CB 2013

[N2NH]

What's new?

Uniden is now Uniden Bearcat. A CB XCVR for less than $30? At the time of this posting, yes.

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/uniden-bearcat-pro505xl-cb-radio/p/CB3D4AF4C67AEF435005?q=micro+cb+radio&lpf=0&lppc=16&lpq=micro%2bcb%2bradio&FORM=CMSMEE)

Walkie-Talkie (It's CB so it's a Walkie-Talkie). Midland 75 822 -they're still using numbered models for $68+

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/midland-75-822-cb-radio/p/1429883654279AE18AF2?q=micro+cb+radio&lpf=0&lppc=16&lpq=micro%2bcb%2bradio&FORM=CMSMEE)

AM/SSB is not as popular as it was. Few radios are out there. Here is the Uniden Bearcat model.

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/uniden-single-sideband-cb-radio/p/11F5028D1EC2ED3D5020?q=cb+ssb+radio&lpf=0&lpq=cb%2bssb%2bradio&FORM=EGCA&lppc=16)

http://goo.gl/Vu2Ya

[WX7P]

I don't listen much down there, just occasionally on 27.025 to check propagation.

Are there still a lot of freebanders? Used to here them all the time in the eighties.

[N8YX]

The entire 25-28MHz region is filled with them when a band opening is occurring.

More later - 'this hard to post from a mobile screen.

[w2amr]

What's new?

Uniden is now Uniden Bobcat. A CB XCVR for less than $30? At the time of this posting, yes.

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/uniden-bearcat-pro505xl-cb-radio/p/CB3D4AF4C67AEF435005?q=micro+cb+radio&lpf=0&lppc=16&lpq=micro%2bcb%2bradio&FORM=CMSMEE)

Walkie-Talkie (It's CB so it's a Walkie-Talkie). Midland 75 822 -they're still using numbered models for $68+

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/midland-75-822-cb-radio/p/1429883654279AE18AF2?q=micro+cb+radio&lpf=0&lppc=16&lpq=micro%2bcb%2bradio&FORM=CMSMEE)

AM/SSB is not as popular as it was. Few radios are out there. Here is the Uniden Bobcat model.

LINK HERE. (http://www.bing.com/shopping/uniden-single-sideband-cb-radio/p/11F5028D1EC2ED3D5020?q=cb+ssb+radio&lpf=0&lpq=cb%2bssb%2bradio&FORM=EGCA&lppc=16)

http://goo.gl/Vu2Ya
Pretty slick. Wonder why no AM? I still hear nothing but AM around here.

[KG4CGC]

Pretty slick. Wonder why no AM? I still hear nothing but AM around here.

Read more. It has AM.

[N8YX]

Expounding a bit on my comments above:


AM/SSB is not as popular as it was.
From a social interaction/party line standpoint the entire CB scene isn't as popular as it once was (thank you Compuserve and the Internet in general) but it still has a core group of users. Of which U.S. truckers are a dwindling quantity, having become disgusted at the outlandish and at times vulgar scene which they helped to create.


Few radios are out there.
Let's just say few new legal (Class D certificated) sets are out there. Go to eBay and you'll find a ton of decent used equipment being sold...and not to the same buyer.

Receiver-wise, select older gear is capable of performance which exceeds that of any new models issuing forth from the likes of Connex, Ranger and Magnum. The Cobra 148/2000GTL, its Uniden Madison counterpart, the Stoner Pro-40 and the CPI rigs still fetch premium prices - even though none of them offer such niceties as echo, talkback and FM/CW modes.

I currently use a CP2000 and BC2000 base console for any 11M transmission work alongside a collection of general coverage receivers for monitoring that part of the HF spectrum. The CPI's receiver is just as hot and just as selective as any of my higher-end amateur equipment. I'll guarantee it's a lot better in terms of adjacent channel rejection than any current legal CB or "export model 10M radio" on the market.

Speaking of ham gear: That's probably why you don't see more new models of CB equipment, especially base rigs. SSB 'enthusiasts' are simply buying and converting amateur transceivers for use in the Class D allocation as well as the so-called freeband areas.

(As an example - For SSB-only 11M use, an FT-726R with an HF module installed makes a darn nice setup. You get a great receiver, 10W PEP output, 15M-12M-26-30MHz coverage...plus any two ranges from 6M-4M-2M-430Mhz-440MHz. The CB manufacturers only wish they could build something this good at a similar price point.)

With regards to activity, I'm listening to 38LSB at the moment and there's a ton of it. In times past, AM was the universally agreed-upon mode for anything below CH1 while SSB (usually LSB) got the nod for the gap from CH40 to the bottom edge of 10M. This structure is loosely adhered to even today but I hear an increasing amount of FM and SSB in the 25-27MHz space. Conversely, more folk are observed using USB and AM in the "10.5M gap" these days.

For nostalgia's sake try tuning CH5 (27.015) some time where there's a band opening to the SW. It's the Mexican/Latin American trucker channel and it sounds a lot like U.S. CH19 did back in the boom days.

[WX7P]

Expounding a bit on my comments above:


From a social interaction/party line standpoint the entire CB scene isn't as popular as it once was (thank you Compuserve and the Internet in general) but it still has a core group of users. Of which U.S. truckers are a dwindling quantity, having become disgusted at the outlandish and at times vulgar scene which they helped to create.


Let's just say few new legal (Class D certificated) sets are out there. Go to eBay and you'll find a ton of decent used equipment being sold...and not to the same buyer.

Receiver-wise, select older gear is capable of performance which exceeds that of any new models issuing forth from the likes of Connex, Ranger and Magnum. The Cobra 148/2000GTL, its Uniden Madison counterpart, the Stoner Pro-40 and the CPI rigs still fetch premium prices - even though none of them offer such niceties as echo, talkback and FM/CW modes.

I currently use a CP2000 and BC2000 base console for any 11M transmission work alongside a collection of general coverage receivers for monitoring that part of the HF spectrum. The CPI's receiver is just as hot and just as selective as any of my higher-end amateur equipment. I'll guarantee it's a lot better in terms of adjacent channel rejection than any current legal CB or "export model 10M radio" on the market.

Speaking of ham gear: That's probably why you don't see more new models of CB equipment, especially base rigs. SSB 'enthusiasts' are simply buying and converting amateur transceivers for use in the Class D allocation as well as the so-called freeband areas.

(As an example - For SSB-only 11M use, an FT-726R with an HF module installed makes a darn nice setup. You get a great receiver, 10W PEP output, 15M-12M-26-30MHz coverage...plus any two ranges from 6M-4M-2M-430Mhz-440MHz. The CB manufacturers only wish they could build something this good at a similar price point.)

With regards to activity, I'm listening to 38LSB at the moment and there's a ton of it. In times past, AM was the universally agreed-upon mode for anything below CH1 while SSB (usually LSB) got the nod for the gap from CH40 to the bottom edge of 10M. This structure is loosely adhered to even today but I hear an increasing amount of FM and SSB in the 25-27MHz space. Conversely, more folk are observed using USB and AM in the "10.5M gap" these days.

For nostalgia's sake try tuning CH5 (27.015) some time where there's a band opening to the SW. It's the Mexican/Latin American trucker channel and it sounds a lot like U.S. CH19 did back in the boom days.

Very interesting. Thanks for that.

When I first started listening to CB and the freeband in 1981, there was a lot of SSB activity on channel 32-40 and of course, the freeband. The English speakers almost always used LSB. USB was reserved for channels 15 and 16.

I lost interest because they wouldn't always identify. At least with ham radio ops, you could look them up with their callsign.

[w2amr]

Read more. It has AM.
Oh ok, I see it now.

[W2NAP]

before i got licenced. i was on cb. course around here if you wasn't using an "export" radio you had junk. I think everyone had 2980,2517,saturn,dx99,dx88's

we also used ch 33 FM

[N8YX]

Another tidbit:

In the early 90s - right before the Internet sprung on the masses - there was a growing group of packet-radio BBSes set up on 27.540 - 300-baud LSB. Many of these were run by amateur radio operators whose country-specific regulations were a lot more open than those set forth by the FCC - particularly where 3rd-party traffic was concerned. Thus, in addition to regular ham traffic one could catch messages from the likes of USA1NY, USA6CA, EUR1GB and many other similar "calls" being forwarded through the packet radio network. This caused U.S.-based SysOps a good bit of grief as we tried to implement bit-bucket filters which would effectively squelch the stuff.

I used to have many tens of megabytes of recorded BBS, KB-KB and beacon traffic gathered from intercepts on the frequency. Though I never heard the activity myself, I understand 26.600 and thereabouts was popular with the 1200-baud FM crowd.

Those few U.S. stations which decided to give the frequency a go were soon accosted by the FCC, but I have a feeling that the Internet - not Gettysburg - ultimately sounded the death knell for bootleg packet radio. It's been years since I caught anything there.

[N2NH]

I don't know if I would bother with SSB this time. I had base and mobile SSB radios when i was active. The range of my HT up here is up to 60 miles and nearly 80 with repeater linking. Without interference too. SSB would be a big step backwards. But I could see getting the cheapo special for $30. Small and unobtrusive. 3 watts is 3 watts whether you spend $30 or $300.

[kb2vxa]

"From a social interaction/party line standpoint the entire CB scene isn't as popular as it once was (thank you Compuserve and the Internet in general) but it still has a core group of users."

Don't blame the internet, that's a common ham fallacy concocted to explain away the waning interest in Amateur Radio. It's because of crowded band conditions that rapidly deteriorated beginning with the CB boom that made it nearly impossible to communicate even across town on any channel. Then the solar cycle peaked adding QRM from everywhere to the mix, every 10KHz from 25-28MH was jammed. There was such a feeding frenzy the sharks ate each other and CB never recovered. I was one, no sense having a radio you can't use so I sold my Heathkit twins (evil grin with horns) for a pretty penny, donated my Ringo to a camp for disabled kids where it was re-tuned and used on 10M and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Of which U.S. truckers are a dwindling quantity, having become disgusted at the outlandish and at times vulgar scene which they helped to create."
Careful, you know how to spell ASS U ME. From the horse's mouth, a ham/trucker, the FCC put the kibosh on trucker CB. You probably heard of the only mass enforcement they could make stick, camping out at truck stops and weigh stations and inspecting truck stop shops and cab radio equipment. Naturally they uncovered tons of illegal equipment and fined the truck stops for selling it and the trucking companies for having it in company trucks. (Possession is illegal regardless of ownership, connected or not.) They quickly got fed up and many banned all after market radios, some went farther and banned anything connected to the truck's electrical system so bye bye microwaves, refrigerators and the like too. For what it's worth I've heard of plenty of cases where CB and ham rigs caused RFI problems with vehicle electronics creating safety issues, a good reason for a voluntary self imposed ban so "the blue screen of death" doesn't become literal at highway speed.

"For nostalgia's sake try tuning CH5 (27.015) some time where there's a band opening to the SW. It's the Mexican/Latin American trucker channel and it sounds a lot like U.S. CH19 did back in the boom days."
Time for a Wall Of Voodoo!

I'm on a Mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican - whoah - radio
I dial it in and tune the station
They talk about the U.S. inflation
I understand just a little
No comprende, it's a riddle

I'm on a mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican, whoa-Oh, radio
I'm on a mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican, whoa-Oh, radio
Radio radio... What does he say?

[WX7P]

"From a social interaction/party line standpoint the entire CB scene isn't as popular as it once was (thank you Compuserve and the Internet in general) but it still has a core group of users."

Don't blame the internet, that's a common ham fallacy concocted to explain away the waning interest in Amateur Radio. It's because of crowded band conditions that rapidly deteriorated beginning with the CB boom that made it nearly impossible to communicate even across town on any channel. Then the solar cycle peaked adding QRM from everywhere to the mix, every 10KHz from 25-28MH was jammed. There was such a feeding frenzy the sharks ate each other and CB never recovered. I was one, no sense having a radio you can't use so I sold my Heathkit twins (evil grin with horns) for a pretty penny, donated my Ringo to a camp for disabled kids where it was re-tuned and used on 10M and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Of which U.S. truckers are a dwindling quantity, having become disgusted at the outlandish and at times vulgar scene which they helped to create."
Careful, you know how to spell ASS U ME. From the horse's mouth, a ham/trucker, the FCC put the kibosh on trucker CB. You probably heard of the only mass enforcement they could make stick, camping out at truck stops and weigh stations and inspecting truck stop shops and cab radio equipment. Naturally they uncovered tons of illegal equipment and fined the truck stops for selling it and the trucking companies for having it in company trucks. (Possession is illegal regardless of ownership, connected or not.) They quickly got fed up and many banned all after market radios, some went farther and banned anything connected to the truck's electrical system so bye bye microwaves, refrigerators and the like too. For what it's worth I've heard of plenty of cases where CB and ham rigs caused RFI problems with vehicle electronics creating safety issues, a good reason for a voluntary self imposed ban so "the blue screen of death" doesn't become literal at highway speed.

"For nostalgia's sake try tuning CH5 (27.015) some time where there's a band opening to the SW. It's the Mexican/Latin American trucker channel and it sounds a lot like U.S. CH19 did back in the boom days."
Time for a Wall Of Voodoo!

I'm on a Mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican - whoah - radio
I dial it in and tune the station
They talk about the U.S. inflation
I understand just a little
No comprende, it's a riddle

I'm on a mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican, whoa-Oh, radio
I'm on a mexican radio. I'm on a Mexican, whoa-Oh, radio
Radio radio... What does he say?

Can't understand, what does he say?

Wall of Voodoo.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V04IBsz-9Wo

[N8YX]

"From a social interaction/party line standpoint the entire CB scene isn't as popular as it once was (thank you Compuserve and the Internet in general) but it still has a core group of users."

Don't blame the internet, that's a common ham fallacy concocted to explain away the waning interest in Amateur Radio.

Wrong.

I watched this unfold with my own eyes. You have two basic groups of CBers - the radio enthusiast/business user and the social butterfly. In this (NEOH) area, the latter outnumbered the former by ~10:1. I'm not kidding. If you weren't consistently (ahem) 'meeting' new and interesting people via the medium on a typical weekend you were seriously off-base with your game. We're talking parity - even-Steven - between women and men. 11M was the primo hunting ground here, even better than the bars.

In 1983 a pronounced uptick in online chat-room growth began to draw a large number of our local CB contingent off the air and into cyberspace. A couple folks I know actually built part of that regional infrastructure and once it was implemented - several years AFTER the peak of the sunspot cycle, mind you - local CB began circling the drain. Sure, the skip-shooters and true radio-electronics nuts remained but the hookup crowd went in search of much greener, anonymous pastures...and found them in the form of multi-line BBSes which we had been constructing.



"Of which U.S. truckers are a dwindling quantity, having become disgusted at the outlandish and at times vulgar scene which they helped to create."
Careful, you know how to spell ASS U ME. From the horse's mouth, a ham/trucker, the FCC put the kibosh on trucker CB. You probably heard of the only mass enforcement they could make stick, camping out at truck stops and weigh stations and inspecting truck stop shops and cab radio equipment. Naturally they uncovered tons of illegal equipment and fined the truck stops for selling it and the trucking companies for having it in company trucks. (Possession is illegal regardless of ownership, connected or not.) They quickly got fed up and many banned all after market radios, some went farther and banned anything connected to the truck's electrical system so bye bye microwaves, refrigerators and the like too. For what it's worth I've heard of plenty of cases where CB and ham rigs caused RFI problems with vehicle electronics creating safety issues, a good reason for a voluntary self imposed ban so "the blue screen of death" doesn't become literal at highway speed.

Again, wrong. Your premise might explain the company driver but the many owner-operators can do anything they please with their trucks...and those whom I know personally have become fed up with the sheer volume of garbage which is prevalent on the band these days.

I see a fair amount of fleet trucks with CB whips. I see a lot more independently owned equipment with them, and I rarely hear the drivers using CB to communicate. Why? A neat little thing called Nextel two-way. All of the benefits; none of the fsckers and chuckers.

[kb2vxa]

You seem to forget you live in Ohio, I live in New Jersey. I watched it unfold with my own ears ringing from mass heterodyne and constant S9+ noise level. While your observation may be valid for your area please give credit for mine being valid in my area.

"11M was the primo hunting ground here, even better than the bars."
Are you kidding me? Rilly? (;->) Horny housewives were lined up at my door, need I say more? Hey, that rhymes.

Perhaps due to the greater population density (an antenna on nearly every house, land vehicle and boat) CB went down the drain before 1983 which BTW was around the time I got fed up and sold out for reasons previously stated. The "hookup crowd" was already dead in the water and most that I knew didn't have computers, just went back to traditional methods. Ah yes, the popular land line dial up BBSes, some out California way had 800 numbers and a far greater number of ports so they were used most heavily. My friend Larry N2HGY was the last in NJ to shut his down, talk about a die hard. As an aside I'm chuckling over their demise at the hands of the internet while the internet enhances the Amateur Radio equivalent, the worldwide packet radio BBS network in which I am active. Here's a funny, someone on the Island recently started a thread about our discussions of non Amateur topics. She'd have a fit if someone tells her how much non ham stuff is discussed on packet and ham radio in general. <hint hint>

"Again, wrong."
Yeah OK, call my friend a liar and me as well if you like, I don't mind. He told me about the company fleets, he being one of the drivers and I reading the NALs and putting 2 and 2 together came up with the reason stated. I didn't mention the few remaining independents because you're perfectly capable of separating sheep from goats but you surprisingly have them grazing in the same pasture. Sure they can do what they like with their own property, duh? Sure you see a fair amount of fleet trucks with antennas, not all companies banned aftermarket radios, again duh? Please, I gave you credit for a little common sense but apparently in your zeal to contradict me it went by the wayside. Speaking of the wayside, news has it that's where Nextel is headed so now what?

Nothing personal, only business but the thing is business is not the same nationwide. When it comes to Who Killed Roger Rabbit it all depends on the local rabbits. Since trucking companies are interstate regional separation doesn't apply but separation by company and contractor (independent trucker) surely does. When you paint all with the same brush there is a problem as I have just pointed out but it's a common problem I have encountered many times before on other internet forums whenever this topic comes up. Well, everyone is entitled to an opinion, like they say in Italian; t'each izzone calzone.

[W2NAP]

I can tell you here where I live CB was big. Channel 33 was like LA 435. Channel 16 was like 14.313 and Channel 8 was like 3843.

However it all came crashing down when the amount of stupid overtook the amount of sane.

[kb2vxa]

Yup, around here CB was big until the stupids killed it. When I lived "up north" on "the dirty side" across the Arthur Kill from Static Island screwballs were everywhere but various groups had their home channels so I knew where to find everybody. We really had some great fun talking about everything from soup to nuts and the technically minded which were most of my friends had fun and learned a lot experimenting with all sorts of things, frankly it laid the foundation for many of us who moved up to Amateur Radio. Not only that but it played a big part in my turning a hobby into a career, spending money is one thing but earning money is much better. If I had to live those days over I wouldn't change a thing, it was the time of my life.

"Channel 16 was like 14.313..."
Pardon me for the chuckles, when SSB came on the scene it was still 23 channels and that was the only SSB channel. Historically SSB ops were the only bolts in a box full of nuts, quite the opposite of the 20M hash mash and trash.

[W2NAP]

16 here was AM'ers. we used 33 FM alot of times with our super dooper exports.

[K8PG]

The Best CB radio is in the Landfill.

[N2CHX]

The Best CB radio is in the Landfill.

You're either Burt's offspring or his best friend.

[N8YX]

Haters gonna hate.

[K8PG]

No one said anything about hate ! I tossed out a box of cb radios last fall -14 of them in all -No one wanted them

[KG4CGC]

No one said anything about hate ! I tossed out a box of cb radios last fall -14 of them in all -No one wanted them

Craigslist? You can't keep a CB listed for 10 hours before you'll have all kinds of Citizen's Band enthusiasts knocking your doors down before you wake up. I had a small collection sitting around including my base from 1995 and all of them sold, no haggling.
I've got a couple of high end CRTs sitting around and THOSE, can not be given away. They have a great picture I even watched HD movies in HD on them but no person wants them now. I guess they have to go to that place where 8-tracks and cassettes sit on the park bench shaking their canes.

[kb2vxa]

"The Best CB radio is in the Landfill."

NO! NO! NO! They require proper labeling and disposal or like Joe Higgins as the sheriff in the Dodge Challenger commercial said "Yo inna heap o' trouble boy!"

[N2NH]

Very interesting. Thanks for that.

When I first started listening to CB and the freeband in 1981, there was a lot of SSB activity on channel 32-40 and of course, the freeband. The English speakers almost always used LSB. USB was reserved for channels 15 and 16.

I lost interest because they wouldn't always identify. At least with ham radio ops, you could look them up with their callsign.

We had SSB on 16, 18 and 36-40. Once in awhile late at night, you could see it on other channels. One guy unwisely tried it on Channel 19...

Never did 11 Meter FM nor was my power ever illegal and still got out great. Had my 1st Radiotelephone License to protect and I wouldn't take any chances with my bread-n-butter.

[VE7DCW]

Haters gonna hate.

Fred ...... you mean there's actually people who hate CB?? :lol:

[ki4itv]

...
I've got a couple of high end CRTs sitting around and THOSE, can not be given away. They have a great picture I even watched HD movies in HD on them but no person wants them now. I guess they have to go to that place where 8-tracks and cassettes sit on the park bench shaking their canes.
I had to laugh, Charles...Goodwill wouldn't take the CRT combo I tried to give them. Oh, and there's this pile of GD taper section cassettes sitting five feet away from me that I don't have the heart to get rid of and have nothing to play them on right now.
9101

...and yeah, I was domesticatin' so don't be hatin' ;)

[n2ize]

We had SSB on 16, 18 and 36-40. Once in awhile late at night, you could see it on other channels. One guy unwisely tried it on Channel 19...

SSB was too risky to try on any of those channels. The stakes were high and the punishments severe.



Never did 11 Meter FM nor was my power ever illegal and still got out great. Had my 1st Radiotelephone License to protect and I wouldn't take any chances with my bread-n-butter.

Even worst here. I avoided 11 meter CB altogether. In my line of work I couldn't take such risks. It was even questioned as to whether my amateur radio operations were part of an "established station". My employers checked everything thoroughly.

[kb2vxa]

"...I wouldn't take any chances with my bread-n-butter."

On one electrician job I wouldn't either, Ted Bredenbeck aka bread 'n butter was my boss.

"My employers checked everything thoroughly."

One case where good enough for government work didn't apply.

[AE1PT]

In 1983 a pronounced uptick in online chat-room growth began to draw a large number of our local CB contingent off the air and into cyberspace.

Folks must be pretty progressive in Ohio. The CB crowd in Florida certainly did not have computers and use BBS in the 1980s. Matter of fact, CB was pretty well done by the 80s except for bucketmouths and bullies. Overall, the prime of CB was in the mid to late 70s, and most sensible people had either drifted away or gotten their Tech licenses and shifted to repeater culture.

What killed CB was its own popularity, and a contingent of bad actors and behaviors that all too soon became the norm.

There are times that I miss the social scene that accompanied CB in the 70s...

[K7SGJ]

Folks must be pretty progressive in Ohio. The CB crowd in Florida certainly did not have computers and use BBS in the 1980s. Matter of fact, CB was pretty well done by the 80s except for bucketmouths and bullies. Overall, the prime of CB was in the mid to late 70s, and most sensible people had either drifted away or gotten their Tech licenses and shifted to repeater culture.

What killed CB was its own popularity, and a contingent of bad actors and behaviors that all too soon became the norm.

There are times that I miss the social scene that accompanied CB in the 70s...

Ya mean like Big Enos and Little Enos?

9207

[AE1PT]

No, more like the every day coffee gatherings at all times of the day or night, social groups meeting at each others houses to play games or get blind, and the seemingly endless string of CB honeys that liked to have some fun and a bit of company getting through the night... :cool2:

[K7SGJ]

No, more like the every day coffee gatherings at all times of the day or night, social groups meeting at each others houses to play games or get blind, and the seemingly endless string of CB honeys that liked to have some fun and a bit of company getting through the night... :cool2:

Well......yeah.......I guess there is that, too.

[kb2vxa]

Oh those beloved coffee breaks that ranged from an impromptu gathering at a local diner to hamfest style organized festivities often covered live on radio and TV. One somewhere in the swamps of Jersey was quite memorable, it was Halloween and everybody came in costume. There was a contest for the best costume, a friend and I came well prepared, he as a GI with a man pack radio and I in a borrowed authentic Nazi Luftwaffe colonel's full dress uniform rather like Klink when called to Berlin. FYI I had to strip down to shirtsleeves, that tight knit wool tunic is HOT indoors! His was a last minute hurried affair but it turned out perfectly, everything scrounged from WW2 uniform and equipment souvenirs except for a Lafayette Comsat 25B, a motorcycle battery, headset and short loaded antenna.

Now picture this, radio and battery in a backpack with a mobile mic in hand, the headset minus the band mounted in the helmet and the antenna in a hole drilled in the top. Definitely the cool soldier from Mars. After suiting up in the parking lot he got on the talk in channel and faked a mobile coming in as we walked to the door. At the registration table where the talk in was we stopped and at that moment the guy giving directions asked "What's your 20 now?" and he replied "Look up." Yeah, the look on the guys face was priceless. Oh the contest, some drop dead gorgeous Tinker Bell won first prize naturally but the soldier from Mars came in second. I guess they didn't like the colonel too much, I look more German than Werner Klemperer. (;->)

[Happy_Hamer]

I drive a truck locally, there are still a lot of people on the CB daily. Sure 19 is the channel I use most of the time, but I hear people on 38 LSB all the time.

If I want a good laugh, I go to channel 6 or 11, hilarious at times.

I know conditions are open when I hear a truck wash in California, I am in Chicagoland, start advertising on channel 19 "no waiting all lanes are open".

[N2NH]

Oh those beloved coffee breaks that ranged from an impromptu gathering at a local diner to hamfest style organized festivities often covered live on radio and TV.

Two words. Adventurer's Inn. We used to have them at the one in Flushing (Queens) and there was a similar place in Soundview (The Bronx). Even had drawings. Must've been 500 people there for the event at Soundview. The one in Queens also had a selling area complete with guys who did screwdriver jobs and modulators.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/31/Marvinthemartain.jpg/200px-Marvinthemartain.jpg

[KC2UGV]

Oddly enough, CB radio is still pretty big in my locale, with both truckers (Business users), and casual users. Weekends, you'll hear plenty of chats on 11, 16,21, 22, 35, and 38. On channel 5 most nights, there's a decent crowd of about 10-15 people using the channel to just shoot the shit, until 1 or 2AM.

[WØTKX]

I just took an RX cruise in that region.

From this QTH, I hear plenty of road (trucker) stuff on 19, some locals yakking, and 3-4 SSB QSO's.
All on "legal channels", nothing on the free-bander areas, but the band is not "open" right now.

[N8YX]

In the late 70s/early 80s one could not find an open CB channel in this area, especially during the day in summertime. Couple the number of users countrywide with a single or double-hop Sporadic E event and all 40 channels became nothing but a roar. One of my cousins had a simplistic little Cobra mobile rig in his car; on a summer night in '78 we tuned the bands looking for things of interest...and the roar stayed with us until well after midnight.

Similar events were experienced in my own shack up until summer of '83: My prized Royce 1-641 gave up the ghost while in QSO with a mutual friend of a then-girlfriend, and I recycled the rig's components into other projects after the object of my affection had faded into a dim memory.

'87 or thereabouts saw my return to radio in general and I played around with 11M up until I started with my current employer. We still use it on the bikes as a means of communication but coffee breaks, SSB Club picnics, late night 'technician'/card/booze parties and antenna raising get-togethers have all disappeared into the Americana history books.

I Elmered quite a few CBers into the amateur radio fold during those days. Most of the people I talked to within the Class D service have passed on or disconnected the gear and scrapped or sold it.

The demand for repairs and modifications gave rise to a number of "experts" in and around the vicinity, some of whom ply their trade to this day. Most of these gentlemen are of the clip/peak/hope-for-the-best school of "How to influence radio friends and generate TVI everywhere" while a few of us focused our efforts of restoration and proper (legal) setup of the transmitter section.

Another '641 graces my collection today; it was an eBay DOA project which was gotten cheap. Likewise, the radio I always wanted as a kid - the Royce 1-642 - is present...ditto rescue and restoration. Also present is a 1-624...a 1-625...and two 1-639s (the latter being IMHO one of the best mobile rigs produced during the boom years).

I started looking for something better than the Royce and found in in the CPI CP400/2000/2500 rigs plus their varied peripherals. My late friend Hank, KA8RZT had a '2000 in his shack and it was a hard choice between that radio and a Cobra 2000GTL, right up until I played with the CPI stuff on the air. It works as good on 11M as most of my HF ham gear does on 10. That's to say the idiot whose tweaked "export model" transceiver crunches the CP2000's front end will do similar to, say, my Paragon IIs, Omnis...various Yaesus and maybe even the TR7/R7 (though that would come as a surprise).

Memories. Too bad none of my rigs have a "Now/Then" function switch on them. At times I would really like to go back.

[K7SGJ]

10225

[kb2vxa]

Just when you think a thread has finally been laid to rest it comes back to bite you on the... neeeeck.

[n2ize]

I don't know if I would bother with SSB this time. I had base and mobile SSB radios when i was active. The range of my HT up here is up to 60 miles and nearly 80 with repeater linking. Without interference too. SSB would be a big step backwards. But I could see getting the cheapo special for $30. Small and unobtrusive. 3 watts is 3 watts whether you spend $30 or $300.

Since you have a ham license why not just get on HF and talk around the world ? You have 160 through 10 meters at your disposal + a variety of modes, SSB, AM, FM, Digital, etc. Plus you have VHF, UHF, and more.

[kb2vxa]

Uh oh, I see somebody looking for trouble.

[N2NH]

In my case all the radios are GOK where. I am looking into a IC-7000 or a FT-897 in the future though. A dipole, a nice new key and maybe a keyer.

CB is still viable for road conditions and when getting a response on the local repeater is not happening.

[n2ize]

In my case all the radios are GOK where. I am looking into a IC-7000 or a FT-897 in the future though. A dipole, a nice new key and maybe a keyer.

Sounds nice. Maybe we can talk on 160 or 75 meters one night. On 75 and 160 I generally put a very strong strapping signal into the Catskill area and throughout upstate NY and into Canada. On 40 meters I tend to skip over that area. If you can put up a flatop dipole or an inverted vee doublet we should have no problem hearing one another. Except for my Kenwood receiver and my vhf HT my station is a throwback to the early 1950's


CB is still viable for road conditions and when getting a response on the local repeater is not happening.

Good point. I've never operated CB radio from a mobile but I guess its good for road conditions when the local repeaters are quiet. back in the late 1980's I remember a friend of mine has a converted 5 watt CB set up to operate on 10 meters mobile. One afternoon I was chatting with a station in England as we were driving around. The band conditions were so awesome it was as if he was right around the corner. And that was just with < 5 watts output from a mobile.

BTW if you can reach the 145.130 repeater in Carmel from your area I can probably work you on vhf when I head upstate a little ways. There are also a few repeaters across the Hudson that I could probably reach you from my home QTH. If you can hit the Alpine, WECA (147.060), or Pearl River I can probably reach you on VHF with no problem.

[N2NH]

Sounds nice. Maybe we can talk on 160 or 75 meters one night. On 75 and 160 I generally put a very strong strapping signal into the Catskill area and throughout upstate NY and into Canada. On 40 meters I tend to skip over that area. If you can put up a flatop dipole or an inverted vee doublet we should have no problem hearing one another. Except for my Kenwood receiver and my vhf HT my station is a throwback to the early 1950's

I've tried hitting the machines in Westchester and the City, but with no success; 5 Watts isn't cutting it. I do seem to be able to hit some of the Mt. Beacon machines. When I lived in Brooklyn, and before they went nuts building skyscrapers in the City, I used to be able to hit the WECA machine in Valhalla and was even a member for awhile. I could sometimes hit Mt. Beacon, but no audio. Not bad for a 5 Watt Alinco. But from here, not so much. If I get the multi-mode XCVR, that shouldn't be a problem even with a vertical or a small yagi.



Good point. I've never operated CB radio from a mobile but I guess its good for road conditions when the local repeaters are quiet. back in the late 1980's I remember a friend of mine has a converted 5 watt CB set up to operate on 10 meters mobile. One afternoon I was chatting with a station in England as we were driving around. The band conditions were so awesome it was as if he was right around the corner. And that was just with < 5 watts output from a mobile.

BTW if you can reach the 145.130 repeater in Carmel from your area I can probably work you on vhf when I head upstate a little ways. There are also a few repeaters across the Hudson that I could probably reach you from my home QTH. If you can hit the Alpine, WECA (147.060), or Pearl River I can probably reach you on VHF with no problem.

I think I can reach the Harriman repeater if I stand in the right spot. Haven't been able to hook up to the APRS system here so far, but I keep trying. The Highlands are an obstacle to me as they block a lot of the signals coming here and are mostly made of iron. We barely get maybe 2 or 3 FM BCB stations and 4 or so AM BCB. Oddly enough WINS doesn't make it but WCBS does.

When I was a CB'er, back in the first golden age ('60s), I was able to reach up to Stony Point, which is about 35 miles south of here, near West Point. Under the 150 mile rule they still have too.

[KA9MOT]

2 nights ago I grabbed 2 old, non-working Uniden PC-66XL that my nephew gave me out of the closet and got them working. I was gonna sell them but the railroad has closed 2 railroad crossings for repair and it is messing the truckers up bad. We have 2 major US highways that intersect here (US-67 and US-136) and they are both blocked. I've hooked the older one up here in the shack and I'm running it on my 10M dipole to help some of these drivers through this mess.

I was going to sell the newer one but John, KC0TPI decided to give me a 5 foot Wilson Silver Load and it is the same color as my truck so I think I'll put the newer one in the truck so I can talk to these drivers while I'm out and about.

I think in the next few days I'm going to connect my studio mic and EQ to the one in the shack....Aught to sound good.

[N8OBM]

2 nights ago I grabbed 2 old, non-working Uniden PC-66XL that my nephew gave me out of the closet and got them working. I was gonna sell them but the railroad has closed 2 railroad crossings for repair and it is messing the truckers up bad. We have 2 major US highways that intersect here (US-67 and US-136) and they are both blocked. I've hooked the older one up here in the shack and I'm running it on my 10M dipole to help some of these drivers through this mess.

I was going to sell the newer one but John, KC0TPI decided to give me a 5 foot Wilson Silver Load and it is the same color as my truck so I think I'll put the newer one in the truck so I can talk to these drivers while I'm out and about.

I think in the next few days I'm going to connect my studio mic and EQ to the one in the shack....Aught to sound good.

Ok, I have to ask. What sort of microphone and EQ? Have you played with using a compressor? A lot of Cheap CB's have clipping amps in the mic circuit to make them sound louder. I'm not certain if the PC-66xl is one of them. I might have to check the schemo.

Archie N8OBM

[KA9MOT]

Hi Archie,

The mic is a MXL-990. The mixer is a Behringer XENYX 802. Currently it runs through the 13 pin DIN (ACCY 2) port on the back of my Kenwood TS-570S. The railroad crossings are now open, so the CB in the shack is gone. I may leave the one in the truck for when I am on the road.

Thanks for commenting. I considered that the pre-amp in the mixer might be more than the audio circuits in the CB could handle. It was an experiment that I was unable to find the time to try.

[N8OBM]

Howdy Steve

I run an old Valley People 400 channel strip with an AKG D1000 microphone. This runs into my old Icom IC720. I go in the mic input on the front. I built a little interface box that the TX switch connects to and it also houses a step up transformer as these things like a pretty high input impedance and they like a ton of drive. The Valley people 400 combines a mic amp, a three band EQ, a gate, and a compressor into one box. I set the EQ for a little roll off in the bass, bump the mids up a little and leave the highs alone. I don't use the gate. I set the compression so that on peaks I see about 10 db reduction and I see a little reduction most of the time I'm speaking. This keeps levels good and loud without being overly processed.

Believe it or not we actually had a net on channel 36 lsb until about a year ago. There is talk of bringing it back. I keep an old Johnson for these. I believe it's a 4270. The Johnson is a surprisingly well built radio. I haven't tried running my channel strip with the old Johnson yet. I suspect I would need to run a serious attenuator to use it with the old beast.

Behringer makes some OK stuff and some not to wonderful stuff. Most of there stuff seems to be based on other makers goods. Most of the Mixers I've seen seem to be based on Mackie's circuits but with lower quality components. Most of the Amps are based on QSC's RMX series. That said some of the compressors have been surprisingly nice.

the MXL990 is not a bad mic if you want something that's bright sounding. It gets strident quickly on things that have a lot of high end to begin with. If you rattle your keys in front of it you will likely hear what I'm talking about. It's really a medium diaphragm condenser even though they call it a large diaphragm. It uses the same capsule as the MXL603 in a little different holder. It's about a 3/4 inch diaphragm. A lot of mic builders use it as a platform to modify and It pretty easily can be made into something pretty wonderful with not too much work. The circuit is a time tested and proven one based on one first used years ago in a microphone by Scheops. There are a few parts that should be upgraded but, the basic circuit is first rate. The biggest weakness this mic has is the capsule. A common upgrade capsule would be an RK-47 from microphone parts. They sell kits to upgrade these mics as well. As you can likely tell, I really like playing with microphones. I've modified many and built several from scratch.

I suspect that we would be able to hear each other on 20 or 40 meters with out too much trouble. I have a pretty deep mic cabinet If you would like to hear the differences between different mics on the air, We could schedule a contact. I don't have an MXL990. From MXL, I do have an V67, 603, BCD1, R144 and a heavily modified V57 with an M7 capsule. I also have many other to pick from if there is something you would like to hear.

Archie N8OBM

[kb2vxa]

I see no purpose in connecting a professional mic and EQ up to a CB or ham rig unless it's been completely de-hyellowfied. A stock rig has the audio amp tailored for voice communications, usually 300-3000Hz so no matter what you put in you'll transmit telephonium yawdio. Now if you're in an AM window talking to one of the AM Gangstas who has a modified receiver and good speaker and can actually hear hwi-fwi even a de-hyellowfied radio is wasted so don't expect a CBer to care how good you sound when all they're interested in is how BAD you sound.

"I think in the next few days I'm going to connect my studio mic and EQ to the one in the shack....Aught to sound good."
Good only in your opinion, once you get it tweaked it'll sound smooth BUT they want PUNCH. So if you give them ear bleed they're happy, if not they'll tell you that you have low audio. That's not to say you have to splatter all over the band, punch means tailored to voice and a high modulation density from substantial clipping with a good low pass filter to remove harmonics that cause splatter. That's why my scratchy Apache cut through QRM like a hot knife through butter and don't say a word about 100W when that was QRP back in my CB daze. Maybe John NH remembers Artie Windjammer on channel 21 and his Johnson desk kilowatt run at half power who never did figure out how I was able to be heard through him... dayah da dayah dayah dayah. (;->)

[WX7P]

As usual, no one can figure out what you're saying.

Stop being an asshole.

Quote function. Use it.

[N8OBM]

I see no purpose in connecting a professional mic and EQ up to a CB or ham rig unless it's been completely de-hyellowfied. A stock rig has the audio amp tailored for voice communications, usually 300-3000Hz so no matter what you put in you'll transmit telephonium yawdio. Now if you're in an AM window talking to one of the AM Gangstas who has a modified receiver and good speaker and can actually hear hwi-fwi even a de-hyellowfied radio is wasted so don't expect a CBer to care how good you sound when all they're interested in is how BAD you sound.

"I think in the next few days I'm going to connect my studio mic and EQ to the one in the shack....Aught to sound good."
Good only in your opinion, once you get it tweaked it'll sound smooth BUT they want PUNCH. So if you give them ear bleed they're happy, if not they'll tell you that you have low audio. That's not to say you have to splatter all over the band, punch means tailored to voice and a high modulation density from substantial clipping with a good low pass filter to remove harmonics that cause splatter. That's why my scratchy Apache cut through QRM like a hot knife through butter and don't say a word about 100W when that was QRP back in my CB daze. Maybe John NH remembers Artie Windjammer on channel 21 and his Johnson desk kilowatt run at half power who never did figure out how I was able to be heard through him... dayah da dayah dayah dayah. (;->)

I confess to having no clue at all to what you mean by "de-hyellowfied". If you read my post what I do with the rig I run is to cut the low end, push the mids and roll off the high end a little. The whole point isn't to sound like broadcast but, to make the signal readable. Some stock hand mics are tailored to voice but, a lot of them are just plain cheap, low quality mics. Compression will do what a clipping amp does but with out the distortion. It makes for higher average levels and increased readability. I like to start with good quality to begin with before I start tweaking the sound. It's like digital photo editing. You should always start with the best source you can. You can subtract things that are there but there is nothing you can do to put something back that wasn't there to begin with. You don't need a Neuman U87 to be certain but, a Shure SM57 is a good place to start. The D1000 I use was AKG's answer to an SM57 but with less proximity effect. I was just offering to let him hear the difference between between a number of different mics on the air so he could trust his ears. I will admit that part of playing around with this is because I can. I run a small studio and I have a pretty good mic collection. My old 720 came with out the original mic so, I need to use some kind of mic preamp to make it work. Is the VP400 overkill? Likely but, it does work well and I already have it. Why not use it and try some of these other things to see if they make a difference. I had another 720a that did have the original mic and it was a foul sounding thing. The mids were so hot as to make it harder to read. When I let go of the radio that mic went with it.

Archie N8OBM

[K7SGJ]

I confess to having no clue at all to what you mean by "de-hyellowfied". If you read my post what I do with the rig I run is to cut the low end, push the mids and roll off the high end a little. The whole point isn't to sound like broadcast but, to make the signal readable. Some stock hand mics are tailored to voice but, a lot of them are just plain cheap, low quality mics. Compression will do what a clipping amp does but with out the distortion. It makes for higher average levels and increased readability. I like to start with good quality to begin with before I start tweaking the sound. It's like digital photo editing. You should always start with the best source you can. You can subtract things that are there but there is nothing you can do to put something back that wasn't there to begin with. You don't need a Neuman U87 to be certain but, a Shure SM57 is a good place to start. The D1000 I use was AKG's answer to an SM57 but with less proximity effect. I was just offering to let him hear the difference between between a number of different mics on the air so he could trust his ears.I will admit that part of playing around with this is because I can. I run a small studio and I have a pretty good mic collection. My old 720 came with out the original mic so, I need to use some kind of mic preamp to make it work. Is the VP400 overkill? Likely but, it does work well and I already have it. Why not use it and try some of these other things to see if they make a difference. I had another 720a that did have the original mic and it was a foul sounding thing. The mids were so hot as to make it harder to read. When I let go of the radio that mic went with it.

Archie N8OBM

And here are some of the most basic parts of the hobby. Experimenting, using what's on hand, and helping/sharing with others. :clap: Works for me.

[WØTKX]

My Flex 3000 and TS-850SAT respond quite well to microphone shenanigans.

I need to hook up my ARX Afterburner again. Wonderful unit.

[K7SGJ]

My Flex 3000 and TS-850SAT respond quite well to microphone shenanigans.

I need to hook up my ARX Afterburner again. Wonderful unit.

What would you guess a fair price for a used Flex 3000 would be?

[KA9MOT]

I welcome the possibility of a QSO. If only for the sake of a QSO. Checking out different mics and set-ups would only be a bonus. We can only learn by our experiments/experience and the experiments/experiences of others.

HELL YEAH!

[WX7P]

What would you guess a fair price for a used Flex 3000 would be?

How about this?

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?401914-Flex-3000-power-firewirecables-firewire-laptop-adapter-no-VAC-purchase-required

[K7SGJ]

How about this?

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?401914-Flex-3000-power-firewirecables-firewire-laptop-adapter-no-VAC-purchase-required

Thanks Janet. I saw that one, and one on QTH for around $1500 or so. I just have no idea what a good price would be. Usually people that own a certain radio are more familiar with it's resale value than others that don't have one. Plus, I have no idea what is standard and what are extras/upgrades worth having. I'm just tossing the whole idea around, I don't even know if I'll end up with one, but SDR has always fascinated me.

[WØTKX]

Yea, $1300 or so is about the lowest I've seen. A new one is $1895. :dunno:

The 1500 is a cheaper, QRP, but the RX is almost as good.

[K7SGJ]

Yea, $1300 or so is about the lowest I've seen. A new one is $1895. :dunno:

The 1500 is a cheaper, QRP, but the RX is almost as good.

Thanks. Like Sammy Davis Jr. used to say "I'll keep an eye out".

[w2amr]

My Flex 3000 and TS-850SAT respond quite well to microphone shenanigans.

I need to hook up my ARX Afterburner again. Wonderful unit.
Flex 3000? Why don't you get a real radio.:neener:

[WØTKX]

I got a few of those too. Also, I can record and playback right there on the spot for other hamsters who are messing around with their audio.

The RX on the Flex is outstanding. Especially on AM, using the "SAM" mode. :neener: :stickpoke:

[N8YX]

I managed to snag the control head for one of these. It's the same radio as the CP-2000 but the majority of the electronics are mounted in an enclosure which sits in an automobile's trunk and is connected to the head unit by a 15-wire cable:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gwWJhDq_88

There are two boards in the trunk unit which aren't present in the -2000: The Digital Receiver board and the Interface board. I have schematics of these and a general layout drawing, along with a couple junker CP-2000 base units. Given the fact that both boards are composed of plain ol' LS-series TTL and popular discrete semiconductors, I'm going to take a stab at building my own. Who cares what the trunk box looks like - it'll be hidden away regardless! :lol:

[w2amr]

I got a few of those too. Also, I can record and playback right there on the spot for other hamsters who are messing around with their audio.

The RX on the Flex is outstanding. Especially on AM, using the "SAM" mode. :neener: :stickpoke:
Seriously, I've heard a couple of Flex radios transmitting on AM, that sounded better than many plate modulated boat anchors.

[n2ize]

I see no purpose in connecting a professional mic and EQ up to a CB or ham rig unless it's been completely de-hyellowfied. A stock rig has the audio amp tailored for voice communications, usually 300-3000Hz so no matter what you put in you'll transmit telephonium yawdio. Now if you're in an AM window talking to one of the AM Gangstas who has a modified receiver and good speaker and can actually hear hwi-fwi even a de-hyellowfied radio is wasted so don't expect a CBer to care how good you sound when all they're interested in is how BAD you sound.

"I think in the next few days I'm going to connect my studio mic and EQ to the one in the shack....Aught to sound good."
Good only in your opinion, once you get it tweaked it'll sound smooth BUT they want PUNCH. So if you give them ear bleed they're happy, if not they'll tell you that you have low audio. That's not to say you have to splatter all over the band, punch means tailored to voice and a high modulation density from substantial clipping with a good low pass filter to remove harmonics that cause splatter. That's why my scratchy Apache cut through QRM like a hot knife through butter and don't say a word about 100W when that was QRP back in my CB daze. Maybe John NH remembers Artie Windjammer on channel 21 and his Johnson desk kilowatt run at half power who never did figure out how I was able to be heard through him... dayah da dayah dayah dayah. (;->)

I remember him well. I also remember him coming in from Brooklyn stronger than my local stations up this way. Used to talk to him and some of the Gangstas from down that was...Westchester to Brooklyn and beyond. Come to think of it I didn't have too shabby a signal on that band myself. 100 watts ? I never ran QRP... For the record, none of this ever happened ;)

[n2ize]

Seriously, I've heard a couple of Flex radios transmitting on AM, that sounded better than many plate modulated boat anchors.

Yes, they can sound better. They don't have all that iron to contend with. My Viking 2 used to saturate somewhere in the midrange frequencies once I de'hyellified it. I used to have to notch down that frequency range via the EQ to get it to sound decent. All in all it sounded pretty good though. Also ran the audio throgh a broadcast quality AM compressor/limiter. The rig used to look great on the scope, plenty of nice clean positive peaks. The Valiant was another story. Nice when it was working but it used to crap out on me quite often.

[kb2vxa]

HAH! Who could forget Artie Windjammer? Funny how I forgot the other half of channel 21, the guy across Raritan Bay in Keansburg, NJ with the "Val yan tay". Artie showed me the reason why he ran the desk at half power, at full power the supply flagged and he sounded like mud. The extra 3dB simply wasn't worth listening to crap audio and as you heard he was one who knew how to put out POWAH without sounding like garbage and splattering all over the place. He didn't know how to set up a good antenna system though, transmit from atop the apartment building, receive from a lower roof down by the courtyard. Why not T&R with the same one high up with a Dow Key relay I have no idea, that's why he was an alligator.

I ran a broadcast quality compressor/limiter too, a home brew copy of the business end of a Gates somethingorother, and an AGK mic still kicking around here someplace. Once in a while I attach my one and only air check where you can hear it pumping and swishing up background because I was welding galvanized pipe with my breath, it gives off deadly fumes. I never used an EQ, never needed one and always got good reports. My best guess is if you have good stuff to begin with you don't have shortcomings to make up for. <toot> <toot> OK, I wouldn't be Golden Boy if I didn't blow my own horn once in a while. (;->)

"For the record, none of this ever happened."
You don't have to play like James Earl Jones in The Hunt For Red October, the Statute of Limitations ran out long ago. Between study and experimenting back in my CB daze, all I had to learn to pass my exam were frequency limits. I was a bit worried about that but all it took was 15 minutes to get 100% and walk out with my CSCE.

If your V2 saturated in the mid-range you didn't properly de-yellowfy it. The weak link in all Johnson audio chains was the driver transformer. Change it to a phase splitter and limit the modulators to AB1 is one way, another is take the DC off the primary and you can squeeze a few more watts out of the modulators with AB2. Just take both ends of the winding off where they were and feed B+ to the driver through a 10K 10W resistor, ground the B+ end of the winding and feed the plate end from the driver plate through a 2uF 600V "Orange Drop" cap. Since they're all the same you can do the same with all the popular Johnson AM transmitters.

IMO, the only "AM" transmitters that can't be de-yellowfied are new commercial all mode rigs because the transmit and receive audio are tailored for voice 300-3000Hz with a presence rise and nothing is modifiable without hair pulling, simply not worth all the aggravation. Simply put, no sense using an EQ when it's already EQed and all you can do is louse it up. When I still lived up north with a pretty decent antenna farm I've heard "wi-fi SSB" groups with each one trying to out "hi-fi" the other and all sounding like crap. One on 20M got more complaints than the newly formed at that time "313 lid net" and the FCC got out the trench broom, bye bye hi-fi QRM. Now we get to the good part and the heart of the matter, no matter what the mode or how a signal is generated, it can be made to "sound" good if you know what you're doing and don't think like a CBer. Digital ops know why I put that in parentheses. (;->)