I am curious if there will come a day when all communications will be in digital mode or will there always be a need for conventional analog?. It seems more and more services are switching to digital on a daily bases and was wondering if there will come a time when analog will be obsolete.
conventional analog question
- Thread starter GMP
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Yes, there will be a day when there is no more analog.
Might be 2015
Might be 2025
Might be 2500
Might be 2015
Might be 2025
Might be 2500
N
N_Jay
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GMP said:
And there will be a day when what we know as "digital" will be obsolete.
902
Member
That's happening very fast. What we know as digital is rapidly becoming obsolete. P25 Phase 2, which seems to be TDMA similar to OpenSky, is closely supplanting P25 Phase 1 (FDMA).N_Jay said:
More rapidly than I think P25 TDMA systems will catch on, there are broadband initiatives, particularly for 700 MHz data systems, that will have a "national licensee" operating a system based on IP addresses, not frequencies.
One thing to consider - P25 Phase 2 is STILL part of the P25 suite of standards and it's not unreasonable to expect some manufacturer will put the R&D dollars into making some sort of receiver. Uniden or Icom may think of doing a scanner first as a beta product for their two-way equipment. I'm not so confident about what happens to the hobby when things move to a mobile broadband environment.
To answer the original question, the FCC has recognized that there is a need for analog FM to remain for certain applications - this, at the urging of special constituency groups, like the fire service. There are a handful of 700 MHz channels that can be used for analog or digital use. The rest of the band has to be digital and has to (right now) pass one voice path in a 12.5 kHz channelspace. When everyone wakes up on January 1, 2017 that will be cut in half - for 700 MHz - to one voice path equivalent in a 6.25 kHz channelspace (and I hope I'll be retired by then).
Going digital has the benefit of recovering range when going from 25 kHz to 12.5 kHz. There are some bands where narrowbanding is not necessary. Those will likely stay analog, or keep some analog capability. Some new systems, like 700 MHz guardband systems, will be analog. Some conventional system operators have decided to implement narrowband analog systems. So, I think there will always be some form of analog out there. It may not be what you want to listen to, though.
In the year 2525
If Man is still alive
There'll be no analog
Just one big digi blog.
In the year 3535
Subspace will all us bind
Then we will all be blind
Watching pictures in our mind.
Never mind the megahertz
Or selectiv IF skirts
It will be telepathy
'Scuse me I gotta... go.
If Man is still alive
There'll be no analog
Just one big digi blog.
In the year 3535
Subspace will all us bind
Then we will all be blind
Watching pictures in our mind.
Never mind the megahertz
Or selectiv IF skirts
It will be telepathy
'Scuse me I gotta... go.
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