The October 2016 club night of SEARS (South Essex ARS) was on the subject of DMR. Following a successful talk on the subject some months ago, Mark 2E0RMT gave an update on some of the recent changes.
In recent months, there have been a number of changes to the talk groups, and Mark outlined the changes to the groups, as well as answering questions on the digital voice mode.
The meeting was well attended, and quite a few questions were asked, with subjects including finding a suitable codeplug, audio quality on DMR, and programming. There was also some discussion of the competing Phoenix/Atlas and Brandmeister groups, who both have differing views on how DMR repeaters and talkgroups should be configured.
Mark is a big fan of the Motorola DMR units, which supports greater functionality than the lower-priced DMR devices on the market. It seems most of the DMR-equipped audience are using the TYT MD-380 handheld, which whilst it has its drawbacks, has a reasonable £110 price tag for a way into DMR.
Mark then gave a quick demo of DMR in action, using his Motorola base station connected to a 70cm Slim Jim, put out a call via the Benfleet GB7EX repeater on one of the worldwide groups, receiving a return call from an N2 station in New York.
Those with DMR may be interested to know that many DMR repeaters, including the local GB7EX, have an echo test mode, where you can send a voice message and hear it played back, so that you can check audio quality.
Thanks toMark for an excellent presentation on the recent DMR changes.
Related Links
- South Essex Amateur Radio Society Website
- SEARS Club Profile
- Essex Ham’s reports on recent SEARS events
- Promote your club events on Essex Ham
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