Currently the only repeater OCHEART operations are primary on is the WR6AAC Repeater on 224.220, not all the members have 220 capability at this fourth dimension, and so I thought I would do a comparison review of ii of the handheld radios that I have. The Kenwood TM‐F6 and the Baofeng UV‐5RX3.


The Kenwood TM‐F6 has been around a long time and has been superseded past the Kenwood D74A which has APRS and digital modes on the three bands. The Baofeng UV‐5RX3 has recently come on the market place a tri‐ring version of the before UV‐5R dual-band VHF / UHF radio.


I accept made my measurements with an IFR‐1200SS Service Monitor. Just to brand the receiver sensitivity measurement comparable with something you can do at home, I used squelch level one as the benchmark so when it broke squelch at level ane, I entered the signal generator output levels. Since I take 3 RX's (SN: A03537, A03915, and A03233) I documented the range of the reading from all 3.

Measurement

Kenwood TM‐F6

Baofeng UV‐5RX3

Receiver Sensitivity

146.520

.1 uv

.08‐.13 uv

223.500

.13 uv

.13‐.18 uv

446.000

.xiii uv

.12‐.13 uv

Transmitter Divergence

CTTSS / Microphone

146.520

700 / 4.2 Khz

580 / 5.0 Khz

223.500

860 / 4.1 Khz

580 / 5.0 Khz

446.000

820 / 4.0 Khz

590 / v.0 Khz

Transmitter Power

EL / L / H

L / H

146.520

.020/.290/iii.90 Westward

2.7‐3.6/v.1‐five.4 W

223.500

.020/.280/3.seventy W

.8‐1.three/iv.2‐4.8 West

446.000

.020/.250/3.40 Due west

1.2‐1.6/iv.1 West

Overall, both radios performed well and had skillful quality audio, the Baofeng had slightly hotter transmit audio simply was limited to 5.0 Khz of divergence which is good. The Baofeng did non take well-nigh as adept filtering of harmonics on 2 meters and 1.25 meters.

Looking at the cost the TM‐F6 sold for about $350, while the new TH‐74A is at $549 but does accept digital and APRS. The Baofeng UV‐5RX3 is currently selling for $44.99 and is a fantastic option for a tri-band handheld radio. The Baofeng comes with dual-ring VHF/UHF and dissever 220 antennas, I highly recommend ordering the optional tri‐band RD‐371 antenna for $ix.99. The stock battery is seven.4 V at 1800 mAh, I ordered the BL‐5L battery 7.4 V at 3800mAh for $16.99 so I would never run out of battery in the field.

The programing of the Baofeng radios has improved over the years and direct frequency entry and menus are much improve. The downloaded software for programming is also straightforward and seems easier than CHIRP. I highly recommend the radio, I take 3 of these radios, where else could y'all get a tri-band radio, drop-in charger, high capacity battery, and antenna for under $75?

Take a look at www.baofengradio.com for more information or contact me direct.

Joe Orrico
WB6HRO
WR6AAC Repeater Organisation