{"id":49237,"date":"2021-06-12T07:24:18","date_gmt":"2021-06-12T11:24:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=49237"},"modified":"2021-06-12T07:24:18","modified_gmt":"2021-06-12T11:24:18","slug":"dan-reviews-latest-firmware-version-of-the-tecsun-pl-368-and-shares-list-of-hidden-features","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/06\/dan-reviews-latest-firmware-version-of-the-tecsun-pl-368-and-shares-list-of-hidden-features\/","title":{"rendered":"Dan reviews latest firmware version of the Tecsun PL-368 and shares list of hidden features"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post<\/em>\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Dan Robinson<\/a>, who shares the following guest post:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Revisiting the Tecsun PL-368:\u00a0 Assessing a Later Firmware Unit<\/h1>\n

by Dan Robinson<\/strong><\/p>\n

This past April, I reviewed Tecsun’s PL-368<\/a>, the update of the PL-365 (also sold by CountyComm as the GP5<\/a>).\u00a0 There were some major changes:\u00a0 Tecsun shifted from AA batteries to a flat BL-5C cellphone type battery, and of course the marquee design change was the addition of a keypad.<\/p>\n

The keypad is a night and day change \u2013 whereas before the PL-365 was a handy receiver but hobbled by archaic tuning limited to memory access and the side thumb wheel, the 368 provides easy instant frequency selection.<\/p>\n

In my previous review, I mentioned the well-known characteristic of the 360 and 365 models which exhibited over-sensitivity to the touch.\u00a0 When removing your hand, signal levels plummeted \u2013 usually, a full grip was necessary and any variation caused reduced sensitivity \u2013 noticed mostly in shortwave mode.<\/p>\n

The PL-368 I reviewed was from among the first versions of the receiver.\u00a0 It had a firmware of 3681, from a 2020 production run.\u00a0 Recently, I received from Anon-Co \u2013 the most reliable supplier of Tecsun receivers<\/a> \u2013 an updated unit, with firmware 3684.<\/p>\n

Please see my previous review<\/a> for comments on various aspects of the 368: the longer but less robust telescopic antenna, addition of detents on the volume wheel, and the welcome addition of adjustable bandwidths, synchronous detection, and ability to tune in 10 hz increments, and other changes.<\/p>\n

PROBLEMS<\/b><\/h1>\n

SYNCHRONOUS DETECTION:\u00a0 As with the 909x and H-501, the upgraded 368 now has Synchronous Detection.\u00a0 I did not expect any change in the 3684 firmware \u2013 SYNC still has some distortion and loss of lock.<\/p>\n

As with the 330, 990x, and 501x successful use of this mode requires a delicate dance involving careful selection of various bandwidths while in SYNC mode and fine tuning<\/b>.<\/p>\n

However, whereas on the previous 3681 unit there was significant \u201cwarbling\u201d when in SSB and SYNC, and phonics when touching the keypad, the 3684 unit has little to no such warbling and the phonics appear to be gone, or minimized.<\/p>\n

It’s not known what Tecsun may have done to address these issues \u2013 my review of a previous 3681 firmware unit was published in April, so it’s hard to think that Tecsun made any major physical changes to the PCB\/keypad and radio body.\u00a0 But there does seem to be some improvement.<\/p>\n

I had no expectation that a firmware change would result in any improvement in the other major issue common to the 360 series \u2013 reduction of sensitivity when the receiver is not being held in the hand.<\/p>\n

The 368 still shows a noticeable reduction in signal strength, visible on the display, when left standing on its own versus being fully gripped.\u00a0 But the problem does not seem to be as serious as it was with the PL-360\/365.<\/p>\n

And since my first review of the 368, I have done some additional comparisons with older portables which were constructed with more robust cabinets.\u00a0 Some of those also exhibited reduced sensitivity when not being held.<\/p>\n

For the PL-368 with firmware 3684, the headline really has to be the apparent disappearance of the \u201cphonics\u201d when tapping the keypad and cabinet top surface.\u00a0 This was the elephant in the room on the first very early sample of the PL-368.<\/p>\n

While there is still distortion using SYNC mode, this issue seems to have been slightly reduced with the latest firmware.\u00a0 Without confirmation by Tecsun, there is no way to know what specifically may have been done to impact the SYNC issue in a positive direction.<\/p>\n

A major disappointment<\/b> is confirmation from Anon-Co via Tecsun that the re-calibration function seen in the PL-330, 990x and H-501x is absent from the PL-368.<\/p>\n

That leaves a user with only the fine tuning option in SSB.\u00a0 This is a real puzzler, since surely Tecsun could have enabled re-calibration on the 368 in the same way it did with the other receivers.<\/p>\n

SUMMARY<\/b><\/h1>\n

I stated in my first review<\/a> of the 368 that this receiver would be an automatic must-buy in my book, were it not for the earlier issues of cabinet phonics and signal level reduction when the radio isn’t being fully gripped in hand.<\/p>\n

One hopes that the phonics issue has been fully addressed by Tecsun.\u00a0 It’s possible that my initial early unit of the 368 had some weakness in the PCB for the keypad, and LCD display that has been recognized and corrected.<\/p>\n

Without confirmation from Tecsun, it’s also difficult to declare that the 3684 firmware has truly brought about a measurable improvement in SYNC and SSB.\u00a0 But based on my testing of this particular 3684 firmware unit, the radio is more usable and tolerable in SYNC and SSB.<\/p>\n

And of course, addition of the keypad along with multi-bandwidth options moves the 368 firmly into the same zone as Tecsun’s other portables, albeit perhaps more in the \u201cprepper\u201d category.<\/p>\n

There are so many offerings now from Tecsun in portables that it’s hard for me to place the PL-368 in the \u201cmust-buy\u201d category, especially since the PL-330, 990x and H-501x bring so many superb features to the game.<\/p>\n

But the PL-368 has a certain appeal \u2013 its walkie-talkie style design makes it an easy quick-grab for trips, similar to the PL-330, though the 368 can not really be safely balanced on a flat surface and is best used with some kind of stand.<\/p>\n

In terms of raw performance, one has to observe that the wonderful Belka DX<\/a> has to be considered as a top choice and major competition when it comes to extreme portability and top performance, especially with the available speaker\/battery backs.<\/p>\n

And the PL-368 still has major competition from the XHDATA D-808 (now appearing under the RADIWOW SIHUADON label) with excellent AIR band capability and multiple bandwidths, though no synchronous detection.<\/p>\n

To \u201csave\u201d the PL-36xx series, Tecsun will have to ensure steady QC (quality control) in manufacturing and when possible, further firmware updates of the 368, as with all Tecsun receivers.<\/p>\n

\n

Preliminary List of Hidden Features for PL-368<\/h1>\n

Source: Anna at Anon-Co<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Switch between internal ferrite rod and whip on AM (MW & LW)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

1. Select the MW or LW band.
\n2. Press and hold key ‘3’ for about 2 seconds.<\/p>\n

When the display briefly shows “CH-5” this means that the device is set to MW\/LW reception using the telescopic antenna. The display shows MW (or LW) and SW on the left side of the screen.<\/p>\n

When the display briefly shows “CH-A” this means that the device is set to MW\/LW reception using the internal ferrite antenna. The display shows only MW (or LW) on the left side of the screen.<\/p>\n

Adjusting the maximum volume level<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Select the frequency band, then press and hold key \u20187\u2019 for 2 seconds until a number is displayed. At this moment, rotate the [ TUNING ] knob to adjust and press the key \u20187\u2019 again to save and exit.<\/p>\n

Firmware Version<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In power-off mode, press and hold [ VF\/VM ] for 0.5 seconds until all characters on the display are shown, then wait a few seconds until the firmware version is briefly displayed at upper right of the display.<\/p>\n

Extend SW-range for European setting (1621-29999 kHz)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

1. In power-off mode, press and hold the [ 3 ] key to set the MW tuning steps to 9kHz.
\n2. Select the SW band, and then press and hold the [ 5 ] key for 10 seconds to enable\/disable the SW frequency extension.<\/p>\n

The starting point of the SW frequency range will become 1621 or 1711 kHz.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Dan Robinson, who shares the following guest post: Revisiting the Tecsun PL-368:\u00a0 Assessing a Later Firmware Unit by Dan Robinson This past April, I reviewed Tecsun’s PL-368, the update of the PL-365 (also sold by CountyComm as the GP5).\u00a0 There were some major changes:\u00a0 Tecsun shifted from AA batteries to a flat […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_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},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[836,3,26,129,154],"tags":[2749,2635,4342,8904,479,8905,9244],"class_list":["post-49237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-new-products","category-news","category-radios","category-reviews","category-shortwave-radio-reviews","tag-anon-co","tag-dan-robinson","tag-guest-posts","tag-pl-368","tag-tecsun","tag-tecsun-pl-368","tag-tecsun-pl-368-review"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-cO9","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":46131,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/10\/new-tecsun-pl-368-prototype-on-display-at-2020-shanghai-international-high-end-hi-fi-expo\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":0},"title":"New Tecsun PL-368 prototype on display at 2020 Shanghai International High-End Hi-Fi Expo","author":"Thomas","date":"October 24, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following photos and short videos of a prototype Tecsun PL-368 at the 2020 Shanghai International High-End Hi-Fi Expo. The PL-368 appears to be the updated and upgraded model of the Tecsun PL-360\/PL-365 series. Something I note immediately is the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Shanghai-Expo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Shanghai-Expo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Shanghai-Expo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Shanghai-Expo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":47333,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/01\/the-tecsun-pl-368-is-now-on-ebay\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":1},"title":"The Tecsun PL-368 is now on eBay","author":"Thomas","date":"January 17, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors, Tom, Markku, Dave Zantow, and Dan Robinson who note that the Tecsun PL-368 is now available via sellers on eBay. Fans of the Tecsun PL-360 and PL-365 will be happy that among other things, the PL-368 has sync detection. The price is $88 US\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tecsun-PL-368.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tecsun-PL-368.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Tecsun-PL-368.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48566,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/04\/dan-reviews-the-tecsun-pl-368-large-receiver-features-in-smaller-vertical-handheld\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":2},"title":"Dan reviews the Tecsun PL-368:\u00a0“Large Receiver Features In Smaller Vertical Handheld”","author":"Thomas","date":"April 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Dan Robinson, for the following guest post and review: Tecsun PL-368:\u00a0 Large Receiver Features In Smaller Vertical Handheld by Dan Robinson It was back in 2020 that the first photos surfaced online of the PL-368 \u2013\u00a0posted on Facebook by someone attending the electronics fair in\u00a0Shanghai, China. Photos\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tecsun PL-368","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/P1090440.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/P1090440.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/P1090440.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/P1090440.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":49610,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/07\/tecsun-pl-368-to-start-shipping-end-of-july-via-anon-co\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":3},"title":"Tecsun PL-368 to start shipping end of July via Anon-Co","author":"Thomas","date":"July 13, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gareth, who notes that Anon-Co will start selling the new Tecsun PL-368 by the end of July 2021. Click here to check out the product page at Anon-Co. Also, check out Robert Gulley's recent review and a review by Dan Robinson!","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Screen-Shot-2021-07-13-at-22.05.23.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":50657,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/10\/re-visiting-calibration-on-tecsun-receivers\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":4},"title":"Re-Visiting Calibration on Tecsun Receivers","author":"Thomas","date":"October 28, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Dan Robinson, for the following guest post and review: Re-Visiting Calibration on Tecsun Receivers Dan Robinson As owners of the latest Tecsun receivers should know by now, the PL-990x, H-501x and the new PL-368 (also sold by CountyComm as the GP7\/SSB) provide the user with the ability\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\/2021\/08\/Tecsun-PL-368-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":47692,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/video-nick-compares-the-new-tecsun-pl-368-with-other-portables\/","url_meta":{"origin":49237,"position":5},"title":"Video: Nick compares the new Tecsun PL-368 with other portables","author":"Thomas","date":"February 9, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Nick Booras, who writes: Hi Thomas I posted a video of this radio compared to a couple other popular radios. Thought your viewers might be interested. This 368 is a significant improvement over the 360 and 365. https:\/\/youtu.be\/2Mn1sTuWhaQ Thank you so much for sharing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Tecsun-PL-368-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Tecsun-PL-368-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Tecsun-PL-368-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Tecsun-PL-368-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49237","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=49237"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49237\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}