cb radios

[mudhunt]

Me and my 4wd mates arent in clubs but we go out alot together and we have been using walky talkys and they are crap we want to buy cb's but quite frankly i dont know alot about them. What sort do i need? etc what brand? do any club guys here have a hookup that they can get them cheap thru we are looking at buying 3 or 4

[TJ]

You do know that this forum has a search function:

viewtopic.php?f=38&t=8927&p=97918&hilit=radio+prs+radio+uhf+radio#p97918

[tallsam66]

Ive got a hand held uniden UH073SX & it goes great.
Its 3 watts..has a metal case & is water proof....like any thing you get what you pay for.

Many of the cheap ones you buy in pairs are just that..usually under powered & not flash.

[GotFlex]

hey mate if u dont want all the bullshit tech shit read this

CBs are awesome!!!
we use them bout 6 of us mates and u get awesome pickup, bout $250 to get the one from dick smith and the ariel and the mounting plate,

piece a piss to hook up to, we just run em straight off battery they come wit a fuse and a on/off switch

my opinion get one!

[Mark]

hey mate if u dont want all the bullshit tech shit read this

Yeah, but there are two types... the old style CB's that work on an AM frequency (AM CB) and the new UHF radios that work on the PRS channels and are sometimes called a CB as well (UHF CB). CB stands for Citizen Band, which means that anybody can use it without licensing.

So, you can't just say "get a CB". If you don't understand it and don't want to know what the difference is then get a UHF radio that operates on the 40 PRS (Personal Radio Service) channels as this will interoperate with all the handheld PRS radios that people use these days. If you want to talk to truckies get an AM CB.

As far as terminology goes, this is what the Ministry of Economic Development say about CB/PRS:

A General User Radio Licence has been granted for the transmission on any frequency specified in the licence by means of radio communication transmitters known as "Citizen Band Radio", "CB Radio", "UHF CB Radio" or "Personal Radio Service", in accordance with the terms, conditions, and restrictions of the General User Radio Licence. Users of the specified frequencies do not need to apply for an individual licence, except for PRS repeaters.

[smurf182]

Yeah, but there are two types... the old style CB's that work on an AM frequency (AM CB) and the new UHF radios that work on the PRS channels and are sometimes called a CB as well (UHF CB). CB stands for Citizen Band, which means that anybody can use it without licensing.

I think theres some confusion over the terminology here.

'CB Radio' usually describes a 27MHz band, AM (amplitude modulation) radio. 27MHz falls in the range of frequencies known as 'HF', or High Frequency.

'PRS Radio' usually describes a 477MHz band, FM (frequency modulation) radio. 477MHz falls in the range of frequencies known as 'UHF', or Ultra High Frequency.

The type of modulation refers to how the signal is sent.

It is technically correct to refer to both as a CB (Citizens Band) radio.

hey mate if u dont want all the bullshit tech shit read this

If you don't want all the 'bullshit tech shit' then f*ck off to another site?

[mudhunt]

so sorry what would be best suited for our application? we do go deep into back country

[MATT4U]

most 4wders use prs and you can get prs hand helds.
am not many people use them now days.

[TJ]

so sorry what would be best suited for our application? we do go deep into back country

How deep into the back country is not the problem, the thing you have to think about is how close you remain within the group. If you guys are really close by then handhelds would work okay (though try getting something that has 1W power). Otherwise get a good vehicle mounted unit and don't skimp on the quality of the antenna. A good radio with bad antenna will give you bad results, an average radio with good matched antenna will give you good results.

Stick with PRS (something Uniden or GME) and you will be fine as most club and people are now using PRSs.

[mudhunt]

thanks