▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Ebay: bit.ly/TecsunPL-880 (paid link) As an eBay Partner, I may be compensated if you make a purchase. There are no additional costs to you. ▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Amazon USA: amzn.to/3ie0tOq ▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Amazon CA: amzn.to/3C6uoQG (paid links) As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. There are no additional costs to you.
Hey, Todd: Very nice review of this radio but, you may want take a look at the questions I asked Isaly555 in a reply to his comment. If you want to answer how satisfied you with the reception quality on the shortwave bands, I would appreciate it. Thanks.
Just got mine, here 6 years in the future. I was completely unable to locate the lovely white model, but the current units (mine was manufactured Jan 2024) are now made with USB-C ports, so that was a nice bonus. I use the 24 memory pages to store the stations receivable in a given hour-page 9 for 9 am, page 23 for 11 pm. Page 0 for 24/7 stuff like local AM/FM. So each page is filled with stations I actually have a chance of hearing at the time I’m listening. It’s really a great radio that feels wonderful to tune!
I’ve owned a PL-880 for the past ten years and it’s perhaps the best shortwave receiver I’ve ever known. It has tremendous sensitivity to distant stations. After digging into,the specs and inquiring at Anon-co, I was pleased to discover that the receiver is triple conversion.
Isaly555: Did you buy it from Anon-co and how satisfied are you with the reception quality with the telescoping whip antenna on the shortwave bands? Also when the radio is off, did you press and hold down the AM band button to check if you have firmware version 8820? Also, does the manual show a date when it was printed?
I bought one of these about a month before Christmas. Partly because I wanted a good portable radio. Also because it uses the 18650 battery and can charge the battery via USB. This makes it possible to us a solar/hand crank power bank to power the radio. I really like the radio, and I get good reception on the whip antenna, much better with a wire. This radio uses DSP to get true USB/LSB instead of a BFO, and multiple bandwidths that are tailored to the band/mode. I like it very much!
Easy to work with, only had it for a week, getting used to the controls. My 'headphones' wouldn't plug in all the way, so they're useless. I have a better set. I have a USB-C charger port, a real plus! My antenna is 'brushed' also. Has the later firmware. Really appreciate it having an 18650 protected battery! I look at this review often and learn something new each time! Great job, I'd looked at several while awaiting my 880's arrival so I could use it right away! Y'all didn't disappoint, and for that, I thank you!
I'm very fond of mine, having had it a few years now. Even my 10 yr old daughter is using it. I'm so proud of her. Except the receiver is quite easy to use, even for a youngster. Mighty glad I bought the PL880 when I did because it was much cheaper then. Many thanks for your review. It's very good!
I’ve been using one of these for years as a law office radio. Great sound, good battery life, all-band capability and more memory than I can ever use. Highly recommended, two thumbs up. If you can still get the package with the little radio/recorder, pick that up if you want do some recording.
Thanks for putting this up here. Nice review and perfect timing, as I just ordered this radio yesterday and was eager to view some more positive reviews while waiting for it to arrive :)
Love my PL-880's performance and sound. In addition to the 880, I have a couple other passive radiator speaker radios - both Tecsun; ICR-110, ICR-100. Amazing sound.
I've had a PL-880 for a couple of years. It's my go-to radio for normal FM and AM listening due to the great speaker and reception-it's also a great portable for SW DXing with attached line antenna. Doesn't take up a lot of room when stored in the case, and I can pull it out and set up quickly when I want to have a listening session. Haven't tried the SSB function yet. Reminds me of a Sunday-go-to-meeting 4x4 pickup truck. Love the speakers-easy to use as a normal radio, but it can "go places" when you want to.
Awesome, finally a portable shortwave receiver that doesn't mute when you tune up and down with the knob! I wish my PL-380 was the same way, guess I'll be upgrading when I get a chance.
This radio was marked way down for Prime Day, so I finally bit it and bought one. I've been using a lovely but ancient Sony ICF-2003 up until now, so it'll be fun to see what 40 years of innovation has done for these little handheld receivers!
I just got my 3rd PL880. First unit I got after a ARRL QST review. I went everywhere with me. About 2016 the tuning started to jump. The optical interupter was not functioning well. Called KATO and was advise there was a parts change. They would not cover it under warrantee. Shipping and repair charges would be same as a new unit. I just got the 2020 unit and that issue is gone. I'm also a owner of a SONY 2010 and its a benchmark for any portable. Another is Panasonic RF-B65 which its tiny. The PL-880 is somewhat complicated to operate. But has selectivity Superior to all except the 2010. I installed MuRata crystal filters 500Hz and 3Khz filters. I removed the wideband filter and it became standard filter. Plus sure would love a LCD meter rather that DB numbers. W2HP
A few years ago I purchased a Tecsun PL-310 DSP radio. With it I was able to pick up a couple of Japanese BCB stations in the splits between 10 KHz from here in Colorado, USA. Amazing how well the DSP narrow bandwidths worked! And I did it with a little tabletop loop antenna. I suppose one might also do so with the PL-880? I may have to give one a try (Asian and European BCB DXing is best in autumn). Also noticed on Ebay there's a couple of people selling large numbers of used PL-880s. Returns I assume, a lot of dissatisfied people out there? Maybe folks buy them not realizing we are at a sunspot low, or that most shortwave stations are religious stations these days?
My PL-880 came from Anon after Christmas '20 on the 28th of Dec. so I'm still in the experimentation stage but so far I'm very pleased. I have 2 Sangean ATS 909Xs & a Tecsun PL-660 , about 2 months old. I normally use these radios for SW, AM occasionally & very seldom FM. I bought them for short wave listening. I'm lucky because I can recommend all of my radios.
Actually is my first receiver for utility stations. The SSB performance is excellent for a portable and support longwires without any problem. I only miss a good Sync funtion like 660 has, but using SSB I could get several good DX. :)
I agree with lots of your findings on this radio, but honestly I have this and the Pl 680, the antenna is very high quality brushed aluminum, I honestly could not part with this radio. Again your honesty in your reviews is top notch 👍 Tam.
Good Video, i have the same. And a Tecsun-S2000, a Tecsun -S8888, a Tecsun-PL600 and a very small PL-360. On LW Frequencys goe down to 50 khz an all radios. The best one is the S-8888. Because it has no BFO. On SSB bands i never get the "Micky Mouse" Voices away on the Tecsun S-2000. Only this radio and the S-8888 can do a good sound.And the S-8888 is for me the best. I receive many more stations. I like the resolution with the akku loaded over USB, You do not have so many interferences without AC. Hope You can under stand my bad English, I wish You the very best and send many greetings from Germany.
You make this radio look very tempting. I'd like to hear its SSB performance though. The ease of entering memories while scanning is great, and the audio sounds massive for the size. If it does SSB well I would think it's a good buy. Thanks for this look at the 880!
Sweet radio. My understanding is that are several "hidden" functions/features on the 880. Would be interesting to see those demonstrated and evaluated. Thanks for the fun video.
a oh crap moment by ...Todderbert..., to remedy this I put your name on the Band Scan video description. Sorry I missed it! Did you remove it? I see it in my history, but not on this page or in my spam column.
I had the Tecsun PL-880 and I couldn't get ONE SW station from my house, but with the XHDATA D109 I received a solid 30 station with just the standard antenna. So the $40 XHDATA D109 outperforms the $180 Tecsun PL-880. The XHDATA D109 also has equivalent sound quality. I returned the Tecsun PL-880 and kept the much superior XHDATA D109.
Can you split AM into upper and lower sidebands and fine tune to 10 hertz for DXing AM ? Sometimes with a lot of stations on one frequency like AM - just using upper or lower sideband for clearer sound in a log jam of stations.
What about a "connector" for an out door long wire antenna? What do I use? Where do I get one if I want to use an out side long wire antenna? I can't emagine not having and using one, as I have in the past. Why isn't this mentioned??
Can you please help i purchases this radio how I can listen 1656am Melbourne 1674am in my tecsun pl880 I easily listen those channels in my car radio but this one finish on 1620am or how I can find those channels
Don't know why Tecsun decided not to put an air band on that radio. the Tecsun PL-680 has AM/MW, FM, Shortwave, Longwave, and VHF Air Band & SSB, and it's a lot cheaper than the PL-880.
I just bought one last week! I just think they are a lot less popular than the 660. They're basically the same radio but in a different shell. I personnaly prefered the look of the 680 and decided to spend the extra money
Okay, so I went and done it. I got me one. So now I own 3 of the “Bad-Boy “ radios. ( CCSkywaveSSB/ XHData D-808) NICE RADIO ❗️ I also picked up a couple of higher capacity 18650s. I’m impressed with it. Their attention to detail , and high quality really shows. I do miss the temperature, especially when I’m on the job site, but it’s rare that I’d take it on the job. It’s WELL worth paying the money for this one. I love the C.Crane, and the XHData as well. ( I’m not convinced that the ATS-909-X is worth the extra money over these 3. [ just my opinion]). Another excellent review of an awesome radio. 📻🙂
I sold my 880 and kept my 909X. If you are going to use external antennas, the 909X shines. If not pick the 880. My 880 was nice except for the over pumped audio. It rattled the antenna and buttons.
Thanks for great video. I bought a used one for $130 on EBay and it’s in mint condition the only thing about this radio that I don’t like or (don’t know how to properly operate) is using the upper or lower side band to bring in the weak stations (ECC) and also the sync is not useful Would you be able to put a video on this subject and elaborate. Thanks 🙏
Use the narrow bandwidth function then tune just slightly off frequency in either direction it's kind of like using the sideband, and if you are tuning in a station on Medium Wave you can get a passive loop antenna and it will definitely enhance your Medium wave listening experience 👍
I have an app, Shortwave Schedules Premium. It shows what's on and it will tell you what you're listening to if you key in the freq you're listening to. It will also list times when they broadcast, their target area and language. Easy to work with. Don't know yet how the times listed relate to UTC.
4yrs later, and it’s still the same price. I’m willing to pay the price if you think it is a better radio than the PL680, the other radio I’m considering as my first SW radio. What do you think?
This is a nice radio, but it's a lot of money for options. I'm new to learning how to use this Grundig s350. The red Radio Waves is a cool cup, thinking about getting one lol Thanks for putting all this information, you rock todderbert
In comparison to xh data 808,what do you suggest? I have an offer to buy this radio but used like new with the same price of new xh data 808. Could have I advise? Thanks.
Did you ever explain in summary why you ended up selling this "Sweet" radio? Was it the bass of the AM? The fact it needed a battery to operate? Did its competition have the same performance or better?
I was not fond of the over amped speaker. It rattled everything on the radio. I had an issue with the antenna buzzing when not extended. So I'm happy with my PL-660.
Cheaper to use USB, since you have to supply the 5V power adapter most of the time. Plus it is a perfect match up for charging the lithium battery. AC adapters work well charging up NiMH batteries.
@@todderbert ah ok I assumed it was for better performance just wasn’t sure if mine was like a knockoff or something lol since the product picture on Amazon also showed the old charger port thanks though
I was looking for a USB-C charger port in a sw radio as well as in a hand-held CB, I have a power bank that I keep charged to replenish each unit as need be. One of my sw radios has a solar panel that actually works very well. It also has a hand crank, it has a USB port for charging other items.
I have noticed that there is a PL-880 that comes to life with good external antennas. Something similar to what happens with the Sangean ATS-909X. If I like something, apart from its excellent sound, it is the solidity of its controls and its constructive quality. :)
How do you read the signal to nose display and how does it help to time the radio? Are thee 4 digits all one ratio such that the higher number is best ? Or are the first two the signal and the second two the noise requiring you to compare the relative numbers? Thanks
I just got mine yesterday... Appears that the battery may be bad, can't get it charged, I have to be on USB cable to do anything.. Great review, thanks so much...
My CC Skywave has lost all MW capability, so I'm in the market for a new house radio. I noticed this is the same price as skywave SSB. Which is the better radio? I don't travel, and I'm buying a CC pocket for taking walks, so I'm not concerned about the larger size of the Tecsun.
I have heard that the new PL-990x is not as bassy as this radio and may sound better on AM. I am glad I held off on getting the PL-880 as I like the 990x better though may not sound as good on FM. Love that I can heard podcast via Bluetooth through the 990x. 990x seems like an ultimate talk radio device along with the H-501.
I couldn't believe how big that thing was. I got the feeling they were stuffing anything they could find into the box to justify the premium price (which is amusing.)
I've read that almost every owner has broken several back stands and battery covers on this model. How many spares should I order from the manufacturer?
I'm stuck,,, a beginner not sure what to purchase-- this 880 or the sangean 909x, eton elite executive or the Eton satellite 750,,,,, In which order are my selections? I don't like being limited on options, or regretting not getting this or that in a radio, as I don't want to buy but 1 radio not on a budget for 15. Thank you--
Personally, with the choices above I would pick the Eton Elite Executive first, 909X second and the Eton 750 Third. Mainly with functions and portability in mind. I sold my 880 because I didn't care for the punchy audio.
@@todderbert I am pretty sure I was going this way, i can't justify paying double for the (909x) for a very similar radio but I'm still tempted to keep this RADIWOW R-108, I watched your videos on the operation, there's alot of functionality I didn't realize. Thanks, you are amazing at this.👍☘
People record using their phones/recorders. I would use a Tecsun Q3 recorder. If at home you can connect it to a computer if RFI isn't an issue. A program called Fldigi should help you decode faxes, radiograms, and CW.
On AM the RF gains appears to fall off towards the high side of the band. Also some noise issues on weak station other then atmospherics. In the day it also has a tendency to pick up harmonics from local stations. They are not disruptive but I was surprised that what I supposed was a DX station coming in weakly was in fact a local station coming through. Still its a good radio and beyond this have no gripes or complaints.
Excellent review Todd. I love "no mute while tuning" on AM and SW. The big question is not should I get PL330 vs D808, but should I get D808 or PL880? There's something about manually scrolling through that tuning knob without the world going "silent" giving that refined feeling of quality that seems to have vanished, plasticized and digitized as of late.
I'm sure this is a good radio. But I am concerned about the rechargeable 18650 Li-ion battery. Is it a reliable battery? I have only used AA batteries. Never done a firmware update on a radio.
Nice review well done. I agree do not like the AM to have too bass, was wondering if changing the band width would help with that. The Tecsun ICR-110 has a similar looking speaker is it anywhere near as good sounding as the 880? It does seem a little pricey at $160 it should tell you the temperature at that price.
The bandwidth really doesn't help much on that low end..it sorta mixes it, even at the ultrawide 9kHz. I think they are similar, but the 880 has more punch to the speaker. A bit too much at times.
Nice radio, how does it compare to the Sangean 909x, C Crane CC radio 2E? I would like to see a higher end radio comparison shoot out, maybe $110.00 and up comparison
I noticed that you mentioned the distance each station is away from your location. Are you getting the distance info from the PL-880? Or do you simply know the distances from previous research and experience?
todderbert: I want the Tecsun PL-880 Special Edition Deluxe Set, and can't find it. Have you found out what the King is of portable shortwave radios yet?
hello , in this model in FM is possible to have for exemple : 92, 35 MHZ (i mean steps) and is it sensitive enough in FM to get far reception stations Thank you very much
I sold mine, but the radio has fine tuning on the FM band in 1kHz stepping so you can get 92.35MHz. FM was strong for me. The extra length on the antenna paired with a nice dsp circuit does a decent job. Just depends on your location and any local RFI sources. I plan to pick up the new Tecsun models when they become available.
@@todderbert thank you very much for your help i am in France and for the moment i have a Sony ICF-SW7600GR witch does not seem to be strong enough for my wish
Sorry for the late reply. The 880 is a good radio, but mine was a bit too much on the audio side of things. I would prefer the Sangean 909X, or the PL-660.
The radio charges the batteries fine, just when you are not using it. If you need to keep using it, a spare battery, and charger can be picked up at 18650batterystore.com
Does this erase the presets if you change the batteries? It would be a shame to set 2,500 FM stations and then lose them all when the batteries run dry!
Presets are saved, ETM is temporary, usually changing the battery quick enough should be fine. Though this radio runs on an 18650, just keep it charged up.
Would you be able to tell me why, when I input some frequencies, the radio changes them to other frequencies? For instance, I'll input 2850kHz, and the radio will change it to 12236 kHz, or when I input 1800 kHz, the radio changes it to 7600/1749/15915 or even 13149 kHz? Thanks!
I sold my 880, so I can't test this for you, but it can be picky on how the frequencies are entered. Maybe a glitch, you can try a reset. Also removing the battery until the clock runs down.
Hi Todd excelent review. In the portable radios category which one would you say is the best AM FM SW LW receiver? I want to buy a new radio cause my very very old and faithful YB 206 is kaput!!!
Thanks for you demonstration I have a question about the charging cable , in case of there is no battery inside can the radio work while connected to the cable only ? And if the the battery is dead or removed, is all the data set kept preserved ?
Your Welcome yasser issa, The presets are saved, but the ETM ones are not. I believe the book mentioned that the radio had to have a battery in it to operate...I sold mine awhile back. Two Hands and Radio still owns his and should be able to help you answer that question.
@@radiohobbyist13 He removed all of his videos and deleted his channel. He had a few reasons. I know he may still be around YT as Two Hands, but no "and a radio".
My wife has bought this for me for christmas. I will not open until then. Do you consider the battery that this uses a big drawback? This is my only concern. Where can you get decent ones in the US? I usually would not but something like this with an oddball battery. Big companies like canon just stop making batteries for their old cameras after a while and you get stuck with 3rd party. Thoughts on this would be great to hear and also where I can get good ones.
same radio, but your sounds better than mine, I don't know why maybe i am in SF area or i hear your radio via my computer speakers? My sound is not as good, it is about average for radio? I wonder i have a bad one?
I enjoy the Skywave better. I like it on headphones, and the Weather Alert is a great feature. I sold my 880, the speaker audio was a bit much. It would rattle things in the radio. My antenna would make buzzing sounds, ect. Oh and the use of traditional AAs is great, with superb run times of 70+ hours on a pair. The air band, when I feel like plan spotting :)
Thanks for the informative video. I am looking for a small travel radio. SW, LW, SSB & Sync Detector a must. There is one more feature I am looking for. I can find it on Cheapie SW receivers but not good ones. It's a thumb drive player. Do you know of one? Please, your thoughts. Regards from Ody Slim
After watching your videos I bought the Eaton elite executive, it works beautiful I’ve owned it for one year only uses it maybe once a month. But I’ve noticed the last few months on 20 meter I can’t seem to fine tune anyone in they all sound out of tune or out of frequency. Is this something that can be fixed or repaired by the manufacturer, it is over a year about 14 months so it’s past the warranty it would have to be out of pocket I don’t mind if it’s not too much. Can anybody including the comment section chime in on this thank you
@@todderbert Yeah, I tried that...but to no avail. On another note, it was not the 880, it was the 660. In fact, I wanted to get the 880 but at the time thought it was too expensive or something. Was a few years ago. The 660 has long been in the trash. Oh hey, the quaint 606 doesn't have NOAA, does it?
Great review! I am new to this. I see something called DRM. Is DRM better? Are stations broadcasting using that? I want something that I can pick up the most stations. I do not want to buy something that may be outdated and limited. My buddy has a Realistic DX4400. It is older but works. But there are not so many SW stations as there used to be , he said. Many are religious or Spanish. Any suggestions ? Cheers
As long as AM, FM and Shortwave don't get disbanded by the FCC, then you are future proof. There is HD in the US, and DAB in Europe. HD works on the existing broadcast bands while DAB uses an upper band spectrum.
@@todderbert Thanks, I watched another of your videos. It was on Radiwow, I think it was 107. After seeing the review I ordered it. Is that HD. ? I really want to be part of the radio world. It seems like you guys are a unique bunch of people. Take care
@@duncan3417 It doesn't take much to enjoy radio. Portable radios are great. Some will run over one hundred hours on 2AA batteries. There are so many special programs available on radio. Old Time Radio Shows, Ground Zero, Coast to Coast, NPR stations, Classical Music, distant shortwave stations that broadcast news and music. A great time. You don't need an HD radio to enjoy what is out there. I have one, but don't use it much...I enjoy the normal AM FM and Shortwave bands. Glad you found my channel :)
@@duncan3417 we're unique for sure and todderbert is our leader! lol all kidding aside todderbert is a straightforward guy he won't lead on or try to soft sell you something, his reviews are by far the best on TH-cam. You would be surprised how many of his subscribers have a check list of radio's📻 that their going to buy just because of the quality of todderberts reviews 👍
If you don’t think this is the King of Short-waver radio then which radio would you give that title to? Also with the built quality why do you think it’s not worth $160!
▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Ebay: bit.ly/TecsunPL-880
(paid link) As an eBay Partner, I may be compensated if you make a purchase. There are no additional costs to you.
▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Amazon USA: amzn.to/3ie0tOq
▶ The Tecsun PL-880 at Amazon CA: amzn.to/3C6uoQG
(paid links) As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. There are no additional costs to you.
Hey, Todd: Very nice review of this radio but, you may want take a look at the questions I asked Isaly555 in a reply to his comment. If you want to answer how satisfied you with the reception quality on the shortwave bands, I would appreciate it. Thanks.
Just got mine, here 6 years in the future. I was completely unable to locate the lovely white model, but the current units (mine was manufactured Jan 2024) are now made with USB-C ports, so that was a nice bonus.
I use the 24 memory pages to store the stations receivable in a given hour-page 9 for 9 am, page 23 for 11 pm. Page 0 for 24/7 stuff like local AM/FM. So each page is filled with stations I actually have a chance of hearing at the time I’m listening.
It’s really a great radio that feels wonderful to tune!
I’ve owned a PL-880 for the past ten years and it’s perhaps the best shortwave receiver I’ve ever known. It has tremendous sensitivity to distant stations. After digging into,the specs and inquiring at Anon-co, I was pleased to discover that the receiver is triple conversion.
2 years after having posted this vid you made me buy one! Very good review and communicating joy :) And you got a subscriber!
Ainda tem o rádio, o que tá achando ?
Isaly555: Did you buy it from Anon-co and how satisfied are you with the reception quality with the telescoping whip antenna on the shortwave bands? Also when the radio is off, did you press and hold down the AM band button to check if you have firmware version 8820? Also, does the manual show a date when it was printed?
Thank you to whomever gave me a like on my questions. However, I am still waiting for answers to my questions.
@@darrenrogers5174 I sold mine awhile back. A friend lent me his recently and SW is a dream to use. Strong Shortwave reception when conditions permit.
@@todderbert Ok. Thanks.
Bought mine 2 years ago. Still going strong! Love this radio. ;-) Nice review!
I bought one of these about a month before Christmas. Partly because I wanted a good portable radio. Also because it uses the 18650 battery and can charge the battery via USB. This makes it possible to us a solar/hand crank power bank to power the radio. I really like the radio, and I get good reception on the whip antenna, much better with a wire. This radio uses DSP to get true USB/LSB instead of a BFO, and multiple bandwidths that are tailored to the band/mode. I like it very much!
I bought mine to replace my very much worn out Radio Shack DX390 and I've been very pleased with the PL880 😊
Tenho um PL 660, vale a substituição ?
Easy to work with, only had it for a week, getting used to the controls. My 'headphones' wouldn't plug in all the way, so they're useless. I have a better set. I have a USB-C charger port, a real plus! My antenna is 'brushed' also. Has the later firmware. Really appreciate it having an 18650 protected battery! I look at this review often and learn something new each time! Great job, I'd looked at several while awaiting my 880's arrival so I could use it right away! Y'all didn't disappoint, and for that, I thank you!
I'm very fond of mine, having had it a few years now. Even my 10 yr old daughter is using it. I'm so proud of her. Except the receiver is quite easy to use, even for a youngster. Mighty glad I bought the PL880 when I did because it was much cheaper then. Many thanks for your review. It's very good!
Wish I could take this radio back to 1982.
I’ve been using one of these for years as a law office radio. Great sound, good battery life, all-band capability and more memory than I can ever use. Highly recommended, two thumbs up. If you can still get the package with the little radio/recorder, pick that up if you want do some recording.
Thanks for putting this up here. Nice review and perfect timing, as I just ordered this radio yesterday and was eager to view some more positive reviews while waiting for it to arrive :)
Cool, I have yet to do some band scans...if booming audio out of a little box is desired, your in luck :)
Love my PL-880's performance and sound. In addition to the 880, I have a couple other passive radiator speaker radios - both Tecsun; ICR-110, ICR-100. Amazing sound.
Hi Todderbert - I just bought one of these, and when I opened the box, I narrated it in your voice ;-) Thanks for all the great reviews!
lol! that made me smile :)
I've had a PL-880 for a couple of years. It's my go-to radio for normal FM and AM listening due to the great speaker and reception-it's also a great portable for SW DXing with attached line antenna. Doesn't take up a lot of room when stored in the case, and I can pull it out and set up quickly when I want to have a listening session. Haven't tried the SSB function yet. Reminds me of a Sunday-go-to-meeting 4x4 pickup truck. Love the speakers-easy to use as a normal radio, but it can "go places" when you want to.
Awesome, finally a portable shortwave receiver that doesn't mute when you tune up and down with the knob! I wish my PL-380 was the same way, guess I'll be upgrading when I get a chance.
This radio was marked way down for Prime Day, so I finally bit it and bought one. I've been using a lovely but ancient Sony ICF-2003 up until now, so it'll be fun to see what 40 years of innovation has done for these little handheld receivers!
The 880 is a powerful receiver, everyone loves theirs, not a single complaint.. :)
What was the price on Prime Days? Thanks
I just got my 3rd PL880. First unit I got after a ARRL QST review. I went everywhere with me. About 2016 the tuning started to jump. The optical interupter was not functioning well. Called KATO and was advise there was a parts change. They would not cover it under warrantee. Shipping and repair charges would be same as a new unit. I just got the 2020 unit and that issue is gone. I'm also a owner of a SONY 2010 and its a benchmark for any portable. Another is Panasonic RF-B65 which its tiny. The PL-880 is somewhat complicated to operate. But has selectivity Superior to all except the 2010. I installed MuRata crystal filters 500Hz and 3Khz filters. I removed the wideband filter and it became standard filter. Plus sure would love a LCD meter rather that DB numbers. W2HP
A few years ago I purchased a Tecsun PL-310 DSP radio. With it I was able to pick up a couple of Japanese BCB stations in the splits between 10 KHz from here in Colorado, USA. Amazing how well the DSP narrow bandwidths worked! And I did it with a little tabletop loop antenna. I suppose one might also do so with the PL-880? I may have to give one a try (Asian and European BCB DXing is best in autumn). Also noticed on Ebay there's a couple of people selling large numbers of used PL-880s. Returns I assume, a lot of dissatisfied people out there? Maybe folks buy them not realizing we are at a sunspot low, or that most shortwave stations are religious stations these days?
"Brother Stair" , patron "saint" of testing shortwave radios. 😜
He also puts Pepto Bismal to the test.
@@tonyperone3242 😂👍😊👍
Just got my pl880. Love everything about it--still learning. Had great conditions for several days, but now 3/27 not great. 73s
I just ordered one and am waiting for it. Thanks for the video.
My PL-880 came from Anon after Christmas '20 on the 28th of Dec. so I'm still in the experimentation stage but so far I'm very pleased. I have 2 Sangean ATS 909Xs & a Tecsun PL-660 , about 2 months old. I normally use these radios for SW, AM occasionally & very seldom FM. I bought them for short wave listening. I'm lucky because I can recommend all of my radios.
Actually is my first receiver for utility stations. The SSB performance is excellent for a portable and support longwires without any problem. I only miss a good Sync funtion like 660 has, but using SSB I could get several good DX. :)
Great radio. I use it every day!
I agree with lots of your findings on this radio, but honestly I have this and the Pl 680, the antenna is very high quality brushed aluminum, I honestly could not part with this radio. Again your honesty in your reviews is top notch 👍 Tam.
Ok, wasn't sure if the brushed antenna thing was cool or not. I guess its good then :)
Short wave. Gilles letourneau
What made me just order this was all of the above plus it has a "browse stored stations" feature which im sure I will like.
Good Video, i have the same. And a Tecsun-S2000, a Tecsun -S8888, a Tecsun-PL600 and a very small PL-360. On LW Frequencys goe down to 50 khz an all radios. The best one is the S-8888. Because it has no BFO. On SSB bands i never get the "Micky Mouse" Voices away on the Tecsun S-2000. Only this radio and the S-8888 can do a good sound.And the S-8888 is for me the best. I receive many more stations. I like the resolution with the akku loaded over USB,
You do not have so many interferences without AC. Hope You can under stand my bad English, I wish You the very best and send many greetings from Germany.
Does Tecsun PL-880 work as well as a communications receiver (general coverage) in receiving signals from shortwave radio stations?
Yes it does
Just got mine and it's great!
You make this radio look very tempting. I'd like to hear its SSB performance though. The ease of entering memories while scanning is great, and the audio sounds massive for the size. If it does SSB well I would think it's a good buy. Thanks for this look at the 880!
I'll see what I can record...the HAMs are random in my area. Long Range HAM activity is usually CW.
great review. thanks from Staffordshire, uk
Sweet radio. My understanding is that are several "hidden" functions/features on the 880.
Would be interesting to see those demonstrated and evaluated.
Thanks for the fun video.
Great info, i will try to touch on these during my band scan video/videos.
Looks like my one day older comment gone unnoticed ;-)
??
I don't see any other comments from you on this video.
a oh crap moment by ...Todderbert..., to remedy this I put your name on the Band Scan video description. Sorry I missed it! Did you remove it? I see it in my history, but not on this page or in my spam column.
Don't worry, not a problem, I was suspecting that sometnig like that happened, Regards, Wojtek
I had the Tecsun PL-880 and I couldn't get ONE SW station from my house, but with the XHDATA D109 I received a solid 30 station with just the standard antenna. So the $40 XHDATA D109 outperforms the $180 Tecsun PL-880. The XHDATA D109 also has equivalent sound quality. I returned the Tecsun PL-880 and kept the much superior XHDATA D109.
Many would freak at your statement :) but whatever works, go for it!
Can you split AM into upper and lower sidebands and fine tune to 10 hertz for DXing AM ?
Sometimes with a lot of stations on one frequency like AM - just using upper or lower sideband for clearer sound in a log jam of stations.
Still a great covid compliant radio in 2021!
What about a "connector" for an out door long wire antenna? What do I use? Where do I get one if I want to use an out side long wire antenna? I can't emagine not having and using one, as I have in the past. Why isn't this mentioned??
I use a Kaito T-1 22' wire, plugs right into the radio. At Amazon: amzn.to/3vmEVVj
Can you please help i purchases this radio how I can listen 1656am Melbourne 1674am in my tecsun pl880 I easily listen those channels in my car radio but this one finish on 1620am or how I can find those channels
Don't know why Tecsun decided not to put an air band on that radio. the Tecsun PL-680 has AM/MW, FM, Shortwave, Longwave, and VHF Air Band & SSB, and it's a lot cheaper than the PL-880.
Do they still make the 680? , I don't see it to often.
I just bought one last week! I just think they are a lot less popular than the 660. They're basically the same radio but in a different shell. I personnaly prefered the look of the 680 and decided to spend the extra money
Okay, so I went and done it. I got me one.
So now I own 3 of the “Bad-Boy “ radios.
( CCSkywaveSSB/ XHData D-808)
NICE RADIO ❗️
I also picked up a couple of higher capacity 18650s.
I’m impressed with it. Their attention to detail , and high quality really shows. I do miss the temperature, especially when I’m on the job site, but it’s rare that I’d take it on the job.
It’s WELL worth paying the money for this one.
I love the C.Crane, and the XHData as well.
( I’m not convinced that the ATS-909-X is worth the extra money over these 3. [ just my opinion]).
Another excellent review of an awesome radio.
📻🙂
How does this radio compared to the Sangean 909x? Do you know?
I sold my 880 and kept my 909X. If you are going to use external antennas, the 909X shines. If not pick the 880. My 880 was nice except for the over pumped audio. It rattled the antenna and buttons.
Thanks for great video. I bought a used one for $130 on EBay and it’s in mint condition the only thing about this radio that I don’t like or (don’t know how to properly operate) is using the upper or lower side band to bring in the weak stations (ECC) and also the sync is not useful Would you be able to put a video on this subject and elaborate. Thanks 🙏
Use the narrow bandwidth function then tune just slightly off frequency in either direction it's kind of like using the sideband, and if you are tuning in a station on Medium Wave you can get a passive loop antenna and it will definitely enhance your Medium wave listening experience 👍
how do you know where all the stations are at
I have an app, Shortwave Schedules Premium. It shows what's on and it will tell you what you're listening to if you key in the freq you're listening to. It will also list times when they broadcast, their target area and language. Easy to work with. Don't know yet how the times listed relate to UTC.
4yrs later, and it’s still the same price. I’m willing to pay the price if you think it is a better radio than the PL680, the other radio I’m considering as my first SW radio. What do you think?
It has finer tuning on the PL-880, and has a strong low end speaker. If you are happy with SSB tuning on the 680, I wouldn't buy the 880.
This is a nice radio, but it's a lot of money for options. I'm new to learning how to use this Grundig s350. The red Radio Waves is a cool cup, thinking about getting one lol Thanks for putting all this information, you rock todderbert
In comparison to xh data 808,what do you suggest? I have an offer to buy this radio but used like new with the same price of new xh data 808.
Could have I advise? Thanks.
Realmente
Por supuesto
Please I am in doubt of the purchase, I want your suggestion Tecusn PL 880 or TECSUN PL 660 ??
660 is my preference.
You have me convinced. I'm gonna get one.
Did you ever explain in summary why you ended up selling this "Sweet" radio? Was it the bass of the AM? The fact it needed a battery to operate? Did its competition have the same performance or better?
I was not fond of the over amped speaker. It rattled everything on the radio. I had an issue with the antenna buzzing when not extended. So I'm happy with my PL-660.
ive noticed with some of these radio that they have ac charger ports while other have a usb c port mine has a usb c port is there any reason why?
Cheaper to use USB, since you have to supply the 5V power adapter most of the time. Plus it is a perfect match up for charging the lithium battery. AC adapters work well charging up NiMH batteries.
@@todderbert ah ok I assumed it was for better performance just wasn’t sure if mine was like a knockoff or something lol since the product picture on Amazon also showed the old charger port thanks though
I was looking for a USB-C charger port in a sw radio as well as in a hand-held CB, I have a power bank that I keep charged to replenish each unit as need be. One of my sw radios has a solar panel that actually works very well. It also has a hand crank, it has a USB port for charging other items.
I have noticed that there is a PL-880 that comes to life with good external antennas. Something similar to what happens with the Sangean ATS-909X. If I like something, apart from its excellent sound, it is the solidity of its controls and its constructive quality. :)
good to know, I ended up selling mine...yeah my budget allows me to hold on to a few but not all.
Monster! :)
@@todderbert gosh todderbert you probably could've kept it I'm sure that more than enough of us subscribers would have chipped in to help 🙂
How do you read the signal to nose display and how does it help to time the radio? Are thee 4 digits all one ratio such that the higher number is best ? Or are the first two the signal and the second two the noise requiring you to compare the relative numbers?
Thanks
I just got mine yesterday... Appears that the battery may be bad, can't get it charged, I have to be on USB cable to do anything.. Great review, thanks so much...
They usually ship these radios with an insulator on one of the battery terminals. I would remove the battery and check if there is one there.
@@todderbert Thanks so much!!! I removed it and now appears to be charging....
@@miket3343 Awesome!
My CC Skywave has lost all MW capability, so I'm in the market for a new house radio. I noticed this is the same price as skywave SSB. Which is the better radio? I don't travel, and I'm buying a CC pocket for taking walks, so I'm not concerned about the larger size of the Tecsun.
The 880 is the better Shortwave Radio. I do like having Weather Alert on my Skywaves, which you will have on the Pocket.
how do you get it into LW band??? tyvm
I have heard that the new PL-990x is not as bassy as this radio and may sound better on AM. I am glad I held off on getting the PL-880 as I like the 990x better though may not sound as good on FM. Love that I can heard podcast via Bluetooth through the 990x. 990x seems like an ultimate talk radio device along with the H-501.
I'm looking to pick up the 990X this year for review :)
@@todderbert Qual a opinião entre 880 e 990 ?
Did you get the giant world map in the box? Your leather case is a beautiful color. Mine is darker.
I couldn't believe how big that thing was. I got the feeling they were stuffing anything they could find into the box to justify the premium price (which is amusing.)
I did find that poster, didn't want to try to show that on camera...I had that issue with the poster size directions from the Tecsun 2P3 kit.
I've read that almost every owner has broken several back stands and battery covers on this model. How many spares should I order from the manufacturer?
I'm stuck,,, a beginner not sure what to purchase-- this 880 or the sangean 909x, eton elite executive or the Eton satellite 750,,,,, In which order are my selections? I don't like being limited on options, or regretting not getting this or that in a radio, as I don't want to buy but 1 radio not on a budget for 15. Thank you--
Personally, with the choices above I would pick the Eton Elite Executive first, 909X second and the Eton 750 Third. Mainly with functions and portability in mind. I sold my 880 because I didn't care for the punchy audio.
@@todderbert I am pretty sure I was going this way, i can't justify paying double for the (909x) for a very similar radio but I'm still tempted to keep this RADIWOW R-108, I watched your videos on the operation, there's alot of functionality I didn't realize. Thanks, you are amazing at this.👍☘
Hello nice demo, can you also make one How i can download weathercards and grib files with this radio and the right software and adapters etcetera
People record using their phones/recorders. I would use a Tecsun Q3 recorder. If at home you can connect it to a computer if RFI isn't an issue. A program called Fldigi should help you decode faxes, radiograms, and CW.
On AM the RF gains appears to fall off towards the high side of the band.
Also some noise issues on weak station other then atmospherics.
In the day it also has a tendency to pick up harmonics from local stations.
They are not disruptive but I was surprised that what I supposed was a DX station coming in weakly was in fact a local station coming through.
Still its a good radio and beyond this have no gripes or complaints.
Excellent review Todd. I love "no mute while tuning" on AM and SW. The big question is not should I get PL330 vs D808, but should I get D808 or PL880? There's something about manually scrolling through that tuning knob without the world going "silent" giving that refined feeling of quality that seems to have vanished, plasticized and digitized as of late.
Go with the 880. The 330, and D808 mute while tuning. They are find for Preset Browsing though.
@@todderbert Ainda mantém a mesma opinião com o xhdata d109 ?
I'm sure this is a good radio. But I am concerned about the rechargeable 18650 Li-ion battery. Is it a reliable battery? I have only used AA batteries. Never done a firmware update on a radio.
Do you lose all the stored presets if your battery dies or you Have to change the battery?
you lose ETM presets, but the normal ones stay.
Nice review well done. I agree do not like the AM to have too bass, was wondering if changing the band width would help with that. The Tecsun ICR-110 has a similar looking speaker is it anywhere near as good sounding as the 880? It does seem a little pricey at $160 it should tell you the temperature at that price.
The bandwidth really doesn't help much on that low end..it sorta mixes it, even at the ultrawide 9kHz. I think they are similar, but the 880 has more punch to the speaker. A bit too much at times.
How would this compare with the Eton Elite Executive? The latter allows labelling of each memory which is a good idea.
I own two Elites, while I sold my 880 off. Don't regret it :)
Nice radio, how does it compare to the Sangean 909x, C Crane CC radio 2E? I would like to see a higher end radio comparison shoot out, maybe $110.00 and up comparison
Possibly in the future. I don't own a 909X yet..will be awhile for that.
Is the 909x of Tecsun
I have the CC2E. Its not as complex but will reach further on AM. And the sound is way better.
I live on the west coast and was wondering if this radio which I do like is doable because of my location?
I noticed that you mentioned the distance each station is away from your location. Are you getting the distance info from the PL-880? Or do you simply know the distances from previous research and experience?
From Research, and years of Tuning the Bands.
todderbert: I want the Tecsun PL-880 Special Edition Deluxe Set, and can't find it. Have you found out what the King is of portable shortwave radios yet?
At eBay: bit.ly/880Deluxe , the Sony ICF-2010 comes close.
hello , in this model in FM is possible to have for exemple : 92, 35 MHZ (i mean steps) and is it sensitive enough in FM to get far reception stations Thank you very much
I sold mine, but the radio has fine tuning on the FM band in 1kHz stepping so you can get 92.35MHz. FM was strong for me. The extra length on the antenna paired with a nice dsp circuit does a decent job. Just depends on your location and any local RFI sources. I plan to pick up the new Tecsun models when they become available.
@@todderbert thank you very much for your help i am in France and for the moment i have a Sony ICF-SW7600GR witch does not seem to be strong enough for my wish
If your not in a hurry you may want to see what the new Tecsun models have to offer.
@@todderbert Yes i will love that do you know more about it?
Ok, being October 2018, is the pl880 good or would you recommend something better for the price ??
Sorry for the late reply. The 880 is a good radio, but mine was a bit too much on the audio side of things. I would prefer the Sangean 909X, or the PL-660.
Scott Mckeon thank you
Where did you buy this radio? Because most retailers doesn't offer that frequency sheet in the pouch.
Do you recommend using an external charger, rather than charging in the radio? If so, where can I get one?
The radio charges the batteries fine, just when you are not using it. If you need to keep using it, a spare battery, and charger can be picked up at 18650batterystore.com
@@todderbert I have read differing opinions whether charging inside the radio is detrimental to the device
Does this erase the presets if you change the batteries? It would be a shame to set 2,500 FM stations and then lose them all when the batteries run dry!
Presets are saved, ETM is temporary, usually changing the battery quick enough should be fine. Though this radio runs on an 18650, just keep it charged up.
Would you be able to tell me why, when I input some frequencies, the radio changes them to other frequencies?
For instance, I'll input 2850kHz, and the radio will change it to 12236 kHz, or when I input 1800 kHz, the radio changes it to 7600/1749/15915 or even 13149 kHz?
Thanks!
I sold my 880, so I can't test this for you, but it can be picky on how the frequencies are entered. Maybe a glitch, you can try a reset. Also removing the battery until the clock runs down.
Does anyone make a quality reliable radio with these features? Who and what model?
Can you super fine tune in AM Broadcast Mode ?
Hi Todd excelent review. In the portable radios category which one would you say is the best AM FM SW LW receiver? I want to buy a new radio cause my very very old and faithful YB 206 is kaput!!!
Thanks for you demonstration
I have a question about the charging cable , in case of there is no battery inside can the radio work while connected to the cable only ?
And if the the battery is dead or removed, is all the data set kept preserved ?
Your Welcome yasser issa, The presets are saved, but the ETM ones are not. I believe the book mentioned that the radio had to have a battery in it to operate...I sold mine awhile back. Two Hands and Radio still owns his and should be able to help you answer that question.
@@todderbert
What happened to Two Hands And A Radio, I can't find his channel anymore? Is he still amongst the living?
@@radiohobbyist13 He removed all of his videos and deleted his channel. He had a few reasons. I know he may still be around YT as Two Hands, but no "and a radio".
My wife has bought this for me for christmas. I will not open until then. Do you consider the battery that this uses a big drawback? This is my only concern. Where can you get decent ones in the US? I usually would not but something like this with an oddball battery. Big companies like canon just stop making batteries for their old cameras after a while and you get stuck with 3rd party. Thoughts on this would be great to hear and also where I can get good ones.
This uses a standard 18650 protected button top battery. You can find these easily online. I use 18650batterystore.com for mine.
@@todderbert thanks for that link!!! Helps greatly!
@@thestatenislander4755 Glad to help. I have way too many 18650s :)
@@todderbert an particular battery you like best for the 880? I appreciate all the help
thank you for all your videos. can you help on to advice the best antenna for this pl880 thank you
For Shortwave a Simple Wire Antenna will work such as the Kaito T-1: amzn.to/3eWqal6 , an upgrade is the Active Loop by Tecsun: amzn.to/3bzmBPG
Nice to see a local reviewer. Where in the Chicago area are you Todderbert? I am in the north burbs.
same radio, but your sounds better than mine, I don't know why maybe i am in SF area or i hear your radio via my computer speakers? My sound is not as good, it is about average for radio? I wonder i have a bad one?
19:00 Good Ol Brother Stair broadcasting from beyond.
Do you like this or the C Skywave better (assuming that the portability is not the deciding factor)?
I enjoy the Skywave better. I like it on headphones, and the Weather Alert is a great feature. I sold my 880, the speaker audio was a bit much. It would rattle things in the radio. My antenna would make buzzing sounds, ect. Oh and the use of traditional AAs is great, with superb run times of 70+ hours on a pair. The air band, when I feel like plan spotting :)
Thanks for the informative video. I am looking for a small travel radio. SW, LW, SSB & Sync Detector a must.
There is one more feature I am looking for. I can find it on Cheapie SW receivers but not good ones. It's
a thumb drive player. Do you know of one? Please, your thoughts. Regards from Ody Slim
you could always check out the Tecsun PL-990X it will play mp3s from a micro SD, and has all and more than the 880.
@@todderbert I willl do that. Thank you very much!
Is the audio in person as good as it sounds on this video???
Yes, this radio has some serious punch to it.
After watching your videos I bought the Eaton elite executive, it works beautiful I’ve owned it for one year only uses it maybe once a month. But I’ve noticed the last few months on 20 meter I can’t seem to fine tune anyone in they all sound out of tune or out of frequency. Is this something that can be fixed or repaired by the manufacturer, it is over a year about 14 months so it’s past the warranty it would have to be out of pocket I don’t mind if it’s not too much. Can anybody including the comment section chime in on this thank you
Call Eton, a Human answers the phone. Hope they can help.
That looks like a pretty slick radio, but out of my price range.
It is a bit much, might exchange it for a 660, been thinking about it after I got it.
That 660 looks like what I want too.
@@todderbert Qual o motivo da troca ?
@@ArndroidInc Comprou o rádio ? O que tá achando ?
Sidney Cavalcante Not bilingual.
What do you think about Tecsun PL-660?
I love it. I sold my 909X and my PL-880, and kept my 660. Even with it's weak air band, the SW aspect of the radio is excellent.
@@todderbert E o acha da comparação entre o 660 e xhdata d 808 ?
Can this run on alkaline disposable batteries?
Just 18650 Protected Button tops.
So is the 803A still the king?
For me it is the Sony ICF-2010, so darn good!
Had mine for 5 months. Tried to turn it on one morning, and nothing. Tried new batteries and psu...nothing. Out of warranty, too.
Try the reset button? My Tecsun S-8800 does this now and again. I had to reset it every time.
@@todderbert Yeah, I tried that...but to no avail. On another note, it was not the 880, it was the 660. In fact, I wanted to get the 880 but at the time thought it was too expensive or something. Was a few years ago. The 660 has long been in the trash.
Oh hey, the quaint 606 doesn't have NOAA, does it?
I think the TECSUN PL660 IS HANDS DOWN OVER THE TECSUN PL880. IT JUST DOENT JUSIFY THE PRICE.
Perry Couloufacos wrong. It’s the other way around. The money shouldn’t be an issue.
Great review! I am new to this. I see something called DRM. Is DRM better? Are stations broadcasting using that? I want something that I can pick up the most stations. I do not want to buy something that may be outdated and limited. My buddy has a Realistic DX4400. It is older but works. But there are not so many SW stations as there used to be , he said.
Many are religious or Spanish. Any suggestions ? Cheers
As long as AM, FM and Shortwave don't get disbanded by the FCC, then you are future proof. There is HD in the US, and DAB in Europe. HD works on the existing broadcast bands while DAB uses an upper band spectrum.
@@todderbert Thanks, I watched another of your videos. It was on Radiwow, I think it was 107. After seeing the review I ordered it. Is that HD. ? I really want to be part of the radio world. It seems like you guys are a unique bunch of people. Take care
@@duncan3417 It doesn't take much to enjoy radio. Portable radios are great. Some will run over one hundred hours on 2AA batteries. There are so many special programs available on radio. Old Time Radio Shows, Ground Zero, Coast to Coast, NPR stations, Classical Music, distant shortwave stations that broadcast news and music. A great time. You don't need an HD radio to enjoy what is out there. I have one, but don't use it much...I enjoy the normal AM FM and Shortwave bands. Glad you found my channel :)
@@duncan3417 we're unique for sure and todderbert is our leader! lol all kidding aside todderbert is a straightforward guy he won't lead on or try to soft sell you something, his reviews are by far the best on TH-cam. You would be surprised how many of his subscribers have a check list of radio's📻 that their going to buy just because of the quality of todderberts reviews 👍
How well does the loop antenna work?
Works well with a passive loop for MW. Not sure about the MLA-30 for Shortwave.
Hi Todderbert, Is this tecsun Pl-880 the best radio in your opinion? for $160
Most would agree, though I have a fondness for the Sangean 909X: th-cam.com/video/Q1NWArsM-ZA/w-d-xo.html
I want to buy this radio,is it available india
I just received mine. For those of you "in the know" where is the best place to get a secondary, spare battery? Thanks so much.
Orbtronic sells Protected Button Top Batteries that are High Quality. I use them in my radios.
If you don’t think this is the King of Short-waver radio then which radio would you give that title to? Also with the built quality why do you think it’s not worth $160!