Building a NXDN amateur radio repeater

[Drachen_Fire]

I have designs on setting up a very local NXDN repeater sometime next year. IDAS repeaters aren't that expensive, and I have access to rooftop space at a local apartment highrise. It would be nice if I could convince an owner of one of the seemingly 4000 unused 70cm repeaters in this city to convert.

So far, I've met a lot of nice dudes in ham radio, but a lot of guys seem to be very rooted in the distant past. The only moves made towards digital in the area seems to be NHARC converting a 2m and a 70cm repeater to DSTAR, and the CMU guys have a mixed mode analog/P25 70cm repeater on the air. To put it lightly, I don't believe DSTAR has a future. After seeing the possibilities, I also believe that analog FM will be extinct in 20 years. NXDN and TRBO are superior to P25 and DSTAR, and will be the digital modes of the future.

How does one go about doing this? I've dealt with the possibility of a proprietary system for my company on Part 90, and the list of crap is exhaustive. Everything is super-regulated. I'm guessing that no such issues exist with ham, or is that just wishful thinking?

 

[Ed_Seedhouse]

I think you will find most of the digital experimentation on the HF bands. Digital on FM has few advantages other than the possibility of encryption or sending actual data. At VHF and above there isn't much noise and plenty of bandwidth is available.

On HF digital in various forms can cut through the pervasive noise and operate on much narrower bandwidths. This allows international communications using milliwatts. Tune around HF for awhile and you'll find lots of strange sounding signals that are neither RTTY nor CW. Indeed both 30 meters and 12 meters are largely restricted to data only.

Set your receiver just above WWV 10mhz and tune up from about 10.005 and you'll hear lots of digital transmissions.

 

[Drachen_Fire]

Aaaanyway, I'm dead serious. If someone can shed some light onto how the NXDN repeaters are tied into a greater system, and how much of a pain it is to put up a ham repeater, I will put one up.

 

[Drachen_Fire]

And now that looks disrespectful. These were posts moved from another thread.

In any case, my main questions, I guess, are
1) Is it as difficult to put up an amateur radio repeater, as it is to put up a commercial one (with regards to coordination, licensing, regulations, etc)?
2) How would one go about linking up with the NXDN worldwide net?

 

[W2GLD]

You will need either an ICOM IC-FR5000 (VHF), IC-FR6000 (UHF) with the IP Interface Card UC-FR5000 and CS-5000 Compact Flash Card or a Kenwood NXR repeater and IP Interface Card. In addition, you will also need a Raspberry Pi Rev. B and a 4gig. SD-Card.

Go to NXDNINFO.COM | NXDN CAI and its application to Amateur Radio for additional details.

Oh, and you also need a valid amateur radio call sign too...

Good luck!

 

[k3td]

Not sure which Ross Twp you are in, but if it is the one in Allegheny County, contact the Western PA Repeater Council about getting a coordinated frequency pair for your repeater.
Western Pennsylvania Repeater Council Home Page

Good luck and 73,

 

[n1ip]

I have designs on setting up a very local NXDN repeater sometime next year. IDAS repeaters aren't that expensive, and I have access to rooftop space at a local apartment highrise. It would be nice if I could convince an owner of one of the seemingly 4000 unused 70cm repeaters in this city to convert.

So far, I've met a lot of nice dudes in ham radio, but a lot of guys seem to be very rooted in the distant past. The only moves made towards digital in the area seems to be NHARC converting a 2m and a 70cm repeater to DSTAR, and the CMU guys have a mixed mode analog/P25 70cm repeater on the air. To put it lightly, I don't believe DSTAR has a future. After seeing the possibilities, I also believe that analog FM will be extinct in 20 years. NXDN and TRBO are superior to P25 and DSTAR, and will be the digital modes of the future.

How does one go about doing this? I've dealt with the possibility of a proprietary system for my company on Part 90, and the list of crap is exhaustive. Everything is super-regulated. I'm guessing that no such issues exist with ham, or is that just wishful thinking?

This may have been answered already, and I saw the Gerry has responded as well.

I've created software that has about 25 NXDN repeaters linked for ham radio... mix of kenwood and icom repeaters.

Specific info go back to the beginning of NXDNINFO.COM | NXDN CAI and its application to Amateur Radio

or drop me a PM, it's really easy to get especially an ICOM on the network. And more and more features of the network will be coming with some new software that I'm working on.

Alan - W7QO
Atlanta, GA