Radio
Boy
Cosmopolit Stereo radio cassette
recorder - 1991 - 1996?
(Sorry about picture
quality, I'll get a better one eventually!)
Obtained via Ebay
in 2004, this set had a curious intermittant fault which eventually turned
out to be dirty contacts on the plug/socket between the 2 circuit boards.
After a little haggling with the seller, who claimed it had been working
fine, we settled on half price, £15, (about $22US) for which I consider
myself lucky to have snagged a very useful bargain.
I'll go into details
about what it can do, and how well it can do it, in my review,
but for now, let's just say this is one very useful and versatile addition
to the stable, which has rapidly become one of my most used sets.
It's noticable that
Grundig didn't give it a model number, eg/ Cosmopolit 700, Cosmopolit 160,
or whatever. This suggests to me that they never intended it to be a model
line, replaced at regular intervals, which is a shame! Maybe they didn't
expect it to sell very well. Maybe they were right, for they do seem quite
rare, few appearing on Ebay. Or maybe that's because owners don't want
to part with them!
Specification:
Radio section:
Styling:
Extremely compact format
allows little scope for styling the shape, which is long and low, but lots
of detail styling, computer style lettering, and some clever solutions
to problems like "where to put the tuning scale" result in a unique appearance.
Country of manufacture: Tiawan.
Size: 92 mm high x 200
mm wide x 42 mm deep.
Weight (excluding batteries):
0.5 kg.
Power supply:
Internal; 3 x AA cells,
4.5V (Radio) and 1 x CR2016 lithium cell (clock).
External; 6V DC, via
5.5mm plug, centre negative, (NR30-75 was available)
Battery meter: Battery low
warning light, combined with "record active" light.
Tuning method: Analogue
Wavebands:
FM: 87.5-108 mHz, Mono
or Stereo. AFC: No.
MW 515-1630 kHz, mode:
AM
SW1 49m band, 5.85-6.30
kHz, mode: AM
SW2 41m band, 7.05-7.50
kHz, mode: AM
SW3 31m band, 9.40-10.0
kHz, mode: AM
SW4 25m band, 11.5-12.2
kHz, mode: AM
SW5 22m band, 13.45-13.95
kHz, mode: AM
SW6 19m band, 15.05-15.70
kHz, mode: AM
SW7 16m band, 17.40-18.10
kHz, mode: AM
IF's:
FM; 10.7 MHz
AM; 455kHz (Single conversion).
Tuning meter: Yes - LED for
signal strength.
Local/DX switch: No
Aerials: Ferrite rod for
MW, Telescopic for FM & SW
Dial illumination:
Mono selection: Yes, on radio
only, not on cassette.
Sockets:
Inputs;
External DC, 5.5mm centre
negative. NR30-75 Ac adaptor was optionally available.
Outputs;
Headphone socket, stereo
3.5mm.
Output power: 400mW Peak
power, (internal speaker)
2 x 80mW peak power, (headphones).
Speaker: 2 inch diameter.
Tone control: Treble switch.
Clock/Timer: Yes, one
event, one hour activation, can be used for radio, cassette, bleep alarm,
or radio or microphone recording.
Cassette section:
Tracks: 4, Stereo.
Tape speed: 4.75 cm/s
Frequency response: 100-10000
Hz
Signal/Noise ratio: >40
dB
Wow & flutter: <0.40%
Auto stop: on record or
playback only (buttons are released).
Recording level: Automatic.
1 built-in condenser microphone.
Tape types:
Tape counter: Yes
Special features:
Electronic pause control.
My
review of this unit