Does an upgraded CB really increse sound quality?

Hey guys.

Just jumped into my first truck a couple weeks ago and have had some time to listen to the CB. Most of the time, it's either static or when someone IS talking, it's usually so scratchy, I can barely hear what's going on. There is the rare occasion that someone will come on sounding good. I have the very basic Cobra CB. Channel knob, Volume knob, squelch (wtf is squelch anyways?) knob, scan button and that's about it.

My question. Does having a better CB increase quality and distance? What's the advantage?
If I do upgrade, any recommendations to the next level up? Not looking to spend over $100 for one. Cobra 29 maybe? if that's right?

Thanks

 

Cobra 29 will be just fine. So long as you have a good antenna and everything (swr) is tuned correctly.

If money is really tight, get a Cobra 25. It's just as good, with fewer knobs.

The only GOOD sounding radio you will ever own, will be at the complete mercy of how cheap the reciever of your signal was when he purchased his.

It doesn't matter if you paid $10 or $500 for your radio.

If the person you're speaking with listens on a $1 speaker....they all sound like ####.

 

The "scratchiness" you hear is probably a distant transmission going on, and/or your antenna doesn't have the capability of picking up far off transmissions due to the antenna size and such.

Simply put, a longer antenna can pick up and transmit better than a shorter one, all things equal.

The squelch you ask about is used to mute out the static when no one is talking, and it's also used to mute out the distant transmissions you can't otherwise make out. Turn the squelch up (clockwise) and it blocks out even more. Turn the squelch to 3/4 and you will only pick up strong transmissions around you that you can understand.

The strong transmissions you speak of were probably most likely from people close around you, within maybe a 2-3 mile range, depending on conditions. Terrain, weather, types of antennas used, etc all have an effect on CB operation.

A better CB can have better ears and talk, but not always. In all reality the antenna is the heart and soul of any CB radio followed by the coax. It's been said many times, you can have a $20 radio and a $100 antenna and you will be able to out talk the guy with the $200 radio and the $10 antenna.

In your case, I recommend either a Cobra 25 LTD or a Uniden PC68. Both are good radios and IMO, the best starter radio for any truck driver. Both usually sell for under $100 brand new. Or if you want to save even more money, check out Craigslist, sometimes you can find some killer deals on CB radios.

 

Take it for what its worth.....

a 25 or a 68 will do more power when tuned 9 out of 10 times.....however its only usually
a watt or 2 so its not guna be noticeable on the other end....but they are usually cheaper....
check around for a uniden they usually run specials or give mail in rebates and me personally
prefer a uniden over cobra they just seem to have better ears to me and the audio is usually
better on a uniden....odd how you notice these little diffrences when the radios are the eact same
radio just diffrent faceplates and style of knobs

however a bigger chassis radio the 29's or the 78's have more rejection on the RX (recieve) side so usually
their R is less noisy unless someone when tuned goes in and tries to crank your reciever up

 

Thanks for the tips and info guys. How do I get it "tuned" correctly?

 

How do you CRANK up a receiver ? maybe a 2sc2999 replacement or some diodes ?
Yes that works and is a cheap way to get more range .... I hear this about tuning radios all the time but have found very few not tuned from the factory. I dont buy into this tuning craze I knowq the ICOMS I work on only have a very small out of spec rate.

$$$$$ quick bucks for the radio guy $$$$$$$

Short of one heck of a preamp ...... not much you can do to most cb radios ...

If a radio is that out of wack it needs to go back to the factory .....

 

Do your self a favor. Spend that $100 on the antenna and coax first,then latter down the road buy a better radio. But really,you will see the big difference in your radios....any radios perfromance....with an upgraded antenna system. Get some low loss coax and a good antenna like Preditor 10K,take your time setting it to get at least a 1.5 SWR and you wil be shocked how much better that very basic radio works!

 

Yep ANTENNA is the best way to go

 

Find a CB shop that knows what they're doing. And I don't mean the CB shop at the Petro/Flying J's/Loves/TA either.

Find someone that's going to do the job right. I can only think of 2, that would be Sparkys in Belgium Illinois and Knights Electronics in Fayetteville NC.

But really as mentioned, tune your antenna first, and go for better coax. Those 2 will help you long before tuning the radio will.

 

Spend the majority of your money on your antenna system. The baddest radio on the air isnt running a Firestik, I guarantee it. THe antenna is the most important part of your setup. Once everything is well there, then start looking for a radio. Uniden 78's are excellent, or if you want to run an export radio, the General Lee is tough to beat in that category.