Drake R8B AM SW Ham Radio Shortwave Receiver **WONDERFUL DX UNIT** LATER SERIAL

Description

We have offered and sold around 128 of these R8B units on Ebay and have a lot of experience in testing and in verifying proper operation. This particular receiver is used and you see that it is in beautiful original condition.  Please review our pictures for specifics on cosmetic appearance.  The vast majority of the R8B's sold as used were manufactured from 1997 to 2000.  This unit has serial number 2L12940008 which establishes manufacture date of December of 2002.  The "2" is 2002, the L is December, the 1294 is the product number, and the 0008 is the 8th unit manufactured in December.
Electronically, we have fully tested this R8B and sensitivity and overall performance are outstanding.  We did not detect any issues or shortcomings with the receiver's operation.
The Drake comes with:
AC power cord
custom denim cover
original user manual
copy of the service manual
Drake R8B advertisement copy - Passport 1999
Drake R8B advertisement copy - Passport 2000
Drake receiver brochure - original
Drake R8B sale flyer
Passport (to World Band Radio) review copy - 1998
Passport review copy (retested) - 1999
Passport review copy (retested) - 2003
NASWA (North American Shortwave Association) review - Jan '98
WRTH (World Radio & Television Handbook) review copy - 2000
Passport R8B Whitepaper review
finally, included is a CD that contains the user manual, service manual, promotional materials, reviews, Joe Carr's Antenna Handbook 4th ed, RxPlus control software, schematics, and more.
We offer the above printed documents and this CD with nearly 550MB of info for free with the purchase of this receiver and do not offer them for sale.  Many of these documents are unavailable elsewhere.
The price of the Drake receiver is set at a selling price based on its desirability, condition and availability.  The R8B is no longer manufactured, but the receiver is so highly regarded that the selling price on used R8B's have remained at an elevated level due to interest and demand.
Note:  We have placed an
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in select words below to prevent unintentional keyword spamming in keeping with Ebay's requirements.
Let us talk a little bit about the R8B. This receiver was one of RL Drake's last great offerings to the DXing hobby.  Drake began it's foray into shortwave receivers with the nice, but modest SW*4 receiver.  Now 25 years later, Drake brought out the R*8 receiver in 1991.  It was well received by the market, but did have its shortcomings...some were ergonomic issues and others were functional issues.  Eventually Drake introduced the R*8A in 1995 and then a couple of years later, they hit the nail on the head with the R8B which was introduced in 1997 and was produced until 2005.  Here is a list of improvements of the R8B over the R*8:
Improved Ergonomics: Single key presses will select your mode and bandwidth
More Memories: 1000 memory positions
Faster Scanning: Scan 40 channels per second
Alphanumeric Display: Program names may be displayed on the front panel
Display & Entry Frequencies: User programmable in KHz or MHz
Cabinet Feet: Front panel tilt via a metal bail
Event Timers/Clocks: 2 Timers. The time may be programmed to remain on at all times
Improved AGC: The AGC has a smoother attack for improved SSB listening
Tone Control: Expanded control of high frequency range
FM Receive Mode: New highpass filter to reduce sub-audible tone squelch signals
Line Cord: New detachable power cord
Expanded RS-232 Control: Allows customized reports of frequency, mode, memory, channel, name, and signal strength
RL Drake no longer manufactures high end ham and shortwave gear, but their legacy for quality equipment will live on with the likes of the R8B.  This receiver has won lots of recognition from various authorities within the DXing community and rightfully so...it is one HOT receiver...offering the benefits of high sensitivity, choices of selectivity, synchronous detection, passband tuning, an effective noise blanker, multiple modes of reception...AM, FM, USB, LSB, CW and RTTY, two VFO's, two clock times (local and universal), choice of antennas from the front, 1,000 presets for memories, and a preamp for the weak signals.  The R8B covers Longwave, AM, Mediumwave, Marine, Shortwave, Ham, and CB frequencies.  An optional adapter can be purchased to allow the receiver to pick up VHF frequencies.
In Passport's White Paper review of this receiver their final evaluation is that the R8B deserves an overall rating of 5 stars or superb.  We will quote from their summary:
"The Drake R8B receiver, a revised version of the now discontinued R8A and R8, offers superior performance for hour-after-hour listening to news, entertainment, and music from afar.  It is one of the relatively small number of radios on the market with both selectable sideband synchronous detection and a wide choice of bandwidths--both major pluses in enhancing fidelity.  The R8B offers worthy audio quality that can be even more fully appreciated when listening through headphones or a suitable outboard speaker.
The R8B eliminates virtually all our performance and ergonomic concerns about the R8 and R8A.  This new and presumably final version combines unusually capable program listening performance with excellent DX capabilities within it's price class.  This flexibility, along with attractive pricing, has propelled the Drake R8 series into a position of overwhelming market dominance among world band receivers.
Bottom Line...The sensibly priced Drake R8B is a nicely rounded receiver with nearly everything done the way it should be.  It is equipped with five well-chosen bandwidths, selectable-and double-sideband synchronous detection, passband offset, variable notch filtering, and a wealth of other goodies that perform as they should...along with appropriate ergonomics and superior factory service.
While there are other receivers that are a skooch better for program listening or DXing, or have comparable ergonomics, there is no other receiver that does quite so nicely in all three categories, much less at the R8B's price. Little wonder, then, that this is the world's best selling world band tabletop receiver."
Here are some reviews on the R8B in case you really want to research this unit:
https://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/494
(copy and paste link into your internet browser)
This unit works on multiple voltages so can be connected to AC in a variety of other countries other than the USA and Canada.  If you would like to read some technical specs, please visit this page:
https://web.archive.org/web/20040603121144/http://www.rldrake.com/swl/R8B.html
(copy and paste link into your browser)
At this point, we believe that we have given you what info we have on this receiver.  Feel free to email with any other questions and we will do my best to try to help out with them.  Most questions will likely be with regards to shipping cost.  Those buyers living in the USA may use the Ebay calculator for their cost.  About of this cost is for the purchase of insurance that is expensive, but necessary.  Shipping may be via either USPS parcel post or by FedEx depending on your location and the shipping cost.
Buyers located outside the USA may also use the Ebay calculator.  During the past few years, we have shipped to 110 countries the past 23 years on Ebay and we are happy to ship this receiver to you.  Shipping will be via US Express airmail and insured.
Please remember that you may be responsible for all import, customs, duty or VAT fees in accordance with what your country requires if any additional fees may be charged to you.
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy day to look at our Ebay items!