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The Cheapest HF Radio on Ebay? uSDR Initial Thoughts... (Part 1)
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- Опубліковано 7 лис 2021
- I went on a mission to buy the cheapest HF rig I could find on Ebay. The uSDR at $125 is indeed the cheapest all-mode HF ready-to-go radio I have found. This little guy will fit in the palm of your hand and could most likely slip into a pocket on your next hiking trip. It is small, yes, but will it perform? In this video we unbox this little rig, talk about who would benefit from a rig such as this and try to make a couple of contacts with it. Join me on today's adventure.
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Music credits:
The Beacon by Zachariah Hickman
Acoustic Guitar by Audionautix
Camera equipment:
GoPro Hero 8 Black (while adventuring or outdoors)
Canon Vixia HF R800 (in the studio)
Editing software:
Corel Videostudio Ultimate 2018
My favorite radio equipment for outdoor portable ops or RaDAR:
Radio: Icom IC-705
Tuner: Elecraft T1 tuner
Antennas: Chameleon F-Loop magnetic loop antenna (does not need a tuner)
End fed antenna with 9:1 unun (needs tuner)
Sotabeams Bandhopper 20/30/40 linked dipole
Digital software: FLDigi and WSJT-x
QRP is all about hard work, even on the 705, QRP and making a contact is really satisfying. I think for the price this looks an interesting proposition. My advice is always spend more of your budget on your antenna and coax than you do on your 1st transceiver, what ever the band, if your signal isnt getting out, it doesnt matter what you are using ! I'd be happy to try this out on 18M and the QRP calling frequency (18130 kHz) with a decent dipole, i bet the results would be suprising.
Thanks for the review! I'm a 15 year old kid that recently got into radio, and can't afford afford anything pricey since I just bought a gaming pc, haha. Hoping to buy this and get a tech license so I can at least use CW!
That is one of the things that is awesome about ham radio, there is a seat for every ass! You can always buy bigger and better as you go!
Good luck MBL - hope to catch you in the log books 73 2E0FWE :)
Build yourself a killer antenna and you should be able to make some contacts. And you'll learn something too.
What region of the world are you in?
@@nicklikesradio I am in the U.S.! And also I've progressed quite a bit- got my general license so I can do voice on HF, and I got a Xiegu G90! Much more expensive but worth it!
Just got my General last Sunday and I was looking at this exact radio. I'm on disability and have very little $ to invest. I wouldn't expect the world from it, but making a few contacts would be great. I am looking forward to part 2. Thanks for the review!
Hey, Shawn. Thanks for watching. Part 2 is live now on UA-cam. I bashed this radio a little at the end of the video in part 2, but if you understand it's quirks and limitations, I don't think you can find a better deal if you are on a budget. Congrats on passing your general exam. Hope to work you sometime. 73. -Bob
You show an antenna tuner in your video. For tight budget hams, that is one more thing to buy, one more thing to fiddle with when portable. My advice is hook it up to an end fed half wave antenna using a 49:1 balun (Unun?). Start with 66 feet, then fold back the length until you get 1:1 on 40 meters. When tuned on 40, should be resonant on 20, 15, and 10 too. I currently use QRP like this. I might let Santa Claus get me one of these little uSDX radios. Good Video Bob. One more thing, lots of End Fed Half Wave Antenna content on UA-cam..
Great vid ....for its clarity and honesty. Keep up the good work!!!!
Nice report on the radio. I just bought one. The receive seems really decent. I've been playing with it for a couple of days now. Not bad for the money, but definitely better rigs out there. Next project ... build an antenna for it other than the cheap one I have.
Just to let you know. After watching you using it for POTA and getting from FL to Alaska! I ordered it the next day. So as a newbie, I tried it out using a whip on my car, I got from Brussels Belgium to my first ever QSO with a station in Minsk in Belarus (1600km) ! Yes he had difficult to hear me, but I was over the moon.
Since then I bought a Yaesu 891. But the uSDX+ sits on top of my 891 here in the shack and it serves as my "look around" set. If I hear traffic, I turn on the 891 and swap the coac over. Great little transceiver! So glad you made this video!
I have seen these radios advertised and have been curious to try one out. I think your review is fair, honest and accurate as it is exactly what I expected for a $125 HF radio. This radio is basically a novelty in my opinion and would be fun to tinker with or great for somebody on a tight budget. I would have loved to had this radio back in 1992 when I first got licensed as a 5 wpm Novice. I would have spent hours monitoring HF on this little rig while working towards my General ticket and saving for a full sized HF rig. Such as it is, I am sure I'll purchase one to play with. I like milking small, inexpensive gear for all it is worth and more. Thanks for the review and 73!
Ok
Nice video! These rigs are great value for $65. FYI I'm supporting the firmware for these rigs with new and better features, fast CAT, improved filters, SSB TX etc. GW8RDI
Hi Bob, it's exactly how you defined QRP. It's always a challenge and using a simple trx like this one is so much more exciting fun, you never be sure whether you will succeed or not. 72 Wolf, dk5ei
I might add that the speaker in it is located on the right side inside the case and pointed up. The holes in the front of the radio allow the sound from the speaker to get out. Not sure why they didn't put holes right above the speaker but they didn't. It's really small. I've had the case off mine because I'm a geek and just had to know what was in the box! Still works too :)
Nice to have access to radios like that Bob. We are so far behind the times here in South.
For an eight band radio I think it's pretty cool it's a great qrp radio I'll tell you that lightweight go mountain topping with it I really like it I want to see how it performs thank you for sharing this video that's what she said 👍
I bought the newest version and I'm impressed with it mine only puts out 4 watts but made some contacts with it. I'm concerned that there is no protection on the finals so be sure your antenna is tuned as close to 1to1 as possible.
Works like a charm. Amazing!
Good information and a nice video. i also live in Lynn Heaven. Been a Ham for many years Original listens as wa4ibf in 1979
Thanks. Bob
With the sunspots getting better 5 watts or less will work fine. I,ve been running both ssb and cw qrp since 1978 and on cw worked the world with 2 watts and 5watts ssb. You do have to be into a bit of a macikist but it is great fun.Patients is a must and never give up.How are things at the pcarc club?, miss it.73 Ki0ad
Just picked one up to throw in a lil go bag. Mine has a built in rechargeable battery with a power supply. Gotta say I'm pleasantly surprised. Like you said the audio is no where near my 991A, but for $125...not bad
Cool little "toy-sized radio"... maybe something you can put in a cache? Thanks for the POTA contact... Mike KD9RUG 73
I am up here in Canada and I am just in the process of getting my basic Amateur license which restricts my power. I looked at a BAOFENG but that only gives me two bands. I don't want to spend very much but would like to be able to use all the bands so this looks like a viable alternative. I also notice I can get a better mic for it off Amazon so that would be a great improvement on sound. I am actually into Radio Astronomy and they encourage folks doing that to get a Ham license so that is my reason for doing this.
There is a setting in the menu where you can adjust the frequency, I have seen a video on it ,I think it is the last setting in the menu.
If I were to buy this for use in my 2004 Ford Ranger pickup truck, what antenna would I need?
Great review, thanks!
What I would like to see is a similar unit, maybe slightly bigger but can push a solid 10w. Does such a beast exist?
Thank you !
thank you friend, I'm looking for complete info from this video with the little radio. greetings from me, I'm from Indonesia. I play on 11M, my 11M callsign is JZ30BHD. I'm also interested in 40m,
Can not find a manual on line,,, Can you help????
Good day! what kind of program is in the phone, what will agree on the connection and how is it configured for this transceiver. as the first I want to buy myself the same, so I'm looking for information. 73
The universal conversion factor --- 100 mm cigarettes (Marlboro "golds") are probably the most common.... The usual filtered cigarettes like the Marlboro "reds" are 70 mm. Sorry, that's my frame of reference.
Thank you good video I ordered this radio let me know what antenna I need to buy and does it come with the antenna tuner thank you my friend.
73
Cool little radio. Tnx for the video. The connectors on the back look really tight together. Is it possible to plug a morse-key in when the speakermic is connected? 73, Stephan, DF6PA
I just tried and I was not able to. The radio does have an internal speaker, so it is not necessary to have the speaker mic plugged in if you are using CW.
Greetings from Raleigh NC. I worked you on that radio. NC4TE
Awesome radio do you have a ham license to talk on it or is there frequencies that you can talk on without a ham license?
Nice video guy!
New Sub here.
You deserve lotsa subs, IMO!
Let me just say, some of these content creaters have gimmickie silly voices, dumb
Thumbnails with their UGLY face in EVERY single one...
I swear man, some of these guys are forever stuck in a highschool mentality..
(I cant take that anymore)
Also, some of these content makers crap all over cheap, hackable, clone radios.....
As if their above a 100 dollar radio, or they spend no less than $350 on an HT..
Well, i have too many hobbies to spend that kinda cash on rigs, AND; I like to experiment with radios etc.
(Like you did here!)
They shit all over the china-rig-buyers sometimes as well... And That Aint Right..... and deff is not within the original, "spirit of radio!!"
Keep up the great work,
Great Content!
Thanks!
Erik
Thanks for the video .... I was wondering how this radio would work. I have a Xiegu G1M which is a hair bigger and preforms rather well as it has an SDR display and more buttons to get around the functions. I am however slightly interested in this uSDR as there is a version which has a build in battery. That would it even more POTA friendly.
Mine works pretty well, but I have heard mixed reviews on the uSDR. I have been pleasantly surprised by how well it works for the price.
hello, not having an amateur radio license for the moment I would like to know if this transceiver can transmit and receive on the 11m 27 mhz band? thanks in advance ...
I would also like to know if the Xiegu Gm1 4 bands can also transmit on 11m band by modifying the source code of the firmware ...
Regards
I believe it will. But you need to use AM for most of the contacts. Also, I don't believe this is type accepted for CB use (27MHZ, 11 Meters is the Citizens Band) so you could have legal problems. It is within the power limitation though. Five watts into the final amplifier stage. I'd use it for shortwave listening if you want to stay legal. And go get a ham license. NO code required anymore but you will have to study up on electrical theory and radio law to pass it. It's not that hard really. And then you can talk to the world :)
Prepper radio? Add a cheapie antenna tuner and a wire antenna, then toss it in with your other prepper stuff.
Can you put a better speaker on it?
Please,possible using frequency Citizen band(27 MHz)?thank you
just connect an extrenal speaker and you will see big difference in audio freq .. 73.. and also it doesnt matter how good is yr radio but the antenna is the first factor and second the propagation..and for last ... you can connect it to an amp 50w from e-bay..
How does the FM mode work?
I purchased the radio in this video,,, I a well pleased!!! Does the radio have a internal battery??? How long does it take to charge the battery??? Very Best Regards Roger Fethkenher AD0YR
No internal Battery. I have an external battery I use with this little radio. Talentcell 12V 6000mAH battery from Amazon: amzn.to/38bV744
mooi spul maat
KJ = "Kenwood Jack"
Is it possible to talk to the citizen band in the 27 mhz band?
Who's gonna stop ya?
Can this radio Tx on 11 meter Band or dose a Mod have to be done ?
I have not tried it on 11m. 11 meters is not one of the 8 bands they advertise this radio to work on, but I think I saw another UA-cam video where someone tried and it worked, but had a lower output power. As I said, it is not designed to do it, so I'm not sure how the radio would handle it.
The seller posed it with G.I. Joe action figures to make it look bigger
It does have a bunch of filters
1rst creto of Ham, Be Chip
2nd creto Be Cheaper
That's a damn cool little radio if you're making contacts like that why is all these other companies charging so much money for their radios
I would say there are 2 main factors. 1 being features. Other small backpackable radios have more features. As the number of features goes up, so does cost. Look at the Icom IC-705's list of features compared to this for example. Second factor is quality. While a fun little rig, you can tell a difference in build quality between this and a high dollar radio.
Mine came with a power cord that came from ebay.
CW?
The uSDR is a uSDX clone or variation. The uSDX was created by a group of hams to be built by hams, with the packaging for each rig up to the builder. Since the hams who created the basic rig made it open source so other hams could build, modify, and improve them without constraint.
Then, since it was an open-source project, Chinese companies started cranking them out in various flavors, knowing nothing about what they were doing in the manufacturing process, and caring even less. Their Class E outputs have NOT been tuned, their harmonic filters have not been tuned. Their crystal reference frequency has not been calibrated, and the rig will barely work, or won't work at all unless they ARE tuned. You really should have done what the rig's creators intended, and got the boards and parts through a group purchase, and built your own exactly the way you wanted it. I repeat, the output power and efficiency are entirely a function of how you tune the Class E outputs - and the Chinese vendors not only don't take the time to tune them to run in Class E, they don't tune ANYTHING about the rigs. They just slap the parts together and sell them completely untuned to people who think they are buying a fully prepped commercial HF rig. They aren't, and it isn't one. It's just an assembly of parts. If you check, you will probably find that harmonics are at illegal levels on 1 or more bands. That harmonic filtering also needs to be hand tuned. And you will find a wide variety of different output powers and efficiencies on different bands. All evidence that the rigs have never been tuned.
For hams who have purchased one of those prebuilt, untuned, untested Chinese circuits, they really need to go online, do a lot of reading about the uSDX transceiver in the forums, then open the case and do what the designers intended for them to do. (DL2MAN has an excellent video on how to tune this output stage design on his (tr)uSDX radios.)
I like to remind some of my other ham friends that a ham license isn't permission to talk on the radio. CBers can do that. It's permission to open up our rigs and work on them. It's a government license for us to design, build, tune, and operate 1,500 W transceivers, and to connect them to an array of as many 200 foot diameter dish antennas as we wish, also designed and built by us. That is what a ham license is.
My main problem with these little rigs are not the rigs themselves. It’s the chinese ebay sellers. Hard to find a reputable one from the scammer. You might get a rig. Or you might get a red tassel. I have a (tr)uSDX that works ok but freezes up when using the keyer function. Making contacts with it though. I live near a radio station that kills my reception. I use a MFJ tuner and it filters it out completely. Manual tuner, not the T1 like you got. T1 didn’t filter it. But I have a plastic case. Your rig is in aluminum. Eventually I’ll make a tiny ‘go kit’ and hide it in the car. I will get one like you have, play with it for awhile, and put it in the 2nd car as a ‘go kit’ as well. (just an excuse to buy more radios. 73s de n5vwn/QRPer
There is options out there to help you get out but regardless your spending up to the 400.00 range
?lunchbox portable? Maybe snack box radio. Who makes a "perfect" radio?
Does it have an ATU/SWR?
Thank you!
I'm not sure what "ATU" is but SWR I believe is Short Wave Listening and it will tune the shortwave. The majority of the shortwave stations broadcast in AM. The radio will run AM, FM, USB and LSB. I bought mine with more intention on listening than transmitting but it does have a transmitter in it. You can listen to marine operators ... people on ships at sea ... using SSB. Not sure if they use USB or LSB though. You can switch between them and whichever mode produces understandable audio is what they're using.
@@wb7ptr "ATU" is an automatic tuner built into some radios, like my Xiego G-90 -- great to have a built-in tuner!
No
Mine just came with no power cable no instructions. Just a radio and a mini mic.
Mine too. Get a power cable from Amazon
I bought a little portable battery with a Y power connector for mine. That way I can use it portable. The Y connector allows me to charge the portable battery and run the radio at the same time. It uses 12VDC, center pin positive for power. It will handle up to about 13.5VDC center pin positive. Just be sure you get a power supply that's less than 13.5VDC center pin positive. I bought mine at Goodwill. Best to take a voltmeter to check the voltage and center pin polarity (positive needed) before plugging it into the rig. The set up works really well for mine.
The “um/uh” meter pinged frequently, otherwise good presentation style. Good information and demo though
Do you have a link to where you can buy a power cord for this radio thanks ?
Amazon
@@usernamemykel It uses 12dc, center pin positive. Just be sure you the polarity right and use a supply with decent filtering for AC hum or it will get in the radio's audio. It will take up to 13.5VDC safely.
KJ = Kenwood jack
Днём, да можно провести связь, но ночью задавят большими (100-1000Вт) мощностями другие.
Check out the radio from DL2MAN, I think this one is a knock off from his radio.
It is. I'm going to get one of his radios as well. I didn't even know about the original DL2MAN design until after I'd gotten this one. I might even try and build one.
@@wb7ptr a couple of days ago Thomas K4SWL did a review on the DL2MAN radio. Maybe you want to see that. DL2MAN did also a review on the 2nd production batch and QRP lifestyle has also some videos out
What.. $80 shipped max.
No support of it breaks.
The speaker mic sounds all high pitched I'd havevhet better speaker on it bypass min spkr .
This would be great to key into a dummy load to zero beat my old boat anchors so I know what frequency they are actually on.
That sounds like a good use for it .... frequency generator :)
А России до сих пол некоторые собирают самодельные трансиверы. И это интересно, поучительно, полезно. Поэтому разберемся без инструкций. И создадим и доработаем эти примитивные радио... Увы, заводов в Росси по радио мало. Многое из Китая.
not a good choice for a new general.
A "major" issue?
10 minutes of unboxing, why? Sounds very noisy not clear what is all that noise?
The audio stage in the thing is underpowered. Mine makes a bunch of noise at high volume too. I use a powered speaker and run my audio into that set at about 7 to 9. Increase volume with the control on the powered speaker.
I would consider me as being somewhat rude to not introduce the item initially i dont appreciate people dont understand its not nice to play peoples heads ie how do you keep a turkey in suspense- ill tell you tomorrow so no luck there
????
Biden, is that you??
You really didn't need the sexual innuendo
Stolen technology. Buy a licenced (tu)uSDX instead!
Interesting new toy Bob =) I though about it when seen the ad for them =) de N5VMO Pat
It is a fun little rig. Was able to log 21 POTA contacts in just under an hour the other day.
@@BobPlank_KK4DIV Well; Bob I jumped in the deep end :-))) I got a (tr)uSDR ( official version ) to try out after about $160 after all said and done assembled kit =) USB digital modes capable ... so that and my R Pi-3B+ with "Smarty Pi case will be a good fit =) Run the whole setup off USB power bank with half watt out or power the rig with 12v DC to get 5 watts out =) Will do a video on it when I get everything working =) de N5VMO Pat