Uniden BEARCAT 980 40- Channel SSB CB Radio with Sideband NOAA WeatherBand,7- Color Digital Display PA/CB Switch and Noise Cancelling Mic, Wireless Mic Compatible

I cant believe that I didnt review this a long time ago. It has been a reliable radio, I have been using this for several years in my Jeep without issues.

This radio is simply the best radio Ive ever owned. I previously had a small, basic radio from Uniden, and this one blows it out of the water. This radio has every feature I could dream of. The weather stations are an awesome bonus, and had a clean, strong recieve. The built in SWR meter is accurate, the RF gain gets me out there farther than I can even recieve! The AM stations have a clean reception and the speaker quality is great. The SSB is a home-run addition. On top of all of this, the customization options on the radio are amazing. I love the choice of different colors, contrasts and brightness. The diagnostic features are great too. The only place that this radio lacks is with the microphone, its very quiet until you really get up into it. This is partially fixed by the mic gain on the radio, which helps enough to make it work. Definitely plan on upgrading to a power microphone. Other than that, this radio blows me away. Definitely recommend over any other radio on the market!

The main reason I bought this radio was for monitoring sideband frequencies - I have no plans on using it for talking locally or skip…I have a different radio for talking. I sent the radio to a tech to have it peaked and tuned and it now works like a champ. I love the layout of the radio (buttons and knobs) and the size of the unit is perfect for use on the desk in my home office. The channel scan works great allowing me to tune out all the noise with the squelch as the radio scans through the channels looking for transmissions….sweet! Unfortunately I have two major complaints. 1. The built-in SWR feature simply does NOT work! Once calibrated, the SWR results always read 1.00 across all channels on AM - even with No antenna connected! If youre using a poorly adjusted antenna you will no doubt have a high SWR which will result in your radio being damaged. Purchase a separate SWR meter - dont rely on the built-in SWR feature on the Bearcat 980. 2. The coarse clarifier knob was installed incorrectly! The knob should self-center in the middle of the adjustment range (12 oClock) when twisting the knob either left or right - but it centers just to the right of the middle (12 oClock) position throwing any channel youre currently listening to off frequency. The tech who peaked & tuned the radio was able to make adjustments inside the radio to compensate for the hardware fail but the knob could NOT be re-positioned to the correct orientation. These are two EPIC quality control FAILS in my opinion and should be noted as yet another example of how companies could care less about quality as long as the money keeps rolling in. By all accounts I should have returned the radio but Im using the radio as a receiver only so I can let slide the lack of attention to details on the assembly line. Sorry Uniden, but I will most likely NEVER buy another Uniden radio!

The Uniden Bearcat 980 SSB is a good sounding radio with exception reach with a GOOD antenna. I spoke with a man in Georgia from Phoenix. (Conditions we’re right) Accurate SWR built in with fine tuning adjustments. Many features you won’t need and it has “beep” canceling. STRONGLY RECOMMEND

Cant add much more than the other positive reviews except that when powered by a power supply indoors (12.5 volts) output power is 3 watts AM, 9 watts SSB. When running off of truck/alternator (13.8 - 14.3 volts) output power is dead on 4 watts AM, 10-12 watts SSB and have not made any internal adjustments. Also, as far as the screen scratching easily, I agree. My solution was to get a screen protector for a Sony PSP handheld game system and trim it to fit with an x-acto knife and a straight-edge. Made contacts from Midwest to New York, Northern Idaho, Ontario-Niagara Falls and Puerto Rico on SSB with good reports on my audio. I have this paired up with a Solarcon I-Max 2000 antenna and no radial kit running barefoot. Overall very happy with this radio and purchased another. Recommended. ***UPDATE*** My second radio stopped transmitting and the screen started going nuts 15 days after purchase. Amazon was great and sent out a replacement with 2-day shipping. I have to knock off 1 star for the transmit and screen going out. I do understand anything made on an assembly line will produce a few lemons out of the bunch but I have read of this happening to others and hope it is not a common occurrence. My first radio is still working great. I will update if anything else goes wrong. I do give amazon 5 stars for their great customer service. *****UPDATE 12/17/2016***** I purchased another one of these and it was way off frequency on receive and transmit. Contacted amazon and they sent another one very quickly. The replacement looked used (packaging looked like it had been removed, radio had large grey, possibly paint, thumbprint on back of radio, would not wipe off). This one was way off frequency also and was sent back for a refund. This is a newer design Amazon is currently selling and the model is 980SSBW (maybe the W designates worse), the older ones were model 980SSB and they are good radios. Uniden also dropped the warranty from 2 years on the older model 980 to one year on the newer 980s, that is very telling of the quality. I recently had a bad experience with two different Galaxy DX-979s (See my review, they both had receive problems). All the CB radio manufacturers seem to be making their radios in Vietnam now and I think the quality is suffering. I wonder if they use calibrated frequency counters when building these new Uniden 980s or maybe the workers are rushed or dont care. Uniden needs to step up their game on these radios. If Uniden would make their service manuals available maybe these radios would not have to be sent back when the frequency is off. I dont know what is going on with the radios going out used. I was told by an Amazon customer rep that returns dont get resold, but There are other reviewers that stated they received used radios also. Maybe Uniden is repackaging factory serviced units as new. I really like the two 980s I purchased in 2015 but these new ones are lesser radios in my opinion.

Let me start by saying that I have owned many CB Radios over the years, different brands and styles, and I always end up back to a Uniden. This Uniden Bearcat 980 is a great general use CB radio, receives and transmits very well when paired up with a good quality antenna. The only downfall I have found with this CB is the display lights on the front, very hard to see the display such as channels etc. when in direct sunlight or bright light such as during the day in your vehicle. The display cannot be adjusted bright enough to counteract the brightness of daylight so it is downright impossible to see the display at certain times of day. I gave this radio 4 stars because it is absolutely a great CB, 1 star knocked off due to the dim display light that can’t be seen well in bright light.

I like all the lights on front , plus Radio seems to receive very good just made contact about 14 miles away and other party sounded like he was in my front yard, very loud, Im getting 2 mod to 4 watts output. Im using 102 whip up about 30ft to tip of whip. cant beat whip for receive.. Other party said he had good strong copy on me also running barefooted radio. I just wish remote mike had squelch control on it would be great then. It even let me know my linear was ok during transmit ,later radio started loosing Audio at times. off & On problem sent back to seller for repair or refund, liked radio functions

I live in Mesa, AZ where it can get up to 120 degrees and the interior of my car can get up to 205 degrees. The display cant handle that heat and now I dont have a working display. When it cools off in the winter, the display partly comes back but not all the way. I think the edges are permanently damaged.

Love this CB it easy to use. Has noise cancelation. Your voice is very clear when talking. Love the weather chanels it picks up in every state im in and the areas around me so I know ahead. Nice display on the front and one touch to change channels

THIS IS THE SECOND 980 SSB I BOUGHT FROM AMAZON....IT WAS RECENTLY ON SALE FOR $122.00........I JUST COULDNT PASS IT UP........THE FIRST ONE I BOUGHT IN 2013...........I NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS AFTER INSTALLING IT IN MY PICK-UP TRUCK ALONG WITH A K30 ANTENNA.....THE NEW ONE WILL BE INSTALLED IN MY AUTO....ALONG WITH A WILSON LITTLE WIL ANTENNA.........GREAT SSB CB RADIO......THE ONLY BAD THING IS THAT UNIDEN MADE IT SO YOU CANT MODIFY IT.......DAM IT!!!!