GMRS Radios?

[cosmokenney]

I've used both my UV-5R handhelds and my hard mounted QYT KT8900 with my friends and they work fine. I did have a small problem where the passive lock system (assumed) in the jeep would interfere on certain frequencies. But changing to a different freq solved that problem for us.

I should note, that I am using aftermarket antennas with my radios. So that might be helping a bit.

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[Mark75H]

I have never experienced any of the problems mentioned with any of the BF radios I have owned over the years.

 

[dstevens]

I find the problem is more handhelds in general with their poor antennas. If I lead a group then the most in-experienced person with the lowest range hand held radio will gravitate to the end of the group, which is not good. Of course I counter that and try and place someone with a decent mobile installation at the tail end. But it is a thing to be aware of. And people should work towards decent antennas and also mobile installations.

The BF is software defined and does not have a good front end filter, so the reception degrades in noisy environments. Hence both tests in quiet environments show that they work just fine and also anecdotal use by people show they work because they can't hear what they can't hear. I don't know how many times I've been berated by people with BFs for not giving enough driving directions because their radios can't pick up what I am transmitting.

If you want a cheap GMRS radio get the GM-30 over the BF. In fact, if you come on any ride I do and don't have a radio let me know in advance and I'll buy the GM-30 and give it to you for no charge because I'd rather do that than endure the BF for the trip.

 

[Mark75H]

Using any HT inside a vehicle is not optimal. Switching brands isn't going to help compared to using an antenna outside of the vehicle.

There are some crap antennas out there. Even fakes of some of the better ones that you have to be careful to identify.

The GM 30 is much more radio for your dollar and only a few dollars more than similar BF.

 

[JesseT]

I find the problem is more handhelds in general with their poor antennas. If I lead a group then the most in-experienced person with the lowest range hand held radio will gravitate to the end of the group, which is not good. Of course I counter that and try and place someone with a decent mobile installation at the tail end. But it is a thing to be aware of. And people should work towards decent antennas and also mobile installations.

The BF is software defined and does not have a good front end filter, so the reception degrades in noisy environments. Hence both tests in quiet environments show that they work just fine and also anecdotal use by people show they work because they can't hear what they can't hear. I don't know how many times I've been berated by people with BFs for not giving enough driving directions because their radios can't pick up what I am transmitting.

If you want a cheap GMRS radio get the GM-30 over the BF. In fact, if you come on any ride I do and don't have a radio let me know in advance and I'll buy the GM-30 and give it to you for no charge because I'd rather do that than endure the BF for the trip.

I second this. I got a pair of the GM-30's and they are excellent for the price.

Edit: my main gripe with them is that they have a USB-C charging port, but don't actually conform to standard so you can't charge it with a standard C-to-C cable.

 

[dstevens]

I second this. I got a pair of the GM-30's and they are excellent for the price.

Edit: my main gripe with them is that they have a USB-C charging port, but don't actually conform to standard so you can't charge it with a standard C-to-C cable.

It's crazy that they sell it without anyone every testing that, especially since the internal change they need to make is two resistors. USB A to C cable works, and the workaround if you have to use a USB C port is to use an adapter from USB C back to USB A so you can use the USB A to C cable. Probably someone makes a C to C cable with the pull down resistors.

The reason I favor the GM-30 over the BF is that it is far clearer.

 

[Mark75H]

Probably a better speaker. But it doesn't matter which part makes it better, if it's better, it's better.

I have a $300 iComm HT that is harsh to listen to, even knowing that the receiver is superior to the budget stuff.

 

[JesseT]

It's crazy that they sell it without anyone every testing that, especially since the internal change they need to make is two resistors. USB A to C cable works, and the workaround if you have to use a USB C port is to use an adapter from USB C back to USB A so you can use the USB A to C cable. Probably someone makes a C to C cable with the pull down resistors.

The reason I favor the GM-30 over the BF is that it is far clearer.

I'm someone who goes out of my way to make sure every one of my chargers, cables, adapters, and power bricks are not only compliant but are USB-IF certified, and this is one of my big pet peeves. There are an insane amount of products from that corner of the world with the same problem. I don't think that it's that they don't test them, I think they just don't care. It probably saves 2 cents and 3 seconds per circuit board to skip it.

The C-to-C cable with the resistor sounds like a potential solution, but seems like it might impact functionality if used with standard-conforming devices so you'd need a unique cable for the product either way.

But yeah, otherwise a good radio, especially for the price.

 

[Wobelnik]

Respectively, I am not trying to piss on somebody's morning Cheerios, but most Baofeng radios are not GMRS certified for Part 95 use, and there are real reasons why they do not meet the FCC Part 95 specifications.

Also, the reception, from the non-GMRS certified Baofeng radios, is not that great and, in most cases, they will come across fuzzy, garbled and choppy, or at low volume, when other radios are not coming in at low volume, even when only a few feet away from other radios.

The issue is not the output power level and I have checked the RF output power of a couple of those problem radios.

For only 20 or so dollars for a radio, how can any manufacturer build a radio that would work half-way decently. Most Baofeng users wouldn't know that they are poorly received on the other end because they don't hear themselves communicating. Also, most people that are not radio geeks wouldn't know the difference between a poor/weak signal level or a radio that produces poor off-frequency emissions.

I belong to three different Jeep Clubs and most of the Baofeng radio owners end up throwing away their Baofengs after a while for various reasons and acquire better-quality radio for their trail comms.

The FRS radios are another problem on the trail, but they kinda work, but only very close by to other radios. With these radios, the maximum distance is no more than a half-mile when using them inside of a vehicle and if you're using any of the channels from 8 to 14, it gets worse, even if you have a visual line-of-sight between the two radios, providing there are no giggly weeds or pucker bushes in between the two radio users. When you get around a bend of a mole hill you're done if you are using FRS radios, especially on channels 8 through 14.

The output power of the FRS Channels 8-14 is only a half watt being transmitted into a poorly designed antenna and that will cut down on the distance quite a lot and try to use them inside of a Jeep or other vehicle that also becomes a problem for distance. The output power for channels 1-7 and 15-22 is only two-watts and that power is also trying to get through the same poorly designed antenna. That poorly designed antenna is by design not that fact that it is cheaply made. The FRS radios will get you by, but not very far.

Most of the people that get tired of the cheap Chinese or the little itty-bitty FRS radios, will usually buy a mobile radio for better Trail Comms like the Midland MXT mobiles. I see more people switching to the MXT275, MXT575, or the under-the-dash Midland MXT500, mobile radios and they have been very happy with them for Trail Comms. They may not have a lot of features, but they are simple and of a good quality.

The MXT275 and 575 radios have the handheld controls in the microphone and that makes it convenient for most users. The MXT275 is a 15-watt radio and the MXT575 is a 50-watt radio. The MXT500 is also a 50-watt radio.

For trail comms, the MXT275 has been the most popular bought used radios for Jeepers, mostly for the cost of the MXT275, but this radio does work very well on the trail, and I have never heard a compliant from anyone nor have I experienced a reception problem from those radios.

Some have tried other Cheap Chinese Mobile radios, and I have heard mixed reviews from the users, and in some cases those radios will cause the same reception problems for other people as the handheld Baofeng radios do.

In my testing of different radios on different bands and antennae, I have found that the CB Radio would get you further distances than a FRS radio. Some of that does have to do with a CB Radio using an outside mounted antenna but the power of a CB Radio and the propagation of a CB Radio frequency signal is better than the FRS Radio in some cases.

My test results revealed that the FRS maximum radio distance was a half-mile on flat desert terrain and mostly a visual line-of-sight between the two radio units. The CB Radio in the AM mode was about 2 1/4 mile with above average RF noise floor, and 3 1/2 miles in the FM mode with the same noise floor.

By far, the MXT275 radio has been the most popular Trail Comm radio. No, I don't have a Midland MXT275 radio. However, I do own a Midland MXT500 radio, but I don't use the radio. It is one of my loaner radios I bring with me for anyone that doesn't have a radio for Trail Comm.

Great explanation, this is exactly what I was looking for, what does the general public use without breaking the bank cause i'm not interested in being a ham operator just want something that performs just good enough to communicate with the group. I'm a nubee and have not yet been jeeping to talk to other folks and see what most are using. Thx.

 

[Nokones]

I have a Cobra 29 LTD Classic AM/FM CB, Mototola XTL2500 840 Channel VHF remote mount, Mototola XTL5000 High Power UHF Remote Mount, and Motorola XPR5550e UHF DMR Remote Mount. I also carry two Motorola XTS5000 Model IIIs (VHF & UHF) and a Motorola XPR7550e (UHF) portables.

I use the Motorolas because I am licensed on a bunch of Part 90 freqs and use them for other purposes in addition to GMRS. I also use some VHF & UHF Business Radio Freqs for some off-road trail group runs.

As for a good quality consumer grade GMRS radio that is simple to use for the trail, I would look into the Midland MXT500 or the MXT575 radios. The MXT500 is a 128 channel 50 watt radio and you can customize 98 channels. The MXT575 radio is only a 30 channel 50 watt radio with no ability to customize channels. Either radio will be perfect for Jeep groups on the trail.

 

[Take57]

The problem I have is the Rugged Radios can be cumbersome to program with the proprietary software. There is nothing simple about those radios. There is nothing wrong with having a radio that has the capability of programming the Business Radio Frequencies as long as you know what frequency and the configuration it needs to be programmed.

As I understand it, RR can be programmed with CHIRP, essentially the defacto software used to program 99% of the GMRS radios on the market. I don't know about RR's proprietary software because there's really no reason to learn or use anything other than CHIRP

If you can't figure out how to program with CHIRP, you probably don't have any business attempting to do any programming at all.

 

[zouch]

i'll say you're one of very few guys i know of that's had a real GMRS license for long enough that it's expired, then actually renewed it.
(i didn't see anything else for you except Land Mobile,..)

even speaking as a Ham that's had as many as 6 bands in a J**p at a time, i gotta' say; you got way too many radios in there.

I have a Cobra 29 LTD Classic AM/FM CB, Mototola XTL2500 840 Channel VHF remote mount, Mototola XTL5000 High Power UHF Remote Mount, and Motorola XPR5550e UHF DMR Remote Mount. I also carry two Motorola XTS5000 Model IIIs (VHF & UHF) and a Motorola XPR7550e (UHF) portables.

I use the Motorolas because I am licensed on a bunch of Part 90 freqs and use them for other purposes in addition to GMRS. I also use some VHF & UHF Business Radio Freqs for some off-road trail group runs.

 

[roaniecowpony]

i'll say you're one of very few guys i know of that's had a real GMRS license for long enough that it's expired, then actually renewed it.
(i didn't see anything else for you except Land Mobile,..)

even speaking as a Ham that's had as many as 6 bands in a J**p at a time, i gotta' say; you got way too many radios in there.

Reminds me of a friend's fish spotting plane.

 

[Nokones]

i'll say you're one of very few guys i know of that's had a real GMRS license for long enough that it's expired, then actually renewed it.
(i didn't see anything else for you except Land Mobile,..)

even speaking as a Ham that's had as many as 6 bands in a J**p at a time, i gotta' say; you got way too many radios in there.

And you will never see me with an Amateur Radio Service license either.

I use the LMR freqs for my car racing activities in various locations throughout the country

I am also a member of an Emergency Services Group for one of my Radio Clubs and the DMR radio is required for the use of DMR with encryption, so I had to have that radio. I wished the Club would have went to P25 instead of DMR, oh well.

I found it surprising that there is VHF traffic used on the trail mostly in western Arizona and Nevada by a couple small off-road groups.

 

[zouch]

understood; it's much easier to buy a license than to become a licensed Amateur.

if you really want to get into Emergency Services, i'll bet that you'll find that most of associated with the Offices of Emergency Services and the like are still Ham (Amateur) based. GMRS is making some inroads due to the lower barrier to entry, but it's still slow coming up. using a Service that is easier for Joe Average to get into has it's good and bad points.

i don't find the use of VHF on trail unusual at all; it works great for that. (Hams have been doing it that way for a long time.) oddly, everyone in a group i used to travel with had their Amateur license; i didn't have a CB in a J**p until i went to Moab, because the dinosaurs in the Red Rock Wheelers still insisted on using it (and oddly, still do!). even then i prefer a Sideband rig, since that works so much better than AM or FM.

And you will never see me with an Amateur Radio Service license either.

I use the LMR freqs for my car racing activities in various locations throughout the country

I am also a member of an Emergency Services Group for one of my Radio Clubs and the DMR radio is required for the use of DMR with encryption, so I had to have that radio. I wished the Club would have went to P25 instead of DMR, oh well.

I found it surprising that there is VHF traffic used on the trail mostly in western Arizona and Nevada by a couple small off-road groups.

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