Manufactured by Sanyo in Japan in 1971 this elegant RP 1711 dice radio evokes the era. \u00a0Measuring approximately 8cm square the case mimics a dice with the tuning dial representing face one. Only the rear has s smaller set of six dots printed alongside the label and a 1\/8″ headphone socket.<\/p>\n
Reception is amazingly good for a six transistor superhet and certainly not a toy which I guess many ended up being. There’s no visible speaker which is hidden behind the five face. It runs on just a couple of AA cells which can get forgotten leading to a corroded battery bay. Fortunately this example is spotless and the foam is still intact on the lid – amazing for 45 year old.<\/p>\n
Face number two conceals the tuning and on\/off volume controls with these dots having a small projection across the diameter to ease rotation. I’ve seen it in various colours – red, green and black seem to be most popular<\/p>\n
There’s only a single MW band but it puled in over 10\u00a0stations by rotating the radio to maximise signal. It has a small ferrite aerial that is quite directional.<\/p>\n
Yes you may say the design is kitsch and reminiscent of furry dice first made popular in the 50s that swept through UK in the seventies. But it works well and the design detail elevates it above the cheaper plastic Hong Kong variants.<\/p>\n\n\t\t