SSB in your XK?

[WanderingTs]

SSB is new to me also. I haven't bought a CB in 20 years...but I have bought FRS radios for use with my hunting buddies. Does anyone know how SSB compares to FRS ?

[1USMC]

Does anyone know how SSB compares to FRS ?

Good question, and I'll pass on what I know and my assumptions,, but I'm not an expert or anywhere close, so please take it as that.

Family Radio Service (FRS) is one of those the types of communications that have slowly replaced the CB. It is UHF and uses Frequency Modulation (FM) vs CB's AM ( FM better and the Frequency bands both have advantages and disadvantages). I believe the FRS radios are limited (by law) to .5 watts . CB's are 4 watts and 12 watts (PEP) for SSB. FRS are a walkie talkie, smaller and with a lot more channels to chose from if you include CTCESS, ( sometimes advertised as privacy codes, they are not private. Look for voice scrambling and perhaps encryption if you need that). FRS radios are continuing to evolve with frequency hopping, spread spectrum broadcast etc.

FRS radios I have heard are great for a couple of miles, but more like 100 yards or so inside and 1/2 to 1 mile if not in line of sight. FRS's are limited for instance by fixed antennas, power etc.

CB's on the road, mobile to mobile, average 2-5 miles ish..(non SSB). A Base CB (in your home etc) to mobile and base to base CB's ...much better range !! You can work with and have more options with a CB to improve its efficiency than you can with a FRS.

If you want to get information on traffic ( smokeys) etc. CB's may still have an advantage along with monitored emergency frequency's ( not as important now that we have cell phones).

CB's can be more prone to " Skip". Also consider power supply options, pros and cons, for both FRS and CB's. All radio's range and signal quality is highly variable depending on physical and environmental conditions.


For size, convenience, and channels, I think FRS has the advantage. But for power and range I'll vote for CB ( especially w/ SSB).

To help answer the next possible question; GRMS.....

General Radio Mobile Serve (GRMS) Radios need an FCC license for a family/ business ( ie costs $). GRMS has 2- 5 watts (ERP) and up to 50 watts. ( also, the more power the faster the battery's normally drain). GRMS radios are also allowed to hit " Repeaters" that resend their signal and can have " add on antennas " that all help to increase their range and quality of signal. It is another story to compare GRMS to FRS. GRMS is said to be a cross between FRS and UHF Ham radios.

Of course like a lot of things, the quality of the product ( may or may not be directly associated with the price ) CB, FRS radios etc, can also have an effect on the performance.


Oh and Australia has UHF-FM-CB's,,, for use in their "Outback" .. very nice.!.

[LWM]

^ Very good post, Thanks!

[superacerc]

Great explanations 1usmc! I'm a big radio guy and that is a great summation of the mentioned radio types. As mentioned GMRS Radios are ok (By the way the FRS and GMRS Radios both are using FM modulation as opposed to CB's using AM mainly and SSB or Single Side Band which elminates the carrier and one side band from AM that suck up power and usability) and they do require a liscence which most people never bother to get and no one seems to care. They still arent' great but do fine for off roading.

SSB: The problem with the CB's that have this great feature (SSB is pretty much the only mode I use my HF HAM radios) is that not many others have this ability. It does give some greater distance as the same amount of wattage is put to a better use.:

In this photo you see an AM wave. Imagine your CB radio is putting out 12 watts (that is an approximation of what they actually put out but only 4 watts are usable) the center line called a carrier gets 8 watts, the top line or upper side band gets 2 watts and the lower side band gets 2 watts and the 4 watts from the sidebands are the audio you hear hence the 4 watt legal limit. You can't actually hear the carrier only the side bands. When you remove two of these parts of the wave using only a Single Side Band you can use all 12 watts for the actual audio part of the wave and the radio will reconstruct the other side bands so you don't hear something that sounds like a duck quacking. (It's pretty funny to hear when it's not reconstruced)

So yes it's a more effecient way to send out your power but not many have the ability to do it that aren't radio nerds like myself.
FM is much more pleasant to the ears than AM but uses up more power for the signal. Thats why the FRS/GMRS sound so much better. If you want to get the most distance out of a signal (being realisitc now and referring to only the immediate area because a SSB wave at the Right freq can travel the world anytime you want if you know what you're doing[shoot me an email if you want more info on Amateur radio and how we do this] a 2 meter (144-148mhz) amateur radio using local repeaters gets the most distance. Most well placed repeaters can let you talk for a good 50-100 mile radius. The only issue is you have to talk your friends into getting a HAM liscence as well to talk to them.

I'd get a regular CB and save the money and have some FRS/GMRS radios handy and you'll be able to talk to anyone on the trails.

[Spigot]

Thanks for all the input. It has really help steer me in the right direction. I am going to go with just a regular CB. I'll post pictures when its all done and installed!