If the XDR-F1HD radio is used in a country that does not broadcast HD Radio (i.e. Others use their multicast channels to rebroadcast weaker co-owned signals in the same city, or they may rebroadcast a popular AM radio station in the market. Many stations use the secondary channels to air different music formats. Stations broadcasting in HD can air several multicast channels of audio that is different from their main analog signal. HD Radio is the digital radio standard in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, and a few other countries worldwide. The signal bar is probably not as good, or as accurate, as analog signal meters on older radios, but it is better than nothing. HD Radio signals will try to decode with a ‘2’ signal bar, with frequent droputs. It appears that RDS has to have at least a ‘2’ signal bar to decode, while HD Radio will only fully decode with a ‘3’. I really like that the radio has a signal meter on its display. The radio does not experience any bleedthrough whatsoever, even when I’ve been less than a mile from the local transmitters. The F1HD tuned in the distant signal clearly without any interference from the local station next door. That is simply not possible on most radios out there without serious modifications to the innerds of the radio. While in Myrtle Beach, SC on vacation in 2012, I was able to log a station on 97.9 FM at 485 miles away via tropo with a local 100 KW blowtorch on 97.7 FM at 13 miles away just one tick up the dial. The sensitivity and selectivity on the F1HD is phenomenal. Regular analog reception on the Sony XDR-F1HD without RDS or HD radio reception. There’s simply no other radio out there that rivals it, although the Airspy R2 SDR radio comes close. The F1HD is, hands down, a solid 10/10 with regard to all aspects of analog DXing. Although I would’ve preferred a knob that I could turn, the buttons are easy to use, although it is difficult to find them sometimes if the radio is used in a dark room. The tuning buttons are located on the top of the unit, directly above the screen. The radio’s blue display is very bright upon plugging it in, but it is easy to turn it down in the radio’s menu. The radio’s S3HD clone does, however, have a built-in headphone jack. The F1HD does not, however, have a headphone jack, so you would need to use the headphone jack of whatever you are connecting it to if you would like to listen via headphones. The radio has RCA left and right audio outputs, which makes connecting it to a stereo system or a computer (with a RCA to 3.5mm headphone jack patch cable) very easy. Other DXers have reviewed the XDR-F1HD and I highly suggest that you read their reviews, too: Both radios, although different on the outside, are identical under the hood and have the same performance as noted in this review. The Sony XDR-F1HD radio (left) with the Sony XDR-S10HDiP (right). The only difference in the XDR-F1HD is its screen and smaller form factor. I highly suggest you pick up a S10HDiP or S3HD if you can find one, as this review applies equally to all three radios. Thankfully, the radio is identical under the hood to the Sony XDR-S10HDiP and Sony XDR-S3HD, and those radios can be found much closer to its original MSRP price on eBay today. If I could go back, I would’ve purchased a dozen of them–not to sell at a premium, but to keep as backups. The radio’s price at time of release in 2008 was $99. Although discontinued many years ago, the radio is still heavily sought after by DXers and radio enthusiasts, often selling for over $250 used on eBay. The Sony XDR-F1HD is, in my opinion, the best radio ever made. The Sony XDR-F1HD tuned into an HD Radio signal on. I decided to rewrite my review in 2020 to include historical observations, better descriptions of the radio’s performance, and to add better photos. I was one of the first DXers to obtain the radio and review it.Įditor’s note: I originally reviewed this radio in 2008. Released in 2008, the Sony XDR-F1HD was one of the first commercially-available HD Radios available in the United States.
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