![]() Close inspection will show whether there is any chance of a repair. Telescopic aerials on FM and DAB radios are relatively easily bent or broken. Later radios use silicon transistors, and increasingly through the 1980's and 90's used integrated circuits for some or all of the internal functions.Īll the above types of radio almost invariably follow the superhet design.ĭigital ( DAB) radios are the latest type, introduced in the late 1990's. Vintage transistor radios date mainly from the 1950's or 60's and use germanium transistors, which are less robust than more modern silicon types. They are often AM only (MW and LW, possibly SW) but post war ones may also receive FM. ![]() ![]() Individual components are wired together rather than being mounted on a printed circuit board. The oldest radios you might come across use valves. A large smoothing capacitor may retain a dangerous voltage after the radio is switched off. Virtually all vintage valve radios operate at high voltages. Don't plug them in while the case is open unless you (and any bystanders) understand how to manage the risks. Mains powered radios (except those powered by a separate "wall cube" type adapter) are likely to contain dangerous voltages when plugged in. This is covered in the companion page How radios work, which also explains any abbreviations or technical terms you may not be familiar with in this page. A slightly deeper understanding may allow you to localise some of the less obvious problems. These only require a rudimentary understanding of electrical theory. Many fixable problems with portable radios are common to many types of electronic gadgets, such as loose or broken connections or signs of overheating. On a digital radio, if the display is blank or if it can't tune any stations, that indicates a fault in the tuner section. Any slight hum or hiss from the speaker will tend to indicate that the audio amplifier is working. If there's no life at all in a portable radio, it's probably a fault in the power supply section, possibly a swollen electrolytic capacitor.
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