Tecsun BCL-3000 AM.FM.Shortwave World Band Radio Receiver, LCD Display With Orange Backlight

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Price: $199.99   

Tecsun BCL-3000 AM.FM.Shortwave World Band Radio Receiver, LCD Display With Orange Backlight Review

(This review is for the "Tecsun BCL-3000" radio.)

At the time of purchase, this radio came in Black or Red - I have purchased a brand new Red one back in August 2013 from a Chinese seller off eBay. My radio has a manufacturing date of July 2012, so it includes all manufacturer's updates up to that date.

The Tecsun BCL-3000 (BCL-3000) is almost identical to the Grundig/Eton S350DL (S350DL), and somewhat comparable to the CCRadio-SW (CC-SW), Kaito KA-2100 (KA-2100) and Redsun RP-2100 (RP-2100) models. At one time I have owned all of these models.

The BCL-3000 and S350DL radios are analog tuning with digital display.

I have also owned three brand new CCRadio-2 (CC-2) radios, three GE Superadio-2 (SR-2) - one of them was brand new, and one brand new GE Superadio-3 (SR-3). I have kept one CC-2 and one SR-2.

This review focuses on AM/FM performance only.

I had owned two S350DL radios. The first one, purchased used, had very good reception (comparable to the SR-2), but the "drift" of the frequency dial was very prominent. It could even drift off a bit just by moving the radio a little! The sound was nice and clear for talk and music, although the Bass was a little weak.

The second S350DL had poor reception, especially on FM, but the drifting was a little less. Maybe due to the fact that the second unit was brand new when I purchased it and the large tuning knob was a little tighter than with my first one - so the tuning dial did not move off frequency as easily. The sound of both units was identical.

The KA-2100 had great AM and phenomenal FM reception. It is interesting that with this unit, there was no fading in and out of the sound on distant AM stations at night. None of the other radios had this characteristic. At the same time, the volume did not drop on those weak stations either. Also, no frequency drift due to the PLL tuning system. However, on this unit the large 5" speaker was either a bit muffled or if you turned down the Bass, it sounded like a tin can, like a little 3" speaker.

The CC-SW had poor AM and FM reception (very strange since the CC-SW and KA-2100 are basically identical radios), fading in and out on AM at night, but excellent sound on strong stations from the 5" speaker. Clear and crisp, not at all harsh, a real pleasure to listen to. But the tuning was imprecise and I had to off tune by 1 on AM and FM. For example, instead of AM 570, I had to fine tune to AM 569. Or, instead of FM 89.10, I had to fine tune to FM 89.09. Sounds like an insignificant problem, but when you use the small tuning up and down buttons that jump in 0.10 MHz (FM) and 10 KHz (AM) increments, you then have to switch to the Slow tuning and use the large Tuning knob to fine tune your station. Of course, this problem can be mitigated if you store some of your favourite stations in the Memory Presets.

Both the KA-2100 and CC-SW are prone to tipping back and falling when the radio is standing up and you try to press or adjust some of the buttons or knobs. Also, the tiny buttons for the tuning up and down or storing/recalling memory presets are difficult and uncomfortable to operate. On the CC-SW, the switch to select AM or FM (the first one from the top), felt very loose and wobbly.

The BCL-3000 is a great, basic radio. It is about 2" narrower (width-wise when facing the radio) than the S350DL, so it is easier to hold or handle. On my unit, all the buttons and knobs are solid and work perfectly. But, surprisingly, the LCD clock is about 1 minute slow per week, which makes the Alarm Clock function - turns the radio On at a preset time and plays for 30 minutes - basically useless! The large tuning knob is smooth and feels heavy. There is some, but only little, frequency drifting and only occasionally. The automatic mechanism to lock-in the frequency on AM (and SW), not present on FM (same as with the S350DL), takes about a second longer to engage now than with the two S350DL radios, so you have a little longer time to fine tune your stations. The slightly smaller 4" speaker (4.25" with the S350DL) sounds much better, at least on my unit, than the S350DL. Of course, to my ears, the sound of the SR-2 is still the best. Yes, the speaker on the SR-3 sounds a little bigger, deeper and fuller than the SR-2, but the SR-3 is not as clear and could get a little tiring if you listened to it up close for longer periods continuously.

At the price, currently around $55 plus S&H for a brand new unit, you cannot get a better AM/FM radio today than the Tecsun BCL-3000, and it even has Shortwave. This is why the 5-star rating.

My personal preference from the above AM/FM radios:

Sound for "talk radio" and music:
1. SR-2
2. BCL-3000
3. CC-SW and KA-2100
4. SR-3
5. CC-2 (but the best for clarity on "talk radio")
6. S350DL

Reception - FM:
1. KA-2100 and CC-SW
2. BCL-3000
3. CC-2
4. SR-2
5. S350DL
6. SR-3

Reception - AM:
1. CC-2
2. SR-2
3. KA-2100 and CC-SW
4. BCL-3000
5. S350DL
6. SR-3

Summary:

When selecting these radios, there can be great unit-to-unit quality variations, so be careful when purchasing and make sure you can return/exchange it, especially with the CC-SW, KA-2100, S350DL and maybe the BCL-3000. When buying used, the speaker (partially blown?) or the buttons could have been abused. Fortunately, all three of the CC-2 radios were identical with respect to sound/reception, buttons and tuning quality. Also note that as of writing this review, there is now an improved CC-2 radio, called the CCRadio-2E (Enhanced) which promises better FM reception (DSP chip) and improved sound quality.

I also think that all households should at least own a GE Superadio-2. I know it is bigger and heavier, but it has very good AM/FM reception, fantastic sound, looks great, has an excellent carrying handle, it stands stable, and the six "D" cell batteries last forever less two days. Yes, I know, the analog tuning is tedious and takes time to precisely tune in, but I have not noticed any frequency drifting.

For overall everyday use, features, sound, simplicity, and convenience, I like the CCRadio-2 the best. However, this radio is heavy and the "with fingers grip" to carry it around, with no built-in strap or handle, is very inconvenient and dangerous - you'll drop it one day. But this radio has very accurate tuning, absolutely clear sound, and stands very stable and firm, so it is almost impossible to tip it back or knock it over.

One last comment: neither the SR-2 nor the CC-2 is sensitive to electrical interference, so they are okay to operate near your computer too - reception, even on FM, remains strong.

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