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Posted: 2/25/2021 7:42:28 AM EDT
[#1]
Quoted: So Ive been listiening to 3 repaters for several weeks, waiting on my test and license...and I have been talking on repeater A most of the time this week. 
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Posted: 2/25/2021 10:41:57 AM EDT
[#2]
I'm not sure what you mean by dead carrier.
By courtesy tone, you mean the tone you hear the first time you kerchunk it, or the tone you hear every time you let go of the PTT? Different repeaters are set up differently. I'm not fully understanding the issue, maybe it's a problem with your radio? Maybe your radio is timing out, or the repeater is? What kind of radio are we talking here? |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 11:22:52 AM EDT
[#3]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I'm not sure what you mean by dead carrier. By courtesy tone, you mean the tone you hear the first time you kerchunk it, or the tone you hear every time you let go of the PTT? Different repeaters are set up differently. I'm not fully understanding the issue, maybe it's a problem with your radio? Maybe your radio is timing out, or the repeater is? What kind of radio are we talking here? The repeater I can reach sends a courtesy tone like a roger beep everytime its receiver closes, which normaly would be on release of the ptt. They added this so listeners would know that whoever was transmitting has stopped, but its the only repeater out of 15 linked repeaters that has it. At least that i know of. By dead carrier, I mean just a radio signal with no audio. It seemed to be fine for weeks when I was listening, but a few days before I got my license grant I noticed it, and nowbthat I can use it, the problem seems to be getting worse. The radios I have tried 1. A home brew sdr radio. 2. Yaesu 3. 4 different baofengs 4. 2 liexen 898s Various antennas. ground plane, yagi, j pole. The best way I I know to describe it is you are having a conversation and mid sentence on receive theres no audio from the repeater, and then beep,silence, beep, silence, 1 or 2 words, beep, silence, beep silence. Sometimes this sequence lasts for 10-15 seconds, sometimes up to a minute. I can pick any radio and listen to the furthest repeater (C) and I hear complete, un broken audio. On the near repeater, it will start breaking up. I dont think its at my end, but not sure what I can do to fix it, or how to contact anyone about it. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:00:06 PM EDT
[#4]
1: Let me get this straight, you have not taken the test and much less don't have a call, but you're talking on the radio regardless?
2: If there is a problem with the repeater, nothing you can do. Chances are whoever owns it knows about it. Hams are cheap. Repeaters tend to be made cheaply. Some people have failing repeaters and just don't care or don't want to spend the money to fix them. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:10:31 PM EDT
[#5]
The tone at the release of the PTT is done by the transmitter. You can turn it off on your radio in the option menu.
repeaters have a time out feature. It is usually 3 minutes, If someone talks for 3 minutes, the repeater stops the repeat function and the transmission is ignored. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:11:01 PM EDT
[#6]
Quote HistoryQuoted: 1: Let me get this straight, you have not taken the test and much less don't have a call, but you're talking on the radio regardless? |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:20:18 PM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryQuoted: 1: Let me get this straight, you have not taken the test and much less don't have a call, but you're talking on the radio regardless? 2: If there is a problem with the repeater, nothing you can do. Chances are whoever owns it knows about it. Hams are cheap. Repeaters tend to be made cheaply. Some people have failing repeaters and just don't care or don't want to spend the money to fix them. 1. Negative. Ive listened to this repeater for months off and on, and steadily for several weeks as I waited to take the test, and get the license grant. The license was granted. Im establishing a history of the repeater that this behavior was not noticed for weeks prior, but began about 5 days ago and is getting steadily worse. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:27:14 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The tone at the release of the PTT is done by the transmitter. You can turn it off on your radio in the option menu. repeaters have a time out feature. It is usually 3 minutes, If someone talks for 3 minutes, the repeater stops the repeat function and the transmission is ignored. This is the repeaters 'courtesy tone' as their web page describes it. This doesnt happen only when I using it. Im listening to it right now, and I haven't transmitted since last night. Im getting fragments of a conversation, and lots of the 'courtesy tone' over and over. However on the other repeater 70 miles away, that radio is picking up unbroken audio. Im running 2 different radios, on 2 different antennas, listening to 2 different repeater frequencies. All of the repeaters are linked and you can hear the same conversation on 14 different repeaters |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:29:52 PM EDT
[#9]
If someone is talking to the repeater and is on the fringe, they will cut in and out. The repeater can only send you signals that it receives well enough to process.
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:33:34 PM EDT
[#10]
it sounds like you are simply monitoring someone who is marginal into the repeater
someone who is on the fringes of what the repeater can hear when a ham is popping in and out of a repeater rapidly, they call it — “picket fencing “ it happens a lot with mobiles |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:52:07 PM EDT
[#11]
I guess I'm not explaining it well enough. Its a linked repeater system of 14 different repeaters. This one repeater seems to have a link problem.
Ill see if I can get setup to reach the far repeater, but 70 miles over vhf is gonna be a challenge. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 12:57:10 PM EDT
[#12]
Yeah it may be folks on the fringe going in and out.
Also may just be, coincidentally, a problem with that particular repeater. Maybe weather related, who knows. If there's a webpage associated with it, surely there's a way to contact whoever owns or controls it? Hard to say. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 1:19:19 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted: This is the repeaters 'courtesy tone' as their web page describes it. This doesnt happen only when I using it. Im listening to it right now, and I haven't transmitted since last night. Im getting fragments of a conversation, and lots of the 'courtesy tone' over and over. However on the other repeater 70 miles away, that radio is picking up unbroken audio. Im running 2 different radios, on 2 different antennas, listening to 2 different repeater frequencies. All of the repeaters are linked and you can hear the same conversation on 14 different repeaters I'm not understanding why you are listening to different repeaters if they are all linked. I'm confused, and I suspect you re too. You need to learn to distinguish between a station dropping out of a repeater you are listening to and a repeater dropping out of your receiver. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 2:08:51 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted: It might help if you told us which repeaters you are talking about and where you are. Quote HistoryQuoted: It might help if you told us which repeaters you are talking about and where you are. Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Quoted: I'm not understanding why you are listening to different repeaters if they are all linked. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." Quoted: I'm confused, and I suspect you re too. You need to learn to distinguish between a station dropping out of a repeater you are listening to and a repeater dropping out of your receiver. I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 2:39:19 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 3:44:40 PM EDT
[#16]
It really does sound to me now like you're hearing someone else going in and out of the repeater.
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Posted: 2/25/2021 3:49:37 PM EDT
[#17]
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Posted: 2/25/2021 4:43:27 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: It might help if you told us which repeaters you are talking about and where you are. Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Quoted: I'm not understanding why you are listening to different repeaters if they are all linked. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." Quoted: I'm confused, and I suspect you re too. You need to learn to distinguish between a station dropping out of a repeater you are listening to and a repeater dropping out of your receiver. I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. Is it possible that the closest repeater that is breaking up, is not the easiest one to hear or transmits to? Just because it's closer does not mean you can get to it better. All repeaters vary in height, power, and terrain. Is it possible the closest repeater is just breaking up getting to you because you are on the fringe of it's coverage in your direction? It is also possible something is wrong with the link to / from it to the other linked repeaters. Is the repeater in question an echolink or IRLP repeater and you can check the audio over the internet. Are the links over the internet or RF? Like stated above, try emailing the repeater operator |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 5:02:03 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I guess I'm not explaining it well enough. Its a linked repeater system of 14 different repeaters. This one repeater seems to have a link problem. Ill see if I can get setup to reach the far repeater, but 70 miles over vhf is gonna be a challenge. Is there anyway you can record what's happening and post it? |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 5:56:13 PM EDT
[#20]
You said you are listening to three repeaters, so why is the only choice between the one you say has "trouble" and the one seventy miles away?
What is wrong with the third one? I'm still confused. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 6:04:05 PM EDT
[#21]
Is there anything you can do, sure, join the club that owns the repeater and learn how it all works and fix it, or donate some cash so they can get it fixed.
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Posted: 2/25/2021 6:06:40 PM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Is there anyway you can record what's happening and post it? Sure. Heres a quick you tube vid.  Failed To Load Title The person talking you hear on the HT is in extreme southwest missouri. Hes hitting a local repater, which links to 13 other repeaters. His route to my local repeater goes through an RF link in Nevada, to an RF link in Stockton, to another RF link to Warsaw, which is my local repeater. If He was dropping out at his repeater, the Springfield repeater should also loose him. If I were losing my repeater, it should just go silent, no beep. When its working I get full signal/clear audio even inside my house with an HT. Even when no one is transmitting the repeater will start doing this. All it takes is one transmission to open the repeaters reveiver and it will sometimes just keep doing it for several minutes. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 6:09:19 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: You said you are listening to three repeaters, so why is the only choice between the one you say has "trouble" and the one seventy miles away? What is wrong with the third one? I'm still confused. I can recieve radio signals from 3 repeaters. I can only transmit to one repeater. Which is the repeater nearest to my location. |
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Posted: 2/25/2021 8:16:59 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Even when no one is transmitting the repeater will start doing this. All it takes is one transmission to open the repeaters reveiver and it will sometimes just keep doing it for several minutes. So the repeater has a problem. Could be any number of things. |
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Posted: 2/27/2021 3:16:40 PM EDT
[#25]
OP sounds like the repeater has an issue, I would ask other stations if they are hearing the same thing. I dont think most of the responses understood the issue either.
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Posted: 2/27/2021 4:57:08 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I can recieve radio signals from 3 repeaters. I can only transmit to one repeater. Which is the repeater nearest to my location. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: You said you are listening to three repeaters, so why is the only choice between the one you say has "trouble" and the one seventy miles away? What is wrong with the third one? I'm still confused. I can recieve radio signals from 3 repeaters. I can only transmit to one repeater. Which is the repeater nearest to my location. Well this is common. Just because you can hear a distant repeater doesn't mean they can hear you. |
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Posted: 2/28/2021 1:23:25 AM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Well this is common. Just because you can hear a distant repeater doesn't mean they can hear you. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: You said you are listening to three repeaters, so why is the only choice between the one you say has "trouble" and the one seventy miles away? What is wrong with the third one? I'm still confused. I can recieve radio signals from 3 repeaters. I can only transmit to one repeater. Which is the repeater nearest to my location. Well this is common. Just because you can hear a distant repeater doesn't mean they can hear you. Yea. I was responding to someone asking why I didnt just use the other repeater. I could only reach the one repeater, but I can hear all 3. The repeater has been shut down because it was causing the other linked repeaters to transmit for no reason. Need to come up with some other way to reach far repeaters, find some activity for simplex, or this will be a short lived foray back into radio. Should have my 40' mast finished tomorrow, and my new yagi done by next weekend. I'll see what I can do with that. |
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Posted: 2/28/2021 1:42:10 AM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted: OP sounds like the repeater has an issue, I would ask other stations if they are hearing the same thing. I dont think most of the responses understood the issue either. Yea it was difficult to describe, so was probably misunderstood. Most of the users on the linked system are using repeaters 70 or more miles south of me, and those seemed to be working fine. I dont know that anyone else regularly listens to this repeater. Theres only 6 licensed operators in my county, and none are active. The most active users I knew of were over an hour drive. I picked up the far repeater and listened to the ares net last night, they discussed the repeater being taken out of service with no immediate plan of what to do about it. Im not sure if its the link equpment or the repeater eqipment. I also noticed that most of the northern stations were not on the net like they have been before. Still trying to figure out if its the county that owns it or not. It appears to be 2 different entities. One manages the link and another manages the repeater. |
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Posted: 2/28/2021 5:27:24 AM EDT
[#29]
First dump the HT and replace it with a mobile radio with an outside antenna. The Baofeng HT you posted in your video just isn't up to the task.
If you could please post the call sign of the repeater or the name of the network you are trying to use would be helpful. Being cryptic makes it hard for someone to offer any useful suggestions. Are you trying to access the Southwest Missouri Linked Repeater System or something else? FYI...Most amateur repeaters are maintained/funded by an aging and often poorly funded group of hams. Failure for many repeater systems is quite common. Sadly maintenance is minimal due to the lack of money or people knowledgeable enough to keep them on the air. Using an HT is just pointless unless you are really close to the repeater site. Using a 50 watt radio and an outside antenna is always the best solution. |
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Posted: 2/28/2021 8:16:15 AM EDT
[#30]
If you are picking up a repeater 70 miles away, then you have LOS with it. If you got a 50 watt ( or better 75 watt ) radio you could probably get into it just fine especially if you put up a real antenna with some gain as high as you can. Since you can hear that repeater 70 miles away. If money is an issue the ICOM 2200H / 2300H series VHF radios are 75 watt single band radios that put out 75 watts and can be had pretty cheap ~ $150 new or as little as $75 used. Add that to a Diamond 6 db gain antenna or better a yagi at 3-60 feet and you will most likely get into that repeater without any problem.
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Posted: 2/28/2021 8:25:09 AM EDT
[#31]
Unless you are willing to donate money and or time to get it fixed does it really matter who owns it? I have never heard of a county owning a ham repeater, but maybe it is possible.
It has a callsign, that is who owns it. Look up the callsign on QRZ or the FCC database, QRZ might have an email address, FCC will have a mailing address. Most repeaters are funded by clubs and the callsign is of the ham who owns it that is in the club or the club has a club callsign and the repeater has the club callsign. Look up the callsign, find the club that funds it, join the club, and offer time and money to fix it. |
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Posted: 2/28/2021 8:23:54 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryQuoted: If you are picking up a repeater 70 miles away, then you have LOS with it. If you got a 50 watt ( or better 75 watt ) radio you could probably get into it just fine especially if you put up a real antenna with some gain as high as you can. Since you can hear that repeater 70 miles away. If money is an issue the ICOM 2200H / 2300H series VHF radios are 75 watt single band radios that put out 75 watts and can be had pretty cheap ~ $150 new or as little as $75 used. Add that to a Diamond 6 db gain antenna or better a yagi at 3-60 feet and you will most likely get into that repeater without any problem. Are you certain these are SSB? And I can't find them new for less than $200. Can you point out where to buy for less than $200 and the spec of the SSB model? I have been considering 2m SSB and that would be a great deal |
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Posted: 3/1/2021 12:30:31 AM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Are you certain these are SSB? And I can't find them new for less than $200. Can you point out where to buy for less than $200 and the spec of the SSB model? I have been considering 2m SSB and that would be a great deal Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: If you are picking up a repeater 70 miles away, then you have LOS with it. If you got a 50 watt ( or better 75 watt ) radio you could probably get into it just fine especially if you put up a real antenna with some gain as high as you can. Since you can hear that repeater 70 miles away. If money is an issue the ICOM 2200H / 2300H series VHF radios are 75 watt single band radios that put out 75 watts and can be had pretty cheap ~ $150 new or as little as $75 used. Add that to a Diamond 6 db gain antenna or better a yagi at 3-60 feet and you will most likely get into that repeater without any problem. Are you certain these are SSB? And I can't find them new for less than $200. Can you point out where to buy for less than $200 and the spec of the SSB model? I have been considering 2m SSB and that would be a great deal no most Vhf / UHF radios are FM. Some SSB radios are made but they are expensive and not common. Repeater are FM so to use a repeater you need an FM radio. I was talking about a mobile radio for hitting his 70 mile away repeater |
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Posted: 3/1/2021 12:32:18 AM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Are you certain these are SSB? And I can't find them new for less than $200. Can you point out where to buy for less than $200 and the spec of the SSB model? I have been considering 2m SSB and that would be a great deal Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: If you are picking up a repeater 70 miles away, then you have LOS with it. If you got a 50 watt ( or better 75 watt ) radio you could probably get into it just fine especially if you put up a real antenna with some gain as high as you can. Since you can hear that repeater 70 miles away. If money is an issue the ICOM 2200H / 2300H series VHF radios are 75 watt single band radios that put out 75 watts and can be had pretty cheap ~ $150 new or as little as $75 used. Add that to a Diamond 6 db gain antenna or better a yagi at 3-60 feet and you will most likely get into that repeater without any problem. Are you certain these are SSB? And I can't find them new for less than $200. Can you point out where to buy for less than $200 and the spec of the SSB model? I have been considering 2m SSB and that would be a great deal I believe hes refering to single band (vhf or uhf, but not both). As opposed to single side band. |
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Posted: 3/1/2021 12:41:24 AM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Unless you are willing to donate money and or time to get it fixed does it really matter who owns it? I have never heard of a county owning a ham repeater, but maybe it is possible. It has a callsign, that is who owns it. Look up the callsign on QRZ or the FCC database, QRZ might have an email address, FCC will have a mailing address. Most repeaters are funded by clubs and the callsign is of the ham who owns it that is in the club or the club has a club callsign and the repeater has the club callsign. Look up the callsign, find the club that funds it, join the club, and offer time and money to fix it. Thanks for the info. That's what i had been trying to find out. Ive contacted them, or sent an email anyway. The link and the repeater are controlled by different groups, and there is a county owned amature repeater, but its not linked, and not the repeater in question. They are just on the same water tower. I do have a new 7el yagi under construction, and a 35' mast built. Ive got new coax ordered, so hopefully I can reach one of the other repeaters soon. Built my first folded dipole tonight and finally got the match right, at least I hope I do. Ill probably be upgrading my radio at some point but not in the budget just yet. Probably after I get my general. |
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Posted: 3/4/2021 2:03:49 AM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: It might help if you told us which repeaters you are talking about and where you are. Im in about central Missouri. The repeater system is the southwest Missouri linked repeater system. Which consists of 14 linked repeaters currently. Quoted: I'm not understanding why you are listening to different repeaters if they are all linked. Because on the near repeater that I can transmit too, it breaks up audio. You get to have a convo like this "So tomor............. and then she sai........ after that we go............" now replace all the ...... portions with static, silence, and courtesy beeps. On the repeater 70 miles away at the same time, on a different receiver you would have heard "So tomorrow she wants me to drop off some garden tools and then she said after that we go by lowes." Quoted: I'm confused, and I suspect you re too. You need to learn to distinguish between a station dropping out of a repeater you are listening to and a repeater dropping out of your receiver. I can distinguish between the two. Im not losing the repeater signal, the linked repeater is dropping from my repeater, ir so it appears. Ive found some email info, i may see if they are aware of something going on with it. It sounds like the repeater's link input signal might be weak. A lot of times VHF linked repeaters use the 440 MHz band for the links. See if you can find the link input frequency for the local repeater and monitor it for the same choppy broken up signal. (Different from the VHF input frequency.) This will help to determine if it's a problem with the local repeater or the UHF link coming from another repeater in the system. |
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