Sony SRF-M97 First Impressions
An eBay purchased Sony SRF-M97Â AM-FM Personal Radio arrived this morning from Hong Kong.
It is metallic-colored but plastic in construction though it doesn’t feel particularly cheap, typical Sony feel really. It is very light, a bit larger than the Sony SRF-S84 and has a nice, solid clip on the back.
It does require reading the instructions to set the clock (hold down the jog button for 2 seconds and when it starts flashing press the jog up or down) which is always on and to change from 9KHz to 10KHz split on AM/MW (press the jog button down and hold the power button for 5 seconds) plus to switch from AM to FM (press the jog dial with the radio on).
According to the instructions it is either a 12 or 24 hour model depending on whether it is flashing 0:00 or 12:00. The one here is flashing 0:00 so it must be 24 hour. No big deal, but it is a bit odd that it can’t be switched between the 24 hour setting to the 12 hour setting; quite frankly, when I purchased the radio the clock wasn’t a factor and didn’t even notice it was there. The clock is always on as long as the battery is good.
The readout appears to be a light green color but a very neutral green. It also displays battery level but it is not known how accurate that is yet.
The package was opened in a downtown high-rise that is solid and is basically a signal blocker; cell phones and radios get terrible reception in this building. So far FM reception is very good as expected. AM did not do as well but right now there is nothing to compare it to so judgement on the AM side will wait. The FM appears to be at least as good as the Sony SRF-S84 which is the “Superadio 3″ of personal/pocket radios on FM. The other Sony is not here currently so a direct comparison will have to come later today.
It took a week for the radio to arrive via airmail from Hong Kong after placing the order which was a bit quicker than expected.
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As I”m an AM radio “junky” – I come across your site every few months (years??). You really are on the mark with your critiques.
What’s with this: just purchased an SRF-M97 at a local shop, certainly grey goods I’m sure. The FM tuner starts with 76.0 ? I’m getting a bit of TV audio on some of the frequencies (can’t figure out the logic). Seen this?
Hi Steve,
Yes, you bought the Asian version of the radio. I believe it is either/or, I don’t believe there is a magic switch or button.
Channel 6 is right below the FM band and you can easily pick that up on most FM radios. You may also be getting 5 as well, though I’m not totally familiar with the TV audio frequencies; they are located below the domestic FM band.
Lake
Comment by Steve — August 25, 2007 @ 10:07 pm