AR3030 General
Coverage Receiver
AR3030 General
Coverage Receiver
All stocks of the AR3030 have been sold and the unit is no longer in production. We will keep this page here for future reference though.
The AR7030 is a high performance HF (0-30MHz) receiver that has been designed and built by AOR (UK) Ltd.
When the AR3030 was first placed onto the drawing board the R& D team at AOR had the dream of producing a high quality DDS (Direct Digital Synthesizer) receiver with excellent filtering characteristics offered by the legendary *Collins mechanical filters. This dream has now come true a feat rarely achieved by any manufacturer whether large or small. As a listener you too can join enjoy the experience of this very special marriage of high technology and classical styling.
Most receivers employ ceramic filters, such filters offer good performance and reasonable cost. However the "best" kind of filter is the mechanical resonator filter, pioneered and still manufactured by the *Collins Division of Rockwell International. In contrast to ceramic filters, *Collins mechanical l.F. filters are more expensive and rarely used in any but the very top of the range and professional equipment.
Our aim here at AOR has been to produce a general coverage receiver using the *Collins 6kHz AM mechanical filter fitted as standard yet at an affordable price for most shortwave listeners around the World. We believe that only the very best receiver design deserves the *Collins mechanical filter, and feel our R& D team have succeeded with this goal. It is very easy to appreciate the true effectiveness of the *Collins AM mechanical filter on todays' crowded medium and shortwave bands especially in Europe after dark.
We also believe DDS is the best method available today to produce the cleanest signals, absolutely essential for high performance receive capability especially on crowded bands containing many strong signals. There are two other filters fitted as standard, these being a 2.4kHz for SSB/FAX/CW and narrow AM/S.AM & 15kHz for NFM. Additional filter options include a *Collins 7 resonator mechanical 500Hz filter for narrow CW operation and a *Collins 8 resonator mechanical 2.5kHz filter for even better selectivity on SSB.
Our "Collins inside" logo and use of name has been fully approved by Collins Rockwell and we are proud of that fact. Our pride will be lifted even higher should other manufacturers be brave enough to follow our example in the near future.
The AR3030 boasts a wide frequency coverage from 30KHz to 30MHz and all mode reception 'as standard': AM, S.AM (synchronous), NFM, USB, LSB, CW & FAX.
Tuning is via a silky smooth rotary tuning knob with a minimum step of 5Hz (selectable for faster / slower tuning), there are two VFOs and dial lock to prevent accidental loss of frequency while listening. We are so confident with the performance of the DDS that the same chip is planned for use in our new generation wide-band receiver which will tune in ultra smooth 1 Hz increments.
The AR3030 has a number of unique facilities to offer. In particular the BFO (Beat Frequency Oscillator) is switchable on USB/LSB/CW and FAX modes. During 'normal' operation the AR3030 uses true carrier re-insertion techniques for SSB reception this ensures ease of use and good audio quality.
However should adjacent interference be encountered the BFO may be switched On so that the main rotary tuning control can be used to tune away from interference and the BFO used to recover readable audio thus provide a simple but effective manual form of passband tuning. Another useful facility is the [mtr] key. As well as being able to enter frequencies in MHz or KHz, the [mtr] key allows easy access to popular Broadcast and Amateur bands. For example, to quickly access the 31 m Broadcast band while in VFO mode type [3] [1] [mtr] and start listening / tuning. easy. For the 20m 1 4MHz Amateur band type [2] [0] [mtr].
The AR3030 offers excellent stability through use of a standard fitted Temperature Compensated Crystal Oscillator (TCXO). High stability is particularly important for ECSS reception where an AM broadcast station may be monitored while using USB or LSB under adverse reception conditions. Data modes such as FAX also greatly benefit from high stability.
There are 100 memory channels which allow data to be transferred into and out of memory for greatest flexibility. Memory channels retain frequency, mode, bandwidth, AGC, attenuator and tone etc. Memory channels may also be scanned in whole or part and unwanted channels may be locked out. Memory channel is indicated as a number (00 to 99) on the main LCD A separate all mode squelch circuit is provided on the front panel to help with scanning and to increase listening pleasure when monitoring a noisy channel.
A large high contrast green backlit LCD presents frequency up to the nearest 10Hz (not 1 kHz as some receivers) for accurate tuning. All relevant information is displayed on the LCD. A large colour coordinated backlit green analogue S-meter provides signal strength indication .
A standard 6.3mm (l/4 inch) headphone socket is conveniently provided on the front panel with a separate 3.5mm jack socket on the rear case for external speaker connection. There are rear panel connections for low level audio output and tape recorder remote switching. I.F. output and AGC is also available through a rear panel connector. Computer control is possible through the standard factory fitted RS232 rear panel port.
Aerial input is via a high quality 50 OHM commercial standard BNC connector, this has been chosen in place of the cheaper S0239 socket. Of course a large range of coaxial adaptors are available so connection to any aerial setup should not present any problems. High and Low impedance wire aerial input is also possible via the terminal strip which includes an external earth point.
Operation is from a nominal 13.8V DC input or from internally fitted dry batteries for short duration use to provide greatest flexibility while operating from a fixed or portable location. Two optional internally fitted VHF converters are also planned and a separate BNC aerial input connector is provided on the rear cabinet.
AOR and the [AOR] logo are trade names and marks of AOR LTD *Collins is a trade name of Rockwell International, all other trade marks acknowledged. Specifications subject to change without notice due to continuous development of the receiver. E& OE.
The AR3030 via the external RS232 connection on the rear of the radio can be controlled externally via a Computer. There are several Software packages that support the AR3030. AOR produce Concerto for Windows whilst an alternative package such as ScanCat is also compatible. For further information click here.
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