Thanks
@522.
It's not something I want to do. I'm inclined to leave the radio internal alone,
Usually a good idea unless you are 100% sure you have a tech that knows what they are doing. Too many just crank things up for more swing on the watt meter.
I know, I know, it's better to have a good sounding radio. But I doubt most of these guys actually have the right equipment to do it right.
Most users are running stock radios and somehow they survive.
get the antenna dialed in
Best bang for your buck. A good antenna install will make a big difference. When I used to be active in CB, I found most were using really crappy antennas, not tuned and usually stuck in a less than ideal location.
and figure out a way to perfect the audio.
Last CB I ran (many years ago) was bone stock. I connected it to a Motorola external speaker I already had installed in my truck. The larger speaker really helped voice intelligibility and volume.
I mostly wanted to confirm that what we did back in the day was kids playing at things we didn't really understand
There's a lot of people on here that can give you good advice.
If I was going to install a CB in my current truck, I'd make sure I did the following:
-Clean power off the battery, with the negative lead grounded close to the radio.
-Proper antenna installation. Since the mid 1990's I always ran a permanent NMO mount on the roof of the truck with a Larsen NMO27 antenna.
-Tune the antenna using the right tools. An SWR meter will work. Something like a NanoVNA is even better.
-Add a larger external speaker.
If you do all that, and still feel like you need a 'peak and tune', then go for it, but don't do the peak and tune first without having all the other stuff done. That's just pointless.
Makes it easier for some of these guys to keep talking on the radio while sitting on the crapper.
