WRTC928

New piece of information: I put the RT87 and the UV-5R both into VFO, entered frequencies to match, and they can communicate with one another. Apparently the problem only occurs when using channel mode. No idea why that should matter.

I guess that's not impossible, but I'm doing the same things that have always worked with other radios.

Thanks. Yes, I did all that. That's why I'm baffled.

I recently purchased a pair of RT87s in addition to the UV-5R, AR-5RM, and Arcshell AR-5 radios I already have. I programmed them in CHIRP and they communicate with one another just fine, but they absolutely will not receive from nor transmit to any of the other radios. The other radios all communicate amongst themselves just fine, but the RT87s will only communicate with one another. I looked in CHIRP and on the menu for anything I may have set wrong, but nothing seems amiss. Is there some secret to these things that I have to do, or are they just designed to be incompatible with other radios? As a general rule, if you program two radios of different brands to the same frequency, they will communicate, but these little bastards just flatly refuse. Suggestions?

Dual- or triple-band ham antennas usually top out at about 440 MHz. In my experience, that's close enough to provide decent performance on the GMRS frequencies, provided you get a quality antenna. With a mobile antenna, I do usually get a little higher SWR on the frequencies that are "out of band", but it's typically in the range of 2.1 or 2.2:1 which is not enough to concern me. I do get a little better distance and clarity with a 771G (GMRS-specific) antenna on my 5RM than with a VHF/UHF 771, but it's not all that dramatic.

I never really had an issue with the Midland Ghost Antenna. It performed about as well as other mag-mounts IME. I only replaced it because I got a ham license and swapped it for a dual-band antenna. Unfortunately, I can't find a dual-band antenna similar to the Ghost with good reviews.

To make it even more confusing/annoying, some GMRS-specific radios will only allow you eight repeaters, one on each frequency pair, and that's it. That's pretty restrictive for anyone who travels at all, and even within a local area, there may be more than one repeater on the same frequency pair using different CTCSS/DTCS tones for access. "Unlocked" radios will typically let you program in as many repeaters as you want, and you can have duplicates on the same frequency pair.

I have used the Midland Ghost antenna on a mag mount for GMRS and it's actually pretty good. At least as good as the Nagoya UT-72G, which isn't the greatest antenna, but I got reasonably good results with it. Is there anything similar in a dual-band version that actually can be called "pretty good"? I've seen some on Amazon which purport to be dual-band antennas, but their low prices and off-brand labeling make me hesitant. Sure, it's possible to get a great product for a really low price, but it's not common. I'm aware that a "Coke can" antenna will not perform like a whip, but sometimes it's good enough. At least the Midland Ghost Antenna is. Can anyone recommend anything similar?

I didn't have that experience. Mine tested at 1.8-3.9 watts on low, 6.5-8.3 on medium, and 8.3-9.9 on high, depending upon the frequency (and apparently phases of the moon, because I get noticeably different readings on different days). It does seem to transmit with more power on VHF than UHF, which is understand is pretty common.

I wouldn't say the AR-5RM is the best radio for a newbie. A noob radio is a dedicated GMRS radio that you pick up, turn on, pick a channel, and start talking. The 5RM does require some programming, but it's a lot more versatile than a dedicated GMRS radio. There is a learning curve, and there are things I learned by trial and error, but I think most people can learn to use it. Like @RIPPER238's Tidradio H3, it has a lot of options, but you do have to exercise some restraint because you can do things with it that you definitely shouldn't do as a GMRS operator. An SSC Tuatara car can go 295 mph, and I'd kinda like to tool around in one to look cool, but it will absolutely do things that I have no business participating in.

Hold on. I need to go make popcorn.

I sent you a message.

Yes, all of those are true. I'm very satisfied with mine. It's not the best radio on the market, but it's probably the best $30 radio on the market. As usual, Baofeng overstates the transmission wattage, but I do get 8-9 watts depending upon the frequency.

There are some similar to the Ghost, but purportedly dual-band: here, here,and here. I have no idea if they're any good. They're really inexpensive compared to the Ghost, which may indicate a lower quality, but maybe not. If you try one, I'd be interested to find out how it works.

Logically, if you can communicate through the repeater from a short distance, it must be configured correctly. Most of the time, the difference between short-distance and long-distance communication is the antenna. Either your antenna is inadequate to the task, it is set up wrong, or you're the victim of disadvantageous topography. For example, I can use a repeater 30 miles away to my northeast, but I can't reliably hit my own house on simplex with a 20 watt mobile from 1/2 mile to my west because there's a high hill in between. If you have an unobstructed path to the repeater 30 miles away, you're golden, but if there are significant obstructions, there's not enough power in any HT to go very far at all. Pictures and/or a detailed description of your antenna setup would be very helpful.

If you can hear the repeater but they can't hear you and it has happened on more than one radio, by far the most likely is that either you are too far away or somehow you have the offset programmed incorrectly. Those are almost the only two possibilities. I second the recommendation to go to YouTube for some educational videos. Also, if you're using CHIRP, you can open it, go to "File", select "Open Stock Configuration", then choose "US FRS and GMRS Channels". It has the GMRS repeater frequencies already entered including the correct offsets. You can't program the radio from that file, but you can copy and paste using the "Edit" tab at the top to transfer it to the profile you downloaded from the radio (Radio-->Download From Radio). That should get you the correct programming. If that doesn't fix it, either you're too far away or you have an infestation of gremlins.

That depends on what you want to treat. Both are effective for bipolar disorder but risperidone is often more effective for the mixed form. On the other hand, if the patient is in a manic episode with severe agitation, aripiprazole may be a better choice. Similarly, they will both treat schizophrenia, but if agitation is a feature, aripiprazole is the go-to again. Aripiprazole is useful in Tourette's Syndrome while risperidone shows some promise in treatment of infantile autism. I could go on, but those are the high points.

Yeah, I don't expect it to perform as well as a whip in those circumstances, but for just running around doing errands in the city, it seems as if it will work well.

You might get one that's just fine. I haven't seen or read any reviews that reported this problem. I'm writing it off to a QC issue.

So...my radio suddenly and for no apparent reason, decided to stop transmitting. I even tried a reset to factory configuration but unfortunately, no dice. I'm really disappointed because I liked this little radio. However, as I've said before, quality control on inexpensive Chinese radios can be spotty. Maybe you'd get one that soldiers on for years. I always know when I go the cheap route that something like this may happen, so I'm not as upset as I would be if I had paid double or triple the price for it. I still really like the form factor with all the controls in the spkr/mic, and if I can find another one like that, I'll probably try it. I just got a Ham license, so I don't want a GMRS-specific one. I'll keep looking.

That's good advice. I'll start doing that.

There's not a lot of activity around here, and the UT-72G was good enough, so I never felt the need to replace it, but I agree it's not the best available. However, for the itty-bitty Ghost to outperform it was a surprise to me. In a lot of scenarios, it may be good enough. At some point, I may get the MXTA26 or something similar and throw it in the back of the car. If I feel the need, I can just screw off the Ghost and screw on the MX. I really like the fact that I don't have to worry about the Ghost in a drive-through or a parking garage, and on my black car, it's almost a stealth antenna.

Today I put a Midland Ghost Antenna on the NMO mag mount on my car. I figured a small black cylinder on the top of my small black car wouldn't attract a lot of attention. I was previously using a Nagoya UT-72G with its own mag mount. TBH, I didn't expect much from the Ghost Antenna, but I was quite surprised. I attached a Baofeng AR-5RM which emits 7-8 watts (even though it's nominally a 10 watt radio) and took a drive to check it out. I got about 15-17 miles from the Oklahoma City repeater and received a signal report from a kind GMRS user. I was at the extreme range I usually get, and he said my signal sounded like I had "a little strange interference" but he could understand me just fine. TBH, I was impressed. It didn't give up anything to the UT-72G, and in fact, may have been marginally better.

I thought of that, but I don't have anyone to help me test it. It does transmit to a HT as far away as I can hear it, but that wouldn't take any significant amount of power. That would be pretty depressing if the radio suddenly decided to stop transmitting. That's the most obvious, but I was hoping someone had a different idea.

I haven't personally used them. The response I got from the rep was, "You have a choice of 50 CTCSS and DCS (privacy code), and by default, these tones are turned off." However, if they provide software to turn them off or change them, it doesn't really matter what configuration they're in from the seller.