What should my first Radio be?

This is a work in progress to answer a question from my brother:

"What should my first radio be?"  

Disclaimer: This in no way should be construed as a full and complete listing of everything one might want to do using Amateur Radio. It is a known limitation that only the things that 'occurred to me' have been included.


Things you might want to do after you get your ham license.

Who do you want to talk to?

  • People in your neighborhood: FM VHF/UHF 1 to 5-watt Handie Talkie. Can work Countywide with access to a good repeater.
  • People in your county or adjacent counties: FM VHF/UHF 10-watt to 50-watt mobile rig (can be used as a base station)
  • People in your state: SSB HF 100 watt base station
  • People in your country or other countries: SSB HF 100 watt base station with 1500 watts (max) amplifier.  Can add a tower and beam for more focused ERP in a specific direction if desired. 
  • People in view of the moon? SSB VHF/UHF 50 to 1500 watts using very high gain directional antennas.
  • Orbiting Satellites and Space Stations: FM & SSB VHF/UHF/HF 1 to 5 watts using high gain directional antennas.
  • Worldwide via Internet links: IRLP, EchoLink D-Star, DMR, and others. VHF/UHF radios that include the desired mode.
Usually, a separate VHF/UHF and HF transceivers are required for all band operations, but there are some radios that can cover all bands and modes (See Icom IC-7100 as an example, but not the only example.)

An amplifier is optional. you can do most everything with 100 watts. Personally, I like having a little bit of an edge once in a while. I have an Ameritron AL-811H 500-800 watt amplifier for HF.

How do you want to communicate? (Modes)

  • CW (aka Morse Code) the simplest and most reliable form of communication. Travels furthest under weak signal conditions.
  • PSK31 a narrow band form of digital communication. This mode is but the tip of the iceberg for narrowband text communications available. Usually requires connecting a computer to a radio and typing in what you want to say for communications.
  • SSB (aka Single Side Band) easiest form of communication. Travels as far as CW, but becomes very difficult to decode as signal-to-noise ratio decreases.
  • SSTV and DSSTV Analog and digital images sent and received. Usually requires connecting a computer with a radio.
  • FM Usually the best quality of voice communications, although, most digital voice modes are a very close second. Mostly used with VHF/UHF and higher bands, there is a portion of the band dedicated to 10 Meter HF for FM repeaters as well.

Summary

To sum up, your first radio should be a tool that gives you enjoyment doing something that you are interested in. It can't really be something "I" might suggest.

Having said that, my suggestion would be to get an inexpensive 2 meter or 440 Mhz dual band handheld or mobile rig that can reach the repeaters where you enjoy listening and talking to others on.

The first radio can make or break you. If you don't find it exciting and fun to play with your radio, you may lose interest BEFORE you find the activity that really gives you the greatest pleasure, enjoyment, and satisfaction.




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