The Degen DE1123 radio was the first DSP radio that I bought. I actually bought two of them, both through Amazon. What struck me almost immediately upon getting it was the much improved FM reception compared to my old Sony Walkmans. Since then, I've discovered that the Tecsun radios are even better. I think it's because the Degen has a wimpy antenna. The telescoping antenna on the Degen is only 10 inches long, one-third of what it needs to be. In unchallenging environments, that's OK but not great. In challenging places such as an office building surrounded by office buildings, it just doesn't work well.
I tried the DE1123 again, on KFOG. The Tecsun can get it fairly clearly, with some adjustments needed every once in a while. The DE1123 can get it in mono, but whenever it goes into stereo, the noise is not good. I think that short antenna is the reason. The DE1123 uses the same Silicon Labs SI4734 chip as the Tecsuns. To get FM signals, you have to put metal in the air, and the DE1123 doesn't give you enough of it.
There are some good things about this radio. While there are no dials, with everything done with buttons, the interface is easy to use. The memory system is especially easy to use. The clock and alarm are easy to set, too. The speaker sounds very tinny, but audio through the headphones is respectable. It can recharge batteries (3 AAA), and is one of the slimmest radios I've seen. It's compact and easy to carry around.
The radio has recording capability, but it is severely limited and records only at low bitrates. I don't recommend using the recorder on this radio.
For AM reception, the Degen is disappointing. Yes, it uses the same chip, but it doesn't pick up signals well. The internal antenna is probably too small. Apparently to compensate, AM reception is limited to an audio bandwidth of only 2 kHz. This can't be changed, even though the SI4734 chip supports far better audio quality. As a result, AM radio sounds muffled.
I don't regret the purchases. After all, DSP receivers were just coming onto the market when I bought these radios. It's like getting version 1 of any computer program: subsequent iterations are likely to be more convenient and to perform better. I can see that with Tecsun: each subsequent DSP model seems just a little better than the past model. The Chinese manufacturers are learning some things as they design and manufacture new models.
So, with the Degen, I'd say that I wouldn't buy another one, but I'm not upset with these radios, either. To some extent, it was a learning experience for me, too.