An evening with my new DX-286

[MikeinDestin]

Well finally bought a good used condition Qodosen DX-286. Been listening to it all afternoon into evening. The jury is still out on its FM performance, because there really haven't been any recent band openings. Really like the bandwidth settings, and eq choices, it sounds very good with no complaints in the audio department. Especially for such a small speaker.

It will take awhile to get used to the settings, with some doing double duty. I've been listening to AM for quite awhile with my Terk Antenna. This is where it really shines. Nothing seems to overload the front end. It can take whatever you can dish out. The more antenna the better. It's like having the performance of my large Zenith in a smaller package. It's also convenient being able to turn the antenna without turning the speaker, which I'm used to. It plugs into the Terk. Though some have complained that it's prone to noise, but using it in the apartment here its been decent. I'm surprised Tecsun hasn't released a radio with an external AM connection yet, or have they? It did real well with The Rajun' Cajun on 1600, very impressive. WWV was strong on 15 Mhz. If you do use it on AM, you absolutely want to use a Terk or equivalent antenna, the built-in ferrite bar isn't worth it. And don't forget the 1/8" to 1/8" male to male connectors.

 

[ditto1958]

You’ve got yourself a DXing hot rod there!
I thought at first that mine was hard to use, but I stuck with it, as it is amazingly sensitive. Almost never does a day go by when it doesn’t wow me with a catch or two. Hope you enjoy yours!

 

[MikeinDestin]

Thanks. I believe I found a new station last night while listening to 1260 KC. The Terk is like having a mini yagi for MW. I'm glad they include a paper manual, it's very convenient. The seller didn't include the hard case. Maybe I can find one somewhere, but unless I'm traveling it's not really necessary to have.

 

[ditto1958]

Thanks. I believe I found a new station last night while listening to 1260 KC. The Terk is like having a mini yagi for MW. I'm glad they include a paper manual, it's very convenient. The seller didn't include the hard case. Maybe I can find one somewhere, but unless I'm traveling it's not really necessary to have.

I thought it was cool that it came with that, but honestly I’ve never used it. And that Terk looks like it‘s a really good antenna.

 

[RufusDawes]

I really like this radio, its the most sensitive am bcb radio I have in the stable (Alinco DXR8, Tecsn PL680, Sihuadon D808). Best feature to me is the scan, just rotate the dial and it moves on. Second best is that it takes an external antenna for AM/FM/SWL. I think the FM is equally as sensitive as AM... SWL is good too. All it needs now is SSB and it would be one of the top portables available on the market at any price, easily the best for less than $100.

 

[MikeinDestin]

I really like this radio, its the most sensitive am bcb radio I have in the stable (Alinco DXR8, Tecsn PL680, Sihuadon D808). Best feature to me is the scan, just rotate the dial and it moves on. Second best is that it takes an external antenna for AM/FM/SWL. I think the FM is equally as sensitive as AM... SWL is good too. All it needs now is SSB and it would be one of the top portables available on the market at any price, easily the best for less than $100.

I'm glad you like yours. I've found the FM to be the same as my Tecsun PL-880 sensitivity wise. The '880 has better FM audio. The Qodosen has the excellent sensitivity on both bands, whereas the '880 is mediocre on AM. I mostly use it on AM to identify what frequency I'm on if using an analog dial radio. Good luck with yours.

 

[MikeinDestin]

Well now unfortunately it seems the Qodosen has an issue. It sometimes motorboats on AM. Doesn't seem to on FM, haven't checked SW. Don't know what would cause that, and if it is a faulty capacitor I can't very well work on a surface mount pcb. Haven't dropped it, did knock it over while it was on a counter. It was standing up and fell on the bail, which was out. That shouldn't be enough to cause any damage, I don't think. If it happens again I'll check the battery, but it doesn't seem loose. Nothing else seems wrong. Might try hitting the back next time to see if that stops it. Tried turning the volume up to see if that made it worse. It didn't, nor did it cause any motorboat when it wasn't doing it. So I'm at a loss.

 

[ditto1958]

Well now unfortunately it seems the Qodosen has an issue. It sometimes motorboats on AM. Doesn't seem to on FM, haven't checked SW. Don't know what would cause that, and if it is a faulty capacitor I can't very well work on a surface mount pcb. Haven't dropped it, did knock it over while it was on a counter. It was standing up and fell on the bail, which was out. That shouldn't be enough to cause any damage, I don't think. If it happens again I'll check the battery, but it doesn't seem loose. Nothing else seems wrong. Might try hitting the back next time to see if that stops it. Tried turning the volume up to see if that made it worse. It didn't, nor did it cause any motorboat when it wasn't doing it. So I'm at a loss.

Darn. Did you buy it from Amazon, by chance? They might take it back or send you a new one.

 

[MikeinDestin]

Darn. Did you buy it from Amazon, by chance? They might take it back or send you a new one.

Bought it used from Ebay. It worked fine when I got it. Well at least they're not too expensive to replace. Just wish I knew someone in this area that was a tech.

 

[ditto1958]

Bought it used from Ebay. It worked fine when I got it. Well at least they're not too expensive to replace. Just wish I knew someone in this area that was a tech.

If people who can fix things like that could get their name out there, they would never run out of work. But how do you find people like that?

 

[N9JCQ]

The owner of the company has a Facebook page. If you are on Facebook, you could reach out to him. He seems quire responsive.

 

[kc2asb]

When you hear the motorboating, does it vary if you move the radio around or go to another room? Just thinking that it could be RFI from an external source. (TV, appliance, PC, etc)

A good tech could certainly effect a repair, if the cause is a bad cap or resistor. The only issue is that the cost of the repair might approach the price of a new radio.

 

[MikeinDestin]

The owner of the company has a Facebook page. If you are on Facebook, you could reach out to him. He seems quire responsive.

Thanks. Don't have FB but do have Instagram. Used it last night. It motorboated for a little while then stopped. Was fine the rest of the night. Gently tapped on the case to see if that would cause an oscillation. Doesn't appear to be a loose connection, but haven't opened it up.

 

[MikeinDestin]

When you hear the motorboating, does it vary if you move the radio around or go to another room? Just thinking that it could be RFI from an external source. (TV, appliance, PC, etc)

A good tech could certainly effect a repair, if the cause is a bad cap or resistor. The only issue is that the cost of the repair might approach the price of a new radio.

Yes, I agree. I originally thought it might have been RFI. When I didn't hear it on my other radios I realized it's probably an oscillation. It sounded like ignition noise from a car. I will try a different room just to be sure.

 

[N9JCQ]

Mike, here is his email address from his FB page. Email him and see what he says. He's a radio geek like us. qodosen@qodosen.com.

 

[MikeinDestin]

Mike, here is his email address from his FB page. Email him and see what he says. He's a radio geek like us. qodosen@qodosen.com.

Thanks, will do.

 

[MikeinDestin]

Well now the radio appears to be fine. Not hearing it anymore. Was it rfi? If it was I wasn't hearing it on my old radios, which are plenty sensitive too. Not the first time I've had a radio mysteriously "heal" itself.

 

[kc2asb]

Good to hear. Hope it continues to work flawlessly.

 

[MikeinDestin]

Good to hear. Hope it continues to work flawlessly.

Thanks! The only other potential issue that could develop is the optical encoder for the frequency. Sometimes they can "jump" one more step, or one less step. Fortunately it has the frequency buttons and direct entry. I remember that same issue on my FT 857D, but great radio IMHO.

 

[kc2asb]

Thanks! The only other potential issue that could develop is the optical encoder for the frequency. Sometimes they can "jump" one more step, or one less step. Fortunately it has the frequency buttons and direct entry. I remember that same issue on my FT 857D, but great radio IMHO.

Good point. Those can be problematic in any radio. My old Realistic DX-440 will either sporadically change frequency or go wildly out of control speeding through 100's of KC's when the encoder is turned. It seems to get better temporarily with use.