Phillipines, Taiwan, etc...

[dway87]

When a radio is made in Taiwan or the Phillipines, what's the difference? I am kinda new to cb radios.

 

[PLUTO]

In the "uniden" board series radios, mostly Cobra and Uniden (of course) CBs, the ones made in the Phillipines are most desired. The difference for the most part is the Philli. boards are made better (quality soldering, better parts,ect). I own/owned both and the difference I see mostly is 1/4 vs 1/2 watt resistors (in some) and the solders from the factory. But I have seen good and bad in both (possiblly the radios were made on a Monday or Friday ) I run a Cobra 25 LTD Classic that was made in China, in my car and is still going strong.

 

[dway87]

ok. i was just wondering because when people are selling cb's they always say made in phillipines. sometimes taiwan or china. i figured that was the case but i thought i just might ask anyways.

 

[Thestonerguy]

ok. i was just wondering because when people are selling cb's they always say made in phillipines. sometimes taiwan or china. i figured that was the case but i thought i just might ask anyways.

It's a "GOOD-BETTER-BEST" scenario. Top of the heap would be "Made in Japan", at the bottom it would be "Made in China" with the rest stuck in the middle.

 

[DTB Radio]

I personally haven't seen that much difference between them, other than some of the early Chinese radios using lower-wattage resistors that occasionally failed. The only exception might be some of the VERY early Taiwan radios (29GTL and LTD), which seemed to have better mic preamps than some of the newer ones.

 

[PLUTO]

ok. i was just wondering because when people are selling cb's they always say made in phillipines. sometimes taiwan or china. i figured that was the case but i thought i just might ask anyways.

......That pretty much sums it up, "when people are selling CBs" if it is made in the Phillipines others will jump on it. I agree with DBT, not that much difference, although I didn't know about the mic preamp issue....thanks for the info

 

[dway87]

So if I bought a radio made from Taiwan, I shouldn't really have to worry? Yall are the experts so I trust yall's judgment.

 

[PLUTO]

So if I bought a radio made from Taiwan, I shouldn't really have to worry? Yall are the experts so I trust yall's judgment.

.....I'm far from being an expert but have years of experience( started at 15...now 48 ) and do repair work from time to time. There are many on this forum that are way ahead of me in the knowlege dept. But anyway.....don't worry about the radio being made in Taiwan, as long as it hasn't been butchered (modulation limiter clipped or removed, ect.) it should perform as good as the others. 73s.......Pluto

 

[dway87]

Ok Thanks Pluto.

 

[PLUTO]

you're welcome

 

[psycho]

So if I bought a radio made from Taiwan, I shouldn't really have to worry? Yall are the experts so I trust yall's judgment.

.....I'm far from being an expert but have years of experience( started at 15...now 48 ) and do repair work from time to time. There are many on this forum that are way ahead of me in the knowlege dept. But anyway.....don't worry about the radio being made in Taiwan, as long as it hasn't been butchered (modulation limiter clipped or removed, ect.) it should perform as good as the others. 73s.......Pluto

Not all radios sound like junk when you remove the modulation limiter.

 

[PLUTO]

So if I bought a radio made from Taiwan, I shouldn't really have to worry? Yall are the experts so I trust yall's judgment.

.....I'm far from being an expert but have years of experience( started at 15...now 48 ) and do repair work from time to time. There are many on this forum that are way ahead of me in the knowlege dept. But anyway.....don't worry about the radio being made in Taiwan, as long as it hasn't been butchered (modulation limiter clipped or removed, ect.) it should perform as good as the others. 73s.......Pluto

Not all radios sound like junk when you remove the modulation limiter.

............Mabye not, but ask yourself: "Why was this limiter installed at the factory?" Some people are so impressed when they see that swing on the wattmeter.....after clipping D whatever or removing Q whatever. Then you put that same radio on a Bird 43 and see the look of confusion on thier faces.....could it be harmonics fooling the other meter? Not to mention the fact that since the radio "bleeds" quite a few channels......more power? Again harmonics or splattering other channels. I've had people insist that I clip the limiter on thier radio....then they get a power mic and have to turn the mic gain way down to stop the squeal or overmodulation....kinda defeats the purpose, wouldn't you think? And theres that putting the hammer down on the components thing. Some people like the limiters clipped and some don't......I don't, in fact, when I get a used radio and the limiter is cut or missing.....I replace it. Just my preference so now I'll get off my soap box

 

[N8YX]

Not all radios sound like junk when you remove the modulation limiter.

No, but 95% do.

ask yourself: "Why was this limiter installed at the factory?"

Because people who understand electrical engineering principles thought it a GOOD THING to include in their products. If the manufacturers could get away without adding such circuitry, they would. Bottom line, profits and all that.

Some people are so impressed when they see that swing on the wattmeter.....after clipping D whatever or removing Q whatever. Then you put that same radio on a Bird 43 and see the look of confusion on thier faces.....could it be harmonics fooling the other meter?

The only way to know for sure is to use a properly set up spectrum analyzer - one that can display narrowband (~1MHz) and wideband ( >100 MHz) sweeps.

Not to mention the fact that since the radio "bleeds" quite a few channels......more power? Again harmonics or splattering other channels.

Correct. And a sure-fire way to draw unwanted attention to yourself, especially if operating "freeband".

...when I get a used radio and the limiter is cut or missing.....I replace it

Good for you. And try to educate your 'customers' about removing the limiters, please. Not only does it create a splatter problem, it'll also void the radio's type acceptance (if the set ever had one to begin with).

 

[Lazybones1222]

"Why was this limiter installed at the factory?" Some people are so impressed when they see that swing on the wattmeter.....after clipping D whatever or removing Q whatever. Then you put that same radio on a Bird 43 and see the look of confusion on thier faces.....could it be harmonics fooling the other meter? Not to mention the fact that since the radio "bleeds" quite a few channels......more power? Again harmonics or splattering other channels. I've had people insist that I clip the limiter on thier radio....then they get a power mic and have to turn the mic gain way down to stop the squeal or overmodulation....kinda defeats the purpose, wouldn't you think? And theres that putting the hammer down on the components thing. Some people like the limiters clipped and some don't......I don't, in fact, when I get a used radio and the limiter is cut or missing.....I replace it. Just my preference so now I'll get off my soap box

This is a great summary. Most of my locals do all the wrong things and lend a deaf ear when I preach the "gospel" stated above. Oh well. Funny how I have a stronger signal than most with less watts though. 8)

 

[Switch Kit]

Really nothing to debate here , been there none that over the forum walls over the years. Most who have been around long enough to learn something know why it isn't best to clip audio limiters. Why do it especially if theres a VR pot in the radio to begin with ?(even then it can still be to much at times) There are a lot of radios over the years that do not have vr's in them , you can still work something else out with the use of resistors in line with the limiters , I've heard many a clipped radio over the years and they didn't sound bad and the bleed over was minimal , when power was applied to the radios , it was surely a messy situation even still , IM to old to argue or waste my time with others of this fashion . I could have spent the last 20 years moaning and groaning everytime I turned my radio on (nobody wastes there time better then I do,been there done that too many times,I think I finally got a clue over the years)) concerning channel 6 day in and day out in my area , You want to clip your diode ? Go ahead !! I won't curcify you for it but chances are ,somebody else will. there have been many a radio that clipping the diodes very seldom made it to 100% I personally didn't see much of a hurt in those cases .........there are no big deals in this life unless we chose to have them . I'll just pass on the mess . It kind of reminds me of voting , less then half of America do so , maybe if "they" were more educated on how much a differents others could make , maybe then the voting numbers would grow ? Like a limiter diode , maybe folks that would have a better understanding might not cut them if they only knew they would be utalizing more of there power rather then wasting it to other channels above and below the ones there on ? .....been there done that guys !! Cb'ers tend to make there own rules and really don't give a $hit about what's really going on with there equipment. They tend to think if they ain't bleed'in 10 channels both ways , they ain't get'in out.