Jump to content

Leaderboard

Popular Content

Showing content with the highest reputation on 08/21/21 in all areas

  1. Yup, you’re not alone. The TK-5320 has a used battery pack and charger base, but no antenna which I have plenty of anyway. I think I already have several battery packs that fit this radio I got with some of the other used radios I’ve purchased. The seller guarantees the radio is functional. I paid $110 for it on eBay, cheaper than just about any of the other P25 radios I saw.
    1 point
  2. I would like to thank everyone for the help! One thing I found with the programming software was the various settings for ID's talk groups etc. was set to use Hex number entry by default! Dah! I couldn't figure out right away why I couldn't enter some of the settings, my DMR ID has 7 digits, but the software allowed only 6. When I saw a note in the help file about a setting in the "Tools" menu to change the P25 section to use a different number format then I could make the entries. I have no idea if other radios and their software does both decimal and Hex number entries. New radio and a new learning curve. 8-/ Maybe my next radio will be a cheap HT with System Fusion. Right now I have radios for D-Star, DMR, NXDN and now P25 when it shows up. This is the nearest P25 repeater to me at the moment. Not many around MI, OH, IN or ILL. on 70cm. https://www.repeaterbook.com/repeaters/details.php?state_id=26&ID=276 Repeaterbook.com is great for looking up repeaters to use BTW. Also there is a free app for the iPhone at least.
    1 point
  3. I suspect this depends how the repeater is set up; the couple I've used didn't require a unique ID, though one would prefer you request one from them, and provides you a list of other users on the network when they give you one. The two I've used, it was pretty much just setting the frequencies, mode (both are mixed mode) and NAC, as far as I remember...I'll try to post a screenshot of the CPS later today when I can jump on the laptop. (One, the network had a better-sited analog machine for use from my home location, so I tend toward that one...the other, the repeater is pretty dead most of the time).
    1 point
  4. 2 & 3) check the PiStar website, it lists active P25 talk groups and how to get an ID ( I thin you use your DMR id)
    1 point
  5. Our ham club discusses GMRS often and even has a GMRS repeater. Several reasons. 1 Radio is radio and we like them all. 2 It gets people interested in ham 3 The whole family can use it. 4 The whole family can use it. 5 The whole family can use it. Vince
    1 point
  6. tweiss3

    UHF Propagation

    I figured I'd share this here for anyone wondering. If you have been around radio for any time at all, I'm sure you have heard of "E" skip or tropospheric propagation that happens in the summer time with 2 meters (144 mHz) and below. The question has always been, well, does it ever happen to UHF. The answer is yes, but a little differently, which I didn't quite understand until yesterday. Now, this was on the 70cm ham band, but could apply equally to GMRS being not that far off in frequency. Yesterday I woke up and had a good drive to a meeting. It was extremely foggy (important) and the 2m repeater I usually listen to was down. I started scanning with my radio, and ended up picking up a pretty good conversation, so I listened for quite a while. Never jumped in, but after my meeting, I figured I'd throw my call out. Luckily I got a response. Had a great 20 minute qso, and figured I was coming through a repeater in the middle of the state (wow). When I had more time, I looked up the repeater, my location and ran a line of site. Now I was in my truck (6' AGL 50W) and the repeater was on a tower (230' AGL 80W). Attached is the line of site calculation. No way in heck to make that 97 miles on a normal day on UHF. So how did that happen? I started reading a bit more, and similar to right before a large storm mass when 2m/6m & 10m propagation picks up, a massive temperature inversion (remember the fog) can provide great bending/bouncing capabilities for UHF. I'm sure I read about it before studying for my ham licenses, but never had the pleasure of expeiencing. How did I confirm it was the repeater I thought it was? I was using Yaesu System Fusion, and it gave me the repeater ID, and checked based on the frequency. The repeater owner, with whom my qso was with, also confirmed on the controller it was an RF connection. Keep an ear out, you may experience something just as crazy. I've had voice contacts overseas with only 5 watts on HF, but UHF at that distance just boggles my mind.
    1 point
  7. Open Repeater Initiative. https://arkradio.net/open-repeater-initiative/
    1 point
  8. WRHS218

    KG-UV9G

    I purchased the Wouxun KG-UV9G Pro (SHTF) radio at the beginning of June and received it July 16. I had a couple of days to play around with it and change the programming a little before leaving on a long road trip. I have seen some comments asking why anyone would want all of the channels programmed with the Pro model. I am in California and live in the area of the Creek Fire last year. While CalFire does a great job, we don't get a whole lot of information when we need it. I had programmed a scanner with all of the Fire frequencies, all local and state LEO freqs, County public works, Utility company, Air, and Cal DOT freqs. During the fire (over two months) I kept the scanner on and my HAM radios on listen to local repeaters. I could hear the pilots of the helos and fixed wing aircraft that were making water and retardant drops as well as the pilot of the air control plane that was flying overhead and directing the drops as well as ground units. Many times I could information from what I was hearing before it was made public during two daily briefings. We were evacuated from our home for a week during which I could listen to see if the fire was near the house. We were some of the lucky ones who did not lose our house. When we returned I kept listening. The more frequencies you have to listen to the more information you can get. On to the radio. Obviously I appreciate the scan functions and the scan types. I scanned all GMRS simplex and repeater channels plus some repeaters I had added to the programming during my trip. I had it sitting next to my KG-905G which was scanning the same frequencies just to test the two radios. When we swapped drivers I would scan the raildraod frequencies that came programmed and heard a lot near large rail yards. I enjoy listening to that type of thing. The UV9G comes with AM Air frequencies programmed but I couldn't get anything on the radio even when I was in a hotel near the end of a runway of a major airport. I didn't take time to look up and program other known airliner frequencies. I will do that later and try again. I did scan all 800+ channels that were programmed at times and didn't hear much. As a GMRS radio the RX and TX are good. I need to do a little more testing but on simplex it seems almost as good as my KG-905G. I was able to hit the same repeaters on the UV9G as I could get on the 905G. Audio reports were good. I really like the level of water and dust resistance. The menus are somewhat complicated with a slightly steep learning curve to learn what the abbreviations mean but it is the same convention as the 905G so I already knew most of it. I like the size of the radio as it isn't too big or too small. The supplied antenna seems to work well. The 3200 mHa battery that came with the radio as well as the extra 3200 mHa battery I purchased both had no issues with the belt clip installation as reported with some of the batteries. I scanned for over 70 hours with about a half hour of TX on my trip and never had to change batteries. Some of the pre-programmed channels are probably not needed, but then again, when there is an emergency or the SHTF you don't really know where you will get good info. I purchased the radio and spare battery from BetterSafeRadio.com and they were great to work with. On their homepage they kept a running message of what order range they were working on which was much appreciated. Five weeks after I ordered the radio I went ahead and ordered the spare battery and after talking to them via email they made sure both orders were in one box so I would get it all together in time for my trip. The Wouxun programming software is minimal for the KG-UV9G like the software for the KG-905G but is sufficient. The same programming cable works for both radios. I am very pleased with the radio and BetterSafeRadio. For my needs/wants it is definitely worth the price I paid. Sean
    1 point
  9. quarterwave

    ID-O-Matic IV

    A little snippy in that response...I probably would have asked about the return policy at that point. No sense in being an A$$. Reminds me of a time I called a maker of a dialing device I needed to use on analog phone lines, this guy sold all kinds of niche tools and gadgets for electronics. I just wanted to know about the DTMF timing and pauses. He began yelling at me on the phone, and said that if I was so dumb that I didn't know what I was buying then he wasn't going to sell it to me. I advised him that I worked for a telephone carrier and I just needed to know about something that wasn't in the specs. It wasn't some gray area device, it was just a device. I basically ended up telling him there was no way our company would ever do business with someone that acted like him, and I hung up. Checked the internet...yep, he couldn't have sold much, or had any repeat business. Bad reputation. I don't know why people think they can act that way and still be in business.
    1 point
This leaderboard is set to New York/GMT-04:00
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Guidelines.