MFJ-8100
World Band Receiver
3
For Beginners
You're about enjoy a versatile shortwave receiver which
employs a circuit concept that is as classic as the 1920's
but which uses modern engineering that takes advantage of the
advanced capabilities of today's electronic components.
This shortwave radio is designed to let you listen to a great
variety of international broadcasts. You can choose from
five different frequency "bands'' so that you can count on
hearing SOMETHING at any hour of day or night. Also, this
receiver lets you hear a generous sampling of ham radio
signals (both Morse code "CW'' and voice "SSB''
communications), plus many other government and commercial
transmissions.
Just a Bit of History
The "regenerative receiver'' moved the world of radio
reception and broadcasting beyond the limits of crystal sets
useful only for hearing a strong local signal. For over a
decade, these magical, whistling, squawking, glowing boxes
were the norm for home listening as well as for the first
generation of radio hams.
Receiver design evolved swiftly. The "superheterodyne''
became the norm during the 1930's. Regenerative receivers,
often called "Gennies,'' were left to tinkerers and
beginners. Even though these receivers were simple and quite
sensitive, they had a number of shortcomings: instability,
touchiness, difficulty in separating strong stations, a
tendency to generate interference to other receivers, and a
general reputation for making odd sounds that resembled
everything from pigs to motorboats.
However, the sheer SIMPLENESS of the regenerative circuit
remained attractive to experimenters and beginners. In fact,
as recently as the 1960's, one company marketed a $14 kit for
building a complete transceiver using only one vacuum tube:
half of the tube served as a regenerative receiver, and the
other half was a low-power crystal-controlled transmitter.
In addition, many thousands of engineering careers as well as
ham radio licenses were launched with the building of "my
first shortwave radio'' from do-it-yourself regenerative