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Author Topic: 2 way radios  (Read 30104 times)

Henry Cohen

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #30 on: August 09, 2017, 06:32:38 PM »

There are frequencies that do not need a license but they tend to be crowded and have very strict requirements for low transmit power.

Those frequencies are not available for business operations, only personal and family.
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Henry Cohen

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David Lim

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #31 on: August 09, 2017, 07:03:44 PM »

Great, thanks guys. Is there a distinct advantage to a UHF radio in a touring situation, vs something like a DTR410? Will the DTR be happy in a large hall or arena, going through concrete walls and floors?

I was wondering about licensing mainly because I'd probably purchase through Amazon, so they would then need to be programmed. To not have to worry about any of that would be helpful, but isn't imperative.
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Henry Cohen

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #32 on: August 09, 2017, 07:15:12 PM »

Great, thanks guys. Is there a distinct advantage to a UHF radio in a touring situation, vs something like a DTR410? Will the DTR be happy in a large hall or arena, going through concrete walls and floors?

I was wondering about licensing mainly because I'd probably purchase through Amazon, so they would then need to be programmed. To not have to worry about any of that would be helpful, but isn't imperative.

You'll find the DTR radios' performance in your scenarios to be excellent.
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Henry Cohen

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Ben Mehlman

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #33 on: August 17, 2017, 07:29:52 PM »


Re radios and their prices:

Motorola.. and some others eg Kenwood, Vertex/Standard etc make excellent commercial radios which are FCC "type accepted" for operation on commercial frequencies in the USA.  Radios that are not "type accepted" for Part 90 are technically illegal for business use, regardless of any license you may have.  Of course, these radios cost quite a bit.. but you do get quality and legality.

But if you are on a budget or tend to work in situations where you can lose radios.. most Chinese import radios are not type accepted.. but there are some Part 90 type accepted Chinese import radios that are pretty good radios. 

These, when used on a frequency you are licensed to use, or when used on one of the license-free MURS VHF channels, are totally ok to use and will cost you as little as $30-$80 each.

For example the Puxing PX-777 VHF I believe is a part 90 radio, and MURS capable. 
The Baofeng UV-82C is as well.

Both these radios are known to be pretty good performers.  I have some experience with the PX-777.  The radio itself is solid, good audio, decent RF and AF performance.  My one complaint is that the charger base is a little hard to get to mate with the radio sometimes.  For $65 you'll be quite surprised at the quality you get.

The UV-82C is a dual band (UHF/VHF) radio, so you have flexibility there.  You can operate on your licensed UHF channel and also interoperate with other people on MURS channels (these channels are the old VHF color "dot" channels so there are tons of production radios out there that use them).  Or if you get a GMRS license ($75) you can operate them for personal use on those channels.  These radios also have a dual-listen feature where you can be having a conversation on one channel, while monitoring another.  For example, one channel for sound, another channel for event coordination, etc.  If you need to respond on the other channel, you can push a button and flip your transmitter over to it.

The other option that a dual band radio opens up, if you work very large events, is the possibility of setting up a temporary cross-band repeater, which is really the best way to go if you want to have range measured in miles.

If you are a little bit handy you can program them yourself and save on that cost as well (technically you are not supposed to do that.. but lots of people do).

And if you lose one.. well, for $30-80 it's not such a big deal...




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Bob Vaughan

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #34 on: September 10, 2017, 05:40:08 AM »

I would steer clear of most of the chinese radios, but especially Baofeng.

The ARRL (the main amateur radio org in the US) has performed radio testing at many of the major amateur radio conventions for the last 5-6 years.

They test for compliance with FCC emissions standards, and have found that the major brands (Icom, Yaesu, Kenwood, Alinco, Motorola, etc) have a pass rate at or extremely close to 100%, however the chinese brands are somewhat worse.

Baofeng was by far the worst, at somewhere around 50% pass rate..

My personal feeling is that before a Baofeng radio is allowed to be placed in service anywhere, it must be tested for FCC compliance. If it fails, or is within the margin of error, it needs to have the battery removed for proper disposal, and then be placed on a concrete floor, and immediately receive extended percussive maintenance with a 5 pound sledge hammer.

A steam roller would be an acceptable maintenance alternative.
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John Fruits

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #35 on: September 10, 2017, 12:26:50 PM »

If it fails, or is within the margin of error, it needs to have the battery removed for proper disposal, and then be placed on a concrete floor, and immediately receive extended percussive maintenance with a 5 pound sledge hammer.

A steam roller would be an acceptable maintenance alternative.
Would a surfeit of cloggers suffice, especially if they had tap shoes on and were clogging to Jan and Dean or the Beach boys?
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"The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs.  There's also a negative side."-Hunter S. Thompson

Bob Vaughan

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #36 on: September 10, 2017, 01:41:29 PM »

Would a surfeit of cloggers suffice, especially if they had tap shoes on and were clogging to Jan and Dean or the Beach boys?

Absolutely.
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David Buckley

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #37 on: September 10, 2017, 04:59:36 PM »

... most of the chinese radios... If it fails, or is within the margin of error, it needs to have the battery removed for proper disposal, and then be placed on a concrete floor, and immediately receive extended percussive maintenance with a 5 pound sledge hammer.

One of the advantages of some of the Chinese construction techniques is that that percussive maintenance need not be "extended", "brief" will accomplish the job to completion.  There are obvious manpower savings and productivity improvements to be had.
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Jim Wilkens

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #38 on: September 21, 2017, 12:54:06 PM »

We have CP200s and have recently added some SL300s to our inventory to satisfy some of or corporate meeting clients that want something small. I personally prefer the CP200s but the SL300s are simple to operate, have pretty good sound quality and are compatible with the analog CP200s.

Our dealer has told us that their film production rental clients will refuse anything other than CP200s including CP200Ds.

Jim W.

Hi,

If you were buying 2 way radios today, what would you get?  I have a quote from Bearcom for Motorola BC130 and Motorola CP200D.  The BC130 are almost half the price.  This is for a sound company for touring, festivals, etc.
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Justice C. Bigler

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Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #39 on: September 21, 2017, 04:57:11 PM »

We're finally getting new radios for our building. Getting rid of the XTS2500s that we have been using for over a decade now. We're looking at the SL300 and the SL3500e radios since we have finally been given the green light by City Radio to move out of the 800MHz public safety band that the rest of the City uses.

We're supposed to get some demo units this week or next to test out. We're looking forward to having smaller, lighter radios that won't break your foot if they fall off your belt.
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Justice C. Bigler
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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: 2 way radios
« Reply #39 on: September 21, 2017, 04:57:11 PM »


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