gman1971

Well, its still a repeater, even it has limitations... I think it can be done, but given the plethora of digital formats and modulations already in existence, throwing one more in the mix might not make much sense... we'll see. G.

You can stick to NXDN if you don't like FHSS... and BTW, you are basically quoting what I've already stated on the other thread you abandoned: There needs to be an open standard for FHSS to work, otherwise it won't make much sense, and at that point its better stick to what you have that works for you. G.

@Lscott There is an FHSS DTR repeater... I don't remember who makes it, but I know at least one exists. Then there is the fact that everything is narrowband, and only things in the 2.4 ISM bands use this type of spread spectrum tech. Not much demand for an FHSS repeater. The repeater would use the two codes like PL tones, one for input, one for output. G.

Only if you are a ham

Agreed, FHSS makes so much sense, IMO, makes you hope they'll do the same for other crowded bands... it will make sharing the airwaves a lot easier too... G.

The "bottom line", or the "bottom of the line"... pick your poison... G.

Absolutely, the CCRs took the market by storm. And back in 2017ish, at 9.95 for a BF-888s with Prime, shipped to your home was a thing... and I bought like 20 of those... which, at the time, If you needed something to get you by, without having to deal with old/used stuff, that was pretty much unbeatable. During that time, most of the stuff worth owning from Motorola was quite expensive too... maybe the XPR6550 was somewhat affordable, but even that was still quite expensive at the time. Well, the same fate that happened to the US companies in the 70s/80s when the Japanese flooded the market with cheaper radios, its happening now to Japanese companies as well... Japanese people nowadays make a lot of money a year too, so the cheap inrush of radio stuff is no more... and Japan is now more like the US in terms of pay, and for any decent radio they make, its priced accordingly... you won't find any NX-5200 for 49.95 + Prime, that is for sure. Uncertain where/how the bottom of the barrel Motorola stands in terms of performance... maybe its worth owning some, at least given the expensive prices of even the CCRs are going for right now. The old Moto stuff if you can find good deals is really hard to beat. Sure, I am not going to argue that it will require some time investment to grasp the CPS and the other stuff that would've came pre-programmed on dedicated GMRS radios... but again, it would also seem that a lot of the people who post here are also radioaficionados too, so having to program a more complex CPS shouldn't be too bad... IMO. Now, for people who are not into radios at all, etc, I wouldn't recommend anything that requires any sort of tinkering.... just get the beers and pretzels Walmart Midland bubble pack and don't look back... I'd still take a Midland over non American brands... even if Midland is ultimately made in China... G.

Price, absolutely. Unfortunately, once their radios start to cope with the best of the best, price will be similar, so it won't be CCR anymore. They can do it b/c you are talking about employees being paid several thousands of dollars a month, vs employees being paid, if that, several thousands a year. So, the cost of living hasn't caught up there, yet, but it will eventually happen, and maybe the Baofengs will still be around, maybe not, but there will be the same thing as Japanese in the 70s-80s... however, I think that was a different situation than what we are in right now. Feels like in the 70s/80s the US failed to embrace the mass producing ideas they put into practice when Japan was rebuilt after WW2... Its hard to compete against someone who steals your tech and packages it and sells it for 1/100th of the price... G.

I would assume the USB drivers for the radio got installed?

@wayoverthereif you need help with XPR codeplugs, just PM me. Cheers. G.

@SshannonI am hoping that "some people" isn't referring to me this time. <....loads vitriol on the reservoir....> LOL.

@WRKC935 These radios are, AFAIK, all direct conversion receivers. So, there should be no first stage like a classical dual conversion superheterodyne. When the external signals exceed the "bandwidth" it has to reduce gain to fit everything within the bandwidth, otherwise you'll hear a cacophony of intermod mess. A tracking filter that would allow for such DC to daylight listening capabilities would be far more expensive that can be fitted on a $9.95 Baofeng (overpriced to cost x5 times that sadly)... The HF ICOM radios that have these type of sweet tracking filters cost like $3500-$13000... so... there is that. You can help these CCRs with a preselector, or a cavity, it will be good enough, but portability and some sensitivity will be lost... so... that is one tradeoff. G.

@axorlov Yes, "Its not a hobby" is certainly not the same as it "wasn't intended to be as a hobby". but then anyone can make a hobby out of anything, as its been stated countless times. Exactly, you certainly don't need to be looking for anyone's approval, or be popular to do whatever you want/need to do, provided its all within the law. Again, the same applies to "intended use". GMRS was intended to "talk to family, friends, or any other GMRS license holder" in the beginning, but nowadays, given the fact that FRS is open to anyone, you can talk to anyone. GMRS is, nowadays, CB on UHF... but that is a different story for another day. G.

Yep, Powerpole is nice, XT60 works too, etc..