Tag Archives: Xiegu G106

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Xiegu G106: From Unboxing to Your First POTA Activation (Beginner-Friendly Video!)

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Earlier this week, I mentioned that I purchased a Xiegu G106 in September. Its delivery was delayed because I had it shipped to my local post office, which, as you likely know, was flooded during Hurricane Helene.

With all the post-Helene chaos, I haven’t been able to do as much POTA as I’d like, so the G106 sat unopened in its box—until Wednesday, November 20, 2024, when I finally had a chance to take it out for its maiden activation at Lake James State Park (US-2739)!

Why the Xiegu G106?

Last year, Radioddity sent me a G106 on loan, and I wrote an in-depth review after taking it on several activations. That review was lengthy because radios like the G106—designed as price leaders—often have compromises that may not suit everyone. It’s essential to judge such radios based on their goals, not by comparing them to premium models like the Icom IC-705.

For the G106, the question I aimed to answer was: “Does this radio accomplish what it sets out to do?”

I believe its mission is to offer affordable field radio fun—capable of completing park or summit activations without excessive struggle, providing performance commensurate with its price point.

I decided to purchase the G106 because I had returned my loaner unit over a year ago, but questions about it kept coming from readers. Instead of requesting another loaner, I opted to buy one.

To my surprise, the pricing had dropped significantly. Here’s my order confirmation:

Interestingly, as I mentioned earlier this week, Amazon (at time of posting) has a Black Friday deal for the G106 (without accessories) $199 shipped for Prime members [QRPer affiliate link].

I’d have chosen that over the bundle I ordered had it been available at the time.

Unboxing to Activation

It was a rainy day at Lake James.

A common question from readers has been, “Would the Xiegu G106 work as a dedicated field radio for POTA activations?”

Perfect weather to set up in a picnic shelter!

Most of these inquiries came from newcomers to ham radio, so I decided to test the radio in the field by setting it up from scratch—straight out of the box. This included attaching connectors to the power cord, configuring the radio, setting up the antenna, and hopping on the air.

This is a lot of picnic shelter for such a small radio setup!

I started the activation using SSB (voice) and later switched to CW (Morse Code) to give a full “out-of-the-box” experience.

The resulting activation video (below) is lengthy but was incredibly fun to film!

Gear:

Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.

Radio

Antenna & Cable Assembly

Throw Line

Pack

Logging Supplies

Key and Cable

Battery and Power Distribution

Camera/Audio Gear

Misc

On The Air

This activation was nothing short of amazing.

I began in SSB mode, using only the default mic settings. Despite operating at just 5 watts, I logged 21 hunters in 17 minutes—woo-hoo! While most signal reports were low, no one mentioned issues with my audio. I suspect results will improve once I fine-tune the mic gain settings. Continue reading Xiegu G106: From Unboxing to Your First POTA Activation (Beginner-Friendly Video!) →

News, QRP Radios

$199 Shipped: Not Perfect, but Perfectly Priced (Xiegu G106 Black Friday Deal)

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A few of you have sent me a tip about an exceptional Black Friday Week price for the Xiegu G106:

$199 shipped via Amazon.com (yes, that’s a QRPer affiliate link).

The timing is ironic for me since just three days ago, I performed a POTA activation with the G106 at Lake James State Park. I’ll hopefully have that field report posted within a week—possibly by Friday, if I can carve out the time.

Long story short: I purchased this G106 via Radioddity in late September, before Hurricane Helene hit WNC. I bought it because I’ve received so many questions about this radio over the past few months—no doubt because it’s the most affordable 80-10 meter multimode (CW, SSB, AM, and FM) radio on the market.

I posted a thorough review of the Xiegu G106 last summer, and I stand by that review. This radio isn’t for everyone—it’s super basic—but its performance is decent.

While using it Wednesday, I noticed a bit of AGC surge when a strong signal was present; the AGC takes a second to handle the incoming CW signal, making it feel slightly sluggish. I don’t recall this being an issue with the loaner unit I reviewed last year, but it’s there now. I’ll reach out to Xiegu to see if a firmware update might address this.

If you’re looking for a super-affordable HF radio that does SSB right out of the box (the QMX should as well, once Hans implements that in firmware), the G106 is a solid option. It’s a capable SSB QRP radio and decent at CW as well—again, especially for the price.

When I purchased my G106 in September, I bought directly through Radioddity’s site, taking advantage of a flash bundle deal that included the G106 and the DE17 digital interface for $239 or $249.

Had this Amazon deal been available, I would’ve jumped on it instead since I hadn’t planned on buying the DE17.

Before purchasing, I recommend reading my full review. This isn’t a “slam dunk” radio, but it’s a capable little machine and a great option to keep tucked away in a vehicle for impromptu activations.

Click here to check it out on Amazon.com.

As a reminder, the link above is an affiliate link. QRPer.com earns a small percentage of the sale at no additional cost to you. If you’d prefer not to use the affiliate link, you can use this one instead.

 

Field Reports, Guest Posts, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, SSB, Videos

Christian enjoys memorable QRP DX despite poor band conditions!

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Many thanks to Christian (IX1CKN) who shares the following field report:

QRP Fun Despite the Conditions!

by Christian (IX1CKN)

The weekend passed without rain, nor snow, but with temperatures that didn’t exactly encourage spending too much time outdoors. It seems that, despite the date, winter has returned. Nevertheless, the POTA call was hard to resist. So, since the midday cold didn’t seem too harsh, I hopped into my car.

I wanted to avoid the surroundings of Aosta, the town in north-western Italy where I live, and explore less frequented references for a different experience. I chose IT-1196, the Xeric environments of Gran Brison-Cly.

The reserve consists of two “sub-zones”: one around Cly Castle (in Saint-Denis) and the other above it. I set up in the first one, partly because the view of the ancient castle ruins while I transmitted was charming.

I had the most minimal setup possible: a Xiegu G-106, pushing no more than 5 watts, and a quarter-wave vertical antenna planted in the ground.

This antenna comes as a single telescopic whip, over 5 meters long, supplied with a braid of radials to lay at the base. Despite the feeling it gave me when I took it out of the package, it positively impressed me with its performance.

Propagation conditions hadn’t been impressive for a couple of days, but not trying at all is the surest way to make no contacts, so there I was, making my first calls from the promontory on 20 mt.

The response rate wasn’t particularly impressive, indeed, but it confirmed what I had already experienced in February 2023 during the first activation of this reference. The northern path was open, as evidenced by several stations responding from the northern part of the UK.

However, the unexpected surprise came at 13:27 UTC when NL7V answered my call. It was Paul, from North Pole, a town in the Fairbanks borough, Alaska. He gave me a 22 signal report, but I still couldn’t quite believe my ears. I’m working with 5 watts, and I never would’ve thought my signal could reach that far (distance from here is about 7.532 km). I thanked him sincerely and told Paul he literally made my day.

Here’s a video clip of the Alaska QSO:

As for the rest of the activation, the 10 and 12 meters bands were far from lively, and even the attempt on 15 meters didn’t yield anything interesting. So, I switched back to 20 meters and resumed calling.

In the final log, there are 31 contacts (in about an hour and a half of activation), including 5 with colleagues in other references. As has happened before, just when it seems like nothing suggests going out to activate, that’s precisely when you need to go.

Field Reports, Guest Posts, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, Travel

IX1CKN: POTA in the hills of Tuscany

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Many thanks to Christian (IX1CKN) who shares the following field report:

POTA in the hills of Tuscany

by Christian (IX1CKN)

The beauty of the POTA program lies in the fact that, even if you’re not in your region, you can still participate and, in fact, feel somewhat at home even from a distance.

So, Sunday 7th April afternoon, while in Florence, given not common family commitments, I took two buses bound for Fiesole and then walked about twenty minutes to reach reference IT-1396, Monte Ceceri Park.

The concept of a peak at 414 meters above sea level might make a Valdostan smile, because it’s less than the center of Aosta, the place where I usually live, but the view of Florence and its surroundings is priceless and truly breathtaking.

Moreover, as reminded by a monument on the clearing at the summit, the mountain was the stage for Leonardo’s first flight experiments, which adds charm and historical interest to the location.

I set up the equipment I managed to bring with me on the trip: Xiegu G106 and a quarter-wave vertical on the ground, with about ten radials. Not more, but the truth is, more isn’t necessary.

The less than stellar propagation on the higher bands led me to mostly stick to 20 meters, even though they were hyper-populated for the SP contest. However, well, I found a corner with sustainable crowding…

The final log shows 30 QSOs in just over an hour and a half, including various park-to-park contacts (including Nicola IU5KHP, national POTA manager, and Andrea IW0HK).

Unfortunately, an unsuccessful attempt with Dario IZ3QFG, but there will be other opportunities.

No overseas contacts, but I repeat: it’s not about quantity or distance, but the fact that being able to reach a reference by public transport and walking is priceless. It manages to give one that feeling of familiarity – amplified by the voices of those you connect with, amazed to find yourself in a park far from home – which is why it’s no surprise that Parks on the Air is growing!

Articles, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, QRP Radios, Reviews, SOTA

An in-depth review of the Xiegu G106 QRP HF transceiver

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Note that the following review first appeared in the May 2023 issue of TheSpectrum Monitor magazine.

Update: Also, please note that the G106 is on sale at Radioddity at time of posting. With our affiliate link pricing is only $264 US (see note at end of review). Please read this review prior to making a purchase decision!

An in-depth review of the Xiegu G106 QRP HF transceiver

by Thomas (K4SWL)

Last year––in May of 2022, that is––Xiegu announced a new compact field radio that would be added to their line of transceivers: the Xiegu G106.

Xiegu has really made a name for themselves over the past few years with several transceiver offerings, many of which have become very popular. Among these:

  • The Xiegu G90 is a 20-watt transceiver with an excellent built-in ATU. The G90 has become a very popular field radio over the past few years.
  • The Xiegu X5101 is a five-watt shack-in-a-box HF transceiver covering 160-6 meters. The X5105 has become a go-to QRP portable due to its fine built-in ATU and built-in rechargeable battery pack.
  • The Xiegu X6100 is much like the X5105, in that it’s also a shack-in-a-box QRP transceiver, but it leverages SDR technology to provide a beautiful color spectrum display and a host of features not found on its predecessors. Many have adopted the X6100 because its operating system is Linux-based and many enthusiasts have created their own X6100 interface that promised direct digital mode operation.

Because we’re seeing more products like these from Xiegu, the up-and-coming Xiegu G106 stirred interest.

Moreover, Xiegu has become a low-cost leader among HF transceiver manufacturers. In each of the reviews I’ve published about Xiegu radios, my summary statement is that each unit offers a lot of performance for the price. Xiegu transceivers don’t have the most robust receiver front-ends, and the audio is unrefined, but their rigs get the job done and have some serious “fun factor.”

So when I first learned about the new Xiegu G106, I was curious where it would fit into their product line.

Introducing the Xiegu G106

As I was capping off my summer in Canada back in August of 2022, Xiegu retailer Radioddity started shipping the G106. Radioddity had me on the list to send a loaner G106 for review, but  upon my return I found myself so busy that I didn’t immediately request it.

I did watch, however, K8MRD’s initial and updated review of the G106 on YouTube. While it was less than stellar––understatement alert––more relevant to me was that Mike shipped his second evaluation unit to me on behalf of Radioddity.

I connected that G106 to a dummy load, checked the transmitted signal on my SDRplay RSPdx spectrum display, and it simply didn’t look very clean. In fact, it looked worse than it did when Mike checked it only a couple of weeks prior.

I shared my results with Radioddity and told them I didn’t feel comfortable putting the G106 on the air; they asked that the unit be returned and checked out.

Fast-forward to January 2023, when I was once again contacted by Radioddity to see if I would like to field test an updated G106? I answered that I was happy to do so, because I was curious whether the G106 experience had improved.

In the spirit of full disclosure, keep in mind that Radioddity is a Xiegu retailer/distributor––the company is not the manufacturer, nor is it owned by Xiegu. They sent this G106 to me on an extended loan for an honest evaluation.

So where does the G106 fit into the Xiegu product line?  It’s being marketed as a low-cost, entry level, multi-mode QRP HF transceiver that leverages 16-bit CODEC sampling to provide the user with a lot of radio for the price. It’s basic, and meant to be so, in that  it’s only a transceiver; there is no built-in ATU or battery. The G106 is marketed as a bare-bones portable HF transceiver.

I feel like it hits this mark.

The G106 doesn’t have a lot of features or controls one might expect in other Xiegu radios, but it has more features than any other modern HF radio I know of in its price class (see features list below). Indeed, I can’t think of any other 80-10 meter general coverage QRP transceiver that retails for $320 or less. The G106 has this market niche to itself for the moment.

Overview

When I first received the G106, I was a little surprised:  it was even more compact than I had imagined.

The sides of the G106 are rounded and the chassis extends beyond the encoder and front controls of the radio, thus the interior is quite well protected in the event the radio is dropped. This is one of the few QRP field radios on the market that doesn’t need an aftermarket cage. I’ve been transporting the G106 in an old hard shell headphone case a friend gave me. The case isn’t large, but it easily holds the G106 and a power cord with a bit of room to spare.

 

The G106 sports a small monochrome backlit display that’s very easy to read in the shack or in the field with full sunlight.

Besides the weighted encoder (which has soft detents), the volume control, and microphone port, there are also four multi-function buttons located under the small display on the front panel. On top of the radio, there is a power/backlight button, mode/pre-amp button, and two band buttons that also can be pressed and held to change the frequency cursor position. The internal speaker is also mounted on the bottom of the top cover, just behind the top panel buttons.

On the back of the G106, you’ll find a BNC antenna port, ground/earth lug, key port, COM port, 8 pin ACC port, and a DC input port.

The most conspicuous omission is a headphone or external speaker port. I would have expected this in a QRP field radio because operators often prefer using headphones in the field rather than a speaker. I know that some G106 owners have built their own RJ9 audio plug to port out the audio to headphones. There is a headphone port on the supplied speaker mic, but CW-only operators might prefer a more direct way to connect earphones in order to keep the bulk of their field kit to a minimum.

What is surprising is that the G106 has a very basic spectrum display that is actually quite useful!

Ergonomics

The ergonomics of the G106 are overall pretty good…but a bit quirky. To be honest, giving the user access to numerous functions and features on a radio this small is always going to affect ergonomics; there’s only so much control-surface real estate. Continue reading An in-depth review of the Xiegu G106 QRP HF transceiver →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP

Snagging a little POTA QRP DX with the Chelegance MC-750 and Xiegu G106

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Over the past couple of months, I’ve been trying to give the Xiegu G106 a thorough workout in the field. This little HF QRP radio is on loan to me from Radioddity who has very kindly been quite flexible about the loan period.

I want to give the G106 a fair shake-out because I believe it must be the least expensive multi-mode, full HF coverage transceiver on the market. Field ops are always looking for portable, affordable, effective radios to take to the field so many are considering the G106.

Of course, you simply can’t get benchmark performance out of a low-cost leader.

My full review of the Xiegu G106 will be in the May 2023 issue of The Spectrum Monitor magazine. It’s one of the longest reviews I’ve published in TSM because I try to fully explore the pros and cons of this pint size rig in order that pretty much anyone can make a purchase decision based on their own preferences and requirements.

POTA Plan B

On Saturday, March 18, 2023, I  decided to take the G106 out for a very brief activation during a return trip to my QTH.

My park of choice was Tuttle Educational State Forest (K-4861) because it’s conveniently located, is an excellent POTA site, and I wanted to fit in a quick hike as well. Tuttle’s two mile loop fit the bill perfectly.

When I arrived at the park entrance, however, the gates were closed. I had double checked Tuttle’s schedule in advance and was under the impression that they had started opening the park on Saturdays again for the season.

I really wanted to fit in a decent hike so the next logical park choice was Lake James State Park. It didn’t require a major detour and I was certain it would be open.

Lake James State Park (K-2739)

Lake James has two major access points: the Paddy’s Creek Access and Catawba River Access.

I prefer the Catawba River Access even though it’s much smaller than Paddy’s Creek. For one thing, it’s always less busy and they’ve better spots to set up for POTA (since I like hanging wires trees more often than not). Although the Catawba River access lacks the trail network found at Paddy’s Creek, they do have a few trails that can be stitched together for a nice workout.

Lake James State Park Map Catawba River Access

After arriving at the park, I put on my hiking boots and walked the Fox Den Loop and a bit of the Lake Channel Overlook.

I hiked back to my car, ate a bite of lunch, then grabbed my radio gear for some cheap POTA fun!

Higher Bands

The great thing about the G106 compared with some of my more affordable QRP radios (MTR-3B, SW-3B, R4020, TR-35, etc.) is that it’s not limited to CW and it covers all bands from 80 to 10 meters. Continue reading Snagging a little POTA QRP DX with the Chelegance MC-750 and Xiegu G106 →

Accessories, Field Reports, Kits, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, Videos

POTA at Fort Dobbs: Testing a BCI filter and depleting a battery!

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Friday, March 17, 2023 was a dreary, rainy day.

It was the sort of day made for reading a good book by the fireplace or…in my case…activating a park!

I don’t let rain stop me from playing radio in the field. I carry a rain fly in my car pretty much all of the time so if push comes to shove, I can create a dry space to play radio.

That said, a number of parks I frequent have large covered picnic shelters, so why not use what’s already there?

That particular Friday, I had one particular park and one particular goal in mind.

G106 + BCI Filter

As I mentioned in a post this weekend, I purchased and built a K9DP BCI Filter Kit.

If you’d like to see photos of the build, check out this post.

I built this BCI filter specifically to pair with the Xiegu G106 transceiver. Why? Because the G106 is prone to overload if you’re anywhere near an AM broadcaster.

The last time I visited Fort Dobbs State Historic Site (K-6839), a local AM broadcaster bled through the audio of the G106. I was able to complete the activation without any issues at all–in fact, it was a very successful activation (read the report here).

Still, I did feel that the receiver was a bit less sensitive due to the broadcaster overwhelming the front end of the radio.

That Friday, I wanted to pair my Xiegu G106 with the new in-line BCI filter to see if that might mitigate the interference I experienced before.

Fort Dobbs State Historic Site (K-6839)

After arriving at Fort Dobbs, and before taking my gear out of the car, I made my way to the park office (in the log cabin at the end of the sidewalk above) and asked for permission to use their picnic shelter. Continue reading POTA at Fort Dobbs: Testing a BCI filter and depleting a battery! →

Accessories, Articles, How To, Kits, New Products, News, QRP

Assembling a K9DP BCI Filter Kit (Photos)

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If you own a Xiegu G106, X6100, or any other radio that is prone to overloading when in the presence of an AM broadcaster, you should consider building an in-line BCI filter!

As many of you know, I’ve been testing the Xiegu G106 over the past couple of months for a review that will be published in the May 2023 issue of The Spectrum Monitor magazine.

One criticism of the G106 is that its front-end overloads when there’s an AM broadcaster within a few miles of where you choose to operate. The Xiegu X6100 is identical in this regard.

One quick way to remedy this is to build or buy a BCI filter. We’ve mentioned in the past how you can homebrew them and I planned to do so. After checking my parts drawer, though, I realized I needed to buy a capacitor, toroids and at least one of the two BNC connectors needed if I wanted an in-line filter in a small project box.

I decided it would be much easier to simply buy a kit and, based on a tip from a reader here on QRPer.com, I purchased one from Dan (K9DP). Continue reading Assembling a K9DP BCI Filter Kit (Photos) →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, QRP Radios

Field Report: More Xiegu G106 POTA time and I rope in Brooks to log!

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On Friday, February 10, 2023, I had a hankering to fit in a POTA activation that morning. South Mountains State Park was an easy detour on my drive back to the QTH, so I scheduled an activation.

I’d also been meaning to meet up with Brooks (KO4QCC). Brooks started his POTA journey not even one year ago–here’s a field report from his first SSB POTA activation.

Brooks has been steadily working on his CW skills and is dangerously close to doing his first CW activation. We’ve managed to set up one late evening casual CW rag chew and I think his CW chops are very good.  We plan to do more evening rag chews when our schedules align. He’s made amazing progress.

I contacted Brooks that Friday morning and he was game to meet up and do some POTA. He wasn’t quite ready to do a CW activation, so I suggested he log for me using the HAMRS app on my iPhone. I find that logging for CW ops during past Field Days really helped build my own confidence before I started using CW daily.

Brooks was 100% game to log for me.

And let me just say what a luxury it is to have someone log to HAMRS for me on my iPhone! It frees up my brain to simply log on paper (which I always do) and enjoy working stations without the extra busy work! Hat tip to good ole’ Brooks.

South Mountains State Park (K-2753)

I arrived at South Mountains State Park (the Clear Creek Access), put on my hiking boots, then Brooks pulled into the parking lot only a few minutes later.

We agreed in advance to fit in a quick hike up the Clear Creek Trail prior to the activation. I, for one, really needed to stretch my legs!

After the hike, I grabbed some gear from the car and we set up at the one picnic table at the Clear Creek Access.

Brooks and I both had commitments that day so could only play radio for 45-60 minutes max including set-up and take-down.

I deployed the same antenna I’d used the previous day: MW0SAW’s homebrew EFHW on a SOTAbeams winder.

Deployment didn’t take long–since the 40M EFHW is resonant on both 20 and 40 meters, there was no need for an external ATU. I powered the G106 with a 3Ah LiFePo4 battery via my Ham Radio Workbench DC Distribution Panel. Continue reading Field Report: More Xiegu G106 POTA time and I rope in Brooks to log! →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP

Giving the Xiegu G106 a thorough workout at Fort Dobbs!

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On Thursday, February 9, 2023, a rare opportunity opened up for me: a 3.5 hour activation window–!

I was visiting and helping my parents in Catawba County, NC, so considered the park options, almost all of which are within a 35-45 minute drive.

I thought about fitting in two shorter park activations that day, but it has been so long since I’ve had the opportunity to simply hang at one park and play radio for more than an hour, I chose the extended activation option.

Although the forecast was for clear skies that day, a front was moving through that afternoon and the skies were overcast with gusty winds. I could tell rain was a very real possibility, so I chose a site with a picnic shelter to make things a bit easier.

Fort Dobbs State Historic Site (K-6839)

Fort Dobbs was a no-brainer: not only was it the closest park (thus less travel time eating into my on-air time), but the staff there are very POTA-friendly, the site is quiet, and they have an excellent shelter that I suspected (due to the dodgy weather) would be unoccupied.

When I arrived on-site, I checked in at the visitor’s center to make sure the picnic shelter hadn’t been reserved. Fortunately, they said I could have the shelter all to myself!

I had a number of radios in my car and decided en route that I would use the Xiegu G106 once again.

I packed the G106 in a waterproof Husky radio gear box I keep in my car trunk/boot. I grabbed it and my Spec-Ops EDC pack and carried it to the picnic shelter.

My plan was to pair the G106 with MW0SAW’s 40 meter EFHW antenna.

This would give me two resonant bands (40 and 20 meters) so there’d be no need to connect an external ATU. Continue reading Giving the Xiegu G106 a thorough workout at Fort Dobbs! →