Debating best budget radio

[koni13]

Greetings, debating which budget radio would provide better reception and setup for a jeep. The BTECH GMRS-20v2 which can be programmed via CHIRP on IOS or the Radioddity DB20-G which not capable from what I view non CHIRP compatible. Unless a handheld can be attached via an outside antenna to facilitate reception, any suggestions are welcomed. 

[Socalgmrs]

I put any radioditty radio right down at the very bottom of the sludge pit with rigged, retivis, woxoun, and midland.       Anytone, tyt, heck you can even buy a  used used 40w professional Motorola, cable and laptop  for less and have an amazing radio compared to a radiotitty.  
 

but some people on Here that either don’t really use there radios or have never used a good one. Or some people get paid to pedal junk on you tube loooove radoditty.  I do have one truck running a 20v4 and it does get abused alone with all the other radios and never had a problem.  Other then the truck is so loud I had to put a Motorola speaker on it. 

[WRUE951]

31 minutes ago, koni13 said:

Greetings, debating which budget radio would provide better reception and setup for a jeep. The BTECH GMRS-20v2 which can be programmed via CHIRP on IOS or the Radioddity DB20-G which not capable from what I view non CHIRP compatible. Unless a handheld can be attached via an outside antenna to facilitate reception, any suggestions are welcomed. 

Budget,,  yeah the BTECH or even Midland will be your best budget bet.  Don't wait around though,  get her ordered up, prices are going to sky rocket and sooner than latter.   My preference would be the Midland.  Good luck 

[koni13]

WRUE951 which Midland do you suggest and price range at current, do understand tariffs increasing!!!!!  

[SteveShannon]

42 minutes ago, koni13 said:

Greetings, debating which budget radio would provide better reception and setup for a jeep. The BTECH GMRS-20v2 which can be programmed via CHIRP on IOS or the Radioddity DB20-G which not capable from what I view non CHIRP compatible. Unless a handheld can be attached via an outside antenna to facilitate reception, any suggestions are welcomed. 

It’s hard to beat the db20g for functionality and price and although it can’t be programmed with Chirp it can be programmed using RT Systems which is superior to Chirp except for price. 

[WRUE951]

43 minutes ago, koni13 said:

WRUE951 which Midland do you suggest and price range at current, do understand tariffs increasing!!!!!  

I had a MXT575 in my jeep which was nice because the control head can be stashed under the seat. The Mic controls the radio functions at the palm of your hand.   I don't have the jeep anymore, the radio went with it.  I really miss that radio.  It had  as good range as i do with my current Hytera Radio.  I  paid about $385 on Amazon. I do a lot of HAM stuff so i need the Hytera setup.   For GMRS i defiantly recomend a Midland.  Maybe someone can recommend other Midland models which im not familiar with  

[tcp2525]

54 minutes ago, Socalgmrs said:

I put any radioditty radio right down at the very bottom of the sludge pit with rigged, retivis, woxoun, and midland.       Anytone, tyt, heck you can even buy a  used used 40w professional Motorola, cable and laptop  for less and have an amazing radio compared to a radiotitty.  
 

but some people on Here that either don’t really use there radios or have never used a good one. Or some people get paid to pedal junk on you tube loooove radoditty.  I do have one truck running a 20v4 and it does get abused alone with all the other radios and never had a problem.  Other then the truck is so loud I had to put a Motorola speaker on it. 

I'll put my DB20 against your Motorola any day of the week. Best radio on the market and I will have more than enough money left over to buy a six pack of laxative at Taco Bell. Why do you hate the DB2O so much? Did it hurt your feelings by beating you in a pissing contest?

[WRYZ926]

2 hours ago, Socalgmrs said:

I put any radioditty radio right down at the very bottom of the sludge pit with rigged, retivis, woxoun, and midland.       Anytone, tyt, heck you can even buy a  used used 40w professional Motorola, cable and laptop  for less and have an amazing radio compared to a radiotitty.  
 

but some people on Here that either don’t really use there radios or have never used a good one. Or some people get paid to pedal junk on you tube loooove radoditty.  I do have one truck running a 20v4 and it does get abused alone with all the other radios and never had a problem.  Other then the truck is so loud I had to put a Motorola speaker on it. 

[WSHH887]

Okay, here's what I fail to understand.  My DB20 came with the programming cable.  The software is downloadable.  I admit it's not the best programming software I've ever seen, but it works just fine.  So why is what software you use a significant issue?

[tcp2525]

3 hours ago, WSHH887 said:

Okay, here's what I fail to understand.  My DB20 came with the programming cable.  The software is downloadable.  I admit it's not the best programming software I've ever seen, but it works just fine.  So why is what software you use a significant issue?

No issues for people that want to use their radio. I agree, the OEM software isn't the best, but you're not using it every day. Once programmed, you just enjoy an inexpensive great radio.

[nokones]

11 hours ago, WRUE951 said:

I had a MXT575 in my jeep which was nice because the control head can be stashed under the seat. The Mic controls the radio functions at the palm of your hand.   I don't have the jeep anymore, the radio went with it.  I really miss that radio.  It had  as good range as i do with my current Hytera Radio.  I  paid about $385 on Amazon. I do a lot of HAM stuff so i need the Hytera setup.   For GMRS i defiantly recomend a Midland.  Maybe someone can recommend other Midland models which im not familiar with  

The MXT575 is limited on channel capacity, only 30 (which includes the 8 repeater channels). The MXT500 has 99 channel thus, means more custom channels with display names.

[WRUE951]

31 minutes ago, nokones said:

The MXT575 is limited on channel capacity, only 30 (which includes the 8 repeater channels). The MXT500 has 99 channel thus, means more custom channels with display names.

i had two radios in my jeep, an Yaesu FT900, the control panel took up space above the rear view mirror and the MXT575 where i stashed the control mic in the center console.  The main bricks for both radios were under both front seats.  The MXT500 was an option but no where to put the darn thing.  I think 99% of people wanting a GMRS radio the 575 will serve them well.   My Hytera is programed for the repeater ch's and a small handfull of simplex channels, most everything else is HAM.    

[nokones]

45 minutes ago, WRUE951 said:

i had two radios in my jeep, an Yaesu FT900, the control panel took up space above the rear view mirror and the MXT575 where i stashed the control mic in the center console.  The main bricks for both radios were under both front seats.  The MXT500 was an option but no where to put the darn thing.  I think 99% of people wanting a GMRS radio the 575 will serve them well.   My Hytera is programed for the repeater ch's and a small handfull of simplex channels, most everything else is HAM.    

There are three good places to hard mount an under dashmount radio in a Wrangler, especially a MXT500. Hell, I even have 4 radios in my Wrangler, two under dashmount type, and two with remote controlheads with the radio units mounted behind the two front seats on the floor, and I have the 4 radios powered by the Aux 1 circuit.

Here two of the locations I used. Be patient,so I can get to my PC to edit and rotate the one picture.

[WRUE951]

23 minutes ago, nokones said:

There are three good places to hard mount an under dashmount radio in a Wrangler, especially a MXT500. Hell, I even have 4 radios in my Wrangler, two under dashmount type, and two with remote controlheads with the radio units mounted behind the two front seats on the floor, and I have the 4 radios powered by the Aux 1 circuit.

I had a radio mounted on the center dash above that small storage pocket it blocked precious viewing while 4 wheeling. I tried mounting the FT900 control head on either side of the center console, it was a major pain for viewing.  The best place to mount it was above the rear view mirror.   The 4th place, the center glove box worked perfect for the MXT575 mic and i could even pull and use the mic with console closed.  Had a buddy that put created a center din mount on his 3D printer and he two Icoms in there nicely.  He used a JBL Marine style control head stashed in his glove box for his stereo.  Nice set up...  

[Lscott]

Not exactly a "budget" radio but this one you're unlikely to out grow. Plus it won't have some of the frustrating programming limitations various GMRS specific radios exhibit. If at some point one wanted to move into Ham Radio the 400MHz to 470MHz band split is perfect. With a cheap feature license key the radio can be enabled to do either NXDN or DMR digital voice. The only down side is the radio is NOT part 95 certified, Part 90 yes.  So far the FCC doesn't seem to mind the Part 90 radios so long as they are carefully programmed to conform to the rules. Maybe as some point they will just throw in the towel and officially allow the practice, enough people are already doing it.

The radio shares the same programming software as the NX-1300 HT's, and I believe you can exchange code plugs between them.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/gallery/image/290-nx-1300duk5/?context=new

The software can be found on the Internet so the cost with getting the license key for it isn't an issue. 

The attached catalog pages are from 2024 so the price may have gone up a bit.

I have an older NX820 that is very usable for GMRS and Ham Radio, and likely can be found for a reasonable price on some of the well known auction sites. You just wouldn't be using the digital part for GMRS however.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/gallery/image/250-nx-820ghjpg/?context=new

I looked at the price for a Midland MXT575, at it was cheaper, but considering the difference in quality and features the Kenwoods would be a smarter choice.

Kenwood NX-1800.pdf

[nokones]

22 minutes ago, WRUE951 said:

I had a radio mounted on the center dash above that small storage pocket it blocked precious viewing while 4 wheeling. I tried mounting the FT900 control head on either side of the center console, it was a major pain for viewing.  The best place to mount it was above the rear view mirror.   The 4th place, the center glove box worked perfect for the MXT575 mic and i could even pull and use the mic with console closed.  Had a buddy that put created a center din mount on his 3D printer and he two Icoms in there nicely.  He used a JBL Marine style control head stashed in his glove box for his stereo.  Nice set up...  

This is what I used for my two remote controlheads.  It is a Ram Mount setup and since the MXT500s are on the small side, you could do the same thing.  I used a similar setup temporarily in my Pickup for a Kenwood radio.

[nokones]

27 minutes ago, Lscott said:

Not exactly a "budget" radio but this one you're unlikely to out grow. Plus it won't have some of the frustrating programming limitations various GMRS specific radios exhibit. If at some point one wanted to move into Ham Radio the 400MHz to 470MHz band split is perfect. With a cheap feature license key the radio can be enabled to do either NXDN or DMR digital voice. The only down side is the radio is NOT part 95 certified, Part 90 yes.  So far the FCC doesn't seem to mind the Part 90 radios so long as they are carefully programmed to conform to the rules. Maybe as some point they will just throw in the towel and officially allow the practice, enough people are already doing it.

The radio shares the same programming software as the NX-1300 HT's, and I believe you can exchange code plugs between them.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/gallery/image/290-nx-1300duk5/?context=new

The software can be found on the Internet so the cost with getting the license key for it isn't an issue. 

The attached catalog pages are from 2024 so the price may have gone up a bit.

I have an older NX820 that is very usable for GMRS and Ham Radio, and likely can be found for a reasonable price on some of the well known auction sites. You just wouldn't be using the digital part for GMRS however.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/gallery/image/250-nx-820ghjpg/?context=new

I looked at the price for a Midland MXT575, at it was cheaper, but considering the difference in quality and features the Kenwoods would be a smarter choice.

Kenwood NX-1800.pdf 118.12 kB · 0 downloads

I have to agree.  Although, the TK880 is only a 25 watt radio, the MXT500 and the TK880 are essentially the same size radio.  The TK880H, I think is 45-watts and is only a tad longer than the MXT500.  The Kenwood radio is a great radio and is loaded with more features than the MXT500 and the channel capacity is 250 channels.  The most I have ever paid for these radios is $125 for a radio in like new condition with power cable and a DTMF Microphone.  I have both VHF and UHF models and I usually find them in very good condition for $75. 

[WRYZ926]

I ended up using some small L brackets to mount my GMRS and 2m/70cm remote heads onto the Lido seat bolt mount. I don't think I would want to mount an entire radio onto the Lido flexible seat bout mounts though. 

[Lscott]

14 minutes ago, nokones said:

I have to agree.  Although, the TK880 is only a 25 watt radio, the MXT500 and the TK880 are essentially the same size radio.  The TK880H, I think is 45-watts and is only a tad longer than the MXT500.  The Kenwood radio is a great radio and is loaded with more features than the MXT500 and the channel capacity is 250 channels.  The most I have ever paid for these radios is $125 for a radio in like new condition with power cable and a DTMF Microphone.  I have both VHF and UHF models and I usually find them in very good condition for $75. 

I agree. I think they are a far better value for the money. They have a bullet proof front end. That's were it really counts. People focus way too much on transmit power. The reality is if you can't hear the other station it doesn't matter how much power you transmit with.

I have a cheap TH-8600. Its built like a tank, BUT the front end has poor selectivity.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/gallery/image/414-th-8600-on-mountjpg/?context=new

I pick up garbage like a high power transmitter used by a fire department 20 miles away on one of the GMRS/FRS channels like it belongs there. I've even picked it up slightly on the VHF side! I get one of my Kenwoods out, I hear nothing on the same frequency. That's what a good front end does.

[WRVG829]

17 hours ago, koni13 said:

Greetings, debating which budget radio would provide better reception and setup for a jeep. The BTECH GMRS-20v2 which can be programmed via CHIRP on IOS or the Radioddity DB20-G which not capable from what I view non CHIRP compatible. Unless a handheld can be attached via an outside antenna to facilitate reception, any suggestions are welcomed. 

I have the BTECH GMRS-20V2 in my Ram.  It works really well, and the footprint of the radio is small.   I upgraded my truck recently to a newer one and did a permanent install: the radio box fits into a cubby in the center console, the antenna cable runs through the main pass-through grommet in the firewall, and the antenna fender mounts alongside the hood.  The power comes from a fuse tap under the steering column.  All said and done, the "radio" is just the handheld microphone which contains the display and control buttons.  It works great.

 

To answer your question about the handheld: you absolutely can get a screw-on adapter for a handheld to connect it to an external antenna.  They're cheap and readily available.  Connect a microphone to your handheld and it becomes easy and convenient to use, and you don't have to modify your vehicle at all for your radio install.  Just run the antenna cable in via the door opening, the weather seal will go right around it.  Some people put the handheld in mounts that fit into a cupholder.  Easy, fast and cheap.  Highly recommended for someone in a leased vehicle or who simply doesn't want to modify their vehicle.  With a mag-mount antenna you can take it off the roof before you go through a car wash.

[gortex2]

I run the 275/575 in all my Jeeps. I like KISS and that works for my needs. Not a ton of room in a Jeep. 

[WRYZ926]

There is not a lot of room in any newer vehicle.  I know space was very limited in my 2020 Ford Ranger and even more limited in my 2023 Ford Escape. I ended up going with radios with removable head units since I run multiple radios. It was either radios with removable head units or radios where everything is in the hand mic.