wrtq652

Well played M1chael ?. WRQI685 welcome aboard mygmrs.com! Let us all know when you go from Guest to Member! -VVRTQ652 (wrtq652) Everyone typos some times ?

I can see from the post above a Standing Wave Ratio (SWR) meter wasn't available at the time and checking the SWR was suggested. It would be worth taking a look at the SWR when a meter becomes available. I'm curious to know if anyone is checking the Standing Wave Ratio (SWR) between the BTECH-U25 AMP and the antenna after swapping the feed line from the handheld to the BTECH-U25? Having an antenna with a low SWR would allow the most output power to be sent through the antenna. I'm curious as to what reflected power the BTECH-U25 is able to handle and if it has any protection circuitry built into it, for example to reduce the output power if the reflected power at the transmitter is too high. It's reasonable to say a high reflected power for a handheld is going to be under 5 watts, as we go up in power closer to 40W, the reflected power of a poor SWR match may be enough to damage the amplifier. A properly matched antenna/feed line is going to be important as the wattage increases so the reflected power will not damage the finals of the amplifier. (Also be sure the SWR meter in use is rated for the GMRS band (~462MHz - ~468MHz) / (UHF)). A good description of safe ranges for radios SWRs is posted on the CB World website. The article describes best practices for SWR common to antennas. SWR 1.0-1.5: The ideal range! SWR 1.5 - 1.9: There's room for improvement, but SWR in this range should still provide adequate performance. SWR 2.0 - 2.4: While not good, this likely won't damage your radio with casual use. SWR 2.5 - 2.9: Performance in this range will be noticeably decreased, and you might even damage your radio if you transmit frequently and for extended periods. SWR 3.0+: Performance will be severely affected, and you're likely to damage your radio with extended transmission use. The second item worth mentioning is having a stable input voltage and power delivery for the amplifier power supply. The BTECH website lists the power draw at "13.8 VDC (±15%), 5.5 A maximum" (BTECH, 2022), another test indicates 13.6V 30A power supply was just under 6A (Miklor, 2022). Two of the most common problems with installing radios and amplifiers are SWR and proper power supply voltage (Shannon, 2022). Testing the voltage at the power supply to the amplifier to be sure it's receiving the proper voltage at 13.8 volts would allow the amplifier to deliver the most power to the transmitted signal. There's a good discussion of the input voltage to the radio, related to a different transmitter, and how a 3.5volt to 4 volt drop was seen when transmitting at the radio/amplifier side of the connection contributing to undesirable transmitting results (Spatz, 2022). A direct to battery connection would make it more likely the amplifier is operating at the correct voltage, at least the power connection would be isolated to power draw from the amplifier. A fused power connection directly to the battery and into the passenger compartment or to where the BTECH-U25 amplifier is located would be ideal. The connection to the battery could have a cigarette lighter input adapter attached to it, to make the install of the BTECH-U25 easier to plug in or move to another location. Thanks @WRVG593 for sharing your install story and I wish you the best in getting the BTECH-U25 installed. Keep us updated if you decide to move the amplifier again and how it all works out for you! I'm curious to know how the 2nd choice for the install location works out if you decide to go that route? References: BTECH AMP-U25 UHF analog amplifier. BaoFeng Radios. (2022, December 12). Retrieved December 19, 2022, from https://baofengtech.com/product/amp-u25/ CB World. (n.d.). What is SWR and why is it SO important? . CB World. Retrieved December 19, 2022, from https://www.wearecb.com/what-is-swr.html Miklor, J. (n.d.). Review btech power amp. Miklor. Retrieved December 19, 2022, from https://www.miklor.com/COM/Review_DMR-Amps.php Shannon, S. (2022, December 19). KG-XS20G Plus problem. myGMRS.com Forums. Retrieved December 20, 2022, from https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/4932-kg-xs20g-plus-problem/#comment-48811 Spatz, M. (2022, December 19). KG-XS20G Plus problem. myGMRS.com Forums. Retrieved December 20, 2022, from https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/4932-kg-xs20g-plus-problem/#comment-48819

(*as root of course, it looks like you're already sudoed as root from your first post)

@briancs give this format at try: asterisk -rx "rpt fun 25312 *3177" You should be able to copy and paste the above, just be sure the " 's come in as the proper " 's and not some strange UTF-8 replacements. The 25312 node can be seen on the mygmrs network page and it's uptime, so it's connected into the network.

Conspicuously lacking was the number of stickers seen (which was few, and a positive, non-zero and undisclosed number at the time of this posting). ?

In a recent discussion started by @Lscott about VHF and MURS service, I mentioned "oval stickers on automobiles" for calling other vehicles on the road (link below), which led me to create this post. Does anyone have a GMRS or 462.XXX oval on their automobile for the purpose of having other GMRS licensees call you on the calling channel? Often enough, I see the "146.52" oval stickers or magnets on a few vehicles in the Greater Seattle Area (Washington) and the Greater Silicon Valley Area (California). The 146.52 FM Simplex frequency is calling channel for the amateur radio 2 meter band and the operators often can be called on 146.52 (FM) simplex and are up for chatting with other amateur radio operators. There is large online oval sticker and t-shirt shop which will press your logo onto nearly anything and have a few of the magnetic ovals for “monitoring 146.520 simplex” and the classic “146.52" oval sticker and oval magnet. “Looks great on a car boot [trunk]“, said at least one well respected radio operator. Where's this going? This is a GMRS forum you might be wondering?... There are a few "GMRS" oval stickers available on websites, just like the "146.52" ovals. Of course there are also a few “GMRS” magnet ovals too. ...and a few “monitoring FRS CH-07" decals. Or maybe you can add a custom “monitoring 462.675 CTCSS 141.3 simplex” or “462.675" oval sticker / oval magnet to the back of your vehicle? With many channels of goodness to choose from, you can decide what comes after the dot*. Questions for our thread: Would you or do you wear a "GMRS" oval on your automobile? Would you reply to a call on the GMRS channel or frequency for the GMRS oval attached to your vehicle and chat with other GMRS radio people who you don't yet know? Link to related post comment:

I have seen "146.52" oval stickers on automobiles on I-5 while driving between California and Washington a few years back. The auto's with the sticker have been heard replying to other stations who called them. Is this the new way to let others know about inter-vehicle communications? You decide. Generally it sounds like a citizen's band call out almost, "Hey chartreuse micro-bus with the one forty six dot five two oh sticker, this is your_callsign_here, how copy" or "Hey vehicle behind the red pickup truck with the one forty six dot five two oh [146.520] sticker, this is your_callsign_here, do you copy?". The occasional "seek you, seek you, seek you, this is your_callsign_here" have been heard, without reply. It seems more successful to call the vehicle directly like a "see bee er" as above or just "your_callsign_here", listen, "your_callsign_here". The Summits On The Air (SOTA) amateur radio people are often heard searching around simplex, 146.52 FM, in the summer in Washington, west side of the Cascades and they often reply quickly.

Hi @OffRoaderX, If your question is actually "How do I get drivers for my radio software to run on Windows 11 emulated in Parallels on MacOS with M1 hardware?", then you might be in for a bit of trial and error and I'm excited to know what you or someone else in our group can find! If I read your question slightly differently, as "How do I get radio software which only runs on Windows (7/8/9/10/11) to work with drivers for radio software to run on may MacOS M1?" I may have an alternate solution from the open source emulation community. I'm also curious, are you using the Windows 11 ARM preview or the x86 version of Windows 11 inside the Parallels Virtual Machine (VM) environment? Issues with driver versions and binary compatability If you're runing the ARM version of Windows 11, it stands to reason you'd need an ARM version of the driver. If you're running an x86 version of Windows 11, its stands to reason you'd need an x86 version of the driver. Trying an alternate solution: For the alternate solution, have you considered using UTM (https://mac.getutm.app/) for the emulator on the M1 mac? It uses QEMU under the covers which emulates x86 on the M1 ARMs. Is the parallels solution going thorugh Rosetta as a translator? That may be a good question to help perform a situation apprasial on if the problem is driver related, guest operating system related, or x86 driver on ARM related. According to Parallels, "To run Windows 11 and its applications on a Mac with Apple M Series Chip, you need to install Windows 11 on ARM that can run the majority of Intel-based Windows 11 applications by using a built-in emulator." (Parallels, 2022) I could see where an x86 driver might not operate on the ARM version of Windows 11. If the goal is, "programming radios with Windows based software running on a Windows based Guest OS, on a MacOS host OS, running on Apple M1 hardware", the UTM approach may better meet your needs. I've come across lots of issues with the cables on certain radios, for example the cable for the Radioddity DB-20G on Windows 11 has well documented driver issues, there is a developers version of Windows (10 day temporary license for x86 version of Windows 7, 8, 10 that may be of use) if you need that magical version of the prolific driver on x86 or if you need a version of windows old enough to run the driver you are using to temporaily identify the problem on. There have been some issues where an older prolific driver may work, this is only known to work on x86 versions of Windows 7,8,9,10 (Duffy, 2022) If you choose the alternate solution, or have any successes with the path you've chosen I'd like to hear about it! Good luck! References: Parallels. (n.d.). KB parallels: About parallels desktop for mac with Apple M Series Chip. Virtual machines created on Intel-based Mac computers have that is fundamentally . Retrieved November 19, 2022, from https://kb.parallels.com/125343 Duffy, O. (n.d.). Prolific PL-2303 problems. Retrieved November 19, 2022, from https://owenduffy.net/software/ATB/PL2303.htm

Agreed there, now is the time of year I've picked up a number of radios, the DB-20G is a reasonable priced radio that works well for the feature set.

@WRUG861 Curious to know if this is the RT97S or the RT97 (no DB-9 serial port on the RT97) and if you have plans to link it via the mygmrs.com VoIP network?

@MichaelLAX Exactly, on the DB-20G we get a handful of repeater channels and they are customizable (CTCSS/DCS for RX and TX, maybe a few other features, I'd have to check the manual again). A user must decide between deleting a channel or changing the CTCSS/DCS code if the repeaters in the user's area exceed the number of customizable channels. In our case, repeaters have overlapping frequencies, but some have different tones. On the DB-20G mobile and on the Wouxn KG-935G HT changing a CTCSS tone is easier than reprogrammnig a frequency from the faceplate. Thank you for the comment on the DB-20G mobile, it is accurate in that it supports a few programmable channels which can be used for both TX and RX. The other channels in the radio are also "customizable", however, they are receive only channels, which returns us to the "customizable channels" for transmit channels as described above. All: One other item about the Wouxn KG-935G HT style radio which may be of value is it supports a removable reverse-SMA connection for the antenna. Using an adapter, this can be connected to standard PL-259 "UHF" connector for use with an external antenna, for example on a vehicle. If you're looking for a way to reduce costs and have definately decided on an HT, having the removable antenna increases the flexibility of the Wouxon KG-935G for use as a mobile radio. It still only puts out 5 watts max power, however, I'm sure most of us would agree 5 watts on an antenna external to the automobile, is far better than 5 watts inside the automobile on a much smaller antenna.

For HTs I'm using the Wouxn ("ocean") KG-935G. It has good audio, programming software that works and it's also easy to configure from the faceplate of the radio. The audio is reasonably loud and clear. Battery is removable and rechargeable and charging cradles are available if preferred. I selected this model because the CTCSS and DCS are programmable from the faceplate easily and it would make it easier to use if the memories were restricted like on the Radioddity DB-20G mobile radio (8 repeater channels for transmit / receive only). Overall a great HT for the price. Cons would be it's a little bulkier than other HT options (slightly larger external dimensions).

Agreed the PSRG system works extremely well in the Seattle area. Worth taking a look at.

Great answers thus far and spot on technically by LSCOTT. The location on the passenger side hood is a reasonable compromise if you're constantly dealing with low overhead entries (parking garages). Ideally the roof location and securing with tape inside the the rain channel of the door would both secure the cable and provide a better signal in most cases. It there is a roof rack crossbar on the roof (especially if metal), it might be best to keep the base of the antenna above it or the antenna a bit of away from the crossbar. Most antenna installs are some sort of compromise between the ideal engineering location, asthetics, cabling, and not knocking it off the roof everyday. (I might have missed one there, the keyword is compromise, do what works to get you heard clearly and on the air would be the best advice I received yet.). Overall, both installs on the passenger side hood look nice. Thanks for sharing the photos, let us know which one works better for you in that location (the Tram whip? or the "stealth/lower profile" antenna install).

Hi Mike/WRUZ733, It looks like you're on the right track for configuring the WQPL257: Winchester, Frederick, VA repeater (https://www.mygmrs.com/repeater/4076) ! Great news that the +5MHz is already configured on the repeater channels for the Midland MXT275 radio, it sounds like that part is configured correctly. The next step would be to set what Midland calls the "tC - Transmit Privacy Tone/Code": Setting the transmit tone / code: On page 19 of the manual from the above post there's this item for the repeater channels: "tC - Transmit Privacy Tone/Code - Use this option to set the transmitter privacy code on repeater channels." in that sub-menu selecting "Ct" should enable the CTCSS transmit tones for the repeater (if it was DCS codes the setting would be dC). Updating the "tC - Transmit Privacy Tone/Code" should transmit the code on the repeater input frequency and the repeater would be expected to open the squelch setting on the repeater, resulting in your transmission being heard on the repeater output frequency. As Mike (BoxCar) mentioned, the receive code can be configured to off and that's likely the most desirable setting, especially during initial setup. Setting the receive tone / code: To configure the receive DCS code / receive CTCSS to off: On page 19 of the manual from the above post there's an item for the repeater channels: "rC - Receive Privacy Tone/Code - Use this option to set the receiver privacy code on repeater channels." in that sub-menu selecting "OF" should disable the need to receive a tone on the Midland MXT275 radio, effectively this opens the receive signal on the Midland radio to hear everything on the repeater output frequency. (In the event the repeater does not transmit a CTCSS tone/DCS code or transmits a different tone/code on the output frequency the Midland radio will be able to hear everyone on the output frequency of the repeater by configuring the receive code (rC) to off (OF)). It might take a moment for the repeater to "hear" the tone or code, so try holding down transmit for a second or two (or a "one-thousand-one" count) before speaking. It's possible the settings may need to be updated on the mygmrs page or have been updated on the repeater, and if that's the case it's often a bit of trial and error on the tone or code setting to get things working. You're almost there and are surely likely to have the radio working to full potential soon! Reaching out to the repeater owner via the "request access" button on the mygmrs.com repeater page link might be a good place to ask if the repeater tone / code has changed recently once all the above settings have been tuned. The only settings left to be tuned are the "tC Transmit Privacy Tone/Code" settings and opening the "rC Receive Privacy Tone/Code" settings on the radio. Once that's done you should be on the air! Good luck! -Mark / WRTQ652