TECSUN AN-48X Active Receiving Loop Antenna Review

Having a highly portable antenna you can use to pick up Long Wave, Medium Wave and Short Wave fequencies isa good idea to add to you kit. This antenna will conntect to most radios on the market that can receive the shortwave/HF frequencies.
The Tecsun AN-48X can be found here: www.amazon.com/shop/hamradioc...
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[@cgispdx]

Great review. I just picked one of these up along with a Tecsun PL-368 from a dealer in Hong Kong. I plan on taking it on my weekly business trips in addition to my VHF/UHF ht.

[@JerryEricsson]

Thanks for the review I had to get one of these for my SDR. Funny I used to complain that my house acted as a faraday cage since it has a steel roof and aluminum covered insulation in the walls, however this changed yesterday. You see we were in the middle of an ice storm, followed by a 2 day blizzard, this just days after a 3 day blizzard. The power went out on the night of the first day as Ice gathered on the power lines and took out power from an area of about 350 miles in the middle of North and South Dakota. I was listening to our local radio station on a small transistor radio for announcements of when we could expect power again, as my house went from the comforts of 70 degrees down to around 50 degrees. The ice cream was discovered to appear to be soup, and we quickly ate it to save what was left of that treat. My first radio ran down, it's a rechargeable and I had extra batteries but instead I took my old reliable Grundig Traveler out and put some duraswell batteries in her. She was tuned to a distant station since the last use was in our camper and suddenly that radio station came in as if we were in the local town! My house was NOT a faraday cage at all, it was just filled with Static from all the damn little switching power supplies plugged in at every outlet, and power strips with them hanging from every slot! When the house is again warm, as it is now getting livable once more and our blankets are returning to the closet, the next step is obvious. UPLUG all the damn supplies not actually doing something necessary but can they all be eliminated? Perhaps not as my internet needs the router, my phone needs it charger, the television has a box, the damn cable TV needs it's power box and so forth. I do have a 12 volt battery, sealed lead acid, that sits beside my recliner to power my little spot welder for making battery packs, I am considering building a 5 volt step down converter (Damn another switching power supply!) to replace the ones in this spot where they gather near my computer, but I doubt this would cut down on them. Now that the power is back up, my reception on my Grundig has gone the way of the passenger pidgin! Strange, you know when I was growing up just a mile North of my current home, I used to be able to get that station all the time, and my car radio picked it up when we were down south in Arizona near Bullhead City, well over 1000 miles from Bismarck ND in the middle of the afternoon! But I can't get it in my house unless there is a power outage. I am putting u p a loop antenna of different design when the blasted snow and ice have melted from the last blast of wintery weather has gone away from Northwestern South Dakota. Ah yes, as my father always said, "There is no rest for the wicked" 73'S KE0JBL

[@JimmyShot]

Baofeng Daddy has returned to us!

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

I never left you my son.

[@JimmyShot]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse thats why I love your channel. You have a great sense of humor, interact with your peeps, and have fun.

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

@@JimmyShot If I wasn't haven't fun I wouldn't be doing it! Thanks for watching!

[@L1mechanicstc]

I do carry a random wire antenna with the FT3. I've only used it a few times. But i found this video because i want to carry a better antenna for situational awareness. Thanks again Josh

[@MrKeys57]

Just ordered theTecsun 368 together with this antenna, hope the combo will work fine! and thanks for review! - 73 Levi in Sweden

[@andynew2]

I'm a SWL in the UK and I use this with my Tecsun PL990x with excellent results. It requires a light touch and careful tuning but works well.

[@monotech20.14]

I read the views for this antenna, 50% says it works the other 50% say it doesn't.

[@dutchbeef8920]

@@monotech20.14 chances are 25% not using it properly and the other 25% using it next to their laptop whilst holding their phones

[@sidneycavalcant]

Já usou o modelo parecido que é o Degen 31ms ?

[@TheNoCodeTech]

Great review. Thanks

[@billgrant6175]

Finally bought one. They were unavailable for a while. So far I think I have it set up correctly and seems to be working. Had to watch this video again to remind me how to use it. 73

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Glad it helped!

[@stridermt2k]

AWESOME! I was looking at these. Thanks for this video. Just like you demonstrated these antennas as with all loops seem great to use with an SDR because you can directly see the effects of tuning and power adjustments. 73 de N2NLQ

[@alphamike2839]

I don't have an antenna that does this. I will now. Thanks Josh

[@CrittendenIV]

Thanks for the video Josh! I use a YouLoop (Airspy loop antenna) with my Kenwood D74 HT, works awesome for HT SWL.

[@remopkr198]

I ordered it from Hong Kong excited about it

[@davidsradioroom9678]

Great review, Josh! I am also a SWL. I have two SW portables and am always looking for new antennas. Thanks for sharing. 👍

[@monotech20.14]

I read the views for this antenna, 50% says it works the other 50% say it doesn't.

[@davidsradioroom9678]

@@monotech20.14 It may be great for MW, and that would be my main interest at the moment.

[@monotech20.14]

@@davidsradioroom9678 I see. I'm more into Shortwave.

[@appalachianunderground8474]

I do carry shortwave radio(s) in a kit everyday as part of my edc.. a few radios , antennas and adapters etc. I’ll definitely give one of these a look see as a add on. Thanks for the helpful info , subscribed here ✝️🇺🇸🤙🏻🅰️

[@KM4ACK]

Well done. 👍

[@Foulball0206]

Thanks that was interesting.

[@WilliamParmley]

Thanks, very helpful! The reviews on Amazon are both good and bad. Good to see it in actual operation so I can judge for myself.

[@coctailer]

I use a Tecsun R9012 and a Kaito long wire antenna. Makes a world of difference.

[@JamesHannibalKH2SR]

Great review Josh! I have always picked my HT's bases on if they have wide band HF/shortwave receive mode. There have been quite a few handheld rigs capable of this over the years. The Wide Band HT's I've owned are the: Yaesu VX-1R, VX-2R, VX-3R, VX-8DR, and of course now the FT-3DR. Just wish it had SSB/CW receive modes for HF listening. Currently I'm using an old pocket sized Radio Shack wind up shortwave antenna that I modified to have a SMA connector for my HT. Of course I do use antennas of my own design from time to time as well. 😁 73!

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

If you can find one, add the Kenwood TH-F6 to the stable of HTs. Its still a great radio.

[@dutchbeef8920]

I love the an-200 passive mw loop, no connection to your radio needed and no batteries its just magic and it looks cool too

[@sidneycavalcant]

Usa qual para SW ?

[@ChrisN8PEM]

SWL isn’t top of mind for me but I love how you introduce us to new pieces of kit.

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Thanks! I love introducing the odd stuff I find! I’ve got cool weird stuff coming up soon.

[@Nightfly1957]

Good Video, i wil buy it. Now i have 3 Receiver produced by Tecsun: A 660, a S-2000 and the new S-8800. This new radio works better than the S-2000. SSB is clear, no BFO inside. And UKW, that is nearly impossible -i receive stations which are often 200 km away. Sometimes, depending of the weather, ich receive them in Stereo. Excuse my bad Englisch, i wish You all the very best and send many greetings from Germany........

[@batica81]

I like the concept of a portable loop, I will try to make a smaller one, so it can be used while in backpack (making me look less crazy while walking around and fiddling with a radio). Maybe two turns of wire some 30 cm in diameter might work as well as a larger one? I think Belka DX receiver I bought recently has some matching circuit and a preamp inside as it works fine with a simple (passive) wire loop indoors. QRM is horrible inside, so I want to test the radio around but without too much hassle. Antenna like this one can be useful.

[@medo123345]

👍 Tks , cool video.

[@marcclarke01]

Thanks!

[@abelincoln7473]

Yeah I purchased one of these specifically as a "pack-in" to keep with my portables. Seems to really be tailored for MW more than anything, however its a great alternative to a full sized loop, and vastly better than the reel up pocket antennae.

[@monotech20.14]

I read the views for this antenna, 50% says it works the other 50% say it doesn't.

[@sidneycavalcant]

@@monotech20.14 até o momento ouvi boas opiniões sobre a Degen 31ms, pesquisou este modelo ?

[@bmh67wa]

I had to purchase a SMA adapter but it works OK with my RTL-SDR. Having a waterfall makes it much easier to tune. Shortwave isn't it's strong point though, at least in my situation.

[@andrewhamop6665]

Truly an intriguing little piece of kit. I plan on getting a SW receiver soon, and this might just be the antenna I get! Also the price is great too. Question, I assume since this is a loop antenna, is it somewhat directional? 73 de W8IJC

[@Lithiumbattery]

thank you

[@danielgrubb9668]

Would have liked some demonstration of its LW function.

[@HangryGiant]

Could you add the hand held tuner inline with any other loop? I was thinking about adding the tuner in between my pl368 and the GA-450 for a little more tuning

[@gerrit555]

Hi. I just bought a Tecsun PL-330 and when I tried it with the intern antenna, it seemed not to be that good.... So I took a short look what antenna I could use for it. I know nearly nothing about the technic yet, so I will order this antenna to get better results. Thank you for the video. I am excited how the antenna will work with my small Tecsun PL-330...

[@sidneycavalcant]

Usou a antena interna para SW e não gostou ?

[@marcusmckenzie9528]

would i be able to change the wire tosomething a little more solid, say a small diameter tube of copper pipe that is formed into a circular shape? or could i incorporate a larger ferrite into the antenna instead or in addition to the wire part of the antenna?

[@CALTECH007]

I am using a Tecsun PL-990 and the AN-48X loop did not work well for me so I an going to try the MLA-30 loop. Hopefully that will work. I have a General Class Ham license but I am now in an Apartment so I am limited to what I can do. Wish me luck.

[@antalperge1007]

Hi, after 1 yr 😊 How is the MLA-30 compared to this little AN-48X?

[@CALTECH007]

@@antalperge1007 The MLA-30 antenna is doing is doing great and is my go to antenna.

[@alphalunamare]

I had to google what a Rode was :-)

[@antalperge1007]

Wireless mic 🤭

[@charleszimmermann7784]

I carry a little Tivdio 115 with a 23 foot real antenna in my get home bag, is this worth getting to add to it the Tivdio isn’t the greatest short wave radio and looking to upgrade.

[@bce5726]

Hey there! I recently found your channel and I appreciate everything you've taught me so far. I just so happened to have bought this item a few months ago. I was in the market for a solid AM/FM radio because, in spite of being relatively young (my 34th birthday is on the 22nd, so maybe I'm a little in denial about the 'young' part 😭😅), I enjoy listening to talk radio. Also, I enjoy camping & backpacking, so I thought trying to tune into stations in the middle of nowhere (hell, there isn't much of that left nowadays) would be a fun thing to do during the down time & help to stave off loneliness as I'm usually by myself while pursuing those activities. After looking online for the AM/FM radio, I came across the civilian version of the County Comm GP5 and the reviews of it were stellar. The extra band-receiving capabilities of the GP5 piqued my interest (I had never listened to shortwave or had ever even known about it until then), & despite the whopper of a price tag (I never imagined paying $100+ for dang radio in my life 😲), all of the reviews regarding it, plus all the rage it was getting from the 'prepper community' sold me on it & I pulled the trigger on ordering one. Once it got here, I quickly found that in my bedroom, FM signal was great & AM signal was okay, but as far as shortwave, I was only able to pick up the time signal on 5000khz out of Colorado. I found your videos & a few others as well & it seemed like I needed to try out two things to get more out of my GP5 (short of installing a radio antenna on the roof 😅): try getting out of my bedroom & see what signals I could get & the second being a passive and/or active loop antenna. As I was searching online for an active loop, I came across that Tecsun gizmo & decided, hell let's try it out. We'll so far, I haven't yet tried out receiving in the back yard, but here in my bedroom, I can say that it has helped to make my AM radio listening MUCH more enjoyable now that the signal is as clear as an (I think) AM signal can be and now I can faintly make out a few signals on shortwave. Woo hoo! I wish my shortwave was coming in clearer... I took y'alls advice & have tried to listen mostly in the evening when the signal is bouncing off of the stratosphere the most (I hope I have that correct)... but it's barely audible. Hopefully once I get out of the house & away from all the interference that comes with it, I'll find a much more enjoyable experience. Still haven't been able to hit the trail or get out to camping in the middle of nowhere, but I'm definitely looking forward to finding out what my radios can do when I get a chance. Fingers crossed I don't get out there and find out I wasted all my $$ and don't receive anything, but even if that's the case I'll still have AM talk radio & a last ditch emergency way to transmit if, God forbid, I ever have an emergency & hopefully someone somewhere will be listening. 😂 Since my County Comm GP5 purchase & learning more about the wide world of radios, I also purchased my first Uv-5r! It's been a blast listening to the local amature nets, but even here in El Paso, TX (a fairly large city) the airwaves are pretty quiet & it's been a little frustrating, especially since I don't have a ham license. I have downloaded onto my phone, a ham license study guide & an app with mock tests I can take as many times as needed, but I haven't committed myself to it as much as I'll need to in order to pay for and pass the real deal. We do have an amature ham club here in El Paso & once all of this Covid madness calms down, hopefully I'll be able to get with them & find it fortuitous to go through with studying for & getting my license. Truth be told, I am so disheartened & frustrated that this is all becoming a dying interest/hobby/artform because (to me and I'm sure to a lot of people) I can see how it is still such a great opportunity & viable form of communication even in the cell phone age we find ourselves in. God bless you & folks like you for still tending the fire/keeping the lighthouse lit for those who seek it. Everyday I'm thankful there's still folks out there who see the value in it that I do & especially you for teaching me and others the ways of the waves. You sir, ROCK! I look forward to more of your continued content & all it has to offer. 😉 👍

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

What a great comment. Thanks so much for that! I think you’re on the right path, getting outside and giving it a go will improve things. See if that club is doing meeting online. It would be fun to hop in on one to see how they are doing. Thanks so much for watching!

[@bce5726]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse I will definitely follow your advice & try that. Thank you for your response! 📻 👍

[@esincl52]

Josh, would this bring in the SW channels pre-programmed on the ft-3dr?

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Assuming you tune the loops controller box and we’re close enough to receive the station, yes.

[@landonmiller6943]

Seems a pretty decent active antenna for $35 bucks, especially with all the supplied accesories. Wonder how it performs against the Sony AN-LP1active antenna (got a couple of those). I got rid of my Yaesu FT-3DR, didn't like it much.

[@butterballsknows]

Happen to compare them almost a year later?

[@hobojesus2726]

@HamRadioCrashCourse you had a video about content creator needed to keep Ham great; you can help with simpler beginning courses. It's kinda off putting when videos are described with the abbreviated content geared towards current licensee rather than the super green nubi. I'd like some more starting out videos especially when people are stuck in the house

[@sidneycavalcant]

Já utilizou o modelo Degen 31ms ?

[@BobLewen]

Josh, I’m both a ham and a SWL. It’s a neat little antenna system. I’m curious though, you said the connecting “wire” is about 20 feet long but you only “unwrap” it foes the length that you need to connect to your radio. Have you tried extending it full length to see the affect it has on reception.... after all, although you can tune the system, its only a long wire with a wire loop on the end, and you don’t have a coax lead-in cable to the radio. Works like my MFJ-1020C without a loop, but in a smaller package. Anyway, interesting review and for the money, worth getting for my Tecsun PL-880. (Using my Chameleon F-loop on the PL-880 is a bit overkill)

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Hey. That is an interesting idea. I assume though the wire doesn’t do much as it mostly rides on the ground.

[@BobLewen]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse Elevate the wire, and or set up the loop outdoors with wire wrapped in Velcro at the distance you normally use, and then extend to full length. You should definitely hear the signal strength increase (if there is any). I hate to say it, but I ordered one a few minutes ago!

[@abelincoln7473]

Good point. I have taken the extra length of wire and made a secondary loop around the spreader bar, that had a positive effect on reception. Also, I have played around with the one i have and it works better as a delta loop as oppsed to the box loop.

[@sidneycavalcant]

@@BobLewenrealmente ouvi falar que precisa esticar totalmente o fio

[@rubenacevedo2484]

Hi, thanks for the review. When you connected the red clip and did not connect the black one, should I assume that the loop is acting just as a random length of wire ? And not as a loop? My DEGEN1103 has a socket to admit a doble pin, not stereo or mono. and I don't see a plug for that type of socket provided.. Sorry about my question !! Regards from Melbourne, Australia.

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Its a loop, the controller box is what tunes the loop. The connection to the radio can be many different ways provided in the kit.

[@rubenacevedo2484]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse thank you very much !!!!

[@ferncaballero]

Would this active loop antenna work with the Sony ICF-SW7600GR AM FM LW Shortwave Radio active antenna 3.5 inch port?

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Yes.

[@bringdamage1396]

Wow thanks . that's cool. This is posted 3 hours ago and it got 1.4k views that's fast. Thanks for the video de DU6KVC

[@graybryan9521]

Have you found that this antenna does any more than a simple 20 ft wire attached to a nearby tree and run though a window? I have this antenna and my simple 20 ft wire works just as well (or better).

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

A simple piece of wire will do just fine.

[@dutchbeef8920]

Loops are directional, I think a lot of people forget that and you can end up nulling signals without realising

[@franktillman295]

It’s like a MLA-30 portable

[@republish]

Is it better than mla30+ ? Don’t know with one to get

[@bill6634]

No!

[@rogerwoodland2587]

instead of a metal telescopic antenna it may be better to use a wooden dowel or plastic tube because of a possible shorting efect.

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Do what you want to do. 👍

[@KD9ZHF]

Seems putzy to use.😊

[@digitalmediafan]

Bought one of these recently but found it to be totally useless. Seems I might have a dud ?

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Sounds like it. Mine is quite a hot receiver

[@GoA7250]

Sounds like it needs a multi-turn pot on the tuning side....

[@paulaubuchon2336]

Any idea if it will work with the ETON elite executive??? Paul K1YOU

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Yep. It will.

[@nickdesaint4601]

Hahahaaa talk about apropos. Transmitting conversations & C2C talking about FCC 😂

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

Haha. I know crazy.

[@gonebamboo4116]

Did you ever see a video that discourse buying?

[@AaronHuber]

Is there any small portable sw radio with a filter to recieve CW signals?

[@gregorysmith3097]

So what's the problem with Coast to Coast AM? I know they have some controversial topics, but are they a problem on KZbin? For you short wave listeners, why do you listen to shortwave? I've heard of people listening to shortwave since I was a kid, but never quite understood why. Not being negative, but I'm always looking for more stuff to do.

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

If you play too much of their show on video they strike your video. I listen to the show a lot.

[@gregorysmith3097]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse Makes sense. I know that on iHeart, they have a small clip of shows. Thanks for bringing "different" stuff to us.

[@BobLewen]

There’s a whole world of military, ship to shore and other “utility” type of stations, but also news in English from most countries. Hearing world news and news about the USA reported from other countries can be very educational, certainly from our allies, but amazing sometimes from countries that may not be our best friends. But being HF, just like the ham bands, propagation, time of day and solar activity (along with your gear/antenna system of course) will determine which bands to use and your results. It’s another extension of the radio hobby. Hope that helps.

[@gregorysmith3097]

@@BobLewen Makes sense. And this year really showed me that the U.S. press coverage is very slanted. I would imagine that getting U.S. news from another country would really show the real story or at least another view of the story.

[@profeta4177]

Ask The Gods.

[@allenbryant]

Homeschooling?

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

My youngest is four.

[@allenbryant]

@@HamRadioCrashCourse I noticed the school materials on the dry erase board because it looks like my house. We've had a corner of our house that looks like that for about 14 years.

[@pobutscrackerbox]

:-)

[@toml.8210]

Gilles at the OfficialSWLchannel concluded this is a dud. Except for the variety of connectors, it's too picky and not easy to use, and mostly too much trouble, almost impossible to tune or usually makes the signal worse, on SW..

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

I respect Gilles a lot and watch many of his videos. Respectfully, I disagree with him on this one. This radio is one of my gotos. It’s very similar to the pl-660 in operation to me, but obviously compressed controls because it’s smaller. I don’t remember though if he got a first gen or the later ones. I know Tom at SWLing covered the differences.

[@TomR459]

FIRST

[@gregorysmith3097]

Congrats. How do you get to the video 2 days earlier than released?

[@TomR459]

@@gregorysmith3097 patreon

[@gregorysmith3097]

@@TomR459 That was my guess. I watch Josh, but I'm not quite ready to go Patreon yet. Probably will be soon.

[@markopoloswllreland3167]

I was told it was crap

[@HamRadioCrashCourse]

You need to have a light hand and play with it. Using a visible spectrum helps a lot. Any sdr would get more out of it.

[@dmsadigitalmediaservicesar2586]

would like to have you open up the powered unit and do a bit of basic reverse engineering to see what kind of variable cap system they are using, I think we probably have a good idea but ya never know, and then what kind op-amp is used for the amp. could you perhaps do that?

[@r0naldzuccala198]

Wow. I found this video and bought the 48x ant. As stated it does have many many uses so thankyou. RON Z. WA3090SWL. THE NORTHAMERICAN SHORTWAVE RADIO AND TOY ROBOY MUSEUM.