The review of the Xiegu X5105 HF transceiver

Here there is : the review of the Xiegu X51505 HF transceiver. It’s almost 2 years that we have in our hands the XIEGU X5105 HF transceiver. After more than 12 months of long waiting we were the first, in September 1st, to review the XIEGU X5105: the last HF+50 mhz TRANSCEIVER from this chinese, but high quality, company. Special thanks to Stephen (Xiegu), who has recognized this website as reference for many ham radio operateurs. The package was well made (see video) and in only 4 days arrived home. Honk Kong to Bordeaux, France. Wow.

The box contained 1) the xiegu x5105   2) a power cord   3) the microphone and his cable.  4) instructions, warranty 1 year and some adhesives from the XIEGU company.

This review of the xiegu x5105 HF transceiver: weight is only 550 grams and when compared to the Elecraft KX3 it looks smaller (2 cm less in length). X5105’s LCD is brighter than KX3 and this is more like a box. The LCD, when you turn it on, shows a “welcome” from the XIEGU company.  When the X5105 is on you can clearly see on the display: VFO-A (B) , Mode (CW, CW-R, USB, LSB, NFM, AM), Power in % (100, when it arrives to you:-) ) FREQUENCY in big capital cyphre, then S-METER, VOLUME, Pre-amplication option /yes or no, AGC, Filter.

On the botton of the LCD there is the MENU.

The xiegu X5105 performs very well on HF bands. Unfortunately I didn’t have chance to test it on every band due to no good propagation. I had chance to make some QSO in 30 and 20 meters with SM (Sweden), SV (Greece) and E (spain). USB modulation has been reported as “excellent”.
Soon I will add some audio in regards of this modulation. Speech could be improved within the menu: compression ON.

Accessing the menu is quite easy: there is a MENU button, at the bottom right of the panel. There are several options you can access to: Noise reduction, Noise blanking, Filtering, Notch, AGC, Memories, KEY (CW), Recording messages (up to 3). Last page of the menu is the info, and version of the XIEGU X5105 software.

The review of the XIEGU X5105 when compared to the ELECRAFT KX3

We compared the two transceivers. Check it out by yourself which one is the smaller (we will tell you which one is the lighter!).

Yes, the XIEGU X5105 wins. And it’s also lighter! 120 grams less! When you connect it to the socket and leave it in charge, the LCD will show you mAh of your battery and how much charge there is. Good for monitoring your internal battery pack when powered off and on charge.

In few words:
ALL BANDS COVERING: With a built-in power output of 5W, Xiegu X5105 is a highly portable transceiver working at HF+6m band, covering all modes of HF, 50MHz band (SSB/CW/AM/FM/RTTY/PSK).
LCD: Xiegu X5105 is equipped with a 3.6 inch large LCD screen and built-in 3800mAh large capacity battery pack. Besides, it also comes with a trestle for desktop operation.
IF OUTPUT: With IF signal output (1 IF: 70.455MHz, 2 IF: 10.695MHz, 3 IF 455kHz (FM)).
PORTABLE SIZE: Very small in size and ultra portable (6.3*3.9*1.8in) with an original speaker mic, convenient to carry.
WHAT’S MORE: Built in ATU; Built in AF-DSP digital noise reduction processor.

Basic Specifications
Frequency range:
Receive: 500kHz-30MHz 50MHz-54MHz
Transmitting: 160 meters -6 meters (Amateur band only)
Operating mode: A1A(CW), A3E(AM)，J3E(USB/LSB), F3E(FM)
minimum frequency stepping: 1Hz
Antenna impedance: 50Ω
Operating temperature range: -10℃ ~ +60℃
Frequency stability: after turn on the radio 1-60 minutes is ± 2ppm, @25℃: 1ppm/hour
supply voltage: normal: 13.8VDC + 15%, negative grounding
Operating voltage: 9.0-15.0VDC, negative grounding
Current consumption: receive: 660mA@ Max transmit: 2.5A@ Max
Battery capacity: 3800mAh @12V
Dimensions: 160*100*46mm / 6.3*3.9*1.8in [does not include protrusion]
Weight: 0.62 kg

Transmitter Parameters
5W(SSB/CW/FM), 1.5W(AM carrier), @13.8VDC
Modulation mode: SSB balanced modulation/AM low level amplitude modulation/FM Variable reactance frequency modulation
FM Maximum frequency swing: ±5kHz
spur reduction: -45dB
Carrier suppression: ＞40dB
Sideband spurious: ＞50dB
SSB frequency response: 400Hz-2800Hz（-6dB）
Microphone impedance: 200-10k(conventional 600Ω)

Receiver Parameters:
Double-conversion superheterodyne with audio DSP
IF frequency: 1 IF: 70.455MHz, 2 IF: 10.695MHz, 3 IF 455kHz (FM)
Image rejection ratio: 70dB
IF suppression: 60 dB
Audio output: 0.6W (8Ω, ≤10% THD)
Audio output impedance: 4-16Ω
Selectivity:
SSB-6dB: 2.4kHz/-60dB: 4.6kHz
AM-6dB: 6.0kHz/-60dB: 25.0kHz
FM-6dB: 12.0kHz/-60dB: 25.0kHz

Price: 640$

Wanna see our VIDEO review?

Thanks for watching the Xiegu X5105 – Full review