Login or Register to upload images

Find RCA AR88LF rigs and spare parts on eBay Find the RCA AR88LF on Amazon
We receive a small fee if you buy through these links, which helps support this site. Thank you!

These hugely heavy and incredibly sensitive sets were, rumour has it, produced for Lend-Lease agreements with England for service in World War II. They are quite common in the UK but scarce in the US. There appear to be two 'flavours' of AR88 - the 'D' version has a frequency coverage as per above whilst the 'LF' version goes down all the way to 75kHz.

The receiver consists of two RF stages, a mixer, local oscillator, three IF stages, a detector, noise limiter, BFO, AF amplifier, output stage and power supply system. The IF amplifiers incorporate variable selectivity and a crystal filter. The sets are normally housed in steel cases but can be rack mounted.

The receivers are designed for coupling to a 200 ohm transmission line, except on low frequency general broadcast bands. For these and general use a single wire 25 to 50 ft. long can be used.

General characteristics

HAM bands
?
Frequency stability
?
Tuning steps
?
Memories
?

Receiver

RX-range
73-550 kHz / 1.48-30.5 MHz in six bands
Modulations
AM   CW  
Sensitivity
For 20dB S/N: 8µV at 1MHz, 4.5µV at 4.3MHz, 7µV at 16MHz, 7µV at 28MHz
Selectivity
5 Settings: -3dB bandwidths 15kHz, 9kHz, 3.4kHz, 1.6kHz, 400Hz
Filters
?
Receiver system
Single conversion, 14 valves
IF-frequencies
735 kHz
Image rejection
120dB at 1MHz 60dB at 16MHz 46dB at 28MHz
Audio output
2.5 W (2.5 ohm external speaker or 600 ohm headphone)

Connections

Antenna
-
Impedance
200Ω
Other
-

Electrical

Power requirements
100-260 VAC mains or 6V DC vibrator pack
Current drain RX
?
TX
-

Physical

Dimensions (w×h×d)
488 × 280 × 488 mm (19.21 × 11.02 × 19.21 in)
Weight
45.00 kg (99.3 lbs)
Form factor
Base Station
Manufactured
Between 1941 and 1945 in USA

Other features

Usage
Amateur / Ham radio operators
Features + options
Optional S-meter
Accessories
-
RigReference ID
3700
MPN
RCA-AR000088LF

Manuals, diagrams and brochures

RCA AR-88LF Instructions PDF - Unknown size, submitted by RigReference
RCA AR-88LF Schematic diagram PDF - Unknown size, submitted by RigReference
 
Upload relevant documents

Reviews & stories

Rating Title Submitted
Great vintage receiver 10 years ago by aharink

New and second-hand prices

Estimating the value of a rig can be challenging. We collect prices paid by real hams over the years to help you estimate the value of a used RCA AR88LF. Just bought or sold this model? Let us know what you traded it for and help other ham operators!

Based on historic data, today's second-hand price of the RCA AR88LF is around:

  • EUR 19.00 ~ EUR 8.00

Price History Chart

These estimates are based on the following prices:

Year Historic price Condition Submitted by
2013 EUR 60.00 Used / Good aharink
2010 EUR 50.00 Used / Fair elmer
2010 EUR 50.00 Used / Okay elmer

Login or Register to submit prices

Links & tools