| Author |
Message |
    
Firebird
| | Posted on Thursday, August 23, 2001 - 4:12 pm: | 
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Does anyone have experience with Superstar 3900?
How are they? please, let me know. Thanks. |
Copper_Fan
| | Posted on Thursday, August 23, 2001 - 6:25 pm: |
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I HATE IT I HAVE THE SINGLE FINAL UNIT IT DRIFTS LIKE A SAILBOAT IN A WINDSTORM I BOUGHT THE EXTERNAL GLAXY/RANGER FREQ COUNTER AND I HATE IT AS WELL BECAUSE IN THE CAR YOU CANNOT READ THE DISPLAY IF THE SUN IS OUT ,,,IT HAS DUAL CLARIFIER KNOBS (FINE,COURSE AND THERE IS A DETENT AT THE 12 OCLOCK POSITION THAT MAKES IT A PAIN TO CLARIFY IN CAUSE ITS ALWAYS JUST OFF THE DETENT AND IT FALLS OFF I AM ALMOST READY TO USE MINE AS A WHEEL CHOCK I WOULD GET A RANGER 2950DX IF YOU WANT EASE OF USE!!!!!!!!
as for the dual final unit i have no info on that as i refused to buy one after the nightmare ive had with the single final unit and my brother in law bought the same single final unit he has the same probs so i dont think it was just a fluke
these are my opinions only |
WALKTERB
| | Posted on Saturday, August 25, 2001 - 11:58 am: |
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What the last post stated is correct, but i use it in my shop and like the radio very much, been using it since Dec 2000 and it works great! Also it sounds better on the air than the duo final radios fuller sounding modulation with the stock mike. |
Skullman
| | Posted on Saturday, August 25, 2001 - 6:17 pm: |
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Copper fan, aren't you a little harsh on the poor old Superstar? First off, yeah they do require alot of tuning to keep them in line. But, let's go a little further shall we? The Superstar costs $119, you can barley get a 40 channel Cobra for that. They do require alot of mods like that dang roger beep that can't be cut off with out cutting the trace in the board. And, you do need alot of extra stuff, like a freq. counter and/or echo board, if you're into that stuff. But, for the money the radio costs, it's worth it. It's also good for inexperienced freeband users who don't know if they want to shell out big bucks for a RCI of Galaxy. It's all about the almighty dollar. You can't buy a Harley for the price you can get a moped, but they'll both get you where you're going, just a little slower.
CEO of DEADMAN INC. |
Copper_Fan
| | Posted on Sunday, August 26, 2001 - 1:01 am: |
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Yuppers your right Skullman i have to admit which i forgot to say it works fine in the house in a more stable enviroment its just so hard to adjust the freq while in a mobile and its even harder with that Ranger/Galaxy freq counter in sunlight cause you have to cup your hand so you can read the freq then slide to what you need,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,the roger beep though i think that is only on the dual final version my radio has no roger beep but your right i was to harsh but i guess my aggrevation of the radio got the best of me LOL
PS i seen the Eagle sidewinder on the copper auction for $110.00 theres a cheap starter radio that i would recomend for a newbie ,,,what do you think?
http://www.copperelectronics.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?category=Radios&item=998884713 |
Skullman
| | Posted on Sunday, August 26, 2001 - 4:47 pm: |
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I'm with you on this one Copper Fan, the sidewinder is a great radio for those who don't want to take out a second mortgage on thier house to buy a radio like me,  just kidding. Dollar for dollar you can't beat 'em.
CEO of DEADMAN INC. |
Dallar
| | Posted on Sunday, August 26, 2001 - 6:35 pm: |
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Had one once dual final also a drifter on ssb and that detent notch is a pain where a pill can't reach. If you only use the am or fm it's a fine radio. |
HONKY TONK MAN 593 OUTTA NC!!!
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 28, 2001 - 7:12 pm: |
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WELL MINE WAS OFF AND I SENT IT TO 307 HERE ON THE SITE AND HE FIXED IT RIGHT UP LOUD AND PROUD FOR A ONE DRIVER UNIT. ITS A WELL BUILT INEXPENSIVE RADIO THAT EVERYONE SHOULD AT LEAST TRY ONCE!!!!! HAVE A GOOD ONE. |
rightwing
| | Posted on Friday, November 16, 2001 - 12:15 am: |
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i got one, and i havent had a problem since i got in in 2000. fine radio, all i ever done to it is add a 1kc switch. it came clarifier doing -7@+7 kcs right out of the box. not bad for a cheap radio. want a better radio? get a ham radio.lol |
Clay Shepperd
| | Posted on Thursday, January 31, 2002 - 1:12 pm: |
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Good Numbers guys from Oregon. I have a new SS3900HP Gold(w/dual finals) and a new SS4900B Base. I like them both. Maybe I'm not as fond of complaining. I'd sell either one to anyone without fear of dis-satisfied trade.
Blackstone
606 NW Oregon |
Magnum410
| | Posted on Saturday, February 02, 2002 - 3:44 am: |
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I have had my 3900ghp for about 4 mounths and I love this radio. Its loud, the recieve is very close if not the same as my 2510, and its super quite. For some reason it seems to filter noise better than all my other radio's. It is well worth the cash. |
Denny1820
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 27, 2002 - 12:34 pm: |
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Just recieved mine from coppers today 3/27/02. Getting ready to throw it in the mobile, and give it a try. Listened to it in the house for a while, but my base antenna's laying on the ground, so we couldn't key it up. It's a starter conversion radio for me, so I'm sure it's better than any of the stock CB's I've used. I'll have to let you people know what I think.
73's
Denny |
Daveb404
| | Posted on Monday, April 01, 2002 - 1:31 pm: |
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Hey guys this one's not bad for the buck, I wish tech181 or 307 would put together a package mod deal ie: channels to 11 meter,clarifier, 10kc jump, rogerbeep switch etc., and sell it up front and out the door, as one of coppers upgrades that would make it a great little radio. Just a thought. Must be getting tired of doing mods myself ha ha |
Mrhappy
| | Posted on Monday, April 01, 2002 - 5:04 pm: |
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Does it drift as bad as the galaxy line? |
Taz
| | Posted on Monday, April 01, 2002 - 10:58 pm: |
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Galaxy? Drift? hahaha |
bruce
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 02, 2002 - 7:13 am: |
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taz you got that right |
Taz
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 02, 2002 - 1:23 pm: |
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I never knew a galaxy drifted, mine dosent! |
Denny1820
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 02, 2002 - 8:24 pm: |
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Well, so far on AM, this little radio is a talker. I still have the stock mic on it, and the general public seems to agree! Close to 100% MOD, and a dead key of 5, swings to an easy 18, and I'm not a big talker. Not too bad for a starter radio at this price range. |
bruce
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 03, 2002 - 6:45 pm: |
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Denny1820 i fixed one a few months back for one of the officers at work thats a nice radio it should do you well
bruce |
Stuart Hungate
| | Posted on Monday, July 15, 2002 - 7:36 pm: |
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If you're going to ***** about radios I suggest you go back to your Cobra 19's or Uniden PC33's or 2 meter ham pieces of ****.
I've seen a lot of SS3900's... if they were converted right and not butchered they are exactly on frequency after the conversion and the detent is right at 5kc ending number.
Galaxy is just a name... look at the radio boards and you'll see it.. Connex 3300, Galaxy 33, General Lee they're all the same... Galaxy 88 is the ***** radio in their line... a cross country ride in an 18 wheeler with a ******* trucker and they're as good as a doorstop. See them all the time.
You want a budget radio get a Voyage 9000 or a
Connex 3300 or something like that.. Don't go with surface mount **** or anything like that...
You get what you pay for (with the exception of the Galaxy Name) buy a cheap radio and it'll sound like ****... let some wannabe truck stop tech work on it and it will sound even worse
And good God! Learn to turn down your ******* echo! nobody wants to hear a **** word you're saying and they really don't want to hear it repeated 50 times! Get a Cobra 19 if you don't want to learn to use an export.
I really think there should be a test on the CDL certification or at least a course on using the CB Radio.... We don't want to hear a donkey taking a **** or a duck getting ****.. We want to hear clean modulation and a good sounding radio.
Regards to All,
Stuart
Exit 83 CB Shop
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Skullman
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 16, 2002 - 5:56 pm: |
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Whoa, Stewie ... A little penned up anger there? Trying to teach people how to be nice and respectful is like trying to teach a pig to sing, you waste your time and just annoy the pig. CB is for FUN, although some people don't have the same idea of fun as others, it's still just FUN. You mean you're at a truck stop and you don't sell a load of echo boards and cheesy sound toys? I know I do and I operate out of my house. I hate them too, but if it sells it sells. If people want 'em I'll take their money and change channels if they annoy me with it.
Lighen up, life is too short to be so serious. |
Taz
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 16, 2002 - 6:00 pm: |
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right! LMAO! |
Stuart Hungate
| | Posted on Thursday, July 18, 2002 - 5:27 pm: |
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I run a CB Shop. I sell echo boards and cheesy sound toys but I also take the time to teach idiots to use them so that they don't bug the living shit out of everyone... More than once I have gone and taken a radio out of a drivers truck because he wasn't competent enough to use it. When he came to get it back I charged him for radio use lessons before he got it.
And as for you Skullman and Taz. Don't tell me what kind of ******* day to have or how to act.
Regards
Stuart
Exit 83 CB Shop
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bruce
| | Posted on Thursday, July 18, 2002 - 8:42 pm: |
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Suart a friend of mine here in st. pete had a shop years ago and a guy bought a radio and a few days later brought it back and tossed it at him complaining it did not work when opened all the RF slugs were tight and broke when asked why he was in the radio he said they looked loose so i tighten them down yep not so smart people are every where. |
Capncrunch
| | Posted on Friday, July 19, 2002 - 7:46 am: |
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yeah sure stuart you pull radio out of a drivers truck and charge them for lessons on using it i bet sounds like you are trying to impress someone with all that nonsense any way if you do run a truck stop cb shop you shouldnt be on here cursing about the people that pay your bills
you might end up having to put the wheels back under your[shop] and move it somewhere else fo awhile |
Bracketbird
| | Posted on Monday, November 25, 2002 - 12:03 am: |
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Stuart not to start anything but if you take many radios out of truckers rigs often and then try to charge them for lessons.....your gonna get your *** kicked. right on capn' |
Tech808
| | Posted on Sunday, August 03, 2003 - 6:33 pm: |
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Clay
Shepperd,
Please send me a e-mail.
Thanks
Lon
Tech808
e-mailto:Tech808@copperelectronics.com
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Clay Shepperd
| | Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2003 - 2:37 am: |
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Tech808,
Please send me an email.
Clay
606NW Oregon
e-mail to: clayshepperd@hotmail.com |
RCI 2990
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 10, 2003 - 2:52 am: |
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Wow!! Sounds like that dude has a 'tude problem!!!! !!
Anwhooo, I use my RCI 2970 in my ride and have had NO Problems at all with it and yes its the surface mount rig that some of you techs with the crappy atitudes towards your customers hate but for me it works great and im happy with it!!!!! |
bluecanary25
| | Posted on Thursday, October 23, 2003 - 8:12 pm: |
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I have an older SS3900, bought in '92. It is coming apart, in part to age and poor quality (soldering)PCB. Have the newer models improved any? If not, I am thinking of ordering the Voyager 9000.
Thanks for your input. |
Tech808
| | Posted on Friday, October 24, 2003 - 10:20 am: |
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bluecanary25,
Can't help you much on the SS3900,
As I have had no experience with them.
On the Voyage VR9000, I have had Great success with them and No problem's. 
Well made radio, good sounding, like the faceplate as sun does not reflect off of it coming through windshield. Good Clear (easy to see) Freq Counter.
No Mic gain, but have never found a reason to heve it on this radio. Reports we get are always GOOD CLEAR AND LOUD.
Also we have not had to put a Power mic on it to make it sound good.
Just my thought's.
Lon
Tech808 |
bluecanary25
| | Posted on Friday, October 24, 2003 - 7:46 pm: |
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To: Lon/Tech 808,
Thank you for your reply. I have read a number of your POSTS and like your opinions.
Now to break out the knee-pads and ask for some money.(Before anyone ribs me, I been married 20+ years. Same wonderful woman. I KNOW who the BOSS is. She's also reading over my shoulder.)
73's all around!! |
tony pool
| | Posted on Tuesday, February 03, 2004 - 8:51 am: |
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I just bought a SS3900 and cant get the swr set. I have tried two different antennas and still the same result. Any suggestions? |
Pointman
| | Posted on Tuesday, February 03, 2004 - 10:37 am: |
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Hello Tony,
Are you useing an external SWR Meter?
Where are you trying to set it up? Mobile? as a Base?
Have you had a radio set up there before and it had good SWR?
What kind of antennas?
What frequency are you using? If you are operating 1-40 are you using 20?
Sometimes it is an antenna adjustment, sometimes location, sometimes a grounding issue with the radio or the antenna.
It can be very frustrating, hang in there, you will figure it out. |
Applejack
Intermediate Member
Username: Applejack
Post Number: 140
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, May 01, 2004 - 10:34 pm: |
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got mine 3rd week of march. i like the look of it, can read channel in sunlight (unlike 2950)but have had trouble with it. right out of the box the meter wont work on receive worth a darn. today i had no receive or transmit on ssb. took about 1/2 hour to "warm up " or something, then it worked fine. only drive toyota on weekends, so only use radio on weekends. i dont like "opened" clarifiers either, kind of chore with radio mounted between bucket seats on cab wall. but when it works it talks. if it wasnt for wanting to get 26.7550 to talk to my base, i would probably get a TR296..... aj |
Applejack
Intermediate Member
Username: Applejack
Post Number: 207
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Monday, September 20, 2004 - 8:46 pm: |
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i still like the 3900. it talks strong, its easy to use once i got used to the open clarifier. but now it only has tx on 4 channels. 1-4 is 4.5-17 is 17.18-32 is 32, 34-40 is 7. i have not opened the case, it just went nuts. what to do? |
13PY02 (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 10, 2004 - 5:23 pm: |
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I donīt know, how the SS3900 is right out the box as i got mine 2 years ago as ?-hand. Itīs an old one with silver Frontpanel, single final (Motorola 2SC1969), switchable Rogerbeep and +10K switch. One (or some?) of the users before modified it to use the "coarse" VR on TX, too and i think, that radio has seen some screwdrivers inside...: it was about 2kcs beside the frequency, output was too high (about 20W key down) and bad RX sensitivity. As i paid only 45$ including a Kenwood LP30 lowpass, it was OK for me. I spent about 4hours for retuning and calibrating -> now itīs a very fine radio. I use it at home with a Citystar 1/2 on 9meter mast in a valley at 520m altitude as a base station. As mike i use a selfmade 2 stage preamp and a pc-headset for near connections and for DX i use an old amplified American Electronics "Lollypop" with piezo mic cartridge. Very often i use it "standmobile": i drive on a hill (880meters altitude) and put the Citystar on a 7m mast in the wood...
At home i have barefood a range of ~ 60km, with a Zetagi BV131 amp. i reach 300km and above with S3 R5 both FM and SSB.
On the hill 200km are reachable (sometimes S0 R5) and with a Zetagi B300P amp i got S9 R5 at 458km distance :-)
I tuned (re-bias to "AB" ) the TX to 8W "key down" on FM and ~15W pep SSB - so the final getīs hot on long qso, but not "very hot" and there is no problem with harmonics or tvi. There is no frequency drift (before my "repair" i had +/- 1kcs :-( )
I think, itīs the best you can get for this price - powerfull modulation, good RX - section (low noise - my Lincoln produces more noise)... The only problem: itīs made in Asia as most of modern radios and there is the risk to get a "mis-tuned" set...
Sorry for bad english - iīm a German. Locator is JO40EH, on hill itīs JO40FF
73īs all around !
& regards,
Andreas
13PY02
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Applejack
Intermediate Member
Username: Applejack
Post Number: 298
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Friday, December 28, 2007 - 11:57 pm: |
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somewhere else i already said mine was junk, but after i threw it out the back door and it bounced off the sandstone retaining wall and landed in the backyard, then got rained on ,i took the faceplate and mic off it and used them on my vr9000. they work fine! aj |
Tech808
Moderator
Username: Tech808
Post Number: 14966
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 12:37 am: |
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Applejack,
You mean after this Topic was created back in 2001 and 3 years since the last post was made to this topic you finally decided it was junk? 
But I like your  picture.
Lon~Tech808
CEF#808/HAM#001/CVC#002
Tech808@copperelectronics.com
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Mtn_man_754
Junior Member
Username: Mtn_man_754
Post Number: 20
Registered: 2-2007
| | Posted on Tuesday, January 01, 2008 - 10:19 am: |
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i have a similar experience with my president jackson - i threw it in the delaware river - i guess i thought it needed swimming lessons its probably in the ocean by now |
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