*Correction:* The unknown music station is actually 830 WCRN from Worcester, Massachusetts, not 920 kHz as I said in the video. They play '60s-'80s music from 7:00 PM to 4:00 AM (Eastern time).

These cost 10-12$ in India. Good to know these sets reached US of A, there is still a huge cottage industry in India and radio listening is still very big in rural areas. I built quite a few of these with AF113 and AC128 transistors( old BEL India numbers) in my days mid 70s prior to CXA made appearance. Most of the capacitor and transformer s are still hand built in India in small workshop s with not more than 5-8 people. Good old days.

1. My T-22 arrived two days ago and I've already broken the top section of the antenna. A new record. 2. I'm all the way down in Kentucky and CFZM sounds even better on my T-22. May as well be listening to Stereo 89 WLS in 1984.

*slaps cover of battery compartment* This bad boy can fit 1 power supply

Bought one based on your last video and I cannot believe how good this thing works for something that looks so cheap. It is straight up the best sounding AM radio I have ever used.

Plenty of room inside to mod. 1) Add an earphone socket 2) Add an external antenna socket/bypass the ferrite rod for shortwave reception 3) Add a charger/charger port

very famous chip indeed, many of the multiband receivers in late 90's were holding an cxa1619 in a smaller package. glad to see they're still in use.

Almost seems like somebody bought some old factory tooling, molds, etc. and cobbled some modifications to start making radios with it again.

There should be a badge exclaiming "ONE Transistor" LOL.

I love how simple and effective this radio is, it seems like such an honest product. It looks like there's very little to go wrong. Even if a component _does_ fail, the components look cheap and easy to replace. I wonder if that eBay seller delivers to Australia...

Tell me, how did you find it?!!? I'm from India and 46 years old and never seen this radio in India in my life!!!!! I'm pretty aware of almost all of the electronics brands that were and are available in India. For eg. the now non-existing Bush, Murphy, Philips and others... but never seen this thing. A nice surprise indeed!!

A good sounding radio - I don't need one, but I'm glad they're still available.

"It's good to know that someone didn't sneak in here and replace it." lmao

That circuit board brought me memories... I used to repair portable radios back in the 1990's and I saw many boards that looked pretty much the same.

According to the datasheet this uses the traditional 455kc IF frequency on the AM band. It also features AVC on the AM band, and AFC on FM band for stable, drift free reception. Pretty good for what it is!

CXA1619 was the most popular chip used for these 'analog' purpose in India until analog fm was replaced by PLL Synthesisers embedded in all in one USB chips. I would say it was a fabulous chip and produced robust reception with minimal passive components. They were also used in some mid-cheap 'hifi' systems accompanied with a stereo demultiplexer. These chips are still available in a readymade plug and play fm kit in India at a price of approximately 50 cents (USD). Now it is upto speculation whether it is really SONY or not!

This chip is so popular in India used in most of the local brands and DIY circuit boards...sound quality is exceptional...some people use the the built-in amplifier inside the chip and some uses separate high wattage amps

Sweet! It may not look all that great on the outside, but it sure does seem to have a solid heart!

song: 🎵It's time to move to another track🎵 vwestlife: changes track on his 8-track player I love a good visual pun

There's something warm and comforting about it for sure

The Panasonic RF 2400 (not the D version) uses this chip. A very good radio with good sound quality.

HAHA! Thanks for the WLNG plug! Yes I did tell him to stay way from CARTS!

"Everybody Plays the Fool" (The Main Ingredient) was popular in my senior year of high school. It's got a hook that once it's in your head is there to stay.

Nothing beats waking up on a Thursday morning and watching a new VWestlife video.......

A third battery was the first thing I thought of, especially as the cord was clearly intended to be detachable. I've never seen a radio with a detachable cord also equipped to store the cord. Still, I'm pretty sure it was a law that the cord compartment on a radio could not be big enough to comfortably store the cord without jumping up and down on the radio to get it packed in there. The shortwave on my example works great, but the speaker sounds like it's either blown or binding.

In current Sony lineup, at least the ICF-306 is based on the same chip (they have smaller P26 and P36 - not sure if those are analog or digital tuners, but the 306 is analog for sure). This radio is 2 band AM/FM, the finish is much better than the 5 Core and it sounds very well. Can be had for not much more money (and no far away shipping...)

I'm not sure why something having a sony chip in it is surprising. Sony video encoders are in everything including rival products like the sega saturn. The semiconductor unit and consumer products units aren't the same thing.

Your Toronto fans appreciate the Toronto representation, vwestlife! Fun fact: the proprietor of that radio station, Moses Znaimer, inspired the protagonist of the David Cronenberg movie Videodrome!

What a fun video! Glad someone still makes decent cost-effective analogue radios!

It even has 5 tuning cores just like they said. It really needs a nicer case, AC-DC board, and an amp to actually use that speaker

LOL ok, I'll admit I thought the compartment could fit a power cord. Boy was I wrong lol

This video has the best soundtrack.

I wouldn't be surprised if the entire circuit board happens to be lifted from an old Sony product. It can also explain 4.5V and a "spare" cell -- as if they were working on something else, and then decided to use an existing design which just works perfectly on 3V.

4:06 Look at CF1 on the circuit board, there are two spots for a CF2 and a CF3. The CF3 spot has a jumper on it. My guess is that CF2 and CF3 could have been for two additional FM ceramic filters. Some are asking "so what"? Well, if you have more FM ceramic filters in the radio. The radio should be more selective on FM. If you replace the existing 230 khz Ceramic Filter with a 180 khz or 150 khz filter, your radio will be much more selective than before and should be better for FM Dxing. What that means for you is, you should be able to pick up the Philadelphia FM stations (like 98.1 WOGL) right next to your NYC and Central NJ locals (WMGQ 98.3) with just one simple ceramic FM filter change.

Might pick it up for the novelty. Stuff like this wont be around forever.

Mine arrived yesterday. Thanks for opening yours up.

Ordered one after I saw the first video. I got it yesterday, two days after I placed the order on eBay! Thanks for opening it up. I was thinking of doing that myself, now I don't have to. Even though it's a little crude, it seems to be a pretty good performer for the money.

Sony CXA series is very popular among both 3rd party and armature radio units. No surprise at all!

I just made a video on this today inspired by your first video.

Can't beat a genuine Sorny or Panaphonics, just be careful of those Magnetbox ones though... :P

I purchased one from Amazon. It's truly an excellent radio that I love. Again, a fine review.

Great video bro! You know, I am from India, and I must say I have never heard about this brand before. I searched up on 5 Core radios and they simply are just not available on any online store here in India. Went on their official website, and though the radio is listed on there, the price is in USD rather than Indian Rupees - I guess the company has decided to market to a foreign audience, and maybe that makes sense since radios do not have a market anymore here in India, I don't see anyone buying a radioset in 2021 (except for nostalgia's sake). As far as AM-FM radios are concerned, one old Indian brand that comes to mind is Santosh - I think they still make radios, though I have no idea if they are analog units.

Great job! This is the first time I watch your channel and really enjoyed it! AM radio is still great to listen.

Thanks for sharing this find! Just ordered mine today!

Nice to see the full-size variable capacitor. I am guessing they are kind of hard to mass-manufacture hence why most radios go with digital tuning.

I installed the SFU-455B (CF3) and I believe it did help the selectivity and stability on AM. The installed CF for FM at CF1 is ok as it is. The open spot for CF2 should be for the CDA 10.7 CF (CF3 on the CXA1619BS data sheet) but will involve cutting some traces and running a couple bodge wires. I have this CF but not installed it yet. The datasheet also indicates an antenna filter (part PFWE8) which I have not been able to find anywhere. Also I bought a few of these radios and one had a bad Yellow IF can with an open secondary, they cut the trace leading to the IC and jumpered both secondary pins back to the primary effectively eliminating that IF stage. I was able to find replacement IF cans and installed one of those (this IF can has no capacitor on primary or secondary). The rough alignment I did was to listen for the band of static on SW and adjust it so that the static falls within the range of the dial scale. These IF cans are getting hard to find now as well so it may be a good idea to get a few (red, black, white, yellow) when you can find them. I also followed the datasheet and added a tuning indicator LED (as shown int he data sheet (both resistors at 1K ohms these adjust the LED brightness and dimming speed) and installed it in the corner gap opening between the dial string right behind the red 5 Core logo on the T-291.

I bet this was redesigned at some point to use the chip solution, and that may not have been the first revision based on the case design. The 4.5 volt version probably was all discrete transistors.

Thanks for the video, Kevin.

nice radio! thanks to open and show us! Greetings from Argentina!

based on your recomendation I bought the 5 Core TC-22 and will be using it this weekend. Thanks.

That ending tho, right in the feels somehow.

As it was said on Saturday Night Live, "You can put your weed in there!"

What a great follow-up to an already great original video. VWestlife content at its finest.

2:11 - She comes down from Yellow Mountain... On a dark, flat land she rides... On a pony she named Wiiildfiiiiiiiiirrre... 5:50 - Abbey Road, No Jacket Required, Best of The Doobies, Can't Slow Down... All outstanding albums. You definitely got me giggling right at the end. You clever bugger! :-)

Picked up one of these and love it. Sounds very good for the price.

Laughed out loud at the original speaker joke.....always good fun watching your videos. Keep up the good work, all the best from Scotland (-:

That's some of the best sounding AM I've heard in quite a while. My modern tuners in my hifi and car can't seem to pick up much of anything, or they mask weak signals.

They filled in the old DC-in ports but left all of the old incorrect text because adding material to the part involves machining the cavity which is fairly cheap, whereas removing the text requires welding the cavity and then re-machining it which is more expensive.

Great job as always.

My last dumpster dive, I found a portable electric fan with AM/FM radio built-in and can do operate at AC or battery. It has the same Sony chip on it. Very sensitive receiver, it can pick up probably Chinese AM broadcast or some SE Asian am at night.

I bought one based on this video. FM reception here n the boonies is excellent. After dark, if one's willing to put up with fiddly tuning and no bandspread, SW is also excellent. Recommended!

I just received my T-22. Fabulous AM and FM reception. Tunes in AM stations my other radios only dream about.

Thanks for upload this video VWestlife 👍

Amazing. I may have to get one of these depending on what that will be like for here in the UK.

It surprising how many devices you can find Sony branded components in them. Great simple radio!!

Love your reviews

So that's why this radio performed well. You can't go wrong with a radio made with Sony parts.

Thanks for the video and have a good day

Incidentally the CF *ZM* 740 is from "Zoomer Media", owned by Moses Znaimer, who likes using 'MZ' (his initials) and 'ZM' (his company) in the station calls.

Clever editing!

You really are the technical guru for the vapour scene 😁

CFRW! Winnipeg represent :D The last thing I need is to buy another radio, but man oh man am I ever tempted.

They seem to sell 5 Core radios on the Walmart and Sears website too! Says on their eBay page that they've been around since 1984. Would be interesting to find out more about the company - can't find much about it.

"its good to know someone didn't sneak in here and replace it" - ya got me

Look closely at the circuit board, and it becomes apparent that some components have been deleted as cost cutting measures. Two ceramic filters are missing (one has a jumper clearly visible). The good treble response on AM is a side-effect of this. However, Shango066 reviewed one of these radios, and he found that stations "bled" excessively. This specimen performs much better. Possibly, the engineers came up with a design revision that allowed the AM section to develop acceptable selectivity without using a ceramic filter. If I had to take an educated guess regarding the function of the five adjustable cores in the radio, it would be: -MW local oscillator -SW local oscillator -SW RF -MW IF -FM quadrature detector

(a) On 5core.com (vintage audio section) you can see they call this radio TC-22 or T-291. Looks like they sell it worldwide. (b) The radio back shows mold parts for "4.5V" and for "AC 220V". Changing the design to use only two cells is a big improvement - batteries are often sold in packs of two or four. Inconvenient if a device needs three cells. The empty space in the battery compartment, and the unused space for an AC transformer shows that plastic case mold designs were often used for multiple product versions. E.g., one stationary verdsion with AC 220V, one with external low-voltage power jack, and one for battery-only operation. Quite common in the past. Molds are expensive to make. (c) Sony Corporation has a semiconductor barnch that produces and sells integrated circuits. That the radio chip is from Sony does not mean at all they produced the whole unit. Maybe 5core made or bought the design and just produces the radios. You can buy the CXA1619BS in bulk, if your want. Nice chip, by the looks of it. Works from 2V up to ca. 7.5V, so you could power it with 4.5V with out any harm for the chip.

I see it's a very robust radio, despite of the quality molding

Who could imagine that.Few years ago it was impossible for me to find in my local shops to buy the special thread used for tuning to replace a broken one in a vintage hi-fi set.

I didn't know that ANYONE was making actual analog radios today. I'm going to have to get one! 👍😊👍

Thank you so much for this awesome video , When the music started at the end , I was lost there for a moment , untill that click sound brought me to earth .

Ooooh I love AM 740!! I listen to them all the time!

This chip was probably used in India's latest successful moon mission. Well done India, you have many intelligent people .

The spring that forms the earth connection to the battery on the left seems very stretched. They are usually coiled much tighter, and sit much closer to the battery. This suggests to me that they did indeed plan for a further cell, especially as the space left over is too small for one.

Thank you for the video! :)

Cool radio! I might have to consider getting one.

I think you're looking for Zoomer radio, a Toronto station. They broadcast on FM 96.7 and AM 740. I was surprised you can receive a Toronto station from where you are.

Nice a new video from my friend Kevin.

It makes me want to dabble in AM radio a bit more... thanks for the follow up video an the nice Sony surprise indeed

Nice to see a radio with a honking long ferrite bar on the AM antenna. That probably goes a long way to explain why it receives as well as it does. I'm kind of curious as to whether it could be improved by changing the position of the coil on the bar and by tweaking the tuning capacitor.

that ferrite antenna is huge! that's why AM reception is so good

The Sony chip itself dates back to at least 1999, and I highly doubt this would be a current production item. DIP through hole chips are pretty much a thing of the past, having long given way to SMD types. And the physical construction of this radio really screams "last century". Probably enough surplus stock of the chip lying around to keep this model alive for a while. Performance certainly seems decent, but hardly state of the art for an AM radio. Where the technical performance of analog radios is concerned, I think we reached the peak in the early 1970's. Everything since then points to cost savings and simpler production. The cheap digital sets also appear to be pure junk, as evidenced by the fact that this crude set beats the snot out of the fancy "retro" Panasonic. My go to portable is a Grundig 6001 Satellit 210 from 1972. As analog portable radios go, it doesn't get much better than this.

As a Winnipeg resident, that CFRW ad freaked me out.

i’ve owned my 5core T-291 for two weeks now and I really love it. It’s just such a piece of crap but so good at the same time. Yes it arrived with the ferrite bar broken off and loose in the case, I zip tied it in place and it made me love it even more. It just strikes that balance of quirky, cool and crappy so well. I like it so much that I ordered some rechargeable D batteries for it. I’ll keep this thing around for a while.

Living in NE Ontario, I listen to CF Zee M 740 all the time. Great tunes, and their all-night jukebox is awesome. Although the new commercial free 1220 CFAJ from Niagara Falls has been winning me over, running an "anything goes" 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s playlist with Top 40 hits and unusual stuff like the Pink Panther theme, Neil Diamond - Love on the Rocks, Styx - Mr Roboto, Men at Work - Overkill, Moody Blues - Gemini Dream, Bee Gees - How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Beach Boys - I Get Around, Prince - Purple Rain, Ambrosia - You're the only woman.

Nice, Zoomer Radio! That's one of my favorite AM stations to pick up even though I'm hundreds and hundreds of miles away.

Shango's was broken in transit, floaties all in the cabinet. The pcb had broken allowing the antenna to flop around. His was the other model, T-291, with the tasteful extra nomenclature on the front. It did sort work, but the selectivity was abominable.

Thanks for the update video looking inside. Proper IF cores and ceramic filter and analogue IC, very 80's in a way.

You get what you pay for. That's quality where it's needed and not where it's manageable...this is to make the cheapest possible radio for the poorest with enough features, yet maintaining functional quality. That's called "Indian jugaad". A principal difficult to understand the concept of, for westerners but it works wonders in a pinch. But but...I do agree...the manufacturing quality, mostly in electronics, needs to be better for global standards.

I Love old stuff like old radios or TV vintage, so cool for me . Nice vid, new sub😊

There is a datasheet out there for this radio from Sony which is pretty interesting. There is also a surface mount version of this chip CXA1619BM. Neither are available for small orders (apparently), as the data sheet is marked to contact Sony Sales for availability.