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Reviews For: GE/Ericsson MASTR II

Category: Ham Repeaters

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Review Summary For : GE/Ericsson MASTR II
Reviews: 3MSRP:
Description:
VHF lo, hi, UHF, and 800MHz repeater, base and receivers. station.
Product is in production
More Info: http://
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0035
W5KVV Rating: 2017-01-03
Built before palnned obsolescence Time Owned: more than 12 months.
We have one MASTR II in service as of now, with two more in storage waiting to be converted to amateur use. Our current unit has a build date of 1981 and was in public safety use before we picked it up. It's survived a direct lightning hit, (that blew the duplexer clear across the room I might add), countless long winded QSO's and it still keeps on ticking. The PA is the continuous duty version and rarely gets warm to the touch.

These machines were built to last and I often say if GE knew how long they would last, they'd never have built them this good. Easy to work with & parts are everywhere. Anyone getting rid of a MASTR II for a modern unit will be sorry in the long run. Contact me and I'll take that clunky old GE off your hands.
AD4U Rating: 2009-07-30
Best IMO Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have 3 GE Mastr II repeaters. One on 53 MHz, one on 146 MHz, and one on 444 MHz. Each is the 100 watt version. They have been on the air non-stop since 1989. The only problem I had with any of them in 20 years is the PA failed on the 146 MHz machine in 1997 probably due to a lot of use. When I repaired it, I installed two fans on it and it has been running ever since. Many times the more modern repeaters sharing the sites with me are knocked off the air by lightning, but the GE Mastr II's just keep right on ticking.
K6ZRX Rating: 2009-02-07
Best band for you ham repeater buck Time Owned: more than 12 months.
These are old stations these days, but are very good. The MASTR II stations I had in commercial service had fewer problems than our Micors. Lots of variations and special configuration stations out there. All stations will go onto the ham band near the commercial band they were designed for with little or no modification, normally no mods. Some guys make the VHF work on 220, and the 800 on 902/927. Power ranges from 20 to 330 watts. Yes, they made 1/3kW Mastr II stations. I have one on a 6 meter repeater with voting and it is great. These stations have been around long enough the problem areas are known and problems easily avoided such as whiskers in the VHF front end (no trips to the mountain to kick the radio and bring the RX back). Readily available, cheap, easy to work on, easy to add external controllers to. Keep spare boards and modules for quick repairs. Easy all the way around. Get a MASTR II, and spend your money on a proper antenna (low gain is good sometimes), good duplexer, and an isolator (be a good neighbor). Whatever you do, be sure you get the manual for the station you have, and for any options or cards you want to add. There are a lot of jumpers to be sure are setup right to make the stations happy.