New Midland MXT275 (GMRS Mobile)

[Desert Runner]

Ive seen tests go both ways. If you're talking about the informal ARRL testing i would be wary of any info from them. They have a vested interest in the "big three" in the form of sponsorship dollars.

Was watching some You-Tube videos on radios, and one comment poster told the story of the old school club vs Chinese comm. gear. Basically was doing some radio check freq. voice checking, and they were saying...great,...clear, ....sounds perfect. They wanted to know what unit he was using. When informed it was of Chinese origin,...................CRICKETS.

Downs said:
'Ive seen tests go both ways. If you're talking about the informal ARRL testing i would be wary of any info from them. They have a vested interest in the "big three" in the form of sponsorship dollars.'
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It seems to be a thing with certain groups: and that opinion is not limited to just the FUDDS. For me a honest opinion without bias helps make decisions easier. If a product has issues fine, if not....fine. As many have said, Chinese radios have come a long way in a short period of time. If the big 3 find themselves being pressured, maybe they should be more price concious, and not sit on their laurals, charging whatever they think the market will accept.

 

[Wile_Coyote]

For me, it was the optional Midland MXTA11, the 6dB gain 462 MHz.View attachment 119251

Not being spring loaded, it might have some issues in wooded areas. 28" in total lentgh (NMO base to tip)

I saw this one, and considered it, but this item appears to screw into a base, which I don't have. I'm looking for a large magnet one, sort of like the old Wilson 1000 mount. I used to have one of these in my Rockcrawling days, mounted to the center of my 4Runner roof. Along with a SWR tuner, I was able to get some impressive range in Moab.

From what I can see, i'll need to get a larger magnetic mount, then a larger antenna, like yours, to screw into the base......

 

[TheBronze]

I can only speak from my personal experience. I started in radio in 1982 so I’ve seen the progression from crystal controlled radios to PROMs to VCO’s. I‘ve put together entire systems for public safety agencies and have done extensive real world tests on everything from Bendix Kings to Yaesu and GE to Motorola. I have personally seen some of these Chinese radios on a scope and I’m not impressed. To each their own. I’m still using the Motorola gear because of its quality and durability But everyone has to decide for themselves. But I frequently see people talking about saving money on a Chinese radio when something that is demonstrably better only costs $50-100 more.

People that go into the wilderness or across the desert usually focus on dependability over all else. Would many of use settle for cheap Chinese tires? Probably not because we don’t want to risk a puncture far away from help. We spend the extra for a quality item so we don’t have to worry about it. To be penny wise and pound foolish with a two-way radio will likely create headaches down the road.

 

[TheBronze]

Wiley, if you want a smallish mag-mount antenna that works pretty well then one of these might fit the bill:


And don’t get too caught up in the whole bigger is better thing. At UHF frequencies a 5/8’s wave has a lower angle of radiation, but it also has more nulls. So while you might get a little bit of extra range you will also get more popping in and out. A 1/4 or 1/2 wave will work nearly as well and be easier to live with due to their smaller size.

 

[Wile_Coyote]

The pic didn't display correct, what is the model of the antenna?

 

[Wile_Coyote]

And don’t get too caught up in the whole bigger is better thing. At UHF frequencies a 5/8’s wave has a lower angle of radiation, but it also has more nulls. So while you might get a little bit of extra range you will also get more popping in and out. A 1/4 or 1/2 wave will work nearly as well and be easier to live with due to their smaller size.

True -dat. Recall the huge whip antennas of yesteryear that were often mounted on the bumper of the rigs, left to whip around and poke somebody's eye out?

 

[Prerunner1982]

True -dat. Recall the huge whip antennas of yesteryear that were often mounted on the bumper of the rigs, left to whip around and poke somebody's eye out?

You mean like this?

 

[Wile_Coyote]

yeah, like that. My dad's friend had an old Chevy Blazer that lived with no cap, and he had one of those HUGE whip antennas, about 10' long, that would whip around when he was out driving. I recall he had a tennis ball around the antenna down low to keep it from beating on the body of the truck. The old CB days

 

[Prerunner1982]

If/when I get GMRS I will probably get this antenna. Not a fan of chrome.

 

[RoarinRow]

If/when I get GMRS I will probably get this antenna. Not a fan of chrome.

I am using this magnetic mount for my GMRS. Works fine and reception is clear.

 

[Wile_Coyote]

I was reading through some of the different antennas, and just like the CB antennas, it appears that some of these aftermarket antennas should be trimmed or tuned to the wavelength. With the GMRS wavelength of 462 - 467, I would assume you would want to get an antenna that is matched to that wavelength. I've seen other antennas that appear to be matched to a couple of different wavelengths: 140Mhz - 170Mhz & 430Mhz - 470Mhz. Seems like this type of antenna would be ideal for our GMRS radios.

Reading through the instructions for the MXT275, it says that we should provide a good metal Ground-Plane for the antenna, normally the roof of a vehicle. Yet, I see all kinds of pictures of folks mounting them on the bed of their truck, the roof of the engine bay..... Seems like reception would be better up top, as high as possible.

 

[Wile_Coyote]

I am using this magnetic mount for my GMRS. Works fine and reception is clear.

Is this antenna (President Electronics New York Magnetic Mount CB RAdio Antenna) tuned to 26-38Mhz? Your using this antenna with your GMRS radio that is turned to 46?Mhz?

 

[Prerunner1982]

I was reading through some of the different antennas, and just like the CB antennas, it appears that some of these aftermarket antennas should be trimmed or tuned to the wavelength. With the GMRS wavelength of 462 - 467, I would assume you would want to get an antenna that is matched to that wavelength. I've seen other antennas that appear to be matched to a couple of different wavelengths: 140Mhz - 170Mhz & 430Mhz - 470Mhz. Seems like this type of antenna would be ideal for our GMRS radios.

Reading through the instructions for the MXT275, it says that we should provide a good metal Ground-Plane for the antenna, normally the roof of a vehicle. Yet, I see all kinds of pictures of folks mounting them on the bed of their truck, the roof of the engine bay..... Seems like reception would be better up top, as high as possible.

The antenna I posted, in the reviews someone scanned the antenna and plotted the SWR and impedance across the range of frequencies and it is quite acceptable to work on GMRS without any tuning.

You are correct for local mobile comms antenna height is king so on the roof is best but doesn't fit everyone's situation (garage, parking structures, drive thru, etc) so many opt to mount antennas lower on the vehicle or for Wrangler's they don't have a metal roof to mount it on.

 

[Downs]

I saw this one, and considered it, but this item appears to screw into a base, which I don't have. I'm looking for a large magnet one, sort of like the old Wilson 1000 mount. I used to have one of these in my Rockcrawling days, mounted to the center of my 4Runner roof. Along with a SWR tuner, I was able to get some impressive range in Moab.

From what I can see, i'll need to get a larger magnetic mount, then a larger antenna, like yours, to screw into the base......

Its an NMO mount antenna. You can get NMO magnetic mounts if you dont want to drill a hole.


QUOTE="Prerunner1982, post: 378532, member: 8729"]If/when I get GMRS I will probably get this antenna. Not a fan of chrome.
[/QUOTE]

Nothing some spray paint cant fix.

 

[RoarinRow]

Is this antenna (President Electronics New York Magnetic Mount CB RAdio Antenna) tuned to 26-38Mhz? Your using this antenna with your GMRS radio that is turned to 46?Mhz?

Yup I see what you're saying. So do I run the risk of breaking my unit or experiencing poor performance?

 

[Wile_Coyote]

Here is one that seems like the best GMRS antenna for the roofs:

Browning Model BR-176-S
450-470Mhz
3db gain
5/8 Wave
Heavy duty stainless steel spring
provided cutting chart to fine tune to frequency 9 1/16"

The other question is, will this also pick up the NOAA weather channels, if the antenna is tuned to this frequency?

 

[Downs]

I was reading through some of the different antennas, and just like the CB antennas, it appears that some of these aftermarket antennas should be trimmed or tuned to the wavelength. With the GMRS wavelength of 462 - 467, I would assume you would want to get an antenna that is matched to that wavelength. I've seen other antennas that appear to be matched to a couple of different wavelengths: 140Mhz - 170Mhz & 430Mhz - 470Mhz. Seems like this type of antenna would be ideal for our GMRS radios.

Reading through the instructions for the MXT275, it says that we should provide a good metal Ground-Plane for the antenna, normally the roof of a vehicle. Yet, I see all kinds of pictures of folks mounting them on the bed of their truck, the roof of the engine bay..... Seems like reception would be better up top, as high as possible.

All installations should be checked with a meter doesnt matter what band you are using. But youll be less likely to need adjustment on VHF/UHF over what you get on the market. Higher is most certainly better. Antenna length not so much it just needs to be a match. Half wave is less ground plane dependant than 1/4 or 5/8 wave antennas so for someone with a lot of fiberglass or a wrangler 1/2 wave would be a good choice.

Everything in life is a compromise. Higher is better but hangs up on more stuff. GMRS or UHF has an advantage here since their resonant antenna lengths are much shorter. A CB 1/4 wave antenna is around 102 nches long. Which is between 8 amd 9 feet lol. Ive got one out in my garage that i put on got CB operation. Mounts to the same NMO mount as my fender mounted HAM antenna.

 

[Wile_Coyote]

Yup I see what you're saying. So do I run the risk of breaking my unit or experiencing poor performance?

I would say poor performance. I highly doubt there would be enough feedback from an antenna to damage the radio.... I think

 

[TheBronze]

One of the reasons I liked 1/4 wave antennas so much is they are very broad banded. If you have the correct length they are pretty much guaranteed to have a good SWR match. If you are tuning, remember to tune for about 465.500 Mhz to be in the middle of the GMRS band. That should work out to be 6 1/4“ in length and you will have a good match above and below those frequencies. When you start using other antennas, like a 5/8 wave its gets a little more complicated but not much. As long as you are using an antenna designed for the 450-470 band you should be fine.

That BR176 is a pretty good antenna. It’s a copy of a Larson antenna from years ago that I don’t think is even made anymore but works very well.

I run a black anodized 1/4 right on the cowling of the Jeep. It practically disappears and never hits anything. The body of the Jeep acts as the other half of the antenna and it works way better than you might think. I only run 5 watts out of a Motorola XTS5000, so not a lot of power. But I talk on simplex to my ham friends for 5-7 miles depending on the terrain.

 

[Downs]

The other question is, will this also pick up the NOAA weather channels, if the antenna is tuned to this frequency?

Yes. Recieve is much less sensitive to antenna tuning than transmitting and those NOAA stations are transmitting from.high antenna locations with a 1000 watts.