| SEALORD |
Rating:      |
2023-04-03 | |
| Mini tabletop receiver performance |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I have both the DX & 3rd gen. Belka version - these little receivers are not even on the same level as my PL-880, S-8800 and ATS-909X2 and should be compared to other tabletops as the performance is exceptional. I've done a few experiments using both the whip vs my on-the-ground antennas (MMD dipole & longwire w/MLB) and although there is a difference in signal strength, as long as you're away from QRM, the whip can easily hear what the other two antennas can. The quality of the sync detector is the closest I've found to my HF-150 on a portable, but without the selectable sidebands and low frequency rumble; paired up with a Bose Soundlink, it is killer! The sideband audio is also excellent; very similar to my RX-340. I should clarify that I ran the two external antennas through a MFJ 16010 tuner since it's input is designed for the high impedance whip. My DX version (with internal speaker) gets around 10-12hrs per charge & my new 3rd gen. version (w/out speaker is easily 2x that). Be patient with delivery time as my 1st one only took around 2 1/2 weeks, but my 2nd took 38 days. I no longer wish to own a ICF-SW100 or E1XM - you're not going to find better performance in something this size or price, period. |
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| KB1SNJ |
Rating:      |
2023-03-09 | |
| Unique Fantastic Tiny Gen Coverage Receiver |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Ordered the BELKA (newest version 100khz - 30MHZ) in Feb 2023, paid about $170 shipped to my door in the U.S., and it arrived in 2 weeks.
Cant say enough good about this little radio. I A-B compare with my Yaesu FTdx3000 and it is 90%-95% as good at hearing most signals.
On AM BCB, with a big outdoor longwire, it can overload and hear multiple stations, a small preselector would fix that. But with its little telescopic whip, no such issue and it still sensitive enough to grab far away stations if conditions allow. Right now listening to 740AM 50KW in Toronto 450 miles from my QTH.
On SSB it totally shines. Really good performance. GREAT audio. And it's smaller than a pack of cigarettes.
So impressed that I ordered another for a gift for someone who expressed an interest in SWL or HAM radio, and I am not rich! |
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| VE3YXO |
Rating:      |
2023-02-27 | |
| Best $$$ spent for HAM radio gear! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
This is the second BELKA radio I got, the first one I purchased in June of 2021 after watching a video about the product a couple of years prior to the purchase date...
...it was very impressive and I decided to get it for the purpose of the beach vacationing in FL as well as trips to CO land and of course walks in my home town.
However Due to the high demand and frequent out of stock status back then it took me a while to order the first radio , but finally it worked in my advantage because by that time I got BELKA-DX with full HF coverage including 160M.
It was worth every cent spent. This radio could hear everything what had a pulse!
My home QTH in highly populated and RF polluted suburban area of Toronto on the postage stamp size lot where I have only vertical antennas, but I was sooooooooooo impressed when I walked out of the door outside and especially 50 to 100 meters from my house to the nearest parkette!
Day and night!!! 43 ft. vertical at home vs 70cm telescopic whip! And guess who won? Crystal clear audio and DX stations in all modes including SSB one after another on all bands including 160!!! The rest is all already written in previous reviews. For addition for the previous comments What is the good excuse go out of the house! My wife got very happy to get me out as a company for nice and long walks - that is the real twofer!
A couple of weeks ago I purchased the new version of the radio with additional LW/MW coverage. It works as good and impressive (with the same telescopic antenna) as the previous model of BELKA-DX.
I listed my first BELKA-DX on local swap site and almost immediately it went to new home to the happy HAM who wanted to get it ASAP(without waiting for overseas shipping) and is happy with HF only (1.5-31MhZ) coverage.
CONCLUSION:
Best $$$ spent for HAM radio gear!
Definitely will buy again if new model gets available.
Looks like it has good re-sale value.
If you like it, get it without hesitation directly from the BELRIG website it is completely safe for credit card transaction.
Once you committed and If it is in stock grab it right away because the are often sold out and could be some waiting time for the new batch.
If you are happy with just HF coverage it is perfectly fine to get BELKA-DX with 1.5-31Mhz if you can get it resale from trusted seller. From my observation and in my personal opinion It has the same controls/menus and I believe it is preformancewise as good as the recent model , of course if you are interested in HF bands only.
This is my first ever review on e-ham, so thank you for your patience ;)
Please notice I do not work for "BELKA" radio and have no affiliation with them.
Andre
ve3yxo
73!
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| DXACE1 |
Rating:      |
2022-11-03 | |
| Blockbuster SW Receiver |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
UPDATE: Belka.rig announced a new version of the Belka, and it now covers the AM/MW band, including coverage down to 100 khz. The new Belka impresses just as much as the old ones did -- amazing sensitivity with just the telescopic antenna. The size of this receiver and its capabilities, including what is called Pseudo-Synchronous modes, almost screams out to the user that he/she doesn't really need any other portable radio. It would be nice if Belka had included a 10 khz mode for U.S. AM reception (they did include a 9 khz mode for Europe and elsewhere) -- without that you have to change the tuning increment to 5 or 1 khz -- but this does not detract in any large way from the excellence of the receiver. Belka.rig has so far decided not to compete with the Malahit, which is produced in Russia and copied in China, but it would be interesting to see the quality of this small Belka transferred to a larger multi-function screen while hopefully maintaining its high sensitivity.
I owned the original Belka and was impressed with its sensitivity and amazing performance for its size. But an internal speaker makes all the difference and that is what you get on the DX, though Belrig also offers a speaker/back that you can put on the original Belka. Not having to mess around with a separate mini to mini cable for a speaker frees you up to truly enjoy the portability and convenience of the DX version of this radio. I have found that the Belka DX performs fine just with the include whip antenna -- addiong one of the amplified antennas made in Greece really does not help IMHO. As others note, the size of the Belka is such that it really is the ultimate in portability. Others have described this as having a new larger battery -- it does not...the DX actually has a slightly smaller Lithium Ion battery which does reduce listening time by a bit but it is not all that much. I hope someday that Alex applies the technology in the Belka to a sligthly larger SDR that competes with the China-made stuff on the market and perhaps adds a slightly larger color screen similar to the Malachite SDRs... |
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| K7NA |
Rating:      |
2022-08-01 | |
| Amazing For A Credit Card Sized Radio! |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
UPDATE: I liked my Belka-DX Max so much, I decided to purchase a second one from Mobimax in Bulgaria which offers superior, fast shipping (mine arrived in WA in five days). When the Euro and US dollar hit parity recently, I jumped and saved some money. The radio does a remarkable job on AM, SSB, and CW for a miniature no larger than a credit card!
I plan to buy a small crush proof attaché case and I’ll store a Belka, wire and included telescoping whip antennas, adapters, charging cable, earbuds and owner manual as a “grab and go” kit to take along on overnight travel trips.
I use one of my Belkas every morning with coffee to tune the ham bands and the SWBC bands. I haven’t used my AOR AR7030+ in months! The little Belka is just so much fun to use and so satisfying to listen to with either my Bose headphones or a battery powered Altec Lansing speaker. The AGC action is comparable to my IC7300 and head and shoulders above the average shortwave portable radio.
My original review is below:
Having read the positive reviews of this miniature receiver on eHam, and with rave reviews from two ham radio friends, I decided to order my own Belka DX-Max. It arrived in less than a week via FedEx Bulgaria. It was very well packaged and arrived in pristine condition.
I’ve been using this little gem connected to either a pair of Bose headphones, or a small Altec Lansing Jacket H2O 4 powered loudspeaker and the audio has been excellent. For an antenna, I’ve been using my Wellbrook ALA1530LNP 1-meter rotary loop or my 80 meter end fed half wave wire. Reception on AM, CW, and SSB has been on par with my ham radio rigs. Sensitivity and selectivity have been excellent for such a small receiver, and the AGC action has been amazing compared to my various portable SW receivers.
Battery charging is easy and powers the radio for many listening sessions. The build quality is superb, using top quality materials. The cool metal heft of this little box oozes quality and durability.
I’m quite impressed with the Belka’s jaw dropping performance and I plan to take this small radio and the Altec speaker with me on travel trips. I recommend it to listeners looking for superior performance in a diminutive package.
Vince K7NA
Whidbey Island WA |
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| W8RMV |
Rating:      |
2022-07-01 | |
| Gets AGC right! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| So many SWL rigs, especially small portables, just don't do AGC correctly. And DSP radios especially. Tecsun take note!! But Alex EU1ME gets it. The Belka DX is an amazing little receiver. I like to try different SWL receivers, but the DX has ruined the search for me. 73. |
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| ZL1VSF |
Rating:      |
2022-05-11 | |
| Just arrived a couple of hours ago - So Easy to operate |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Ordered it about a week ago online, I heard nothing from the person selling it at all even after a few emails. I was just starting to get a little annoyed when a small parcel landed in my lap. Wow, is it really that small? Good golly Miss Molly, it's true - it is.. Within an hour and with no manual, after fumbling around in the dark, I had it figured out enough to get all 32 memory channels stored up with my most used frequencies and then sit back and listen to it for a while. My God, this tiny package is incredible. Wow, it really does pull in the signals, doesn't it? I do have to be totally honest though, it doesn't quite match the Kenwood TS-590 I have in sheer signal gathering but by heavens it's really close - both using the same antenna for the comparison of course..
**Good side - Tiny size - Ease of use and programming means it has a very small learning curve - Lots of choice via the buttons and the knob in those settings - Outstanding clarity of SSB reception and doesn't appear to overload on an external antenna, even on high sensitivity..
**Not so good side - Tiny size,, wish it was a wee bit larger so I could sit it on my desk properly - Easy to overwrite memory channel(s) without confirmation - Buttons and menus and sub menus, mean the fingers have to tap dance at times until it's programmed to your liking.
All in all though I have to say, like most of the others I have seen in here and on YT, I am quite impressed with his little beauty. Would I recommend it to others? If you want a pocket rocket capable of almost unbelievable reception - HECK YEAH...!!!
**** As a followup to the above mini review (4 days later)... No I won't mention any of the things that this radio 'hasn't' got because that's a whole list on its own, instead I will stick to its capabilities.. I'm still astonished at just what the Belka-DX can do, even on its little whip antenna. Any local signals are wall to wall. Of course the further away the signal the more it falls off but what did you expect! However, one signal on 15m came in very loud and clear but very little strength on my TS590 and I was surprised that the DX could only just get it. I don't think I will get the claimed 24 hours of listening that was stated in many reviews etc though as the day after I got it I had to charge it from approx 50% and now it's already sliding downhill but we'll hope for a good period of use after a few charge cycles from new. The antenna keeps flopping down all the time, so I might have to use one of my others or get a new one from somewhere. I also found a folding small cellphone/tablet stand to sit the DX on and rewired an extension speaker with a stereo plug (DON'T USE A MONO PLUG) and now the tuning and listening is 100% better, and it sounds louder and has a lot more tone.
Well, that's it, just a few more words to show I made a great purchase and it looks like a lot of great listening ahead of me... 73's
Al - ZL1VSF
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| KE7AVW |
Rating:      |
2022-04-24 | |
| Just arrived today after 3 weeks |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| I ordered this amazing little radio March 30th, and realized the next day that most shippers had stopped flying into Belarus and Russia. I had pretty much given up hope, but thought it might show up in 6 months. Anyway It only took about 3 weeks and arrived 85% charged! Its amazing how many signals on 40m I can get during the day in my living room using that whip. The buttons and control knob seem very solid. I'm gonna put it through its paces with CW tonight while sitting outside. Anyway, just wanted to let you know you can still get one in. Just be patient. |
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| W5GNB |
Rating:      |
2022-02-26 | |
| Very Good !! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Very impressive !! ~ you will NOT be disappointed with this little receiver, it is High quality and High performance... Much Unlike the JUNK that is offered from our good friends in CHINA !! ~ |
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| W1CAL |
Rating:      |
2022-01-17 | |
| Outstanding - I Love this Receiver |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I am not going to repeat all the great things already said about this amazing receiver. They are all spot on true.
What I will say is it's refreshing to find such a small, well made receiver that operates exactly as a ham operator would want in a modern receiver & it fits in your pocket!
No more searching through all the Chinese garbage receivers, and garbage they are, looking for the ultimate portable.
I will be having fun with this receiver for many years.
Thank You Alex! |
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