New info from a recent talk with triple c. The cost is $12 per month for unlimited air time. The sale rep stated that on 900mhz, the thordin, el dorado and cheyenne mtn sites are all networked together. So we can have it set up so that one talkgroup will broadcast over all three sites.
Now when programming your radio. You will need to choose whether you want it programmed for network or home system. If you choose it networked it will then be $14 a month per radio. This will allow you to automatically use the best tower site available to you. So if you are from denver and are down in the springs for the day you will still hear the TG and will be able to transmit and vice versa for a springs radio up in denver for the day.
Now if you choose to go non-networked just home area. Then your radio will be programmed to use one and only one tower site. The one that you choose. You will still be able to hear all the traffic on the TG as long as you are in range of that one tower site. Make sense I hope.
All radios will be programmed with a unique ID code that will allow the radio to be disabled remotely (it will not kill the radio it just will not allow it to transmit on the system. You will still be able to receive though). This will be used by the smr provider for non-payment issue etc.. and could also be used by the club for maintaining proper control of the system. Hopefully that function will never be used for any reason.
Before purchasing any radio for this system. I highly recommend that you contact triple c communications by phone (sorry I don't have the number beside me as I type right now) or by website/email www. tripleccom.com and they can tell you if the radio will work as long as you have the model number available.
We are still investigating who in fact will carry the system for us. We are in fact talking to triple c since they seem to have the larggest footprint available in the area for our needs. So you might want to hold off on radio purchases for a couple more days. However if you do purchase one and it ends up being the wroing model it is rather easy to get rid of it on ebay.
Triple C will program any radio to the system that is brought to them that you purchase from an outside source for a flat fee of $40.
New and used radios are available from triple c complete with charger, new batter, antenna etc starting at $225 for used and around $600 for new. The price varies with different brands and options.
Triple C has stated that our type of communications needs does fall within their scope of license and such. So I am assuming that we can legally use their system under their license with no problems. If someone knows differently please advise us.
There will be no dispatcher per say on the system. I expect it to be a professionally run system. All of you that are in fact interested and are active in the hobby recognize professional communication methods. Plain language with abbreviations such as GOA, DOA, MVA etc will be used on the system.
Anyone that is part of the membership on the system that monitors an incident can "dispatch" to the rest of the memership the incident on the TG. Updates can then be voiced by anyone with more info on that incident etc....
Incident dispatches will have priority on the system (except for true emergencies that a member might actually be involved in which in any communications means have highest priority). When indicent communications are not active, members may used the channel for communication hobby conversations as long as they are of the communications hobby. The TG is not intended for just idle chit chat. If enough members join the system and it becomes popular like I think it will. We will in the future look into adding a "tac" or "admin" TG for talk between members and such. This will leave the dispatch TG open for dispatches.