The illuminated time display, which also includes seconds, can be set to show the time of day in either 12-hour (AM/PM) or 24-hour time intervals. The alarm for this receiver has a repeating beep tone which increases in volume once every 15 seconds, for up to 1 minute. The radio has an adjustable sleep timer and snooze control.

The radio frequencies can be tuned in either automatically or manually. The auto memory scan will run through and play each preset station for seven seconds. The auto preset system will hold up to 45 frequencies in memory.

The radio includes a carrying case and stereo earbuds, along with a manufacturer's warranty for one year on parts and labor.

Product Description
Sangean Electronics offers the ATS 404 that tunes continuously shortwave bands and any frequency in-between. It automatically scans every memory preset and plays each in sequence for 7 seconds. Also it automatically determines all memory presets based upon signal strength of station(Atuto Tuning System). A waking system is also present - its repeating beep tone increases in volume every 15 seconds for 1 minute (Humane Wake System). Opperates off 6V DC power Adapter ADPATS-808 (not included) or 4 AA batteries (not included). Included. Earbuds, carrying pouch.

I find its reception to be quite good, on all 3 bands.

As far as battery use, it works very smoothly with rechargables. It has a 3-segment battery indicator that displays when you first turn it on. When only 1 segment is lit, it means you are getting toward the end (maybe about 1 hour left). At that point, you can charge a second set of batteries and install them when it finally dies.

You can also just disregard the battery indicator and wait for it to die, and then charge the second set. As soon as the battery power gets too low, the radio shuts off, but still retains the time and memory station settings. It can run in this low-power mode for hours. In my case, I had 4 nicads in it that died, and it took me 6 hours to charge 4 NiMHs that I use as the 2nd set. The radio's time and memory settings were still intact when I finally installed the NiMHs (you have 3 minutes to make the actual switch). Very nice!


Excellent AM/FM reception   September 28, 2000
Mike Wilk (Western MA USA)
9 out of 10 found this review helpful

I just got this, and am very pleased. I bought it for the AM/FM reception mainly. I live in an area where reception is poor. As soon as I plugged in the ear plugs, I could hear stations normally not on around here with my walkman. Great buy, ...


Outstanding Fm Reception   January 27, 2000
P. Mistretta (brooklyn, new york USA)
9 out of 13 found this review helpful

if your like me and you can't stand the deluge of commercials on Top40/Classic Rock radio and live on local college radio stations;this radio is for you. all my favorite college radio stations come in crystal clear,everything from 89.1 WFDU to 91.1 WFMU and one of the long island radio(92.7 WLIR) stations my big digital receiver cant even find.the buttons are a little small,but that drawback out weighs the features. like a button located on the top of the radio that illuminates the LCD screen for 7 second.the Short wave is somwhat alright,i am told that the big city with all its electronics interfears with Sw reception.


Well Engineered Radio, Good Reception => Happy Customer   February 20, 2000
55 out of 55 found this review helpful

Being an electronic product designer myself, I usually end up wishing I could offer some design change orders to the manufacturers of the gizmos I buy. However, after a month of use, I haven't come up with much that I want to change here. I did find it rather awkward to set some of the time keeping functions such as zeroing the clock to get it sync'ed with WWV, but managed to get it done. The little bells and whistles such as station memory, auto scan, dual time zones, sleep and alarm functions are the sort of thing we nerdy types appreciate. However, if you don't like programming your VCR, this radio is probably not for you. The manual is written in a far eastern interpretation of British english, and consequently, for Americans, adds something to the challenge of understanding how to work all the features. Also, the radio's designers had an odd understanding of common english parlance in referencing shortwave bands to wavelengths in meters, and carried that quirky english through the radio display design, as well as the manual. However, only HAMs and avid Shortwave listeners will likely notice that.

Reception: FM sensitivity is excellent, seemingly the equal of my home stereo receiver, with excellent stereo and fidelity when listening through the included "earbuds." Those earbuds are the better quality type, too. Medium wave (AM) broadcast reception is OK. Shortwave is good. I listen routinely to BBC, Deutche Welle, Radio Switzerland and Austria, Taiwan and others, all with only the built in telescoping antenna. SW Band coverage is complete, so you can chase the BBC World Service up and down their various operating frequencies as propagation conditions vary through the day.

The only significant technical weakness of the radio, and the primary reason I didn't give it 5 stars, is battery life. I use Rayovac rechargeable alkalines and get about 20 hours per charge, which is OK, but not great. If one were buying non-rechargeable AA alkalines, the battery drain would add up to about $.25 per hour, which is a bit much, I think. A simpler radio, perhaps analog rather than digital, could be expected to go quite a bit longer on a set of batteries. I think Sangean should consider including an AC adapter with the radio, given the battery life. There's a jack to plug one in, but Sangean leaves it to the customer to find an adapter elsewhere.

Overall, after a month of daily use, I'm happy with the purchase. The radio met my expectations.


Good price for a basic shortwave radio   November 18, 1999
46 out of 46 found this review helpful

This radio is very similar to a panasonic I purchased 7 years ago, though that one was $100 and had limited sw bands. For its price, this is an excellent deal.

None of the information I could find prior to purchase explained the sw band range, which is 2.3 to 26.10 MHz, from 11M to 120M. I'm giving this radio a "4" on the basis that some die hard SW enthusiasts would probably prefer something similar to the more expensive models available from Sangean, Grundig, and others. For my purposes though, this radio is more than suitable. Radio Netherlands, Deutche Welle, BBC, Radio China, Russia, etc.. are all easily heard.

Size overall is about 4" high, 6 or 7" wide and 1.5 deep. Light and easily portable for travel.

Other details - has an alarm function, 9 am presets, 18 fm presets, and 18 fm presets. Also comes with "ear bud" head-phones and a nice case. A filter switch cuts out high end noise in the am and sw bands. Has a back illuminated light that can be turned on or off 7 seconds at a time. Has a stereo and mono switch for headphone use. An adaptor may be used instead of 4 AA batteries.

Sound projected from a small 3" speaker, but the clarity is very good without distortion. Very good reception.

In all this is a good way to own a quality SW radio.