What is a Repeater in Ham Radio | How Ham Radio Works

[@Misto1510]

Thank you for taking the time to make this video.

[@HamRadio2]

My pleasure!

[@Chris-ji8jw]

I enjoyed that information. Thank You!

[@Donkarnage223]

This is the best video explanation I have seen well done!

[@HamRadio2]

Glad it was helpful!

[@JD144-]

Thank you for this easy to understand explanation. Now if you could only explain how it operates and how to access it. Thanks again!

[@richarde735]

what is a repeater? the wife! you’re gonna hear it until the message gets through.

[@aliensojourner]

Very helpful, thank you.

[@HamRadio2]

Glad it was helpful!

[@Matheison]

More good stuff here, Jason. Sometime in the future, can you walk folks through the steps necessary for accessing repeaters (offset, tone, etc...)? I think that could be a great help. 73

[@HamRadio2]

The very first video I ever posted talks about how to do that on a specific radio. But the steps on all radios are basically the same. But yes, I can record something specifically like that.

[@tdalbey1]

I second this comment. Maybe use a repeater's information off of repeaterbook.com and show how to plug that into your HT...maybe with an Anytone 878? And show the input differences between an analogue repeater vs a digital repeater.

[@jluke6861]

Thank you for the Great Video.

[@HamRadio2]

Thanks for watching!

[@Taximan90]

Another great video Jason!! Thanks!!

[@HamRadio2]

Thanks for watching!

[@jayant281]

Great resources - Thank you so much

[@myfavorites1016]

Yes when i listened to my police scanner back in the days , i would hear at times the reapeater is up , then i could hear another highway patrol an hour away from my location. Thanks for the information tho 🙂

[@anthonymarino4260]

now I understand more thanks

[@HamRadio2]

You're welcome

[@wild-radio7373]

You know I need to start at the very beginning! :) you Rock!! 🤜🏻👍🤛🏻♡♡♡

[@HamRadio2]

You got this!

[@JoeKrol]

So I know this is an older vid but I have a question. The club nearest to me I have no desire to join. Is it ethical/proper for me to regularly use them if I’m not supporting the club that maintains them?

[@seandrake7534]

Well I won't say it's right or wrong but would you buy a truck and let someone you don't know run it whenever they wanted to and never put gass in it or pay for a oil change ? If so I guess it's fine for you not to contribute to the club If you would not let someone do that to a truck you don't own then you should either donate to the upkeep or join the club. I don't know what the club in your area charges for members but there are a lot of times other benefits that go with it the club here gets $25 a year and I never go to any meeting or very few but I have went out and helped one of the guys work on a repeater Just keep in mind they put up money to buy the equipment and install it most of the time they have had to work with the owner of the structure to be able to put it up there also they pay the electric to run it and buy and maintain the battery back up or generator whatever they use for a backup So should you or should you not contribute to that is up to you I guess and a reflection on your own morals

[@JoeKrol]

@@seandrake7534 Seems I’ve struck a nerve. Seandrake7534, it’s not a question of how expensive the membership is. The club nearest to me has left a bad taste in my mouth. They are extremely un welcoming. The first meeting I attended I had an older member of the group eyeballing me the whole night. Then when they got to the exciting portion of the meeting, a speaker who was discussing satellite communication (which I am interested in) the person running the meeting stated that the material was going to be very complex and if you’re a new ham or new here tonight this is likely going to be way over your head. Ok maybe it would have been however he had no idea what level I was at. Also what kind of a learning atmosphere do they have. To dismiss people who they think can’t comprehend the material??? That’s like saying ok boys and girls the adults are going to talk now so you go into another room. With regard to my ethics. The fact that I ASKED the question should speak for itself. Lastly, when I was recently in Alabama I jumped on a local repeater and the person I spoke to asked me to hit the repeater every day if I could. They were looking for traffic.

[@adambatchelder4121]

Great overview, so I've been playing around with a Baofang in a ammo type very basic repeater. I would like to step it up and maybe buy a real repeater or maybe 2 wouxun 920,980s and make a repeater for our remote area . This will be for emergency fire and such so I'm thinking gmrs because the license will be easier for non radio people. I would like to hear your thoughts on equipment.

[@Edible_Semtex_]

So if I want to communicate with my buddy on another radio, we both need have the same repeater programmed into our radios ?

[@HamRadio2]

Correct. Or simplex. Same frequency

[@panplayer]

Is that an FT101EE I see on the right?

[@markkj7ozh861]

how's it going from Seattle

[@stephenwilliams5201]

Have a simplex.@4watts. 440. All in a amo can. When there Is a special need. I put the rig on a tall site. ( With j-pole) Or hoist it in to a tall tree. "My critter in a box". Hi hi . Tks Fer good show. De kv4li. Ps I've had folks accuse me of trying to steal food from a oak tree? Go figure hi hi. 73.

[@HamRadio2]

Thanks for commenting

[@Checo1]

I'm a novice at this, I still don't have my license but I'm already studying for it, one question. When I already have the closest repeater in my HT, how do I know if it is working or if it is correct the way I did it? I have several days just trying to listen but never heard anyone there.

[@deere300stevev2]

A question about repeaters. The sawmill, about 3 miles from me, uses a repeater for communication around the mill site. When I'm listening I usually hear the base units but not the handhelds?

[@chrissewell1608]

They could be using low powered HTs? But are possibly using a crossband repeater, and you are just monitoring one side of the conversation? Or they are using ctcss tone, and you only hear one side of the conversation? Or its a trunked repeater system.

[@xamyl6099]

Hi, i am trying to find a repeater for commercial radio FM in 87-108 MHz with low output power. do you know some? 25 watts its to high so the antenna will be masive. Hope you can help me!

[@HarrySatchelWhatsThatSmell]

with a home station like a 7300, can/should I use repeaters?

[@seandrake7534]

How do you go about talking people into letting you put a repeater on their tower or building

[@HamRadio2]

Jus ask

[@2PaperTigers]

Is the frequency listed on websites the repeater's TX out or the frequency the repeater is listening to?

[@HamRadio2]

That is the listen-to frequency. The TX is on the offset frequency

[@RaveGamingCommunity]

new question about upgrading to general does your ham club accept out of state testing? We do not have online testing here and I dunno when the next time there going to try to test they do it so spradic and most of the time I can get a way there...I have my CSCE

[@jaylabros6808]

I am new to radio and had a beginner question. Do you need permissions or pay to use a repeater?

[@HamRadio2]

Typically no. Some repeaters are closed and require you to be a member of a club, etc. But most are open and free to use

[@rochecherwood5109]

@@HamRadio2 which one would you recommend?

[@corylahey1025]

Do I have to have my license just to listen to what's going through a repeater, as long as I don't transmit?

[@HamRadio2]

No - no license is required for listening.

[@corylahey1025]

Can I use a repeater just to extend my listening range for my 5 watt handheld?

[@HamRadio2]

Yes

[@RaveGamingCommunity]

A few questions do you have to get a call sign for a repeater? can you set one up for 10 meters?

[@RaveGamingCommunity]

also can you run echo link on your repeater like on 10 meters at night?

[@HamRadio2]

Yes the repeater has to have a callsign also, but it can be your callsign - and yes you can setup a 10M repeater with echolink.

[@RaveGamingCommunity]

@@HamRadio2 thats cool thanks for the help man I am still in my first 10 year about 2 left and i will need to renew speaking of I tried to go tot he fcc website and renew early....it did not come up in the box tho is that because it was not due yet? KG5CUO

[@nancysieleman961]

Can anyone put up a repeater? Are there special permits required?

[@HamRadio2]

Anyone with a license

[@nancysieleman961]

@@HamRadio2 getting my license in a small town just got more enticing, my testing was set for April, corona said no to that. Thank you for knowledge!

[@tilencestnik3280]

@@HamRadio2 what about frequency coordination to avoid interferences? Is in the USA the FCC responsible for that or ARRL?

[@HamRadio2]

Neither the FCC or the ARRL handle frequency coordination for repeaters. You don't HAVE to coordinate your repeater freq, but it is a good idea to do so. If you don't coordinate, and you cause interference to a repeater that is coordinated, you have to change your setup. Different states have different agencies that are in charge or coordination.

[@chrissewell1608]

Funny, I always thought the FCC coordinated repeater frequencies.

[@hotonesjr.1635]

Hey man thanks for making this video. I wanna buy a Motorola XPR 7550e (UHF) and theirs no UHF nor are there VHF repeaters in my area the closets ones are 15 miles away at a college. Will I still be able to get signal from that repeater being that far away? Thanks.

[@HamRadio2]

If any radio could do it, it would be that one. 15 miles is a stretch for an HT, so it really depends on your location and the repeater's location, and the terrain in between you and it.

[@hotonesjr.1635]

@@HamRadio2 thank you this inspires more confidence

[@Ricks2Cents]

Do you think 115’ Tower is High enough to making building a repeater worth wild?

[@HamRadio2]

It depends on the ground height of the tower. If you have a 20' tower, it'd be enough if it was on top of a hill. So at 115' is the top of the tower over everything in the area? If so, it should work fine.

[@Ricks2Cents]

@@HamRadio2 It’s 115’ Tall at the Top. Once upon a time it was used as a windmill to pump water into a tank to arrogate farm fields. I’d like to setup a repeater for a local prep-per group to use.

[@Ricks2Cents]

@@HamRadio2 Solid steal structure with a pump house built into the base of the tower. I installed solar panels and a battery rack. If need be the repeater could be off grid.

[@roar72380]

How do repeaters get assigned their frequency?

[@notipster]

Typically they work with a frequency coordinator for their area. Basically someone who computes what, where, when and how your system is setup and coordinates a frequency that is open so it doesn't interfere with other systems in the area. That's the cliff notes version. Without using a coordinator any frequency is free to use as long as the band plan allows it. They help you more to avoid interference issues.

[@williethepimp]

Justin, am I right in thinking that local repeaters are set on one frequency? Its not like you can scan bands when connected to them?

[@notipster]

They receive on one frequency and transmit on a different frequency. Your radio does the exact same thing only in the opposite frequency setup. That is in the programming and what the offset of the repeater is about. No scanning the bands through a repeater. That would be something that you do with your radio.

[@williethepimp]

@@notipster Thanks. I was thinking more that is it possible to scan the whole frequency of say 2M if the repeater is a 2M repeater? Like a gateway?

[@notipster]

@@williethepimp I figured that was kind of what you were asking but to my knowledge that doesn't exist for a repeater. Hopefully if I'm telling you wrong someone will correct me. Maybe a personally owned repeater system but not an open to the public system.

[@williethepimp]

@@notipster Thanks Bud. I imagined that I expect too much. Like a local repeater as a hotspot but analogue. Oh well.....

[@eugenegooding7363]

I have a standard repeater rp 70 series I acquired from a pawn shop, have no idea how it works, I Going to get my ham license and want to know if this is something I can use.

[@HamRadio2]

Yep, you sure can

[@eugenegooding7363]

@@HamRadio2 will the ham radio test show how to use it?

[@robertvarner9519]

The repeaters in my area are either dead or have been taken out of service all together.

[@HamRadio2]

We have some active ones around here

[@chrissewell1608]

Where do you live? I am almost sure there are some available, but maybe not on your frequency?

[@jeffb5781]

How do you connect to a repeater?

[@Joshuaxiong2]

It’s kind of like a WiFi extended.

[@doctorwatson1000]

Onions are repeaters !

[@Alfredo-d5l]

So just anyone can hear you? No way to just talk to one person?

[@HamRadio2]

Yes, there are ways to do that

[@w8kdzradio113]

Rubber Duckie antennas are crap, even on repeaters

[@HamRadio2]

Especially in repeaters

[@notipster]

Hotspots must have been created so we could quit filling the landfills with rubber duckies.

[@w8kdzradio113]

@@notipster well if they would ship the radios with real antennas and quit making those rubber duckies, then it will be fine

[@notipster]

@@w8kdzradio113 they are all compromised but I just got to thinking how some think they got a good deal on a baofeng and find out they have to more than double their investment with a good antenna.

[@artbremer4076]

Not a good idea to drive while talking on ham radio

[@HamRadio2]

Disagree