Which Will Happen First, MOTO TRBO On A Scanner Or An Amateur Radio?
- Thread starter JASII
- Start date
- Status
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Easy, MotoTrbo, or more specifically, DMR on a scanner.
Motorola isn't going to start building amateur radios. Nothing, however, from stopping an amateur from using a Motorola MotoTrbo on the amateur bands.
There are already at least two mass produced and non-compatible digital formats used on the VHF/UHF amateur bands. I doubt the market would bear a third, and certainly not with enough demand to warrant Motorola from deciding to get into the amateur radio business.
Motorola isn't going to start building amateur radios. Nothing, however, from stopping an amateur from using a Motorola MotoTrbo on the amateur bands.
There are already at least two mass produced and non-compatible digital formats used on the VHF/UHF amateur bands. I doubt the market would bear a third, and certainly not with enough demand to warrant Motorola from deciding to get into the amateur radio business.
Who said Motorola has to make it?
Any manufacturer could build a DMR radio for use on the amateur bands.
Any manufacturer could build a DMR radio for use on the amateur bands.
DMR on amateur radio
There are already two Chicom DMR radios, one selling at $300 and the other slightly less. This compares quite favorably with the prices asked by Icom and Yaesu for their versions of encryption. There are also Vertex radios, both mobile and handheld for under $400. They are not strictly amateur equipment, but along with the Hytera DMR and Motorola Mototrbo gear, the DMR network has been growing steadily.
There are already two Chicom DMR radios, one selling at $300 and the other slightly less. This compares quite favorably with the prices asked by Icom and Yaesu for their versions of encryption. There are also Vertex radios, both mobile and handheld for under $400. They are not strictly amateur equipment, but along with the Hytera DMR and Motorola Mototrbo gear, the DMR network has been growing steadily.
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
True, Vertex could make it, but other than Motorola and Vertex, no one else makes true 100% compatible MotoTrbo in all it's glory. Motorola, as they like to do, add "enhancements" that make their equipment not always 100% cross compatible with other radios that follow the "standards". They are actually pretty famous for this in the P25 world.
I don't see Motorola licensing true 100% compatible MotoTrbo, (The OP asked about MotoTrbo, not DMR), anytime soon.
If you are talking just DMR, then yes, I imagine anyone that really wanted to would make one, but we are really getting down to semantics now.
But, I really doubt that adding a third digital mode to VHF and UHF amateur radio will be met with enthusiasm, other than by the hard core Motorola fanboys. Yaesu has theirs, Icom has theirs. People that really decide they want to play DMR or full MotoTrbo on the ham bands can just buy one of the existing LMR radios that will do this mode. I'd be surprised if there is any business model that would do this, but I'd love to be proven wrong. Who knows, maybe Kenwood or Alinco will roll out DMR as a competitor.
The original question was which one do we think will come out first? Scanner. Many of the scanners on the market already have the AMBE vocoder in them, so making them run DMR wouldn't be that big a deal. I don't know of any amateur radios that have AMBE vocoders in them. If there are, I'd be interested in hearing about it.
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Should be interesting to see which one wins out. I know the scanner guys want DMR and MotoTrbo trunking. Not to mention NXDN and the respective NXDN trunking modes. TETRA is hitting the US shores already, then it will be LTR when some of the FirstNet systems start happening.
Ham operators are looking for the "right" digital mode, but from what I've seen, most are real cheapskates and likely won't adapt to a flood of new digital technologies until one starts taking the lead. I guess that's already happened with D*Star, but I know the Yaesu digital is starting to catch on.
Glad I'm not in the market for a scanner or amateur radio right now. It would be a tough decision.
Ham operators are looking for the "right" digital mode, but from what I've seen, most are real cheapskates and likely won't adapt to a flood of new digital technologies until one starts taking the lead. I guess that's already happened with D*Star, but I know the Yaesu digital is starting to catch on.
Glad I'm not in the market for a scanner or amateur radio right now. It would be a tough decision.
DMR on amateur radio
My Hytera DMR radio works fine on the Illinois Mototrbo repeaters and I have used it to check into the international net on Saturdays and for local contacts. The Motorolas do have some added features, but they have not hindered using the DMR mode or operating in analog mode with my Hytera radio.
My Hytera DMR radio works fine on the Illinois Mototrbo repeaters and I have used it to check into the international net on Saturdays and for local contacts. The Motorolas do have some added features, but they have not hindered using the DMR mode or operating in analog mode with my Hytera radio.
DMR on amateur radio
One important point being missed in why DMR is drawing amateur interest is the ability to have a repeater work with both digital and analog modes at the same time and also be able to use a single frequency to carry two separate conversations. The DMR mode can give some privacy in emergency situations if needed, while those still operating conventional radios are able to access the system.
One important point being missed in why DMR is drawing amateur interest is the ability to have a repeater work with both digital and analog modes at the same time and also be able to use a single frequency to carry two separate conversations. The DMR mode can give some privacy in emergency situations if needed, while those still operating conventional radios are able to access the system.
He also asked about it being used in the amateur world. Since most MotoTRBO enhancements have to do with trunking, I suspect he's incorrectly referring to DMR as TRBO.
DMR radio
Digital mobile radio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
DMR and Mototrbo are used for the same standard. Mototrbo is Motorola's brand name and with the exceptions already noted are the same standard (ETSI). Read the link to the Wiki for clarification if you are still confused. You might also check out MotoTRBO Amateur Networks - DCI/TRBO-6 and DMR-MARC
Digital mobile radio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
DMR and Mototrbo are used for the same standard. Mototrbo is Motorola's brand name and with the exceptions already noted are the same standard (ETSI). Read the link to the Wiki for clarification if you are still confused. You might also check out MotoTRBO Amateur Networks - DCI/TRBO-6 and DMR-MARC
Scanner. I'd say amateur radio would get it first only if Motorola hadn't cut Yaesu free from Vertex Standard last year.
- Status
