Dual band portable

[es22]

Looking to see what folks think the best portable dual band radio is

[berkinet]

You may need to give some parameters. Dual banders run from under $15 to several hundred dollars. Do you want a display, dual display, dual watch or dual vfo, several battery options, ease of keyboard programming, CHIRP support, etc.

 

BTW, since this was posted in the GMRS forum, I should note, and you probably already know, as far as I know, there are no dual band radios that are Part-95 certified. (at least not if you expect to have VHF & UHF access at the same time).

[PastorGary]

https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/51-equipment-technical-information-and-personal-responsibility/

[WQYC236]

The two dual banders that I own are Tera 505's at about $90 and a Baofeng BF-F8HP at around $62. I like both and use them for different purposes. If the quality holds up on the BF, I will probably go that direction with my next purchase due to all the capabilities and features.

[es22]

I have a uv 5r v2+, have had a few people saying audio is very poor, trying to figure if its the radio or what

[jwilkers]

I have a uv 5r v2+, have had a few people saying audio is very poor, trying to figure if its the radio or what

The uv5r series is hit or miss. Some earlier versions had poor audio. Being designed around a commercial model, the microphone circuit isn't very hot, to prevent picking up background noise.

 

AntiSquid Disclaimer: All posted content is personal opinion only and may not imply fact or accusation.

[mainehazmt]

I bought a tonfa 10 watt dual band portable a couple years ago. Works great for my needs in dual band. Added plus was 2 weeks ago while ice fishing (always just bring a CCR for that in case it goes down the hole). I forgot my am fm radio for listening to local high school basketball game and the tonfa had that ability ...

[WRDE477]

I recently acquired a Yaesu FT-65 dual band HT.  It is a great little radio, very well built, wide receive capability, and decent battery and fast charger.  It is quite reasonable, I think, for the features it provides and is now my go to handheld.

[Downs]

I have a uv 5r v2+, have had a few people saying audio is very poor, trying to figure if its the radio or what

 

Try telling them it's a Yeasu next time.  I've found that to clear up "bad audio" reports in some instances.   I've had a few "bad audio" reports reports when revealing I was using a UV5R or UV82 or insert name of Chinese radio here.  When I "switched" to my "FT60R" (I.E. I didn't actually switch to anything) the new audio reports were magically better.  Go figure. 

 

You can also try drilling out the mic hole a little bit and see if that helps many have had luck with that.  Or you can just use it with a handmic all the time and bypass the in radio microphone.  

 

I've got a small pile of dual band chinese radios out in the garage along with another smaller pile of BF888 UHF radios.    The Dual Band pile consists of UV5Rs, UV82HP, BFF8HP, BFF8+, KGUV8D, and something else I can't remeber off the top of my head. 

[Jones]

I own several Baofeng radios - (3) UV-5Rs, (6) BF-888s, (6) GT-1s.... and the one thing I notice is the transmit audio is absolute garbage when using the Baofeng or Pofung branded handheld speaker-mics.  Those things are just junk, and you will get bad audio reports every time - "Muffled", "Boxy", "Muddy", "No clarity", "Cotton-mouth", and even "sounds like you're talking out of your ..." are ways I've heard describe it.

 

The built-in mics on the handheld radios themselves seem to be much better, just talk 'across' them at a 90 degree angle... not straight into them as most people seem to do.  Also, those little "earpiece" things with the mic in the cord are very good sounding, and work well, though uncomfortable to wear.

 

No, drilling the mic hole out will NOT help your audio on these things.  That is crap information from the CB-Good-Buddy world that people should stop repeating.  It will only make them pick up more wind noise, and make them sound "Boomy-er".  The mic hole is SPECIFICALLY small to help block wind noise, and limit excess bass response.  That tiny mic hole is for all intents, an acoustic filter, and Baofeng is NOT the only radio company to do this.

 

ID-ten-T  error... "yep I drilled out the mic hole, and got so much more modulation out of it that I had to tape a chunk of foam on the front of it to keep the wind noise down."

 

As for the original post question: "Best Dual Bander"... the answer is: There is no answer.  One size NEVER fits all.  There are many different radios that may meet or exceed your needs, depending on what your needs are.

[WRAF213]

[Note: following is my opinion, written on a phone]

 

I have a pair of UV-82s, and have set up a pair of BF-888S. Audio is kinda okay (you can understand the other party as long as people talk at a proper distance from the mic), RF performance is atrocious. They completely desense when any 'nearby' transmitter is active, and thus are only really operable on the sad antennas provided with the radios. The RDA1846 those radios are built on are prone to desense, and the minimal filtering and isolation Baofeng is known for compounds the issue further. RDA1846 is found in most of the new dual-band or digivoice designs (just about all Baofeng, TYT, AnyTone, pretty much all CCR DMR radios, and the new Yaesu HTs like the 4XR and 70DR). Some designs have acceptable performance, others do not. But that front-end-on-a-chip is displacing less flexible but more durable architectures and taking over the handheld (and now mobile) market like a plague. So if you see comments to the tone of "they don't make them like they used to", this is likely why. At least they allow arbitrary CTCSS/DCS.

 

The tiny mic hole is pretty standard for "commercial" (and almost certainly not Part 90 approved) CCRs designed to be used in industrial environments. It keeps background noise down and works fine if you're talking loudly into the radio. Our conversational needs aren't shouting contests, so drilling out the mic hole to a larger diameter does help at the expense of more wind noise and reduced pop filtering.

 

For general ham use, the CCRs are fine. The DMR ones tend to be built a bit better (and with the DMR repeaters popping up everywhere, there's more people to talk to), just make sure there's a VFO and FPP. A meaningful programmable scan function is also standard in most DMR CCRs, something lacking in the Baofeng analog portables. Programming cable is a necessity for any digivoice radio.

 

I'd recommend the AnyTone AT-D878UV. DMR/analog, FPP, GPS, has a VFO, and active firmware development adding new features -- $200ish. I do not have one myself (blew all my cash on Motorola XTS), but I hear plenty of users on BrandMeister. D868UV has fewer bells and whistles at a lower price point; both are Part 90 and have adjustable mic gain. As with the other DMR radios, a programming cable is essential. I do not know their desense resistance, but it's better than the Baofengs.

[WRDE477]

This is an interesting time to be buying HTs since prices are often much better than they were a few years ago.  I just ordered an FT60 for $150 because I wanted a rugged radio to take on trips instead of my much more fragile FT2DR.  I picked up at FT65, which is very nice, but does not have a way to connect external DC.  I decided to to go back to the older FT60 which does have a DC connection and can thus be charged in rental cars or with external battery packs. 

[coryb27]

Lets just go for the APX 8000 4 Bands in 1 Radio: 7/800 MHz, VHF and UHF even includes P25.

 

For the guy that had everything

 

​Its only a second mortgage away!

[marcspaz]

Holy smoke! I just looked up the APX 8000. Used, they are selling for more than the last truck I bought! I'll stick with my W32a. 2 meter and 440 is all I need in my hands.

[marcspaz]

Sorry... double post.