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Radioguy7268

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Everything posted by Radioguy7268

  1. I have the capability to do it, but I don't have time to mess around and tweak them 20 different ways. I'm kind of curious how you spent $200 already & didn't get the job done. My typical charge to program analog radios for conventional channels is $35 for up to 4 channels. If you want to do something crazy and unconventional - I'll just warn you that I'm probably not your guy. There are issues with the early CDM1550 LS radios not doing MDC, or more than 16 conventional channels - but neither of those items should be an issue for a simple single channel repeater. Biggest issue with the CDM series is setting them up with ignition sense and a predefined home channel, so that they automatically power up and restore to the proper channel configuration if you have a power outage. I'm in Southeastern PA if you want to send me a PM for further info. If you have the capability to read the codeplugs - you can just send me those & we can do it all via email.
  2. You could (legally) gain 3dB just by using a higher gain antenna. If you're already making it there with a 50 watt mobile & negligible gain, you'll spend (a bunch) less money by improving your antenna system. Yagi antennas are directional - but you can easily get 10 dB (or more) without breaking the bank. You mention already being able to hit 8 repeaters - do none of them give you enough coverage? It would cost even less to donate a battery backup system for one of those repeaters if you want to get closer to a guarantee of coverage. Also, if you go with a 100 watt high power GMRS mobile as a base, there's a bunch of FRS radios that might be able to hear you at 15, 20 or even 30 miles away - but you will be further away than they could ever hope to transmit back. At that point you're just a fancy one-way paging system.
  3. I will assume you're aware that you can't legally transmit with more than 50 watts on any GMRS frequency. Yes, you can get a higher ERP with a gain antenna, but the rules are pretty clear. I'd also question the benefit of a 100 watt mobile transmitter in anything other than a Simplex mode. If you're talking into a decently configured repeater, all you need is enough to get into the machine with a full quieting signal, and the rest is just wasted energy. Getting in at 50 watts when 15 would have done the job does not improve the signal out of the repeater. The difference between 100 watts and 50 watts is 3dB. Search up the inverse square law if you want to know what that means when it comes to actual RF coverage. Spoiler: 100 watts isn't giving you as much as you might be thinking. Theoretically
  4. Can you? Yes Will it work well without spending time, money, and having some advanced radio knowledge? Probably not.
  5. Glad to hear you got it downloaded. I'm not sure what OS you're using, but try setting the CPS Program to run in Admin mode, and set Windows Compatibility to Windows XP Service Pack 3. There's also some known issues with the USB 'Ribless' cables and the PL2302 chip drivers. Search that up if you're still having issues after changing the software admin/compatibility profile.
  6. Not sure who you spoke with at Motorola - but at best they told you a half-truth. I just logged in to my MOL (Motorola OnLine) account to be sure, and there it is: Commercial Series CPS R05.18 (04 Jun 2013 Zip File 43MB) 12.5 kHz only Part Number: RVN4191 Product Applicability: CP150, CP200, CP200XLS, PR400, CM200, CM300, PM400 Now, I'm not sure that Motorola is actively selling RVN4191 to anyone - as it is outdated & no longer works with any current radio they are selling, but it's still there and available for download to anyone with an MOL account. I'm also not sure if anyone at Motorola is actively setting up new users with MOL access, as they're telling Dealers that all activity is being pushed towards shop.motorola.com for both dealers and retail customers. New software is no longer available for download on the MOL site. Motorola moved all of that to a different site now. As far as software, licensing, and piracy, I think we are all adults and can try to find our own path through the wilderness. There's an aspect of Right to Repair when a manufacturer drops support for a product line, and then there's also outright piracy for profit. As a dealer, I'm probably more willing to stay on the straight and narrow, but I'm not pulling money out of my pocket for 99% of what I work with. In my opinion, the horror stories of Motorola cables, software, and DOS are overblown. If you want to work on anything made since 1990, most all of it can run in a Windows shell using something like DosBox.
  7. The only "legit" place to get Motorola programming software is from Motorola themselves. You purchase a subscription from Motorola, set up an account, and then download the software. For an older CP200 analog radio, that would be Motorola P/N RVN4121. You will also need a proper cable to connect from the radio to the computer - and doing that can be a whole 'nother problem. The trouble you will have with the "factory" CPS software is that Motorola only has available the Narrowband 12.5 kHz version for download. You would need to either get a Wideband Entitlement (after you pass a online course that tells you why the FCC mandated Narrowband for most business frequencies - and you promise not to program Wideband on channels that should be Narrowband 12.5) - or you would need to 'crack' the software and remove the code that forces Narrowband before you can program a Wideband GMRS codeplug into the radio. If you're not stuck on the idea of buying software from Motorola, there are earlier versions of CPS (Something tells me the Narrowband got forced upon us somewhere around version 05.12.xx) and those earlier versions are available online for free from dubious sites - or you can purchase pirated software via Ebay or other online sources. There's a ton more info (that you probably should have investigated before you bought the radios) - but if you search up "CPS RVN4121" I think you'll begin to see what you're in for. Be prepared for another 10 varying opinions on what to do and how to do it when it comes to Motorola CPS and programming. A final option would be to just find a local Motorola dealer, let them know the frequencies you want to get programmed in, and have them do it for you. You'll spend a few bucks, but it might still be cheaper and less hassle than doing it on your own.
  8. Pricing on most radio equipment has shot up in the past 2 years. I've seen 3 price increases in a year - on models that didn't have anything but price DECREASES over the previous 10 years. Be careful on the NX-1300 - there's a P1300 ProTalk model that comes pre-programmed with set frequencies - and then there's the (normally more expensive) 1300UK model that requires programming to your frequencies to be set up. You also need to specify DMR or NXDN protocol for the Digital option - if you're using DMR Digital on your CP200d's that might explain the $600 price point. I'd expect a comparable DMR NX-1300UK to come in around $400 +/- There are used & reconditioned options for the CP200d's if you're mainly looking for replacement units. Those units usually go for about half the price of new, but still carry some type of warranty & would match all your other units for chargers, batteries, audio accessories, etc. Good radios aren't cheap, but the price is pennies per day when they're in use. If having a radio can make a worker more efficient, then the cost of being without a working radio is going to be measured in dollars per day.
  9. I would second the NX-1300 recommendation if you're looking for something decent that's a little less expensive, but if you want something rugged and durable - I'd stay away from anything with an RCA label stuck on it. The CP200 is a workhorse radio, what's the average lifespan you're getting out of a unit in your application? Are you having a particular problem with them? The biggest trouble with getting either the NX-1300 or the CP200d right now is supply. Both models have a long lead time for factory orders.
  10. The good news is that if you call it a private system & try to control access to the codes, you will probably get some polite inquiries from people asking for information. Once people start to use it, you will quickly lose control of access, especially if it offers good coverage. Anyone with about $30 worth of equipment can scan for the repeater output tones. If you make it a split system (different input PL/DPL codes vs. the Repeater's output) you can keep a little more control over access. What do you want to accomplish? Who are your desired users? Do you have any undesired users in the area? Do you have local control capability? ie: can you pull the plug if people are using the repeater in a way you do not want them to? Do you want to be faced with that kind of decision?
  11. Yeah, silver will tarnish (turn black) when exposed to air if they're using silver for their connections. Inside, the connections should still be nice & shiny. I can't understand why the guy would have gotten mad, unless you were somehow blaming him for the fact that he used actual silver for your connections. Good customer service shouldn't make people think you're getting mad at them. Were you able to make any performance measurements to see how it's holding up against the bench-marked spec's? That's what matters, much more than any appearance issues or tarnishing.
  12. Motorola M1225 - less than $200, more than enough.
  13. Not that I'm aware of, but it would be easy enough to cross-strap your own. The VXR-1000 just puts it all in a nice box, and adds some function lights and a switch for on/off.
  14. Stuff like the VXR-1000 and the Pyramid SVR vehicular repeaters effectively make your portable talk through your mobile radio. The trouble with using them for GMRS is that they're cross-band repeaters, meaning you would be using a VHF portable to key up your GMRS high powered mobile. That's outside the rules for GMRS - you can't crossband with another service - and there are no VHF frequencies for GMRS. You could try to do something like a portable repeater, and have a few key personnel set up the repeater on-site with some type of collapsible antenna that might allow you to get an antenna 20 or 30 ft. in the air. That would increase the range of your portables, but would it be enough? If you've got the funds, you could set up some type of a trailer with a crank up tower, and that would probably get you 75 to 100 ft. up in the air. Also, you might want to look at some type of a "mic extender" product like the X10DR from Wireless Pacific, which gives you a wireless microphone - allowing you to get a few hundred feet from your vehicle, but still key up on the mobile radio. It's sort of like the vehicular repeaters, but without the cross-banding problem.
  15. I'm still trying to translate what they mean by "Forwarding sensitivity decreases" under the last "Duplex" heading. I'm thinking that they actually measured receiver desense - and they're spec'ing it at 3dB. But then I'm thinking, no - they wouldn't advertise that. Or, would they? For the rookies - a 3dB desense (reduced receiver performance when the transmitter is keyed) is somewhere close to unforgiveable. Not to mention unworkable. You basically took every 4 watt portable & made it perform as well as a 2 watt portable.
  16. Someone has discovered the joy of using ChatGPT to pose wordy ramblings. Congrats.
  17. That's kind of my point. There's no FCC published official version of what their proposed 10 code shorthand might mean, so it's up to interpretation. Whose interpretation?
  18. The NX-3000 series went MIA shortly after the AKM fire for almost 18 months, and Kenwood was giving dealers a discount on the NX-5000 base series - just to allow them to upsell customers who had wanted to buy an NX-3000 - and move them up to the NX-5000 series at a similar price. Supposedly, the plant that caught fire was the ONLY source they had for the NX3000 chipsets. I'm not sure if they found another source, or just re-designed the chassis to work with another (more available) chipset. I agree that the NX-1300 is a good value, and it seems to be well built. The fact that they still support the KNB-45L battery lineup (which has been in use for probably 15+ years now) and the KSC-35 charger platform means that customers did not have to do a wholesale changeover to move into a Digital capable platform.
  19. Even before Covid hit, Kenwood had an issue because one of their major chip suppliers (AKM in Japan) had a huge fire that destroyed most of their factory. Then, once Covid hit, Southeast Asia went on lockdown, and most of the chip making factories locatd there were stretched pretty thin. Last batch of the NX-1300 series radios I ordered took almost 4 months to get in. They are a nice radio. I like the audio on those, especially compared to the similar priced Motorola CP100d.
  20. I believe simplex users on a base (462.xxx) output are secondary users who operate at their own peril. Yes - I monitor prior to pressing the PTT, but I can't be responsible for operations I can't hear. I'm a bit more concerned for current repeater co-channel operations in a given area on a limited set of frequencies. Linked repeaters tend to act as though their traffic owns the airwaves. I'm not aware of anyone who is remotely monitoring the sites they link to prior to pushing traffic out to that Linked site.
  21. Do you plan to make your linked repeaters monitor the frequency for activity in their local coverage area before actually linking from a distant user? Do you plan to make the repeaters monitor their input or output frequency prior to putting out it's ID every 15 minutes? Automatic linking and Auto ID are rarely implemented with any consideration that someone else may actually be keyed up and active as a co-channel user on the frequency already. Just curious, cause the Rule Police don't often talk about those concepts.
  22. ... and, prior Certification under Part 95 = current acceptance. ie: Grandfathered.
  23. Add in the Vertex VX-231 or VX-261 (newer style version) as 4.5 watt (advertising lies when it says 5 watts) options. Either one can be set up with a single channel and are decent compact semi-rugged radios. You can also find the higher end EVX-531 online at prices under $100 complete with charger. Vertex software is available online for free if you look hard enough, or for $35 if you pick the first Google result that pops up.
  24. I guess I believe that un-enforced rules are more like Suggestions. Given the history of the FCC retro-actively re-writing the rules to allow what people were doing anyway (everything from unlicensed CB to unlicensed MURS), I think it's just a matter of time until the FCC catches up to reality.
  25. I just picked up some UHF M1225's and P1225's (Genuine Part 95 Motorola gear!) on a trade-in, so I'll probably be getting one of my kids to start up a small GMRS resale business here on the classifieds. About 40 portables, chargers, 6 mobiles, and a base/control station package.
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