Older equipment.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

San Antonio has made the transition.
All of the new radios are this or this.
http://www.pspc.harris.com/Portable/P7200.asp
The old radios are being bundled up to be disposed of.
San Antonio has dozens of old motorcycle radios that are 2 radios in one box and an amplifier.
http://www.repeater-builder.com/motorola/spectra/pdfs/spectra-motorcycle-specsheet.pdf
This was done to allow a transition from Smartnet to ProVoice.
If it is indeed a Specra, I have no interest, 800MHz trunking radios are super common.
But, if it is a unit that went from type I MotoTrunking to type II MotoTrunking, I have interest.
Motorola was not quite ready for full type II trunking motorcycle radios and so provided a fix, a MX300T talkie in a CVC unit that was later replaced with a STX unit and a 15 watt amplifier.
They also did this to pack sets.
Remember that San Antonio Texas was one of the first cities in the nation to go trunking.
My answer to all of this is simple, the radios are not worth fooling with, they are 800 MHz trunking and of no real value.
But the amplifier is set up to provide 15 watts of power, the legal limit.
This is an RF no tune module intended for operation in the given band.
That should be the only thing of interest as the radios themselves will not be made available to anyone, perhaps trade in?
So, what do Mexican get? a large box with a fused power block and an RF amplifier and siren unit.
I did not want the but did take the wiring and microphones as well as the siren speaker and antenna and all the extra switches and handlebar mount.
The amplifiers are rated to something like 40 watts at 800 MHz but are simply turned down.
There is NO filtering, put in a signal at 50MHz and a signal at 50MHz comes out, as well as anything else. :-D
30 MHz? no problemo.
I have some really old Motorola control heads from the UHF era that have controls on them.
I have ham talkies.
With narrow banding and rebanding and whatever else is planned this stuff is GOING to hit the market.
Some cities REQUIRE that the stuff be put up on public auction, and a lot of cities are going P-25 in one form or another.
But, I have another project to play with, and a use for the computer I got free a while back.

[n2ize]

The whole narroband requirement takes effect in 2013 at which time all public services operating above the 2 meter ham band are required to go narrow. Couldn't come at a worst time when many cities and towns are trying to scale down costs. The transition costs are expensive. NYC for example has asked for a temporary waiver but so far the Fed has said NYET NYET NYET !! If they aren't narrow after 2013 they can be fined for each day of violation of forced to cease operating. At a time of budgetary constraints it's a royal PITA.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

The amazing thing is that the FCC decided on this AFTER the big interoperability push.
San Antonio was waiting for 700MHz and P-25 II before making the leap, so everything is going to work out.
They already have an interop plan in place that beats everything else out there.
Mutual aid is analog FM 800MHz.
700MHz is 100% P-25 II narrow band, 20 channels conventional with everything else trunking, not in place.
800MHz is ProVoice at this time, 128 frequencies active with another bunch on the way under narrow banding.
900MHz was the MDT system, replaced by cellular.
All of the VHF and UHF went around the time of the Motorola to GE trunking transition.
Once the P-25 transition is in place there will no longer be radios owned by private parties allowed on the system, it will all be owned by a governmental agency of some sort or other.
Expensive? you bet!
This is what is inside the early Motorola motorcycle radio.
http://openbts.sourceforge.net/FieldTest/MHW820.pdf
As you can see, there is nothing that limits the lower frequency range but the size of the internal interstage coupling capacitors.
But as the frequency goes down the gain of the transistors goes up.
I need to go to sleep, or start eating more tacos, so far I have a 45 watt VX-7R, all bands, a very fancy computer based control head for same, and the ultimate in tactical flashlight in the works.
And that is just in the first month of the new year!

[N8YX]

GRE PCS-410.

I'm going to buy four and set them up in a bank, to monitor our various MARC and SmartNet cooperatives...

[W1GUH]

The whole narroband requirement takes effect in 2013 at which time all public services operating above the 2 meter ham band are required to go narrow. Couldn't come at a worst time when many cities and towns are trying to scale down costs. The transition costs are expensive. NYC for example has asked for a temporary waiver but so far the Fed has said NYET NYET NYET !! If they aren't narrow after 2013 they can be fined for each day of violation of forced to cease operating. At a time of budgetary constraints it's a royal PITA.

That's not at all a problem for mikey. He'll take the bucks from the firefighters, cops, and EMS people (after all, they're the ones using the radios), and, of course, the schools and human service groups. What problem?

After all, he's spent huge bucks replacing ALL walk-dont' walk signs with the picture ones (and don't work very good) AND renaming bridges.

[N2CHX]

I am definitely in a cheeky, wild mood today. The first thing I thought of when I read the thread title was "Yes Rudy, when it's all shriveled up, only comes out to play when you swallow a little blue pill and it's on the first floor but its only two friends in the world are hanging out together in the basement, it's vintage."

[W1GUH]

And gets beaten all the time.

[Chris]

lets hear it for unfunded mandates

[N8YX]

lets hear it for unfunded mandates
Like digital TV, perhaps?

[Chris]

yeah, wonder if theyll ever screw ambc radio the same way?

[N8YX]

yeah, wonder if theyll ever screw ambc radio the same way?
IBOC and several other camel's noses are peeking through the tent flap.

You tried DXing through that noise at night?

[W3WN]

yeah, wonder if theyll ever screw ambc radio the same way?
Sure they will. Remember the AM Stereo fiasco?

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

It looks like the hams just might win at this game.
The City of San Antonio is going to box this mess up and give it to the emergency management group.
The DPS updates to P-25, that are going to update again? there is a state property disposal agency that has crates of this chit that non-profits can get into.
http://portal.tfc.state.tx.us/surplus/state/