Customer Reviews:
 This is my second C. Crane Radio August 9, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
I have owned the CC Plus for 6 years. I never did think it lived entirely up to the hype, but I was happy enough with it to buy the CSW. I traveled for a living and the CC Plus has traveled many times in checked airline luggage. The display light is flickering lately, but I think it has more to do with the handling during travel than age or craftmanship of the radio. I only use either CC radio for AM and it has never let me down. The twin coil ferrite antenna on the CSW is cool. From South Florida I picked up stations from as far north as New York and as far south as Havana, Cuba.
Once T.V. stations go digital next year the T.V. audio function on the Plus will be obsolete. I plan to explore short wave too, so I feel I am good to go. I am happy with the unit.
 Absolutely terrific radio. August 3, 2008
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
I just gave up my satellite radio (because it's not really all that different from terrestrial radio), and I wanted a new, really good AM/FM radio. When I heard that the C Crane SW was made by Kaito (not Sangean), I decided to give it a try. I'm glad I did.
I live in the shadow of a 50 kW FM tower, and ordinary radios (and some not-so-ordinary ones, like the Sony ICF-2010) overload horribly on the FM signal, making the FM band practically useless. The C Crane SW acts like there is nothing unusual about my location at all--no overload problems. I can receive all the local stations and most of the stations from the next city (about 33 miles) without even extending the antenna. Stations sandwiched in on adjacent channels are not a problem either.
I was even more interested in good AM reception, and I was not disappointed. With this radio I regularly listen to a 1 kW station 32 miles away (rated by Radio Locator as a "weak signal" in my location) with solid, strong reception. The wide and narrow bandwidths are well chosen, and I have none of the "hum" problems other people have written about.
Speaking of other people's complaints in reviews here, I don't understand any of them. Repositioning the radio for best AM reception? You have to do that with any AM radio--ferrite antennas are directional, and this is a good thing, because you can tune out interference as well as tune in your station. Pressing the buttons extra hard or 2 to 3 times? No way! What's different about this radio, though, is that you have to hold in a button for a quarter- or half-second for the press to register. This is also a good thing, to prevent brushing against the buttons from having an undesired effect. Didn't work with D batteries? Did you notice the switch labeled "Battery Size:" AA or D? Out of the box mine was set to AA, which is probably the norm.
The sound produced by this radio is full and rich, much more enjoyable than the Grundig/Eton S350, which I would consider the C Crane SW's closest competitor. The tuning on the C Crane SW is PLL synthesized so there is minor chuffing as you dial up or down, unlike the S350 which has analog tuning with a digital readout. The chuffing is not at all bothersome and the design allows the C Crane SW to remember your position on each band and to provide station memories, 10 for each band.
I use the sleep function at my bedside, although I must say that calling this a "clock radio" is a disservice--both in creating false expectations and in characterizing the radio as something other that what it is: an excellent portable radio. The clock is its weakest part: mine gains several seconds every day, and there is no clock display while the radio is on.
With 4 rechargeable AA batteries installed, the radio keeps them charged when plugged in at bedside. The small batteries keep the radio light in weight when I use it as a portable, and power the radio for more than long enough to suit me. I can't even imagine how long D size rechargeables would last.
All in all, a darn good radio.
Good Performer/Well Designed July 29, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Purchased the C Crane, C CSW radio about a month ago after reading many positive reviews.
Very happy with AM/FM/SW performance. Good value. Looks great. Solid. Straight forward controls. Good sound quality. Very good sensitivity. I have taken camping and found it has superior battery life. Truly enjoy this product and highly reccommend.
MHS
Great Radio July 28, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The assembly of the radio is high quality and provides clear AM/FM signals. The short wave made need a bit more band spreader control and could possibly use a BFO for sideband and code. Otherwise the radio is outstanding. I listen to a lot of the old short wave stations that I have not been able to hear in years!
 Disappointment personified July 14, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I received this radio with the AM/FM switch defective. The switch itself "wobbled" in it's socket. When switching from AM to FM one had to repeat the switching to change frequencies.
Clock radio? The clock function, digital readout, of the time does not show when the radio is turned on.
AM reception is quite poor. One must reposition the unit to get reception, even so the unit emits a continuous "hum". FM reception was acceptable.
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