2011 Tahoe PPV Install

[WX4EMT]

Do you have/have you used an apx 7000? If so excluding one being all band and one being dual band, how do the compare?


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Electrically they are similar and look the same on the outside but the similarity ends there. Parts are not interchangeable and even the frame is not the same. In fact even the cases and keyboards are different. The only interchangeable parts are batteries, knobs and antennas (that I have found). if your agencies are only on two bands (VHF / 800 for example) then a 7000 will do just nicely.

BUT

When your EMS - Rescue and adjacent county fire are on VHF
The National Park that is your responsibility is in VHF APCO-P25
Your county Fire and the adjacent county EMS are on UHF as is your aeromedical
Your part time job is at a TVA power plant and your favorite HAM repeater is on low split UHF
BOTH cities that you have EMS responsibility for FIRE and Law Enforcement as well as County Law Enforcement are 800 APCO P-25.

Not to mention state agencies and Federal folks helping with the fire Forestry / TEMA / FEMA etc.ALL spread out across the bands and modes the 8000 is the only choice.

I have the CPS and the Federal front panel keypad programming so the radio will suit me anywhere I go. The choice was a no brainer for me... It's the only radio that would do all the jobs.

Next will be a Kenwood NX-5700/5800/5900 for the Tahoe to keep up with emerging technology and the wide spread adaptation of DMR / P-25 / NXEDGE

My Kenwood source has a great price for the radio but the entitlements keys and add on's make this beast more expensive than the Moto. We've worked out some trades for installations and to be a 'demo unit' for the new radio systems so maybe I can afford it!

Be watching!

 

[BlackSheepDue]

Electrically they are similar and look the same on the outside but the similarity ends there. Parts are not interchangeable and even the frame is not the same. In fact even the cases and keyboards are different. The only interchangeable parts are batteries, knobs and antennas (that I have found). if your agencies are only on two bands (VHF / 800 for example) then a 7000 will do just nicely.



BUT



When your EMS - Rescue and adjacent county fire are on VHF

The National Park that is your responsibility is in VHF APCO-P25

Your county Fire and the adjacent county EMS are on UHF as is your aeromedical

Your part time job is at a TVA power plant and your favorite HAM repeater is on low split UHF

BOTH cities that you have EMS responsibility for FIRE and Law Enforcement as well as County Law Enforcement are 800 APCO P-25.



Not to mention state agencies and Federal folks helping with the fire Forestry / TEMA / FEMA etc.ALL spread out across the bands and modes the 8000 is the only choice.



I have the CPS and the Federal front panel keypad programming so the radio will suit me anywhere I go. The choice was a no brainer for me... It's the only radio that would do all the jobs.

Interesting. I have an XPR7550 but an apx 7000/8000 is the goal in a couple years. Looking at pictures the 7000 appears to be a bigger radio and bigger screen? Very little to no uhf in maine and if I travel I have scanners so all I have to worry about is 800 and vhf. I think the 8000 would be a bit out of reach unless they come down in price by then. Not something I'm seriously considering yet but a guy has got to dream right!?


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[N8OHU]

Nice radios; the APX and the multi-mode NX series setup.

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[WX4EMT]

Interesting. I have an XPR7550 but an apx 7000/8000 is the goal in a couple years. Looking at pictures the 7000 appears to be a bigger radio and bigger screen? Very little to no uhf in maine and if I travel I have scanners so all I have to worry about is 800 and vhf. I think the 8000 would be a bit out of reach unless they come down in price by then. Not something I'm seriously considering yet but a guy has got to dream right!?


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Sounds like a 7000 would do you just fine and YES the 7000 has come down considerably with the introduction of the 8000.

Now if Kenwood will just get their heart right on entitlement keys for the NX-5x00 series I would get one immediately and be installing it next week. Honestly, as legacy systems fall by the wayside and Kenwood examines it's market share decreasing because price points are aligning with Motorola the cost no longer makes Kenwood an option,so Moto is the way to go. Therefore, I believe the NX will come down (the gear is priced well it's the entitlement keys that make the price comparable to motorola) if not......

I'll be going Motorola soon because I'll have to have it as more systems switch over...

 

[highstupid]

Just remember that the a NX series radios will only do a combination of 2 modes per radio. So DMR/NXDN, DMR/P25, NXDN/P25 but not DMR/NXDN/P25


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[WX4EMT]

Just remember that the a NX series radios will only do a combination of 2 modes per radio. So DMR/NXDN, DMR/P25, NXDN/P25 but not DMR/NXDN/P25


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Currently that doesn't pose a problem as NXDN / DMR dominate UHF and P25 dominates VHF & 700-800. I'm hoping a future firmware upgrade will allow all modes on all bands.

 

[kf5jmj]

Nice job

EMT you have a nice setup. Unfortunately I don't have an suv but instead I have an 08 chevy silverado. I am in the process of setting up my truck for emergency communications. Being in the Houston area and having Harvey hit us I found myself unprepared. So I am really motivated to get everything done asap so i'm not caught unprepared. Do you know of anyone that has set up a 08 chevy truck for mobile comms like you have.

 

[03msc]

EMT you have a nice setup. Unfortunately I don't have an suv but instead I have an 08 chevy silverado. I am in the process of setting up my truck for emergency communications. Being in the Houston area and having Harvey hit us I found myself unprepared. So I am really motivated to get everything done asap so i'm not caught unprepared. Do you know of anyone that has set up a 08 chevy truck for mobile comms like you have.

Here are some other threads:

https://forums.radioreference.com/pictures-your-shack-mobile-setup/277430-2008-chevy-silverado.html


https://forums.radioreference.com/p...etup/225533-chevy-silverado-2008-install.html


https://forums.radioreference.com/p...6083-2009-chevy-silverado-towing-install.html


There may be others - I just searched the pictures forum for "silverado" threads and picked ones around '08. I didn't search "Sierra" which would be nearly identical. There are other years out there, too, that might give you some ideas.

Being prepared is important, as you have pointed out.

 

[madrabbitt]

mines one of those, but i probably havent done ANY updates in there in a while.

Currently, i've got a scanner, kenwood VHF mobile and a XTVA for the fire portable, with positions and antenna mounts for a ham mobile and a CB as needed.

 

[kf5jmj]

I took out the center jump seat and installed a subwoofer to mount everything to but it just doesn't work like i want it to so i'm having a custom built sub. after all is said and done I want to have my tmd710 the ft897 and 70cm atv with the mw800 all setup for easy access and connected together so that I can do it all. I might put a scanner and cb in the truck I just have to wait and see how it will all go together. I was considering on having a second operating position in the back seat too. One other thing I have to consider is my portable repeaters although they may be ok in the back.

 

[WX4EMT]

Make sure that you send us some pics of your install once you get it the way you want it.

FWIW I saw a portable repeater build out for deployments that was installed in a Pelican case. (Watertight) Another idea is a military RACK case for your portable repeater. The cases are cheap but shipping is astronomical so the trick is to find someone local selling surplus racks. Gaskets are easy to fashion for the cheap cases that are a bit worn.

Hope this helps
Keith

 

[N1XDS]

The short answer is my truck was not involved as I was too busy on the Ambulance the night of the Gatlinburg fire. Lyra sat unused during a point in time she could have been a lifesaver.

When the storms came through that ultimately brought the fire under control we had no HAM representative from NWS Morristown to pass information and I still don't know why. I don't chase storms after dark PERIOD, so I was on the East TN Severe Weather Net giving RADAR info and in fact called the Athens Tornado several minutes before the warning was issued.

In the aftermath the Tahoe was once again relegated to the parking lot as I manned the ambulance to provide coverage for fire crews mopping up the hotspots. All in all I was in the middle of some part of the event for over a week with very little sleep, as for Lyra, she got plenty of rest during an event that surely could have used her capabilities.

After that event I bought a Motorola APX-8000 because "I" will not be caught in that type of situation again without proper communications with ALL agencies.

For what it's worth it took over 6 months to get my asthma under control after all the smoke.

Beautiful radio Keith!

 

[highstupid]

I took out the center jump seat and installed a subwoofer to mount everything to but it just doesn't work like i want it to so i'm having a custom built sub. after all is said and done I want to have my tmd710 the ft897 and 70cm atv with the mw800 all setup for easy access and connected together so that I can do it all. I might put a scanner and cb in the truck I just have to wait and see how it will all go together. I was considering on having a second operating position in the back seat too. One other thing I have to consider is my portable repeaters although they may be ok in the back.

What radio are you using for ATV?


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[Nozzleman71]

Sounds like a 7000 would do you just fine and YES the 7000 has come down considerably with the introduction of the 8000.

Now if Kenwood will just get their heart right on entitlement keys for the NX-5x00 series I would get one immediately and be installing it next week. Honestly, as legacy systems fall by the wayside and Kenwood examines it's market share decreasing because price points are aligning with Motorola the cost no longer makes Kenwood an option,so Moto is the way to go. Therefore, I believe the NX will come down (the gear is priced well it's the entitlement keys that make the price comparable to motorola) if not......

I'll be going Motorola soon because I'll have to have it as more systems switch over...

This is the kind of radio 700 has in his truck KEITH.

 

[jhoff32]

I'm looking to do this same thing in my vehicle i have a MW800 and would love to get GPS and wifi on it but I have NO idea how or what to get. Can you help me with that? Thank you

 

[WX4EMT]

Any outboard Serial or USB GPS would work great to get your 800 running maps etc. You may need GPS Gate to properly distribute the GPS string to the appropriate program. Also a USB WiFi dongle will solve your connectivity issue. The on-board WiFi add on is scarce at best if not pure onobtainium since this hasn't been produced for the better part of a decade. The WiFi board I have is lost in the sea of boxes that is my storage but I wouldn't suggest it anyway as it was 802-11-B as I remember.

GpsGate - download

https://www.walmart.com/ip/TP-Link-...75035&wl11=online&wl12=21553789&wl13=&veh=sem

https://www.thegpsstore.com/USGlobalSat-BU353-S4-USB-GPS-Receiver-P3219.aspx

http://content.motorolasolutions.co...MW800_DisplayOwnersManual_F5207_and_F5217.pdf

Hope this helps...

 

[CVPI]

Insulate the roof:

Sorry to bring back from the dead but I've been doing some research and I remembered this thread. What brand of insulation is this?

 

[KD4FUN]

Curious, what make & model is the GPS antenna?

Install the GPS:

I have A Uniden BCD 996XT scanner in the mobile and I really like your setup, I am not using the GPS feature but would like to, what is the make and model of the GPS antenna you are using?
Thanks,








Brian Gray KD4FUN

 

[WX4EMT]

Insulate the roof:

Sorry to bring back from the dead but I've been doing some research and I remembered this thread. What brand of insulation is this?

Waddayamean 'sorry'? I miss this old thread and all the friends that I'v made along the way. Anytime you have a question or a reference for this thread by all means RESURRECT!

As for the insulation in the roof, first let me say it made a TREMENDOUS difference even as I was putting it in. The difference between ambient heat in the back as I installed a few panels and the front that was still open metal was incredible.

SO....

If you are going to insulate your roof I highly suggest the foil coated bubble type insulation.

As for the type / brand... are you ready for this?

Lowe's garage door insulation, cheap too! 1 roll had enough to do the entire roof and had enough left over to make a couple of windshiled sunshades.

Let us know how it turns out!

KF

 

[WX4EMT]

Install the GPS:
I have A Uniden BCD 996XT scanner in the mobile and I really like your setup, I am not using the GPS feature but would like to, what is the make and model of the GPS antenna you are using?
Thanks,
Brian Gray KD4FUN

Hi Brian. The GPS that runs my scanner is actually the first hole that I drilled into the roof way back at the beginning of the thread.

The GPS is a US Globalsat MR-350P which has been discontinued. The new and improved version with the SiRF-STAR4 is available here:

https://www.amazon.com/GlobalSat-Se...TF8&qid=1538765401&sr=1-2&keywords=mr350p+gps

It requires an adapter which can be USB or serial. The adapter provides the +5 VDC to power the GPS engine which is described here:

https://www.amazon.com/HI-RS232-i-T...TF8&qid=1538765401&sr=1-4&keywords=mr350p+gps

If you are into the do it yourself stuff I used an old PS-2 keyboard extension cable and soldered my own DB-9 connector to it. Since I have a 5 VDC power point built into my console so I tapped power there. The adapter cable is pretty cheap but I just like making my own stuff.