Uniden 40-Channel CB Radio (PRO505XL)

I drive a weekly commute of around 180 miles each way, often at early morning hours, and have often thought about installing a CB to hear the trucking traffic all around me, but never had a real reason to until recently when I was going to be embarking on a fishing trip off in the woods with others who had CBs installed. So I bit the bullet and got this little unit. Installation was simple, though it could have used more wire (I lucked out; the previous owner had had an amp in the back of the Jeep and left the wiring, so I just used that). Everyone that has seen it has commented on how good it looks in the truck, and how it looks like standard equipment.

I am partial to Uniden anyway, however this CB is great for a first time user or as a back up to a more expensive unit. I have been using CB for about 10 years and I always make sure I have a Uniden 510 available for a back up, or use it in a second car. It has superior range when used with a good antenna and the received audio is decent. I would suggest using an external speaker unless you have a super quiet vehicle. The anl switch cuts through static really well to improve reception, although it sometimes dulls out the audio of the person you are trying to hear. You can use it with a cigarette lighter plug with an adapter from radio shack for a few dollars. They will even show you how to hook it up. It all boils down to being a great CB at a great price. Remember a simple rule of thumb… An inexpensive CB on a good antenna will perform just as well as a high-end CB on a cheap antenna. Don’t forget to tune your antenna and have fun!

I had bought this radio at a Radio Shack store in town when we went to visit my dad in Indiana last Christmas. I had only bought it because my old Radio Shack cb I have had for about 8 1/2 years had died on me on the way there. I Bought the 520Xl and hooked it up to my SWR meter with my 3 ft Firestik antenna with magnet mount I had on the back, and right off, i never had to make an adjustment at all, because I had a SWR reading between 1:0 and 1:5. I used this radio on the way back, and was able to reach people up to 5 miles away, which was great! unfortunatly on the way back, I had to take my antenna off because everytime a semi passed us on the road, it would blow my antenna off the truck. When I got home, I took my CB to a cb shop near by and had it peaked and tuned, so now it gets 14 watts out instead of 7, and I can talk over 15-20 miles on a clear day. I did however switch antennas to a K40 3 ft antenna with adjustable sleeve that I had for years, and it works about the same. Get the radio, get you a good quality antenna like Firestik, K40, Wilson, or another good name brand. If you know somebody who can do it, get it peaked and tune, or take it to a cb shop and have them do it, and you will get somebody surely everytime you talk. Well worth the money, sorry about rambling on, but I felt if I shared experiences, it would help.

This CB was installed in my 2012 JK Unlimited in a Tuffy single-compartment overhead console! This is a sleek unit, with tons of “new age” technology, such as LCD displays with useful calibration tools built right in for SWR calibration and Antenna tuning!! It has a built in PA option, which of course is always fun to have 🙂 The unit seems to be more powerful than some Cobra competition out there with out pulsing around 5W instead of the industry standard 4W. Couple this with a FireStik antenna, and you’re ready to trail ride with ease while keeping in communication with the group! Highly recommended!!

This is a very nice CB in a small package. It installed under the dash and did not get in the way. Do not be misled by the compact size and low price. The final output power of the Uniden Pro520xl is four watts, the maximum allowed by the FCC for CB radios. All CB radios are rated at a maximum four watts, including the larger more expensive models. With the larger more expensive radios you only get more features, such as analog meters and fancy lights that you cannot see while driving anyway. The trade off is that the larger radios are much more difficult to install in late model cars, SUVs and trucks.

Before purchasing this CB radio consider the following:

I installed it today and it works great. SWR on channel 20 is 1.2, very nice. I don’t know how far I am pulling in but my power meter shows 4 watts going out, very satisfied. The ANR works very nicely, although I wired it directly so I shouldn’t be pulling any “dirty” power through it. Not sure how mic is because I haven’t used it yet. Very compact but quite hefty, very pleased that it doesn’t feel like a plastic “toy”. I bought the Uniden Bearcat external speaker and it is loud and clear. I don’t know about the internal speaker because I installed it in my dash.

The Pro520XL has been mounted in my Jeep now for several years. It has been exposed the elements and has taken a beating off road and has never had a problem.

This new uniden 40 channel cb ssb mobile radio is no doubt a winner except for the annoying beeping when performing functions as simple as changing channels . Radio output was down 2 watts on am and 6 watts on ssb as others have mentioned. We easily found the 2 pots inside the radio to adjust both power levels am to 4 watts and ssb to 12 watts . I will give it a 8 out of 10 and is a definite keeper .I now have plans to purchase another just to keep in the house sometime after xmas 2012 .

Some off-roading friends of mine recommended, as a first time CB user, for me to buy this Uniden along with a good antenna. They were right, it is a spectacular radio and it appears the price on Amazon was the best around. They use 510 XLs for off-roading with ± a mile or so between them on the trails.