marcspaz

I mean.... this is the first one I've seen. And my opinion is the only one that matters. Just ask me; I'll tell you!

This is a great interview that our friend @OffRoaderX has done with someone whom has been directly involved with a linked repeater network being turned off after FCC interaction. This is a big deal. The FCC is asking for call signs of people who used the network, not just to turn down the network. Repeater owners and users, pay attention. I don't want to see my friends getting in trouble. Thanks for the great work Randy!

Quick note... with the exception of the Midland, my antennas are UHF mounts, not NMO. So, you all should find some entertainment in this. I just finished sweeping my Comet CA-2X4SR and on the the hood lip mount, the antenna does not work as well as on the thru-hole mount on the bed rail. On the thru-hole mount on the pick-up bed, these are the current values. 140 - 1.5 142 - 1.2 146.520 - 1.3 148 - 1.3 154 - 1.5 440 - 1.6 444 - 1.7 448 - 1.5 462 - 2.1 467 - 1.9 The biggest deviations on the hood lip mount are seen in the MURS frequencies and in the GMRS frequencies. The curve is much steeper and the center tuning moves down in frequency. 154 - 2.0 462 - 1.9 (improvement) 467 - 3.1 (worse by more than 1 unit) So, it looks like the SWR is better on the VHF frequencies while using the Comet and better on the UHF frequencies using the Diamond. I am fine with this since the NR-770 is being used on my Moto exclusively for GMRS.

Hmmm I wonder if it's mounting location or if the NMO version performs differently. I've had great luck with it... though there is no obvious gain to it.

I still have my CA-2X4SR... I will probably sweep it again in a bit. I don't have notes on the exact numbers or performance experience, just memories of disappointment. I remember the main reason I changed it was because I was sitting next to a friend of mine and his mobile was receiving a station fairly well, that my radio didn't hear at all, and we have the exact same radio, the same mount, on the same year/make/model vehicle. The only difference was the antenna.

This is everything I have notes on... @OffRoaderX I wanted to tag you in case you're interested in my results, too. MXTA26 Freq in MHz - SWR 440 - 1.5 446 - 1.8 448 - 2.1 462 - 1.5 467 - 1.3 NR-7900 140 - 2.2 142 - 1.7 146.520 - 1.4 148 - 1.3 154 - 2.8 440 - 1.6 448 - 1.3 462 - 1.6 462 - 1.5 NR-770 140 - 1.8 142 - 1.5 146.520 - 1.4 148 - 1.3 154 - 2.6 440 - 1.1 446 - 1.1 448 - 1.2 462 - 2.1 467 - 1.5 SBB1 140 - 1.9 142 - 1.8 146.520 - 1.7 148 - 1.6 154 - 1.6 440 - 1.6 446 - 1.3 448 - 1.0 462 - 1.8 467 - 1.2

Mine was on a hood mount, too, but I have run plenty of other antennas in the same spot with much better results. Overall, I would say that it's an OK antenna if you are primarily using it for Ham radio and occasionally use it on the 462 simplex frequencies. I was very disappointed with the SWR and performance on the 467 frequencies. I ended up replacing it with an MXTA27, and then eventually with a Diamond NR-770, when not sharing my NR-7900 with my amateur gear. All 3 antennas are much better performing on the 467 frequencies.

Oh yeah... and they have different handles for local and DX, too. I go by Papa Spaz locally and 410 on DX. My buddy goes by Porch Honky (he's a huge Moccasin Creek fan). I can't tell you how much dust that stirs up on the air. LoL

It works. Users just need to be sure to select the correct radio brand/model options based on the firmware loaded to the active profile on the radio.

Just do what I did and buy both! LOL

I didn't even consider that, which is bad, given I have one in the Jeep. That is a rock star radio as far as just simply communicating goes. Audio filters are really good too, and it has the ability to switch an amp as well as run digital modes. I suppose because it's a no frills mobile, I didn't think of it as a base station, but it can definitely be used as an affordable option.

In my opinion, the Icom IC-7300 or the Yaesu FT-991a are your two best options. The 7300 has better receive sensitivity and a better display but the 991a has 2m and 70cm.

I know a few members do emergency volunteer work. Anyone have a legit portable repeater setup? It's been about a year since I setup my portable "shack". Since the weather was nice today and I have a new repeater to field test, I figured I would do a dry-run at home before I setup in an actual emergency. It takes about 3 hours to deploy the portable setup with HF, VHF, and UHF amateur radio and GMRS. So, needless to say, unless it's a multi-day drill or real emergency, I'm not going all out, but it was time for that dry-run. I have a dedicated mast for the homemade 80m/40m/20m/10m OCF dipole, and then an additional mast for the VHF/UHF antenna(s). In these pictures, there is a Yaesu DR-1X and a Icom IC-7300.

Same issue here. Plus, you have to save them one at a time, instead of bulk imports. I suppose I can do that on Chirp, and then upload to ODM, but ot would be a nice feature.

6 negative votes?! That may be a new forum record!

@Slickii yeah, it really is okay to use for ID and I think it's like 10 codes... in that there is an exception to every rule. As long as you are compliant, I wouldn't worry much about anyone else's opinions. All of my repeaters ID with Morse Code. Voice modules are expensive, so I'm not buying one. I know I joke a lot, but in all seriousness, if I had a mobile or handheld radio that could do Morse ID on a timer, I would use it.

Technically, there is only one. Station identification. And there will be one ham radio operator on GMRS who did Morse Code in the Navy back in '47 who will know what he's hearing.

Your Honor, I object!!! My client is being black-balled!

Im not a lawyer, but I play one on the internet.

Better question is, does the FCC care? Honestly, the only reason why I use my call sign is because there is only one person with my call sign, but there are a lot of people on the radio named Marc. Makes it easier for people to call me by call sign instead of saying "hey, Marc "

There is a fire department near me that has a digital RF link between two locations on exactly 462 MHz. They had a really dirty transmitter for months, causing interference with GMRS for about 6 miles around. I was able to find out it was from them and got them to fix it. At first, they swore I didn't know what I was talking about... but a few days later, it was resolved. You may have something similar going on there. I would ask around to see if anyone local to you has a Kraken SDR or is familiar with RF triangulation, to see if you can find it. It may be a matter of just having a convo with the right person to get it resolved.

That's cool. I had no idea you could pair a couple of DB-40G's together. Is that a native feature or are you using some kind of external controller?

I'm not sure I would agree with that. Most modern vehicles don't have a traditional alternator (one that behaves like a generator) that puts out a fixed voltage. The car's computer monitors the battery values, like temperature, voltage, and power utilization, and then adjusts the alternator output voltage based on the needs. For example, if my Jeep sits for a week in the cold of winter and I start it up at night, the use of the lights, heat, radio and other electronics, I will see the voltage as high as 15vdc. On the flip side, the opposite is true if I have been cruising on the highway for hours during the day, in the middle of Spring or Fall, with nothing but the bare essentials to run the vehicle. My alternator will almost completely turn off and my electrical system will run near purely on the battery, with just a trickle charge holding it at about 12.4vdc-12.8vdc. It won't increase the voltage unless the demand draws the battery down. This is relevant to the point that at 12.4vdc, my 50w radio's total system consumption may be about 100w, but at 15vdc it may use 120w. With modern efficiency of radios, that is a variation of somewhere in the neighborhood of 10w transmit power.

Lower than advertised power was one of my complaints with the Rev 1 MXT500. I tested it with a Bird 43, an MFJ 842, the SureComm 102, and eventually a Daiwa CN-901 and if I recall correctly (it's been awhile) they all had the same result, give or take a watt. The Bird was the only one that was professionally calibrated and I just used that as a benchmark for my other meters. After some debate and sharing results, Midland did a full tune-up on my radio and sent it back with a performance test spec sheet that lined up well with my second round of tests. I was pretty happy with the radio and customer service once it was tuned for me.

This is great advice. I really like the BTech and Baofeng HTs and have had great luck with them. On the mobile side, a couple of years ago, I acquired 4 BTech mobile radios. The first 3 didn't make it a whole 3 weeks, combined use. The 4th worked okay, but the screen washed out when the roof and doors were off the Jeep. I sold it to a member here, and last I heard, they were happy with it. With a 75% failure rate, I'm going to wait on trying another one until people are bragging about them like the TD-H3 gets love now.