25w mobile linear

[STTScott]

I have a Baofeng F8-HP V/U handheld that I'll be using as a mobile (vehicle use only, not as a base) with an external V/U antenna. Does anyone know of a recommendable place to order a 25w V/U linear for car use? Yes, I know there are 50w V/U linears, but I don't want to go thru the rigamarole of wiring the thing to my car battery or fuse box (and I live on a Caribbean island, so it's not like we have installers here like on the USA mainland); OTOH, 25w linears commonly have cigarette lighter plug-ins, and I'd be happy just fine with that.

 

The problem I've encountered is a good deal of the 25w linears are either U or V, and a site or two that does have U/Vs have a minumum order of 2 units. So if anyone can point me in a good direction for a quality dual band linear, it would be bigly appreciated.

[BoxCar]

I have a Baofeng F8-HP V/U handheld that I'll be using as a mobile (vehicle use only, not as a base) with an external V/U antenna. Does anyone know of a recommendable place to order a 25w V/U linear for car use? Yes, I know there are 50w V/U linears, but I don't want to go thru the rigamarole of wiring the thing to my car battery or fuse box (and I live on a Caribbean island, so it's not like we have installers here like on the USA mainland); OTOH, 25w linears commonly have cigarette lighter plug-ins, and I'd be happy just fine with that.

 

The problem I've encountered is a good deal of the 25w linears are either U or V, and a site or two that does have U/Vs have a minumum order of 2 units. So if anyone can point me in a good direction for a quality dual band linear, it would be bigly appreciated.

Just pick up a small mobile unit. A 25W unit should be able to use the cigarette lighter socket.

[STTScott]

Just pick up a small mobile unit. A 25W unit should be able to use the cigarette lighter socket.

I've ordered one of those to use as a base unit. But I have an 8w handheld that I intend to use as a mobile unit in the car and the wattage boost from a linear unit would be welcome, so hence my post.

[berkinet]

Unless you know of a specific individual or repeater that you are unable to hit with your handheld, I wouldn’t waste time with an amplifier. And, even then I would suggest you just get a better antenna to start. Power is far less important on UHF, which is essentially line of sight, than on the lower bands, like 11m and longer.

[BoxCar]

Use the HH as a hand-held and put a second mobile in the vehicle. It's really the best as it would allow you to contact someone in the vehicle while you were out and the person i the vehicle could reach out with a higher power radio if needed. You imply you may be doing some type of search and rescue in the event of a disaster, so quit cutting corners and do it better than cobbling a linear to a HH.

[mbrun]

Good Morning STTScott.

 

I occurs to me that you could be an an excellent position to do something for the MyGMRS community here. That is, assuming you do move forward with a linear for your HH in the car. It would be useful to report back your actual range in a given direction with your HH and mobile antenna and HH-Linear-mobile antenna when communicating with the same base location on the same day. Your experience could quantity for others what percentage of distance one might realistically expect to achieve achieve with that extra power, all else remaining equal.

 

Give it some thought.

 

Regards

 

Michael

WRHS965

KE8PLM

 

I've ordered one of those to use as a base unit. But I have an 8w handheld that I intend to use as a mobile unit in the car and the wattage boost from a linear unit would be welcome, so hence my post.

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Radioguy7268]

For goodness sake, IF you're going to amplify a hand-held, you should do it with something that isn't putting out spurious birdies on 3 different frequency bands. That  would be a service to the GMRS (and surrounding) spectral communities.

 

Amplifiers are broadband noise generators. They're going to amplify whatever you put into them, including spurious signals that your $39 CCR is generating. Cheap amplifiers hooked up to a cheap portable are a recipe for disaster. Even a good amplifier hooked up to a CCR is going to be problematic.

 

As others have mentioned - just use a 25 watt mobile with a decent antenna if you want to put out more power. You will spend less in the end, and have a MUCH better solution.

[STTScott]

For goodness sake, IF you're going to amplify a hand-held, you should do it with something that isn't putting out spurious birdies on 3 different frequency bands. That  would be a service to the GMRS (and surrounding) spectral communities.

 

Amplifiers are broadband noise generators. They're going to amplify whatever you put into them, including spurious signals that your $39 CCR is generating. Cheap amplifiers hooked up to a cheap portable are a recipe for disaster. Even a good amplifier hooked up to a CCR is going to be problematic.

 

As others have mentioned - just use a 25 watt mobile with a decent antenna if you want to put out more power. You will spend less in the end, and have a MUCH better solution.

Well, first of all, my dual band CCR didn't cost $39. Second, I have a dual band mobile antenna that isn't the stock rubber duck. Plus really nice base antennas that cover the U/V and U bands. So, is there anything else you'd like to "goodness sake" me about?

[berkinet]

Well, first of all, my dual band CCR didn't cost $39. Second, I have a dual band mobile antenna that isn't the stock rubber duck. Plus really nice base antennas that cover the U/V and U bands. So, is there anything else you'd like to "goodness sake" me about?

It really sounds like you don't want advice as much as you want someone to agree with your plans. So, have fun I've stopped following this thread.

[BoxCar]

There are many dual band 25W mobiles available for both VHF and UHF. The Part 90 mobiles from Motorola are over-engineered for general use but are widely available. For the more casual use you are looking at, a radio designed for business use will give you excellent service. The better ones are from Vertex, Icom and Kenwood. A linear is a bag of worms turning into snakes that will come back to bite you. That's not to say there aren't good linears but those designed and FCC approved would cost you more than a used dual-band LMR mobile.

[SUPERG900]

Unless you know of a specific individual or repeater that you are unable to hit with your handheld, I wouldn’t waste time with an amplifier. And, even then I would suggest you just get a better antenna to start. Power is far less important on UHF, which is essentially line of sight, than on the lower bands, like 11m and longer.

 

This.

 

I have a low hill near my house that somewhat impedes my HT's signal. But - if I hook that little 5 watt HT up to my base station antenna I can easily hit a repeater 25 miles away - cleanly.  Up on the roof - it's a dead line-of-sight to the repeater. 

 

Yep - put the majority of effort into an antenna and you'll be glad you did.

[Lscott]

I have a Baofeng F8-HP V/U handheld that I'll be using as a mobile (vehicle use only, not as a base) with an external V/U antenna. Does anyone know of a recommendable place to order a 25w V/U linear for car use? Yes, I know there are 50w V/U linears, but I don't want to go thru the rigamarole of wiring the thing to my car battery or fuse box (and I live on a Caribbean island, so it's not like we have installers here like on the USA mainland); OTOH, 25w linears commonly have cigarette lighter plug-ins, and I'd be happy just fine with that.

 

The problem I've encountered is a good deal of the 25w linears are either U or V, and a site or two that does have U/Vs have a minumum order of 2 units. So if anyone can point me in a good direction for a quality dual band linear, it would be bigly appreciated.

This is spec’ed for the Ham Bands only.

 

 https://mfjenterprises.com/products/bd-35

 

For wide band use you will likely be stuck using a mono-band amplifier. Some cheap ones are found here.

https://baofengtech.com/product-category/amplifier/

 

You can use a couple of VHF/UHF diplexers, one on the inputs and one on the outputs, to build effectively a dual band amplifier.

 

https://mfjenterprises.com/products/mfj-916b

 

If you’re worried about drawing too much current from an accessory plug just turn the HT’s power output down to limit the amplifier’s output power and thus the current draw.

 

Oh, the amplifiers are not “linear” since most Ham communications on VHF and UHF along with GMRS/FRS uses FM modulation so the amplifiers are designed for “class - C” operation, which is nothing close to linear. This is done to get higher efficiency.

https://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/amplifier/amplifier-classes.html

[gman1971]

Wow, you say you paid 69 dollars for that Bao...?? man, that is bad... sounds like you got ripped off...  I paid 29 bucks for an UV-82FHP (8w) back in 2018...  

 

G.

[IronArcher]

I would echo what some others have said in suggestion a small mobile radio would afford a much cleaner install. Who likes holding on to an HT connected to an external antenna?

It also allows for virtually unlimited use without swapping batteries, or worse, holding on to your HT connected to the coax and power cable.

Yes, you could use a speaker/mike combo but you are still going to have power and coax running to your HT wherever you put it, now add in the wiring, and additional coax and connectors, and it is going to be a lot more hassle than just dropping in a small mobile unit.

Try a cheap 15w head if price is a limiting factor. If/when you are ready to upgrade to a better radio, the connections are right their waiting for you.

Take some of the extra time and effort you would have thrown at installing an amp to run w/your HT, and either run power wires directly to the battery, or at least to a 20a circuit that isn’t being used.

Then you can drop in most any mobile you want to upgrade to with no additional work

[gman1971]

And just to keep gMan comments consistent, here is my daily batwing recommendation, err... Motorolian Empire propaganda...

 

Get an XPR4550 UHF... I think you'll really like that radio.

 

Here is a good one:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorola-XPR4550-Two-Way-Radio-AAM27QPH9LA1AN-403-470-MHz-25-40-WATT-UHF/114491711393?epid=1901496480&hash=item1aa83cdfa1:g:EhwAAOSwNDVfnQra

 

Mic here:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/RMN5052A-Mic-For-Motorola-XPR4300-XPR4300-XPR4500-XPR4550-XPR5550-XiRM8260-radio/124480973478?hash=item1cfba4eaa6:g:p1AAAOSw96Ff0lMp

 

Here is the cable:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Programming-Cable-441-Motorola-MOTOTRBO-XPR4550-XPR4580-XPR5350-PMKN4010B-USB/351924161247?hash=item51f0508adf:g:Kh0AAOxy0rZRFnXY

 

Here is the CPS:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Programming-Disk-CD-For-M-16-0-SL300-XPR7550-XPR4550-XPR6550-CM200D-CP200D-DMR/264975585174?hash=item3db1c68f96:g:YkcAAOSweMZc5GfY

 

That should get you started in the world of Motorola radios... if you need help with the programming send me a PM... I walk you through the basics. There are also a lot of Motorola CPS tutorials on youtube... either way.

 

/End of daily Motorolian Empire propaganda...

 

G.

[n4gix]

Well, first of all, my dual band CCR didn't cost $39. Second, I have a dual band mobile antenna that isn't the stock rubber duck. Plus really nice base antennas that cover the U/V and U bands. So, is there anything else you'd like to "goodness sake" me about?

 

This is a spectral purity test from a typical Bao Feng HT. Note the existence of 1st., 2nd., and 3rd. harmonic 'spurs'. This is what you want to amplify? A properly designed transmitter would have adequate filtration to suppress those spurs almost completely.

[gman1971]

Thank you n4gix... again... sometimes it feels like I am preaching in the desert... nobody cares, all people see is the low price tag and they buy it... (I am cursing at myself now b/c I did the same thing too, dang it)

 

This is a spectral purity test from a typical Bao Feng HT. Note the existence of 1st., 2nd., and 3rd. harmonic 'spurs'. This is what you want to amplify? A properly designed transmitter would have adequate filtration to suppress those spurs almost completely.

 

[jc1240]

Thank you n4gix... again... sometimes it feels like I am preaching in the desert... nobody cares, all people see is the low price tag and they buy it... (I am cursing at myself now b/c I did the same thing too, dang it)

 

The flip side is at those prices, a lot more people can dip their toe in.  When they realize it's for them, they can grow into a better system.  

[AdmiralCochrane]

People need to see comparisons to understand.  Can you show us a Japanese radio as well?

 

 

This is a spectral purity test from a typical Bao Feng HT. Note the existence of 1st., 2nd., and 3rd. harmonic 'spurs'. This is what you want to amplify? A properly designed transmitter would have adequate filtration to suppress those spurs almost completely.

 

 

 

 

[gman1971]

Sure... and produce all kinds of RF noise all over the band while at it too, as clearly shown in n4gix post. Also, the problem doesn't end there, with just the first radio, the problem is that these people come hungry for more... more powerful CCRs, dazzled with screens and lots of useless features that serve no purpose when the radio can't hear its way out of a paper bag, and now we are talking about PAs, just to boost that CCR RF dirty signal up to the wazoo, and lets not forget the fact that the cheap RF PA is also a CCR too, so you get even more spurious garbage on the airwaves... All that is assuming that the FCC tag is even valid... so its not a little "oh, you're using a Part 90 radio on GMRS"... its a flat out illegal radio to use in any band, a radio that should've never been imported to our shores...  and again. Most people seem to have enough money to keep doing things wrong many times over, but never enough to just do things right, once. 

 

It is well known that I am all in for Motorola, as I've found them to be the best price/performance for used gear, but there are other very decent brands out there that will offer excellent performance too, like ICOM, Kenwood, Harris, to name a few... etc. 

 

If you buy a used XPR6550 in good condition you can always sell it for the same you got it for, provided you didn't trash the radio, that is, in the even that radios don't cut it for you. I yet have to find a CCR that you can sell for the same you bought it for... and I've sold a bunch already... people want cheap... that is the sad state of reality...

 

G.

 

 

The flip side is at those prices, a lot more people can dip their toe in.  When they realize it's for them, they can grow into a better system.  

[Radioguy7268]

The flip side is at those prices, a lot more people can dip their toe in.  When they realize it's for them, they can grow into a better system.  

 

The real problem is - they don't realize that for similar prices, they can buy used commercial radios that have 10 times better specs.

[n4gix]

People need to see comparisons to understand.  Can you show us a Japanese radio as well?

Here is the same basic test with a Yaesu FT-1D.  Note that all harmonic spurs are well below the noise floor,  at least 62dB down from the fundamental frequency. This is what is meant by "spectrally pure!"

 

 

[SUPERG900]

All good - but it'd be a much more accurate comparo (to the previous test) if you'd match the receiver and video bandwidths - and the test was done using the same test equipment....

[gman1971]

What kind of backhanded comment is that? All good but...?

 

Seriously dude?, the test is pretty much conclusive, as is, the harmonics are undetectable on the Yaesu, but the CCR not so much...  

 

These results, coupled with ISO-tee measurements of ~15 dBm lower effective sensitivity should be more than enough to make anyone skip these things.

 

 

All good - but it'd be a much more accurate comparo (to the previous test) if you'd match the receiver and video bandwidths - and the test was done using the same test equipment....

[Lscott]

I had a Ham buddy at work that picked up a few of those ultra cheap BF-888S 16 channel UHF "only" radios. Well it he found a code plug hack that would let it work on VHF too.

 

To test it he did a test TX on a Ham 2M frequency in our south building while I monitored it in the north building. Yes it did work. But, this was the big one, I tuned to the third harmonic of the 2M frequency, which put it in the Ham 70cm band. I picked up the signal loud and clear!

 

Needless to say I told him NEVER try to use the radio like that again. The crap coming out of that radio was a interference disaster.  But what the heck, it was a cheap "multi-band" radio where you could talk on several bands all at the same time. A real bargain if you get what I mean.