DMR - Tennessee BrandMeister Network

[LFRfreak]

I'm thinking of getting the DMR upgrade for my 436HP to listen to the Hams on BrandMeister. How active is this system?

Thanks!

 

[w2xq]

You will be limited to listening to DMR repeaters. If you don't get a local answer, you might try contacting the TN frequency coordinator people and perhaps those in adjacent states: W2XQ.com : Amateur Radio : Frequency Coordinators

 

[TNDispatcher]

I use it all the time when I’m on the road if I’m close but alot of people just use hotspots
K2LXA

 

[LFRfreak]

I use it all the time when I’m on the road if I’m close but alot of people just use hotspots
K2LXA

For the folks that use hotspots... Does their radio traffic run through the repeaters as well?

 

[TNDispatcher]

Only if someone has keyed up on that repeater on that specific talk group. If everyone is on a hot spot on a different talk group u will never hear it unless someone is on that repeater utilizing that talk group.

 

[sallen07]

Only if someone has keyed up on that repeater on that specific talk group. If everyone is on a hot spot on a different talk group u will never hear it unless someone is on that repeater utilizing that talk group.

That's the case for TGs that are dynamic on a given repeater, but many (most?) Brandmeister-linked repeaters have at least one or two static talk groups, which means that any traffic on those TGs will be heard without anyone doing a key-up. Static TGs tend to be local or regional.

So if a repeater has TG 1234 configured as static, and two people are using hot spots and talking on that group, you will hear the traffic. On the other hand, if they are on TG 3456 (and that's not static), you won't hear them unless someone else keys up the repeater on that TG.

 

[LFRfreak]

What if a local Ham is just listening to, or scanning, a dynamic TG on a local repeater but *not* keying up (and all traffic is through hotspot) - would I be able to hear the traffic on the TG from the repeater that the Ham is monitoring?

 

[sallen07]

What if a local Ham is just listening to, or scanning, a dynamic TG on a local repeater but *not* keying up (and all traffic is through hotspot) - would I be able to hear the traffic on the TG from the repeater that the Ham is monitoring?

A dynamic group will only be active on a repeater if someone has transmitted into the repeater on that TG. If there are no further transmissions then the TG times out after 15 minutes.

 

[INDY72]

Contact the admin for the system repeater or look on fb. You can get a list of repeaters AND the lists of how the TG are set up on those repeaters.

 

[INDY72]

Also remember DMR MARC is tied in with BM in many locations

 

[INDY72]

Here in IN we have BM, DMR MARC, and Crossroads DMR linked

 

[KN4EHX]

Lots of BM around here. I’m not certain what side of TN you are in but East Tennessee has pretty good coverage. TN Statewide TG 3147 is usually always live and your other time slot will be dynamic. There is some emergency and weather TGs that are being implemented and put in use. Provided your time slot and color codes are correct you should be in good shape. There is a bit of disparity on what CC and TS should be used so you’ll have to find that information for your local repeater. You’ll also need a DMR ID if you don’t already have one; it can be a bit of a PITA but not too bad. Depending on what radio you’re going to use it is likely someone has a programming file to share.

My first DMR experience was with a MD380. I had pretty much zero experience or guidance on what I needed to do to make it work but after about 3 hours of all the wrong choices I finally got the tone of life and was able to confirm I was making it through by using BM to listen online to the TG. Good thing too because I was about 1 more tone of death away from chunking it out of my 3rd story dorm window.

All downhill from there! If you invest in a hotspot (I’m a big fan of SharkRF) you’ll probably find DMR to be quite enjoyable. There is a lot more people out there than you would believe. It is also possible to go from DMR to various other modes using a hotspot. There is also common talk groups where other modes can meet - in that case you can use the repeater.

Many people go in with the assumption that a handheld is all you’ll need. If you plan to just use hotspots that might be true, but if you intend to use it in your car a dedicated mobile radio will suit you very well. There is some very nice dual band radios out there, but as for myself I stick to the Motorola XPR series. My advice would be find a MD380 in UHF flavor and play around with it; if you find you like DMR, great - you’ll have a good foundation - if you don’t like it you will only be out a little bit of money and the super hetrodine filters on the 380 work really well for analog. Definitely a good radio for the money. They also take well to being dropped; mine lived a very rough life.

Perks are crystal clear audio, user database, and 2 time slots on the same frequency pair. Worldwide TG91 is really cool. You get a talk permit tone or you get the tone of death to let you know if you are out of range or the time slot is busy. Very cool stuff but there is a 3 hour learning curve.

 

[KN4EHX]

 

[ka4bni]

I'm thinking of getting the DMR upgrade for my 436HP to listen to the Hams on BrandMeister. How active is this system?

Thanks!

Here's a link to a pretty accurate list of the DMR Ham repeaters in Tennessee: Tennessee DMR Amateur Radio Repeaters. Depending on what part of the state you reside, you should have a good chance at hearing traffic. The Tennessee Statewide talk group is probably the most heard on the repeaters in West TN.

 

[TNDispatcher]

Does anyone have a codeplug for this system or know where to get one ? MD-380 Dual band

 

[KN4EHX]

Does anyone have a codeplug for this system or know where to get one ? MD-380 Dual band

I’ve got a MD-380 UHF codeplug floating around if the dual band will take it.

I might have one other resource. There isn’t a whole lot of VHF DMR in Tennessee. East Tennessee at least. It’s been a while since I’ve even played with a 380, but first attempt was when I was on rounds in undergrad at about 0100 with nothing going on - the place was all crickets. Everyone I worked with thought I was either crazy or up to some secret squirrel stuff when I finally got it working. I got the tone of death like 300 times before getting the codeplug right. Finally when it gave me the chirp of life and world wide lit up the security guard walking by heard a guy saying he was in Germany. The conspiracy grew even deeper haha. They thought they were cool by being able to talk across town.

I also have a MD-2017 codeplug if it is possible to use it. It went into a mobile TYT MD-9600 with no resistance.

Adding things into the 380 is pretty easy so you might at least be able to use the UHF version as a donor to copy / paste from.

PM here or QRZ if you want.

 

[KN4EHX]

I believe the codeplugs on this link are incredibly wide area as well. Definitely a good place to start and likely better than anything I’d have. I have a codeplug in my Motorola 7550E from SCHEART that covered almost everything in DC, NC, SC, TN, and VA. While on the coast a couple months ago I used it to great effect to talk about anyone I wanted. You might have to add your favorite talk groups to some zones, but they are surprisingly well composed.

Hopefully this helps.

WNC DMR Amateur Radio Group

DMR Code Plugs | SCHEART