glos_angeles
Newbie
I am now ready to pursue my ham hobby, something I have wanted to do for a while but for various reasons could not.
I have been doing my research and it seems I must consider these aspects when it comes to buying equipment:
1) budget; i.e. how much am i willing to spend $$$
2) my license. here, if i understand correctly, shouldn't be that big of an issue. If i study and want to pass, i should be able to achieve "Extra" class no problem.
3) what bands i will mostly enjoy or use. but there is no way for me to know this right now; however, i have been listening in on websdr and i think i would enjoy being able to communicate long distances (so HF?) .I have heard a couple CQs in morse code (CW?) from international and was saddened to think they never got a response (that could have been me! ) but it seems this will require a huge jump in equipment and antennas... but not sure, hence why i am asking for help.
4) my location. I took a look at repeaterbook.com, and assuming their info is accurate, it seems there are lots of open repeaters in my area, los angeles county, in the 10m, 6m, 2m, 1.25m. 70cm and some UHF frequencies
since I still learning much about ham, I admit i am not sure exactly how to interpret all that repeater information.
I believe in saving and spending as much the first time purchase to avoid the trap of losing money in the long run by buying and selling (or maybe not even that, just ending up with never used radio..).
my budget right now not including antenna and peripherals is about 400 dollars.
this lead me to highly consider the yaesu ft 8900r. but it seems i will not be able to do any real "Dxing" with this? is that correct? it seems I would need a radio with CW and AM and SSB mode?
i next considered the ft 857d, but the price jumps considerably (900 dollars vs. 324 for the 8900r).
if i am going to spend 900 dollars for a transceiver, it had better be long term good, and frankly, if spending another 100-200 would get me a better one i'd just save up and buy one... but that would delay my purchase and set up considerably to save up extra money.
then i read about antenna tunners and antenna set ups... yeeesh. it seems a 900 dollar radio will still need extra tuner...
TL;DR.
I am willing to save up and spend at least 900 dollars for first time buy. what radios should i consider? will a cheap 2m 7cm radio do me just fine? I think i want to do HF,is it silly for me to consider HF right now so new to all this? how much should i "set aside" in my mind for antenna costs and peripherals?
thanks
I have been doing my research and it seems I must consider these aspects when it comes to buying equipment:
1) budget; i.e. how much am i willing to spend $$$
2) my license. here, if i understand correctly, shouldn't be that big of an issue. If i study and want to pass, i should be able to achieve "Extra" class no problem.
3) what bands i will mostly enjoy or use. but there is no way for me to know this right now; however, i have been listening in on websdr and i think i would enjoy being able to communicate long distances (so HF?) .I have heard a couple CQs in morse code (CW?) from international and was saddened to think they never got a response (that could have been me! ) but it seems this will require a huge jump in equipment and antennas... but not sure, hence why i am asking for help.
4) my location. I took a look at repeaterbook.com, and assuming their info is accurate, it seems there are lots of open repeaters in my area, los angeles county, in the 10m, 6m, 2m, 1.25m. 70cm and some UHF frequencies
since I still learning much about ham, I admit i am not sure exactly how to interpret all that repeater information.
I believe in saving and spending as much the first time purchase to avoid the trap of losing money in the long run by buying and selling (or maybe not even that, just ending up with never used radio..).
my budget right now not including antenna and peripherals is about 400 dollars.
this lead me to highly consider the yaesu ft 8900r. but it seems i will not be able to do any real "Dxing" with this? is that correct? it seems I would need a radio with CW and AM and SSB mode?
i next considered the ft 857d, but the price jumps considerably (900 dollars vs. 324 for the 8900r).
if i am going to spend 900 dollars for a transceiver, it had better be long term good, and frankly, if spending another 100-200 would get me a better one i'd just save up and buy one... but that would delay my purchase and set up considerably to save up extra money.
then i read about antenna tunners and antenna set ups... yeeesh. it seems a 900 dollar radio will still need extra tuner...
TL;DR.
I am willing to save up and spend at least 900 dollars for first time buy. what radios should i consider? will a cheap 2m 7cm radio do me just fine? I think i want to do HF,is it silly for me to consider HF right now so new to all this? how much should i "set aside" in my mind for antenna costs and peripherals?
thanks