Cb band needs Upgrade

Who tuned it? What kind of antenna/s?
What kind of truck? What is the definition of "very well"?

 

Can It hear a -125 db signal?[/QUOTE]
If my ears were good enough to hear negative decimal point sound, I'd put those boys at SETI out of business.

 

My buddie installed in it is in a 2016 lone star he does radio station and sattelite attena repairs some sorta predator anttenas

 

You old farts!!
If your hip, you have the digital CB app on your smartphone, lol

 

I had replies as far as 45 miles on am band but it's only as good as the guy talking back if hes got a little radio he hears me I hear nothing

 

FCC screwed the pooch in so many ways when they developed Class D CB in the late1950's. Where to begin?

First, the frequency. Prone to skip in a band the hams call "hf" or a "world band" under the right conditions which happen waay too frequently. Antennas are necessarily impractically long and
signal penetration into a vehicle or building almost non-existant.

Mode. They should have gone with the more recent "old" narrowband FM standard of +/- 5 KHz if state of the art allowed for that then.

Spacing between channels. Instead of meager 10 KHz, it should have been 20 KHz as was done on VHF Low Band land mobile to prevent adjacent channel interference.

Last but not least, power. 5 Watts or less is known as QRP in ham radio. Some hams actually enjoy experimenting and seeing how low they can reduce their power (into milliwatts) and still talk cross country or around the world. That is fine for a hobby if that is your thing, but it is not practical for reliable, serious, comms. Power should have been set at something realistic, say between 25 and 50 watts with a required 100mw and/or 1 watt toggle or slide switch on the front panel to allow for short range comms between parties who don't want or need full power to communicate, such as car to car traveling together or base to base in same part of town. Hopefully, a realistic power level that would actually facilitate reliable contact over a useable distance would have negated the need by so many for linear amps, big gun transmitters and the like.

A few years ago, I submitted a proposal to Radio Shack ("creators" of the Family Radio Service) in hopes they might successfully petition the FCC to create a new service out of the old (and dying) VHF Low band's upper end.

Among other things, I suggested using current narrowband FM mode with 20 KHz spacing, 70 channels, analog, 50 watts maximum output power, and a mandatory 100mw/1 watt switch on the front panel of base and mobile radios. I suggest analog because digital, no matter what they claim, is usually NOT clearer and is prone to weirdness that is more unpleasant than static. Additionally, a standard analog protocol should be adhered to by ALL manufacturers. This is to avoid the mess now found on FRS where Motorola ht's and non-Motorola ht's do not communicate well between each-other.

While 45-49 MHz would still have occasional skip, it would still be less than is found on 27 MHz. Signal penetration into buildings and vehicle passenger compartments (for walkies, ht's, whatever) would be usable in most cases. Antennas would be considerably shorter than with CB, but the lower frequency would allow signal propagation in hilly terrain and decent groundwave.

FM would allow for setting CTCSS (PL), DCS (DPL) and the like which would make for better monitoring for family and friends between calls and be easier on the ears.

A "highway information"/trucker's channel should be pre-established, along with an emergency channel.

In my proposal, I included that the topmost five frequencies should be reserved for portable (ht) to portable only and the next five frequencies or channels used again, only by portables in transmit mode for semi-duplex transmitting to base stations. This would enable weaker (5w max) portables to communicate with each-other and with bases without competition from more powerful mobiles and bases. Use of the ten highest frequency channels for this purpose is to allow better resonance with compromise-type portable antenna systems.

Use of echo boards or mics, rf amplifiers, or higher power land mobile gear should be punishable by castration and vigorously enforced. Okay, I know the castration part would never fly, but you get the idea.

Radio Shack's sales and popularity have been dwindling from what they once were. Do you remember when they were a man's refuge in the mall while the wife or gf was shopping for purses or dresses? Radio Shack used to excite and inspire us with their line of CB's, scanners (before you needed a degree in computer science to even think about programming a trunking model), or even FRS radios. A new, more useful and less noisy band for families, friends, and strangers to communicate on would probably restore some of that exitement, increase communication abilities among non-hams and non-ham family and friends, and boost America's electronics economy.

 

It wouldn't ever happen. ARRL would pitch a fit, just as they did when the FCC proposed moving CB to ~220MHz FM back in the '80s. It was basically a bunch of "IF WE CAN'T HAVE IT, NO ONE CAN!" drivel mouth-breathing, and unfortunately the FCC listened.

 

What is ARRL?
(Newbie here)

 

ARRL = American Radio Relay League

It's Ham radio stuff

 

If you want a good radio, buy your next one in Hazard County. Bo, Luke, Daisy Uncle Jesse, and Cooter could always talk to each other from anywhere in the county.