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Thread: Digital Mobile Radio - DMR

  1. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by Outlander Systems View Post
    For long-haul/Nationwide/Global that's true. That said, I don't know of any DMR radios that won't do analog modes or simplex-digital. All the DMR repeaters in my area have local talkgroups that operate like traditional repeaters.
    It is my limited understanding that, even with digital simplex, that it may not carry a weak signal at all once it passes a certain threshold (longer range) while a weak analog signal can still be received, through the noise. The audio clarity of digital will be better across the board than analog, but once the digital signal is too weak it won't come through at all. Is this correct?
    To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society. --Theodore Roosevelt--

  2. #32
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    Well...

    The worst answer ever: It depends.

    To a certain extent, that *is* true. I wish I still had the graphics from my presentation, but they're gone. Essentially, it's a double-edged sword. Yes, unlike analog, which essentially tapers off until the signal becomes overcome with the noise level, and intelligibility is lost, digital has a "digital cliff" where, once a distance-threshold is crossed, there's a small area where the audio becomes garbled/robotic and then the signal abruptly drops.

    It's been my experience that, typically, the "digital cliff" is at, or slightly beyond, the intelligibility threshold of its analog counterpart.

    Generally speaking:

    1) Digital maintains the same quality throughout the maximum transmission distance
    2) Analog loses quality as distance increases until the signal cannot be differentiated from the noise.

    Because both are limited to LOS only, the maximum range of both are relatively comparable.

    Hope that helps.

    Quote Originally Posted by TXBK View Post
    It is my limited understanding that, even with digital simplex, that it may not carry a weak signal at all once it passes a certain threshold (longer range) while a weak analog signal can still be received, through the noise. The audio clarity of digital will be better across the board than analog, but once the digital signal is too weak it won't come through at all. Is this correct?

  3. #33
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    Cool, thanks. I didn't expect digital to have a longer range than analog, but I guess that isn't definite and still depends.

    I have heard the audio on a DMR radio, and it sounded really good on simplex. Better than Dstar and analog.
    To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society. --Theodore Roosevelt--

  4. #34
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    Best thing I have used is a delorme Inreach makes a sat phone look dumb it syncs to your iPhone for text messaging. I own a fishing boat in AK and sat phones are sometimes spotty. Garmin bought delorme but if you can find the older models the battery life rocks and sometimes they can be found for under $200 it has a monthly fee, but it is way cheaper then a sat phone. radios rock for short range, I carry a Garmin Rino that accepts AA batteries and I get great battery life with lithium AA, its a back up with GPS also. but if your looking for a solid way to stay in contact if your in a shit situation the inreach system is the way to go.

  5. #35
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    OP doesn't have D star lol

  6. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by Eurodriver View Post
    OP doesn't have D star lol
    Well, hello Dr. Obvious. Do you have a point to make?
    To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society. --Theodore Roosevelt--

  7. #37
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    He's right. But I do NEED a DSTAR radio. Bad.

  8. #38
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    There is no silver bullet, in regards to radio. The more options available, the better off someone is, when the "need" to communicate arises. I have heard, from other hams, that radio operators are playing a huge role in Puerto Rico. Especially, in regards to relaying traffic.
    To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society. --Theodore Roosevelt--

  9. #39
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    I'm sold on DMR now... MD-380 was just too cheap not to give it a try. Was amazed how well the technology works and the number of repeaters in the area. Also the networked talk groups. As far as I'm concerned, 2m/70cm FM is the new AM, now entirely a legacy mode.

    The MD-380 is an amazing bit of kit for the money. Jail broken, custom firmware with call directories, etc. Best $80-90 I've spent recently. And still does FM if needed.

  10. #40
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    DMR is incredible.

    The Sweat Mountain Repeater's coverage is absolutely phenomenal.

    Quote Originally Posted by pinzgauer View Post
    I'm sold on DMR now... MD-380 was just too cheap not to give it a try. Was amazed how well the technology works and the number of repeaters in the area. Also the networked talk groups. As far as I'm concerned, 2m/70cm FM is the new AM, now entirely a legacy mode.

    The MD-380 is an amazing bit of kit for the money. Jail broken, custom firmware with call directories, etc. Best $80-90 I've spent recently. And still does FM if needed.

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