Radio thread

>>55872823

uv-b5 has a better receiver which may make a difference if you're in a busy area, and is slightly newer, however uv-5r is de facto entry level ham radio and as a result is cheap as hell (I mean, slightly cheaper than uv-b5 at any rate) and available everywhere whereas with the uv-b5 you might have to order from aliexpress

it may not make a difference but with the uv-5r you can adjust squelch settings with chrip whereas on the uv-b5 you cannot

personally I went with the uv-b5 but I still like the looks of the uv-5r more, probably far less ergonomic however

I own a uv5r but I never use it. Just listen to the crazy old hams talk.

Tried to connect to my local repeater but couldn't figure it out, the documentation is really poor.

>>55872886

oh yeah, the uv-b5 has a proper rotary encoder for frequencies rather than through buttons

it's quite a nice rotary encoder to use (*) but I haven't played around with any high end radios to compare

(* assuming the metal washer was installed properly at factory but if not it's a simple fix)

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>mfw americans call portable radio transceivers "walkie-talkies"

We need to have more of these threads.

>>55872974
Yeah, I enjoyed the one about the guy who upset big horse on cb.

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>>55872923
Thanks, I just ordered the b5.

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>>55872823
Op again, another question. Should I bother upgrading the antenna? I know it is common on the 5r.

>>55873525

stock antenna on the uv-b5 is supposedly as good as the nagoya na-701 which is what people would use over the stock uv-5r antenna so there's probably no need

checkout: https://hamgear.wordpress.com/2012/12/18/review-baofeng-uv-b5-baofeng-uv-b6/
and: http://www.miklor.com/UVB5/

you can mod the firmware to accept slightly higher frequencies (from 136-174 and 400-480 to 128-270 and 400-520MHz), it's not so great for transmitting but supposedly works fine for receiving (given your antenna works well in those bands, stock probably does well enough)

personally I kept the stock uv-b5 antenna and bought a cheap ($2-3 ish, that blog ^ mentions it) antenna from china just in case the antenna breaks but the stock antenna is definitely a tad better

you might want to get a programming cable if it's not too late so you can program in frequencies with chirp too, saves a hell of a lot of time and there's tons of resources for finding ham frequencies in your area (if not, governmental agencies tend to list registered business frequencies)

anyway I'm off for the night, have fun OP!

>>55873612
Thanks!

>>55873612

just to add before I forget, I was considering the nagoya over the cheap $3 antenna but I was having trouble finding a genuine seller of a nagoya so I didn't bother and went with the cheap one (yeah yeah, I know nagoya are knockoffs of diamond antennas but I'd rather have had a verifiable good knockoff over a deceptive unknown quality fake)

>>55873650
Amazon isn't?

If I got into radio, what could I use it for? Just talking to random old men?

>>55874048
Monitor public safety (fire police ems). Also companies I guess. Find your area at http://www.radioreference.com/ for the frequencies You could also use the radio as a walkie talkie using MURS channels. This is technically illegal but I feel like the fcc would have a hard time tracking you down if you stay at 2 watts or below. Correct me if I'm wrong.

>>55874048
trading dick pics over UHF