Quansheng UV-K5 or UV-K6? What is the difference? What changed?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- After the introduction of the UV-K5 (which really took off like a rocket) along came the UV-K6 also known as the UV-K5(8)! So many people asking WHAT is the difference (if any) ... hopefully this video will help clear things up!
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I bought one of the uv-k5(8) radios and it was also terrible on the air band. However, when I changed to the egzumer firmware, the air band sounded just like my hand-held scanner. It is a big improvement!
What exactly the egzumer firmware changes?
@@mazzen79 Opens the radio up - well worth it
The 3rd party firmware patches cure the AM air-band receiver quality quite remarkably.
I love these radios. Airband was something I wanted but you're right: Out of the box isn't good. The big selling point was the ability to mod the software and through a Mod (someone else's mod). I was able to improve the airband reception. A lot of guys in my radio club don't like Chinese radios. However, I hear them complain about their expensive radios breaking down, while my Chinese radios last a lot longer and do a lot more.
Yeah. Where I am the HAM / Radio clubs are gatekept by old blokes with really expensive gear who talk down to you. Kinda like the smaller shooting ranges actually hahaha
If you do a firmware update it will clear it up
@@awdtw get a repeater set up and make your own club that is more geared towards younger and newer hams.
For £12 I'd say it's excellent out of the box
I mean it's good fer the cost of a big cup of coffee. You're kidding yerself if you think it's on par with ft5dr though or that my yaesu is breaking all the time?😅 delusions my freind.
I have a Baofeng UVS9s that i like better than the Quansheng. Every command needs a function button pressed, and there seems to be some inconsistencies in response from the radio ie…if i tap “scan” sometimes the voice will say channel mode for example.
Then there’s the issue of not really being able to use CHIRP. I’ll see how this new one performs.
Addendum: The new radio came in yesterday. Looks good, buttons seem to work a bit better.
I think they should have done something a bit different- 220 band, more transmission power..etc
I saw a guy on utube add a wire to the ground (radial) that made a noticeable positive difference. Might be a good idea to try just for fun and prosperity!😉
Many people do that, it does help a little.
Apparently the only differences between the two are the design, backlight color and the somewhat better speaker on the UV-K6, otherwise they are identical. As for now UV-K5 looks more interesting, due to active community and the custom firmwares available for UV-K5 that increase the TX from 50-600Mhz all the way to 18-1300Mhz.
I don’t know about the ‘better’ speaker! They sound EXACTLY the same! LOL. As for the firmware, I believe it to also be the same! You can probably run it on the K6 just the same. The ONLY redeeming factor now is the price! The K5 is as low as $16!!
@@fittoat9261Yeah, I got mine for $15.49, and saw them go as low as $13.80, those came without the charging cradle though, only type-c cable, still no big deal. As for firmware, yeah, the two also seem identical, custom ones exist only for K5, at least for now.
@@xfragboixCustom FW of the K5 work the same on it.
@@pedrocx486 I believe so too. Custom FW works also on K5 (8) as ppl here call it, K6
I tested mine on a tiny VNA. Spurious emissions are FCC compliant. My problem is that the radio puts out only 3 watts on high power. Mid power is 2 watts and low is 1 watt. It is okay as a radio and ham band sounds very good as well as audio out. Overall even with repeaters I think 3 watts is a disadvantage as well as a shortened antenna. I would not use this as an emergency radio. It is okay for a daily talker.
Thank you for the additional info!
Your welcome.
Thanks for sharing your findings 📻
With respect 73
With newest firmware they are both better, the k5 6 and 88 do have a better tone than the k5.. I suspect they added a capacitor to cut the high pitch sound to speaker.. it is just a piezoelectric speaker, those will always sound like trash.. but absolutely amazing (with egzumer mod) for its price compared to anything else available at the time.
any one measure the output power of the K6 stock and after the mod for extended coverage
This is FM antenna. You need antenna for the right frequency.
Have you seen the YT short that mentions adding a certain length of wire using one of the screws on the back to create additional antenna strength?
Yes, absolutely! The ‘rat tail’ helps improve reception. However, you have to use the correct length for the frequency you use.
@@fittoat9261 would a proper lengthed rat tail improve the airport frequency reception?
Boyle Throughway
Muller Rapids
a low watt speaker part of the problem ?
I am not sure I can answer that question, but I did follow another gentleman who did the change and got better audio! So I did as well, and it DOES perform a LITTLE better on the audio.
@@fittoat9261
Quansheng UV-K5 Audio Output Power: ≥0.5W........yes is part of the problem..to sound good at least 1 watt speaker
Crist Walks
Understand there is now a firmware update to fix the AM audio on airband....?
I have a link in the comments. Also check the FB user groups for almost daily updates!
Scot Turnpike
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Santos Squares
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Levi Loaf
Tromp Ford
Emily Avenue
Hansen Views
As far as......
Young William Jones Mark Rodriguez Susan
PROBLEMA MAIOR NESSES RADIOS QUANSHENG É O GANHO BAIXO DE MICROFONE, SE COMPARADO A 1 BAOFENG DA VIDA COMO O UV5R POR EXEMPLO !!! SOU MAIS 1 RADTEL DA VIDA, RT490... 👍😁 QUANSHENG TÔ FORA !!!
Celestine Junctions
These cheap Chinese radios sound horrible!!
So after way too many sleepless nights, and hours of listening .... I have reached the following conclusion:
IF YOU PUT A PROPERLY TUNED ANTENNA FOR AIRBAND (and if it is outdoors - even better) THEN AIRBAND RECEPTION IS VERY ACCEPTABLE!
The K6 DOES have slightly better audio than the K5! (And is better looking)
The 18-1300MHz Firmware Mod is interesting, but does not fit my needs right now, so back to original firmware. Maybe might try again in the future.
Thank you for suggestions and ides! Keep them coming! They help everybody.
However, I DID the Piotr22 upgrades to the firmware, and it works very well on BOTH versions!
Rotterdam airport is 20,5 km away from my home and I can recieve the tower and some of the planes too. Not very loud and with some noise in the signal. I use the standard UV-K5 antenna.
There are lots of quality VHF aircraft band antennas out there. Smiley Antenna has some excellent airband antennas. Another often overlooked company is Childs Antenna Co.
Like Smiley, they make quality products and the tuning is done by hand on an individual product basis. I have a Childs 3DB-5/8 VHF 5/8 wave mobile antenna (NMO mount) and I emailed Bruce Childs asking for it to be cut for 145.0 MHz at the factory. No problem, he said. So out of the box it gives me 1.2 or less over the whole 144-148 MHz band.
For base station listening, your best bet is something like the Tram 1181 (“field tunable” whip with a NMO mount - comes cut for 118 MHz from the factory). Mount that bad boy on a ground plane kit with NMO mounting and put it outside. A real 25 to 1300 MHz discone will also do the trick (quite well). For mobile use, the Hustler HQM and MRM-B magnetic mount antennas are good options too. The HQM comes cut for 130 MHz or so from the factory. There are actually several mobile antennas (1/2 waves, 5/8 waves) that are sold as 136-174 MHz antennas but when you get them out of the box the whip is cut for 130 MHz, 132 MHz, something like that. So leaving the whip super long would work decently well (for airband reception).
did you do firmware mod on the new version? i hear it dont work
@@R4002 thank you for that information!!! Helps everyone!!
@@noimnotarobotcanubeleiveit7024 yes you can update firmware on the newer one. Works fine!
I tuned my K5 to our local airport ATIS and compared it to my D-808 on the same frequency. ATIS came in clear on both radios. The voice on the K5 had a higher pitch but wasn’t “scratchy”. 🤷♂️
I have read both good and bad reports on the Airband. I am not sure if it has to do with quality control in production? Glad yours is good though!
If you can load a modified firmware and get the full 800 and 900 MHz band reception that would be incredible
after firmware update am fix the air band is just great
Is it no one that thinks about that the original antenna can be garbage? New software and a better antenne will fix about all problems :) 73 from Norway.
I have a Quansheng TG-2UV. I bought it back when the Chinese rigs were first coming on the market. It outlasted a Yaesu FT-60R. It’s been a rock in a stormy sea of dozens of UV-5Rs, UV-82s coming and going. Granted, I bought, programmed and then sold most of those UV-5Rs and UV-82s.
Seriously though. It’s one of the radios I’ve had the longest, along with my RadioShack HTX-202 (made in 1995), which I still use daily), my Motorola MTS2000 and a hodgepodge of old analog scanners/receivers. The TG-2UV is now a “standby radio”, I alternate between one of three Retevis RT1 VHF HTs, my HTX-202 and one of a handful of UV-5Rs. I’ve got some UV-82s and a Puxing PX-UV973 dualbander in reserve as well.
For VHF aircraft band receive, the Pro-135 handheld scanner is actually one of the best performing receivers I’ve come across. It’s on the same level as the Pro-2006 and Pro-2052. The GRE PSR-100 family are decent but the Pro-135 is superior in AM mode.
Anyway, the Quansheng always “felt” more solidly built than the Baofengs. The price reflected this.
A CAPTAÇÃO DE ÁUDIO NO MICROFONE DOS QUANSHENG É PÉSSIMA, RUIM DEMAIS, BEM BAIXA SE COMPARAR ATÉ MESMO COM UV5R BAOFENG... TEM FREQUÊNCIA MAS É MUITO RUIM DE ÁUDIO 👍😆 PRETENDO PEGAR 1 RADTEL RT 490 PARA TESTES, MAS QUANSHENG NÃO QUERO !!!
One thing I have found is that, compared to Baofengs and other radios like it, the audio is better. That does not include air band. I don't jump for radios that include air band because I do like to listen but it is not a priority for me on a ham radio. The Orange screen is not an obnoxious color. Mine is listed as a K5(8). There are firmware updates that can be added to the radio including HF (SSB) again not a thing for me. I look at that as a "jack of all trades and master of none." In a side by side comparison, with other Chinese radios, the audio is very clean and is not tiring to listen too. The only recommendation is that if you want to get a K5 get the K5(8). There is a lot of confusion on this radio because K5, K5(8), and K6. Which are you getting. The only way I can describe it, I haven't talked to Quansheng, is the the K5 is original model and the K5(8) is current model. Also does the K6 exist? The FCC id number says K6 yet the radio id is K5(8). I question if the K6 exists. Chinese radios are constantly being changed and upgraded. I believe the Chinese radio manufacturers are using the FCC to test their equipment. Rather than design the radios to meet the specs they make the radios to see if they pass FCC regs. Kind of like selling several day old food until someone gets sick. Japan builds radios that pass the FCC. Financially any more I am more likely to be able to afford an $80 or less handheld from China than a super whizz-bang radio from Japan that costs 700 to 800 dollars. That is 3 to 4 times my grocery budget every month. I need to eat to survive. I do not need to radio to survive.
You are in luck, both can flash the same firmware. No difference. I did just that with a custom Firmware unlocking everything except the range expansion of AM mode. Everything else is possible. Beware transmitting on AM airband from 50MHz-136MHz and FM Broadcast band between 64MHz-108MHz is illegal. But these devices can be unlocked to do all that as if it was factory made. I use it to receive and transmit on CB bands ranging from 25MHz-30MHz in both AM and FM (Narrow or wide). Just to be clear. It is worth the money. Crystal clear audio on CB band and with an Scanner antenna (rubber duck) you are sensitive as well. Power (Watt) on CB is lower but not scratchy and distorted. You can adjust the MIC gain setting between 1-4, got mine on 3. Hope this helps those of you that want a handheld CB radio on USB-C battery. The bands are unlocked from 18MHz - 1300MHz. with a small gap at 650MHz to about guess what. I will not change the firmware after this, except if Shortwave is possible. Seems a hardware limitation of the chip. Maybe even some extra power saving modes might get me to load a another firmware bin file.
Thanks for details! Could you please put some links where and how to unlock this radio for CB band or lower please? Thank you so much! ;)
@@OM0ET TH-cam Channel ¨Ham Radio DX¨ has the instructions and download links. It is a easy process.
@@OM0ET th-cam.com/users/shortsygh_GQLEZw4?feature=share
Thank you for the info!
Dreadful radio.
I purchased it branded as the Radtel RT-590. Very hissy and Audio distanced, scratchy and hissy.
Rubbish for air bands.
Also receives no Satcoms considering it’s supposed to cover the 1.25 m and well above.
The amber screen is a lot better in sunlight 👍
Some say that reception on Airband is better when the signal is weaker. I have found this to be true. I live 16 miles from Manchester Airport here in the UK and can hear Ringway Approach freq. When aircraft are closest, the signal becomes distorted.
I'll have to try that! Although all my other radios that do Airband, do fine. Hey, I don't know!
c'est vrai j'ai une aérodrome a 3 km de chez moi le son est déformé et je suis a 300 mètres en altitude au dessus de cet aérodrome , et un aéroport a 40 km de chez moi et la c'est clair mais j'ai changé l'antenne en premier Retevis RHD771qui était bien mais en deuxième et bien plus courte mais très bien la Retevis RHD701
aliexpress says K6 has a clearer spekaer, but with analog reception is probably hard to hear the improved quality of the speaker, since analog audio is usually so bad with just 12 khz bandwidth.
Maybe you can try some high quality transmision close to the radios and check if with very good recepcion, you can hear any improvement in the speaker.
EGZUMER firmware has AM fix and adds a Spectrum Analyzer
Yes it does, and yes it does improve reception!
Rohan Curve
Have you tried new antenna
If you had a resonant antenna for the air band it would be very clear … but the stock 2m & 70cm don’t cut it😂 the radios are in my opinion they are excellent on receive … 😮❤❤❤
Stroman Skyway
2:30 The physical buttons on the K5 had sticky problems ..the new design was probably just to fix them. Definitely go for the newly designed buttons on the K6 because a bad button means a brick of a radio. The internals are just the same.
I've ordered the K6 but now the price has now doubled to trippled!😮
I was hoping that the airband had improved as per their info saying audio is improved. Oh well. Lol
Uv-k5 and uv-k6 can use the same mods, the mods usually work regardless since the radios are nearly identical .
Corkery Estate
Cremin Spurs
I'm just looking for a radio that lets me talk clearly with my family on hikes & such. Do I need that FCC license? How's the battery life? Can this get wet if it rains heavy? Thank you
Kerluke Squares
Emmalee Garden
Pierre Station
Quigley Spring
Smiley Antennas sells great antennas and they sell air band antennas.
I agree. Smiley has some excellent airband antennas. Another often overlooked company is Childs Antenna Co.
Like Smiley, they make quality products and the tuning is done by hand on an individual product basis. I have a Childs 3DB-5/8 VHF 5/8 wave mobile antenna (NMO mount) and I emailed Bruce Childs asking for it to be cut for 145.0 MHz at the factory. No problem, he said. So out of the box it gives me 1.2 or less over the whole 144-148 MHz band.
For base station listening, your best bet is something like the Tram 1181 (“field tunable” whip with a NMO mount - comes cut for 118 MHz from the factory). Mount that bad boy on a ground plane kit with NMO mounting and put it outside. A real 25 to 1300 MHz discone will also do the trick (quite well). For mobile use, the Hustler HQM and MRM-B magnetic mount antennas are good options too. The HQM comes cut for 130 MHz or so from the factory. There are actually several mobile antennas (1/2 waves, 5/8 waves) that are sold as 136-174 MHz antennas but when you get them out of the box the whip is cut for 130 MHz, 132 MHz, something like that. So leaving the whip super long would work decently well (for airband reception).
@@R4002 Great info on Childs Antenna Co! Thank you very much!
Rowe Tunnel
Lauretta Mountains
Dicki Drives
K5 very good quality price is very economical great range of frequencies (and more with modified firmware) receives well I have several baofeng and I liked the k5 more and if the battery lasts much longer than the bao
Yes I also noticed the battery life is short!
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I have no issues with mine on airband. I'm in Portugal around 100km from the Lisbon airport. Even with the standard antenna i get good reception. I have replaced it with a Retevis RHD-771 which has improved airband reception even more. You should adjust the squelch also. On mine i leave it at 3, and it works fine.I hear both tower and pilot. Out of 10 i get 7-8 cristal clear transmissions only a couple sometimes i can only hear one side either tower or pilot. I love the K5 and i will for sure get the K6 to benefit from scrambled channels between them.
Thank you for that information!
Me too. I have no issues with airband listening. I have a Icom RC6 scanner as a reference point and the UV-5R is not that bad. Especially considering the price.
Oi mano também sou português tas em alguma comunidade de ham em Portugal?
@@aquatone01I’ve just ordered one of these, complete novice. I want to use it for airband, how do I know what frequencies to scan?
Is it easy to use, good instructions included?
Thanks in advance.
@chinchin69 hey, it's very easy to use. You quite literally turn it on and then type in the frequency you want to listen to.
With regards to what frequencies. You can look up the net for your local airport radio frequencies. Usually someone had them listed. If you don't find it you can try searching for local aviation maps which will tell you the radio frequencies.
Beer Lane
Maude Knoll