Man, I guess I am getting old (I am). I remember back in the days when a fellow with the handle CW Morse used to be on the forums (this one, Grumpy’s Olde Time Radio Forum, etc) and bashing CB operators about their “Leenyar amplifiers” and trashing “export” radios. Nothing changes...except the names.
I agree that radio should be fun...whether it is on the ham bands or the Citizens band. Of course, fun also comes with some personal responsibilty, but that is a whole other discussion. My biggest complaint with ham radio is that hams take themselves too seriously. I guess many must think that a worthless license issued by a useless government agency, actually means something. Whatever gives your life meaning, I guess. My ham license means nothing to me, other than authorizing my use of parts of the radio spectrum. It does not make me feel any different about myself, and I like to have fun when I am on the ham bands or the Citizens band ( I actually prefer CB, because there is generally more “fun” taking place, and a lot fewer useless nets !!!).
Of course, my biggest complaint about CB is that it can attract sociopaths who just like to screw with people (many of these sociopaths have received their amateur radio licenses, thanks to the aforementioned worthless licensing process).
As far as “export” radios...there are good ones and bad ones, just like there are good and bad ham radios (FYI, Yaesu’s recent offerings generally suck, the FT-891 being the exception). A stock Anytone AT-6666 has great audio, has a clean signal, and it’s rejection is better than a Yaesu FTM-400DR (The 400 front end rejection is about as bad as any cheap Chinese dual band mobile). Don’t let Lester screw up a 6666 on you, he will destroy the SSB audio with his stupid filter swap.
Sometimes these discussions remind me of the gun debate, where people want to blame the gun, rather than the person who pulls the trigger. My President Lincoln II has been on 10m since 2014, and I have always been complimented on my audio and signal... after I tell the other station I was using a Yaesu FT-950.
I agree that radio should be fun...whether it is on the ham bands or the Citizens band. Of course, fun also comes with some personal responsibilty, but that is a whole other discussion. My biggest complaint with ham radio is that hams take themselves too seriously. I guess many must think that a worthless license issued by a useless government agency, actually means something. Whatever gives your life meaning, I guess. My ham license means nothing to me, other than authorizing my use of parts of the radio spectrum. It does not make me feel any different about myself, and I like to have fun when I am on the ham bands or the Citizens band ( I actually prefer CB, because there is generally more “fun” taking place, and a lot fewer useless nets !!!).
Of course, my biggest complaint about CB is that it can attract sociopaths who just like to screw with people (many of these sociopaths have received their amateur radio licenses, thanks to the aforementioned worthless licensing process).
As far as “export” radios...there are good ones and bad ones, just like there are good and bad ham radios (FYI, Yaesu’s recent offerings generally suck, the FT-891 being the exception). A stock Anytone AT-6666 has great audio, has a clean signal, and it’s rejection is better than a Yaesu FTM-400DR (The 400 front end rejection is about as bad as any cheap Chinese dual band mobile). Don’t let Lester screw up a 6666 on you, he will destroy the SSB audio with his stupid filter swap.
Sometimes these discussions remind me of the gun debate, where people want to blame the gun, rather than the person who pulls the trigger. My President Lincoln II has been on 10m since 2014, and I have always been complimented on my audio and signal... after I tell the other station I was using a Yaesu FT-950.
These never end well and end up getting locked in the end when things go downhill. If you want to just get on the air and carry on and even be a complete idiot sometimes get on CB. If you want a laid back atmosphere and some structure a bit go amateur. That sums up the vast majority of operators on either service and of course there are exceptions to every rule. My opinion is if you don't like it stay away and that goes for either radio group.
...runna pile-up on 6m SSB