What You Need To Know BEFORE Buying Your 1st Ham Radio
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- čas přidán 30. 06. 2024
- BEFORE you buy your first Ham Radio, you must answer these 5 questions. I will help guide you through the process of selecting the right Ham Radio for you. I will also show you various options based on price and features.
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"DUEL" purpose... Two guys fencing with long HT antennas.
That’s what went through my head head too!😆
Yeah, I noticed the misspelling right off the bat.
Dual ... not duel....
I have a rant, but is not about you. I did a google search for a GMRS hand held. I kept getting good reviews for the BF-F8HP. I bet you know where this is going. Bought 2. This was for my wife and I, both do not have HAM licenses. I went ballistic with the world when I discovered the truth. I am 74, memory stinks, but I may go ahead and get my technician license, but my wife will never do it. Still not sure what to do in regards to my wife. Oh, love your series, thank you.
After the rant. I am a retired computer/networking tech/administrator. I had to learn to dig deep and be creative in solving problems. So? I just discovered the wonders of “Chirp”. More testing and verifying to do, but I think I found a solution. Yes, I know, be cautious.
It can be more complicated than it should be. What is the baseline of info needed to getup and running?
First, watch my first video I ever did. The second one talks about Repeater Basics.
1. Can you hit a local Repeater? Line of sight distance capabilities with your radio. How far does it go without using a repeater? This tells you what you can expect out of the radio.
2. How to program the radio? Start simple with several local Repeaters and a few Simplex Channels (direct talk to each other without a Repeater).
3. Upgrade the antenna - I use Signal Stuff Antenna and it really made a difference.
4. Practice and see what results you get. Keep it simple and master this.
Exactly the path I took bought 3 Boafang HT the yaesu Ft-70 and Ed Fong J-pole. Just got the F-400 and power supply and set in progress now. It took a couple weeks watching videos and learning running into problems especially with the FT-70 but learning how program the Boafangs helped a lot giving me a good basic understanding of how ham radio works....glad I started there and watching videos like this one.
@@hamradiomadesimple Thanks....Yep asking guys like you time to time when I get confused. Also before I make any unnecessary purchasing as I have quickly found out how expensive this can get especially if you have to buy more than once. Appreciate the content and I might need your advice at some point I am sure. Stay safe out there you and your family take care. Talk to you soon I am sure.
Just bought my first ham - Baofeng BF-F8HP. Being a newbie to this hobby, I find your videos very helpful, even though I don’t yet understand everything you’re saying! Thank you for this beginner playlist & the other content you’ve posted.
It can be more complicated than it should be. What is the baseline of info needed to getup and running?
First, watch my first video I ever did. The second one talks about Repeater Basics.
1. Can you hit a local Repeater? Line of sight distance capabilities with your radio. How far does it go without using a repeater? This tells you what you can expect out of the radio.
2. How to program the radio? Start simple with several local Repeaters and a few Simplex Channels (direct talk to each other without a Repeater).
3. Upgrade the antenna - I use Signal Stuff Antenna and it really made a difference.
4. Practice and see what results you get. Keep it simple and master this.
Another top notch video! Thanks.
Thank you sir, for your excellent videos! They are made in a fantastic way and convey the information to the general public in a such easy-going and easy-to-understand way... Kudos
Thanks for your encouraging words!
Great video, very informative and practical info for us new guys. 🍻👍🤓
Good info!
Love the videos and information. Really appreciate that you do this for us just getting into ham!
I did not want you ,to have to go through the painful process, of trying to figure this stuff out. I am so surprised no one did a basic teaching channel for Ham Radio. Hopefully, others following in my footsteps, can grasp this much faster now.
Great video, presented very well!
Glad you liked it and thanks for taking the time to let me know. It helps to know if I'm tracking correctly with those looking for specific information. Again, THANKS!!
Thanks MJ we appreciate your valuable insight
I appreciate that you took the time to let me know!
AS ALWAYS, MJ, you do an excellent, organized and informative job with your well thought-out videos. Best vids on the internet for ham in my opinion.
Thanks Bob! I hope you are having fun with some of these cool digital K2K apps.
Excellent.
Nice job! Thank you for your advice. It is extremely helpful.
Glad to hear this and appreciate the very kind words!
@@hamradiomadesimple 🙏
Hey utube I liked this!!!
“Duel band”….dem’s fightin’ words!🤣 Pretty sure you meant “dual”. lol Love your content….subscribed!
Yes! Thank you! Not perfect by any means here. Just ask my wife!!
@@hamradiomadesimple hahaha! Well, to your credit, you were consistent! I do like your content and the way you present, so I subscribed. Lots of great info at your channel!
Btw, on a side note, I once managed to confuse the use of the words genes and jeans somehow, but I’ll never admit to it!😄
I am kind of like George Bush when he would say the words incorrectly when speaking. Been this way my whole life. It keeps me humble LOL. Thanks for making me laugh today!!
@@hamradiomadesimple Awesome! Glad you get my humor!😁
Well rounded coverage of information for those just coming on-air.
Thanks Thomas for taking the time to post a nice comment. I appreciate this!!
Hello there! Excellent content , thanks. Please keep it up fellow tar heel!! You call out the B Tech UV-5X3 as the best value starter radio in your video. I’m the kind of person that would rather buy quality once, and be just as happy with my purchase in 10 years, than buy a value today that’s relegated to a drawer in a year. With that in mind, If money were not an obstacle, and your primary criteria is prepper, what would be your recommendation for an HT in the Technician class?
Great question. What I would first ask is do I want to do DMR? If yes, then what Repeaters are near me that I can hit? DStar is Icom, Wires X / Fusion is Yaesu, and Open Standard DMR works great with Anytone. If I don't have access to any of those Repeaters, do I want to buy a "hot spot" and connect to my home WIFI / Internet and use it that way? Another long ended question on this alone.
I would go with one of the following: REMEMBER, Icom only does DMR on its DStar repeaters, Yaesu on its Fusion Repeaters, Anytone on Open Standard DMR Repeaters.
Icom ID-52A VHF/UHF Digital Transceiver $600
Anytone AT-D878UVII DMR Dual-band $315
Yaesu FT-5DR C4FM/FM Dual Band $430
Those are 10 year radios. But what Repeater by DMR brand is near you??
I go over the differences in this video czcams.com/video/WxFmnqzqjSw/video.htmlsi=WH_CxC-nvwBPzl4t
Let me know what you decided. I own the Anytone 878 and mobile version 578. I had Icom ID-51 and a great mobile radio since it allows all the repeaters to be loaded in the radio. When traveling, I only had to search "repeaters near me" and told me which ones I could connect to. Also, if I was heading toward it or away from it. Why everyone doesn't do this is mind blowing.....
Thanks for the fast response! I’m on the western end of the state, and Iucky enough to have direct line of site to Chambers mountain, about 3 nautical miles from me, which has a few repeaters, and they’re DMR - So I suspect I’ll be shopping for the Anytone - By the way, I love your BNC adaptor trick for saving antenna threads, and swapping from a 1/4 to a mobile
Pretty different from european reality :)
In Europe, in most countries there's nothing like Technician class (and if it is, it is a remain of old rules from 30+ years ago). CEPT Novice is the standard exam for lower operator class (usually called N) and after that, the operators have access to at least some (mostly non-DX parts of 160/80 m and 15/10 m bands) or all (like in my country) HF bands, but with limited power (in my country 100 W, in Czech Republic, for example, only 10 W). CEPT Novice is considered to be equal to General in US.
VHF/UHF HTs are seen as kinda of bad substitute for cellular phones, I am using HT only for things like APRS (on my way to SOTA activation to be easily spotted :D) or as an auxilliary communication during testing. Or for hunting SSTV images from ISS. HF bands are much more interesting :D
Of course I know some people who did their N exam only to have an access to 2 m/70 cm HTs. After some time, there are basically two types of them. If they will not find the beauty of HF, they will end up bored and left the hobby. Second will find the enlighentment of HF. In our club, usually a 100 W HF of HF/VHF/UHF "all bands all modes" rig is what we would recommend to a beginner. I am a bit non-typical being QRP field operator. But still HF operator.
And what is interesting, most of cheap dual-band HT users are in fact unlicensed pirates.
Thanks for posting this interesting perspective of what is going on in the EU as well as how you operate. You bring up some great points! I see many come and go with regards to Ham Radio. This is caused by various reasons. Poor training - don't know how to use their equipment. Don't join a club so they have no one to learn and practice from. Third, can't afford the HF equipment setup.
Wait until the SHTF and the number of Ham pirates comes crawling out of their dark corner. If they don't know how to use their equipment, get the most out of their antenna, or have practiced, they will either fail and walk away or causing massive headaches for the licensed users when it comes to transmitting on the bands.
Love your insights and really learn a lot from my counterparts across the pond!!
I am going to take the test for a ham radio then I will need help to pick one out.
I can help. Send me an email at HamRadioMadeSimple@gmail.com. Once I hear from you I will send you my phone number so we can discuss. Wishing you the best on your test!!
I got a 991A, 818ND, FT-60R, and a bunch of accessories and supporting gear before even getting my Technician license, but I'm... a bit on the eccentric side. 😅
NO, you are SMART!! I wish I had done exactly that and learned on to use it FIRST before taking my test. Would have been so much easier. Congrats for being ahead of the learning curve.
@@hamradiomadesimple Thanks. That's kind of you to say. 73, goog sir.
So I’m waiting for the FCC to post my license and I had been looking at the 991a pretty closely. I didn’t want to waste my money on portable products that are limited in power, or rely on repeaters. I also want decent sensitivity and the best selectivity possible with noise reduction and good audio at the lowest cost. And, I want to do UHF/VHF and 10 meters, and eventually get my general license. The 991a seemed like a good overall compromise without buying discrete equipment. Since you have it and other equipment, can you think of any negatives?
My other question is wattage. It’s 100w but I may want to do more down the road. Do they make afterburners for it? Can you plug any radio output into a larger transmitter if someday you want to run higher power? Appreciate any advice.
@@RickPaquin Power is only a factor in both reception and transmission. Just as important (actually, probably even more important) is the type of antennas and their height and/or orientation. But yes, you can find amplifiers for radios to boost the effective power output, but that generally isn't needed until you get more advanced in the hobby/radio service.
Best practice is to actually use the lowest power needed.
The only thing I don't care for too much about the 991A is that it only has 100 memories, but other than that it's a great radio and I can highly recommend it.
A good to have accessory these days is a decent laptop and/or mini PC like the Lenovos or HP Elites if you want to do digital modes and for contact log reporting and all that stuff.
Cheers.
@@RickPaquin I'm using a ~5 foot vertical Diamond brand multiband antenna for VHF and UHF and a long wire at the end of a coax lead for HF, ~67 foot off-center-fed. It works very well for me. I can hit all the active VHF/UHF repeaters within about 30 to 40 miles. I'm in the northern central US and I've received from Japan and Russia even on HF. 👍
TYT UV 8000 d spits out ten watts (FACT) dual band and repeater capabillity you can actually drop it off at a high vantage point and use it as a repeater with tenn wats . Using low power on anny device with a directional antenna keeps you from getting your location discoverd ctcss and stun option to kill your repeater incase off discovery and abuse of your rig/repeater.
Thanks for taking the time to post this info. I appreciate it and hopefully so too will other.
I am planning to get my radio so I can duel.
I will duel with you too LOL
I am new to all this, been watching videos on radios and l think l made a decision on which one to buy!
The Yeasu VX-6R.
I noticed that there are like 3 different ones with letters after the 6 and do not know what each on those letters signifies!!
Can anyone help with my question?
Looking at the Yaesu Website www.yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cmd=DisplayProducts&ProdCatID=111&encProdID=4C6F204F6FEBB5BAFA58BCC1C131EAC0&DivisionID=65&isArchived=0
I only noticed the one. Same thing on HRO website. Where are you seeing variations of this?
@hamradiomadesimple Thank you for the link, your help and your time!!
I appreciate it!
@hamradiomadesimple I read it somewhere on another channel but l am not sure which one it was cause it was like 1 & 1/2 weeks ago.
So glad it it helping. That is why I do this!!
Solar flares today
C, M or X Class?
C00L
Thanks :-)
Is there a HAM marketplace where hammers trade their equipment?
Many ways to do this. In your area, they may have what is known as "Hamfest". Think of it as a flea market type setup. Use this URL to find one near you: www.arrl.org/hamfests/search
QRZ.com is another site that list items for sale but I believe you have to become a member first: forums.qrz.com/index.php?forums/ham-radio-gear-for-sale.7/
Also, you can check out eBay, I sold some ham radio gear on this too.
Finally, join a local Ham Radio Club. They have forums and you can ask if anyone has a radio you want to see. GREAT way to make sure you get something that works and a person who can give you the ins and outs. URL: www.arrl.org/find-a-club
I hope this helps!