I recently got my hands on a Superstar 3900, a well known 11 meter radio. Condition on the 11 meter band have been very poor lately so I have not yet had the chance to really test the SS3900, in fact I have yet to make a QSO with it. The SS3900 has been around for many years and has stood the test of time very well.
Seems like a very solid and well built radio and from what I have read on the net this is a popular radio, mainly due to the price but also because it is very simple to use. There is not a single button on the SS3900, just knobs and switches.
Seems like a very solid and well built radio and from what I have read on the net this is a popular radio, mainly due to the price but also because it is very simple to use. There is not a single button on the SS3900, just knobs and switches.
The SS3900 has no frequency display which nearly all modern radio's have however you can get a frequency counter for the radio. I have the Superstar KF VI frequency counter, this is designed to use with the SS3900 only, it will not work with any other radio which is a shame considering it's price.
My SS3900 was bought in the UK but came with only a French manual, very handy if you can read French, net very handy if you can't, like me! I was having trouble with the band selector knob, when I changed bands nothing was happening, the radio was stuck on the EU band. Turns out you need to pull out the "SWR CAL" knob to access all the bands.
I do not like the supplied microphone, it feels lightweight and cheap. The microphone lead is also too short. Don't get me wrong it probably works fine but I will be using an Astatic power mike with the radio.
All in all the SS3900 is a nice bit of kit and I would recommend it to anyone.
108TM096
