Is 6 Meters the Best Ham Radio Band???

[@indridcold8433]

I listen to 6 meter band a lot. There is an operator that calls out every Monday from 10:00 to 11:00 at random intervals, on 50.125Mhz USB. Nobody ever answers him back. I have never heard anybody else except for very, very, sporadic use of a repeater on 52.1Mhz FM. I listen to radio of all bands a lot. It is not like it used to be when I was a kid. But, I still listen all I can.

[@garycowger9579]

The TYT TH-9800 Quad Bander 10m,6m,2m, and 70cm for about $215 on eBay 5 to 50 watts nice little rig I use it all the time!

[@wordless1111]

me too. I would go out to the mountains outside Vegas and listen to everything from everywhere!

[@robertchristianson1187]

Six meters is a really fun band but can also be frustrating due to the limited band openings because it is the higher end of the hf band. You can literally listen for months on end and not hear a single burp unless of course you have locals to chat with. There are many ways to communicate on the band like F2 world wide qso's e layer,aurora qso's meteor scatter, digital and more. 6 m antennas are easy small and fun to build also

[@XPFTP]

i love 6m.. when i took the test and got no code tech back in 95. 6 was my goto.. i love it .. old sb110a i have and sooooooo love it

[@SatansPooper]

I have heard that a 1/4 wave vertical cut for 6m also acts as a 5/8 wave vertical on 2m. Have you ever built such a design and how do they work in your experience?

[@SevenFortyOne]

I've used a 5/8 mobile 2m on 6meters fm with good results

[@mrfarts5176]

Good stuff. Never used one myself but the gays love it.

[@ivandubinsky1857]

There is no "best" amateur band. There is only the band that is best suited to your immediate requirements at any particular time.

[@billryland6199]

Thanks for the info on 6 meters. I am NCS for a 6 meter FM simplex net. My base station is an IC-756 Pro III with an FT-891 for portable. A TS-440 SAT is standby. I like PSK-31 for digital.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Awesome!!!

[@daniell8387]

I used to be able to hit K1FFK from MAnchester, NH on a regular basis but I had to use 50 watts on 2m

[@SevenFortyOne]

It's not quite as good as it used to be. I used to be able to hit it from the Buckland mall Manchester, CT as well but I don't think I can anymore.

[@christophermichaelson9050]

@4:57 sounds exactly like OH8STN (SurvivalTech Nord channel).

[@SevenFortyOne]

No, that's Bill

[@Orvulum]

I tune into 6 meters frequently to see if I can hear anything... I sometimes keep the radio tuned to that band so I can watch the spectrum display out of the corner of my eye. Over the course of the last year I've seen a flurry of activity once.

[@SevenFortyOne]

That's good that you are monitoring. However, if everyone listens and nobody talks nothing will happen. You've got to call cq once in a while too. Or better yet, start a weekly net or rag chew group to get the ball rolling....

[@angelodepalma538]

You are lucky to have seen activity even once.

[@dennisperkinson3756]

Great video! I never had a radio that covered 6-meters in over 30 years in amateur radio, so I finally bought a used Kenwood TK-690H (40 - 50 MHz) commercial radio and converted it to work on 6-meters FM (easy modification). Works great!

[@SevenFortyOne]

Nice !

[@joekrepps]

Wellll, I’ll give it another listen. I’ve got 2 6m repeaters within 5 miles and both have been off the air for some time. I operate 99% mobile/1% stationary with a FT891/ATAS-120A mag mounted. 10m had been great this past year. Next time it’s open, I’ll take a look at 6m. Always wanted to build another cubical quad-6m would be a nice, portable size.

[@wb4huc10]

Thanks for this video. You showed contacts on most modes (didn't see any CW or CW beacon reception), but you covered most of the bases. And listening for CW beacons is a good way to tell how well the band is doing in various directions. Six meters is also my favorite band. I first got on the band in the mid-1970s with a Lafayette HA-460 AM transceiver and a big six element beam up about 40 feet. My dad used to run the HA-460 mobile with a Squalo antenna mounted on the car. When I got back on the band 8 or 10 years ago I used a 2 element Diamond 2 element beam up about 40 feet and it worked well. A few contacts down to the Galapagos Islands and into Central and South America were made using that beam. Now I use a 5-element JK antennas JK65 Yagi. Anyway, I think you brought some good information about six meters to folks who may never have considered getting on six, and you can use almost any antenna when the band is open. Loop antennas are popular, and some folks run stacked loops. Most HF rigs these days include six meters so all they need is some sort of antenna up 20 feet or so and they can do well on the band. 73, Mike - WB4HUC

[@surak1841]

I have never heard anyone on 6m here in the UK, maybe its just me but I get loads on 40 and 80m and even 10 now and then but 6.....

[@ewigeblumenkraft1362]

Thanks for the video. Great quality picture, well done. 6m is my second best band along with 10m and nearly all of my most unusual experiences came from 6m. My 1st beacon outside Europe was an polar station 6m beacon. My 1st EME was on 6m. My 1st encounter with FT8 was at 6m. My first meteor scatter was at 6m. Actually if I'd think it, my first ever transceiver was actually 6m - a pair of AM superregenerative walkie talkies close to 50mhz just shy of 40khz - a love from the first sight indeed.

[@waynejohnson5463]

thanks for doing this 6M has been and is my favorite band we put in a 6M repeater last fall and have it on AllStar

[@wa6gxq]

Really Great Video! Thanks For the hard work producing the video! 73

[@SevenFortyOne]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know

[@Radiowild]

I really enjoyed watching this video! There's not much activity on six meters around here, but there's a small group of hams that have some vintage gear for 6 meter AM. Never knew folks were even doing FT8 here! Have been considering a IC-7300 for my shack.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I've heard good things about the 7300

[@angelodepalma538]

there's no activity on 6m.

[@c.a.r.s.carsandrelevantspecs]

Thanks for this excellent video! I had been looking online for a video like this during the past few months. This one hit the spot! I appreciate how you provided real-life examples of various modes and discussed both local and DX communications. The way you presented the various transceiver options provided an excellent overview of what's available. And the antenna examples were practical and exciting! Thanks again for this top-notch video! ~ 73 ~ AC7WH

[@SevenFortyOne]

I'm glad you liked my video, thanks for letting me know!

[@c.a.r.s.carsandrelevantspecs]

@@SevenFortyOne You're very welcome! 🙂🎙️📻📡

[@ON7ARQ]

Thanks for nice video, I started to work on 6m with a transvertor 2m6m only 1W worked OE with 2 ele I was worked on 1m above the ground, It was a revalation for my, becorce at that time as ON1 I could only work on 2m and higher, the Ice was broken hi, later I work Es with only a rubber-duck antenna, and with a 5 element tonna even intercontinental with my Yaesu 690 also only 10W, now we work experimental 6m DATV what was not possible analoque, looking out to next Es season 73

[@eddief46]

You may want to do a review of this new radio. For those that are interested in an affordable Wouxun KG-Q10H Quad-band handheld radio that includes a superheterodyne receiver, you are able to transmit on 1.25 meter, 2 meters, 6 meters, and 70cm Fm

[@SevenFortyOne]

A guy in my club just got one and told me all about it. I like that it has 6 meters but I'm concerned about whether or not it has adequate transmit filtering. I also can't usually do much with an HT from where I live but I might be able to use this one when I'm travelling. I'm considering buying one and if I do I'll be sure to make a review on it.

[@vonzigle]

Thanks!

[@SevenFortyOne]

Thank you!

[@KB5PQL]

Very good presentation for the 6m band. I’ve been hamming for a while and I’m motivated to do more on 6! Nice job. 😅

[@terrytimmons8375]

I loved 6M since I got my tech in the early '60's. Had a Millen amp with a 826B following a homebuilt crystal exciter. Terry WA4AMG

[@thesickhorseranch]

I just got Linux, CHIRP and the TYT TH-9800D to work together finally. I got the radio last Fall and it's been nagging at me that I hadn't got CHIRP working yet. Looking forward to finishing it up and checking out the capabilities.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Sweet!

[@w.rustylane5650]

I recently got a Yaesu 991a and am enjoying 6 meters; my previous radio would only do 160 through 10 meters. I really like making contacts on 6 meters. Cheers & 73 from W Rusty Lane K9POW in eastern Tennessee

[@SevenFortyOne]

Nice!

[@stevebarney6735]

Another great video Rob! I'm excited about 6m. And thanks to KB1OYB and KC1ELZ for the quick look at that diamond antenna.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I need to get off my arse and build one for myself!

[@paulsengupta971]

@@SevenFortyOne You can go one step further and make it into a cubical quad by adding another element. That way you have a reasonably compact single direction antenna rather than bi-directional. The first antenna I made for 2m was a cubical quad and I used to hold it out of the car sunroof (while parked!).

[@bigchew3149]

ya Cant Forget About The Yaesu ft 991 Or Even the Icom ic-7000 Very Good Radio for a older Radio..The yaesu ft 991 /991a has 6m as well as wires X/c4fm and all that stuff to as i understand it !

[@allenjones5075]

I am located in NW Indiana approximately 40 miles from Chicago. I have been on six since 1961. Other than band openings, contests and activity nets 6M is pretty dead in this area. Any activity there is is mostly digital. I have a decent setup, 5-elements at 70 feet and a IC-7300 driving a 1KW amp. I spend hours monitoring 50.125 while working on other projects. Nothing but white noise.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Interesting....

[@patrickslevin6424]

They call it the "Magic Band" because it's magic if you can make a contact on 6m.

[@treeoflifehiking1807]

Enjoyed your video. After 45 yrs of HF, I'm dabbling in 6m for the first time with a home-brew dipole strung out on a piece of PVC pipe hanging on a tree at 30'. Works great for 800-1000nm as well as 4000-5000 mile DX. But your 6m diamond (full wave loop) intrigues me. Do you have a diagram with the measurements etc. I couldn't find any info on the web. Thanks. 73 N4LS

[@SevenFortyOne]

I had a sketch but can't find it now... sorry about that

[@ko4otv43]

We use 6m simplex every Saturday night. It's really fun when it's propagating such a great band. I like 10, 17, 20, 40 and 80 as well. 17 being my second favorite.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Very cool!

[@ko4otv43]

@@SevenFortyOne Thanks here in middle Tennessee on Saturday we start at 7pm with a DMR simplex net then we jump over to a Dstar simplex net at 7:15 then a C4fM simplex net. Then at 8pm we start the FM simplex net and after that we go to 2 meter upper side band simplex net. Then after that we Go to 6 meter USB then finally there is a 220 simplex net and that is the cavalcades of net's on Saturday night. Yeah I know it's insane!!

[@SevenFortyOne]

Wow, that's a lot to keep track of but cool you guys are using All of those bands

[@ko4otv43]

@@SevenFortyOne yeah it is. It all started about 8 years ago on FM and 6 meters and recently they started all the digital modes and 220. It's getting hard to keep up with all of it

[@markn1mmo510]

Great video. I've been on 6 meters for well over 20 years. It's a really fun band to be on. Wish it were used by more hams. 6 meter FM simplex is also a lot of fun during the summer months.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I agree...that's one of the reasons I made this video. I hope more hams tune in and use this band

[@upsidedown3341]

I just got my Technician license and taking the General this Saturday. I know very little about Ham radio, but I plan to get a six meter radio soon. I wish there was a club that would kinda walk me through some beginning things until I get the hang of it. I have a hand held and talk on our net once a week, but that’s pretty much it.

[@markn1mmo510]

​@upsidedown3341 purchase a radio that fits your budget. Depending on where you live and how many other hams are on 6-meter, will dictate activity level. I've found that SSB can be active as well as FT8. The summer months tend to be the best time of year for SSB band openings, as well as FM openings. I would also suggest a 6-meter ham stick, which is fairly inexpensive and easy to tune. There are other options out there. It all depends on your budget and you plan to operate, mobile, at the house, or both.

[@Ei2iP]

No is the answer 😮, 10M would be my favourite.. all modes including AM, FM, repeaters, satellites etc

[@SevenFortyOne]

10 is a good band too!

[@ewigeblumenkraft1362]

My favourite band too but then I really enjoy WARC, 10-6-4 meters and if I'd have to make a single radio choice to cater all my requirements, then it would be a hard time. Perhaps rather ancient Kenwood ts680 would be the one as new(ish) radios usually are mastered at one but rather poor at another feature. Like my favourite of all rigs Yaesu FT-817 is a Jack of all trades but then it's sensitivity at 10m is so so and am is drastic. Kenwoods would be grand for most of he but (if vhf is included) is not the best at all for 6m. Then I do believe Icom would be best...but have no experience whatsoever at 6m and 4m (if included or modded for) is the worst one I've ever experienced.

[@jurassicpark104]

Love the IC-746PRO! Fantastic radio!

[@n0vty873]

6m ft8 50 watts home made dipole on a 12ft painters pole hit Russia. two different days 2 different stations. about 12 hrs apart

[@SevenFortyOne]

Sweet!

[@VA3JPX]

Great sounding stations, especially the AM stations. :)

[@KC3UVF]

I need to spend more time on 6m. At least once I come up with a reasonable antenna solution. The loop looks intriguing.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Loops work good...a couple of my buddies use them

[@KC3UVF]

@@SevenFortyOne I have to operate "portable" due to apartment constraints. I use either a 1/4 wave vertical with tuned radials or a 1/2 wave vertical (at least for 10-15m ) for HF. I want something that works with that paradigm. I was not impressed with the 1/4 wave performance on 6 so my next step is the 1/2 wave. If that fails to deliver I will definitely look at the loop!

[@williampeacock9473]

Hey Rob, I have enjoyed the video very much. You gave a ton of information. And I also love 6m band as well. You have worked me on 6m a couple years ago. How do I go about getting a couple of 741 stickers . I also have a Yaesu ft-891 . All my radio's are Yaesu. Keep making the videos and keep watching.73 AE4OY William Peacock EM-81UF Blackshear, GA HAM IT UP !

[@SevenFortyOne]

Hi William - thanks for your support. Unfortunately, I don't have any more stickers

[@jackK5FIT]

Great info on 6M. I've never spent much time with 6M although I have radios and antennas that will work 6M so this gives me more incentive to give it a shot. My ARES group has been experimenting with 60M as an alternative to VHF repeaters for local comms. Maybe 6M is another option. Thanks!! Jack K5FIT

[@SevenFortyOne]

Excellent! Maybe 6m will work for you.

[@temporarilyoffline]

This was great - very detailed! Did that old icom always have that birdie - like from the factory new?

[@SevenFortyOne]

Stay tuned for the rest of the story on that....but yes, sort of. It's gone now though

[@gotman4409]

I wonder if that loop has a matching section of any kind. You don't mention one. I've seen a similar loop like this but it requires a 75 ohm 1/4 wave matching section at the feed point.

[@SevenFortyOne]

No matching section on this one. It might benefit from one but seems to work ok without one

[@gotman4409]

@@SevenFortyOne how much wire is this ?

[@SevenFortyOne]

I don't know offhand...full wave on 6m

[@gotman4409]

@@SevenFortyOne I think a full wave would be about 21 feet of wire . Mine works great. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I calculate 20.1 feet @50mhz which would be the longest you'd need. Having said that, I'd start with 21 or maybe 22 feet and trim ad needed

[@1crazynordlander]

Great video Rob! FT-891 is a great radio. My furthest contact a mile short of 5000 miles to Chile was made on a Shark Distributing 20 meter ham-stick in my pickup. I don’t have a six meter antenna so I better get on that. It doesn’t take much wire or height. I have the IC-7100 and the IC-7300.

[@SevenFortyOne]

6 meters will be opening up soon...you'll have lots of fun with it

[@boatingfisherdude]

Great video. I can open Mt. Greylock with an HT at my house Over in Columbia county NY...In general wouldn't you say 6M Fm is line of sight?

[@SevenFortyOne]

Yes more or less but less so than higher frequencies

[@boatingfisherdude]

@@SevenFortyOne KD2SFL...so my neighbor got his technician license and has a TYT 9800 which does 6m Fm . He's trying to reach out to the Syracuse area. Path profiler shows no line of sight so I'm trying to convince him he needs to get his general license. to make those contacts reliably.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Getting the general license gives you more options for sure but it might not completely solve the problem. I don't know how may miles you are looking at or what kind of terrain but a 10 meter home station running SSB with a decent antenna may be another option - techs have SSB privilege's on the lower part of10. Or maybe just getting the 6 meter antenna up higher would work. Ham bands between 12m and 40 aren't the best for local communications due to propagation characteristics so if he does get his general he may need to try 80 meters or 10m FM.

[@boatingfisherdude]

@@SevenFortyOne 40 m NVIS works well but I suspect its ground wave propagation. were only a few miles apart. Tried this route out with another local HAM sucess on 1 watt. He's trying to solve a problem with 6m FM that only line of sight and a yaggi can accomplish. I've spent hours on a path profiler. Impossible to get line of sight to Syracuse NY area.

[@johnmayer158]

Howdy! If I may also suggest another radio: Ranger (RCI) has radios out there that are mono band, but all mode... I have the Ranger 5054dx, which is 10w, on am, fm, and cw, and 25 on ssb, which I run in my mobile. I've had a ball with it, and done lots of dx with is when the band is open. They also made the 5054dx100 which is 100w ssb. Basically the same, just more power. These are great radios for what they are. But, be advised, they do not have pl tones for fm repeaters, so if someone were to get one of these, they would have to add some sort of external pl board to the radio. But I do recommend these for consideration. Good luck, and 73s, John, N8SGM.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Good suggestion!

[@ewigeblumenkraft1362]

Well i had rci 5054dx100 once upon the time and while I do have a soft spot for rci 2950 line 10m rigs I was not so happy with 5054 at all. By the first it is pretty much still the same 2950 with just an opposite high side vs low side mixer injection - a well known "export" cb mod to get onto 6m whereabouts. So not really specifically 6m circuitry but rather an dirty adaptation of 24-32 cb. Even its ecu can be still made to display a classic 2950 range. The other nuisance was a frequency drift and rather mediocre sensitivity at 6m - a side effect of cb adaptation to 6m. But most of all was a fm part what was a bit too narrow for 25khz band spread and a funny effect of " disappearing sensitivity" after a few transmits. What I really liked was a rather huge power out - peaked even above 100 watts, and nice light blue LCD backlight...and that is about all. Sold it after few months since it could not hold a candle to pretty much any of the commercial radios - if it comes dowb purely to fm performance. And ssb side was not on a par with ft897 (a rather poor rig by all means) cw is a joke on it and perhaps am could be the only one to run on it, but then for no one around in the EU to give it a go. If I'd be after fm only then the limes of yaesu flt1011 or Motorola m216 would be the ones to go for. If I'd like to go fm portable then Palstar kh6 is the king. For all the rest of fm the usual suspects of the big three brands are the ones to go for.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Thanks for the info!

[@Dallas-Rife-UDX-347-Tennessee]

Great video Rob . I rarely check 6 meters , but I’m going to start !

[@SevenFortyOne]

Let me know if you hear any activity down your way

[@just_in_time5518]

Great info Rob! 😁

[@seandrake7534]

Any thoughts on a ranger rci 5054dx6 i know it will do yhe shift fro repertors but ot doesn't have the availability to do pl tones

[@SevenFortyOne]

I've never used one. It's probably good for am, ssb, or fm simplex. If you want a project you could try building your own tone board

[@seandrake7534]

@@SevenFortyOne that's cool I had not thought about that

[@hobbiesthings6948]

I will be going for my tech soon. With that being said, my uncle is sending me a FT-1200 as a gift and starter rig. How is the FT-1200? Will it be a good 6-meter rig as well as an all around good unit?

[@SevenFortyOne]

Yes, 2 of my friends have that radio and are very happy with it

[@MauricioOdio]

Hello Rob, do you have any sketch for the diamond antenna? Thanks in advance. Mauricio TI2MOT

[@SevenFortyOne]

I do. Send me an email to either my QRZ address or the one listed in the "about" section of my KZbin channel and I'll send it to you.

[@CamilleCullen-ow6qj]

Great video!! I have a question for everyone. For local comms, what is best - horizontal or vertical polarization? Many thanks!! Robert K5TPC

[@SevenFortyOne]

It depends on what frequency and service you are using. Typically, CB and any VHF or above services the use FM like GMRS, MURS, or 2 meter ham radio use vertical to match up with people running radios in their cars with vertical antennas. On 2 and 6 meter ham radio running SSB, I think most people use horizontal polarization.

[@scratchdog2216]

50.4 still comes in. Sporadic E will be increasing as we head to solar maximum. Have fun anywhere on this band.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Good to hear from you....where are you these days?

[@martirjd]

Is there a big range difference between 6 meters SSB and 6 meters FM ?

[@SevenFortyOne]

For local communication, ssb usually has a little better useable range. But 5hay depends on a lot of factors...antenna, power, terrain, etc.. there isn't a simple definitive answer to this question

[@dougtaylor7724]

There is a 6 meter net 100 miles away and that is it. Had my Ham ticket 4 years and have very few contacts on it. Never caught it open in the radio time I have.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Sounds like a good opportunity to start a net of your own and drum up some interest

[@dougtaylor7724]

All the locals have a couple of two meter nets and just use those. Not a whole lot of people active here, maybe 80-90 in a 35 mile radius. I’m the only guy that even owns a 1.25 radio around here. Like having my own frequency to the house.

I would think that 40 meters is far more consistent for short to long range comms.. As for FM use 2m/70cm is just as capable of the same or even longer distances with lower noise.. But in the end it is all about expectations and conditions..

[@SevenFortyOne]

40 usually has a lot of background noise. 40m antennas are also much bigger so mobile operation is a little more difficult. 6 is nice and quiet compared to 40. While 2m and 70cm are lower noise than 6 and require smaller antennas, they are much more dependent on line of site and don't work quite as well here in hilly southern New England as 6 does.

[@pjackson239]

Unfortunately I have not heard anything on 6 meters. I live within 25 miles of Nashville 2 meter and gmrs seems to be the dominant bands. I do however get a lot of traffic on 10 meters most of the year.

[@andycampbell8476]

I should get a 6m hamstick or something. I don’t think my AlexLoop does that band, and I do some FT8 portable with my 705.

[@SevenFortyOne]

It's hard to beat the value of a hamstick

[@upsidedown3341]

Where is the website?

[@SevenFortyOne]

What website? Did I mention something in the video I forgot to add a link to?

[@upsidedown3341]

Yes, it was a website about 6m antennas below, but i didn’t see the link.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I'm at work for the next 12 hours and won't have time to look into it. Just do a Google search for 6 meter antenna and I'm sure you'll find tons of sites

[@marksommers6089]

Expensive Hobby These Days ........ I was into it back in the Vacuum Tube Days - ( Heathkit- Allied, Etc.,) - Can be lots of fun............

[@joekrepps]

Nothing wrong with those old rigs in 2023! There are some GREAT bargains if you’re patient and ready to buy when you find something. For $375, 2-3 years ago, I bought a set of Kenwood 599D Twins. It included the transceiver cable, S-599 speaker, 2m & 6m modules in the R-599D. I also picked up a Kenwood TS530S for under $200 because the seller didn’t think it received well-he had the settings in LaLa Land. Not many people bother to learn the old stuff so you can get good rigs cheap! Good deals on new stuff are out there. I bought a FT891, “open box” for $450. New they’re $675-ish. It’s my everyday mobile rig.

[@ronb6182]

I would like a 3 band transceiver 2 meters 6 meters and 10 meters. I found nothing on the 70 cm band where i live so as far as im concerned that band can be deleted. 73

[@eddief46]

Wouxun KG-Q10H Quad Band Handheld Amateur Radio. This new Quadband radio includes 6 meters Fm. I have a 6-meter repeater near me In South Florida.

[@Davidjb37721]

Thanks for your help

[@cowboy6591]

My favorite 6 meter was a Gonset. We used to call them "Goony Boxes".

[@bw7061l0]

I've heard stories of people hitting the Mt Greylock 2m repeater from as far as Cape Cod

[@johnwest7993]

Nah, 2,200 meters is the best band. Amateur radio is about fun, and longwave is true radio fun. (I blanketed 1/3 of the US with less than 10 mW in groundwave on 1750 kHz. One W EIRP sounds like a continent-covering signal to me.) It's only limitation is that it doesn't include tech class licensees, which is a shame because that's the perfect band for techies.

[@SevenFortyOne]

I've got to give that band a try. What did you use for a transmitter and antenna?

[@ruhnet]

Great video! 73s!

[@VeteranInThePhilippines-uy6uc]

You really should say what area your talking about yes in the usa you can use 6 meters as a tech but I'm currently in the philippines and 6 meters is open extras Advance and generals only

[@SevenFortyOne]

Are you not familiar with callsign prefix assignments or did you skip the first 10 seconds of the video? I think it's pretty clear I'm based in the US and talking about my experience in this country

[@HamRadioDX]

Once you experience the magic of “The Magic Band” you just get hooked and can’t look at any other frequency range the same way again 😂 Excellent video Rob - absolutely brilliant!

[@michealbell5042]

Not in Australia for foundation 😅

[@SevenFortyOne]

Oh, I didn't know that...bummer

[@seankm6nfo990]

Good job. 73!

[@mscir]

GREAT YAGI antenna!

[@Rogerunion]

NICE VIDEO!!!!! How many radios do you have??? I see a ton of radios behind you. KD2QMJ

[@SevenFortyOne]

I have been collecting them since I was in high school so quite a few by now

[@drsysop]

I find 6 meters is quite good. Only band that stinks is the 220 MHz 1.25 meter as not many repeaters if you live in rural areas.

[@DonzLockz]

I never really though much about 6m before.😲

[@SevenFortyOne]

Give it a listen sometime....you might be surprised

[@angelodepalma538]

Twilight zone video. I'm on hf, vhf, uhf daily. I have more contacts with mars than on 6m. The band is never open. If 6m is your favorite band ...

[@SevenFortyOne]

It's pretty active locally here in southern New England. I'm not really into DX so it's perfect for me to talk with my local hsm friends without worrying about a lot of interference. Too bad you don't have any locals to use it with...

[@JohnMackay-kn3rl]

Licensed 43 years ago but I very rarely hear good news about 6 meters.10 meters is better

[@glynnetolar4423]

The magic of this band appears to be the high price.

[@SevenFortyOne]

It's no more expensive to get on 6 meters then HF

[@ajfogertyfan8245]

As many have noted, most current HF transceivers include 6 meter coverage. And it’s easy to make a simple 2 element beam for very little money from materials available at your local hardware store. I built one last year using very small diameter aluminum tubing I found at my local Ace Hardware. Put it on a 30 foot push mast on our elevated deck and “Armstrong” rotated it while operating from the deck picnic table during the June and July sporadic E season and in the 2022 June ARRL VHF contest. Worked all over the USA and down to Mexico and the Caribbean, and also across the pond to the Netherlands during the contest. Antenna weighed about 2 pounds and the materials cost about 20 bucks max. I would not go so far as to say it’s the “best” band to operate on but it is fun when the band is open. But it’s not open much outside of the summer sporadic E season, unless you become a ping jockey to work meteor scatter QSOs. AJ1G Stonington CT

[@SevenFortyOne]

I like 6 for local work. In fact, I used to rag chew with my father in law who lives in Stonington from northern Tolland county

[@angelodepalma538]

The "magic" is like the easter bunny magic

[@yelyab1]

6 meters is above shortwave. How do you get out so far with vhf? Repeaters? I’m a very old sw listener. I can only get to 30mz. I get ssb on sw but I have to use bfo to listen and it only works on one side. Yeah, yeah, get a computer driven radio. It’s too analytically intoxicating. I want to do FF transforms on all those signals. I’d never come out of my room. I’m in a bit of a hole but I could get up 100’ I would have a clear path to my son 250 miles away. We could probably do ssb cb. He’s an embedded software engineer working in his basement. A linear amp is probably holding the door open. I know, not legal but so is the violent over throw of the government. We are more into talking instead of nuts and bolts. He had given up trying to explain to his mechanical engineer dad. Nice job.

[@SevenFortyOne]

6 meters is a good local band...good for maybe 100 to 200 miles...until the "skip" comes in. Then you can work thousands of miles on a few watts.

[@paulsengupta971]

Google "sporadic E". It's where the E layer of the ionosphere becomes charged so 6m frequencies can be propagated. Being VHF, you can also get tropospheric ducting on 6m, though you also get that on 2m and 70cm.

[@wildbill1]

most of the time the band is not open until spring or summer on ssb.

[@SevenFortyOne]

That's OK by me - I prefer local communications anyway. But it is pretty cool when it opens up and you can talk cross-country on a few watts

[@rohnkd4hct260]

I love 6 meters!

[@SevenFortyOne]

I'm glad to hear that!

[@KC5TGTRadiosNMore]

6m has been my favorite amateur radio band since getting licensed in the mid 90s. You just never know what it’s going to do and that is what makes it unique and exciting at times.

[@Ei2iP]

Depending on where in the world you live..

[@reloadnorth7722]

I live in North East Ontario Canada and just started learning about the Ham radio hobby. This is very interesting. So much to learn. Unfortunately, it seems the Canadian licensing seems to be a convoluted mess, not clearly defined like the US. And the resources for us is almost non existent. Stay safe and vigilant.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Ham radio is a great pass time... welcome to the hobby!

[@zzxxenith]

Been monitoring 6 meters for 8 months and Nothing

[@SevenFortyOne]

Sorry to hear that

[@ManuelPinner]

I buy Only American and Japanese Brands Radios!

[@SevenFortyOne]

Ok

[@grs6262]

No. It's not the best band... much too sporadic activity for consideration as a'best' band.. This reflects my area.. very sparse usage..

[@michaelstora70]

Magic band/Tragic band

[@skykingimagery899]

40 meters used to be the hot band. Heard almost nothing on 6 meters. Wrong rig I guess.

[@mattymerr701]

6m is far too expensive. It's not open to all licenses, it is only open to the people who don't have to worry about money all that much. "Just get a second hand set" there are no good deals anymore, if you can even find them where you live. I can't.

[@SevenFortyOne]

6m is more expensive than 2m but no more expensive than getting on HF. In fact, most HF radios currently on the market, including the low cost offerings from China, have 6m capabilities built in. 6m is open to all license classes regardless of your finances. Ham radio can be an expensive hobby. I've been involved for 30 years and have either saved for the gear I want or had to wait to find a reasonable deal on something used. I agree that the price of used gear is far too high in some, but not all, cases.

[@michaelzehrfeld7766]

...the "best" Band? No and never. It´s the "magic" band with sometimes weird propagation character. It´s a nice band - but not the best..... Here in my area there´s no traffic in FM, no local stations - nothing. Most of the time the band is dead.....

[@SevenFortyOne]

Too bad there isn't any local activity on 6 in your area....

[@kd8opi]

No. It’s not. It’s rarely open. If the hobby depended on 6m, there would be no hobby

[@SevenFortyOne]

Why does a band have to be "open" to be useable? I talk to plenty of local friends on 6 and have a ton of fun using it that way.

[@kd8opi]

@@SevenFortyOne I never wrote it wasn’t useable. Lots of bands can be used for local communication. 10m, 6m, CB, 2m, 70cm, FRS - you don’t even need a license for some. But, most of the hobby is into long distance communications, and a lot of the excitement on VHF/UHF is when there are openings and you can hear someone on FM simplex on a 3000 mile bounce. Even on 2m and 70cm, lots of people love tagging satellites with 2.5 or 5 watts and an Arrow/Elk antenna.

[@SevenFortyOne]

@@kd8opi Apologies - I misunderstood your assertion. I agree that 6 doesn't make or break the hobby but for my style of operating it works best and that's why I like it. I think you are right, most hams will find more value in other bands but my hope is that people give 6 a try every once in a while, even if they just use if for local coms and experimentation.

[@n5ifi]

NO

[@someguy782]

I'll save you some time: no.

[@SevenFortyOne]

That's encouraging

[@forgetyourlife]

My least favorite band. It mostly doesn’t exist if you ask my antenna.

[@SevenFortyOne]

Sorry to hear that...if you start using it others in your area might too. Someone has to get the ball rolling....

[@paulsengupta971]

In the UK, since the morse requirements for HF were dropped, and non morse hams weren't limited to 6m and above any more, the whole of 6m, 4m, 2m, 70cm is fairly quiet these days. From my QTH in the south I can get maybe 10-15 repeaters and they hardly ever have anyone on them, or maybe sometimes just on one of them.

[@thebrain4239]

Six meters is great but really guys the band hasn't had a real opening in years ? with the exception of E skip??Even with the latest solar cycle six is pretty much dead.Ten meters on the other hand has been great !!

[@SevenFortyOne]

Just because it isn't open doesn't mean you shouldn't use it. I enjoy "local" coms here almost more than working dx

[@thebrain4239]

@@SevenFortyOne Let me know when it opens i put my 7el OWA back up until then iam off shore fishing 🤣🤣