MarkInTampa

According to the president of the GMRS Alliance club that shut down, Carl, the club has around 226 members The club does NOT have it's own repeater system, they were provided site access to a "simulcast multicast system" as club members that was hosted by a un-named "different person or entity's" network along with a few "member repeaters" also part of the network The "custodian" of the simulcast system got the email asking to shut down the network - NOT the club or or any of it's members, although the club president was CC'd on reply to the FCC The email was real - the repeater custodian and the FCC agent that sent the email have a working relationship It sounds to me like the whole network was ran by somebody else - most likely leased from regional business band radio provider with multiple sites. The custodian gets a email from his FCC buddy that said shut it down and he did before they came knocking at the door. I'm sure that GMRS doesn't pay the bills in commercial radio arena and he doesn't need to make a enemy of FCC if they want to say on the good graces of his company's governing authority. At least he got a warning. As far as the FCC wanting a list of call signs that use the repeater, I can kinda see that as well. They were provided site access to a "simulcast multicast system" as club members and the FCC might want to send a warning letter to the users about the situation but I'd think they would get the message once the repeater network is off the air.

FYI - Found this posted in another forum:

I thought about it but was on one of my radios that doesn't do tone scan to find what tone there were on.

I've heard a bunch on FRS and simplex GMRS. A bunch of it has already been listed here... School pickup lines, traffic flagmen, 5 year old kids screaming and holding the call button for minutes on end, tree services, crane operators, the nursery next door to me, etc but these are the ones that stand out so far.... Guy called out to his wife while on the stool - "Next commercial break can you bring me some TP? I'm waiting". A local Gym was using FRS for a bit - until somebody started messing with them. Every time they transmitted, somebody else keyed up with a recording of Cheech and Chong's "Dave's not here" skit Last night was a winner though - a man and woman talking on FRS that thought FRS was wonderful. It couldn't be traced like their cell phone and the guy with the ankle monitor was far enough away as not to violate the terms of the personal protection order and still be able to communicate.

Here's a way to double the scan speed up the 1000G+ if you aren't doing it already. Just use both VFO's in scan mode. Setup at least two scan groups in the radio, assign one group to the "A" VFO and another group to the "B" VFO. Start scanning on one VFO, hit the AREA button on the microphone to switch VFO's then start scan on the other VFO. FYI - I bought the 1000G+ the week they came out for the dual scan feature. I didn't think it worked, if I started scanning on one side, pressed the "Area" button on the radio to switch to the other side to start scanning (as according to the manual), the first area would stop scanning. Randy saw my question about this issue and asked Wouxun about it. There is (or was, don't know) a bug that the radio would do this if you pressed the "Area" button on the radio itself but works fine if you press the "Area" button on the microphone. Don't know if this has been fixed or not. You can also name your scan groups to anything you want but must be done from software - not the radio itself.

If you are reading those frequencies from the radio - they are in the radio. The LCD panel DOES NOT show the frequency the repeater is on (just the channel number) and without the software there really is no way to know what frequency the channel number is programmed for. The software appears to be working fine by looking at your screenshot. If it wasn't communicating with the radio, the "Band", "Serial No" and "FW Version" would not be populated correctly but yours are. The repeater has 16 channels - however once programmed the channel buttons on the repeater will only allow you to choose a channel that has been programmed. If you have 3 channels programmed and enabled, you will only have 3 channels on the radio, not 16. My guess is that the repeater itself isn't working correctly. The last guy I helped with a VXR-7000 in this forum could program the repeater fine but it didn't appear to transmit. When he sent me a screen shot of the back of the radio I saw the problem instantly. Somebody tried jamming a SO-239 connector into the Type-N connector on the radio and the center pin of the connector on the radio was destroyed. One other thing that just came to mind - does your repeater have the built in duplexer option? If it does and it's not tuned correctly for GMRS, it isn't going to receive anything. Try pulling the duplexer and see if it receives then. Don't go by the software option to see if the duplexer is installed as it means nothing to the repeater - It's basically a optional note field for a tech. You can usually check if it has the internal duplexer by looking for it through the vent holes, remove the cover, if you only have one antenna connection on the back of the radio or if one of the antenna connections is capped off.

What led's are lit on the front of the repeater when not connected to the computer?

It showed something, just don't remember what. In doing a quick search on the web, folks say one of the two things fix it. First, make sure you are using the proper com port. In Windows, bring up device manager with the radio and cable unplugged, expand the "Ports (COM&LPT)" field, plug in the radio and cable and see what com port the cable is using. It should pop up in device manager in real time if installed correctly. You can change the com port in the VXR-7000 software by clicking "File" on the top left of the screen and then configure to match the correct com port. Second, it's been reported that folks using older versions of the Vertex software have this issue and issues went away with the latest (last) version. In the Vertex software, click on "Help" on the top of the screen and then "About CE-27". Make sure you are using version 1.08. If you not, drop me a note and I'll send you over a copy. I do believe I had to unplug the programming cable from the repeater after programming for it to work otherwise the radio stayed in programming mode. You might try that as well. I still have the software and saved config files on my computer from when I set it up last year and going by memory, but good luck!

The VXR-7000 alpha display just displays the ANI of a radio, if you don't have a radio setup for ANI it's not going to do/display anything except repeater error codes. If you are trying to test it, when trying to key the repeater just look to see if the TX led is lit showing it's transmitting. When I tested mine without a duplexer I hooked an antenna up to the TX antenna port (didn't want to run the radio TX without an antenna or dummy load) and no antenna on the HT at low power used to test it with and nothing connected to the RX antenna since I was sitting right next to the repeater. I got a killer deal on it ($100) but didn't have tower height or will to run my own repeater so I donated it to a local guy who wanted it that had and existing repeater that needed to be replaced.

Are you able to read data from the radio? (rule out something like the wrong com port or bad com port drivers) If so, a few things to keep in mind on the VXR-7000 1st) If you can read the radio and it shows Rx Freq in the 150-170MHz range, you have the VHF version and not the UHF version of the repeater and won't work on GMRS. 2nd) Modify the program startup for dealer mode by adding a -d to the end of the program to enable dealer mode (ie "C:\Vertex Standard\CE27 for Windows\CE27Win.exe" -d"). This will allow you to change the CW-ID of the repeater if you are going to use it. 3rd) Most GMRS repeaters run in wide band. Due to FCC narrow band mandates after 2003 the software forces you into narrowband (you will get a warning when starting the software). Change the clock on the PC to 2002 (make sure to disable clock auto set) and you can enable wideband. Below is a screen shot of one I picked up awhile back and donated. I setup the first 14 channels for every option I though he might need (Channel 1 CTCSS 77, Wideband, Hi Power - Channel 2 same but low power, Channel 3 narrow band, etc). Channel 15 and 16 are on the next channel up and down for testing. Then printed out the config and taped it to the top of the repeater.

It's actually a 2" or 2.5" (can't remember) aluminum 35ft sectional flag pole. I thought by clamping it to the side of the house it should be able to handle the wind load of the antenna without much of a issue without guy wires. The mast is located directly behind my radio and during high winds I could hear it creaking a bit and it swayed a bit more that I wanted. It was really bad when I had the GP-9 on it. I guyed it with some outdoor rated paracord from DX Engineering and it's been great since then. It's pretty easy to put up or take down (one man job), just loosen the clamp on the house and remove/add sections.

All my measurements above were done with 50ft of LMR400 cable and the antenna up 30ft for what it's worth.

The GP-6NC is tuned about as good as it gets for GMRS. SWR of 1.02 at 462.5MHz and 1.05 at 467.5MHz. Also usable across most of the 70cm band. I've also got a GP-9NC but was disappointed with it. It worked a bit better in the VHF bands but a bit worse on UHF. Don't know if its my terrain, height of antenna (30ft), big oak tree near the antenna or what so put the GP-6NC back as UHF is a bit more important to me than VHF. Here's a sweep of the GP-6NC from 430MHz to 470MHz:

Here's a sweep I just did on the GP-6NC per your request...

Here's a quick rundown of repeaters I know of in the area. Is there something on 650 in your area? Pasco has a repeater node on that frequency but it's a really low powered station. 550 maybe? - Clearwater is on that frequency, not sure if you are far enough away though 575 forget it! - Tampa 575 will stomp it 600 maybe? Tampa 600 is on it, but not quite as powerful as the 575 and 675 repeaters are but still pretty strong 625 nope - Spring Hill and is somewhat local to you 650 probably you best choice. There is a monster repeater in Sarasota on this frequency but you are more than far enough away. There might be something else on this near you, I'm 35 miles south and don't know what is around you for sure 675 nope - The new Tampa Bayshore repeater is another monster repeater in the area 700 most likely nope - nothing GMRS is on here but there is an illegal encrypted DMR repeater running on this frequency that has drove anybody trying to do a GMRS repeater away to another frequency 725 maybe? - but you said something is causing interference on this frequency Most of these repeaters except Sarasota sit right between me and you. I can even tell you the height of the antenna and what they are using for a repeater for the most part if you want to know.

Both my Comet GP-6 and GP-9 manuals show a loop at the base of the antenna. I don't know why but I put them in because the instructions showed to do so.

Not sure if this helps (don't have that exact radio) but there is new firmware as of April 8 that allows limits in band scanning (Menu 56). Update the firmware if it's not there.

I don't have good luck with GMRS repeaters north of Tampa for the most part due to the terrain between me (in Brandon area) and to the north. I can hit the Spring Hill 625 machine (37 miles north) but it hits me noisy around S-2. The Cortez (Bradenton, around 39 miles south) on the same frequency but different tone hits me around S-5 and I've never heard interference between the two and can operate both since they are on different tones. The 725 machines not so much since they are on the same tone. It seems like folks around here really like using 141.3 tone if its a open public repeater and I get that - it's just kinda overused and prone to interference of other repeaters. That's the main reason I'd suggest something other than 141.3 or DCS 546. Bartow has a really strong machine and covers most of Polk county. It doesn't make it much past Brandon unless your on a rooftop in downtown Tampa (I've heard it!). You are far enough away that I don't think it would be a issue. Funny story on 725 - A few months ago there was a decent band opening, nobody was using the Seminole or Bartow repeaters and I was getting Perry full scale 165 miles away and checked into their net. Of course I heard at least 3 repeaters on the same frequency and tone I was keying up at the same time so I kept it short.

I'm around 35 miles south of you - far enough to not get quite the same GMRS traffic as you but close enough to have a feel for the area. 725 would but a decent channel for your area but make sure you are NOT using 141.3 as a tone. I sit between two of the area 725 repeaters, the Bartow repeater - Polk Co's strongest repeater up 400ft around 35 miles east of me (and 60 miles south of you) and the Seminole repeater up around 60ft last I heard around 35 miles west of me (the one 45 miles south of you, since the antenna isn't up very high it's probably why you can't hit it). The two repeaters are 60 miles from each other and both run 141.3 as a tone. Normally the two repeaters don't interfere with each other unless someone like me forgets to turn off high power that sits between the two and key both up at the same time. Bartow hits me full scale, Seminole is just above the noise floor (height is might!) so if I run low power I "usually" don't key the Seminole repeater and cause interference. The same can be said of Bartow, if somebody in Manatee Co is using the Seminole repeater they also key the Bartow repeater with noise and everybody get upset on that repeater thinking somebody is causing intentional interference. This happens a few times a month and usually with just a handful of users that sit in-between the two repeaters. If there is a decent band opening, the Perry 725 repeater (also on the same tone and up 400ft) can also be added to the mix and is a really strong repeater. If the repeaters were on a different tones it probably would not be a issue. Also, the Tampa 575 repeater (the strongest repeater in the Tampa area) has an alternate input of 467.725 with a DCS tone but I don't think that will give you any problems as long as you are not using a DCS tone of 546.

My guess is that you are picking up the WRXU693 repeater in Pace (Wallace) FL area, around 20 miles from you if it's on 462.650MHz. It's part of a linked GMRS network with 7 repeaters mostly in the Mobile area near the AL/FL line and is also running on the GMRS Live and Roadkill network. See this post for a bit more info:

Check out the Polk Co (Bartow repeater) net on Tuesday's at 7:00pm. It started a few months ago and there are usually 30-40 folks that check in a week.

I tend to think of how Wouxun compares to the others is how you want to use the radio. For a program and forget it's hard to beat a Motorola or other commercial radios but for the most part they don't do what a KG-1000g does nor were they designed to. Things like tone scan, program from the radio itself, listen to VHF, dual VFO/Scan or airband and such that a KG-1000 does do. I got a KG-1000g+ the week they came out and to me is was an attempt of Wouxun to clone or emulate a Yaesu/Icom style Ham radio for the GMRS market, not a commercial style radio and they did a fair job at it. It missed a few things that a Yaesu FTM series or Icom ID series have but may not be important to you. The Yaesu and Icom both have two button access to drop a channel from scan for 5 minutes and the Wouxun doesn't. A feature I like if there is a bunch of garbage on one frequency when scanning. The Wouxun scan speed also sucked - at least 75% slower than my Icom or Yaesu but did work fine. Again, not a issue if you are only scanning a few frequencies but it was definitely noticeable. The digital volume was also a bit annoying on the KG-1000, at the lowest volume setting of 1 when used as a base station the volume could be heard in the other room (annoying the wife) so had to use the speaker in the mic at night. In a mobile situation I doubt you would ever notice. My Icom and Yaesu doesn't have that issue. I sold off my KG-1000g+ after getting my ham license and it's now on its third owner. The second sold it off after getting something different as well. I lost maybe $25 after original purchase and the second owner sold it for the same he paid me for it. So at least it holds it's value.

My Comet GP-6NC was labeled that way. The package said GP-6 witch a NC sticker added to the end of it. The standard (2m/70cm ham) GP-6 has SO-239 connectors and the GMRS/MURS version has a type-N connector.

I talked to a couple of county code enforcement guys at lunch about putting up a 30-40ft tower for ham use and if I needed a permit a month or two ago. They told me that if it has a concrete foundation, technically it needs a permit. It didn't matter if it was ham or not. One of them also told me in 25 years he has never checked permitting or gigged anybody for a small tower so take that for what it's worth. I'd guess it depends on how anal your code enforcement is where you live.

One of our local repeaters has two input frequencies do to occasional interference on the primary. A few weeks ago they put a high-low beep on end of transmission on one input and a low-high beep on the other so he could figure out what input was being used. It's still causing a bit of chaos, users blaming other users of have their roger beep turned or thinking their own roger beep is turned on. What's even funnier is if they do have a roger beep enabled, then you hear at least 3 tones at the end of each transmission. It's finally calmed down a bit - instead of of ten folks a a day asking what the tones are it's down to one or two.