|
preetree posted:So if I take this resistor out will it transmit on all the same frequencies that it receives, ie 136-174 mHz? And it all functions correctly, the display and all? As TNLTRPB said above, while yes to your question, "freebanding" or modding the radio to TX out of band will allow it to transmit in that entire frequency range, the further you go away from the intended bands that the radio was engineered for the more you risk damaging the output stage on it. You would need to use an antenna like the one I pasted above to keep the SWR low and it's not guaranteed that it will perform well, probably not as well at least as a commercial piece of equipment designed to be operated in those bands. It is also technically illegal, or, against the USA FCC guidelines to use a non-type-accepted radio for this purpose, but to some that doesn't mean anything / they don't care. Is this for work? Are you authorized to be on these channels, in the first place? If yes, you probably want to get a commercial unit that is designed for the purpose and is type accepted for the frequencies. Are you just playing around and want to talk to the guys that you know, etc, and mostly listen in? Then a HAM radio should work just fine.
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 05:53
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 10, 2024 05:17 |
|
|
It is for work, but only occasional use, and mostly in the 150-156mHz frequencies which isn't that far out of it's intended use of 144-148mHz if I'm reading all the specs right. I suppose I might use it for marine band too or would that be risking damage to the unit?
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 06:13
|
|
|
Have you guys ever checked the actual SWR of the average 2 meter rubber duck? I think you'd be surprised-no wonder you can barely hear them sometimes.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 06:57
|
|
|
nmfree posted:It's perfectly legal to do this in the US. This is the rule that allows the ARRL to broadcast bulletins over HF every day, as well. That's a pretty darn vague definition, don't you think? I mean, what's stopping every other ham out there from drawing up their own "bulletins" (aka news shows, effectively) and running them? I always took that rule to apply more to general announcements, not so much prerecorded and redistributed news items. I don't really even have it in for Amateur Radio Newsline or anything, I actually read them on QRZ occasionally. It just doesn't strike me that the program reasonably falls within the intent of what transmissions that bulletin clause is supposed to be used for.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 07:20
|
|
|
McRib Sandwich posted:That's a pretty darn vague definition, don't you think? I mean, what's stopping every other ham out there from drawing up their own "bulletins" (aka news shows, effectively) and running them? I always took that rule to apply more to general announcements, not so much prerecorded and redistributed news items. There was a guy who actually did this very thing on 20 meters, he was running a talk show on 20 FFS! Other hams shut him down by talking over him, also illegal but since nobody "owns" the frequency they had as much right to it as anyone else.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 07:46
|
|
|
Gnomad posted:There was a guy who actually did this very thing on 20 meters, he was running a talk show on 20 FFS! Other hams shut him down by talking over him, also illegal but since nobody "owns" the frequency they had as much right to it as anyone else. For something that's fully admitted to be an AMATEUR hobby for people to play with, learn and enjoy, I don't see why so many people get a stick so far up their rear end about the absolute letters of the law. Isn't one of the principles of HAM FCC regulations "Good amateur practice"? So then in good faith and in a good attitude, slightly bending rules here or there or taking the liberal definition of them, as long as its not hurting anyone, what's the problem? I take it that there was other space vacant on 20m and it wasnt fully congested... And they CHOSE to override his signal and gently caress with him on principle, instead of just.... I dunno.. Going to another frequency??
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 07:53
|
|
|
Sniep posted:So then in good faith and in a good attitude, slightly bending rules here or there or taking the liberal definition of them, as long as its not hurting anyone, what's the problem? Would flipping the switch to Ø so that they can't hear what you're saying count?  In all seriousness though, some of these same people who just can't figure out why the hobby seems to be dying are exactly the ones who will pitch a fit, justified or not, about anything new or different. Luckily though, their numbers are steadily dwindling, and some of the new technologies allow you to easily isolate yourself from them and talk with other like-minded individuals.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 10:03
|
|
|
TNLTRPB posted:Luckily though, their numbers are steadily dwindling, and some of the new technologies allow you to easily isolate yourself from them and talk with other like-minded individuals. While it's somewhat morbid to say that, I agree. The biggest barrier, socially, to the hobby are the AARP portions of the ARRL, and they don't understand that nobody cares. It's a shame , but, there is a whole new wave of people getting into the hobby, so, I guess we'll see how things turn out in 5, 10 years from now.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 10:10
|
|
|
And don't get me started on people who insist you use morse...
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 11:29
|
|
|
thehustler posted:And don't get me started on people who insist you use morse... Nothing wrong with knowing it. I can often make out weaker signals with morse then I can with psk, rtty, ssb, or am. That said, I'm glad they got rid of it since I can now get myself a HF radio and bitch about health problems, be a racist, or act senile. I will have to upgrade myself to a general to really get into the meat of it though.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 18:06
|
|
|
preetree posted:It is for work, but only occasional use, and mostly in the 150-156mHz frequencies which isn't that far out of it's intended use of 144-148mHz if I'm reading all the specs right. I suppose I might use it for marine band too or would that be risking damage to the unit? Just about any old business band radio will work... at least the ones that handle what the US calls the MURS frequencies: http://www.csgnetwork.com/mursfreqtable.html Those are wide open in the US (roughly same rules as FRS and CB) but in the 150-154 range (very specific frequencies are on the chart if you follow the link I added) and you can usually find them for sale fairly cheap depending on whether they are programmable, VFO or xtal controlled. I have a set of old Radio Shack business radios I use during group trips... far better than FRS for range and indoor use and without the license requirement of GMRS. As for what's legal in Canada, that's another story all together, and IANAL, YMMV, OMGWTFBBQ and all that stuff. But at least in the US, there are frequencies in that range that are open to use by anyone. Either way, if this is a work thing, if it were me, I'd just find the cheapest LEGAL radio I could find and use that, HOWEVER, if this is a work thing, your work should be paying the bill to give you a radio anyway. At least in the US, and presumably in Canada as well, businesses are alotted specific frequencies and are required to have a license to operate on those frequencies. The FCC is not terribly kind to businesses that operate on any of the public frequencies (Ham, CB, FRS, GMRS, MURS, Maritime, etc) and even less so to businesses that just use VFOs and tx on any drat frequency they feel like.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 21:52
|
|
|
thehustler posted:And don't get me started on people who insist you use morse... What's wrong with CW you ungrateful whippersnapper?  Heh... I love the reasoning I hear from time to time "Well, if I had to learn CW to get my HF ticked, you should too!" Personally, I would not want to see it go away completely, and I was more in favor of opening General class HF to anyone who can pass the written test and still require at least the last 5WPM standard for Extra class. The biggest reason is that, despite the rise of digital modes, and all these fancy things you young kids can do these days with your echo links and your rtty and your dtv and xboxes, in a pinch, a very low power CW signal can be heard and picked out of a noise floor a lot better than most other modes... BUT, that's just my opinion. I already had an HF ticket when the CW requirement went away, so what do I care? I can just lord it over you no-code generals and extras that I did it semi-old school 
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 21:56
|
|
|
bladernr posted:The biggest reason is that, despite the rise of digital modes, and all these fancy things you young kids can do these days with your echo links and your rtty and your dtv and xboxes, in a pinch, a very low power CW signal can be heard and picked out of a noise floor a lot better than most other modes... The only stable argument I can see is you never know when it will come in handy. It's like learning to drive stick. You may or may not wind up in a situation where it can save your rear end, or at the very least an unfortunate alternative. Also, using morse code is like being a spy. 
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 22:57
|
|
|
Grilldos posted:The only stable argument I can see is you never know when it will come in handy. It's like learning to drive stick. You may or may not wind up in a situation where it can save your rear end, or at the very least an unfortunate alternative. Yes, but everyone knows the better spies use Atencion. Still, it is one of the easiest to use in distress, and is great at being easily picked out of a bunch of noise. Also, you can make a simple spark gap generator if you are really in a pinch and need to get your signal out. HFX fucked around with this message at 23:14 on Feb 10, 2009 |
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 23:12
|
|
|
Grilldos posted:The only stable argument I can see is you never know when it will come in handy. It's like learning to drive stick. You may or may not wind up in a situation where it can save your rear end, or at the very least an unfortunate alternative. I still have my FT-817 and batteries, which is my primary emergency radio, but the little altoid special will run for probably 2 months on a 9v battery, while my 817 will only last about 3 weeks on the gel-cells I have. And in any case, I drive a car with a stick every day... but that IS the same argument I made to my wife when I insisted she learn to drive one too.
|
|
#
?
Feb 10, 2009 23:31
|
|
|
.
Jose Pointero fucked around with this message at 03:29 on Aug 28, 2019 |
|
|
#
?
Feb 12, 2009 06:14
|
|
|
Well yeah its windy there. Otherwise, those wind farms would be pretty silly. I'll be speeding through that area tomorrow night on my way out to Big Bend. Sadly, it'll be around midnight or I'd try and chat you up.
|
|
#
?
Feb 12, 2009 06:38
|
|
|
Always make sure that no part of your antenna can touch a power line. Makes perfect sense with verticals, you can see that pretty well-but think about where the wind might blow your dipoles. Getting 65 feet of wire out is neato until it breaks loose and you find that the nearest powerline is 64 feet away. I live on acreage and still have a hard time setting up a 160 meter dipole. After the wind blew the one time and I found my wire under the power line I woke up rather quickly. Nothing made contact but it only takes once.
|
|
#
?
Feb 13, 2009 03:55
|
|
|
.
Jose Pointero fucked around with this message at 03:31 on Aug 28, 2019 |
|
|
#
?
Feb 14, 2009 07:15
|
|
|
I took and passed my Technician exam yesterday. I don't have a radio and live in an apartment complex. What should I do?
|
|
#
?
Feb 15, 2009 23:44
|
|
|
.
Jose Pointero fucked around with this message at 03:32 on Aug 28, 2019 |
|
|
#
?
Feb 15, 2009 23:51
|
|
|
Hummer Driving human being posted:I took and passed my Technician exam yesterday. I don't have a radio and live in an apartment complex. What should I do? Congratulations. I recommend an HT also. While the VX-170 is a good radio, $100 more gets you the VX-7R which while a bitch to learn, is serving me well and quad band (although its very low output on 222). I've also heard good things about the FT-60R. Even though I've had my license for 6 years now, I never did bother with it until now. I've got a mag mount on my car and put a J-Pole on my porch which I can put up and take down in minutes. I'll probably do a more permanent install (without damage) after I camo it a bit with some fake vegetation. So far the radio has done pretty well. I do have trouble with some of the repeaters in downtown Atlanta from the area around my apartment. The Jpole has improved things at home, but the car can still prove frustrating. Keying up the repeaters in the counties north of where I am, I can get full quieting on them despite being 40-60 miles away. HFX fucked around with this message at 07:02 on Feb 16, 2009 |
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 06:57
|
|
|
HFX posted:Congratulations. As I've said earlier in this thread, I have a FT-60R and cannot say enough positive things about it. It's $190-ish but a great radio, does exactly what it's supposed to and has all the features you'd need, solidly built, and I love the arrangement of the control knobs on top better than any other radio that I've personally used.
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 07:51
|
|
|
Yes, the control knobs. There are three. Three! Volume, squelch, frequency. It is awesome.
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 07:58
|
|
|
backstage posted:Yes, the control knobs. There are three. Three! Volume, squelch, frequency. It is awesome. I wish companies wouldn't underestimate the usability of analog knobs for control/input. Tangent: Speakers with a "volume up" and "volume down" button. What the christ? It's awesome having the most critical knobs right there on the FT-60R, something few HTs have executed well in my experience.
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 08:13
|
|
|
I hear you. It makes me crazy sometimes - knobs are the absolute pinnacle of control technology in a lot of cases, so what if they take up more space. Show me a sound engineer's mixing console without 400 knobs and faders on it - they don't exist, and for good reason. I have the same issue with the concept of software defined radio - I really like the concept and would like to get into it, but I'm going to have to insist on some external knob-like hardware. This here, for example, looks really awkward:
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 08:29
|
|
|
backstage posted:I hear you. It makes me crazy sometimes - knobs are the absolute pinnacle of control technology in a lot of cases, so what if they take up more space. Show me a sound engineer's mixing console without 400 knobs and faders on it - they don't exist, and for good reason. I have the same issue with the concept of software defined radio - I really like the concept and would like to get into it, but I'm going to have to insist on some external knob-like hardware. This here, for example, looks really awkward: You think that's bad, check out this pinnacle of UI engineering, MultiPSK...  
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 08:49
|
|
|
My head just exploded...
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 08:59
|
|
|
I wish I had the money for a nice mobile rig for my car. Instead I just have my Kenwood HT and a mag mount antenna. I'd love to have a nice HF/VHF/UHF mobile though, one of the fancy ones with the remote faceplate and all. Friend of mine bought one at hamvention last year. Anybody have any recommendations on mobile units when I get some more money? 73 de ke5hhg
|
|
#
?
Feb 16, 2009 09:59
|
|
|
I just got an old National NCX-3 20/40/80m HF rig from one of the local hams, who didn't have a need for it, who got it from another ham who got it from some other guy that was cleaning out his garage. I have no idea if it works yet, but it looks cool as hell. The thing on the top is the power supply. They are both full of tubes, and that power supply probably weighs around 40-50 pounds. E: just looked up some specs on it, and apparently the PS also contains the speaker. mwdan fucked around with this message at 05:57 on Feb 17, 2009 |
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 05:45
|
|
|
mwdan posted:I just got an old National NCX-3 20/40/80m HF rig from one of the local hams, who didn't have a need for it, who got it from another ham who got it from some other guy that was cleaning out his garage. I have no idea if it works yet, but it looks cool as hell. It's probably going to need a recap, or at least have the electrolytic caps in the power supply replaced in order to be reliable as a daily use rig.
|
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 06:15
|
|
|
Speaking of this, I know it's another tangent, but what about tubes (valves)? Are there any manufacturers making replacement tubes for old gear like this? Short of common, current use preamp tubes like 12AX7s and amp tubes like EL34, etc for guitar players? Every time I've looked into it, it was a place that had a stock of old tubes that were "new," but that's gotta run out some time... I'd love to get into some vintage gear, but, I fear that i'd end up with something useless once it needed new tubes, or get into a high price bidding war on a limited quantity tube.
|
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 06:18
|
|
|
KB3GUF Checking in.
|
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 08:19
|
|
|
Well, the guy I got it from let me borrow his tube tester. I'm not doing anything with it until I check all the tubes, and get all the dust and stuff out of it.
|
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 14:46
|
|
|
I'd also suggest getting a variac and bringing the power up SLOWLY on the thing. I had an old Heathkit HW-16 and learned the hard way... Electrolytic capacitors vent lots of smelly purple smoke when they explode  Also on the subject of Tubes... A: if you can find good tubes, get a set and just hold on to them. Tubes last forever if cared for properly. I've got an old Lafayette receiver (AM/CW) that I use for SWL and  broadcasts that still has the original factory tubes. It's better than 50 years old now, and while it does drift a bit, it still works just fine. I've got two sets of replacement tubes in storage for it should I need them, and that should last longer than I'll live, really...Now, my own question... I'm about to replace the caps on an old txcvr. Do I need to find a particular type of cap to replace the old cardboard wrapped electrolytics, or would a modern cap of sufficient value from Radio Shack (or in my case somewhere like Mouser) work without a problem?
|
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 15:47
|
|
|
Hummer Driving human being posted:I took and passed my Technician exam yesterday. I don't have a radio and live in an apartment complex. What should I do? Congrats on getting your ticket! As far as radios are concerned, the first radio you get is going to depend on what you want to do with ham radio. Most people here usually end up buying a handheld as their first radio. Handhelds will TX at about 5 watts on anywhere from 1-4 ham bands in the VHF/UHF allocations, which primarily makes them useful for local communication. Short range point-to-point, talking on repeaters, things like that. Most of the units sold today also have a significantly larger receive range, so (depending on the model) you can listen to aircraft AM band, VHF/UHF public safety, marine band, etc. The primary advantage of the portables is portability (duh). I use mine several times a year at public events like marathons and races, where safety communications are often provided on a volunteer basis by hams. If you want to talk to the world, you can still do that on a portable that's linked through an internet repeater system. Most hams, though, are still using good old HF frequencies, for which you'll need a desktop or mobile HF rig (and much bigger antennas). The features on modern HF rigs are frankly too numerous to mention here, your best bet is reading all the eham.net rig reviews, QST reviews, and the radio manuals themselves. Any modern HF rig that's worth its salt will be all-mode, meaning it can do CW, LSB/USB, AM, FM, and digital modes. Most will put out 100 watts, some will have antenna tuners or power supplies built-in. Read everything you can and ask lots of questions, you'll be very well-informed at the end of the day. That was a lot of words, so how about a few quick recommendations. If it were me buying right now, easily the best HT for the price is the Yaesu FT-60R. It's a VHF/UHF rig with solid performance and a respectable amount of features for an exceptional price. I also like the Yaesu VX-7R, which used to be Yaesu's top of the line radio but just got supplanted by the new VX-8R. That means the 7R is getting cheaper, but it still has a metric fuckton of features, including 500kHz - 900MHz receive, and dual simultaneous receivers. For desktop / mobile HF, there are tons of options, really too many to make blanket recommendations for. Icom, Yaesu, and Kenwood are the big manufacturers, with others like Elecraft and Ten-Tec also making very good HF radios. If you just want One Radio, i.e. a single unit that will cover all modes and bands, look at the Yaesu FT-857, FT-897, Icom IC-706MkIIG, IC-7000, and Kenwood TS-2000, in ascending order of price. All those rigs are HF/VHF/UHF all-mode, with varying amounts of bells and whistles. Anyway, just keep asking questions as they come up, the hams in this thread will be more than happy to help you get your first rig! McRib Sandwich fucked around with this message at 16:49 on Feb 17, 2009 |
|
#
?
Feb 17, 2009 16:24
|
|
|
Sweet.. I just got done cleaning the dust out of that old NCX-3, and checking out the tubes.. Everything checked out so I powered it up. Seems to work ok.. I don't have any kind of HF antenna up yet, so I couldn't really test it. Some crackly pots, but I think there's hope for this one.
|
|
#
?
Feb 19, 2009 02:08
|
|
|
I've emailed all the clubs near me and none will reply SIGH Silly England.
|
|
#
?
Feb 21, 2009 02:54
|
|
|
Well, the last week or so has been good to me. On Saturday, the guy I got my HF rig from tells me he found a tuner that he didn't need anymore, so I got a free tuner as well. Threw some wire up on the house, and hooked it all up. Seems to be working good, so I can finally start hunting some more QSO's. I already got my first.. my father-in-law was helping me try to find freq with it, and when I came into our Ham Club meeting tonight, he handed me a QSO card for that. So, here it is all hooked up. Hope to make some contacts with you all in the future.. 73's
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2009 04:24
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 10, 2024 05:17 |
|
|
.
Jose Pointero fucked around with this message at 03:34 on Aug 28, 2019 |
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2009 20:25
|
|