Firmware Update from TIDRADIO. As @Timber-Wolf pointed out, the latest firmware is now H3_240530.BIN This is the information I received from TIDRADIO: The latest firmware H3_240530.BIN has been modified with some suggestions and feedback provided by users. Solved problem: 1. Increase signal grid change 2. Modify the English spelling error of Stun 3. Menu 32: Volume down when transmitting at 1750Hz 4. Menu 33: Chinese mode is deleted, and the language switching function is changed to screen brightness adjustment 5. Menu 40: Modify the delay after the relay transmission The Previous Firmware: H3_240427.BIN 1. In VFO mode, input can be started from 18MHz. 2. Menu 1 SQL corrected. When its value is "0", the noise and weak signals will still be heard. 3. Menu 40 STE: The higher the setting level, the better the effect. 4. Press the menu and then press the "5 REV" button: reverse the TX and RX frequencies of that channel. 5. New Menu 55: DTMF Speed, the speed can be switched as needed (80ms - 150ms) 6. New Menu 56: Scan Band, which can limit the frequency band scanning range (0.5m-all) 7. Even when the H3 radio screen is off, simply press the micorphone's PTT button to start transmitting immediately. 8. When the keyboard is locked, you can still turn on the flashlight using the side button C. (must set in software first) 9. Fixed H3 radio squelch tail issue.

@RhythmicSensations

Ай бұрын

Yes, this is what I've upgraded the firmware to. From what I'm seeing, the mic gain still has no affect, and the repeater squelch tail eliminator doesn't work.

@randyguay7115

7 күн бұрын

I have to give kudos for tid taking peoples issues and creating solutions and the fact its a simple down an upload . Thank you thank you. There are others un named that could learn more than a few things .

"Feature set for price point" -- you nailed it; that's why its so popular in spite of some of the issues. Really enjoyed the tear down!

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thank you!!! Always happy when you stop by! 73s!!!

Excellent video, very informative! Love these little radios and the fact that TIDRADIO seems to be responsive to suggestions and complaints.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thank you so much! Yes I agree. I know there were some rocky beginnings with TIDRADIO. They do seem to be responsive to criticism and suggestions. My correspondence with them has always be answered with a quick and informative reply. Thank you watching and dropping a comment! 73s

I myself wasn't sure so i found a crazy good deal and figured i would try it out . So i love the size , the battery in awesome. So far 1 month in it warks amazing for me. 1 feature that i found and wish more ht radios did this. Mic gain setting. Some ht radios feel like you have bite the face off to speak. This has an amazing mic. And maintians a good audio sound. I am using a luiton lt 771g antenna it works very good for my gmrs and the recieve for other frequencies has been more than adequate.. Thumbs up . For the money you can't touch this radio.

I'm a licensed Ham, but 2 meter and UHF activity is just not great where I live, so I essentially use it as a backup radio for railfanning, and listening to aircraft coms. It rivals my Motorola radios for sensitivity and behaves itself within reason w/interference even when connected to my large base antennas. Impressed w/it overall.

Another excellent video! love the tear downs. Thanks again, please keep them coming. 73's WA2TWF

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Many thanks! Appreciate the view and the comment!!! 73s

GREAT update. Perfect timing after watching nicsure's latest video on modding this radio's firmware. Gonna dig these out of the closet and play radio for a bit. Thanks!

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I'm so excited that @nicsure has made progress on this! Thank you for mentioning his video, I just went over and watched it and dropped him a comment! This will hopefully open the door to some amazing mods. When I saw that the radio chip was the same as the Quansheng UV-K5, I was excited, but the limitation was the mystery microprocessor! Thanks for watching and the comment!!! 73s

Thank you for your excellent test and inspection. Many Hams depend on technicians like yourself to make their decisions. I saw the TIDradio on Mike-M0MSN channel who found it clean on his scopes, however Jim W6LG found harmonic problems recently but he got a great response from TIDradio when he reported his finding, I await his follow up tests on his channel. It will be a couple of months before I buy a hand held and because of the different reports from HamOps my confidence has grown to buy one. Still establishing the base station “shack”. I had to leave the hobby back in 1996 because of life but now catching up on the technology. Thank you once more. Best wishes to everyone.73. 💙

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thank so much for the kind words, they are greatly appreciated. Thank you for watching and for taking the time to leave a comment. I had the same experience with TIDRADIO as Jim, they replaced my radios with good ones after supplying the serial numbers. Glad to see you getting back into the hobby! I went through a similar situation myself, and I am once again truly loving the hobby!! I hope to see you in the comments again!! 73s

Thank you for your really comprehensive videos. Very few reviewers actually do a tear down.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thank you for the comment and for watching!

Great video and very good to see TID fixing the known issues in this radio. It's one of my favourite HT's. :)

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Yes, I agree! Thank you for stopping by, good to see you again. 73

another excellent tear down as usual... : -)

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thanks! It's fun to see what's inside these radios. Thanks for watching and dropping a comment!

wow great quality content & video, very informative. thanks for the teardown & look at the chips / board. glad i found this channel, subbed!

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Welcome aboard! Thank you for the awesome comment. I'm glad you found the channel too. :) 73s!

Thank you really good video - and I'm happy I have TD H3 on the way to me

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Features for the price, its hard to beat! Thank you for the comment!! 73s

I never trust "they sent these over to look at". Those three could be tuned to perfection. I'd like to see three random ones off the shelf.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

This is always a concern of mine as well. The radios in the first video were definitely straight from Amazon. If I get my hands on any others that are new from Amazon, I'll throw them on the SA as well. 73

and Now We Know tnx for the effort 73

@KC4NWK

21 сағат бұрын

Thank you for the comment and view!!! 73s

Thank you for your really comprehensive videos and detailed tear down. I usually do the same with my "toys".... Bad habit since my childhood: first we see what's inside and then we enjoy bring everything together and play. A small question.... Do we have any more info regarding KC251 ? I have bought six H3s and one of them has no power output, while it can be heard within the house, therefore I suspect a faulty output power amplifier. Thanks in advance, Pan.

@KC4NWK

21 сағат бұрын

Yes, I have that same issue. Almost everything comes apart first. :) Thank you so much for the comment and view! I'm sure that they will replace the one bad radio, but if you would like to try something before going down that path, try using their H3PowerTune software. It isn't very intuitive on how to use it, but I messed around with it a bit, and was able to get some of those original low-output power radios up to "spec." There is a problem with the software and if your serial ports are numbered too high, but it is possible to get it to work. There is also another youtuber (@nicsure) that "modified" the executable to fix the issue if you want to download his fixed version. I have no reason to distrust him, but use at your own risk. Here is the link to his video: kzread.info/dash/bejne/rJtp2qV9cdDcZsY.html He is also working on an amazing software package for use with the TD-H3!!! Let me know if you have any success with this if you decide to try it! 73s!!

@ptsoris

6 сағат бұрын

​@@KC4NWK Thanks for yout thorough reply. I have tried both nicsure (actually I am using his altered firmware in most of my devices) and the PowerTune software (original and nicsure's). The latter shows the same values for all bands of the "low power" device as in the normally working devices. I played in the rahe of 25-50 for the lowpower parameter and up to 130 for the midpower. The highpower is not counted by the H3s as I have read and the value there is 255. When you were fiddling with your low powered device which ranges did you alter and which values did you select? I will give it one more try if you provide me with your experienced results. My instinct says though that the output power amplifier is the issue. I downloaded from nicsure the schematic that TIDRADIO provided to him, identified the KC251 as "Q1" in the scematic. If you click on the scematic, each component provides extra info (i.e. Reference description, Reference type, Part description, PCB Decal and Value). For Q1 provides the following extra info: HTU7G_SOT89-E1. Google didn't provide much feedback, but definitely more than searching for KC251. Thank you in advance for your any help!

240606 is the current firmware.

Nice review and tear down! Good to see the RF improvements. Would it be possible to post the serial numbers of the TD-H3s you’ve tested, including the older ones that didn’t meet spec? Mine is 2403UV0664x, Amazon purchase about mid April. Wonder if the first part is the manufacturing date….2024 month 03 or maybe week 03? 73 👍

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I've requested information from TIDRADIO if there is a SN sequence to look for. I'll let everyone know if I get any information in the video description. The three tested in this video are 2403UV295(18,19,20) I only have two of the three from the first video, and they are: 2312UV07354, 2312UV07438,

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Please see the video description for update on this. ;-)

@radioj5249

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWKthank you!

The most recent firmware for H3 is 30-05-2024 afaik.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Yes, you are correct! I just downloaded it. I'm looking for a change log to see what was addressed. If anyone knows, please leave a note. I will send an email asking for some info. Thanks for watching and commenting!!! 73

@Timber-Wolf

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWK The only difference I see is a "Brightness" option in the menus to reduce the screen brighness level (1-5). G5MAP 73

I need to get my hands on a computer to update my firmware. To bad it's not possible over android Bluetooth or USB. Very surprised by gmrs and especially this radio. Been 30 yrs since I talked on CB base station.

@NowWeKnow , 2 issues: 1) So how long to wait to order untill they sold out the previous stock ? ,incase you wanted the latest hardware) , 2) You still did not convince me that the Squelch-tail issue was solved ...for example you could do a comparison with the H8 on that please.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

1) Good question. TIDRADIO claims that what Amazon has now is new. If you order directly from TIDRADIO you should be good to go. If you order from TIDRADIO, be sure to use code NWK for 10% discount. 2) Good point. I will try to do a SHORT on the squelch tail issue. Thanks for watching and for commenting!! 73

Unfortunately I think they sent you "special" versions that they had sort of fixed, or cherry picked. I checked 4 different radios from 3 different sellers and they all failed. Couldn't even get -40 dB from the fundamental. A 5 Watt TD-H8 I had gotten from Amazon passed with flying colors.

@KC4NWK

10 күн бұрын

That really stinks! Can you share the serial numbers on the devices that failed? I know that they claim that all the devices from Amazon or from them directly are supposed to be clean, and that they will replace units that are not. I will be anxious to see what the serial numbers look like. Have you reached out to their customer support yet? Thanks for dropping this comment. I look forward to your reply. 73s!!!

Thanks for the follow-up reporting on this radio. Are these radios any different at the hardware level, or has this improvement been driven through the firmware revision? Put another way, is there any indicator short of the SWR/Meter you've used to determine if a new purchase off the shelf might be affected by the original harmonics and power output or performing with the currently tested harmonics and power output?

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Thanks for the comment! In general I would think a hardware update on the filtering. I have flashed the previous radios with the latest firmware, and the harmonics were not changed. The best bet would be to order directly from TIDRadio since those are guaranteed to be the latest version. You can also use my code NWK for 10% discount.

@VidJunkie63

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWK As a follow up question ... I had already ordered my H3's from Amazon. Looking at the serial number, it "looks like" the prefix may be a manufacturing year and month code. My radios are prefixed 2405UV, if my guess is correct, then these handsets were manufactured 2024 May. Am I off base? If not, curious what the serial number prefix for your new radios are?

@VidJunkie63

Ай бұрын

I reached out to Tidradio and they confirmed my theory that the prefix of the serial number is the manufacture date, YYMM. I am still curious to learn what the manufacture date of your "new" H3's @KC4NWK.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Yep, I suspected the same thing. I asked TIDRADIO for a specific date to look for for "good" radios, but I didn't really get a firm answer. They just said that all radios shipping from their site would be clean. The "good" radios that were sent to me all started with 2403UVXXXXX. So your 2405UV should be good to go!!! Thanks for watching and for confirming that SN layout with TIDRADIO!! 73s!!

Good review! Can you show the S-Meter and whether it is big enough to use during a Transmitter hunt?? It seems very small and almost unuseable. Could this be fixed in a firmware update. I'd like to see a nice large S meter to show relative signal strength to assist in Tx-Hunting

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Ok, so honestly... I'm not sure the S-Meter (which just says POWER) does anything but show what your transmit power is set at. I've tried receiving weak signals etc. and the meter at the top of the display doesn't show anything on receive. There appears to only be a tiny Antenna with bars next to it like on your cell phone for receive. Kinda useless. :(

Can the antenna jack be swapped with a SMA-Female connector? Would you know if there is a part number or supplier for an SMA-Female connector which would fit the H3? To me the SMA-Male connector is a weak point in the Radio.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

That’s an interesting thought! I will look for a replacement connector! If anyway else finds an option, please post here! If we find one I will do a swap out video. Thanks!! 73

My 1st H3 went out in flames while charging, replacement radio doesn't transmit at all. TID refusing to send the replacement, advising me to put the battery of replacement radio to 1st radio (one that burned out in flames LOL). Tragi-Comedy...

Will the firmware update fix the spurious issues and wattage inconsistency ? I have 4 of these h3 and I wonder if updating the firmware solves the problem .

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I will flash one of the old radios just to verify, but the firmware update on the TD-H8 didn't change its harmonic issues. I would doubt a firmware flash would change harmonics. The wattage inconsistency can be addressed by their "TXPower Tunesetup230918.zip" program. It is in with the latest firmware download. Its not very straight forward, but I was able to get the first set of radios to all transmit at the same power output with this program. Thanks for watching and commenting! MUCH appreciated!

@joeweberofficial

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWK Thanks for your reply 👍🏻

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I did flash the older H3s with new firmware, and the harmonic characteristics are unchanged.

What do you think would cause the VHF harmonic to be higher when transmitting at low power? That seems quite strange.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

It’s possible with any non-linearities in the amp. The harmonic content can vary depending on where the amp is operating in its characteristics/performance curves. I’m not familiar with the amp in this radio to look up any of its characteristics. Thank you for watching!! 73s

Where is the bin file (new update) on tidradio, the only thing that shows up is the tuneup app, any ideas?

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

The latest firmware download links: TD-H3 HAM: walkietalkiesoftware.com/portal/index/software_detail/id/67.html TD-H3 GMRS: walkietalkiesoftware.com/portal/index/software_detail/id/68.html TD-H3 Unlocked: walkietalkiesoftware.com/portal/index/software_detail/id/69.htm You will need to create a login to download I believe. Hope this helps!! :)

Hi, I was wondering if you were having any issues with the aircraft band on the radio? I've changed antennas (both supplied and newly bought) aviation antennas but it comes in terrible!! I live close to a busy airport and no matter what I do (even gone to the airport) to listen it comes in like it's off frequency! I've increased the step in VFO mode up and down while they were talking but still not clear.. Have you or anyone else had this issue??

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Hey John! Honestly, I don't listen to air band at all. I'm not near a busy airport, but I will try to see if I can receive anything from passing airplanes or anything coming in and out of our small airport. If someone else has any insight on this, please reply here. Thanks and 73!

@davidschmidt5848

Ай бұрын

So I live by Philadelphia Airport. And I'm also try to listen to the frequency they use, I'm no expert for sure but I believe it's just the way am band is received on a multi frequency radio. Just my thoughts

What is the name of the small Power meter you were using in this video?

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

It is the Surecom SW-33 Plus amzn.to/3XgbB24

and arent fractional spurious emissions regulated? for example, if i transmit on 462.000, couldnt it be letting out emissions on 231.000? (edit, added a ? at the end, to make clear its also a question)

@KC4NWK

20 күн бұрын

I've sat here staring at this for a few minutes trying to come up with a simple answer. LOL Basically "harmonics" are always an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency (f) like 2f, 3f, etc. Any signal that might be generated at a frequency lower than the fundamental would be a "spurious emission." These type of signals can be caused by things such as the mixing of two signals which will produce a signal at the sum and difference (and possible harmonics) of the two mixed frequencies. There are very mathematical ways of describing this that are out of the realm of a comment. If you want, you could look up RF harmonics, Taylor series, Fourier transforms etc. I found a good non-math explanation by reddit member Bob K0NR "@robtwitte" He says: "Harmonics result when a pure sinewave has some imperfections in it. Think about the top of the sinewave getting flattened a bit or some other alteration to its shape. When this happens, higher frequencies are generated...and yes they show up at integer multiples of the sinewave frequency (which are the harmonics)... ...OK, so why are there no subharmonics created? Because the math doesn't support this. (Oops. No math allowed.) Because distortion in the signal always occurs during every period of the waveform, or less. This means that the new frequency content can only be at the original (fundamental) frequency or at higher frequencies. For a subharmonic to appear, it would have to distort every other period or every third period or similar. (Lower frequency means a longer time period.) This does not normally occur in electronic waveforms. (I won't say never occurs, but it is not common.)"

@H3cJP

20 күн бұрын

@@KC4NWK LOL i understand you, talking about radio is not usually something you can do with just one phrase i love learning and reading so its not a problem tho, thanks a lot for taking the time to answer me!

Now the question is, how do we identify the “new” radios that don’t have the spurious emissions? Both my TD-H8 and TD-H3 spectrums look like forests with non-harmonic spurs everywhere. I hope Tidradio made changes to their production line instead of just hand picking clean radios for reviewers. I love the feature set on the H3 and, if it had BT audio and PTT I would gladly pay twice the price for a clean radio.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

Yes, this is always a concern of mine as well. I've asked before, and I will ask again if there is a serial number cutoff range for the "fixed" radios. If I find anything I will be sure to update the info on this video. Thanks for watching!! 73s

I already have an account, what I am saying is the only file in the h3 model is the tune up app, I think they might have taken it down?

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I just downloaded the HAM version to test, and its still there. :) Once you extract the "TD-H3 Ham.rar" file to your computer, you will have a directory called "TD-H3 Ham" In that folder you will have two more folders, and the "TXPower Tune_setup230918.zip" file. The first folder will be called: "1.H3 Firmware Upgrade" and the second folder will be "2.H3 Programming Software" Inside the 1st folder you will see the files: H3_240530.BIN and the firmware flasher installation program "TD-H3_IAP_setup240305.exe" I double checked the other versions as well (Unlocked and GMRS) and they also have the same folder structure.

Did they also fix the mic gain control issue? With the H3 that I have, the mic seems to be at full gain regardless of the setting.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I'm not 100% sure. I'll have to do some testing. I don't see this called out specifically in the 240424 version, and the latest 240530 doesn't seem to mention it either. Thank you for the question and the view! 73

@RhythmicSensations

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWK Thanks for replying. Hopefully you'll have better results. I see the frequency range being extended down to 18MHz, but no change in the mic gain or the squelch tail issues. Of coarse I have the old H3 with the new firmware applied, and these issues might be hardware related fixes.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

@RhythmicSensations Well, I was going to make a SHORT about the mic gain, but I have the same results. I hooked up a TD-H3 to the line-in of my computer, setup everything so I could show VU-Meter for relative measurements (made sure all automatic gain control and compression were turned off.) I then used a signal generator with 1000 Hz tone and keyed a separate TD-H3 with the tone generator exactly the same distance from the MIC for each test. After cycling through all the MIC GAIN settings (0-9) I observed the same meter reading for each setting. :(

@RhythmicSensations

Ай бұрын

@@KC4NWK Thank you for going to that extent for testing. I've never been able to get TidRadio to respond to any of my emails. But they've clearly added my email to their list, as I now get advertisements from them.

@KC4NWK

Ай бұрын

I did relay my findings to TIDRADIO, they were going to research it, and let me know if/when there is a firmware update.