Suitable dual-band radios for APRS? - APRS Forum at eHam.net

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eHam.net Forum : APRS : Suitable dual-band radios for APRS?

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Suitable dual-band radios for APRS?	Reply
by K3JWH on October 21, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
I'm in the market for a used dual-band mobile radio, and as usual, money is my limiting factor. My primary requirement would be that I could talk/scan/listen on 2 meters while APRS would be listening and beaconing also on 2 meters. I realize I can't be sending a beacon message while I'm TX'ing voice, but if the mic is not keyed, I'd like the beaconing to happen automagically and then go back to listening to repeaters or scanning. Is this something that only the Kenwood D700 and 710 radios can do? Here are the models I'm considering, which have come up recently in classifieds: FT-8900 FT-8500 FT-5100 TM-733 TM-V708A TM-V7A IC-2720H Any users of these radios or other dual-band dual-receive radios have any comments? I read in reviews that with the FT-8900, when packet data is received, it will transmit on the 'active' band, and you need to switch manually to get it to transmit on the APRS frequency, otherwise your packet will go out on whatever phone frequency you're listening to. I guess another option is to keep a dedicated 2m radio for packet under the seat or in the trunk, but the ability to cross-band or use 70 cm would be nice too. Plus, I've read reviews of one radio damaging the other's front end from being too close when TX'ing. Thanks for the input. 73,K3JWH

RE: Suitable dual-band radios for APRS?	Reply
by KI6WLP on October 25, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
I started playing with APRS a couple months a ago. I had hooked my Byonics TT4 to a FT-8800 rig and didn't realize it was inadvertantly transmitting on the main VFO which wasn't the APRS frequency. I would strongly recommend getting and inexpensive 2M mobile or HT, dedicated for APRS and using a seperate antenna. Supposedly duplexers don't work on the same band and actually cost more than an inexpensive second antenna. I personnally want the APRS system to transmit and receive without getting disrupted. I am currently running a FT-8880 as my primary rig and my APRS system is composed of a Byonics TT4, an old Icom IC-02AT HT, a Garmin GPS III+, and the least inexpensive MFJ antenna I could get from my local ham shop. The TT4 and HT are hooked to the cigarette light so they'll power on / off with my truck. the only change which I probable do is get the Byonics GPS2 which get it power from the TT4 - currently I a have to manually turn the power on /off. Also I might switch to a Radio Schack HTX-252 so I have more transmit power working in remote locations. That my two cents. 73 KI6WLP

RE: Suitable dual-band radios for APRS?	Reply
by K3JWH on October 26, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
Thanks for the input. Your experience with the 8800 seems to be typical of most dual-band radios. You'd think it wouldn't be too hard to have a setting where when the radio receives TX data on the packet connector, it would check to see if there is any TX or RX happening on the main band, and if not, switch to the sub-band, transmit the packet, then switch back to the original main band.... I guess that's why the D700 and D710 seem to be THE APRS radios, and why they command the price they do above other dual-band, dual-receive rigs. I do have an Alinco 2m mobile with a bad display I bought for $40 with the intention of mounting under the seat for APRS. Maybe I'll go that route. My concern is having two antennas on the same vehicle for 2 meters, will I send too much RF into the front end of the non-tx'ing radio?

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