WRCN926's GMRS Collection

[revclstoner]

These are the radios that I have in use for GMRS, from left to right:

From left to right:

BTECH GMRS-V1 (just got it today)

Kenwood TK-372G (Bought this at a flash sale)

Motorola XTS3000 (bought this a week before Christmas; has a tuned GMRS antenna which is shorter than the stock antenna; I do realize that this is a Part 90 radio)

[kidphc]

Just got my gmrs-v1 pretty happy with it thus far. Well at least compared to my Uv-r50.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

[kidphc]

Just got my gmrs-v1 pretty happy with it thus far. Well at least compared to my Uv-r50.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

I guess I should add will we see your opinion/comparision on the quality, reception and usage of you fleet?

[revclstoner]

I guess I should add will we see your opinion/comparision on the quality, reception and usage of you fleet?

 

I've had the XTS3000 for a while.  I purchased a tuned GMRS antenna for it a couple of weeks; I am very impressed with the combination of the antenna and the radio.  I purchased the Kenwood TK372G from a GMRS group on Facebook (one of the users had a flash sale).  It's smaller than the XTS3000; it is a solid radio.  The GMRS-V1 is a feature-packed radio; it has a built-in conventional scanner (I monitor the local ham repeaters).  It also has a built-in FM radio and flashlight.  I think it transmits at .5w low power and 2 w high power; it has all 22 GMRS channels.  

 

I did a quick audio test; the XTS3000 has great audio, but so does the Kenwood TK372G and the GMRS-V1.  I'll do another audio test and report my findings this evening.

[kidphc]

Is the Motorola your go to radio or does the size kinda put it the number 2 spot?

 

Pretty much finished programming the 2x GMRS-v1 I have.

Even with a 6.5" counterpoise antennas (and without) on them they aren't as clear or loud as the QuanSheng UV-R50 ( Baofeng UV5R clone). I've swapped the Nagoya Na-771 and Nagoya NA-701c between the two radios and the QuanSheng sounds better. No range test on them either. Not a Ham yet so the UV-R50 is pretty much receive mode only radio for me. The build on the GMRS-v1 feels sturdier then the Quansheng, not like it matters they are all cheap radios and the UV-R50 won't see action for a while.

 

Should be interesting to see whom performs the best. An expensive American radio, expensive Japanese radio or a cheap Chinese radio. Obviously, all three could of have been made in China.

[revclstoner]

Is the Motorola your go to radio or does the size kinda put it the number 2 spot?

 

Pretty much finished programming the 2x GMRS-v1 I have.

Even with a 6.5" counterpoise antennas (and without) on them they aren't as clear or loud as the QuanSheng UV-R50 ( Baofeng UV5R clone). I've swapped the Nagoya Na-771 and Nagoya NA-701c between the two radios and the QuanSheng sounds better. No range test on them either. Not a Ham yet so the UV-R50 is pretty much receive mode only radio for me. The build on the GMRS-v1 feels sturdier then the Quansheng, not like it matters they are all cheap radios and the UV-R50 won't see action for a while.

 

Should be interesting to see whom performs the best. An expensive American radio, expensive Japanese radio or a cheap Chinese radio. Obviously, all three could of have been made in China.

 

The Motorola is my "go-to" radio.  Due to its transmitting power (max. 4 w) and the tuned antenna, I use this radio the most.  The GMRS-V1 comes next as it is repeater compatible and has extra features.  The Kenwood TK372G comes last.

[revclstoner]

I guess I should add will we see your opinion/comparision on the quality, reception and usage of you fleet?

 

I recently looked at the FCC part notes for the GMRS-V1.  At the time of this post, I was unable to access the FCC OET Authorization Search page.  But, I was able to access another page with information on this radio (https://fccid.io/2AGND-GMRS-V1).  

 

I see that this radio uses the 15K5F3E emission rather than the traditional 16K0F3E or legacy 20K0F3E on the 462 MHz frequencies.  This radio also uses the same 15K5F3E emission on the 467 MHz frequencies rather than the 11K0F3E emission.

 

And, take note of the power output on these frequencies.

[coryb27]

I recently looked at the FCC part notes for the GMRS-V1.  At the time of this post, I was unable to access the FCC OET Authorization Search page.  But, I was able to access another page with information on this radio (https://fccid.io/2AGND-GMRS-V1).  

 

I see that this radio uses the 15K5F3E emission rather than the traditional 16K0F3E or legacy 20K0F3E on the 462 MHz frequencies.  This radio also uses the same 15K5F3E emission on the 467 MHz frequencies rather than the 11K0F3E emission.

 

And, take note of the power output on these frequencies.

 

Quietly moving us to narrow band....

[WRAF213]

A 16K0 mask is pretty typical for 5 kHz deviation, 300-3125 Hz modulated frequencies (see Carson's rule). There's probably a strong lowpass keeping modulated audio in that range, allowing a 16K0 mask. It's not narrowbanding, it's just muffled audio. Some manufacturers either fudge the numbers or obtain rather arbitrary numbers from testing (for an extreme example, look at the BF-888S) instead of using the commonly accepted emission masks for the modulations supported by the radio.

 

 

I use an XTS3000 and XTS5000 myself, with AGC enabled. I wouldn't call the audio 'nice', but it remains clearly intelligible in all environments. The additional audio controls on the XTS5000 do make a difference. Being able to run full duplex with both radios on the hip is a nice touch.