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purchasing a CB radio..

im trying to get my rig ready for the socal fest event coming up. i found this CB on Fry's website. is this a POS or will this suffice?

http://shop4.frys.com/product/448026#detailed

or maybe this hand held...

http://www.amazon.com/Midland-75-78...dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

thanks!

Radio doesn't matter. Get anything for under $50. In fact, I often see Uniden and Cobra CBs at Big Lots for $30.

What you do care about is the antenna. Don't skimp there. Buy a good antenna like a Wilson 1000. Shop online for a good price from a reputable dealer.
 
That pro520xl is what I run and I bought my antenna at the truck stop off the 10 at milliken. Its a Wilson "lil wil" and they run about $40. Crazy jim and Slimsxj bouth run the same setup. I often have people close to me in the group asking "Andy, who are you talking to" as I talk to someone further away. Decent priced setup that works well.


You can borrow mine to see what you think if you like.
 
That pro520xl is what I run and I bought my antenna at the truck stop off the 10 at milliken. Its a Wilson "lil wil" and they run about $40. Crazy jim and Slimsxj bouth run the same setup. I often have people close to me in the group asking "Andy, who are you talking to" as I talk to someone further away. Decent priced setup that works well.


You can borrow mine to see what you think if you like.

that be awesome! i saw some on the way back from frisco this weekend at one of those big chain truck stops. Love's or something like that.

but if you wanna lend me yours for the socalfest then you would be making my day.
 
yeah, I bought a Cobra on the web for $39.99 and a firestik antenna. I've never been on the receiving end of my communication, so I can't speak for my transmissions. But when I went to pinyon mtn. with Ted and Carol, I could barely understand them and was thinking my system was screwy....then I heard a couple other guys chatting clear as a bell. Turned out they were behind us by a mile or so. (Personally I'm thinking it's all about the tuning)

I probably would have gone for a cheaper radio, but I like having weather reports when I drive cross country.
 
Another yes on the 520xl... the radio DOES matter btw, don't let someone tell you otherwise :rolleyes:


The 520xl and the lil wil (wilson) mag mount is a good combo, and again like Andy has said, we've been talking to each other from the front to back, and nobody knows who we're talking to. More than once we've had to relay information back and forth... someone will be trying to reach out to the front of the group and nobody can hear them.
 
That pro520xl is what I run and I bought my antenna at the truck stop off the 10 at milliken. Its a Wilson "lil wil" and they run about $40. Crazy jim and Slimsxj bouth run the same setup. I often have people close to me in the group asking "Andy, who are you talking to" as I talk to someone further away. Decent priced setup that works well.


You can borrow mine to see what you think if you like.


I think that place closed down. Was it the one right by the crome shop and JJ grill?
 
Ham's have a longer range?
WAY longer range. They also require a license to use as per the FCC. CB's don't, hence the name CB (Citizens Band). Having a ham radio license also usually turns you into a ham snob and makes you look down your nose at piddly little "CB users" :laugh:



If you're gonna run a Ham, keep a CB as well, not many people run HAM radios on the trail.
 
Another yes on the 520xl... the radio DOES matter btw, don't let someone tell you otherwise :rolleyes:

All CB radios have the same transmission power, so choosing a radio really comes down to deciding what features are important. The cheapest CB radio transmits the exact same amount of power (4 watts) as the most expensive radio. They are limited by FCC regulation to 4 watts and unless one adds a linear amplifier the signal strength will always be 4 watts. If one pays more for a CB one gets more bells and whistles but will never get a radio that functionally transmits any better than the cheapest radio.

Accordingly, all radios will have the same output power regardless of their price. As all radios are limited by this bottleneck, the largest determinant of performance is antenna quality and installation.

The most important component to any CB setup is the antenna. If you're going to save money on anything, this is NOT the part to do so on. You want the best and tallest antenna you can put on your vehicle practically.

The first thing to consider when picking out an antenna is where to install it on the vehicle. For performance, what matters is the ground plane. The ground plane is the flat, metal surface needed to reflect your antenna's signal out. Essentially, the antenna transmits the signal downward, it strikes the ground plane, and is reflected out. The bigger your ground plane is, the better. Consequentially, the best place for your antenna is the center of the roof of your vehicle, IF it is metal and there is no sun roof. Some newer vehicles have fiberglass bodies that will not reflect the signal as metal would. The front or back fenders will give you good results as well. You must remember, though, that the signal will be weaker in the direction with no ground plane. For instance, if you mount your antenna on the front drivers side fender, you will have a weaker signal to the front-left of the vehicle.

You may never have heard of the tuning process or may have even installed antennas without tuning them. While antenna tuning isn’t required to operate your CB system, there are a number of important reasons you should always tune an antenna:
a) Improved Performance - A properly tuned antenna will ALWAYS work more efficiently than an untuned antenna. In order to get the best range and performance out of your CB, it’s important to tune your antenna.
b) Protects your Radio - An untuned antenna has the potential to permanently damage the components of your CB radio. An untuned antenna can reflect your transmission signal back to your radio as heat, which can damage your radio’s electronic components.



SWR stands for Standing Wave Ratio. SWR is a measure of how efficiently your antenna transmits a radio’s signal and is expressed as a ratio. For example, a SWR ratio of 1:1 would mean that your antenna is perfectly transmitting 100% of your radio’s signal while a ratio of 3:1 means that only 1/3 of the radio’s signal is being transmitted by the antenna.
When radio signals aren’t transmitted by the antenna, they can be transferred back to the radio as heat, which can damage the radio’s electronic components. A rule of thumb is that SWR levels below 2.0 are acceptable for operation while levels above 3.0 indicate problems that needs addressing.
 
All CB radios have the same transmission power, so choosing a radio really comes down to deciding what features are important. The cheapest CB radio transmits the exact same amount of power (4 watts) as the most expensive radio. They are limited by FCC regulation to 4 watts and unless one adds a linear amplifier the signal strength will always be 4 watts. If one pays more for a CB one gets more bells and whistles but will never get a radio that functionally transmits any better than the cheapest radio.

Accordingly, all radios will have the same output power regardless of their price. As all radios are limited by this bottleneck, the largest determinant of performance is antenna quality and installation.

The most important component to any CB setup is the antenna. If you're going to save money on anything, this is NOT the part to do so on. You want the best and tallest antenna you can put on your vehicle practically.

The first thing to consider when picking out an antenna is where to install it on the vehicle. For performance, what matters is the ground plane. The ground plane is the flat, metal surface needed to reflect your antenna's signal out. Essentially, the antenna transmits the signal downward, it strikes the ground plane, and is reflected out. The bigger your ground plane is, the better. Consequentially, the best place for your antenna is the center of the roof of your vehicle, IF it is metal and there is no sun roof. Some newer vehicles have fiberglass bodies that will not reflect the signal as metal would. The front or back fenders will give you good results as well. You must remember, though, that the signal will be weaker in the direction with no ground plane. For instance, if you mount your antenna on the front drivers side fender, you will have a weaker signal to the front-left of the vehicle.

You may never have heard of the tuning process or may have even installed antennas without tuning them. While antenna tuning isn’t required to operate your CB system, there are a number of important reasons you should always tune an antenna:
a) Improved Performance - A properly tuned antenna will ALWAYS work more efficiently than an untuned antenna. In order to get the best range and performance out of your CB, it’s important to tune your antenna.
b) Protects your Radio - An untuned antenna has the potential to permanently damage the components of your CB radio. An untuned antenna can reflect your transmission signal back to your radio as heat, which can damage your radio’s electronic components.



SWR stands for Standing Wave Ratio. SWR is a measure of how efficiently your antenna transmits a radio’s signal and is expressed as a ratio. For example, a SWR ratio of 1:1 would mean that your antenna is perfectly transmitting 100% of your radio’s signal while a ratio of 3:1 means that only 1/3 of the radio’s signal is being transmitted by the antenna.
When radio signals aren’t transmitted by the antenna, they can be transferred back to the radio as heat, which can damage the radio’s electronic components. A rule of thumb is that SWR levels below 2.0 are acceptable for operation while levels above 3.0 indicate problems that needs addressing.

Andy I do believe your missing one point in all this......

Some CB's are of better quality and while it is not running a higher output the out put can be cleaner and transmit better. A lot can be said for quality products in any discussion.
 
All CB radios have the same transmission power, so choosing a radio really comes down to deciding what features are important. The cheapest CB radio transmits the exact same amount of power (4 watts) as the most expensive radio. They are limited by FCC regulation to 4 watts and unless one adds a linear amplifier the signal strength will always be 4 watts. If one pays more for a CB one gets more bells and whistles but will never get a radio that functionally transmits any better than the cheapest radio.

Accordingly, all radios will have the same output power regardless of their price. As all radios are limited by this bottleneck, the largest determinant of performance is antenna quality and installation.

The most important component to any CB setup is the antenna. If you're going to save money on anything, this is NOT the part to do so on. You want the best and tallest antenna you can put on your vehicle practically.

The first thing to consider when picking out an antenna is where to install it on the vehicle. For performance, what matters is the ground plane. The ground plane is the flat, metal surface needed to reflect your antenna's signal out. Essentially, the antenna transmits the signal downward, it strikes the ground plane, and is reflected out. The bigger your ground plane is, the better. Consequentially, the best place for your antenna is the center of the roof of your vehicle, IF it is metal and there is no sun roof. Some newer vehicles have fiberglass bodies that will not reflect the signal as metal would. The front or back fenders will give you good results as well. You must remember, though, that the signal will be weaker in the direction with no ground plane. For instance, if you mount your antenna on the front drivers side fender, you will have a weaker signal to the front-left of the vehicle.

You may never have heard of the tuning process or may have even installed antennas without tuning them. While antenna tuning isn’t required to operate your CB system, there are a number of important reasons you should always tune an antenna:
a) Improved Performance - A properly tuned antenna will ALWAYS work more efficiently than an untuned antenna. In order to get the best range and performance out of your CB, it’s important to tune your antenna.
b) Protects your Radio - An untuned antenna has the potential to permanently damage the components of your CB radio. An untuned antenna can reflect your transmission signal back to your radio as heat, which can damage your radio’s electronic components.



SWR stands for Standing Wave Ratio. SWR is a measure of how efficiently your antenna transmits a radio’s signal and is expressed as a ratio. For example, a SWR ratio of 1:1 would mean that your antenna is perfectly transmitting 100% of your radio’s signal while a ratio of 3:1 means that only 1/3 of the radio’s signal is being transmitted by the antenna.
When radio signals aren’t transmitted by the antenna, they can be transferred back to the radio as heat, which can damage the radio’s electronic components. A rule of thumb is that SWR levels below 2.0 are acceptable for operation while levels above 3.0 indicate problems that needs addressing.


wow i actually read all of that. good read and good tips. thanks! so now to ask, how much is a good antenna worth? my jeep has a ball on the rear right side already where an antenna use to be. it looks as if it was CB ready prior to me purchasing it.
 
Andy I do believe your missing one point in all this......

Some CB's are of better quality and while it is not running a higher output the out put can be cleaner and transmit better. A lot can be said for quality products in any discussion.

Define: better.

CB radio transmissions almost sound worse than talking on a couple dixie cups attached with strings. By their nature they sound like crap to start with and then we listen to them through a tiny speaker often mounted in a poor location. I installed an auxiliary speaker on the dash just to right of the ignition switch and it vastly improved performance on the trail FOR ME.

In my opinion, a cleaner transmission is usually the result of a good microphone or a noise canceling mic but rarely because one paid more for the radio.
 
wow i actually read all of that. good read and good tips. thanks! so now to ask, how much is a good antenna worth? my jeep has a ball on the rear right side already where an antenna use to be. it looks as if it was CB ready prior to me purchasing it.

A ball on the side is a poor location but if you're going to stick with it, look into Firestik, Wilson and Shakespeare antennas. Buy online and shop for price.

I would recommend a mag mount Wilson 1000 in the middle of the roof for best performance.
 
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