I had a very similar experience with the prototype X6200 during my first activation. I timed mine with X-Class flaring and a radio blackout over North America! :) But there were no mozzies--! It took over 90 minutes to snag ten contacts and I fought hard for each one. Thanks for the video! Thomas (K4SWL)
I am still on the fence about the 6200. I like the styling of the 6100 better (I know I am one of the few). It gives up 2 watts, which at that level is 1/5th of the rig's potential, and it is a new Xiegu product, which means for the first year or so, the end user is the beta tester. I am going to wait until you have gone through it a tad more before I decide to buy one. Thank you for all you do.
Great video, thanks! The bands with the continual solar noise/storms has been the worst for the past few weeks.. Totally NOTHING, making you check your antenna, and connections.. Then all of a sudden, signals appear, like the clouds parting at night and the stars come out! One of the things your video made me think about, is with so many folks recording on TH-cam, you really don't want to be THAT GUY that is rude for all your subscribers to see!! You are actually helping with Ham etiquette, reminding us what we sound like on the air! Keep those great videos coming and light a citronella candle next time! 😉 Stan - WB5UDI
Hey Stan - peak of cycle 25 isn't really the time for QRP, eh? The Kentucky guy wasn't "rude" per se, but he wasn't happy... I just moved on. My mama taught me better.
This might explain the issues I'm having with my X6200 --- maybe I'm just dealing with crappy conditions out of my control? Guess I'll find out when my replacement gets here..
Steve my hats' off to you enduring horrible band conditions and bugs. Really liking what I'm seeing with the X6200 so far. Mine should be here any day - your videos are a definite help !
I like it. Haven’t been on HF since 2005 when I sold my FT1000MP and Heil mic set up. But I really like this radio would be an easy weekend setup for the back deck. Nice review.
I'm learning to love Permethrin-based bug-spray. It's definitely going to be a year for using SOMETHING even if one hates bugspray, because the alternative is gonna be to give in to vampirism.
He was not a friendly ham. Oh well but impressed with your contact. When I lived in Wisconsin I was on a first name basis with everyone at AES in Milwaukee including Miles the repair guy he helped me out with a bunch of antenna ideas. Hi Hi
Hi Steve, just got my X6200... have you figured out how to configure Digital Modes? I do have wsjtx decoding but no CAT or PTT controls yet. Any suggestions?
Hello! I'm interested in one detail: The internal battery is charged manually, like in the 6100? Or did the Chinese think of making it automatic? IMHO, a rather idiotic solution (X1600), I always forget to turn it off and it gets hot...
The X6200 still has the same internal "charger on/off" setup asn the X6100. I need to re-test the noise floor when I have a better power source... charging a battery from a battery doesn't really make much sense. More to come!
This prototype gets hot, but it's not really fair to talk about it. My 6100 stopped getting got on FT8 and I don't know why. I have a heatsink/fan video coming out soon. I think it all comes down if the internal charger is on or not.
My X6100s used to do the same thing when plugged into an external power supply. The noise level would rise an S unit or more. Was it the wireless mic or was the audio on the last station heard a bit raspy? It didn’t sound very good on the video.
I almost came across to Interstate Park this past weekend, but got lazy (I'm about an hour away from it). Meanwhile, so far, the x6200 looks like it's at least "good", so far!
I think that noise will go away if the charger circuit is off. More testing is needed. The FT8 display isn't bad, but it's tiny. TH-cam, sunlight, camera quality, etc all factor in to it as well.
Thanks for the videos. I am not too impressed with the 6200, but appreciate the content. My 6100 is good enough for what I need to do with it (added a fan below and an external LiPo battery).
I am trying to think of a use case where you only want to do ft8 decode. R1CBU i think got FT8 transmit working on the 6100 is testing that out on your docket?
R1CBU isn't making the firmware anymore. I has a sad. I have done some testing of his older versions. I hope somebody picks up the reigns and carries forward!
Thank you for the content! As I look, the FT8 decoder is just a gimmick, I don't think anyone would use it, because it can only decode. Is it possible to scroll through the results? The spectrum scope doesn't seem as fluid as other SDR radios and the noise when you charge the radio is disappointing. Does it sound the same when not charging? I'm glad you make a lot of videos about it, I'm waiting for a more detailed one, where you show the main differences in the software, because I think, the weakest spot of the Xiegu radios is their software.
FT8 Decode: Eventually I'll plug in a keyboard and try. Its 'neat', but they could have spent cycles somewhere else doing something else instead. The Scope has some neat features, I am trying to figure out a meaningful way of showing them. The charging noise goes away when you turn off the internal charger, I think they knew it was an issue from the X6100 days and kept that solution there. So far I'm only seeing an upgraded waterfall as the main difference. It seems like this is a lot of little fixes that were really needed in the X6100. I'm glad they released it, but maybe should have waited a bit to get 5/10w out of it instead.
So far they aren't allowing the prototypes to be kept. I would need to keep track of the emails too... its just a simple paper sticker, so without the added "provenance", it wouldn't be worth anything. Maybe I could just "forget" to send it back ;-)
them bands been bad. more solar flairs. it's the peak of cycle or near peak. 10/11/12 closed and high back ground noise. 15/15 meters nothing. weird noise on 6 meters . if you take out internal battery and or turn off charger that help with noise. maybe ferrite on Ext lead buy radio. just have to try and see. did like the FT8 decode. a great way to check the DX with out a PC . some 6 meters trying at grey line DX. today you need a KW and still only few contacts. getting ready for the heat in NY. heat warnings out from NOAA .may be 6 meters ? so hard to predict that band. that Poseidon will tune 6 meters . waiting to hear how good that works on 6 when the band open. the outher bands are super ! love how it does on 12/17 meters .big JEEM having a good time with it in a tree ! and the XYL did not see it yet. the HOA antenna ! waiting on the QRO one. just lot of testing needed. would like to see how that radio will turn the Aries 9:1 antenna . 73's
To bad it does not have the wattage the G90 has, plus I can bring it down to 1watt....4 watts on battery - 8 watts on direct power.....seems like a hard sell
You should turn up the static and bleeping even louder next time and whisper even quieter ,, because that would make more sense than barely hearing you mumble under the static and bleeping...give us louder static and even louder bleeping next time
Some of that is my recording, some of that is youtube audio processing... of course the best way to get sound would be a direct pipe into the camera... but then you'd bypass the speaker. Its not "horrible"... but given the space constraints in the case, its about where it should be.
@@temporarilyoffline hopefully my sarcasm was obvious. Pretty useless feature to let you know what you are missing. I think this one is an improvement from the 6100, but Ive found every excuse to leave my 6100 on the shelf and not use it even though it is capable enough. It just isn't that fun to use.
@@Superacerc Yes it was. The 2 biggest things in the field are the SWR scanner and the built in tuner. Outside of that, the rest of the fun is hacking on it in the shack to make it do the things it should have done out of the box!
That FT-8 decode is one of those useless add ons like APRS beaconing that does not listen before it transmits. The company seems to think they have something of value but not at all.
Keep the Xiegu x6200 content coming! I will be watching every one.
You bet - I've got a non-prototype unit coming, so there will be more.
I had a very similar experience with the prototype X6200 during my first activation. I timed mine with X-Class flaring and a radio blackout over North America! :) But there were no mozzies--! It took over 90 minutes to snag ten contacts and I fought hard for each one. Thanks for the video! Thomas (K4SWL)
Hey Thomas! I was wondering if that was you that got the other prototype. Solar conditions have really been bad lately. I was even struggling on FT8!
I am still on the fence about the 6200. I like the styling of the 6100 better (I know I am one of the few). It gives up 2 watts, which at that level is 1/5th of the rig's potential, and it is a new Xiegu product, which means for the first year or so, the end user is the beta tester. I am going to wait until you have gone through it a tad more before I decide to buy one. Thank you for all you do.
Hey John! I don't know man, doing all the upgrades and watching the fall out is half the fun!
@@temporarilyoffline that's why I watch you! WE can enjoy it together this way, and I have very little investment! 😀
@@BigJohnsHamShack Somebody finally gets the point of the channel🤣 I'm here for you brother!
Great video, thanks! The bands with the continual solar noise/storms has been the worst for the past few weeks.. Totally NOTHING, making you check your antenna, and connections.. Then all of a sudden, signals appear, like the clouds parting at night and the stars come out!
One of the things your video made me think about, is with so many folks recording on TH-cam, you really don't want to be THAT GUY that is rude for all your subscribers to see!! You are actually helping with Ham etiquette, reminding us what we sound like on the air! Keep those great videos coming and light a citronella candle next time! 😉
Stan - WB5UDI
Hey Stan - peak of cycle 25 isn't really the time for QRP, eh? The Kentucky guy wasn't "rude" per se, but he wasn't happy... I just moved on. My mama taught me better.
This might explain the issues I'm having with my X6200 --- maybe I'm just dealing with crappy conditions out of my control?
Guess I'll find out when my replacement gets here..
Let me know what you find out.
Steve my hats' off to you enduring horrible band conditions and bugs. Really liking what I'm seeing with the X6200 so far. Mine should be here any day - your videos are a definite help !
Hey Bill! You'll have fun with it... even if you don't make radio contacts with it.
I’m hopping that by the time my 6200 comes you will have taught me how to operate it.
It's a fun rig, even I don't use all of its potential - you might teach me a few too!
Bad time to play radio...blood sucking insects and poor conditions...brave man.
@@Philip-KA4KOE I suffer for my art!
I like it. Haven’t been on HF since 2005 when I sold my FT1000MP and Heil mic set up. But I really like this radio would be an easy weekend setup for the back deck. Nice review.
Thanks Michael! Portable is this radio's best feature!
Eaten alive by mosquitoes... eaten alive by band conditions, but only chewed out by the guy looking for Kentucky. 🙂Rough day in the park.
yeah, typical day on the radio, right?
I'm learning to love Permethrin-based bug-spray. It's definitely going to be a year for using SOMETHING even if one hates bugspray, because the alternative is gonna be to give in to vampirism.
@@unclemikeyplays Lesser of two evils that.
He was not a friendly ham. Oh well but impressed with your contact. When I lived in Wisconsin I was on a first name basis with everyone at AES in Milwaukee including Miles the repair guy he helped me out with a bunch of antenna ideas. Hi Hi
@@michaelpage4199 Thanks!
Hi Steve, just got my X6200... have you figured out how to configure Digital Modes? I do have wsjtx decoding but no CAT or PTT controls yet. Any suggestions?
You'll need the latest version of WSJT-X and use the X6100 profile. I'll have a video out on it soon.
@@temporarilyoffline thanks Steve, will test this asap. Assume baud 19.2
R1CBU firmware, BCI filter and my X6100 thank you. Great vid I’ve been curious.
Thanks for watching!
That tuner sounds a bit like the drag on my fishing reel when I hook a big one! I like it!!!
Exactly!
I was testing out my x6100 that day. Im glad the conditions were bad and not my Xiegu. I heard one guy calling cq. 🤔
It was very quiet at first, and then it all opened up. Very strange day on the radio!
Tuff day in the field but somebody's got a do it, great video tnx Man!
Better than an easy day at the office ;-)
Hello! I'm interested in one detail: The internal battery is charged manually, like in the 6100? Or did the Chinese think of making it automatic? IMHO, a rather idiotic solution (X1600), I always forget to turn it off and it gets hot...
The X6200 still has the same internal "charger on/off" setup asn the X6100. I need to re-test the noise floor when I have a better power source... charging a battery from a battery doesn't really make much sense. More to come!
I still want to know if it handles well near an AM broadcast tower
Me Too!
Hey TO! Thanks for the vids on the new 6200! Does the new microphone work with the X6100?
I don't know yet, but its on the list.
Steve I had an issue with the 6100 getting pretty warm when doing FT8 on 10W. Does the 6200 get warm too?
This prototype gets hot, but it's not really fair to talk about it. My 6100 stopped getting got on FT8 and I don't know why. I have a heatsink/fan video coming out soon. I think it all comes down if the internal charger is on or not.
My X6100s used to do the same thing when plugged into an external power supply. The noise level would rise an S unit or more.
Was it the wireless mic or was the audio on the last station heard a bit raspy? It didn’t sound very good on the video.
It was definitely the mics/audio processing. More to come. I will find a way to pipe the audio directly into the mic so you can hear the processing.
Thanks T.O. What is the phone app that you are using?
I use hamrs for pota logging
@@temporarilyofflineThanks. 73's and God Bless 🙏 ( K8JAZ 😎)
Have you found a voice compressor in there somewhere? I wish my x6100 had one! A compressor in the 6200 might offset the slight drop in watts...
Not yet, but I'll keep looking. Sounds like something they could do in software!
I love the form factor of the 6200 and 6100. But I’m so glad to have that 20 watts on my fx-4cr for that little “extra punch” when needed.
I'd gladly take the FX if it was a bit bigger, had a battery and a tuner. Honestly, I'd be happy with it as is to. I like all radios.
@@temporarilyofflineAgreed. That would make a better rig for sure.
Zastone zt7500, HamGeek RS-998
I almost came across to Interstate Park this past weekend, but got lazy (I'm about an hour away from it).
Meanwhile, so far, the x6200 looks like it's at least "good", so far!
"good" is right
A little concerned by the S1 to S2.5 noise increase. The FT8 display is a little hard to see. Overall, not bad
I think that noise will go away if the charger circuit is off. More testing is needed. The FT8 display isn't bad, but it's tiny. TH-cam, sunlight, camera quality, etc all factor in to it as well.
@@temporarilyoffline I agree. I generally like what I see, but I still love the G90. Geomagnetic instability will be with us for a while.
That audio sounds Really Good!
For such a small speaker, it's not bad at all
Thanks for the videos. I am not too impressed with the 6200, but appreciate the content. My 6100 is good enough for what I need to do with it (added a fan below and an external LiPo battery).
The SDR tech is supposed to be different, but with today's band conditions it wouldn't matter what tech it had.
Can this be done with the IC-705?
All of this can be done with the IC-705 (or any other radio)
GLORIOUS!!!
Thanks D!
I am trying to think of a use case where you only want to do ft8 decode. R1CBU i think got FT8 transmit working on the 6100 is testing that out on your docket?
R1CBU isn't making the firmware anymore. I has a sad. I have done some testing of his older versions. I hope somebody picks up the reigns and carries forward!
@@temporarilyoffline yeah I have sad too! It looks like the last firmware load had ft8 transmit but I haven’t been able to confirm that
Thanks so much for the video. Internal speaker sounds aweful. I wonder how an external speaker wouldvsound
It's not terrible in person. But every radio I have can benefit from an external speaker.
X6200 looks pretty nice sounds nice also.
Yeah, its a lot of fun so far, just wish the solar cycle was in a better place.
@@temporarilyoffline I hear ya brrother.
Thank you for the content!
As I look, the FT8 decoder is just a gimmick, I don't think anyone would use it, because it can only decode. Is it possible to scroll through the results?
The spectrum scope doesn't seem as fluid as other SDR radios and the noise when you charge the radio is disappointing. Does it sound the same when not charging?
I'm glad you make a lot of videos about it, I'm waiting for a more detailed one, where you show the main differences in the software, because I think, the weakest spot of the Xiegu radios is their software.
FT8 Decode: Eventually I'll plug in a keyboard and try. Its 'neat', but they could have spent cycles somewhere else doing something else instead.
The Scope has some neat features, I am trying to figure out a meaningful way of showing them.
The charging noise goes away when you turn off the internal charger, I think they knew it was an issue from the X6100 days and kept that solution there.
So far I'm only seeing an upgraded waterfall as the main difference. It seems like this is a lot of little fixes that were really needed in the X6100. I'm glad they released it, but maybe should have waited a bit to get 5/10w out of it instead.
Enjoyed thanks
Glad you enjoyed it
Interesting but I still think it is a little pricey. I like the concept. 73
Its fun to hack on, yeah its a tad pricey.
Some generous 5-9s there 😮
Hey, imma nice guy!
there was a lot of people on the band they were just doing braindead mode on 14.074 lol
I saw that., probably twice as many on 074 as usual due to conditions.
Do you get to keep that prototype? Could be something much more valuable later. If they say hey do you want to buy it I would.
So far they aren't allowing the prototypes to be kept. I would need to keep track of the emails too... its just a simple paper sticker, so without the added "provenance", it wouldn't be worth anything. Maybe I could just "forget" to send it back ;-)
Does it have fcc aproval?
The prototype? Nope. FCC ID is all Xs
@@temporarilyoffline the one I buy will have?
@@OralRoyse Yes. I have a pre-production model to share with you ahead of time.
Can you log in to it ?
I can do anything ;-) I've got a video on it.
them bands been bad. more solar flairs. it's the peak of cycle or near peak. 10/11/12 closed and high back ground noise. 15/15 meters nothing. weird noise on 6 meters . if you take out internal battery and or turn off charger that help with noise. maybe ferrite on Ext lead buy radio. just have to try and see. did like the FT8 decode. a great way to check the DX with out a PC . some 6 meters trying at grey line DX. today you need a KW and still only few contacts. getting ready for the heat in NY. heat warnings out from NOAA .may be 6 meters ? so hard to predict that band. that Poseidon will tune 6 meters . waiting to hear how good that works on 6 when the band open. the outher bands are super ! love how it does on 12/17 meters .big JEEM having a good time with it in a tree ! and the XYL did not see it yet. the HOA antenna ! waiting on the QRO one. just lot of testing needed. would like to see how that radio will turn the Aries 9:1 antenna . 73's
I think half the fun comes from the band conditions changing. If it always worked, it wouldn't be the same.
It concerns me that there is more noise when you use an external battery
More testing is needed, but I think it was because I had the internal charger on. There is an off switch for it.
But you're not in Kentucky? 73
Right... nobody answered that guy for a while, band was dead... at least he wasn't (that) rude about it, lol
You braved being eaten alive for us! Thanks!! How do you like the sound of the speaker?
its not bad in person, but EVERY radio sounds better with a good speaker/headset attached.
To bad it does not have the wattage the G90 has, plus I can bring it down to 1watt....4 watts on battery - 8 watts on direct power.....seems like a hard sell
yeah, its "special" for sure.
The transmit power should have gone up to 20 watts instead of down to 8 watts. Way too much money for 8 watts.
I would love to see a modern portable/fun radio at >10w
Doesn't "K" mean you come from Kentucky?😂
Whe you gonna hack it son?
Its coming, video is in the queue if you know where to look 😂
Can't transmit ft8.....yet.
Because Steve hasn't tried yet.
Shhh.... 🤞🤣
I love my X6100, but I gotta say: This should've been a firmware update. I'm NOT going to get the X6200, especially not at 930 Euros.
Its a hard upgrade path!
You should turn up the static and bleeping even louder next time and whisper even quieter ,, because that would make more sense than barely hearing you mumble under the static and bleeping...give us louder static and even louder bleeping next time
You're awesome!
Very disappointing audio quality. My recently acquired uSDX transceiver sounds better that that although i am sure it's nowhere near as capable.
Some of that is my recording, some of that is youtube audio processing... of course the best way to get sound would be a direct pipe into the camera... but then you'd bypass the speaker. Its not "horrible"... but given the space constraints in the case, its about where it should be.
I don’t understand why you would want ft8 decode? I want full ft8. Who cares about seeing it
But you may be doing grid square traffic research....right? Or just record grid squares like the license plate game? So much entertainment value.
somebody will find a use for it... it ain't me.
@@temporarilyoffline hopefully my sarcasm was obvious. Pretty useless feature to let you know what you are missing. I think this one is an improvement from the 6100, but Ive found every excuse to leave my 6100 on the shelf and not use it even though it is capable enough. It just isn't that fun to use.
@@Superacerc Yes it was. The 2 biggest things in the field are the SWR scanner and the built in tuner. Outside of that, the rest of the fun is hacking on it in the shack to make it do the things it should have done out of the box!
FT8 decode as an alternative to using WWV stations to evaluate band conditions.
That FT-8 decode is one of those useless add ons like APRS beaconing that does not listen before it transmits. The company seems to think they have something of value but not at all.
I'm hoping its another indicator of things to come.
Thanks for showing me what a fail this radio is.
Its fine so far. It will be hard to QRP for the next few years.
Audio's awful. Neighbors complain they can't hear it.
They can get their own radio!
Looks awful: buttons, sounds, on air led...
We can make radio fast, low cast and with best characteristic. Choose 2 variants.
Fast.Right.Cheap. Pick 2. Yep.
I haven't had to break out the Thermacell for POTA this year, but that time will be here soon for sure 🦟🦟🦟
I'm surprised, I've been to your state!