Wouxun KG-1000G Actual Power Output

[BoxCar]

No such place to install a control head in my Discovery. I'll probably have to put it on top of the dash with the radio body in the cargo area.

[donniefitz2]

Discovery 1 or 2?

[wayoverthere]

15 hours ago, BoxCar said:

No such place to install a control head in my Discovery. I'll probably have to put it on top of the dash with the radio body in the cargo area.

would something like these work?  i'm running a Panavise bracket similar to that to hold the Icom control head in my truck (which has basically no free dash space for mounting).

(same link as above, just in the clear: https://www.co-star.co.uk/products/dashmount-brackets/land-rover/ )

alternately, Proclip and Lido both make pretty universal seat bolt mounts, either hinged arms or gooseneck.

[BoxCar]

7 hours ago, wayoverthere said:

would something like these work? 

None of these would work. It's a 2019 HSE. I've looked at the Lidos and the only one that could be acceptable is the cup mount but not with two people in the car.

[wayoverthere]

5 hours ago, BoxCar said:

None of these would work. It's a 2019 HSE. I've looked at the Lidos and the only one that could be acceptable is the cup mount but not with two people in the car.

Darn...was worth a shot.

[PolorBear]

One thing to keep in mind while using a 12v power supply is the amperage rating of the supply is very important to take into consideration.  A '20 amp' supply is not actually putting out a constant 20 amps.  Which matters greatly. Consider using a power supply that is actually rated at 30 or 40 amps to see a consistent 20 amp duty rating.  You'll never starve the radio and you won't over work your power supply.   

[n4gix]

What he said ^^^^^.  I've always thought that the two most important part of any base station is the "goesinta" and the "comesoutta", i.e. the power supply and the antenna system.

A good power supply should easily outlast one's lifespan. I've never regretted investing in my Yaesu FP-1030A. I've used it continuously for just over 30 years now without any issues.

Yaesu FP-1030A Yaesu FP-1030A Power Supplies | DX Engineering

[WRWR399]

Here we are a year later and I stumbled across this post and learned a lot from it.

I have the BTECH RPS-30PRO Power Supply, the KG-1000G Plus GMRS Radio and the SureCom SW-102 SWR Meter. This what I came up with.

467.725 - High Power: 47.25 watts SWR's: 1.25
462.725 - High Power: 45.5 watts SWR's: 1.24
467.725 - Medium Power: 18.06 watts SWR's: 1.12
462.725 - Medium Power: 17.99 watts SWR's: 1.11
467.725 - Low Power: 4.45 watts SWR's: 1.00
462.725 - Low Power: 4.25 watts SWR's: 1.00

Don't know if this helps anyone a year later but I thought I would post my findings.

73's

Michael (WRWR399)

[WRWE456]

I just read through this thread and it seems to me the moral of the story is to use a better quality SWR/power meter.

On that note anyone have a recommendation for a good quality medium price meter for UHF?

Thanks.

[KAF6045]

5 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

I just read through this thread and it seems to me the moral of the story is to use a better quality SWR/power meter.

On that note anyone have a recommendation for a good quality medium price meter for UHF?

Thanks.

What's the price point?

I'd put the MFJ-847 a few steps above that ever-popular Surecom and its elementary school colored buttons. VHF/UHF only, portable. MFJ-849 HF/VHF/UHF, benchtop; MFJ-884 Cross-needle design (one needle for power-out, second for reflected, where they cross is SWR), MFJ-874 single needle design (switch between forward and reflected, for SWR you first "calibrate" needle to full scale, then flip switch and reflected shows SWR).

If it just SWR one is after, MFJ-269 analyzer covers UHF.

 

[WRWE456]

Thanks for the options KAF6045 I would say upwards of $300. give or take. I have been looking at the MFJ and Daiwa. I will study the ones you listed.

[SteveShannon]

2 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

Thanks for the options KAF6045 I would say upwards of $300. give or take. I have been looking at the MFJ and Daiwa. I will study the ones you listed.

eBay has Bird wattmeters for about your price range. 

[KAF6045]

4 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

Thanks for the options KAF6045 I would say upwards of $300. give or take. I have been looking at the MFJ and Daiwa. I will study the ones you listed.

I'd give the nod to Daiwa (though I wouldn't be surprised if some of the MFJ units are rebranded contract models from Daiwa, Diamond [SX-200: HF/VHF; SX-400: VHF/UHF; SX-600: HF/VHF & VHF/UHF using two sensors], etc.)

[SteveShannon]

Brand is important, but some power meters will not register below a certain threshold.  I suspect that’s what’s happened with the SW-102.  At low power the meter was capable of measuring the forward power, but not the reflected power.  Whenever reflected power is measured at 0, SWR will calculate to be 0, even if it isn’t.

I looked at a lot of different power meters when I recently made my selection.  A few of the MFJ models are marketed as their “Grandmaster” models which have accuracy claims of 5%.  That’s the same accuracy Bird claims.  I selected the MFJ-884, and I did so after making sure it was rated to read down into the milliwatt range, but I have no reference against which to compare it, so it could be inaccurate.  There are videos online showing people comparing two Birds.  The Birds have interchangeable elements which are factory calibrated for a specific frequency and power range. They frequently read quite differently. They end up picking one as the reference and calibrating the other to match so they can place two Bird meters in-line to see power before and after some piece of gear.

I’m okay with the 884; it seems to do everything I needed.  Again, I want to emphasize that I have no point of reference.  It looked a lot bigger in the pictures, though.

[WRWE456]

Thanks guys. I'm liking the MFJ-849 at the moment. Covers down to 1 watt. I do want one that works for HT's as that is what I am currently using as base, mobile and hand held (have 3).

Why does MFJ not make it easy to find their spec's? Haven't found the spec's on the 884 yet but still looking.

[SteveShannon]

14 minutes ago, WRWE456 said:

Thanks guys. I'm liking the MFJ-849 at the moment. Covers down to 1 watt. I do want one that works for HT's as that is what I am currently using as base, mobile and hand held (have 3).

Why does MFJ not make it easy to find their spec's? Haven't found the spec's on the 884 yet but still looking.

If it doesn’t measure below one watt, then it might not be able to measure the reflected power of less than one watt. That’s not much of an issue for a 50 watt radio, but it’s 20% of the forward power for a 5 watt radio, assuming you’re getting all five watts. It’s just something to consider. 
I’ll try to add a link to the specs for the MFJ-884. I know I found them. 

[KAF6045]

9 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

Thanks guys. I'm liking the MFJ-849 at the moment. Covers down to 1 watt. I do want one that works for HT's as that is what I am currently using as base, mobile and hand held (have 3).

Why does MFJ not make it easy to find their spec's? Haven't found the spec's on the 884 yet but still looking.

Download the manual (all 1 page of it) https://mfjenterprises.com/products/mfj-849#product-manuals

• Accuracy: +/- 5%
• Minimum Power for SWR: 1W (does not specify if that is minimum forward or reflected).

 

Apologies -- I overlooked that you were looking for the 884

Edited April 11, 2023 by KAF6045

[SteveShannon]

I downloaded the MFJ 884 zip file from the manuals page and it was empty. 
I’m traveling but if nobody else finds it I’ll scan my printed copy next week. 
I think there’s one common file for the 882, 883, and 884. 

[WRWE456]

Quote

Apologies -- I overlooked that you were looking for the 884

No worries, I found that one also but several others are MIA. That 884 is looking to be the one though I still can't find the spec's. Sshannon can you just look up the minimum power for SWR and post it. Don't go to the trouble to scan the manual.  I would greatly appreciate it.

[SteveShannon]

28 minutes ago, WRWE456 said:

No worries, I found that one also but several others are MIA. That 884 is looking to be the one though I still can't find the spec's. Sshannon can you just look up the minimum power for SWR and post it. Don't go to the trouble to scan the manual.  I would greatly appreciate it.

I’m sorry; I’m traveling and I’m don’t have the manual with me. I’ll be back home next week on Tuesday or Wednesday. 

[WRWE456]

Sounds good. Thanks again!

[SteveShannon]

I apologize. This slipped my mind.  Here's the specifications page from the manual:

 

Specs of MFJ-884.pdf

[WRWE456]

That file did not post for some reason. Thank you though Steve. I have the 884 now so don't worry about it for me now, though maybe someone else could benefit from it. The meter seems to work well so far with my 50 w base unit though I need to do more testing with the HT's in the cars.

[SteveShannon]

1 hour ago, WRWE456 said:

That file did not post for some reason. Thank you though Steve. I have the 884 now so don't worry about it for me now, though maybe someone else could benefit from it. The meter seems to work well so far with my 50 w base unit though I need to do more testing with the HT's in the cars.

Hmmm,  is anyone else having problems with the file?  I’m on a different device than I used to upload it and I can click on it and see it.

I can screenshot it and post it again as an image.

[wrci350]

Just now, Sshannon said:

Hmmm,  is anyone else having problems with the file?

Worked fine for me.