I’ve been enjoying my XHDATA D-109 portable for the past several days. While I’ve yet to hear anything exotic regarding MW DX on the radio, it seems capable. 

On Wed, Mar 8, 2023 at 01:14 PM, JAMET Paul wrote:

Hi,

 

Please, look at this video :

 

XHDATA D-109 does not like external antennas it gets spurious signals and overload

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfSkoVd9Os4 

 

On my side, I observed the same phenomena ... for SW ... with a wire antenna

Loss of selectivity ... and some interferences 

 

Generally, DSP receivers work well without external antenna 

 

Paul JAMET

 

Hi Paul,

Thank you for the message, and the YouTube video link.

I have already replied to my friend Les Rayburn on the North American IRCA list regarding this antenna improvement for the XHDATA D-109, which will be for the replacement of the Medium Wave (521-1701 kHz) loopstick antenna only. This is not related to the D-109 overload problem mentioned in the YouTube video, which is for the Shortwave frequency range.

Any portable radio with a loopstick antenna can have a dramatic improvement in Longwave and Medium Wave sensitivity by replacement of the loopstick by a larger, more senstive loopstick, which is specifically designed for the Longwave or Medium Wave frequency range. Currently, the most popular portable radio for this modification is the XHDATA D-808 model, which my friend Les Rayburn (and many others) have used to enjoy dramatically improved AM-DX from their D-808 models. I have written a full construction article describing this, which is posted at https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/5d0pi85jfptgmrj4pd0jsmaybgb6gteh

This relatively simple modification also provides a dramatic improvement in AM-DXing sensitivity in the Radiwow R-108, CC Skywave and other Ultralight radios, all without any overloading or other "side effects." These loopstick transplant modifications are extremely popular, and result in thrilling AM-DXing portables for travel and other situations. A photo of a new Sihuadon D-808 model with the MW loopstick modification is attached. It has far greater MW sensitivity than any factory D-808 on all frequencies from 521-1701 kHz. Although I have provided these "Supercharged" portables to most of my DXing friends here in the USA, I'm sorry that I don't have the free time to make them for all that wish to wish to purchase them. The loopstick transplant instructions at the link posted above are relatively simple, and any trained technician or hobbyist should be able to complete the procedure successfully.

Best 73,
Gary DeBock (in Puyallup, WA, USA)

In a prior post, Les Rayburn states “The addition of Bluetooth makes listening with wireless earbuds a joy as well.”

In reading the manual, the Bluetooth instructions refer to connecting a phone to the radio to use the radio’s speaker. I don’t see any instructions on connecting a Bluetooth speaker or earbuds. Am I missing something?

Greg

Sadly, this is the crucial piece of information which manufacturers seem keen to omit when they say their product "has bluetooth".

My apologies. I assumed (and we all know what that means…) that the Bluetooth connection was to allow wireless earbud use, not that the radio speaker could be used to play music or other content. 

Note that you can use the 3.5 jack socket to connect the D-109 to an amplifier, computer or recorder.

Or to a Bluetooth transmitter for that matter.