Fortunately my E10 does not suffer from this problem.

Gary,

I've had quite a different experience with the three E100s that I've aligned in the past week. Only one of them came from Durham, BTW.  On two of the three, I got a significant improvement on the 1400 alignment.  I set the signal generator for a mid-strength steady signal and then had to use a small metal screw driver to turn the interior of the trimmer (this was true on all three, they just mangled my plastic alignment tools, and did not turn..... so, I turned the trimmer about 10 degrees at a time with the metal screw driver and then backed way off where nothing was affecting the trimmer to check the signal strength and kept doing that until the signal meter either went up or down.  Then I peaked it in the proper direction.  Both the ones that made serious improvements needed about 30 degrees to the right, erh, clockwise.

On the 600 peaking with the coil on the ferrite bar, I continue to find it easier to pop the ferrite bar out of its retainers. Removing the glue on those retainers is easy with an exacto. I also take out the two screws of the upper circuit board so that there is a bit more room to work. However, in two of the three cases, when I did the alignment, there wasn't any improvement over the stock position. Is there a pattern to the movement you are making???  Is the peak toward the center of the bar or the nearby outer edge or does it vary.  My one improvement instance was moving the coil about 1/8" toward the center. You've mentioned twice about sometimes having to remove a bit of plastic to move the coil far enough.... is this the nearby plastic in the corner or is it part of the retaining clips???

Obviously, not all E-100s are quite alike.... there are also clear production run differences... the plastic inner frame-chassis is black in some, gray in others, for instance.


John B.











At 03:25 AM 5/11/2008 +0000, you wrote:

Hello Guys,

After receiving two more Eton E100's from Durham Radio via eBay
today (at $49 plus shipping), they were immediately tested and
aligned.
First of all, Eton's design for this radio has a significant
gaffe, which leads to reduced AM-band sensitivity. The SW antenna
folds down in a position very close and parallel to the AM loopstick,
reducing the AM sensitivity greatly whenever the SW antenna is not in
a vertical position. For serious AM DXing, make sure the SW antenna
is vertical, and you will notice a significant gain in sensitivity.
Of the two units aligned today, one required cutting of the
right plastic bracket to peak the loopstick coil on a 600 kHz signal
(the second time in five E100 alignments this was necessary), and the
other unit had a somewhat mangled loopstick, with fixed gaps between
the coil windings. This unit never did attain the low-band
sensitivity of the other units, and if you have a similar unit, your
only recourse may be to replace the loopstick (maybe with a 20"
monster?)
The high-band alignment (on a 1400 kHz signal) rarely increases
high-band sensitivity on a factory unit, but the low-band alignment
(moving the coil along the loopstick to peak a 600 kHz signal) ALWAYS
has had a major effect on sensitivity here (in five out of five
alignments). For those intimidated by major disassembly of the unit
to gain access to the 1400 kHz trimming capacitor, performing the low-
band alignment only should provide the greatest benefit in increased
sensitivity.
The E100 has an unfortunate image reception issue, which
detracts from its otherwise stellar urban-RF performance. With the
exception of this problem, the E100 has a very well-behaved receiver,
which should handle the extreme RF levels of a huge loopstick very
well. Its selectivity and high-band sensitivity are unsurpassed
among the Ultralight radios, and its many features make it a true
bargain at the $49 Durham Radio price.

73, Gary

John B.
Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
Rcvrs: WiNRADiO 313e, Eton e1, NRD-535(kiwa-mods)
Antennas: 700' NE/SW mini-Bev, Wellbrook Phased Array (pre-production version)

Hello Guys,

After receiving two more Eton E100's from Durham Radio via eBay
today (at $49 plus shipping), they were immediately tested and
aligned.
First of all, Eton's design for this radio has a significant
gaffe, which leads to reduced AM-band sensitivity. The SW antenna
folds down in a position very close and parallel to the AM loopstick,
reducing the AM sensitivity greatly whenever the SW antenna is not in
a vertical position. For serious AM DXing, make sure the SW antenna
is vertical, and you will notice a significant gain in sensitivity.
Of the two units aligned today, one required cutting of the
right plastic bracket to peak the loopstick coil on a 600 kHz signal
(the second time in five E100 alignments this was necessary), and the
other unit had a somewhat mangled loopstick, with fixed gaps between
the coil windings. This unit never did attain the low-band
sensitivity of the other units, and if you have a similar unit, your
only recourse may be to replace the loopstick (maybe with a 20"
monster?)
The high-band alignment (on a 1400 kHz signal) rarely increases
high-band sensitivity on a factory unit, but the low-band alignment
(moving the coil along the loopstick to peak a 600 kHz signal) ALWAYS
has had a major effect on sensitivity here (in five out of five
alignments). For those intimidated by major disassembly of the unit
to gain access to the 1400 kHz trimming capacitor, performing the low-
band alignment only should provide the greatest benefit in increased
sensitivity.
The E100 has an unfortunate image reception issue, which
detracts from its otherwise stellar urban-RF performance. With the
exception of this problem, the E100 has a very well-behaved receiver,
which should handle the extreme RF levels of a huge loopstick very
well. Its selectivity and high-band sensitivity are unsurpassed
among the Ultralight radios, and its many features make it a true
bargain at the $49 Durham Radio price.

73, Gary