--- In ultralightdx@..., "farmerik" wrote:

> It sounds to me that the front end of the chip radios is so sensitive a full size antenna [too big to be practical at AM BCB & LW] would overload it. The 360 model has a plug in ferrite rod antenna on a 1/8th inch telephone plug. ANON offers a package deal with the small tuned Tecsun loop. So I should just try a short wire antenna instead, [if I buy a PL-360], as well as my 2 and 4 foot untuned loops and see what happens. Thanks.

Perhaps Gary can tell us the inductance of the PL-360's loop antenna. I haven't taken apart the Terk and have never seen the AN-1oo/AN-200 loops. My guess is that the radio can't tune that antenna -- and the antenna already has built-in tuning. So you are going to end up setting the radio on frequency, peaking the antenna, then off-and-on re-tuning the radio. The -360 doesn't appeal to me so I don't want to waste time on it.

> I can read up on the theory, but I wouldn't be confident I wouldn't miss some detail which would ruin my 'experiment'. I am trying to follow the theory though. According to theory my untuned 4 foot loop isn't supposed to work very well

You've hit on an area that arises frequently when discussing radio subjects. Saying "A should work better than B" is absolutely not the same as saying "B won't work very well." How far you go with antennas depends on what you're willing to accept for performance, and how much effort you're willing to expend to improve it. If you think they're "good enough," lucky you! I hope I never reach that point.

73,

Jim, KR1S
http://kr1s.kearman.com/