Xiegu G106 | They Sent Me Another One!!

Testing and Reviewing the Xiegu G106...Yeah, Radioddity sent me a second one. Let's see how this performs.
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#hamradio #XieguG106 #k8mrd

[@DonzLockz]

Very kind of Radioddity to do a drive-by and throw another radio on your lawn!😄📻

[@1958johndeere620]

I think Mike got an email from Radioddity saying they had some pictures of Mike in some precarious positions and they would be made public if he didn't do another review.

[@hamradiotube]

Who doesn't? That's nothing new.

[@markusberg2770]

“I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.” And all the way back to Alexander Hamilton-US history is replete with scandals of human sexuality. Too bad such incidents are more often used for leverage than to promote good moral character. I appreciate your honest reevaluation of the Xiegu G106.

[@8thspirit]

@@hamradiotube Hi there. You might want to check Waters and Stanton channel. He had many things to say about you...

[@Matthew-KN4QHQ]

I do find having my knob protected is very important.

[@hamradiotube]

I agree!

[@kennethherring2918]

For what it's worth, Mike is an influencer and as such his opinions, good or bad, have an impact on people's decisions on whether to buy a radio or not. I guess the point I'm trying to make here, is it really necessary to recommend not buying based on personal opinion instead of letting people decide themselves based on facts. Personally, I generally watch several reviews and the draw my own conclusions. To Mike, I mean no respect and enjoy the videos, I'm just voicing my thoughts on the subject.

[@haramanggapuja]

Well, that's interesting. Don't think I'll spring for it over keeping my IC705 but at least we know one of 'em does seem to work better 'n the first one you got. (And that was a helluva review, yo. I also enjoyed your response to comments video.) Stay sane, amigo. 73 de W8IJN

[@temporarilyoffline]

Is that VFO knob not pushed all the way on? Its amazing the amount of force required to push them home. Imma also be "that ham" and say that the X6100 is easier to get on FT8... the DE-19 is MUCH MUCH better than the CE-19! For the dirty FT8 output, can you turn down the "speaker" volume in MacOS the same way you changed the input volume to solve the inbound splatter? I'm still not sure where this radio fits in the hamisphere... it seems overpriced, but is it's polish higher enough than the *SDX radios to warrant an extra $200?

[@norrinradd8952]

Agreed. PROS: Size, weight, ALL of HF CONS: Still a pricey polished TURD This is the radio for the guy that can only afford it because of the free shipping.

[@hamradiotube]

I just brute forced it and it did go in a little bit. Still wobbles slightly but it does seem better. I couldn't get the 6100 to work on ft8. It just wasn't having it. I don't know about the speaker volume. I'll have to check that. Good idea. I don't know where it sits either. I would just get a G90 for another $100.

[@Randrew]

I'm impressed that they were able to send some bruisers all the way from Chongqing to break your kneecaps and change your tune! My mother-in-law passed away in January and my wife wasn't able to get back to Beijing for services because of pandemic restrictions. But being serious, there's still something really wrong here. If not lying, Radioddity should have known better than to send a pre-production unit out for the review cycle. In any case, you'd hope a *radio* retailer would at least test the darned thing first! Of course the real worry is that the first unit was really off the production line and Xiegu's QC just isn't/wasn't working.

[@hamradiotube]

Haha, you should have seen the guys. They were huge! Honestly we'll never know what the real story is. It's possible it was damaged in shipping. Josh had the radio before me and he says he didn't have any of the issues I had. It's also kind of a good thing no one checks the radios before they get sent out for review. This is just as anyone else could receive it.

[@VR2UNA]

I don't think their factory is in Chongqing anymore. It's in Dongguan.

[@hkmp5s]

If one of my neighbors had a dog that crapped ham radios in my front yard I would strangely be ok with that.

[@treaddirt]

Mike, thanks for the honest junkyard dog review.

[@enigmarbs2886]

If you see the "precision" of the rotary encoder... it's still crap

[@stewpot3971]

Xiegu should look at updating the venerable G90 (their best seller I imagine) rather than releasing mediocre radios. Both the G90 and X5105 are excellent rigs. The 6100 has had its teething problems and now this one is a big disappointment to be honest. I was excited when both where first announced and equally disappointed when watching the now many reviews. Now it is left for Yaesu to throw their hat in the QRP ring to see what they can come up with...

[@norrinradd8952]

Agreed. I think if they can streamline that G90 without losing any features they would have another winner. I'm envisioning using my Tablet to control my G90 and do FT8. I mean something direct like a bluetooth/wifi connection and an actual app, not jumping through hoops of flaky remote viewers. G90A1, I'll wait for it.

[@Randrew]

Their performance could be explained if they always fire the last production development team and hire a new one for each new release. It's like they don't learn from either the failures or successes of their past.

[@stewpot3971]

@@Randrew they may just be implementing a "Ready, Shoot, Aim" policy where they rush it to market and hopefully fix any small problems through firmware updates... doesn't always work as we see here.

[@K5KTM]

Agree strongly. I would love to see an updated 100w G90. I love my G90 as is but would love to be able to bump it up on power output.

[@stevegriffin9552]

Hey Mike thinks for video i’ve heard of the name of the radio but that’s about all I know of it. It looks like something I will not buy for myself but thank you for doing for a view on it. Have a great rest of the weekend. WD5ENH Steve

[@axandio]

Sometimes, you simply DON'T get what you pay for.

[@mewrongwayKOCXF]

The original review was much more exciting Mike!

[@hamradiotube]

I know, I know.

[@VE3FAL1Fred]

Awesome Mike. Glad to see some fixes in place….Fred VE3FAL

[@deenunya7735]

think u got a bit of a roasting of ur 1st review of thw 106 waters n stanton , but no memtion of a name Bud

[@hamradiotube]

I just left him a nice comment on his video. 73

[@martinsalt1839]

@@hamradiotube can't see your "nice" comment on his video. Has he deleted it ?

[@hamradiotube]

@@martinsalt1839 I suppose he has.

[@forgetyourlife]

Ghosted by the OM

[@kylefreemason]

Mike, I dislike how you comb your hair and the smell of the gum you are chewing. Such a turn off which distracts from your video. Lol jk! Love your channel. If the g106 were 200$ maybe… but for a bit more, the g90 is the better choice. Xiegu surely must realize this. Of course, they may be banking on this rig being worthy of the price since it is smaller than the g90. Thanks for the update vid. 73, W0AAV

[@Randrew]

I'm still (or again, after this re-review) tempted by the G106, except for the price. Yes, I would probably accept the hurt of $200, but just barely. Not it's present price, though, and not the extra for the interface box necessary for digital modes. Also I don't get Xiegu's hangup on using external interfaces for digital modes... I used to think my IC-7300 could do without because it's a premium brand and price. But recently I've fallen in love with the QRP-Labs QDX which - for $91 plus shipping and some assembly - just plugs into my laptop's USB port and works.

[@K3JRZOnTheAir]

Momoey!!! SMH.

[@JT-py9lv]

Humm.....

[@ronwolenski-n8wcr]

It looks improved, but to me those gray plastic looking knobs makes it look like it came from Mattel....

[@hamradiotube]

Thos knobs are actually solid metal. Forgot to mention that.

[@n9kwc1]

I can't see me doing FT8. Not worth all the effort. You can operate a computer or you can operate a ham radio. I don't need a computer for this hobby. Seems too redundant.

[@ae4xo]

busted by the hardware review karens. lol

[@LivingByFire]

My first HF radio was a G106. I made my first QSO with a gentleman in Florida from my home in KY. It's a $300 radio. Don't expect an ICOM or Yaesu type quality and you'll be good.

[@twohandsandaradio]

No matter how hard your try, you can't polish a turd.

[@laszlokovacs8827]

Pre-post-pre-production. Still a stinker. BTW, Dog was kinda insulted by the comparison in the first review. He's over it now but advises if its dog 💩just leave it in the yard and let nature deal with it.

[@georgehaha6969]

I'm still thinking this is a reboxed G1M with a reversed colour screen, a much better mic port and a better ACC port like the G90. Seems a bit of a wheel reinvention exercise. Great to see the new DE19 to replace the CE19. Mind I think the G106 is all band HF where the G1M was only 80/40/20/15m for Tx. For me it is a G1M version 1.5

[@norrinradd8952]

Agreed. I think you nailed it with G1M version 1.5.

[@norrinradd8952]

For the price, this radio is not appealing. I have too many radios that already cover the capabilities of this unit. That being said, for around 200-250 USD, having a radio this small and lightweight that covers all of HF, I would build an entire kit around it. It does have it's place, just not at my house and not for $320. I paid $400 for a NEW G90. Even at it's current price the G90 is a better deal. In most situations, it's worth the extra 2 pounds to me. It's probably meets the requirements for someone that wants a dedicated rig to tackle SOTA that won't break the bank. That's what I would do with it. I would be adding it to cart right now if it was 199. Guess I'm cheap.

[@randyab9go188]

Cw tone 666??🧐🤪

[@matthewkitchen5425]

Mike, thanks to you I was able to get my G106 along with the DE-19 on WSJT-x and make contacts on FT8. I’m using a longwire, and a cheap vertical antenna. Just today on 15m I was able to make a 3900+ mile contact to Germany from PA. I’m just getting my feet wet in HF. I took your warranty advice and figured if it turns out to be crap, I’ll return it.

[@hamradiotube]

Hey thats awesome, good for you. Glad to know the radio is working for you. Welcome to the wonderful world of HF.

[@jeffreypetchharrison4363]

wobble wobble wobble , what a vfo is that an add on ..jeff

[@walty28msn]

Find the radio in the grass kkkkkkk nice 😄😄😄😄

[@nbookie]

As a portable it sucks. As soon as it lays flat in the bag, anything touches it and it will turn on. Nothing protecting the power button.

[@Ham-Solo]

Definitely improved audio compared to when we were using it in Stephen F. Austin park on that POTA. I think you even had my recorded response saying “Wow” when it sounded like crap. This audio was at least cleaner on the production model as they call it. Nice follow up especially after our previous experience. Ham-Solo K0FYR

[@scottmcdonald9996]

Glad to see ya do this one. Not sure what your test set up is when you’re using that Icom as a spectrum analyzer, but you might want to think about checking a radio you think is bad on a real analyzer before publishing a radio-based analyzer image as gospel truth. The additional operational detail in this video is really helpful BTW. Any evidence of overload when really strong signals are present ? Tnx.

[@mthc85]

Love your reviews, but they ain't getting my momoey!!! 73

[@hankfox4170]

Hey Mike! Good review (even overlooking the fact that the Men-in-Black came and used the Neuralizer on you). Seriously, this Radio is much improved over the first one even though there are still a few rough spots. I think both reviews were fair, it's just that the first one was much more entertaining because the material was there.

[@walteredwards544]

Thank you for the re- review. I believe they will fix it. I love the concept of this radio and the form factor. It's the perfect little knock about that I can take out and not freak out like I do with my ICOM 705 now.

[@Dusty_Ham]

Thanks for the update Mike! Still doesn't seem to be the radio for me, but I appreciate seeing that it's... fixed? Better? More... something... lol

[@Tank6883]

Great review. I'm thinking your first video caused such an uproar in the Xiegu factory they went nuts! lol. The way I see it, you're only looking out for us. Thank you.

[@JReed305]

Looking better. Don't know what the power draw is but looks to be a good back pack radio that you won't cry over if it gets a little banged up.

[@G7VFY]

Show me the service manual or even a circuit diagram. G7VFY

[@db3mi]

heard one on a full 40m band in SSB just a moment ago. Sounded really great over 1000km away ... 73

[@AndyAAzeroAM]

I'm not interested in this radio (Just not my style) BUT I have watched 2 videos on it now. I'd say good job Mike

[@propagating-radio]

Thanks for doing a follow-up Mike.

[@samradioman3843]

I remember many decades ago (maybe the mid 1980's) when the ARRL Labs stopped accepting radios for testing from manufacturers. For pretty obvious reasons when you think about it. Their solution was that if a manufacturer wanted a review done by ARRL labs they would have to send a voucher for a free radio from any distributor. Thus making sure they received an off the shelf radio that didn't get any special care. It would be a full production unit like any HAM would get over the counter. So did this radio get "special attention" ? We'll never know unless they send you a voucher to go get one from a HAM Radio Sales outfit. A lot of dough for a unit that barely passes the quality of most home-brew rigs. My two cents worth on the issue.

[@hamradiotube]

I strongly doubt any special attention was given to these radios.

[@samradioman3843]

@@hamradiotube Clearly not the first one HI HI.

[@norrinradd8952]

I hope this is still true, but the review of the K4 in September's QST magazine leads me to believe otherwise. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but the wording is suspect. "Like many other new K4 owners, ARRL placed an order in the fall of 2019 and began a nearly 2-year wait for our K4 to arrive." "We received the K4 in mid-September 2021, and our Lab staff dutifully took the brand-new radio out of the box and began performing our standard battery of tests."

[@vu3mes]

Still price is high even when compared to the G90.

[@DellFargus]

Should have picked up the radio in the yard with a bag or a poop-scoop.

[@hamradiotube]

Watch my first video of this radio.

[@470smith]

Will the radio produce a full 5 watts on all bands?

[@truckinguy92]

Glad they made some improvements, but it’s still cheap Chinese junk. $300 is pretty expensive for what it is.

[@3asyrider75]

The G90 is pretty good. I would skip this and just get a G90 if on a budget

[@hamradiotube]

I agree. Love my G90.

[@charliebrown5611]

Junk radios. Solder splashes inside. No more Chinese HF radios for me.

[@charliebrown5611]

@@fibonacho If I buy another HF rig, it will be a Elekraft. VHF/UHF who knows?

[@N3PEM]

Like you said this would probably be a good radio for beginners. Will you bring this out to a park and take it for a spin see how it behaves in the wild?

[@Scott_AI5EF]

Much better, Mike. Thanks for being trooper. So no CW decoder?

[@guyhornbeck8940]

Hi Mike: Do you know if the new digital interface device you showed in this video would work with the X-5105 or G90? Thanks, Guy Hornbeck

[@hamradiotube]

I do. I just tried it on the x5105 and it works. Even made a few contacts.

[@guyhornbeck8940]

Do you see it as an advantage over the CE-19 or just repackaging?

[@Mr_Meowingtons]

yeah the mic sounds like you have a rag over the mic.. if its not the circuits limiting deff try drilling a hole in the mic heck i had to drill a hole in my Icom 7100 mic..

[@w4mkh]

Xiegu seems to come up with great radio ideas but with every radio since the G90 they have failed to follow through and refine them. I have a 7300 and a 705 and I'm done with Xiegu with the possible exception of the 5105 or the G90.

[@ERICtheLATE]

The G90 should have earned Xiegu and Emmy or something. Just the ultimate lil HF portable. A few dozen feet of wire and a charged car battery, you can CW or SSB, the world.

[@Randrew]

@@ERICtheLATE I agree. Yes, W4MKH can take his Icom set out to the park or Field Day, but any other more portable type operation will be a little painful. And why is "QRP" in his name if he's rockin' 100W? ;) That's what the G90 is for, IMO. Except for digital modes, that is. My 7300 likes to crap out on TX when plugged into a PC, even with the USB cable all looped up in knots through a ferrite toroid. And the G90 needs that ugly interface board. I'm putting together a field-ready kit with my QDX and new Hermes-Lite 2 plus my laptop. With a clean setup and batteries, I hope to end up with a slick, portable QRP rig.

[@G7VFY]

For a little bit more, you can buy a 2nd hand FT-817nd, or TWO, Tru-SDX QRP TRZ.

[@notreallydaedalus]

817s are usually around $600 on ebay... Where are you seeing them close to 3?

[@barrybogart5436]

TruSDX only does 20-80, and costs $150. But I do like mine. Should have covered the 'classic' bands though.

[@barrybogart5436]

@K O I have a TruSDX. The speaker problem is proclaimed by the designers themselves. Leave the volume at 10 and it will be OK. The KX3 speaker is also crap so no one uses it either. The filters seem good to me - I don't need asymmetry or shift. Please explain the 'dicey SSB' and etc. etc. The TruSDX is not designed to be anyone's only transceiver!

[@Randrew]

@@fibonacho There's a couple on ebay right now starting at $500, shipped. The rest are auctions or those weirdos in Japan who always ask a few hundred more.

[@frankjesko8165]

Thanks for the quick review, Mike. Agreed it's small, lightweight, and easy on the batteries but the audio and RF spectrum appear dodgey at best. As for the only $300 price tag, I found a FT757GXII at the Orlando Hamfest for $250 and a TS440SAT at the Shelby Hamfest yesterday for $400 complete. I know, apples to oranges (heavier, larger power appetite, dramatically cleaner RF and AF, and durable) but those Cycle 22 rigs are still a viable option. There are always tradeoffs. keep the reviews coming 73 de Frank, NM9X

[@rich-kc3tbc286]

Thanks Mike for the review. Did you notice any birdies on the receiver without an antenna connected? From my experience with Xiegu, their radios receive internal tones due to little or no shielding in the RX section. The Xiegu X6100 had many birdies on all bands, I retuned it. The G90 had birdies too but far less in frequency and amplitude, sold that radio. Thanks again for the useful review. Rich KC3TBC

[@Tire_Smoke]

Man, you really got beat up in the comments of the first review. The comments for this one seem to be better 🙂 I didn't understand it, you obviously got a bad radio so you gave it a bad review and tried to have a little fun with it. Maybe the most of the audience forgot to take their metamucil that morning. The second radio looks useable, but I'm going to pass on it anyway. It looks a little more "klunky" than I would want to play with, lol. Thanks for the honest reviews, some of us appreciate it!! 73 K9ZF certified old fart

[@pauljameson1]

Well that makes sense why when I heard you this last weekend when I was doing POTA it didn’t even sound like you! WB7N

[@AndrewWells527]

Need to start a new series - "Mike Reviews Terrible Radios", because the first one was more entertaining! Glad to see the production model is better though.

[@rong8955]

This is a good follow up to your first review. We can give them credit for pushing the envelope on HF pricing.

[@jimlynch9390]

Thank you for a great review. Glad they are trying to improve the quality of their radios.

[@craigvk2paw17]

Great review mike , but more importantly great to see you rocking the crocs

[@jonmcadams5401]

Will the DE-19 adapter and cables work with the G90 for easier FT8?

[@rafaelcambon1]

It's marketed as working with the G90, I'm curious as to how well it works compared to the Digirig which is $40 more. Currently there aren't any reviews for it on Amazon or KZbin. I have the DE-19 and rarely use it because it makes my rig so unstable.

[@jonmcadams5401]

@@rafaelcambon1 Thank you for that information.

[@hamradiotube]

That is a great question. I will find out.

[@rafaelcambon1]

@@jonmcadams5401 Sorry I meant to say I have the CE-19 and rarely use it.

[@jonmcadams5401]

@@hamradiotube Great! Thank you.

[@mostlypostie1]

I'm glad to see this video. And I hope we see more like this one...

[@Jim-xs2fl]

Nice save. Constructive criticism is always a plus.

[@AlanElBee]

Mike, you crack me up. Keep 'em coming. Cheers, K7KS

[@McPilot_W3DDS]

Nice how you are using the antenna caddy as a "lazy susan" Very versatile

[@hamradiotube]

ahh you caught that lol

[@phillyedhrj]

Looks way better

[@rudyhardy370]

Like you said, "it's a three hundred dollar radio". My radio must must been a good one. So your first review must have been grossly premature. Like the 6100 this 106 is a fun radio and I look forward to all of the firmware upgrades.

[@StuartM0TTQAmateurRadio]

The lesson for vendors is "don't sell people with YT channels radios you haven't tested to see if they work or not". It's not Mike's problem

[@503Nick]

Woohoo

[@AliReza-zx8km]

Nice............... ❤️

[@michaelstoddard8708]

Sad hams complain. Go!

[@Randrew]

I had to go find out what "sad ham" is supposed to mean. Strange... then I came back and the closest examples I could find here was you and a couple of others offering off-topic, non-helpful complaints about "sad hams". Is that irony?

[@Bob-cu6uw]

oh man, was radiodity gonna cut off your sponsorship money?

[@randyab9go188]

"includes paid promotion"

[@hamradiotube]

I almost had to file for bankruptcy.

[@Bob-cu6uw]

TENS OF DOLLARS!! 😱😱

[@hamradiotube]

@@Bob-cu6uw maybe in a good month.

[@owlcricker-k7ulm]

😪🥓 Not as grumpy sad ham.

[@W9HJBill]

Like people trying to tell me my Sig M17/P320 "is garbage because if you drop it, it might accidently go off." (at least the old versions), to which I reply, "I don't drop my $1500 M17 (weapon, light, and red dot optic), so that doesn't matter." Same thing goes with my portable radios (G90 and IC-705) ... JUST DON'T DROP IT!

[@denelson83]

Yeah, cheap Chinese crud does not interest me.

[@NebulaHatesWatchdog]

Just don’t watch then. No need to complain that the video exists. People like y’all hurt our hobby, I have nice Yaesus yet I’m always interested to see what the Chinese are doing. They keep getting better, and people have been doing some real creative stuff with them.