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So, as AdmiralCochrane pointed out on another thread... there isn't a main thread where the pros/cons of brand, non CCR, name radios are explained, so beginners don't fall on the Cheap China Radios trap... thinking they are getting a killer deal, when they are not. The question for this thread is: Why are used, and usually older, brand name radios a much better value than most Cheap China Radios? or CCRs? Most of those 2nd hand brand radios, Motorola, Kenwood, ICOM, et. all are perfectly functional radios, some might have scratches, dirt, etc, but they are no longer being used b/c the company upgraded to fancier models, usually with color screens and lots of buttons to click around, etc... The best example I can think of this are the XPR 4550/6550 Gen1 MotoTRBO radios (DMR) which are, as measured, still pretty darn good radios for the money; obviously the Gen2 have even better receivers, and fancier screens, with more buttons in some cases. So, I'll start with the XPR 6550 portable series. First I'll put the price I've seen on average on eBay, then some pros/cons. Average price doesn't mean its always that way, some go for much higher, others have gone for much lower. 135 is the average of what I paid for all my 6550 radios, so its not a made up number. Average cost: $135 USD, eBay. Usually includes charger and battery, both tend to be genuine as well. Some might even include programming CD too.. Cost of programming cable: 35-85 bucks, 85 being Moto genuine cable, 35 being the no brand one. I have one of each. Pros: -High performance, tunable, varactor Front End. (Radio won't become useless (desense) when other strong signals are around) -The last superhet dual conversion in the XPR line AFAIK. -LCD backlit screen. (6550 model) -Motorola SMA connector. (same as Baofeng, ugh... blasphemy... Motorola and Baofeng should never be in the same sentence hahaha ) -Lots of inexpensive accessories, including batteries and chargers, if you want to keep costs down vs. the genuine Moto accesories. -FM and DMR digital (Tier II) -Battery on digital will last a very long time. -Submersible, and the brand name Motorola shoulder mics are also submersible too. -Nearly indestructible... don't ask me how I know this. -Microphone can also sport an antenna without an additional cable, since the side pinout has a coaxial RF out. (very handy feature) -Loud, in fact its so darn loud you can use it in place of an alarm clock. -Several audio tuning features, which improves audio quality to your liking. -A ton of "community" support. -Very easy, and affordable, to replace the entire housing if it ever breaks. -Service manuals to fix nearly anything that might wrong. Cons -Single band. -Bigger than average... its not a brick, but its much bigger than say, a TH-F6a... -CPS can be challenging at first... it was quite daunting for me when I first moved into DMR style CPS/radios... but once you get the hang of it there is no going back. -No VFO, if you like that sort of thing. I thought I would miss that, I haven't, and I think its been nearly a year since I stopped carrying my Alinco MD5... -Rotary knob cannot be locked when the keypad is locked. Can be frustrating, but you put the holster loop around the antenna so its not a problem. -16 channels per zone. This one was somewhat of a pain... since the Rotary Encoder only has 16 positions, the channel per zone is just 16. I split the GMRS channels into FRS and GMRS channel zones, so I could fit 14 FRS use and 16 for GMRS use, 12.5 vs 20. -Needs an entitlement to do 25kHz, which can be obtained free from Motorola. -Only Part 90. G.

Totally free to just open the account. The 3 year CPS subscription is where the $$$$ is at. G.

Wavelength varies with the medium through which the signal travels. In free space, wavelength for GMRS is approx 25.40 inches. In solid copper wire, wavelength is approx 24.13 inches. In coax it varies based on its construction and materials, but can be around 16.75 inches. To calculate approx wavelength in free space, use the formula 300/[Freq in MHz] to get length in meters. 300 stands for the approx speed of light in millions of meters per second. To approximate wavelength in solid copper, multiple free space wavelength by .95. To approximate wavelength in coax, look up specs for the coax and look for its velocity factor (often called ‘Nominal Velocity of Propagation’). Multiply the free space wavelength by this value. You can find some typical values for velocity of propagation here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velocity_factor Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I usually do this if I didn't catch the CWID on the RPT "This is *Callsign* testing access and standing by" and if driving "This is *Callsign/Mobile* testing access and standing by"

HRO-Plano is your only shop in your area they ship fast too.

I'd go with the 7550e, as it has a numeric keypad. The radios are all pretty much push-to-talk once you have them programmed, and you can do it with software that makes it very simple. You can learn all the direct entry features as you go along. They all seem like very good radios, Motorola doesn't really make junk. It will last a very long time and take a beating. I will note that the 7580e is not a GMRS radio, so there's that.

A repeater that has a large coverage area is often referred to as a “high-profile” repeater. 25, 50 miles and more are all practical and possible under the right conditions. You will read experiences on this forum of 75 + miles. Distances are the radius from transmitter to repeater and vice versus. So a repeater with a radius of 50 miles can mean 50 miles in all directions from repeater (or a 100 mile diameter). The best GMRS repeater in Cincinnati has about a 40 mile (radius) range or more. Repeaters transmit on the 8 of the same frequencies that your radio uses for simplex. So even if you are not in repeater mode you can hear transmissions from both repeaters and simplex users. If you are hearing transmissions from persons separated by great distances you can bet you are listening to them from a repeater. The quality of an FM signal is fantastic throughout the majority of its usable transmission range under any given set of circumstances. Ever notice how the quality of an FM commercial radio broadcast is so good until you get near the edge of its coverage range? Quality falls off very quickly as you are approaching the edge of its usable coverage range. Also, some repeaters are linked. This means that repeaters in some cities are linked to repeaters in other cities. This allows a repeater in city A to pick up a user around city A and the signal will be transmitted in both city A and in City B. Sunday night is a night in which some nets are active. If you are listening to repeaters connected to a net, do no be supervised to here conversations between folks coast to coast. On two occasions I personally spoke from Cincinnati to New Jersey, upstate Indiana, Chicago, Wisconsin, Iowa and Los Angeles. Spend time reading the zillions of posts in this forum and you will learn lots. Welcome, and enjoy the journey. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Officially, No. Unofficially (partially), Yes. Use at your own risk. Channels can be configured, radio settings cannot. You must read from the radio first as your starting point. Do not start a fresh file from scratch. Use the model with 816 in it (if I recall correctly) You cannot use offset settings of + or -. Instead you must use the ‘Split” option to establish Tx frequency. Failure to do this will program the radio incorrectly. Make sure you have a factory backup of the original settings before you use chirp. You could do something that makes the radio non functional. To date, I have programmed (4) KG-805G successfully using Chirp. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Wanted to do a follow up post regarding the radio. I performed power measurements on my radios using setup depicted in the following photo. Based on this configuration, I tested TX output power on all 30 GMRS frequencies. I used the factory stock battery, freshly charged, but rested for 24 hours. My results were as follows: Channels 1-7, 15-22, R15-R22 output power ranged from 4.99-5.15 watts. Channels 8-14 ranged from .62-.63 watts. Using a fresh-off-the-charger battery, the output peaked at 5.44 as shown in the image. These numbers seem to suggest that the radio is performing on par with its advertised ratings. The manufacturer of the meter does state that meter accuracy is not as good when power drops below 1/2w. We seem to be above that. Thought perhaps those of you considering getting this radio might appreciate these findings. Michael WRSH965 Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I got my 805G on Monday. I've only had the GMRS-V1 prior, and compared to that it does receive better and feels sturdier. Haven't done any tests for range or sound quality yet, I can report when I have time. But so far for a little bit more it seems like a solid HT investment.