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SteveShannon reacted to TrikeRadio in Good report on TD-H3 radios
Bought both of mine in a set… from Amazon. Never had a problem with either.
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SteveShannon reacted to WRKY933 in Baofeng antenna O-rings
The best deal on O-Rings is Harbor Freight. You can get a box of several hundred or so of different sizes for about $7 or $8 bucks. There will be one that will fit the bottom of the antenna. Also equally important is this nifty little trick. The Power/Volume knob is real easy to turn on. It could happen inadvertently while bouncing around in a back pack or go bag and you'll have a dead battery when you need your radio the most. Solution: Pull the Power/Volume knob off. You won't hurt it. It comes straight off. There is a flat index spot for reattaching it. Slip an O-Ring over the collar of the knob and push it back down on the stem so it fits snuggly. It will create a little bit of friction so when you turn the power knob on so it doesn't turn on too easily and preventing your battery to wear down while your radio is in a back pack or go bag.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from WRHS218 in How does DCS comply with Part 95 "No Digital Data" on 467Mhz?
Also 95.377 specifically says tones or other signals:
§ 95.377 Tones and signals.
Personal Radio Service stations that transmit voice emissions may also transmit audible or subaudible tones or other signals for the purpose of selective calling and/or receiver squelch activation. These tones and signals are ancillary to voice communications and are considered to be included within the voice emission types, e.g., A3E, F3E, and G3E.
(a) Tones that are audible (having a frequency higher than 300 Hertz), must last no longer than 15 seconds at one time.
(b) Tones that are subaudible (having a frequency of 300 Hertz or less), may be transmitted continuously during a communication session.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from WRYZ926 in Straight Key to usb adapter and practice software
One of the neatest ways to practice cw appears to be by using VBAND. This video discusses it. It appears that you can practice QSOs against a bot or against other people who use the same program:
They have a pretty simple key to USB interface that makes your keyer appear to be a key on a USB keyboard.
It’s sold here:
https://hamradio.solutions/vband/ and then click on the STORE button.
They also have a wifi interface to a key for use with VBAND. It’s available as a kit or in different states of assembly. It’s called CW Hotline.
I have no experience with these, but I am interested in VBAND and the USB interface.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from WRXB215 in Straight Key to usb adapter and practice software
He briefly discussed connecting to serial port pins, which he does using a USB to serial adapter, beginning at 11:21 in the video.
The same guy has a video on hardware interfacing but it’s specifically for as ASIO sound card. Here’s that video, but I’m not sure that I would recommend it.
I’ll keep looking for something easier.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from Elbowmac in Straight Key to usb adapter and practice software
There are many.
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SteveShannon reacted to WRYZ926 in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
The main reason for using a chassis ground is because of the battery management system AKA BMS. And if you use a chassis ground in the engine compartment then you don't have to worry about insulators or protective coatings, especially if you use a chassis ground that already has a ground wire attached to it.
And this even goes for using battery chargers and battery maintainers. They too tell you not to connect directly to the battery negative terminal. And the reasons are the same - it can cause problems/interfere with the BMS.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from Elbowmac in Straight Key to usb adapter and practice software
He briefly discussed connecting to serial port pins, which he does using a USB to serial adapter, beginning at 11:21 in the video.
The same guy has a video on hardware interfacing but it’s specifically for as ASIO sound card. Here’s that video, but I’m not sure that I would recommend it.
I’ll keep looking for something easier.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from WRYZ926 in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
I am an engineer and I watch tv.
What @WRYZ926 says is exactly right. If you connect any device directly to the battery you bypass any protective electronics that monitor and manage the charging system and battery. 30 years ago that would not have meant much but the under hood electronics are much more sophisticated now and much more susceptible to getting out of whack when something bypasses them.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from TrikeRadio in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
I am an engineer and I watch tv.
What @WRYZ926 says is exactly right. If you connect any device directly to the battery you bypass any protective electronics that monitor and manage the charging system and battery. 30 years ago that would not have meant much but the under hood electronics are much more sophisticated now and much more susceptible to getting out of whack when something bypasses them.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from BoxCar in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
I am an engineer and I watch tv.
What @WRYZ926 says is exactly right. If you connect any device directly to the battery you bypass any protective electronics that monitor and manage the charging system and battery. 30 years ago that would not have meant much but the under hood electronics are much more sophisticated now and much more susceptible to getting out of whack when something bypasses them.
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SteveShannon reacted to nokones in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
Don't run the radio ground/negative lead directly to the battery. Always ground directly to a factory chassis grounding point. The radio manufacturers such as Motorola makes a point in their radio installation instructions where to terminate the radio ground lead and it is not at the battery. You can be rest-assured that their engineers know what they are talking about regarding the proper procedure for grounding the radio and accessories. "Some People" are not Electrical or Automotive Engineers.
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SteveShannon reacted to WRYZ926 in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
That is not advisable nor correct with newer vehicles equipped with the battery management system. You can actually cause problems by attaching accessory ground wires and chargers directly to the negative battery terminal. Always use a good chassis ground no matter if you are wiring up a radio or other stuff and also when connecting a battery charger.
Pretty much all newer vehicles made in the last 5-8 years all have the BMS module on the battery negative terminal. This is what controls how much voltage goes from the alternator to the battery. And you can really mess things up if your vehicle is equipped with the auto start/stop system.
And the 2020 GMC Sierra does have the BMS.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from kirk5056 in CQ on GMRS
Or a different service. FRS and GMRS are both oriented towards families and use by children. The licensing model of GMRS should make that evident.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from kirk5056 in CQ on GMRS
What regulation limits the number of kids per frequency? 😁
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SteveShannon reacted to tcp2525 in Tidradio TD-H8 may no longer be worth buying
You might want to try running the power tune tool from scratch on that radio as there might be a slight out of tolerance component that isn't in the first radio. When in doubt, start fresh.
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SteveShannon reacted to nokones in How does DCS comply with Part 95 "No Digital Data" on 467Mhz?
Why is that? You don't like that rule and/or our government?
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SteveShannon got a reaction from RayDiddio in How does DCS comply with Part 95 "No Digital Data" on 467Mhz?
Also 95.377 specifically says tones or other signals:
§ 95.377 Tones and signals.
Personal Radio Service stations that transmit voice emissions may also transmit audible or subaudible tones or other signals for the purpose of selective calling and/or receiver squelch activation. These tones and signals are ancillary to voice communications and are considered to be included within the voice emission types, e.g., A3E, F3E, and G3E.
(a) Tones that are audible (having a frequency higher than 300 Hertz), must last no longer than 15 seconds at one time.
(b) Tones that are subaudible (having a frequency of 300 Hertz or less), may be transmitted continuously during a communication session.
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SteveShannon reacted to tcp2525 in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
Are you using an external speaker? If so, unplug it and see if there's any change. It's just a long shot.
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SteveShannon got a reaction from WRUE951 in I need a new GMRS radio
No, I have the DJ-MD5XT, which is a dual band ham radio with DMR. It’s nice. I like this Alinco radio but it’s actually a slightly re-engineered (improved) Anytone radio on the inside. I like my Yaesu radios too. My favorite GMRS radios are my Garmin Rhino and my Wouxun KG-805g, but I have no experience with the D-G46T. If it’s like other Alinco radios it will be well thought out.
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SteveShannon reacted to nokones in Best GMRS channel to monitor for traffic
The Arizona GMRS Repeater Club in the Phoenix Sun of the Valley, as a service to the GMRS community, provides traffic and weather information every weekday morning and afternoon commutes on the 462.550 repeater channel every 15 minutes between 0630-0900 & 1630-1830 hours.
More information is available at www.azgmrs.org
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SteveShannon reacted to nokones in KENWOOD TK780H-1
Yes it is a VHF radio. The dash 1 in the model number means the band split is 146-174 MHz and the "H" means it's the high powered 45 watt version and the actual RF output is 49+ watts.
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SteveShannon reacted to Lscott in KENWOOD TK780H-1
Yes. Then it comes in two frequency splits to make it more interesting.
https://two-way.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/TK780-specs.pdf
If the goal was to get a 2M radio for ham it might be ok with the right spilt, 136-162, otherwise the seller is the one who got the steal on the deal.
I always get the manufacturer’s brochure for any radio I’m interested in to double check the specifications first. A few that looked good initially I just forgot about it once I saw the specifications.
The second thing is look up the FCC ID to see what the frequency range is. You can look up the official frequency range on the FCC’s database with the ID. Most sellers show the tags on the radio. If they don’t ask for a photo. A lot of sellers get the description all wrong. If they don’t have the ID’s or photo then forget it. There are some dishonest sellers out there trying to dump basically worthless radios for high prices.
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SteveShannon reacted to WRYZ926 in Midland MXT575 Vehicle Noise
I forgot all about inline noise filters. We use to use them with CB's back in the day.