Wouxun KG-UV2D vs KG-UV6D

[N9PTC]

I'm brand new here, just registered a couple hours ago. I've been searching the forums on this subject. Most of what I've found I already knew. I'm not a ham but will take a day long class and test afterwards on August 11th. I am licensed GMRS user and have used Kenwood Commercial radio's, mostly TK-390, for several years.

I recently purchase a couple dual band radios. One is a Baofeng UV-5R, I like it except that it does not have a channel selector knob on top of the radio. So then I purchased a Wouxun KG-UV2D which so far I find to be fantastic. However I see a newer KG-UV6D that some of the models are touted as Public Safety grade, similar to my Kenwood TK-390, which has caught my interest.

However the more I read, the more I think my KG-UV2D is a better overall radio than the UV6D. The only thing I see the UV6D does that my UV2D doesn't is that it has 199 channels, which I don't think I'll ever come close to needing. I understand that you have to order in the UV6D either the UHF 400-470 MHz or 420-520 MHz and that you cannot then change it with after market software if you later find you'd rather have the other version.

For my UV2D I've found the aftermarket software that lets me program the radio to either 400-470 MHz or 420-520 MHz which I have done that latter. Also the only other feature the UV6D has that I liked was the 2.5 KHz step. However I've found programming software that allows me to program my UV2D to have the 2.5 KHz step, so that is no longer an advantage.

So what other advantage does the KG-UV6D have over a UV2D, which is less expensive and can be found at times used at even less cost (I got mine for $75 shipped)?

 

[nd5y]

For my UV2D I've found the aftermarket software that lets me program the radio to either 400-470 MHz or 420-520 MHz which I have done that latter.

Did that really work? Did you check the power output and receiver sensitivity above 470 MHz when you did that? According to what I have read on some other sites there are slightly different circuits used in the different frequency ranges and you are not supposed to be able to change the ranges to something different that what is on the radio label (what it was made for).

However I've found programming software that allows me to program my UV2D to have the 2.5 KHz step, so that is no longer an advantage.

What software is that? I thought the synthesizer steps were a hardware/firmware limitation and that is one reason why they came out with the UV6D.

So what other advantage does the KG-UV6D have over a UV2D, which is less expensive and can be found at times used at even less cost

I haven't used a UV6D so I don't have any first hand experience but I would hope that they fixed some of the bugs that the earlier models had and the lower price would be the only advantage of having a UV2D.

 

[N9PTC]

Did that really work? Did you check the power output and receiver sensitivity above 470 MHz when you did that? According to what I have read on some other sites there are slightly different circuits used in the different frequency ranges and you are not supposed to be able to change the ranges to something different that what is on the radio label (what it was made for).

It appears to work, I just plugged five 2.5 KHz frequencies in. A few business, a couple local police and one radio station. The software took them without changes and the radio shows them. We'll see if I actually get any traffic.

What software is that? I thought the synthesizer steps were a hardware/firmware limitation and that is one reason why they came out with the UV6D.

Software is KG-UV2D-25Step. I found it on the Wouxun.US web site. Also on the same site was WouxunUnlock which allows me to set the radio to transmit outside of the TX range shown on the label under the battery. I have confirmed this does work as I can hit my repeater which is well above 450 MHz.

 

[N9PTC]

Did that really work? Did you check the power output and receiver sensitivity above 470 MHz when you did that? According to what I have read on some other sites there are slightly different circuits used in the different frequency ranges and you are not supposed to be able to change the ranges to something different that what is on the radio label (what it was made for).

A short time ago I heard one of the 2.5 KHz business band frequencies I had just plugged in give off a Morse Code ID. May not actually hear any voice traffic until Monday.

 

[Mike_G_D]

Software is KG-UV2D-25Step. I found it on the Wouxun.US web site. Also on the same site was WouxunUnlock which allows me to set the radio to transmit outside of the TX range shown on the label under the battery. I have confirmed this does work as I can hit my repeater which is well above 450 MHz.

Can you provide a link? I have searched the wouxun.us site and used google to no avail on this (the "KG-UV2d-25Step" software you cite. All I could find after many repeated attempts were your posts on Yahoo concerning it.

-Mike

 

[N9PTC]

Can you provide a link? I have searched the wouxun.us site and used google to no avail on this (the "KG-UV2d-25Step" software you cite. All I could find after many repeated attempts were your posts on Yahoo concerning it.

Neither can I now find it. I know it was someplace, I thought it was on the Wouxun web site but the site map I got it from does not look like the site map I find on their page. For now I uploaded the file to a Wouxun Yahoo Group site. You can find it here: http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/MGj5T2...4qJfze/Software & Drivers/KG-UV2D-2.5Step.zip

If in the mean time I find the source where I found it originally, I'll post that here as well.

 

[N9PTC]

Can you provide a link? I have searched the wouxun.us site and used google to no avail on this (the "KG-UV2d-25Step" software you cite. All I could find after many repeated attempts were your posts on Yahoo concerning it.

I just was advised that it was on the Wouxun.US web site but has since been removed. I had uploaded it to a Yahoo group I belong to but was asked by Wouxun.US owner to remove the file, which I have done. If you still would like to have the file, send me a private message (assume you can do that here) with your email address and I'll email it to you.

Ed says it doesn't work, it seems to on my radio. Maybe I have a later one, or maybe I don't know what I'm doing

 

[JStemann]

I believe the main thing is going to be the transit on the uv6. The uv6 is meets narrowbanding requirements (esp. for transmit), the earlier versions do not. I think this is why they are advertising it as public safety grade. Hearing is no problem wide band vs. narrow band. I can hear all kinds of narrow band transmissions with my old radios, I just might get bleed over or interference if they license another station in the area too close to one I'm monitoring. If I had a narrowband compliant receiver, it would be able to better filter that interference.
Receiving a 12khz wide signal with a 25khz wide receiver is no big deal. Transmitting a 25 khz wide signal when you should be transmitting 12 khz IS a big deal.

Jeff.

 

[nd5y]

Here is what I found on the yahoo group.

This software should be removed from public access. It will not allow the 2D
radio to operate with 2.5 kHz tuning step. Such frequencies will show in the
display but the radio itself will only operate in 5 kHz steps. This
experimental software was stored on my server a long time ago and was not meant
for public access.

Regards,
Ed Griffin
www. Wouxun.US

> Hello,
>
> This email message is a notification to let you know that
> a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the Wouxun_KG-UVD1
> group.
>
> File : /Software & Drivers/KG-UV2D-2.5Step.zip
> Uploaded by : garyerrol <GaryErrol@...>
> Description : Allows you to modify KG-UV2D to do 2.5 KHz step programming.

 

[N9PTC]

I believe the main thing is going to be the transit on the uv6. The uv6 is meets narrowbanding requirements (esp. for transmit), the earlier versions do not. I think this is why they are advertising it as public safety grade. Hearing is no problem wide band vs. narrow band. I can hear all kinds of narrow band transmissions with my old radios, I just might get bleed over or interference if they license another station in the area too close to one I'm monitoring. If I had a narrowband compliant receiver, it would be able to better filter that interference.
Receiving a 12khz wide signal with a 25khz wide receiver is no big deal. Transmitting a 25 khz wide signal when you should be transmitting 12 khz IS a big deal.

Jeff.

All, evidently I have been taken for a ride and tried to take some of you along with me. However in my defense, I found what I thought was actual modification software on a well known vendor's web site thus I took if for what I had no reason not to believe to be true.

I found the file on Wouxun.US web site (the file has since been removed I'm told). They say it doesn't work, I don't know and to be honest I don't really care at this point. However the file info shows a later date than the non 2.5 step software on the same site. I'll probably just rename it (remove the 2.5 step part of the name) and continue to use it). Since CHIRP does not have all the features for the Wouxun that it does for a Baofeng, it looks like what I'll use most of the time. I'll probably buy a KG-UV6D one of these days just because I can!