WSAE734

Thank you. I'm hoping to be able to do just that sort of test soon.

I was able to actually run home and test it. On 467.725 I get an average SWR of 1.29:1.

That's about what I figured. I have considered getting better mobiles. My current budget didn't allow for it, and I wanted to get a system in place by at least this upcoming hurricane season to cover the homes of family. It does that in its current capacity, so what I'm pushing for is a little lagniappe at the moment. Maybe I'll be more set up to do the upgrade in a few months. I appreciate the suggestion and insight. Y'all on these forums have been very helpful as I learn. Would lowering the squelch on the HT and the Repeater help with this issue at all, even if only in a small way?

I was not aware of any tuning needed for the CX455. The insert with it specifically said no adjustments are needed and gave no directions to do so since it was already supposed to cover the gmrs freqs. I'll check the SWR again on the Rx side of the offset when I can tomorrow. Is there a way to set a particular output wattage on the RT97S? I thought it was just "high" or "low" power and the internals did the rest. I was only expecting 5W and was surprised when I got 7W.

They are UV-5G HTs. Meter shows 4.3W/1.01 SWR for one and 4.25W/1.00 SWR on the other. The distance that is sketchy starts around 1 to 1.5 miles. I do have a good number of homes, trees, and other stores and structures around.

Hello, all. Warning, my next sentence is an obligatory one. I am new to GMRS setups (now that that is out of the way....) I have, within the budget I have at the moment, tried to set up a small family repeater system primarily for emergency comms within my immediate area. I live an a pretty densely populated suburban area, so I already know I have things stacked against me. My set up is as follows: Base: -RT97S Repeater (7W output/SWR:1.00/.725 pair), 40' LMR400 up to a Sirio CX455 mounted 30' on a mast. Mobile: -5W HT with a Nagoya UT-72G on top of an SUV -5W HT with a Rugged Radio GMRS 1/2wave antenna mounted on the bed rack of a truck I already know that one of my primary issues is the height of the antenna. However, that can't be changed at the moment and is as good at it will get for the time being. However, I am struggling to understand an issue I am having. There are certain places I have tested where the repeater can hear the HT, but not the other way around. I am curious as to whether or not this is a mobile antenna issue, a base station issue, or simply a LoS issue. I know, there is probably a lot more information needed or things I am not considering. I am not looking for miracles here at all, just trying to do the best with what I have in place at the moment. I will say, that it covers roughly 80% of the area I was hoping for in my challenging environment and for that I am glad, but the furthest point I can't reach. There are times when the HT will partially open the repeater at these further points, but I get no audio, and, as stated, they can't hear from the base antenna, even if i can hear them. With that in mind, perhaps I don't fully understand something, or maybe I am at the limits of my system and need to accept it until something can be changed more drastically. Also, I had reasons for purchasing the RT97s beyond this use. We do a lot of road trips and felt that it would be a potentially useful piece of kit for that as well. Thank you all for your time and consideration.