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Old 18th May 2017, 10:17 pm   #1
Bristol603
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Default Grundig Yacht Boy 210

I purchased this radio on the basis of photos which showed it to be dirty but with underlying good cosmetic condition, i.e. complete, unbroken, and with good clear button labels. The description said untested and it was not a surprise that when it arrived that it was dead - no sound on any band and apparently power not even reaching the battery meter.

30 minutes, four new electrolytic capacitors, and a few squirts of switch cleaner later yielded a radio working well on all four bands. Cleaning the radio up took longer. I had a spare of the optional mains power supply and so I put that in place before closing up the case.

I think the radio is very handsome and looks particularly good in the dark with the dial illuminated. The sound whilst clear is certainly bass rich with the bass enhancement switched in. Pulling out the tone control turns this off and I prefer that sound.
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Old 18th May 2017, 11:02 pm   #2
g4aaw pete
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Looks very good Nigel.
I particularly like the aluminium front grill.

I had one the faux-wood facia type at one time, and as you say, the sound quality is very pleasing.

Regards
Pete
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Old 19th May 2017, 9:30 am   #3
alanworland
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Super set!
I used to yearn one of these as I walked past Rumbellows on the way to School.
Finally got a good one a few years ago - lovely, but best without the extra bass!

Alan
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Old 19th May 2017, 9:36 am   #4
Bristol603
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Thank you.

To my ears it seems to sound most balanced at lower volumes so perhaps it will make a good set for the bedside table. Running off external power would leave the dial illuminated - a useful night light?

Nigel.
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Old 22nd May 2017, 3:40 pm   #5
mhennessy
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Recently I posted a series of measurements of my N210 - taken using a measurement microphone/loudspeaker testing software - and arrived at the conclusion that shorting C617 on the tone/volume PCB is the best plan. This gives a very flat frequency response, doesn't affect the volume control action, and is easily reversible if required.

I - along with many others - have complained about the bass-heavy nature of these sets many times in the past, but once I got around to properly investigating it, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to tame it, resulting in a set that is now no longer just a display piece.

If you give it a try, I'd appreciate your feedback
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Old 22nd May 2017, 11:23 pm   #6
Phil G4SPZ
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Nice classic set, well done.
__________________
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Optimist [n]: One who is not in possession of the full facts
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Old 23rd May 2017, 12:10 pm   #7
Bristol603
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Dear Mark,

I have tried your suggestion of shorting C617 to tame the bass response. It works very well on my YB210 and I will keep the modification in place. It is also quick, simple and minimally invasive.

Thank you.

Nigel.
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Old 23rd May 2017, 2:01 pm   #8
paulsherwin
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

Personally I think these radios sound fine with the tone control in the 'out' position, though I do agree that they are overly muddy otherwise. This was clearly a design decision by Grundig rather than an error. My suspicion is that they were trying to emulate the 'mellow bellow' sound of the big valve Grundigs.
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Old 23rd May 2017, 3:45 pm   #9
mhennessy
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Default Re: Grundig Yacht Boy 210

I can't remember if I did a plot with the tone control in the out position - if I didn't, I'll do one to compare that mode with the modified version...

As I've said before, I'm sure it was absolutely fine when designed, but that was before Optimod! My tests a few weeks ago reinforced that; playing CDs straight into the FM modulator with the peaks just reaching 75kHz was actually quite effective - you could advance the volume control past the first loudness tapping and the bass boost from that progressively fell away as intended before anything overloaded. But tuning to a real radio station resulted in a much louder output, with rattles from the cabinet and distortion from the amplifier.

Essentially, Grundig - who clearly intended the larger sets like these to have a "larger" sound than the smaller models - did a really good job of extracting every ounce of performance from that amplifier/loudspeaker combination. But unfortunately they left themselves with no headroom. In fairness, who could have predicted just how much things would change in the future?

Nigel, many thanks for the feedback
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