{"id":16008,"date":"2015-12-05T09:06:40","date_gmt":"2015-12-05T13:06:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=16008"},"modified":"2015-12-05T09:13:48","modified_gmt":"2015-12-05T13:13:48","slug":"which-one-the-tecsun-pl-660-or-the-pl-600","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/12\/which-one-the-tecsun-pl-660-or-the-pl-600\/","title":{"rendered":"Which one: The Tecsun PL-660 or the PL-600?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>

The Tecsun PL-600.<\/p><\/div>\n

This morning, I received a question I’m often asked. It usually goes something like this:<\/p>\n

“Should I purchase the Tecsun PL-600, or invest a little more and purchase the\u00a0Tecsun PL-660? Is it worth the price difference?”<\/p>\n

I decided it best to post this question, along with my response, below.<\/p>\n

SWLing Post<\/em> reader, Warren, writes:<\/p>\n

“I have been on your web site for a couple of hours now. I especially appreciated your super review.<\/a> From that I decided I liked the Tecsun PL-660 best. As I was looking for one on ebay, I saw an ad for a Tecsun PL-600. Although I did find specs on your web site, I did not find a review by you. I did find links to other reviews.<\/p>\n

One person said a PL-600 was a PL-660 minus the AIR\u00a0band.<\/p>\n

Another said the SSB didn’t work until he took it apart and replaced a capacitor.<\/p>\n

Another said the filters didn’t work as well on the 600, or didn’t exist.<\/p>\n

Many said the quality was excellent – buy it! Many said it was terrible.<\/p>\n

Can you tell me, in your opinion, which, if any, of the above you agree with? And give me your own rating of the 600?<\/p>\n

The 600 is much less expensive than the 660. If it is missing filters and sound quality I’m not interested. If it is only missing the airline band I am very interested.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Here’s my reply to Warren:<\/p>\n

“It is confusing and, you’re right, for some reason I don’t think I’ve ever done my own review of the PL-600<\/a>–though it’s been included in comparisons.<\/p>\n

Here’s my answer to your question:<\/p>\n

If you want the best overall performance, go for the Tecsun PL-660<\/a>. I think it’s well worth the price.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Tecsun PL-660.<\/p><\/div>\n

The PL-660 has a great synchronous detector–something the PL-600 lacks–which helps with selective fading and pulling weak signals out of the murk. Since you can select the sideband for the sync lock, you can also use this function to help mitigate adjacent signal interference.<\/p>\n

Don’t get me wrong: the Tecsun PL-600<\/a><\/strong> is a great radio in its own right. Of the sub-$100 portables [currently $96 shipped via Amazon<\/a>, $89.95 plus shipping\u00a0via Universal Radio<\/a>], it’s one of my favorites.<\/p>\n

The ‘600 is one of the few portables on the market in this price range that has\u00a0a BFO for single sideband listening (along with the CountyComm GP5\/SSB<\/a> and the Degen DE1103 DSP<\/a>).\u00a0When newcomers to the hobby want a full-featured sub-$100 radio that’s simple to operate, I often suggest the PL-600. I’ve never had any issues with my PL-600, by the way–it performed as specified right out of the box and continues to do so today.<\/p>\n

But again, if one’s budget allows\u00a0I always recommend the Tecsun PL-660<\/strong>. In my opinion, the ‘660 offers the best performance and features for the price [currently $109.95 plus shipping at Universal Radio<\/a>, $119.99 shipped via Amazon<\/a>].<\/p>\n

At home, I believe\u00a0I actually reach for the PL-660 more often than I do my pricier PL-880<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a nutshell? Your hunch is right. Get\u00a0the Tecsun PL-660<\/a>.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Readers:<\/strong> Do you agree\u00a0or disagree? Feel free to comment!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This morning, I received a question I’m often asked. It usually goes something like this: “Should I purchase the Tecsun PL-600, or invest a little more and purchase the\u00a0Tecsun PL-660? Is it worth the price difference?” I decided it best to post this question, along with my response, below. SWLing Post reader, Warren, writes: “I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,26,129,43,154],"tags":[482,4480,332,479,481,4479,330],"class_list":["post-16008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-radios","category-reviews","category-shortwave-radio","category-shortwave-radio-reviews","tag-pl-600","tag-pl-600-or-pl-660","tag-pl-660","tag-tecsun","tag-tecsun-pl-600","tag-tecsun-pl-600-vs-pl-660","tag-tecsun-pl-660"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-4ac","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12349,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/02\/a-review-of-the-tecsun-pl-680-with-reader-survey-results\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":0},"title":"A review of the Tecsun PL-680 with reader survey results","author":"Thomas","date":"February 22, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"When I heard early reports about the new Tecsun PL-680, I was already wondering how\u00a0it would\u00a0stack up alongside\u00a0other Tecsun portables. An early photo of the Tecsun PL-680 revealed how very similar it is, indeed,\u00a0to the Tecsun PL-600, which has been on the market for many years. Moreover, the features of\u00a0PL-680,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Articles"","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tecsun-PL-680","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Tecsun-PL-680.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11744,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/12\/tecsun-pl-680-could-be-available-in-january-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":1},"title":"Tecsun PL-680 could be available in January 2015","author":"Thomas","date":"December 17, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Steve, who writes: Anna from Anon-co (eBay seller) sent me this little tidbit of info on the PL-680 [...]\u00a0I thought I would pass it along given your interest. At least we know it is a real product and could be available as early as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"(Image source: Nevada Radio)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/PL-680-Nevada.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/PL-680-Nevada.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/PL-680-Nevada.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8149,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/12\/video-tecsun-pl-880-vs-pl-660-on-a-local-am-station\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":2},"title":"Video: Tecsun PL-880 vs. PL-660 on a local AM station","author":"Thomas","date":"December 5, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"In the following video, I have tuned both the Tecsun PL-880 and the PL-660 to a relatively local AM station (880 kHz).\u00a0Note that I had the tone control switch set to \"bass\" on the PL-880 (it would have been better on \"treble\"): For normal AM radio listening, I believe the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mediumwave"","block_context":{"text":"Mediumwave","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/mediumwave\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8839,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/chris-is-sticking-with-his-trusty-tecsun-pl-660\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":3},"title":"Chris is sticking with his trusty Tecsun PL-660","author":"Thomas","date":"February 24, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Shortwave listener and radio producer, Chris Freitas, recently posted an article on his blog touting the Tecsun PL-660 as his shortwave portable of choice. Click here to check out his post.","rel":"","context":"In "Radios"","block_context":{"text":"Radios","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/radios\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Chris' Tecsun PL-660","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/ChrisFreitasPL-660-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8137,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/12\/video-tecsun-pl-880-vs-pl-660-using-the-hidden-dnr-feature\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":4},"title":"Video: Tecsun PL-880 vs. PL-660, using the hidden DNR feature","author":"Thomas","date":"December 4, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"In this video, I've tuned both the Tecsun PL-880 and PL-660 to All India Radio on 9,445 kHz (transmitted from\u00a0Bengaluru, India, some 8,800 miles away). Thanks to an image of a (prototype?) PL-880 keypad posted on the\u00a0Tecsun PL-880 Yahoo Group--an excellent group\u00a0you should join, by the way--I've discovered that if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Photo source: Tecsun PL-880 Yahoo Group","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/PL-880-With-Hidden-Keys-229x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":61889,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/comparing-the-tecsun-pl-880-and-pl-660-in-an-rfi-rich-environment\/","url_meta":{"origin":16008,"position":5},"title":"Comparing the Tecsun PL-880 and PL-660 in an RFI-Rich Environment","author":"Thomas","date":"February 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Jeff McMahon, who notes that he\u2019s published a new post on his blog, The Herculodge. This time, Jeff examines the Tecsun PL-880 vs. PL-660, exposing the quirks and realities of DSP-based radios in his interference-heavy household. Jeff finds that in real-world conditions, the trusty\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/ECSS-PL-660.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/ECSS-PL-660.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/ECSS-PL-660.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/ECSS-PL-660.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}