Hello, I have been looking for a radio that covers all the needs. It must pick up all seven of the NOAA stations, FM and Am. Has anyone ever seen the movie Resident Evil 3? The radio that the chararcter Alice has, a scene shows her closing it before she goes into the radio station to see if anybody is alive. That radio would be nice, if it is real. I have been looking for it and have not found it. I have tried to contact the movie company and have not recieved a reply. If anybody knows the brand , please let me know. Thank you for your time.

Thanks, IzzyJG99, My girl friend bought me that radio for an early birthday present. I like it, but I would like to get something smaller.

See if you can find a pic of her radio on images.google.com and post it. Check out Midland.com also for radios.

Another option is a scanner, most scanners can tune the 7 us NOAA bands and the three canada ones as well as many other things.

That is what I was going to say. My Radio Shack scanner is the 1000 channel model, with trunking (haven't figured that out yet), and isn't all that large...

And you don't even need trunking to pick up the NOAA channels, a cheap $80 scanner will do, plus you can pick up CB, HAM, etc.

Why just receive NOAA, AM/FM HAM... Why not spend a little time and $14 to get an Amateur (HAM) Technician license? Yeah, a HAM hand-held costs more money, but even $400 isn't too much for the advantages and something I can use and enjoy not just in an emergency. The license is easy to get, with numerous resources to prepare for the test (there is no longer any Morse code requirement).

I got mine when I started commuting in a van pool and wouldn't always have my car handy. I have a 2 hour, 84 mile, urban and rural commute each way. A Yaesu VX-7R is now my most used piece of EDC. I carry it, extra batteries, spare antenna, and other accessories in an old soft RhinoSkin in my laptop bag with other essentials.

Advantages -

1. Two way communication, even when cell towers are down. My cell was useless in the 2002 black-out. HAMs are active in almost every emergency. Even with a low power HT, your chances of talking are better than none. Get your spouse and kids licensed at the same time and you can use HAM HT on the road, camping, hunting...
2. Skywarn - I monitor the local Skywarn repeaters during hazardous weather and often know what is coming ahead of NOAA broadcasts. I have also had the Skywarn training and participate in Skywarn nets.
3. Many modern HAM HTs are broadband receivers, NOAA (dedicated channels), AM FM SW broadcast, local police, fire. Maybe not as many receive functions as a dedicated scanner, but still nice.
4. Reliability - My HT is rugged and water resistant (rain, splash, etc.) I've even hosed it down. Do that with most NOAA receivers.
5. Yes, it uses a rechargeable battery, but will also work with AAAs. I carry a set of Lithium AAAs. Receive works the same as with the rechargeable, transmit is lower power. And there are a multitude of alternate power sources available, car or boat battery, solar panels... use your imagination.

I can think of many more. The cost is $150-$500, depending on what you want, but well worth it in my book.

Doug

I went through over hundred and eighty pages of pivtures on that google images. I did not see it at all. The HAM radio would be cool to have. You say that it is easy to get? What happens if you have one of those HAM handhelds and not a license? Is it jail time? I have been talking to the guys in the unit today, we don't have much to do, just go to docter apptionments and such. So we surf the internet a lot. I looked at the midland website and I don't know. I like my gear to be able to have rain fall on it. I have a personnal radio that I bought at wal-mart for $15 dollars. This little thing has been kicked around, dropped in water and survived three deployments to the box. I wish it had the features I want now. I will still keep on looking. Thanks guys.

I'll second and third that, and add in that in New York at least, it keeps you legal, because you're not really allowed to USE a scanner in NY, but with a Ham license, you can.

I carry a Yaesu VX-5 and it gets NOAA, FM Broadcast, Police, Fire, EMS, Marine, Aviation, plus of course, the 2-way ham bands (which I never actually use, but I could if I wanted to).

I have it programmed with 200 channels (use your computer to program it, much easier) and it's been a great asset when I'm just wondering what the heck is going on in front of the office when 14 fire trucks roll up.

I'll 4th it...still working on getting my HAM ticket but I've already got my antenna mounted on the car and pretty much know what portable I'll be putting in it.

Yaesu makes a great little handheld radio the VX-7R, the newest version, Vx-9R is supposed to be even better, stronger, faster, etc. than the last one, it's submersible, dust proof, magnesium case, etc.

You can buy one without a license but given that it's so cheap and easy to get a license now, why not go all the way?

Once I get my portable working in the car, I'll be adding the Yaesu handheld to my kit.

John E

I am also a Ham, and have an old handheld and a mobile in my truck. With the local repeater, i can get some pretty amazing range with both.
Unfortunately if in the event of a Nuclear SHTF situation, i would think the pulse would destroy any repeater operation. For this, i have a backup Eton Crank radio in storage in a metal garbage can for EMP protection.

peace
al

"...you're not really allowed to USE a scanner in NY..."

I'll add that to the list of why NOT visit NYC...

I believe that an EMP will travel through metal. I hope that it doesn't have to come to that though.

It is real nice up there. A tad bit cold for my liking, but beautiful country. What is the range for one of those HAM radio's anyway. I know it matters on power, lets say a decent handheld version.

with all thats happening in the world today, i doesnt hurt to be a little prepared. "prepare for the worst, and hope for the best".

this comment amused me: "And besides, who would waste a perfectly good nuke on Vancouver?" It's obvious you dont know canada well...
I would comment further, but i won't side track this topic.

as for ham radio range? it all depends on the radio, its' wattage, and the placement of the repeater being used. if the repeater is on a mountaintop, you should hit anyone within your field of vision. i personally in the past have hit friends in their cars 100 miles away through repeater service. Ham also offers an autopatch feature, which a ham can use a public 'phone' through the repeater. everyone on the repeater can hear your conversation, but the local call is free(at least it was when i was a club member).
there is a network in BC called IPARN. A group of hams are 'linking' a bunch of repeaters, so a user with the right codes can piggyback a signal along a network from the BC interior to vancouver. i havent used IPARN, but 10 years ago i knew one of the guys organising it.
then there is something new called D-Star. I know little about it, but ive been told it allows WORLD wide communications.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-STAR

my suggestion is look online for ham clubs in you area and inquire about licensing. you can learn a lot from the 'active' hams. get licensed, its cheap and easy.

best of luck.
peace
al

...in a car. You CAN use a scanner on FOOT, or in the home in NY.

As everyone said - just get your ham license - easy enough, and frankly, very useful in an emergency

"...get your ham license..."

Correct me if I am wrong, but wouldn't you only need the ham license to transmit? If all you want to do is listen, seems to me that you could buy a radio of any kind. And, in an emergency, you could probably even get away with transmitting. That said, I have been planning on getting the "no code," or whatever they are calling that nowadays, license for several years, just keep putting it off...

As I said, in New York State, it is illegal to have a radio that can receive police frequencies in your vehicle (even technically locked in the trunk) unless you have either a ham license or a letter from the local head LEO

OBG,

FCC rules allow emergency communications without a ham license in a real emergency. So technically you could buy a ham radio of any sort and listen all you liked and transmit when there was a declared emergency.

This idea is a bit weak when you consider that most emergency ham operators practice frequently to maintain their skills in this service area.

A new fellow jumping on the airwaves in an emergency may not be the best approach.

Getting a ham license is so easy now that there really is no excuse not to do so. You can take online practice tests until you essentially know the questions by heart...take a locally administered test and not only be legal but if you volunteer with a local RACES or ARES group you can be helpful too.

Check out qrz.com for practice tests.

http://www.qrz.com/testing.html

The ARRL will list local clubs and tests in your area.

http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml

The examiner will likely know a number of service groups in your area too.

Ham radio is a very good option to have.

I only got 40%

On a first pass with no study 40% is very good.

The problem with these tests is that a bunch of the questions are simply things that must be memorized....frequency allocations, FCC rules etc. A bunch is practical electrical knowledge and safety. It is pretty hard to score high without some study, so I think you did great.

There are 300 questions in the pool....many are slight variations of each other, so if you take the test say 5-6 times you will probably start scoring high enough to almost pass the test for sure.

Many radio groups offer up study training....hard cramming followed by the test and that works great. I took my test in the days before the internet and just read the book "Now Your Talking" and studied the question pool. Passed the test easily....I had to do 5WPM morse code and that I passed but just barely.

Now with no code and internet tests anyone should be able to get their license in just a few hours of work.

I never got my ham license for long range communications, but did so only for local emergency use. I have never found a more useful skill.

My wife got licensed a few years ago and now we can communicate from my workplace to hers via simplex or repeater. We both volunteer in a local RACES group and serve as EOC radio operators in our community. Rewarding, useful, adds a measure of certaintly to our communications with each other, and serves the community. All good.

40%....take it again I bet you score higher.

For ham tests also try Ham .

Lee

Not braggin' or nothin' but I just got 91.4% on the first try. Combination of Sparky knowledge, CAP radio training 20 years ago and general test taking strategy. Where do I sign up?

Good one....check out the ARRL link I posted above to find a local test. You can likely have your license after the weekend.

The following page will give you the locations of tests given in your area by the ARRL - there are other VEC organizations, but

http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml

You go down when they are running a test, pay your test fee (I think it's up to $17 now). You sit down and take the test in from of 3 "Volunteer Examiners" - when you are done (the test is untimed), they will collect your test, and grade it right there. Either way, they will let you know if you passed or failed. If you passed, they send the results off to the FCC, and in a few days to a week or two, if you follow the list of "New and updated licenses" either on the FCC web site, or one of the ham sites that tracks it, you will see your name, and your call sign. As soon as the call sign is publishe, you may get on the air - a couple of days later, you'll get your license in the mail

The fun part? Let's assume you passed. For no additional money, you may then sit your "general" and if you pass that, your "extra"

If you are upgrading, the process is similar, but you bring your existing license with you. If you pass, you may start using your new priviliges right away, but you add a /AG or /AE at the end of your call, which tells the listener "hey, even though the database has not been updated yet, I passed" - and you will probably get a big "congrats" over the air

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I took advantage of the ARRL link so thoughtfully provided by Schwert in the post above and found a local VEC test that's taking place tomorrow. With any luck, I'll pass and can go ahead and finish installing a radio in my car.

Thanks for the link, it was just the kick in the pants I needed to get the test taken care of.

John E

P.S. Technician's license test is a whopping 14 bucks...

Actually the testing session, not each test, is ~$14, you can take all three levels, Technician, General and Extra in the same session as long as you keep passing. I have a radio background, CAP as a teen, operator and technician in the military, so passed (with a few hours study to get HAM regs, frequencies, etc. the Technician and General in the same $14 session. Took the Extra, without studying for it, and missed passing by 3 questions. A few more hours of study, on the commute to work, and the next month passed the Extra.

I don't have to learn code, but can and will. There are a lot of HAMs out there talking on CW (carrier wave).

If all you need is local and emergency communication, a Technician license is fine. Even a Technician license opens up a broad world of communications. Even satellite with a 5 watt hand-held (HT), the right antenna and some readily available information on when and what direction to look for the bird.

Having an HT in my EDC has been very useful. Catch the NOAA broadcasts. I've monitored Skywarn during severe weather warnings and knew to leave work and get home ahead of the weather. I've used it to listen to the chatter on CB channel 19 and take an alternate route ahead of traffic tie-up on rural highways. And just for entertainment on a long commute.

An Amateur Radio band, broad-band receiver, HT is just a very useful piece of EDC, every-day-use, gear. And most have a number of emergency/survival features like dedicate NOAA channels, emergency/home channel at the push of a button, ability to connect to APRS (transmit location data in conjunction with a GPS). Mine has a feature that maintains contact with similarly equipped stations and alerts if you go out of range....

Doug
AC8BY

Good luck John. Glad the link could motivate you to the next step. Already having a radio eliminates the next big hurdle. Have fun.

I called a local shop, Austin if you think that is local. They give the test and have radios in stock. I'm going to go down there ne4xt week and see what I can get.

Years ago I considered getting a Yaesu VX-5, but put it off when we were faced with all sorts of communications security requirements and were issued encrypted radios and got "special" cellphones. Everything else was banned.

After reading these informative posts, I'm re-considering getting a Yaesu VX-7R. At least I can have my own department's and the other local local agencies I deal with give me consent to have their channels programmed in, I think.

Is that model still the best choice? Is there a disposable battery option available? What accessories would you recommend? I will work on getting a Technician license, at least, if I decide to buy. Any and all advice welcomed. Thank you.

Jeff

I'm not familiar with their current lineup, but the VX-5 had a disposable battery option that was 2xAA. The gotcha is that it doesn't provide enough power for full xmit power (I think only .5W).

Note, it does have an external power input, so you could build your own battery pack. I have a thread over on CPF on that topic I could dig up if poked with a stick.

-john

I don't know the Yaesu line well enough to answer your questions, but I have several fellow hams who have this radio. The major comment I have heard about it is near impossible programming from the keypad.

When we do drills we frequently are directed to use other than our normal frequencies...it is amazing how many hams cannot quickly move to a non-programmed frequency. Many times the Yaseu guys fall out of the drill at this point. Kenwood and Icom hams seem to be able to move faster. I think this is entirely due to the poor keyboard interface of the Yaseu compared to the others. All these compact HT's are difficult to use with tiny buttons and screens, but something about the VX-5 is worse than most.

We have a pair of Icom T90a's and I like them quite a bit. They are somewhat hard to program from the keypad, but the very very very crude Icom software works well. Moving to a new frequency is sort of intuitive. They have 3AA optional battery packs which give near full power output. I have used the rechargable packs (we have 4) for years with excellent luck. I never use the AA pack but only keep it for emergency/emergency backup. I use sealed large capacity gel lead acid batteries for backup in field use.

The things I now consider essential in a handheld are:

wide multiband receive (FRS, NOAA, AM and FM radio are very useful....other frequencies depending on local usage). The T90 has TV reception too, but that soon will be a dead zone.

5 Watt output minimum

Plenty of organized memory (I set up specific frequency areas for different ememgency organizations or locations)

Relatively easy setup of new simplex or repeater pair frequencies.

Reasonable battery life

Easy use of high gain antenna

Good clear audio

Reasonable intermod rejection

Compact enough to carry daily with a spare battery and gain antenna

Keeping up with new radio models is a chore that I have not done, so hopefully others have some specific recommendations on some of the new offerings.

The VX-7 is supposed to be replaced by the VX-8 pretty soon:
http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/ht/0008.html

Don't want to brag...but...

I aced the Technicians license test. 35 questions, 35 correct answers.

waits for the applause to die down...






















From what I've been told, the new Yaesu VX-8R is all that and a bag of chips. Magnesium case, submersible up to 1 meter, all the stuff that the 7R had and a few more goodies and according to the guy behind the counter at the local Ham Radio Outlet, a zero or purt near zero price increase.

It's supposed to be available right about now too...

John E

jus waitin for the callsign now...

Congrats!

-john

Congrats.
73's
Lee
KC3L

Congradulations, now the fun starts.

N3EKN

Just like knives or flashlights or any other piece of gear, we both the good fortune and burden of many choices.

Schwert, you posted a good list of the essential features.

The Yaesu VX-7R is just what I chose to buy, ICOM, Kenwood and others have comparable or better radios. I personally don't find programming my radio to be a problem. It can get a little tedious if you have 100 channels to program. But I also carry a handy little "Nifty" cheat-sheet for my radio. It is difficult to remember how to get to those rarely used features.

eham.com is a good place to read reviews and find out what others think before you buy. And by all means, find a local club and talk to people. Every ham I've met is more than willing to show you his gear and share experience...

Doug
AC8BY

Good one John. Watch the FCC website for your call to be posted.

Doug you are right about the eham reviews. A good place to start. I think that almost any of the top brands offer up superb radios. Talking to local fellows about their stuff is a great idea too. Not only can they assist but you may want to lean towards their choices as they can instantly offer up assistance.

My RACES group has a large contingent of Kenwood users, with Icom and Yaseu running distant second places. The Kenwood gang knows the various oddities of their gear well and really can assist the new guys well.

I have had just incredible luck with the old style extendable antennas from Smiley.

http://www.smileyantenna.com/product_info.php?products_id=34

I bought a dual band 440/2mm, a 2m and a specifically tuned 443Mhz antenna from them a couple of years ago. They are all great. The dual band collapses to about 5" and works very well on both bands. The 2m is a huge 5/8 wave antenna that can really increase abilities....even though it is quite cumbersome to use. I bought the 443Mhz tuned for our main repeater, but have not found it all that much more efficient than the dual bander.

Inexpensive and impressive. These are setup using interchangable mounts...so you can buy BNC, SMA and a host of other larger mounts....this is great for emergency use as a number of hams will only have their stock rubber duck. You can set them up with a much higher gain antenna if you have a couple of extra mounts.

I have:

Super Stick II for 2m....a 6 to 9dB gain antenna
Super Stick IV for 443...a 6 to 9 db gain antenna
270A Dual Band....excellent for 440 and good for 2m...my most used antenna.

These are around $20 each. Highly recommended.

I have used the thin wire whip dual bands (Pryme) and while they are good they are always in the way and the whipping around seems to cause some reception/transmission noise.

I took that pre test. Lets just say I have some more studing to do. I signed up for the tech test for nest month in Oct. I'm taking it in Austin.

I think you'll find that the technician's test isn't really that hard. It's not as if the HAM community is trying to restrict people from getting a license, nor is the FCC.

I didn't actually study for the test at all, I just kept taking practice tests and basically memorised enough of the correct answers so that along with a very basic idea of how electricity and radios work I was able to pass it.

Remember it's a 35 question test and you can miss up to 7 questions and still pass.

Like a lot of stuff you'll learn more once you're licensed and actually using a radio, I know I will anyway.

John E

That is a very good approach in my view. Some of the stuff makes little sense until you start using it and some of it makes little sense essentially forever, and some of it is good to know from the get go.

Passing and learning is the way to go. If you set up your radio and antenna(s) so that it is impossible to violate the FCC allowed frequencies and power output, listen and learn, you are pretty much set to go for life.

A prepared ham, using morse code, is able to summon help when he breaks a leg hiking solo in the Cascades.

http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2008/09/23/10348/?nc=1

So, I passed the Technician test. Think I only missed one question. Just waiting for the entry to appear at FCC. Well, that and to get some money for a rig of some sort :p
Because of this site I will attempt to learn CW.

Learning morse code is advisable. When all you can do is key a transmitter, CW is all you can get out of it. Unless a person can be accurate enough to key teletype characters, and I know of no one who is able to do that, morse code is the only way to send any intelligence just by turning a transmitter on and off (as in keying a microphone, or tapping the PTT wires together).

Congratulations on passing the test, wasn't so hard was it?

Now the fun part, getting a radio.

I started out with a mobile in my car and now have an HT, (handheld). Both of them have 2m and 440/70cm capability, the HT also has 220 capability.

A lot of people get an HT and use it in conjunction with a magnet mount antenna in their car, it's a bit clunky but it will work. If you do get an HT, I'd strongly suggest that you pick up a speaker/microphone for it. Makes using it much easier.

If you are lucky enough to live anywhere near a Ham equipment store, I'd strongly advise you to go there and ask or help. The equipment available is very high tech with lots and lots of options and without help, you're gonna get frustrated. I'd also suggest that if you start on 2m and/or 440, that you pick up a repeater guide that covers your area. Between that, the owners manual, and some help from the guys at the local store, I was able to get on the air without too much trouble.

Good luck.

John E

Good one Nishnabotna. Finding a good radio only takes time and money. There are lots of quality ones out there, take your time and research what you likely need for your area.

I only have a HT. No mobile radio or base station at all. Make sure you get a good antenna not matter what....that is more important than just about anything else.


I have had good luck with Ham Radio Outlet, and Universal Radio as on-line suppliers. I have gone to a HRO store in Portland OR and they were quite helpful. QRZ forums has some decent information on equipment too.