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Showing content with the highest reputation on 09/29/21 in all areas

  1. 1977Hahn

    Chirp- BTech 50X1

    Thank you Guys I got it set up
    2 points
  2. wayoverthere

    Homebase Setup

    That seems like one of the perfect applications for a yagi... just given the tuning, that specific one may not be the best choice. 460-470 would be the range to look for; something a little wider frequency range, especially with a little wider bandwidth will work too...as long as it's a wide enough bandwidth to cover 462 and 467, you're in good stead...wider trades gain for flexibility, narrower may require tuning. Maybe something like this? https://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=191_193_258_977_978&products_id=3583 I currently have a Browning "no tuning needed" (410-490mHz) 5/8 over 5/8 mobile antenna, and it's like 1.15 or lower swr across 70cm and gmrs. The issue with dual band is they're usually overlapping 2m ham and 70cm ham (430-450); something aimed at the commercial end of both (450-470 and ~150) might not be a bad option too.
    2 points
  3. Radioguy7268

    Homebase Setup

    If your primary transmit function is GMRS - then skip the dual band stuff and go for straight up UHF GMRS that's focused on 450-470 MHz. Dual band stuff is tuned for 2M VHF (@ 145 MHz) and UHF amateur (@ 440 MHz). Your 467.xxx GMRS transmit isn't going to like a dual band antenna when you go to measure VSWR. You will still receive local VHF/UHF signals if you want to scan other stuff for receive on your GMRS antenna. If I was trying to transmit out of a canyon, I'd use a Yagi every day of the week for hitting a distant repeater from a tough spot. Even if your favorite Ham tells you to get a dual bander. Especially if you want it to work.
    2 points
  4. kirk5056

    Retevis RT76P Glitch?

    "Limited to only 1/2 watt; why would any GMRS operator want to use Channels 8-15" I use those low power channels in high GMRS use environments such as NASCAR tracks, large camp grounds and amusement parks. Even with "PL" filters other users on the same freq can cause distortion or interference. But on those low power channels all LEGAL users are also limited to 1/2 watt so are less likely to over power my communications. My group rarely gets very far from each other so range is not all that important. For the same reason, most of my daily comms are on channels 1-7 to avoid the 50 watt units and repeaters.
    2 points
  5. wayoverthere

    Chirp- BTech 50X1

    @1977Hahn here's a quick grab from my 50x1, to give an idea of what the working channels look like (in my case it's REPT16 and REPT18). The sample screen @MichaelLAXshowed above is pretty close to an actual download from my radio.. I've filled in ch 30 with the 141.3 and "Tone" for the tone mode to show the settings you mentioned above.
    2 points
  6. Go pop some popcorn and kick back.... This WILL be a long read. So you have you license. Now you want to put up a repeater. Great,,,, maybe,, usually. But have you thought it through or do you just really want to hear your call sign coming across the airways if CW? This is going to explain how to do it right to NOT cause interference with other repeater owners and be mindful of the limited resource (8 repeater pairs) we have been designated by the FCC. This will cover planning, equipment, antenna's and everything in between. Please ask questions about the topics as they are posted, and if you see something missing you would like covered, message me and I will do my level best to cover that topic. I have been a commercial two-way radio tech for 13 years a ham for almost 30 and have been working on electronics and radios for 40 years. First thing is to listen. Listen to the repeater pair OUTPUTS. These are the 462 frequencies in the 462/467 pairs. They are what the repeaters will be transmitting on. The reason you want to listen is you want the quietest one for your area. Now that doesn't necessarily mean the one with the least traffic. So if you have several repeaters around you that are not all that busy, but the signal from them is always very strong and clear and maybe a busier frequency talks alot, but is far off in the distance 4 towns over, any your plans are for a small footprint, with a 30 or 40 foot tower, that may well be the better frequency to choose. You need to consider a couple things here. Number one is the total number of pairs available. We only have 8 for EVERYWHERE. Why is that important? Because the guys with the monsters, like me how just talked to a guy 40 miles away from his repeater, can cover huge area's with their repeaters. And some of them see the value in what they have and allow others to use it openly. That's my stance on it. I say the same thing to everyone that asks. Make sure to ID your station and have fun. But if you are sitting on an otherwise open frequency, he may not use it for a wide area coverage machine. I am thinking on writing a thread on frequency management at a state level for GMRS, but that comes later. So back to the footprint you are looking to achieve, and you need to be reasonable here. Don't decide to build a monster, tie up a pair and make the repeater closed to all but you and your wife and kids. That's not proper use of the airways. And in my opinion is a bit of a dick move. SO lets say we are going to use that pair that you can hear a repeater on but it's very weak signal and can't always be heard. You NEED to locate the owner of that repeater and verify where he is located. If he's a weak station but he's right up the road, then don't use that frequency. If he's 2 counties away, you are golden. You need to find out what PL or DPL he is using on his repeater and NOT use anything close to that. If he's running between 67 and 103 you want to be at a minimum at 141.3. This will minimize the potential of interference. You also need to verify that you are either very noisy into his repeater or you can't hit it at all from most of the footprint area you are wanting to cover. Now a quick side note. Repeater talkout (how far it talks) is controlled by two things.. first is antenna height. Height is FAR more important than power level. But power level does play a role. And you ONLY want to run enough power to provide signal levels in your desired coverage area to capture the receiver of a mobile or portable radio. Meaning, if you are wanting to cover X number of square miles and that can be done with an antenna at 40 feet of height and 10 watts, Don't set the repeater up to 50 watts. It's not necessary and again, it's not good frequency management. So you now have a pair picked out. What about a repeater? A repeater is required to ID unless YOU and those under YOUR license are the only ones using the repeater. The minute that other license holders are allowed to use the repeater, it needs to ID itself. Now this can be done with a Raspberry Pi, an Arduino or some specific module for CW ID. You have options. You can use two mobile radios as a repeater with a cable between them and an ID board. You are not required to have voice announcements, roger beeps or any of that. So it can be a simple set of radios. (Motorola CDM series work great and the 16 pin interface makes connecting them very easy). Or you can buy a repeater that is a purpose built device. There are a number of options. More to come.... stay tuned.
    1 point
  7. Looks like it's listed as option 0 in the menu, on pg 21 (reading it in pdf from radioddity's site). The menu item is called "TMR", and you tell it which ones you want to monitor (a, b, c, and/or d), and then used the abcd button to cycle through the 4 lines and set each one to the channels/frequencies you want to monitor. If I understand it right, it treats whichever one you have selected as the "Main". I tend to set a channel I might want to transmit on on main. The setup and functionality seem similar to my btech 50x1, which makes sense because it the db25g looks to be based on the btech 25x2 and 25x4.
    1 point
  8. wayoverthere

    Homebase Setup

    I forget if I put it in the other edit..I have a mobile, not the yagi... 5/8wave over 5/8 wave UHF only, nmo mount browning on the truck. Rated for 410-490 mhz, and in practice I've found 1.15 or less swr across 70cm and gmrs on a Midland mag mount. It is close to 3 ft tall, though. For your base situation, the one I linked might be what is lean toward. Probably not too hard to pass off as a TV antenna to the uninformed too. this one even had a black version; might also blend in well on the roof https://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=191_193_258_977_978&products_id=3583
    1 point
  9. Yeah my first entry into GMRS was the KG-805G that worked great compared to the bubble packs - primarily used it for kids to roam the neighborhood - repeaters expanded that as they got a little older....now the 935 is kinda acting as a base, gives me the option to monitor a normal simplex GMRS channel for the kids and then if they switch to a repeater I'll hear them too. Currently wired it up out the window to a J-pole sitting on the front porch and so far it's getting great reception...I'll be curious to see how it does when I put it up 20ft. The 2 channel receive and the NOAA alerts is what did it for me. I'm on the east coast
    1 point
  10. Yep - I'm on the right channel...screen changes to 467 when I hit the PTT
    1 point
  11. MichaelLAX

    Baofeng UV-5X GMRS

    and 467, too! ?
    1 point
  12. pcradio

    Baofeng UV-5X GMRS

    This why I'm glad there are radios which can transmit on GMRS, 2m and 70cm. Why in the world would a radio be gimped to not do such a simple thing is just plain silly. There is no reason, no logic that makes sense. I can push the gas pedal and exceed the speed limit, but a $400 radio, owned by a responsible person ... well too bad for you when you need it to hit GMRS! I'm am not going to hike in the woods with three radios. We are not talking about indiscriminate transmissions, we are talking about need, safety, and emergency. A $400, $500, $600 radio is useless. But $32 bucks get you everything? Wake up and tell the FCC what they will do on your behalf. Stop defending such silly mechanisms, laws, and disrespect for the America people. We tell the government what they can do to protect us and we thank them for their service. I think people laugh at those who support such draconian thinking. When you get your HAM license you "agree" to not transmit on certain frequencies. But somehow, in this warped ecosystem, its irresponsible to own a radio that can transmit on 146, 444 and 462? Really?
    1 point
  13. WyoJoe

    Baofeng UV-5X GMRS

    In that situation, I have extra radios to share with my family, friends, and neighbors. They are a mix of FRS, GMRS, and ham radios.
    1 point
  14. WyoJoe

    Baofeng UV-5X GMRS

    What's the point of that? If I wanted the radio for the ham bands, I'd just use a UV-5R instead. Most of them, or at least the older ones, will work on ham and GMRS frequencies, and they cost less too. The UV-5X/UV-5G models are GMRS radios and already function reasonably well for what they are. Additionally, if you want to monitor ham frequencies, you can already do that with them. As I understand it, a GMRS radio that has been modified to work on another service is no longer legal for GMRS use, so why would I want to mess up a radio I purchased specifically because it is legal for GMRS? Again, if legality didn't matter, the UV-5R would suffice. Michael, these questions aren't targeted at you. I just don't understand the reasoning behind this effort.
    1 point
  15. MichaelLAX

    Chirp- BTech 50X1

    Sample CHIRP (since I do not have the 50x1; ignore that this is for my HT) It is always a good idea that when you use CHIRP for the first time, do a DOWNLOAD FROM RADIO and save it as "original" or "default" so that you have the original settings that came with your rig. Also, this "primes" your CHIRP file with the other settings that came with your rig, such as backlight, beep, etc. Then do a SAVE AS and give it another name (I like to use "50x1 202109282045" so that I can always tell from the date and time which is the most current as I resave to a new name when I make changes) and then make your additions to the file, such as 725 repeater in Channel 30 and then do a SAVE again. Then do a UPLOAD TO RADIO to put these settings into your rig. ?
    1 point
  16. wayoverthere

    Chirp- BTech 50X1

    If the problem is not being able to transmit, yes, that's the issue....it will not transmit on 31 (or anything above 30). For 462.725/467.725, use rept 22 (ch 30) and set your 141.3 pl on that. You can do it with chirp or the radio's menu, whichever is easier (I believe it's menu item "t-ctcs")
    1 point
  17. I hope these new rules "take effect" better than the new rules on lower GMRS license fees did.......
    1 point
  18. Notarubicon GMRS 700 Repeater is in Southern California near San Bernardino/Rancho Cucamonga
    1 point
  19. The only issue I had with this is that they declined to enforce a Busy Channel Lockout for automatic data/location bursts. You could set up your radio to transmit every 30 seconds, for example, and it'll beacon regardless of whether the channel is busy with voice traffic. Add in multiple radios in the same range, and I fear the GMRS channels will start to sound like APRS with data bursts all over the place. I had proposed the busy channel lockout feature but they specifically rejected it, claiming it was up to the licensee to ensure their radio is not causing interference. But once you enable an automatic location report, the licensee is relinquishing control to the radio for some period of time. It only seems like common sense for the radio to hold off the transmission until the channel is clear again. I'd also think the manufacturers would voluntarily add this feature as it would increase the reliability of their messages in the presence of co-channel interference. As far as FM on CB, I think it's great. It throws a lifeline to the CB radio manufacturers who can now introduce new FM-capable radios and revitalize the service a little bit. Seems GMRS has been taking over for quite a while, which is why some companies like Midland have all but given up on CB and moved onto making mobile GMRS products. For me, the interesting thing is that the reasons the FCC rejected digital voice on GMRS are the same reasons they initially denied Cobra's request to allow FM on CB. It fundamentally changes the nature of the service, it creates a compatibility issue between existing users and FM users, etc. They chose to mandate that AM is required on any FM-capable radios to ensure backwards compatibility. Using the same workaround, we could petition for digital voice on GMRS as long as digital radios are backwards compatible with analog on these channels so you can always talk to the analog people and hear the traffic on the channel. So for that, I'm very excited for the next round of interest in digital voice on GMRS. Seems a no-brainer now, we just need to file a well-organized petition for it with support from users and manufacturers.
    1 point
  20. So now if FM is allowed on 11M some agreement would be needed to keep those users from interfering with AM and SSB users. That could be informal or put into the rules by the FCC. There is sort of one now where SSB is primarily used on the upper channels. I’m also wondering how much of the push to allow FM on 11M is a marketing thing by COBRA to protect their market share since Midland is pushing GMRS and the advantage of FM over AM in the overland community. By allowing FM that takes one of the advantages away Midland says they have by switching to GMRS. I don’t see the FCC allowing automatic TX of GPS data on GMRS/FRS. There aren’t that many channels to begin with to let them get cluttered up with periodic automatic data transmissions. For people that scan the channels it would be very annoying to have the radio stop every few minutes on random channels due to short burp of GPS data. Further the radio would need a mandatory BCL, busy channel lockout, to stop any interference when a channel is in use.
    1 point
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