the overflying aircraft OK but you won't hear the
tower. Frequencies in the VHF band and higher are strictly
'line-of-sight' so they can be difficult to receive on the ground if
they're far away (lots of things can get between you and what you're
listening to) or behind an obstruction.
Jerry
--
Jerry Bransford
To send me email, remove "junkmail" from my email address.
PP-ASEL, C.A.P., KC6TAY
The Zen hotdog... make me one with everything!
Hilton Goldstein
Hi,
I bought the BC120XLT from National Electronics. I use it for hours
every day and it works great. It comes with a AC adapter and NiCd
included. Their web page is: http://www.sound.net/~ne/
I see they have a special on the BC60XLT for only $52 however definitely
call and make sure that it will receive 108-136 MHz. Again, I'm really
happy with the BC120XLT, and I have no connection with NE other than the
one off purchase.
Hilton
--
Hilton Goldstein.............................hilton@sgi.com
650-933-5254 (phone).....................(fax) 650-390-6159
M/S 1L-945, 2011 N. Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View, CA 94043
http://reality.sgi.com/hilton
Quantum Mechanics: The dreams stuff is made of
Mark
stephen ca dalfollo-daley wrote:
> i know there is the sporty's jd-100 which is just a receiver but
> i was looking for something more reasonable..like in the $50-$75
> range....not the $150 range....
>
> is there a suggested radio that is on the general market taht can be had
> at a reasonable price and does the job w/o paying $porty's??
I love the Radio Shack airband radio. It's around $20 and has
AM and VHF bands. I take mine to airshows etc. and have never
had a problem. It won't scan channels, but it's a real bargain
all the same.
Andrew M. Sarangan
In article <34CD88A...@mci2000.com>,
stephen ca dalfollo-daley <dalf...@mci2000.com> wrote:
>
>what i would like to find is a reasonable priced radio with
>which i can listen to atc with....to practice the phrasing,
>cadence, etc......
>
>i was looking for something more reasonable..like in the $50-$75
>range....not the $150 range....
>
You might want to get a scanner. Uniden's website has refurbished
scanners which sell for much lower than the original price. I bought one
recently and it has worked great so far - I cannot tell that
from a brane new unit. Make sure it covers the airband. The price is
near $100, a little higher than your range, but I think it would
he worth considering.
--
Andrew Sarangan
PP-ASEL-IA
Andre Kok
stephen ca dalfollo-daley (dalf...@mci2000.com) wrote:
: what i would like to find is a reasonable priced radio with
: which i can listen to atc with....to practice the phrasing,
: cadence, etc......
: i know there is the sporty's jd-100 which is just a receiver but
: i was looking for something more reasonable..like in the $50-$75
: range....not the $150 range....
hey stephen, I too bought a handheld scanner (12 bands including aircraft
and 800mhz) from www.uniden.com They are refurbished units, but mine
was as good as new when I got it. price of $120, but they had cheaper
ones...as low as $50... check it out. amke sure it has the aircraft
band!
-andre'
--
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Andre' Kok http://www.dordt.edu/~ndrkk
Elementary Education Student and Student Pilot nd...@dordt.edu
Dordt College, Sioux Center, IA bw...@freenet.uchsc.edu
Garner Miller
> : i know there is the sporty's jd-100 which is just a receiver but
> : i was looking for something more reasonable..like in the $50-$75
> : range....not the $150 range....
>
> hey stephen, I too bought a handheld scanner (12 bands including aircraft
> and 800mhz) from www.uniden.com ...
One other possibility: Years ago I bought a little radio from Radio Shack
for about $15. It was a simple hand-tuned radio, with a knob (not
digital), which picked up the aircraft band. It took a little fiddling to
get it right on the frequency you wanted, but once I found my tower
frequency, it was perfect. Not sure if they're still making it, but it's
certainly worth looking into. It helped me quite a bit, and on a
student's budget, the price was right. :-)
--
Garner R. Miller, Flight Instructor & FAA Aviation Safety Counselor
O'Brien Aviation - West Palm Beach, Florida
http://www.netstreet.net/obrien/
Please don't e-mail me copies of your USENET replies.
Dylan Smith
Garner Miller wrote:
> One other possibility: Years ago I bought a little radio from Radio Shack
> for about $15. It was a simple hand-tuned radio, with a knob (not
> digital), which picked up the aircraft band.
They still sell them. I bought one whilst I was a student pilot.
It still costs around $15, and works fine.
--
Email: dy...@vnet.IBM.COM
Dylan Smith 1810 Space Park Drive, Houston, TX 77573
Standard disclaimer applies.
Anti-spam - Change 'r' to raleigh, 'i' to ibm and 'c' to com.
Victoria Deaton
Radio Shack used to make a really cheapo "air band" radio that looked
like a little am pocket radio...had to be $20 or so, if that much.
Otherwise, a used scanner that covers those freqs. isn't too hard to
find.
Victoria
Kris Karjama
If you visit my web site, I have 3 links to RealAudio sites that broadcast live
ATC from Miami, Chicago, and Dallas/Fort Worth.
http://www.xspace.com/brad/aviation
William D. Palmer
stephen ca dalfollo-daley <dalf...@mci2000.com> wrote:
>what i would like to find is a reasonable priced radio with
>which i can listen to atc with....to practice the phrasing,
>cadence, etc......
I have a $20 Radio Shack radio, which picks up aviation band
transmissions. You tune it by thumbing through the frequencies with a
dial. No way of knowing exactly what frequency you're on. Telescoping
antenna. Takes a 9V battery. It has absolutely no bells or whistles on
it, but if you want to listen to ATC with a reasonably priced radio,
check your local Radio Shack store.
I use it when I'm at a big airport, like BWI, and I've looked up the
freqs of interest beforehand, and I can get the dial indicator close
to where the freq is. Shoot, it's even got a little earphone you can
stick in your ear, if you don't want to make enemies of those sitting
close by you.
Bill Palmer
still on the ground, looking up...
Stephen Dalfollo-Daley
thnaks to everyone on the suggestions for the
radio to listen to atc...i did decide to save my money
for an icom a-22 or such and purchased a radio shack
radio....it seems to work fine..
stephen
Aaron D Eoff
Kris Karjama <kr...@xspace.com> wrote:
>If you visit my web site, I have 3 links to RealAudio sites that broadcast live
>ATC from Miami, Chicago, and Dallas/Fort Worth.
>
> http://www.xspace.com/brad/aviation
>
Awesome site and great listening!!!
Aaron
AWISSKER
I have spent many hours sitting in my car at the local airport with my
cheap little Radio Shack just listening. After you find the right freqs you
can make marks on the face of the radio for future reference. I also use it
to get ATIS when I am flying.