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CB transmissions, how far can i hear them with a scanner and stock duck antenna?

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N9NRA

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Hey there. I have the CB channels programmed into my scanner, as i still like to listen to them once in a while. What i`m kinda curious to know is, just how far will i be able to recieve other CB users with just the stock antenna on a BCD396T scanner? Also, is CB really used that much anymore or have they gone to things like NEXTEL and/or MURS/FRS? Thanx for any answers, it is really appreicated! 73. N9NRA
 

dd364

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CB radios are low power and under normal conditions can only transmitt a few miles at best so I don't think it makes a huge difference on your antenna.As far as I know CB is still very popular among truck drivers although I havent driven a truck in 11 years.
 

k9rzz

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A mile or two with that little antenna, up to maybe 10 with an outdoor CB antenna, 20 if conditions are right.
 

N9NRA

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Hey thanx guys! Reason i was wondering is that when i used to listen to shortwave radio stuff before i got really into two-way radio i`d read of people recieving CB traffic 40 miles out from their location (under ideal contitions). Thanx lots for the help, and while i`m not into CB all that much anymore (other two-way radio intrests, like amateur and even cellullar have taken me down a different road in the comms hobby world), i still find it kinda fun to listen to truckers on there once in a while, just to hear what`s going on on the channels. Thanx for the help :)! 73. N9NRA.
 

Allan_Love_Jr

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Yes. Yesterday was cloudy and cold and I heard a driver talking all the way up near Herman,Nebraska. Damn near 7 miles away from my location here in Blair. I heard him clearly. If you have a very good "Tuned" Antenna tuned to your Radio. You could talk for a hell of a lot of miles. Even on a crappy 4 watt Radio. CB Radios are under powered/watted. If I went to the top of the hills here in town. On good days. I could talk to drivers for well over 50 miles.
 
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N9NRA

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True. When i`m up in Superior (the northwestern corner of Wisconsin), i sometimes hear truckers on channel 19 for a goodly distance away from where i work, which happens to be in a rather built-up area of town. Here in central WI we have the main highway interchange (actually two of them) in this town, and from my pad five floors up (my current location) i can hear the guys on channel 19 pretty well. But you`re correct in that if i want to really be able to hear CB traffic well, i would need an outdoor antenna that`s well tuned to the radio, and unfortunatly here we can`t put up one (ya can`t even put up a dish antenna...not cool). However, i can get decent reception with what i have now, and i just want to be able to hear some CB stuff now-and-then, it`s fun to listen to it. 73. N9NRA
 

TheJerk

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Yes. Yesterday was cloudy and cold and I heard a driver talking all the way up near Herman,Nebraska. Damn near 7 miles away from my location here in Blair. I heard him clearly. If you have a very good "Tuned" Antenna tuned to your Radio. You could talk for a hell of a lot of miles. Even on a crappy 4 watt Radio. CB Radios are under powered/watted. If I went to the top of the hills here in town. On good days. I could talk to drivers for well over 50 miles.


Keep in mind that a lot of "Export" radios are used in the states...some are capable of over 150 watts, well beyond the legal limit. Don't assume you are listening to a "4-watt" radio. Most of the really popular radios used by truck drivers (like the General Lee, Connex 3300HP, etc) are dual final radios that run around 35 watts...

Distance is relative to the radio transmitting and the radio receiving the signal.
 

kb2vxa

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Under normal conditions you'll hear them a few miles at best, 10-15 with a CB antenna, less with what you're using. There are two classic exceptions and here's where the sarcasm begins. The first being normal sky wave propagation CBers tend to call "Skipland" as if such a country exists. The second is as silly as it gets, the idiot with his modded out rig and 40,000 watt leen-yar calling himself Big Mouth Daddy Whirl Why you can hear halfway across the continent and halfway across the band too. Whirl why? I haven't a firkin clue.
 

Allan_Love_Jr

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Keep in mind that a lot of "Export" radios are used in the states...some are capable of over 150 watts, well beyond the legal limit. Don't assume you are listening to a "4-watt" radio. Most of the really popular radios used by truck drivers (like the General Lee, Connex 3300HP, etc) are dual final radios that run around 35 watts...

Distance is relative to the radio transmitting and the radio receiving the signal.
Not my Radio. I had it tested and it does put out 4 watts of PEP. It's just that my K40 is tuned right. I got the SWR right down to a tee. 1.1:1.
 

TheJerk

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Not my Radio. I had it tested and it does put out 4 watts of PEP. It's just that my K40 is tuned right. I got the SWR right down to a tee. 1.1:1.



I was talking about those you can hear from a distance...just because they can reach you doesn't mean you can reach them.

Radios are legal at 4 watts average (AVG), you are well below the maximum allowed transmit at only 4 watts peak envelope power (PEP)...FYI. Also, SWR only indicates whether an antenna is resonate, it does not provide any indication of an antenna's radiated power or receive sensitivity.
 

hockeyshrink

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well, with AM mode transmission we usually talk about "carrier power," which is limited to 4 watts on CBs, whereas on single sideband (SSB) mode transmission we usually talk about "peak envelope power" or peak modulation envelope, since on SSB output power fluctuates with modulation, and is limited to 12 watts PEP on CBs
 

TheJerk

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well, with AM mode transmission we usually talk about "carrier power," which is limited to 4 watts on CBs, whereas on single sideband (SSB) mode transmission we usually talk about "peak envelope power" or peak modulation envelope, since on SSB output power fluctuates with modulation, and is limited to 12 watts PEP on CBs


Good clarification, I was answering like he only had a AM unit as SSB seems to be a hobbyist thing any more...
 

kb2vxa

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Reading PA, a blast from the past. How is it "up top" these days CB wise? Duryea Drive and the pagoda, I remember it well.
 

TheJerk

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The locals still run around there...I'm actually from a tad bit north of Reading.

Most times, its the local CB shops tying up the airwaves, and a couple others with over-modulated and over-driven splatter boxes (custom tuned by said local cb shops) trying to walk over everyone...

I'm far enough north that they don't bother me that often...
 

ANZTV

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Reading PA, a blast from the past. How is it "up top" these days CB wise? Duryea Drive and the pagoda, I remember it well.

KB2VXA you live kinda close to New York. Do you hear some of the CBer's up hear particularly channel 19 (28.185). I have a Midland CB in my van. I use it to contact the truckers down by the Staten Island Pier. You can not get a decent conversation with any of them. Well not conversation, but an answer. People screaming, playing music, crazy sounds, everybody is a Tough guy, and they all have power amps over 250 watts. Now, when I go out west toward Reading PA., I can use a CB radio the way it should be used even south Jersey. You get different people I guess. I know I'm crying. lol

Pat
KC2VXL.
 

TheJerk

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KB2VXA you live kinda close to New York. Do you hear some of the CBer's up hear particularly channel 19 (28.185). I have a Midland CB in my van. I use it to contact the truckers down by the Staten Island Pier. You can not get a decent conversation with any of them. Well not conversation, but an answer. People screaming, playing music, crazy sounds, everybody is a Tough guy, and they all have power amps over 250 watts. Now, when I go out west toward Reading PA., I can use a CB radio the way it should be used even south Jersey. You get different people I guess. I know I'm crying. lol

Pat
KC2VXL.



CBas****es (yes, that's an actual forum/group name). Yep, I even know some of them. I would guess most of them are running well over 1k watts, with some running close to 5k watts. Not sure how much "trouble" they are anymore, definitely not out there like they were in the past. I haven't heard anyone proclaim they were CBA in over a year now...the CBA site is fairly dead now, and only a handful of people even frequent it.

There were a bunch of spin-off sites from the original CBA, and then there is always the "Coolbreeze Network" around Baltimore and DC.

Although I'm sure it was tiring after a while, some of the antics were actually very funny...like a stand up comedian. Although, I definitely don't hear as much of that as I once did.
 

iMONITOR

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Hey there. I have the CB channels programmed into my scanner, as i still like to listen to them once in a while. What i`m kinda curious to know is, just how far will i be able to recieve other CB users with just the stock antenna on a BCD396T scanner? Also, is CB really used that much anymore or have they gone to things like NEXTEL and/or MURS/FRS? Thanx for any answers, it is really appreicated! 73. N9NRA


Not very far at all. CB (26.965 - 27.405MHz) is on the very low end of the BCD396T's capability. Even though the BCD396T is a wide-band scanner, the performance is optimized for the 800MHz band and you'll find it's performance on VHF/Low leaves a lot to be desired. This applies to any of the new digital scanners today. The stock antenna makes things even worse. It's about as far from being suitable for CB as you could get.

You will find the cheapest CB radio will receive that band better than your scanner. Remember also to set the mode to AM.
 

dougw65

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I have the cb channels programmed into my yaesu vx6 ht. I can hear local stuff on the duck and out to about a 30 mile radius when i attach the ht to my discone @ 20'

A truly interesting subculture of our society hihi--- much less traffic than from the good ol Smokey and the Bandit days of the 70s but I still enjoy partaking from time to time---don't tell my ham friends tho!!!

"You got the 'PUBLIC OPTION' goin thataway!" ;-)
 

kc0qlz

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Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows CE; IEMobile 7.7) Alltel:MotoQ9c)

if theres a band opening you might catch south america on channel 6 or that load mouth dude in the hawaiin islands I hade my scanner a few weeks back and alittle skip action
 
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