Citizen

All good information, thanks to everyone that replied. That said, so then how is one to figure out what the identifiers are (for those of us who don't have tools to decode for us)? ...

Is there any way to ask repeater owners to slow down the Morse code identifiers that repeaters send out? I've tried and tried to listen for the codes, but they're all too fast for me to write down and decode. Code sent too fast for me to read and write down is basically useless, unless you have an 'audiographic' memory (made up word, sort of like photographic, but applies to sound rather than vision). I'm just not that gifted. I suppose, that the identifiers are not meant to be read by humans. Maybe there are computers hooked up that can read them, I dunno.... Or maybe it's just an FCC requirement, and no one really cares what the code is being sent, just that it IS being sent. Maybe someone can better explain all this to me. Thanks! ...

Regarding radio wave propagation, I know LOS is most important, and to get true LOS, antenna height is king. Power output is secondary but still is important. That said, something unusual happened a few years back that I have not been able to explain, and which challenges the above dogma. My wife and I spent a few days at Petit Jean Mountain in Arkansas. We stayed in a cabin at the State Park. On one afternoon, I wanted to go hiking, but my wife wanted to stay back in the cabin and make a few calls to relatives. So I took a FRS/GMRS HT with me, and left one with her in the cabin, which was on top of a bluff area. I proceeded on a trail into a deep forested canyon and down to a river to view a waterfall. The strange thing is, and is the bases of my question, is that I was able to talk to her via the HT radios the entire time I was gone. It was basically crystal clear communications. But in no way on earth (literally) was it LOS. LOS would have had to go through solid rock and then a very thick forest. So the question is; how were the radio waves able to get through all that blockage? I don’t think reflection could have propagated so far down a canyon as to get to the bottom (probably a few hundred of feet, not so much, but you can see in the picture how much rock the signal would have to get through, and then I was under a forest canopy). What do you think? ...

I will add TBH to the list, thanks. I did not know what SMH meant, so I just stuck it under 'radio', but now I know so will move it to non-radio for my next update... WTMB (whenever that may be) : ) ...

Ok, good to know. Thanks for the clarification on that. Also, what are some of the way better and more affordable radios? I like the Kenwood TK-8180H, but have a gut feeling it is just as expensive as the MXT400, or more. ...

As time passes, I've collected a few acronyms that I did not know (realizing of course that the pros out there will think these are most basic, but I truly didn't know all of them). Below is a short list that I think could easily appear as a single activity page on the Mobile App, and would be most helpful to beginners like me. Here's what I have as a starting point: Radio Related (obvious ones left out) Acronym - Meaning CCR - Cheap Chinese Radio CSQ - CTCSS - Continuous Tone-Coded Squelch System DCS - Digital Coded Squelch FPP - HT - Hand-held Talkie LMR - Land Mobile Radio NB - Narrow Band OP - Original Poster ORI - Open Repeater Initiative OST - QED - QSO - RX - Receive SAR - Search And Rescue SMH - SWR - Short Wave Radio ?? TX - Transmit WB - Wide Band WX - Weather Common not necessarily radio Acronym - Meaning AFAIK - As far as I know BTW - By The Way IIRC - If I recall correctly IMHO - In my humble opinion IMO - In my opinion OP - Original Poster OTOH On the other hand PCE - Pretty Clever, Eh? WAF - Wife Acceptance Factor WFH - Work From Home YMMV - Your Mileage May Vary Please comment if some of these are wrong, and certainly fill in the missing meanings and add any new acronyms that you think should be on the lists. ...

I have held off buying a high power GMRS to use as a base until I could find more info about them. Leaning toward MXT400 and programming per above (but keeping it GMRS certified), but considering what has been said, am also considering the Kenwood TK-8180H or TK-840HU. However, I cannot find where to buy or even the price of new Kenwood rigs. Tried their site, but prices are hidden. Can't seem to find new equipment on Amazon. Anyone know where is the best place to buy a Kenwood radio (not a car entertainment radio)? Thx. ...

Sorry to beat a dead horse, but the subject of Midland radios being not dual PL tone capable has already been addressed. The MXT400 is split tone capable if programmed to do so. Out of respect for the experts on here who have posted about this several times, and so they won't have to post yet again, please view this thread: https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/1837-midland-gmrs-product-updates/page-3 I have not tried it myself (yet), but to be fair, this option is out there. ...

Just wondering, has anyone ever painted one of those white fiberglass GMRS antenna radomes? The the other pipes coming out of my roof are gray (like a primer color), and I think a white antenna radome would really stand out. So to visually subdue the antenna some, I thought about painting it gray, or at least putting a light coat of primer on it. Question is, would doing so noticeably affect the antenna's performance? Thanks ...

Well, I didn't miss the post, but I surely misunderstood it (I thought it was said the reprogramming was possible, but I didn't pickup that someone had actually done it successfully and tested it). I had read somewhere (either on Midland's site or in the MXT400 manual) that the programming jack on the MXT400 "was not used". Anyway, I didn't realize changing to WB would void the certification. I don't want to do that. I want to stay all legal (that's why I got my license) even though I could probably get away with no license and a non-certified GMRS rig. Thanks for that reply for sure. I am new here and want to learn everything I can and get the best legal setup available to me. ...

So, any update on this? I was thinking of pulling the trigger on a Midland MXT400 to use as a base, but don't want to do it unless I can be sure I can change it to WB and use dual separate (in-out) tones for repeaters. Can anyone report successfully programming this with above mentioned software and cable? I was thinking i would wait for a new version of the MXT4XX with both of the above features, and also with the 10 WX channel scan feature, but no one seems to know when Midland will release such an animal.

I like the idea of an acronym list as it applies to GMRS (or radio in general). As a newbie here, I just found the myGRMS.com mobile app and I think a new page full of the most used radio related acronyms (maybe 20-50) would be really handy as a activity dashboard selection. The page could be display only (therefore easier to program), no need for an update feature in the mobile app, as user updates could be done via the myGRMS.com website. BTW, I really like the mobile app. I just started developing mobile apps this year (have completed only one so far), and so I have great appreciation for what you have done (Rich, I think -- if not, please apply credit to where it is due). (How do you like the way I threw in the "BTW" acronym back there? PCE ...or "Pretty clever, eh?" ...there, I just did it again!). Thomas ... PS - And yes, I'm old enough to have lived listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival on an AM transistor radio.

Great info and write-up, thank you both very much! (I had searched for this topic before posting the question, but didn't see anything on the subject, maybe just didn't do it right). I will get going on this in the next week or so, and report back. Thanks again! ...

Question for homeowners with GMRS base-stations: To run the antenna cable to the roof or attic, do you make a wall penetration through the sheetrock, so to hide the cables inside interior walls? If so, do you not also have to drill through the wall top plate (typically double 2x4's)? Or do you drill a hole in an exterior wall so to run the cable outside, then up the side of the building to the roof? Not pretty, but would work with additional cable length Ether way, you would end up with a rough hole in the wall where the cable enters living space wherever the base-station is. Builder's Square website does show possible wall clean-up solutions using interior finishing plates for low-voltage cables. How best would you solve this? Pictures would be helpful. Thanks ...

Newb questions, but here goes... I am new to GMRS, but have my license (WRHV686), two Midland MXT105s (one base station, one in my truck), and various hand-held units. In my quest for a better base antenna, I know I need more height than what’s available indoors in my house with the mag-mount sitting on a cookie sheet. So I started looking at the roof of my house. It turns out, we have an old (insert major-brand-name-here) parabolic dish satellite TV antenna that is not being used, as we have been through numerous cable/satellite companies, and when our contract expires and we go with another company, the old companies just leaves the old dishes behind on the our roof. Lucky for me. Question-1: When looking for a place to mount a GMRS roof antenna, it occurred to me that I could use the frame-structure of the old dish on my roof as a mount for a GMRS antenna (see photo). I would easily remove the receiver arm portion (just a few bolts), but leave the parabolic reflector on the structure, but then rotate it so that is sits completely horizontal. Once done, it seems the actual parabolic dish (about 24” in diameter and made of metal, I tested it with a magnet), could possibly be used as a ground-plane for a mag-mount instead of a cookie sheet. Is that right? Question-2: Assuming the above is true, would there be any ill-effect because the ground-plane would be slightly parabolic rather than completely flat like a cookie sheet? Thanks in advance for any advice on this. Love myGMRS.com, wish I had found it sooner. ...