Uniden 520 XL Pro power adjustment

[FlyBoy50]

The other night I was checking out different radios and noticed this radio was only reading 3 watts when I keyed the mic so I went to this print out to turn it up to 4 watts. https://www.radiomods.co.nz/alignments/unidenpresidentvrlist.html and it said L6 for RF power but I couldn't find it when I opened the radio but I did see what looked like a adjustment that was labeled TX PWR. Is that the same thing ? I left it alone not wanting to Golden Screw Driver up the radio. Has anybody done this radio before ? I'd just like to push the power up to at least what I'm allowed..

 

[nomadradio]

No, that trimpot only adjusts the sensitivity of the meter while transmitting. Doesn't affect the transmit signal. The internal construction of that model has changed multiple times in the last few decades. If yours is different from the one described in a web page, that's just business as usual. The difference between 3 Watts and 4 Watts is too small for anyone to hear on the other end. Until you cut your power in half, or double it nobody can tell the difference. Radio receivers behave in a non-linear way. Until the signal power rises or falls by a factor of three or four, it's hard to tell a before/after difference.

Adding a linear amplifier that boosts it by a factor of ten will make a difference everybody can tell. But adding one-third more power, no.

73

 

[FlyBoy50]

No, that trimpot only adjusts the sensitivity of the meter while transmitting. Doesn't affect the transmit signal. The internal construction of that model has changed multiple times in the last few decades. If yours is different from the one described in a web page, that's just business as usual. The difference between 3 Watts and 4 Watts is too small for anyone to hear on the other end. Until you cut your power in half, or double it nobody can tell the difference. Radio receivers behave in a non-linear way. Until the signal power rises or falls by a factor of three or four, it's hard to tell a before/after difference.

Adding a linear amplifier that boosts it by a factor of ten will make a difference everybody can tell. But adding one-third more power, no.

73

Thanks for the answer which I figured I would hear anyway. I'm not really into AM radios anyway as it is only a secondary radio which could be handy to temporary throw in a friends vehicle if needed. You saved another radio from the Golden Screwdriver ! LOL