magnum 257

[fatdude1]

hey radiorezz

here's one for ya not to sound bad or sarcastic.

Run a radio that dont make or get all that noise in the reciver


just me 2cents

 

[hotrod]

he probaly would if he had more room for it.he wants a compact radio with ssb.and magnum fits the bill.with a nice
little puch aswell.best priced radio in its class imho

 

[space cowboy]

I like mine. one of the yellow faced with with the jumpers on the daughter board. I even use the stock mic. adjusted the VR inside first though. good audio quality and volume AM & SSB. no one has ever accused me of drift and I've never heard drift on my friends 257. He sounds as good as his grants using an astatic. not a killer swinging radio, only about 2 -3 dbs worth but still some decent punch.
as far as noise in the receive, doesn't seem bad to me with the nb/anl on. noisewise though, it could do a bit better on the adjacent channel noise rejection but I've had worse. no problems with other peoples cars for the most part you get the occasional whine but not often.
I do run 5/8 and 1.5 wave top load fiberglass which I've found tends to cut down on background noise

far better radio than a midland 79-290, not as good as northstar dx990v.
glad I got it and my friend is quite happy with his as well.

 

[hotrod]

well im sure glad ya spoke up i was begining to think
this place was antimagnum.lol

 

[doctor]

Does it have an adjustable power control knob in front?, hate to take off the chassis..
Who or where can one get one of these radios..with conversion to cb and frequency expansion??

doctor

 

[space cowboy]

the originals didn't, but most that I've seen for sale have had the adjustable power already up front.
these guys are no longer made, but some places still have them in stock. bob's cb has them I think, and are recommended by magnum to do their repairs. if you look around you can probably find either the yellow or blue lighting.

 

[hotrod]

doctor ya got a pm

 

[smokercraft]

I have a blue face in the wagon and like it alot.It has the adjustable power knob in the front.It has just as good of recieve as anything that I have had in their.It drive's my blue face cobra 250 just fine.I use the stock mike on it and everybody say's it sound good.I have a astatic 575 that I might try on it when I get around to wiring it.It's not a world beater but it is a nice little radio.

 

[Recon]

In response to the electrical noise issue in the mobile, I would suggest you experiment with bonding/grounding.
I have 4 vehicles with radios installed and have no problems with alternator whine or ignition noise. One vehicle is a Ford Ranger, known for producing noise from the fuel pump.
Another vehicle is a '96 Chevy Impala SS with massive performance upgrades. My Magnum 257's receive is nice and quiet.

I have bonded the vehicles extensively to eliminate noise interference. Large braided tinned grounding straps have been bolted to the different body components in order to bond the vehicle's body into one large surface, the exhaust has been bonded as well, and in the case of the Ford, ferrite cores have been placed around the electrical leads to the fuel pump.

It is true that some radios are more susceptible to noise in a mobile enviroment, but that just means we have to do more to quiet them down.

Here is a picture I took when I was working on grounding the Impala.

Back in '64-'65 there weren't as many discussions and concerns about grounding and bonding as there is now. There was one "old timer" in our area who passed on some "tribal knowledge" about how to connect the power source directly from the battery to our CB radios to reduce (and sometimes eliminate) unwanted static and ignition noise.
We used a section of RG8 coax to connect the battery to the radio.
For inside the vehicle, we removed about four-inches of the outer layer of the RG8 to expose the weaved braided shield. Separated the weaves and twisted them into one strand. Wrapped and soldered a bare section of 14 gauge stranded wire to the braided cable and covered with electrical tape. Maybe shrink tubing wasn't invented back then....lol...lol...lol. Attached (crimp or solder) a male/female connector to the end. Attached a male/female connector to the center conductor of the RG8. Attached connectors to the radio's power cord and connected to the RG8 connectors.
Similar process for the battery end, except more outer layer had to removed so as to reach the + and - battery terminals. Installed ring terminals on the ends of the RG8 and utilized the existing bolts on the battery terminal clamps to attach the ring terminals.

 

[743SEPA]

I had the HP version in my Jeep for a while but had to take it out due to all the fuel pump noise,about 3/4 scale. Went to a 6666 and much better now.

 

[Recon]

I had a midland 79-290 mounted in the dash, and took it out because of noise, but the magnum will fit in the same spot perfectly. For the time being, I'm using a Grant XL, just leave it on the passenger seat, lol. There's no where to mount a radio in my vehicle, except in the dash, under the stereo. It's a 95 toyota 4runner with a moon roof(no ceiling mount) and 5 speed(no under dash or hump mount).
That's why I've been looking at the 257.

I watched a video (I think Bell's CB Shop) where they tuned-up a midland 75-822 handheld / walkie talkie plus added extra cannels. Nice and compact!