If you’ve just unboxed an ATS20 (or ATS20+) SDR radio receiver, congratulations. You are holding one of the most powerful yet affordable Software Defined Radios (SDR) on the market. However, if you are like 99% of new users, you have already hit a wall. You opened the box, found a thin pamphlet with tiny, broken-English text, and realized the stock ATS20 radio manual is practically useless.
Band Selection: Use the 'BW' (Bandwidth) button to cycle through filters. For clear AM, use 4-6kHz. For crowded Shortwave or SSB, drop it down to 2.2kHz or 1.2kHz to cut out adjacent interference. ats20 radio manual better
Antenna Use: While the included 29-inch whip antenna is sufficient for FM and local stations, an external wire antenna (even a simple 16ft clip-on) significantly improves shortwave and SSB reception. The Ultimate Guide: Why the Stock ATS20 Radio
Pro Tip for a better manual: Never use the cheap telescopic antenna for LW (Longwave) or MW (Medium wave). Use a 3.5mm external loop antenna for frequencies under 5 MHz. You opened the box, found a thin pamphlet
button or click the encoder (depending on firmware) to initiate an automatic scan. Quick Troubleshooting
Before diving into menus, ensure your hardware is set up for success. The official manual glosses over the importance of impedance matching.