Review: X6200 Firmware 1.03

[@teslar1]

I returned mine and bought an FT710 so glad I did

[@temporarilyoffline]

Its hard to argue with the 710 vs. 6200 debate.

[@Andy-M938]

That´s the best way you can do. 710 is soooo much better!

[@cornbread-KO5RN]

I don’t always follow my advice but food and radios if I can’t say it or spell it I’ll pass 🎃😂🎃

[@ChrisBeiting]

I wish my 710 was smaller, but it’s next level good.

[@temporarilyoffline]

@ChrisBeiting it is!

[@wattsandhertz]

Another fun bit of wreckage from Xiegu. My 6100 went to a new owner after the last debacle. New radio inbound.

[@temporarilyoffline]

What'dya get?

[@wattsandhertz]

@@temporarilyoffline The Toyota Corolla of current POTA activations. The FT-891!

[@temporarilyoffline]

@@wattsandhertz That's a great radio! Enjoy!

[@marcbrown235]

I’ve had my 6200 since August and had minimal issues. I’m screaming up on 800 contacts with it in that time including some DX in excess of 10,000km.

[@temporarilyoffline]

It does radio well! I have enjoyed mine... frustrations included.

[@robertrobinson4619]

I’m not a Xiegu fanboy but in defense of the radio the last instruction in the 1.0.3 firmware upgrade instructions is to do a factory reset.

[@temporarilyoffline]

Instructions? What? I agree that I should have read them more carefully... but it would have been really easy for them to just "make that happen"... or call it out at the beginning so you could be prepared for it.

[@victorcharlie7491]

Good info, great job, tnx Man!

[@temporarilyoffline]

Glad it was helpful!

[@loraz0]

I will be sticking with the X6100. The updates from Xiegu have made it better, and R1CBU firmware is entertaining and should be what Xiegu should have done to begin with. I'm not exactly a smart man, owning 3 different Xiegu radios, and the amplifier.

[@temporarilyoffline]

We're tied...

[@loraz0]

@@temporarilyoffline Oh lawd, Xiegu brought back the G1M. I have one, actually two. You should ask for one! Fun rig if they fixed the 3.5mm socket to board connection.

[@temporarilyoffline]

@@loraz0 They did? Probably their best radio... that 3.5mm jack problem is on all radios from them.

[@AJ9FE]

Thanks for the video Steve, I do not own a 6100 or 6200 but your videos are still great to watch and continue to reinforce my decision to not buy either :)

[@temporarilyoffline]

I can help but one ham...

[@medicineman4040]

The external power supply you are using during this FW update, is that the external power supply for the Icom 705? Thanks.

[@temporarilyoffline]

It was just a workbench power supply, probably my Astron

[@W8MJL]

ok Steve, with all this being said which would you choose the 6100 or stay with the 6200?

[@temporarilyoffline]

If I didn't have one. I'd get the 6200. They will be updating it much longer than the 6100... Only reason

[@brandonporter4227]

I just got mine last week. I haven't had an opportunity to get it on the air, but I have played with it a bit on a dummy load and it is definitely not without its quirks. I was also unsuccessful in getting it to connect to a Wi-Fi network. Wouldn't even connect to my home network and I was monitoring it on my PC and saw no attempt to even connect an unknown device. There are also some discrepancies in the online instructions in a blog post and those provided in the manual regarding updating the firmware. They mention the need to remove the battery before updating. They are conflicting and confusing and cannot be completed in the order they are done online. In addition, the manual you download from their website (same page as the firmware) appears to be extremely outdated and limited compared to the paper manual.

[@temporarilyoffline]

Its a fun radio to play with, but it sure is quirky!

[@JonathanKayne]

But no mention of fixing the CW keyer.

[@temporarilyoffline]

I'm thinking they must have licensed that from somebody - find the creator of that library and you might be able to effect change.

[@wkjagt]

I wonder if it was the same problem the G90 has, where it sometimes misses dits when you insert them too fast in between two dahs.

[@JonathanKayne]

@@temporarilyoffline the code I use for the CFT1 is directly from a 2009 QEX article. CW keyers aren't really complicated but you have to get the dit timing calculation correct and you need to poll the pin fast enough to check. alternatively you can use interrupts and make it even more accurate and simple

[@temporarilyoffline]

@@JonathanKayne Oh I agree... there is a balance between "don't let perfect be the enemy of good" and don't make a product... they could just use the K1EL keyer or the chip that's older than that (blanking on the name now). Lots of solutions. My take on Xiegu is that the RF engineer is pretty smart and the rest is just a jumble to get to market.

[@BigJohnsHamShack]

I want to like the 6200. I genuinely do, but it's ugly and less powerful than the 6100. It appears to be less reliable than the 6100, and I have yet to find a feature that would entice me to buy one. But I enjoyed the video and the content. Thank you. 🙂

[@temporarilyoffline]

Hey John, That's where I am on it. If I didn't have a youtube channel to share it without others, I wouldn't have one. Its like a bad drink at the bar, gotta spread it around to get your money back ;-)

[@ammocraft]

6100/6200 is a great advert for the FX4-CR. Cheaper, better, and the developer actually listens and engages with his buyers.

[@temporarilyoffline]

@@ammocraft I like the fx-4cr!

[@brianfields4479]

My ts 480hx out of the box has worked perfectly for years, so never bothered with updates of any description. If it ain't broke, leave it alone.

[@temporarilyoffline]

Kenwood makes a great radio. I never had a problem with mine.

[@commsec7]

So, it takes several seconds of keying down in CW mode before the radio reaches full output power? Or were you manually adjusting the output level from 0 to max outside of the video recording's field of view? If you weren't, that would be some seriously SLOW CW if you wanted to transmit at full power. It should be instantaneous full output like any other transceiver.

[@temporarilyoffline]

It is slow to find power, but once it's found it, it keeps it. I showed it a while back and I've reported it up the chain... You're right, it should be better.

[@ammocraft]

Given the utter mess they made of 6100 firmware, I’m not sure why anyone thought this would be different. G90 and 5105 must have been a different dev team who left before the 6100 and later came out!

[@temporarilyoffline]

Yeah. It's crazy... But they sold a TON of the 6100, so we told them they did it right...

[@ammocraft]

@@temporarilyoffline I bought one when I couldn't get a KX2 - but it will be the first and last Xiegu I'll ever buy. The FX4CR beats it in every way possible, plus I managed to get a KX3 s/h too! I think initially, despite suspecting we were beta testers, we thought they'd fix it. Years later and with it just as buggy almost, we now know better! ;)

[@stahpit1971]

ave you checked that radio for things that may explode?

[@temporarilyoffline]

Yep, but that part is removable with a simple spring clip.

[@chattphotos]

microSD card holster sounds so much cooler ;)

[@temporarilyoffline]

Yes, missed opportunity.

[@KK6USYHamRadioAdventures]

Too bad they can't get it right , it's a good looking radio and the size looks decent!

[@temporarilyoffline]

KX2 beats it, but not on price/looks

[@DD5LP]

Always do a factory reset after a firmware update on any radio. The WiFi is only 2.4GHz it won't see 5GHz APs. So why two entries? The park probably has WiFi repeaters around the place. The MFK changes the field for entries - now in WLAN it works the same way as in other panels. Follow the instructions in the extended manual from Radioddity, not the Xiegu one. 73 Ed

[@temporarilyoffline]

Thanks Ed... it was supposed to be "easier".

[@DD5LP]

@@temporarilyoffline the WiFi setup still needs some work. It's "better" than it was but not "easy".

[@ke8mattj]

Xiegu again proving they need to just stick to and improve the G90.

[@temporarilyoffline]

That would be great!

[@cornbread-KO5RN]

🎃👋🎃

[@cornbread-KO5RN]

To much technology for this time of the morning, Hello 👋

[@temporarilyoffline]

Good Morning!

[@KA4UPW]

Yeah Not a radio on my to have list.

[@temporarilyoffline]

Its hard to justify with the price/problems ration, eh? ;-)

[@JeffCowan]

Classic Xiegu

[@temporarilyoffline]

Yep.

[@gchengrpt]

ooof $800 for a radio that doesnt radio?

[@temporarilyoffline]

It radios just fine. But it doesn't do the rest of the stuff it advertises well at all. I think the G106 was an example of what a good Xiegu radio could be, but absolutely no frills in that radio... So nothing to go wrong.

[@Silverfields1]

Another click-bait...

[@temporarilyoffline]

That's all I do, [h@ñ# _>t \atch>!&!

[@Andy-M938]

You get what you pay for the chinese stuff

[@temporarilyoffline]

Total Agreement, You sure do... compared to other radios in its class, its a bargain and for most things radio, it does "radio" well. Its all the extra stuff (that I don't use on my 705 either) that has problems.