Just got my technician license. Question on base stations

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BigCatGuy

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Hi folks. Just got my technician license after putting it off for a long time. I had originally bought a Baofeng UV-5R to start getting a feel for things, so now I’d like to get an actual base station transceiver.

When I go looking for “starter ham base stations” or something similar usually all the recommendations are mobile units. I hadn’t entirely envisioned using my car for hamming. I own a home (no HOA) so I was hoping to install a modest roof antenna (a whole other overwhelming research project) and build a basic ham shack out of my office.

Do people typically start off with mobile transceivers or am I going about this wrong?
 
I got my license in the last month and have been doing quite a bit of research, knowing your budget is going to be a factor.

The FT-891 seems to be extremely popular as a starter radio; mobile or as a base station. Biggest complaint is the menu and lack of internal tuner or waterfall.

The IC-7300 is equally as popular. Some say the sound isn’t as crisp as the FT-891, and it’s larger if mobile is a factor. More costly up front but does have the build in tuner and waterfall display.

The G90 comes up a lot as a starter radio as well. It’s the cheapest of the three but is a Chinese radio vs the other two being Japanese which seems to be the preference. Biggest down side on the G90 is that it’s only 20 watts.

There is a give and take amongst the three, it’s going to come down to preference, budget and what you want to do with the radio. Obviously there are many many other options. Also consider that an antenna is going to be an important part of the set up as well as power supplier or batter and some coax, all of which need to be included when thinking about a budget.

Edit: These are all HF radios, as a tech you are going to be limited to a portion of the 10m band. If you are looking for a UHF/VHF base station, these aren’t them.
 
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Buy once cry once, and others will have different opinions.

For the radio, consider an Icom ID-5100 or Yaesu FTM-500. The RT Systems programming software is available for both, very reasonable, and I strongly recommend you look into that vs. using the free software that's available for download. I prefer Icom over Yaesu for a more logical menu system and better memory and scanning features, more specific to mobile, but am running a Yaesu FTM-500 in my vehicle and am happy with it. You'd be fine with either as a base.

You'll need a 13.8 VDC power supply, and the switching power supplies are small, light, and nowadays reliable. Alinco makes a decent one, there are others. 20 Amp will be more than enough.

Whatever antenna setup works for you. HRO (hamradio.com) has tons in stock. Same with antennal coax runs. Dual band antennas are fairly simple, no need to overthink this.

Check out qrz.com for sale listings, often decent buys there but like anything else on-line, know who you're dealing with.

Good luck and 73!
- N1MHD
 
BigCatGuy said:
Hi folks. Just got my technician license after putting it off for a long time. I had originally bought a Baofeng UV-5R to start getting a feel for things, so now I’d like to get an actual base station transceiver.

When I go looking for “starter ham base stations” or something similar usually all the recommendations are mobile units. I hadn’t entirely envisioned using my car for hamming. I own a home (no HOA) so I was hoping to install a modest roof antenna (a whole other overwhelming research project) and build a basic ham shack out of my office.

Do people typically start off with mobile transceivers or am I going about this wrong?
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For VHF/UHF FM, yes most people (including me) run mobile rigs at home. And not just to start off. A dual band mobile with a dual band antenna is a pretty simple setup that you may never have to upgrade.

Contrary to what @Evtide says, I don't think you need to go all in on the radio. The FTM-500 may give you a ton of features you never intend to use, like APRS. If you think you want to have that, then by all means go all in. Either way I agree with Yaesu/Icom/Alinco for radios and power supplies. I have a Comet antenna on the house and it's nice. I program most things with the free Chirp software, but have also used the RT Systems software and it's nice too. Either way you'll likely need a special cable to program it, unless you want to program it from the front panel which can be done.

Congrats on getting your license. Come back with any questions.
 
Congrats on your license!!! You're going to get 100 different answers. My friend recommended I get an IC705 to start, I can use as a base and portable, then if I'm liking it to get an IC7300 for a base station with a little more power. The good thing with Icom is both radios menus are exactly the same, so you dont have to learn new menu b.s.

Just tossing out my .02, if I had to do it again, I'd go the same route.
 
Admin said:
Congrats on your license!!! You're going to get 100 different answers. My friend recommended I get an IC705 to start, I can use as a base and portable, then if I'm liking it to get an IC7300 for a base station with a little more power. The good thing with Icom is both radios menus are exactly the same, so you dont have to learn new menu b.s.

Just tossing out my .02, if I had to do it again, I'd go the same route.
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I would not get a QRP radio first. Look at that, you were right, a different answer.
 
I used an ICOM 4100 for a 2 Meter/70cm Base Station when I started. After I moved to General License I purchased an ICOM 7300. Never regretted it, love the radio. After that I replaced my ICOM 4100 with an ICOM 9700. Both the 7300 and the 9700 are similar which makes it a little easier with the learning curve.
Best of luck and welcome to Ham Radio.
 
If you plan to operate portable, then a switching supply is lighter than a conventional supply. Switchers can be noisy, so for home use, I prefer a 35 amp, conventional Astron. 35 amps will run a 100 watt HF rig, and a couple of VHF / UHF radios without running out of capacity.
 
If you're going to be happy with local comms, then a dual band, VHF / UHF radio, 110 VAC to 13.8 VDC power supply, LMR400 coax, and an external antenna will work nicely. External speaker is nice, as is a desk mic. A radio from Icom, Kenwood, Yaesu, Anytone, and Alinco will prove to be a good choice. No-name Chinesium stuff is less reliable. I live in Central Mass, and can talk to people in Maine, NH, VT, Mass, RI, CT, and eastern NY with such a setup. In this world, your height above average terrain, and any hills, mountains, or tall buildings around you are an issue. If you are atop of Mount Wachusett, you can reach up into Canada and into NJ with a decent antenna and not much power. If you are in a valley, or in Boston with tall buildings all around, your range will be seriously disrupted.

If you are OK with getting help from the internet, a DMR, YSF or Dstar handheld and a cheap hotspot will let you talk to people around the world, using the Internet as the long distance resource. Some say it's not real ham radio, but I think it's cool, roaming around with an HT in my neighborhood, talking to Dubai, Japan and Australia.

Finally, if you want the traditional short wave, "skip" stuff, an HF rig from Icom, Yaesu, Kenwood, Alinco will be fine. The Yaesu 891 is a great portable or mobile radio, but most functions are buried in menus, and a PITA to get at. A larger sized unit would be preferable. IMHO, the Yaesu FT10DX or the 710 offer the best bang for the buck in today's radios. If you have the cash, a Kenwood TS890 or Yaesu FTDX101 are amazing. Other people swear by the Icom 7300.

Used radios will work, but the newer stuff is head and antlers above what any of that old stuff can do. Before buying used, check with the manufacturer to insure that they still stock parts for the radio, and it can be fixed. Most radios contain proprietary, custom parts. If the manufacturer stops stocking the parts, and something breaks, you're looking at an expensive paper weight. I would buy a radio that no longer has a supporting parts stock, but that would affect the price that I'm willing to pay by a considerable amount.
 
Welcome to ham radios.

I bought a Baofeng handheld transceiver (HT). That kicked off a need to get a license. I listened to that thing for months, maybe around Thanksgiving of 2022 through when I finally got my technician license in May 2023. I built my own antenna while I was taking classes in April of 2023. I bought an adapter and some cable, and was able to use the handheld with the antenna for better range than the handheld's "rubber duck" antenna. That lasted a little while. ... Then I joined my local radio club! The first night there, someone gave away a radio, and power supply, and I was the lucky recipient! I did not know anything about it, but eventually figured it all out, and got it working. I bought a programming cable, and figured out how to program it with Chirp. In fact, later on, I was able to help the Chirp people with their program, to fix several bugs with that model of radio, which let them add it to their "officially supported" list. That radio is a 2 meter one, which is fine with a technician license. I used that for a while, and eventually wanted more. I was then gifted two more radios. One is 10 Meters only, a Radio Shack HTX-10. A lot of people balked at that, but to this day, it is working pretty well, and again, I can use it with technician license (though only part of the available bandwidth). I was also the recipient of a "true HF" radio, which was a Kenwood TS440S. That had a few issues at the very beginning (microphone), but I eventually got that working. I use both of these with a wire 10 Meter antenna I made from a kit. I could now hear and talk to stations in other countries with these last two radios. Very fun. Someone from my club came over with an antenna tuner, and helped me dial that in better, and it helped a lot. Eventually, the TS440 succumbed to an electronic problem with those models, and it is no longer in use. I pressed the Radio Shack one harder, and it has proven to be pretty decent.

Your path will differ, but my advice is you don't have to hurry or spend a lot of money right away, unless you want to. Join a club. They have swap meets and flea markets, and you also might get ideas from other people there. Go to Youtube, and build yourself an antenna from one of the many videos. People in this hobby are generous with advice, ideas, and hardware. Remember to give back to the community as well. Get on the air, say hello, and find your way around. Let us know when you get on, and we'll listen for you.

"73!"


Edit: This is the model radio I have. Don't know anything about this particular radio or the seller.
www.ebay.com

YAESU FT- 2800M Heavy-Duty 144 Mhz FM Transceiver With Mic | eBay

CTCSS and DCS Encode/Decode Built In. For easy repeater access, or silent monitoring of busy channels, both CTCSS and DCS (Digital Code Squelch) Encoder/Decoder circuits are built in.
www.ebay.com
 
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