newbie, couple questions

[playinmud]

radio is a corbra 29 WX NW ST, antenna is a 4ft one for radio shack and the coax cable is a 10ft 50 ohm one from radio shack, set up on a jeep wrangler

first question is am i better off turning the RF all the way up and then turning the squelch up til the static stops or turning the squelch down and then turning the RF down til the static stops, the reason im asking this is because if i have the RF all the way up then i have to turn the squelch up over half way, but if i turn the RF down to about 3/4's, then i can turn the squelch down to about a quarter of the way, this way i can hear more signals but they arent as loud, the other way i get strong clear signals that keep having breaks in them making it difficult to understand

another question is are there any quick and easy mods i can do to my radio to get the RF up even higher? i use it to talk but i use it to listen a lot more, ive talked to people around 5 miles away, and could hear them crystal clear, but this is with the jeep off and the squelch down (i have to turn the squelch up when the jeep is running because i get noise through the antenna as stated in a previous post)

 

[kevin IB/379 Stringbean]

# 1- I run mine with squelch all the way down and the rf backed off just before the noise,and when I want better ears,I go into the noise a little or a lot depending on what I want at that moment.I like to hear just a little noise to know Im not missing anything.My squelch is always off unless Im by some power lines and the rf wont take all the static out,only then do I turn the squelch.

# 2 I get all my work done at the shop I use in Arizona. Fine Tune CB (name-Hard drive),Google it if you want.Im sure you already got an ear full on the engine noise.I dont fiddle in side a radio except to drop a dead key for a low drive box.Dont trust my-self.There is proper equipment that good shops have that are operated by someone that knows what their doing.There is definately a lot of hackshops so be careful.
Just my 2 cents

 

[playinmud]

i hooked up a different antenna, a magnetic mount and it didnt have anywhere near as much interferance as the other one, problem is i already drilled holes into the body for the normal antenna mount, how big of a difference does an antenna make? its a 4ft radio shack brand, but the magnetic one was a radioshack brand too, i dont know any other places around here that sell antennas, frys electronics does but they're by vanco and i dont know how good that company is?

 

[KingCobra_CDX882]

when i used to run a mobile
i only used mag mounts
for me it seemed mag mounts worked best
and was easy to take off
(so another didnt steel it)

 

[loosecannon]

radio shack and vanco are both equally bad.

an antenna is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of your cb setup.

you should spend almost as much on your antenna as you did your radio.
(to a certain extent)

the most important thing about your antenna installation is to get the base of the antenna above the roof of the vehicle.

yep, thats right.
if you want it to work good, it has to look big and ugly.
thats just the way it is.

only the portion of your antenna that sticks up past the highest point on your vehicle is actually putting out a signal.

so, if your antenna sticks up 1 foot above the roof, you have a 1 foot antenna.

(there are so many books on antenna theory that you could never read them all, but these are the basics)

you say you can talk 5 miles?

well, just as an example; my city is pretty flat, but has many tall buildings and such.
it is also very spread out.

with my barefoot cobra 29ltd going into my wilson 1000 that is hard mounted to the center of the roof of my car (sedan), i can talk over 15 miles.
probably further if the channel is completely quiet.

its all about the antenna.

if you want to enjoy your cb radio, go get a better antenna.

the good news?

you are in the best place in the world to get help finding the right antenna for you.

you said that you already drilled holes in your jeep, so that would be my first choice, to reuse the holes or at least cover them up.

can you post the model # of the antenna you bought?
maybe a link to a picture?

can you take any pics of your install?

if you are willing to put about 100 bucks into your system, i bet we can get you out a lot further, and reduce your noise issues.

have you tried any of the tests i suggested in the last thread?
LC

 

[playinmud]

i work at a truck driving company, so they have extra antennas laying around and i found a wilson trucker 2000, i put that on and there seems to be less noise, i havent found out about how far i can talk with it yet but i will soon, its a 5 foot and all the others i tried were 4 foot