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Reviews For: BTECH UV-50X2

Category: Transceivers: VHF/UHF+ Amateur Base/Mobile (non hand-held)

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Review Summary For : BTECH UV-50X2
Reviews: 1MSRP: $179
Description:
Mobile/base 50 Watt Dual Band VHF/UHF transceiver
Product is in production
More Info: https://baofengtech.com/uv-50x2
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0014
KN6KQR Rating: 2020-12-06
So far a good radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Did not see a review for this radio here so thought I would be the first. I am a newer ham and when shopping around I wanted a unit that could be super versatile and transmit on 2M/70cm/GMRS/Marine and these radios come out of the box able to do that. I did not know at the time that other radios that come restricted like the Kenwood TM-V71A can be modified to TX on all those frequencies just by cutting a little jumper cable and removing a resistor. The Miklor website says BTECH is not a division of Baofeng but rather a "ODM". Google says that means they private label other's products, but the website for BTECH is www.baofengtech.com so go figure. I am using the radio as a base station with an Alinco DM-330MV power supply and Diamond x300 antenna. The radio is advertised as 50 watts but checking on a MFJ-873 meter and on a frequency matched to my antenna for 1:1 SWR the radio pushes 55+ watts on UHF and 70+ watts on VHF and up to 1:1.6 SWR the power will bump down a little but never below 50 watts. There have been some other reviews that said these radios fail early and this was an initial concern of mine. I emailed BTECH sales support and they were very responsive about this. The said the failures are caused by excessive SWR or bad antenna connections. I asked what the max SWR should be and they 1:1.5 so I bought the radio understanding it is very SWR sensitive and if it blows up I wasted $179. The radio has performed really well and do not have a single complaint about it. I can hit a repeater 70 miles from my house and am regularly told I come in loud and clear on repeaters 30-50 miles away. The radio is easily programmed with Chirps. The question is if the rig can stand up to repeated and long term use at full power, will update this review if there is any change in the performance of the radio.