Shortwave Radio Receiver VEF 221-1

My Radio Receiver VEF 221-1 from 1993 made by the Riga State Electrotechnical Factory, Latvia, (VEF, Valsts Elektrotehniskā Fabrika).

I believe its products were once known in Britain too, in particular.

A Soviet postage stamp -- 50 Years of the VEF Factory! ... 30 more years to go before the end.

VEF 221

To be exact, VEF-221-1, a penultimate model, there apparently was also a VEF-222.

The VEF factory was created in the pre-Soviet Latvia, flourished in the Soviet period but went bankrupt in 1999 soon after independence. 

I think Latvia now has no industry worth mentioning. But in the Soviet times, Riga had two major radio factories - VEF and Radiotekhnica, a major car factory and a commuter train-making plant -- all gone now [ETA May 6, 2014: scratch that bit - new information - the train building factory is up and running - RVR]. 

Funny, how the arrival of Western capitalists almost always spells an end to the domestic industry in Central or Eastern Europe. Maybe, that is exactly the idea. Anyway, back to the radio.

This radio was made in 1993 -- probably one of the last batches of VEF products.

It's plugged and working!

I should say the pictures are not quite as good as I would like them to be -- my little camera refused to focus properly. I tried to add a little sharpness and to remove glare and all via a picture processor but we get what we get. I am not going to re-do them -- time constraints and the end (a different or better) result is by no means assured given I would have to use the same camera again. 

The box is rare too, so I start with it. 

This is an original box, it contained this very radio and still does, although it pictures a previous modification of the VEF 221 radio -- a different speaker grille.

In the lower right part you see an ink stamp marking the date of production -- April 1993, and this radio was bought in September 1993.

I have no idea whether it was exported anywhere apart from Russia but we see this inscription in several languages:

Приемник радиовещательный

Radio receiver
Recepteur radiophonique
Rundfunkemphaenger 
Radioreceptor

Mashpriborintorg -- the name of a Soviet ministry suggests the box is from the Soviet times.

3/4 view.

The other 3/4 view.

Side view.

Back of the box.

The other side.

Top.

The radio is kinda dusty in places -- 21 years in service is a long time, also the plastic is kind of sticky, especially the speaker grille. I also blame my camera.

Two sliders top left -- volume and tone.

Three buttons on top, left to right:

• On/Off switch - broke after a couple of years and was bypassed, now you stick the power cord in the mains and it's on. It was the only thing to have broken in more than 20 years.
• AFC - automatic frequency control [automatic frequency control]
• UNT - no idea what it stands for but something to do with noise reduction probably for FM tuning.

The speaker grille looks nice but as I said likes to collect dust and is rather difficult to clean.

All inscriptions on the radio are in English: 
VEF-221-1
6 band radio receiver

Radio Receiver VEF 221-1 with 6 bands: 3 SW, 1 LW, 1 MW (AM) and 1 FM.

Side view.

Top - band switch, bottom - tuning. 

Back.

It says Made in Latvia -- a post USSR radio... the very end of the end.

The other side.

 An earphones jack and a line out to tape programs and a power cable connector.

Top.

It's plugged in...

 ... and is working -- green light.

Specs

• Year: 1993
• Type: Broadcast Receiver - post WW2 Tuner
• Semiconductors: transistors
• Principle: Super-Heterodine; ZF/IF 465 kHz
• Wave bands: Broadcast, LW, MW, SW and FM
• Power type and voltage: mains 220 V / 6 x 1.5 V
• Loudspeaker: Permanent Magnet Dynamic (PDyn) Loudspeaker (moving coil)
• Power out: 0.25 W
• Model: VEF 221-1, Riga, Latvia
• Material: Modern plastics (no Bakelite or Catalin)
• Shape: Portable set with handle > 8 inch (usable without mains)
• Dimensions (WHD): 297 x 247 x 80 mm
• Notes: Coverage MW, LW, 3 SW bands and FM (88-108 MHz)
• Net weight: 2.3 kg

To write specs consulted this.

More.