Welcome to 2021 - TECSUN PL-990X Review
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- čas přidán 4. 01. 2021
- As we enter 2021, its time to thank all the viewers and start 2021 with a product review. If you have ever thought about purchasing a high performance portable receiver. Take a look at this triple conversion superhet that also has an MP3 player and can function as a laptop speaker system.
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PL-990X
hamradiostore.co.uk/tecsun-po... - Věda a technologie
Nearly forty years as a licensed Amateur Radio Operator and I learn all the time. I like these videos, it's like stopping by a friend's house for a cup of coffee and a chat about radio equipment and antennas. Please keep making these. Very well done! 73, de KI7YY
W5AWG FROM SAM FRMCICO- CAL. OPRODERLY FROM HOTT SPRONGSS ARKANASAAS USA.
I had this radio for one year and I concur, this is one of the best short wave compact radios I ever had...
Many thanks. 73 Peter
I have the TECSUN R-9700DX. bought about 4 months ago. watched a lot of reviews on these and this is the one I decided on.
I have just ordered the 990x should arrive on the 12-17th cant wait looks a really nice receiver. thanks for all your vids.
I love the radio that you just showed us ,however, as soon as you said the words “spy radios”…I subscribed!🙌🏻😉🤠👍🏻✊🏻⭐️
This has been an excellent review. Thank you very much.
You're right about the audio quality of the more recent SW receivers being better than the older ones. I have a Tecsun PL-880 from 2017 and a Sangean ATS-818 from 1994... the first thing I noticed about the PL-880 was the much lower noise floor.
Hi Zendon, your comment about the Sangean ATS 818 caught my eye. I just bought a brand new one still in the original box.
@@lonnieclemens8028 A rare find. Even better if it still works perfectly.
What I like about CZcams is you can scroll forward to the more interesting stuff.
Just ordered the 990x, looking forward to some good SWL'ing, and for the video. 73
Great presentation... I love this guy... makes his own music !!! :)
Thanks Paul. 73 Peter
I have also a Barlow radio, from my father. I bought it for him in England on 1978. It still work perfectly.
time to inspect capacitors
Yes Gene, your are right, it’ s on my program thanks
Hi.I have a Tecsun PL-660 and it is very good.If I buy the above,PL-990X,what about the difference,will it be big?
Three hail Mary's and an act of contrition old chap for reading an instruction manual. Nice to know you did that, and operated the Tecsun without spectacles or twitching fingers. I sadly can't boast the same level of physical, ( or mental in my case), dexterity.. Perhaps a clandestine radio in POW camp's presentation, as it will seem fitting in the present circumstances. You can be "Big X" ! Happy New Year Peter.. Thanks for your great videos..
Great to hear from you Pete. I do actually need glasses but for the video I know pretty well where the controls are! 73 Peter
Iam really liking this Peter!!! Can take it to work with me on nights:) have put one in my basket so will purchase soon as in stock:) looking forward to the next spy video 👍👍
Many thanks. Peter
I love your videos, thank you for the information. New ham here as of 2/2/21, KD2VNP
Great to hear from you. 73 Peter
I've had a Tecsun PL-990 (non "x" variant for the domestic China market) for almost 2 years. If there's something about this model that nearly every reviewer on CZcams hasn't noticed, the PL-990's 4 kHz bandwidth filter makes no difference compared to the 3 kHz setting. Anyone who has played around with SDRs can tell you that changing the bandwidth from 3000 Hz to 4000 Hz makes A LOT of difference in the sound. In the case of the PL-990, the 4 kHz setting may as well be a placebo.
I have no idea if Tecsun is aware of this bug in the PL-990 but they're probably keeping quiet as no one had brought this up.
Great video. By the way, this is one of the few portables where the external antenna jack also works on MW and also discoonects the ferrite! It also receives bluetooth. I love mine!
Thanks for the info! 73 Peter
Frank - can you DX AM with Ext Antenna effectively because of this ?
Also have you been able to split faint Medium Wave into LSB/USB select stronger side / fine tune and SYNC for listenable sound OR is the SYNC too weak for this ?
@@robertscorpio8432 the sync on this radio is bad but everything else you said is fine on this radio.
@@kishascape Thanks Kishascape .
Great review! The only thing that is stopping me from buying this lovely radio is that the SYNC performance is subpar, as it is in my PL-880. I opted for the PL-680. Cheers!
Thanks for sharing 73 Peter
Have to agree, sync on the 680 is near perfect. Mine works like a charm.
Ainda mantém a opinião em relação ao PL 680 ?
I got one before Christmas and it is a very nice and capable radio. The synchronous AM feature does allow you to select which sideband to listen to, which can be useful if you have an interfering station on one side. I call it a nice laptop radio because you can relax in an armchair, using just the (1m long) whip aerial and be really surprised at what you can hear. For someone like me who was a schoolboy SWL over 50 years ago, it is astonishing how receiver technology has developed.
Thanks for the info! 73 Peter
I got my station after 20+ years since passing my (full license) qualification test as a young person. License does not expire but I sure needed to check up some changed regulations. :)
Glad to hear from you. 73 Peter
That’s a charming little wireless.
I Love pl-990's " Trail-Friendly Radio " Controls..!
Many thamks. 73 Oeter
I like it. The old receiver I had let out the magic smoke and did a burn out to the point it was not worth fixing. So I had to dig out the small one of around the size of the one you had there, it does NOT perform the same or have half the features that one has. It does do SSB but not so well. My biggest problem is if I plug in the power supply that came with it it wipes everything out! I doubt it is a high quality supply, maybe a half wave rectifier without proper screening or smoothing! I used to listen to the old receiver for hours, a habit I developed when young.
We had an old valve radio (Tube for the Americans viewers) that used to pick up everything, if it was transmitted it would hear it.
I would sit and listen to these strange transmissions at night, Short wave, Radio Amateurs, Police, Fire, Taxies, strange counting stations, things that were to say the least weird. But it was good fun for me and it kept me out of my mothers feet on rainy days as well.
I kept hearing Morse code and went to school and asked the headmaster (three teacher school) what it was all about. That sparked the interest of some other kids in the classes in the room (the classes were up to 6 to 8 kids per class so there were 4 classes in the one room and the head teaches all of them) so he explained it was Morse. It got people so interested that we made wooden Morse keys and we gave up some of out time to start to learn Morse (not very well I have to add as the Head didn't know Morse to any speed, but he did know letters and numbers.
There was so much interest that as a surprise he got two gentlemen in one day to demonstrate Amateur Radio (no idea did he know them or did some parent know them) but they came in and set up a radio and ran a wire and tuned it up a bit. We were well warned not to go close to any wires as we would get a big shock from it (no explanation of RF burns!
Anyway, it was demonstrated to all our satisfaction.
I don't think anyone became a Radio Amateur though. I almost did, but work took me away from the course and my mates at the time found they already held the qualifications. :-(( Of course it was not going to be much fun going to a stuffy Ham Club on my own.
There was an Amateur was going to take me on that I spoke to a lot on the CB, but unfortunately he died just as we started :-((
Life can have some cruel twists, now I am disabled and getting around is not so good.
Now is the time to go through the test, now that it is online, though the practical would give me no problems at all. Done it all already!
Least said about that the better, NO, I was not a pirate.
Anyway, I digress.
That is a nice small receiver, just a pity they went to all the bother of putting a SD card into it and not making it stereo.
That would have been a brilliant radio for everything then. Party anyone?
Hi Bob great to hear from you and your story. I do hope you can get on the air. Take care. 73 Peter
most new portable radios now days if you use them while plugged into the power supply it makes interference, it is not just tecsun, i have an other brand portable, and if i keep power supply in, can not heard anything at am/lw ... if you have a chance try a PSU with power supply stabilization, if helps to avoid interference ... with this radio manufacture states use only FM with PSU plugged in .. so for them to state this, perhaps they know possible issue because pl990 use a voltage amplified system which may has some effect (not so sure) when PSU is plugged in ... apart that is a good radio & some shops supply additional battery & charger
@@babisglykiotis2723 for short wave listening, I always unplug the AC, in any short wave radio...
Let's have a bit of nostalgia let see the Barlow wadley up and running 😁. cheers Peter enjoyed the video. Adam G7CRQ
Hi Adam. Nice to hear from you. Take care. Peter
I LOVE WADLEY LOOP receiver XCR .
Many thanks. Peter
Excellent video of the PL 990 with its cutting edge features. But i will surprise you even more. Know that it has the bluetooth feature too, in addition to filtering hiss between stations, and still other features that are not reported in the manual. I can give you the instructions for jumping the cat if you want. 73!
Thanks for the info! 73 Peter.
@@watersstanton With the receiver turned on: Additional features: To activate this suite of additional features, by press and hold the 4 key until the display shows either off or ON. Press and hold again to change the status. DNR (Dynamic Noise Reduction). Press and hold the 6 key to turn the DNR on or off. Muting Threshold. Press and hold the 9 key until the current level flashes in the display. Adjust the fine tuning control to change the level. 00 means no level is set. Press the 9 key to save. FM De-Emphasis. Press and hold the 5 key to change between 50 and 75uS. Press the 5 key to save. Australia and Europe use 50uS, the USA and Japan use 75uS. Line Output Level. Press and hold the 7 key, and adjust using the fine tune control. Separate level settings can be made for AM, USB, LSB and Sync modes. With the receiver turned off Bluetooth Playback. Press and hold the RADIO/MP3 button to turn Bluetooth playback on and off. Once turned on, switch the receiver On and press the radio/MP3 button. The receiver will pair with your audio source and you will be able to hear audio tracks from your BT device on the PL-990. Pressing the RADIO/MP3 button again reverts to radio function. Seconds Display. To display seconds, press and hold the 8 key until the display shows seconds. Press and hold again to turn seconds display off.
👍 Thanks. Very intresting video.
Glad you enjoyed it
Hi Peter, Looks like the Sony ICF-7600 or ICF-SW77 on steroids. Seems to be a very nice radio with excellent SSB reception too! It would be good though, if you did a comparison video showing the differences between the PL-680 and the PL-990X and what the advantages are of the more expensive radio.
Hi Gordon. OK will see what we can do. 73 Peter
Seria muito interessante
@@watersstanton Tem uma dúvida em relação a diferença entre PL 990 e PL 990 x ?
@@watersstanton Fez ?
This is nice so small can take anywhere where ever I want to go i have radio SONY CRF-230 world zone 23 band radio old version never used it for a while it a big set I've not bothered used it since I've had Icom 7300. Great video
Many thanks 73 Peter
Thank you
I added TECSUN PL-990X to my "Wish List".
Thanks. 73 Peter
I love my Panasonic RF-B65!
Nice. 73 Peter.
My Panasonic B65 and Sony SW7600 were both destroyed in a flood last summer. I was lucky to have two very good made in Japan radios bought when new. I was spoiled.
I am looking for similar but it looks like reverse engineering....copying from imports wins out over inventions, innovations and hard work that made Sony and Panasonic both great makers of radios.
Tecsun make some fine receivers
Yes indeed. 73 Peter
radio của tecsun bắt sóng ngắn,sóng trung rất chuẩn
As nice as that Tecsun may be, I'd bet your Barlow-Wadley will still be working long after the 990X has kicked the bucket.
Exactly. There's no evolution with Tecsun. I bought a PL600: the adapter quit working after a month, the internal antenna shorted a few months later. The newer models have made no improvements on their chassis, materials, or durability (all the models use the same cheap case, small buttons, LCD, etc).
Got myself a down market model, PL 660. A very good radio, but has no card or usb. I do have a feature that is missing on yours though. Mine has a rotaty knob to fine tune ssb signals, although main tuner only has 1KHz resolution.
The PL-990X has a fine tuning control which you should be able to see in tge Video. 73 Peter
@@watersstanton Ah, just seen. Yours is "Fine Tuning" but mine is "SSB BFO", guess thats the same thing. Thanks Peter 73
The "great big receiver" (Barlow-Wadley XCR-30) shown at the video starts looks old, but very classic and well constructed. But it weights more than 4 kilogram!!.
When will they be in stock? Great informative video. Many thanks.
We believe third week of January. 73 Peter.
Hi sir! Here it's not available the 990x version but the 990. I realize that it's the Chinese version. Do you think it is the same to the 990x in terms of quality?
Is that the Barlow Wadley XCR-30 Receiver? I want one......... :)
I own one of the Tecsun 990x receivers
Yes it is a bit overpriced but it's also a brand new model.
I would have to say that it is the best portable receive only unit available currently.
It has an excellent speaker and the tuning is closer to a base station than any other portable i have ever used.
If you are seeking a radio for MW and SW this is the winner, however if you are primarily interested in FM listening the Sangean ats-909x is a better choice.
I would also say that the Sangean has a edge when listening to music with a set of headphones, as it has a internal headphone amp separate from the speaker amp.
Thanks for viewing. 73 Peter
The 990x has terrible sound quality on SSB and distortion and 4 Khz filter that doesn't work, it's shocking at the price.
I have the new Sangean 909 x2 due by next weekend.
@@o00scorpion00o awesome, i hope that it turns out to be an awesome receiver. Post something here on what you think of it.
73
@@abelincoln7473 Keep and eye on my youtube channel, it was due for delivery next Thursday, now's it's Friday and my UPS driver doesn't like delivering to me, a few times I had to "accommodate him" and meet him at a specific location that suited him mostly almost at his home!!!
@@o00scorpion00o show up with a six pack from the local microbrewery when you collect the Sangean and I bet he will be happy to come to your door next time
As I see out of stock....nice radio ....must have ..73
Yes sorry. New stock arrives end of this month. 73 Peter
Is it harder on an analog short wave radio to lock on to a radio station?
Nice video! Does the pl990 replace the old pl880?
Nit as far as I know.
They are very similar...I could stay with the pl880...
If the radio shows up as a usb sound device on the computer does that infer it also has audio coming out (computer can select it as input) and be used with appropriate software to decode digital/CW signals?
Sorry no. It’ s one way inly. 73 Peter
Hello from Birmingham, England! My Tecsun pll 990x has been a disappointment. Sound quality is very good, but unfortunately no SW reception . I tried different times, plugged in the externsl antenna but nothing seems to work and all I got for SW was a couple of unclear stations. I appreciate any suggestions. Thanks
Funny because the 990x is one of the beefier radios out of the lineup. You should see my PL365 it's the size of a candy bar. Great spy rig hehe ;p
Many thanks. 73 Peter
@@watersstanton Welcome. Enjoy the amazing radio :3 Good propagations to you sir
My best radio is a sony ICF 2001.
I prefer the Grundig over the Tecsun, it has more features and allows listening in on HAM radio in a greater range of SW frequencies
OK, thanks for the input. 73 Peter
I have discovered a major issue with the 990x on SSB on the higher bands. Example tune to some SSB speech on 27.385 Mhz LSB or USB horrible DSP Warbling / wobble not to be confused with AGC issue on the oscillator seems to be the whole top end of the band on SSB rendering SSB useless possibly 25 to 29 MHZ however AM seems ok. Going to be a whole lot of disappointment owner's when the solar cycle comes up opening the top bands. I Believe this was an issue with some early 880's
I'm located in England. FM sound quality and reception is excellent. But almost no stations received on all other bands! Why?!
Hi, you have good old friend !
It was very famous ...
Have a good time ！
Thanks for visiting
Good👏😎
Can the LINE OUT be connected to PC for recording on-air?
Providing your PC will accept analogue aufio - yes
Can this radio listen an air band and is it possible to listen a CB radio and some UHF and VHF? Aaand......is there any diference between the 990x and 990..or are they actually the same stuff? Please i need detailed answer. Thanks.
There is no airband coverage on this model.
What price is the 990x?
By gosh! A Barlow-Wadley XCR-30! DX'ers wet dream around.... 1973-1975
Hellooooo .. What's the best small portable radio that can record fm stations onto mp3 files within the player?
No idea! This channel is about Ham Radio.
Yes. A good radio. And Tecsun Degan Grundig wow I've lost count of all of the Branding over the years, they are the best. The Chinese make ho hum stuff... AND VERY good stuff, that lands on the dark side of the Moon, and stuff like these radios that pull signals out of thin air from thousands of miles away like nobody's business! Chinese no longer means "cheap" quality. They got better and better. And are STILL getting better and Better. And always at a good Price Point! But there's always room for improvement:
1) Don't you HATE it when you lose the SW Antenna Reel? It would be nice if someone made a built in "pull out" one. After all, the whip antenna pulls out, right? ;-) It would have to be something that wouldn't end up a tangled mess, though... Or at least make a place in the back of the radio to STORE that wire.
2) Mp3 recording, preferably on a continuous Loop. Easy to miss call signs, this would save them and other content for later sleuth work, and no more with the post it notes and the pen that you never have at the ready. (And No Doubt, Numbers Station Operatives will Rejoice, as will counterintelligence when they find an SD card that hasn't been scrubbed of any football games or Church Music on any radio that they might confiscate... ;-)) 3) LIGHTED keys. I don't know why manufacturers haven't picked up on this. Have you ever tried to work DX at night while camping? Yea, you always need a damned little flashlight to see the keys. Which ruins your night vision. This is ALSO a problem at home. At night. While the radio is on your nightstand. 4) Provisions for REGULAR throw away alkaline batteries. Your Dead Radio COULD be charged by a separate phone charger in a fix, IF you forgot to charge the radio. But if you forgot to charge the radio, I'm guessing that you forgot to recharge your backup rechargeable battery, too... Alkalines? Well, they're just....READY. And Readily available. Everywhere. Well? Almost everywhere.
5) Weather Band. You NEED this in the United States. For the Rest of the World? Please watch the VERY American Movie: "The Wizard of Oz", and you'll know why.
6) A CONTINUOUSLY VARIABLE bandwidth selector. Hey, you've got DSP there, and four selections of bandwidth. And that's great: But a VARIABLE one would give the BEST choice at any given time or mode. 7) Bluetooth that goes to OR from the radio. Because sending the audio FROM this set to my Bluetooth speakers in my living room OR the waterproofed ones on my porch OR Bluetooth headphones would be awesome. 8) And for a SUPER BONUS FUTURISTIC RADIO? A display for speech to text for the deaf, and all the digital modes and Bob's your Auntie. Add a real time "Google translator" to convert any speech to English or whatever you speak, and THAT'S a radio.
Oh...I forgot an led flashlight on the side.... All the Best! 73 DE W8LV BILL
I need one of these in my life. I don't have enough garbled, unintelligible audio around.
Get married and that will change.
@@outbackeddie Ok, that's pretty funny.
So near and yet so far. Even the marvellous little £15 Retekis V115 has record off air and record from mic features. I would really expect similar functionality from a £260 radio.
I like my Retekis radio. Didn't have much of a manual though. Good for AM listening. The sound is very good It's rechargeable and only cost me $20 I have a older Radio Shack sw radio runs forever on two C size batteries. Looks to be a Grundvig copy. Was expensive. This radio we are looking at would be very nice but expensive probably over $400 USD I love that antenna! That alone would be a great sales pitch. Don't know if it can listen to the am aircraft band but that would be nice.
How does it compare to the Sangean equivalent?
Have not used that radio
It's a pity it doesn't let you record audio onto the SD card or have bluetooth functionality.
Ah well that's maybe for the next version!
Does this receiver cover Air Band frequencies?
No it doesn't. I think the only Tecsun radio that covers air band is the PL680
@@johannapfelburg6286 There are actually three Tecsun models with the VHF Air Band - PL-660, PL-680 and the desktop S-2000.
👍👏👏
Thanks. 73 Peter
👍
Thanks. Peter
Should I buy from amezone America because in india amezone did not sold this radio?
What is your suggestion?
Or any other best option between tecsun, Eton, Sony?
Sorry I do not have thus information.
The Tecsun PL-330 only bigger and more expensive
Micro-USB?? in 2021.
It is shame!
Nice radio. Too bad non-ham shortwave is dying out/has died out. Some Chinese stations and religious stations out of the US remain on the air. In Germany, MW (AM) is dead. In Norway even FM radio is dying out. The country is switching over/has switched over to DAB. There are many "radio" stations now available through the internet. Many people have flat rates, so listening 24/7 doesn't even cost extra. There are even amateur radio listening stations. You don't even need a radio to listen to them. Just your smartphone. As a radio amateur I can listen to the shortwave stations that remain on the air through my amateur radio (and excellent antenna). If a person is interested in listening to ham chat and is not a licensed radio amateur, I can see them investing in a radio like this. 260 pounds vs. 700 pounds and much more for an amateur TRX (on which they are not allowed to transmit) would make some sense.
Thanks for sharing. Very interesting. 73 Peter
It's over 300 euros. I'd rather buy something like the Barlow on used market. It's heavy enough to make you feel you're getting something for the money, with a big speaker.. I think they added unnecessary parts to justify a high price. The SD card offers nothing of the functionality of the radio. You can't record to it. Acting as a PC sound card? That's very odd. Bluetooth belongs with smartphones.
It wuld be ewen better if it had Bluetooth, so you culd use it like a Bluetooth speaker 🤔 and if it wuld be ip 67 rated so you culd take it to the beach... Ah getting ahead of myself, there is probably not market for analog radio for younger generation 🤔
Thanks for viewing. 73 Peter
my pl-990 with firmware 0888 it can be use as bluetooth speaker ... long press the mp3 button to go at BT mode and it plays as speaker from an old nokia N8, with N8 the pl-990 can rewind pause forward the songs from radio but i think this is not the same with all cell phones (perhaps depends at Bluetooth versions)
czcams.com/video/RU6UON7YVok/video.html
No air band no no
This radio is overpriced for what it offers. No RF-Gain, No RDS, No VHF Airband, No Alpha Tags, No proper signal meter and AGC pumping on SSB. How can Tecsun justify the high price of what is nothing more than a warmed over PL-880 ? I'll pass and look at the Sangean ATS-909X2 instead.
Agreed. Tecsun got it (nearly) right with the pl660 which is a fantastic radio once you disable their awful dynamic squelch "feature".
I've got an X2, and its airband receiver doesn't have the new 8.33 kHz steps, so that might be a slight annoyance, if you're in an area where the new raster is in use. X2's speaker is a bit weaker than the PL-880's speaker. Also, the X2 has a fixed filter for SSB, so you can't adjust the bandwidth, and you can't see the SSB fine tune, because the step size is smaller than the display's resolution (display has 100 Hz steps, while fine tune is 20 or 10 Hz, depending on settings).
Agree regarding the price & what mentioned ... but it has good fine tune, it offers external antenna at all bands (needs to find the correct one for each band) & what is the best for me, it has some kind of smooth bass speaker so if i stay some long time listening weak signals (mw/sw) does not make so tired my ears compare to my other radios which their speakers has more medium & treble effects
Thanks guys.