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I've tested a few Nagoya and Abbree antennas. I found that it really depends on the brand of radio. I've tried dual band and GMRS antennas. Here are my result with my limited testing of the Nagoya/Abbree 771 dual band or GMRS Baofeng GT-5R and UV-5r GMRS - 771 did better than the stock antennas. Icom IC-T10 - no difference between the 771 and stock antennas Explorer QRZ-1 (TYT UV-88) - 771 just slightly better than stock Several Wouxun radios - stock antennas di better than any of the 771 antennas. I made sure to use the GMRS only 771G with the GMRS radios and the dual band 771 with my dual band radios. I know this is a small sample. As you can see it really depends on the individual radio. You can chase this rabbit all over and spend lots of money and you may or may not see much of an improvement.

I use a Signal Stick which is only 2m/70cm but it glows in the dark (though they say it will "probably work" on GMRS/MURS). I bought it because the Signal Stick guys run hamstudy.org and I wanted to support them. Also it glows in the dark, which amuses me.

you thought 70CM was expensive..

Here's an interesting video I found.

Will do, Gil. Of course everything multi-band is a compromise. I wouldn’t mind testing it with some single band whips.

It wasn't a tri-band. It was 2 meters/1.25 meters. I doubt a good tri-band could be made that short. Sometimes I'd like to be able to use 1.25 meters without that 18" antenna flopping around.

Steve let me know if you find one you like or even one you’re thinking of. I’d like to get one as well for my KG-Q10H. I always have room for more antennas, maybe not as many as Josh.

I have a Diamond RH77CA with a BNC connector on my FT5DR. It works when shorter antennas just don’t, but I don’t have access to a large number of antennas like the HRCC video tested. https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dmn-rh77ca I wouldn’t mind picking up a different Tri-band antenna for my VX-6 and I’d really like to get a decent four band 6 m, 2 m, 1.25 m and 70 cm antenna for my VX-7.

200 watts isn't QRP.

8" sounds more like a 701. I have an Airband antenna rated for 100MHz-300MHz which should be good for not only Airbands but also 2M, 1.25M and MURS. I'll check out the 320A, thanks.

Yeah that's my go to antenna for tri-band also, I just added a link to my post. I haven't seen any tri-bands at 8 inches, I would be skeptical, though I do like shorter if it works.

That's my go-to for my tri-band radios. As far as I know, there's no tri-band antenna that isn't 15-18 inches long. I think it was on Amazon that I saw a tri-band radio that was sold with a 771-style antenna and a 2m/1.25m antenna that was about 8" long, but I haven't been able to find the antenna by itself. I'd like to have a couple of those on hand.

Each frequency is its own tuning so if you are looking for the best you can do it will depend on what you are doing. I generally use the stock antenna on my HT radios. If you are trying for more, something like a signal stick is going to help and mono band if you want the best out of one band. I just use dual band mostly as for me good is good enough and I prefer to use more bands over more distance. I have a tri band Nagoya NA-320A that works pretty good for 1.25m, 2m, 70cm, in fact it is better on 1.25 than the dual band stock antenna tuned at 1.25 and 2m. In the end you will have more antennas than radios. Josh’s video that @SteveShannon posted is a good one.

I watched 3 or 4 of his videos along with a few from some other folks. Just wonder what folks here were using that they found that worked well for them.

I have an H-8 and have noticed this too... I set to a "N" DCS code for the TX... and it shows on the display as an "I" !! But it seems like it is still working properly. ( it is still activating the repeater and working anyway ) so.. maybe it is just a display bug?

You haev to first go to the REPEATERS section of the website (for whatever reason the shared user account is kind of - separated between the forums area and the repeaters section) Click the Repeaters menu at the top menu. find the Edit Profile menu on the right under your profile log in (if you are not logged in in the repeaters area .. log in first.) In that Edit Profile edit screen you can change your username and then hit the Save Profile button at the bottom of the screen.

How do I change my username on here? I have tried fiddling with all the settings, and I just can't seem to be able to change it from my call sign.

It only takes money to QRP. With a Tech License you can TX 200 watts on 10M. With a good antenna you should be able to DX pretty well.

I have a few different antennas from small stubbies(Diamond SRH805s) to a 3.14" longer stubby(Abbree AR-806+,my go to for my work radio) to the mid-length(8")whips and the longer 15.3" Arbbree AR-771. I'd guess that the 771's would give me the best range on par with other 771's like the Nagoya, et al. Question is are there any other antennas that might give me a bit more gain and still be portable enough or is something like a 771 type antenna about as good as it gets? I'll not only be using it on GMRS and MURS but also on 2M, 1.25M and 70cm now that I have my Technician License. Thanks.

I agree. VOIP is VOIP. QRP to the other side of the earth and impress me.

You don't want to meet my brother. He even makes me pull out the dictionary, but his friends call him "the guy who doesn't talk much"

Got all signed up, thanks!

Ooops double post

I actually use my ham knowledge working on HVAC controls. Sometimes a sensor with a particular value needs to be simulated or corrected. I carry a signal generator, a decade box and a box of assorted resistors on my service truck. A megger that can read a gig and a Fluke 87 (which can also read nanosiemens if you know how to do the conversion). Guess who gets sent to the freak jobs.