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Reviews For: Grundig Yachtboy 400

Category: Receivers: General Coverage

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Review Summary For : Grundig Yachtboy 400
Reviews: 67MSRP: 199
Description:
100 Khz - 30 Mhx portable receiver
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.grundig.com/produkte/highlights.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00673.9
RADIODORK Rating: 2004-12-31
So what is so good about this ?. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I either got ahold of a lemon, or this radio is
grossly overated. I had asked for this at Christmas time because of all the good reviews
and the fact that it looked sharp. WRONG.
Until now, my only shortwave radios were the
Grundig S350 (which is 10X better than the Yacht Boy), a vintage Radio Shack Patrolman CB60, and a cheap COBY. For one thing, with the antenna
fully extended, it becomes top heavy and wants to sway (the antenna), and when it sways, the radio pops and crackles, it even pops and cracks
with the slightest touch of my finger on the face. The included reel antenna is of no help.
What really was the icing on the cake was when I
began noticing that there were several frequencies that my S350 was pulling in, that the
Yacht Boy didn't even hint at. After setting both units up at the same time in an upstairs room without any other electrical appliance on
and the reel antenna in place, I began compiling
a list of the stations the S350 picked up, and tried to duplicate with the Yacht Boy. I gave up after nine. I am also disappointed with the sound
quality as compared to the S350. The only redeeming quality I noticed is standard FM reception. But even at that, it is too expensive
to pass off as a portable FM radio. Of course, trying to get ahold of the technical support as listed in the manual is a joke.
So back to Amazon it goes. I only wish it had come from the local Radio Shack so as not to get burned with shipping costs and Amazon's famous re-stocking fee. Live and learn.
SWLABN Rating: 2004-10-09
I love it! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
But I'm giving it 4 out of 5. I agree with the previous reviews I think they give a very accurate account what you are getting for your money.

I'm comparing it with the HF RX of my Yaesu VR500 scanner.

I have found the yaesu to overload very easily with a longwire but when using the longwire on the yb it has pulled in signals with little overloading. Secondly, the audio output is much clearer and LOUDER the yaesu is so quiet and required constant use of headphones. Now I can listen comfortably through a speaker!

I have found overall performance on most bands very good pulling in signals from hams in Japan, West coast, middle east with considerable ease using a long wire antenna although the whip is very effective too.

It is a bulky piece of kit with batteries but feels nice and I love that metallic look on the PE.

I know it seems difficult to compare the yb400 with the vr500 but I'm trying to put its performance into perspective and if you own a vr500 i'm sure you'll understand what I'm saying here

I feel the Grundig is a good buy
KF4WDZ Rating: 2004-10-02
Better than I thought Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Picked one up on closeout at a Radio ("Rat")Shack ,not realy expecting too much out of it. A cheap radio with a bfo...why not?

Much better radio than I thought it would be.

The good stuff:
-BFO for SSB
-will tune in 1 KHz steps
-very very good sound through phones( if you have good ones)
-very good sound with built in speaker
-FM stereo through phones
-very good FM
-good AM/MW
-good SW with whip ant.
-handy reel ant.
-very good owner's manual with frequency guide for ameteur,aironautical,and maritime.
-nice case
-built very well with good quality feel to it.


Things that bug me,but not too much:
-Bass and Treble would be nice,but if not CAN'T WE AT LEAST HAVE A TONE KNOB? Not even the famed Sony 2010 has one! Why not? The hi/low switch is better than nothing,and does an ok job.
-No rf gain control.Two way dx/local switch only
-no tune knob just up and down buttons,so it's a bit of a pain to band scan.Push push push push push push push.Can tune in 1 KHz steps.
-BFO only. No usb/lsb.Tunes in 1 Khz steps with bfo "fine tune" knob.Still ok for ssb ,just could be better.
-no sync detector.Hay,what do 'ya want for $125?
-Cheezy "earbud phones". Then again, did you ever get a decent pair of headphones with anything? Not me.Spend a little and get some Koss "Porta-pro" phones.You will never go back to cheap ones again!
-dial light only stays on for 10 sec.
Don't let all of this talk you out of one though.What it does it does well....

All in all: A fine little radio esp. for the $. Quite good sound with the speaker,and very very good through phones.Good MW/Am dx( not a 2010 or RF-2200 but,still a lot better than you might think).Good with just the whip ant. for SW.Very good FM.I think it's by far the best radio you can get for the money....grab one while you can still get a new one....8)
WR2W Rating: 2004-07-30
Price...Performance...Size...Sound...All Great! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The price, performance, size, and sound on this YB-400 are all great. I don't mind not having a tuning knob because the fine tuning with tuning step control work just fine for me. I find the SW performance to be quite good with the telescoping antenna, and better with the provided wire spool antenna. The size is great for all kinds of use, and the sound from this YB-400 is excellent. It's a hard act to beat for $150...
ZIPPER Rating: 2004-03-14
Not Strong Enough Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I live in a Chicago apartment, where signals are weak. The YB400PE sounds great on AM & FM, but it isn't strong enough to pull in a decent SW signal. Not only do SW signals fade, there's an unbearably loud hissing noise on weak signals. Called Grundig. They said to buy a Sony AN-LP1 active antenna. Called Universal Radio to order it. They told me that an active antenna will only exacerbate the noise -- I don't need one.

Went to eBay & bought a used Sony 7600G. What a miracle! Signals came in easily -- no problems & no hiss! Hardly ever even have to use the synch detection. If you live in a weak signal area, get a Sony. If you're in an area that gets good reception, get the YB400. The sound is MUCH richer than the Sony, and it's easier to use. I really loved the YB400, I just couldn't get a decent signal on it.

KF6WNL Rating: 2004-03-11
A very good portable Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This radio is my workhorse. I use it on my overseas trips due to its size and portability, customs inspectors seem to get friendlier when they see it. The reception is good on shortwave, excellent on FM, and very good on AM. The shortwave does improve with the reel antenna, very handy by hanging out the hotel window. It could use a fine tuner or a rotary knob. Some shortwave stations like Habana Cuba seem to wonder off or be off their frequency and radio can't tune them back in. Overall it delivers a punch for its size and cost and being small enough to put in a backpack or overnight bag is the icing. If I want better reception I go to my Drake R8A.
N1LF Rating: 2004-01-09
Good value Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
My wife purchased this as a birthday gift for me,
not realizing that I already own a Sony 2010,
a Radio Shack DX-398--and not to mention the Drake
R8B, and Palstar R30CC in the shack! Her heart
was in the right place...

My main interest is in MW DXing, and I found
this to a respectable for that purpose. It is
sensitive and the filters are very good for
a stock radio. It took the Kiwa replacements to
get that kind of performance out of the 2010.

The audio is quite good, and I had no trouble
using it as a bedside radio (I like to sleep
with talk radio programs on). Not tinny or
uncomfortable to listen to at all.

But it's no DX machine either. The lack of
a sync detector, and not being able to use
an external antenna (only works on SW) hurt
it's usefulness there.

Worse is that tuning in SSB mode (ECSS) is a
disaster. I found better results using the
narrow filter and tuning off the frequency
by a khz or two. This works very well on the
crowded graveyard channels.

Good nulls on strong stations can be produced
using the internal loop antenna, allowing the
reception of weaker stations underneath.

Controls are very easy to use and there are
a few "mods" on the Internet to improve
it's performance a bit.

As many have pointed out, it probably outperforms
my Kenwood R-2000 and many other desktop
SW receivers that I owned growing up...at
bargin basement prices. But if you compare
it to the Sony 2010 or other real DX
machines, you'll be disappointed.

Accept it for what it is...a good performer at
a great price. Perfect for travelling or as
a bedside radio.



KC2MFW Rating: 2003-12-17
I like it Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just bought this radio.I like the bigger speaker that the micro's do not have.I have no problem using the BFO.It reminds me a little of the Sangean 803 SSB set up.I can see why this radio has such a following.
AC7KT Rating: 2003-12-15
SUPER ! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Purchased refurb from universal radio and just love it sure it does not have sync detection but the price was worth it.
N8YV Rating: 2003-12-15
Close Second to Sony ICF-7600 Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I owned this radio for a few days, before returning it and purchasing the Sony 7600.
I am more pleased with the Sony.

Biggest shortcomings are the SSB fine tuning and the lack of synchronous AM detection. True, it has an excellent FM section---but I didn't buy the Grundig for FM. I think it could beat the 7600, if Grundig got smart and gave up the FM, altogether, instead adding synchronous detection; but that's my personal opinion. The Sony also cost me less money than did the Grundig.

In most other categories, the Grundig either meets or slightly bests the Sony---however, these margins are so slight that they are not worth sacrificing synchronous detection and spending more to get less.