Xiegu X5105 New QRP HF/6m Portable Transceiver Complete Review

R&L has them for $554 that's getting down to beer money

 

ICOM clone, part IC-7410/IC-746 and part IC-706 MKIIG

 

Yeah, it went to $674.00 the day after I bought it from Giga parts for $699.00:-(

Joel
N6ALT

 

2m, 440, internal battery power....

Well that's the 817nd. This Chinese radio doesn't have 2m or 440 but does have internal battery capability, and adds an internal tuner.

Apples to oranges. The closest comparison to this radio is the 817nd. The 891 is totally different, except for being HF+6 and fairly small. It's full power, no internal tuner, no internal battery.

 

I'll keep my 817 due to it having Vhf/Uhf as well as HF, but good to see some nice new affordable QRP rig choices

 

I bought the X5105 from Amazon (fortunately) It is a great radio and I loved it. Unfortunately it is very susceptible to RF despite I had ferrite on each cable going to the radio.
The first one had only the dit side working in CW Iambic. I returned it and got a second one. This one started with a mix of dit and dahs on each side and ended up after a few
minutes with only the dit side working. On SSB I received great reports. My other radios (LD-5, FDM-DUO, RS918 and X108G) don't have any problem in the same setup. After
all it is a portable radio and it is expected to be able to work only 5 feet from the antenna feed point. However I have to say that the X108G is more sensitive to RF than the
FDM-DUO or the LD-5.

73, Yvon NU6I.

 

I had an FT 817 and really like that radio.
The Xiegu X5105 does not need an optional CW filter, the Yaesu does.
Even with a mechanical filter in the FT 817, you have a fix bandwidth. The Xiegu X5105 has a variable bandwidth.
The Xiegu X5105 has DSP and the FT 817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has an on board ATU, the FT 817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has a 3800 mah battery, the FT 187 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has a very nice "BIG" display, the FT 817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has a one time sweep of the band you are looking at, the FT 817 does not.......and you can get an external pan adaptor for the Xiegu X5105.
Can you update the firmware in the FT 817? NO ! You can the Xiegu X5105.
Can you get an FT 891 for less money than the Xiegu X5105? Sure you can. Try to purchase an Elecraft KX3 with the features the Xiegu X5105 has and what will you pay for it?
The same goes for the KX2....$$$.


I honestly don't think the $670 for the Xiegu X5105 is really out of line. Is it the perfect radio? No, "But what radio is ?"

If you are strictly looking at the QRP area of this hobby, I think this is a great little radio.
I have an IC 703+, YouKits 4 band radio, KX2 and a KX3 but I am still considering getting an Xiegu X5105.

Barry
www.ku3x.net

 

Part two:
The Xiegu X5105 has a multi function hand held mic, the FT817 has a plain old handheld mic
The Xiegu X5105 has a built in mic, the FT-817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has a built in memory keyer, the FT-817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has speech processor, the FT 817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 has built in PSK decoder, the FT-817 does not.
The Xiegu X5105 come with a computer to radio USB cable, you pay extra for that feature on the FT 817

The only thing the FT 817 has that the Xiegu does not have is UHF/VHF.

Hands down, the X5105 is a much better bargin for the money.

Why is the FT 891 not a good QRP radio? Because it draws way too much current for transmit and receive. So using that radio in the field will really limit your operating time, unless you carry along a BIG battery or a generator.
The FT 817 is still a great little radio, but it's old school and you don't get near the features that you get with the X5105 per dollar.

Barry

 

Dear friends !
Test transceiver XieGu 5105 directly at the factory in China:

 

Is this the one MFJ is going to rebadge and sell?

 

Yeah you're right Barry. I checked into that before and the FT-891 draws 2 amps on RX.
An FT-817 draws 450 mA on RX and draws 2 amps on TX.

So in other words, the FT-891 uses the same current just to receive, as the FT-817 would use to be constantly transmitting !

 

Yup! Not only that, what a lot of people do not realize is when you turn the power down on most 100 watt radios, so you can operate at the 5 watt level, the radio still draws way too much current. At 5 watts out most 100 watt class radios run between 7 and 9 amps.
Now the Elecraft K3's are different. When you power them down to 5 watts, they drop the 100 watt final section of the radio with the use of relays and now that radio draws a lot less current, at 5 watts out, then all other 100 watt class radios.

I think this little X5105 has promise. I am watching it closely. I need some long term reviews before I get one. My summer time, in the park, operating is only a few months away. By that time I'll know if I am getting the X5105 or not.

Barry, KU3X
www.ku3x.net

 

Kind of? I don't think they are going to actually rebadge it.

https://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=X5105

Looks like they are selling it under the original name.
At least now we will have stateside support. I would have hated to pay for shipping both ways to Hong Kong for repairs if needed.
Barry

 

The one Gordon West's buddy talked about on the last Hamnation had FM and (2m I think), but no tones. In any case, last weekend, we were debating which would be worse -- built by MFJ, or built in China.

 

They just fixed the bug of removing battery and damaging the radio. Kudos for Xiegu for listening to the customers and working to correct the issue emmidiately. That goes to show how they stand behind their product. I'm not sure if it's been mentioned already but there is a 5150 and an x108g Facebook group that's very knowledgeable and friendly.

73 de ke4ymx