SteveShannon

Welcome, James! I hope you enjoy it here.

Here’s a cable loss attenuation chart. M&P 10 mm cable is very close in attentuation to LMR400 (which is also 0.400” diameter). https://www.w4rp.com/ref/coax.html Here’s another: https://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/cable/coaxperf.html I use the M&P 10 mm cable. It’s pretty good. But when I need to make a sharp bend, or if I couldn’t physically fit the diameter, I would get a short jumper of the best smaller diameter cable I could find, something from M&P or Times Microwave, not because of the cable, but because adding additional connectors can quickly add to loss. Better quality cables have better connectors. Never believe that all connectors are the same. Unfortunately,mprice isn’t the only predictor. I really like the M&P EVOlution connectors. I also like the old school silver plated Amphenol connectors.

Winning!

The M&P is 10 mm which is 0.400. You can certainly find smaller diameters. There are lots out there but what you should be looking at is how much loss you can withstand. Smaller diameter cables have higher losses. So, can you shorten the run? Can you get by with a short piece of M&P 7mm Ultraflex but 10 mm everywhere else? Or can you get by losing half of your signal to losses in the cable? Unfortunately there are tradeoffs.

I don’t believe amplifiers are prohibited for GMRS, but good luck finding one that’s part 95e certified.

The KG-1000G plus from Wouxun is very popular with those who have purchased it. Some consider it the best mobile radio specifically built for GMRS. It is certified for GMRS and transmits on GMRS only. But it will also receive a wide array of frequencies between 50 MHz and 985 MHz (not completely inclusive), including 108-179 MHz: https://www.buytwowayradios.com/wouxun-kg-1000g-plus.html You might want an antenna switch as you can switch between a good GMRS antenna and something else for the other bands you want to listen to.

On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I try to join in on a 40 meter net. I usually run at 50 watts on digital modes but I usually turn my radio up to 99 watts output for the net. This past Friday I forgot. I checked in and the net control said I was easy to copy. Another person said I sounded a little weak compared to usual. So I checked my power and discovered that I was running at 10 watts. I had been playing with low power and had forgotten I cranked it down. Certainly, power makes a difference, but far less than people think. Nobody will ever hear the difference between 45 watts and 50 if there are no other changes.

It might be, but honestly it’s hard to generalize. Gain simply means that the power delivered by the radio is more focused in certain directions. If you know where you want to direct your signal that can help, but if you need your signal to be received by a station that is moving around, or much higher or lower in elevation, a low gain antenna can be better.

Several of us also have and enjoy the Radioddity db20g.

Or you have no tones set so you’re hearing everything but without a transmit tone you can’t get in. Or both.

Maybe the problem is the people you’re trying to talk to. The Anytone isn’t a bad radio.

Yes, a spring mounted antenna can sometimes result in choppiness. But picket fencing like Gil mentioned is very common even if an antenna is not spring mounted.

Is it while you’re moving or parked that it’s choppy?

@LScott is a Kenwood aficionado. I think he likes the TK-3170 (corrected).

Most modern radios have a green or blue light that illuminates while a transmission is being received and turns red when you hit the PTT. But I don’t mind a Roger beep. I can completely ignore it.

There are only eight repeater channels and they are pre-programmed into GMRS radios. A repeater channel in this case consists of a transmit frequency (on which your radio transmits to the repeater) and a receive frequency that is 5 MHz lower. If you create additional repeater channels they will use those same frequencies, differing only in tones. If your radio doesn’t automatically do an offset then you would have to program one.

Did you read paragraph where they mentioned rejecting comments suggesting TDMA digital modes for GMRS? It’s pretty clear.

There’s a lot to unpack isn’t there?

For the current regulations for GMRS use this government site: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-95#subpart-E

One thing the government is good at is paperwork.

And that's cited as the reasoning in the FCC Docket where all these decisions were documented: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-344617A1.pdf The FCC was concerned that a user would increase the power on the interstitial channels to exceed the 0.5 watt limit which could interfere with repeater operations:

DIN or Mini DIN? Here’s a mini DIN extender: KENTEK 6 Feet FT Mini DIN8 Extension Cable Cord Connector 28 AWG Molded Serial RS-232 MDIN 8 Pin Male to Female M/F for Peripheral Device https://a.co/d/c339le0

Since you have said that you can talk to a friend using simplex (that’s when you are both transmitting and receiving on the same frequency) it’s obvious that you know how to turn it on and change channels. Yes, an “uplink” tone is the tone you transmit. It’s also the tone the repeater receives. Using the term uplink precisely describes that you are transmitting it and the repeater is receiving it. If the description of the repeater simply said “transmit tone” or “receive tone” then the person using it is sometimes unsure whether they are referring to transmit or receive programmed on the repeater or a users radio. I would challenge you to use your manual to teach yourself the individual steps necessary to set and clear tones. “Tones” are initially confusing, but you’ll learn them in far less time that it would take someone to write step by step instructions for you. Your manual should already show you the steps needed, but here are a few tips that might clear up some confusion: 1. There are lots of terms that refer to exactly the same things. Tones, PL, and CTCSS all refer to exactly the same thing and are used interchangeably to refer to an analog tone, like a single low note played on a synthesizer, that is combined with your voice transmission. When the other radio receives your transmission the tone is removed so you never hear it. 2. DCS, DTCSS, and DPL refer to digital codes that are sometimes used instead of tones. This refers to a binary value that is transmitted in conjunction with your voice, just like a CTCSS tone. To make things slightly more confusing they will sometimes be inverted, but they usually tell you. 3. The reason for tones or codes is to allow a radio to ignore a transmission. If someone is transmitting using a 141.3 Hz tone and your receive tone is set to 100.0 Hz, your radio will not reproduce their transmission. It still receives it; it just doesn’t make it audible. However, if you don’t set a Receive tone, your radio will reproduce everything it receives.

If you have another handheld just set it up to receive on the repeater input frequency and CTCSS. And then go a distance away so you don’t get desensed.

I don’t agree. It doesn’t matter who is being targeted; a channel is being blocked. Interference is interference. Broadcasting and playing music are also violations.