Antennas and amps. Are they worth it on pmr?

Hey folks, i have a few trusty uv-5r’s and im thinking about buying one of CRT Space U (17w) as a base unit and comes with a Sirio cx-440.
I have a couple of questions, 
1, is it a “good enough” antenna?
2, i see there are a few amps out there. Is it worth getting one for pmr? Or is 17w enough
Thanks. {no call sign yet}

Can't really say much in regard to the antenna, but the thing with PMR 446 is that it's really not worth putting a lot of money into.

Aside from the legalities, using an amp will do nothing but cause potential harmful harmonics through the band. It's also quite possible with the extra power of a linear amplifier, to send harmonics into the top end of the 70cm amateur band. 

Also, you'd probably find you're being heard at distance due to the extra power. But the chances of hearing those stations who may hear you are slim. 

Just a couple of things to think about.

It’s too little power.
Look for a used Motorola 40W UHF radio on eBay; they tend to be inexpensive.
They're nearly indestructible, and you won't get better sound quality from any other radio.
(Programming can be a bit tricky)

You can also look for the Hiroyasu IC 980 Pro on AliExpress.
It's a 25W radio, very cheap, but it still can't compare to the Motorola.

For an antenna, I can recommend the Diamond X50-NA.
Make sure the cable is as short and high-quality as possible.
A lot of power is lost on UHF with a poor and long cable.

Some other radios I personally like include:
VGC VR-N7500, Alinco DR-735

Hello Adam,

I use a CRT Space U and really like it. I cannot comment on an amp or the antenna. I use the radio in my car and I have had some really good audio reports. I find it easy to use and very compact to install in the car. The range on pmr is good for me, as I am over 1800ft asl at my favourite spot.

The low noise level makes pmr very popular in the modern age.

All the best, John.

Thank you everyone, a bit mixed there.
I have my cb in the car on a legal 4w and planning on my ham foundation test soon.
I feel quite interested in pmr and the way it seems to be going, hence the question. I will look at everything said.

In the UK PMR446 is restricted to 500mW with a fixed antenna, however in regards to UHF in general is that its more line of sight so very different from CB and you really don't need an amplifier, it would be counterproductive and there will be very little benefit to running an amplifier on UHF, bearing in mind that you'd still need to hear other users. Generally what you receive is what stations you'll reach. 17 Watts on PMR446 is more than enough. Also be mindful of the harmonics.

If you want more range then I suggest going for a Yagi antenna where you can rotate to the directions you want to reach. That way its better for both RX/TX.

Spider281 wrote:

In the UK PMR446 is restricted to 500mW with a fixed antenna, however in regards to UHF in general is that its more line of sight so very different from CB and you really don't need an amplifier, it would be counterproductive and there will be very little benefit to running an amplifier on UHF, bearing in mind that you'd still need to hear other users. Generally what you receive is what stations you'll reach. 17 Watts on PMR446 is more than enough. Also be mindful of the harmonics.

If you want more range then I suggest going for a Yagi antenna where you can rotate to the directions you want to reach. That way its better for both RX/

Thank you

Hi Adam

In my humble opinion and with the small amount of knowledge I have in regards to PMR 446.

I would say no to the amp for the reasons given by Mike & Deb.

The CRT Space U is a good little radio for PMR (yes I'm aware that it is not compliant for PMR use).
If your going to use it at the full 17 watts I would suggest a little cooling fan as the unit does get hot!
I have even heard people say that if you stand a mug of coffee on the radio, it will keep the coffee warm for longer.

I have not used a Sirio antenna but it should work well. It's about 2 foot long and when up on a pole will not look with a traditional CB antenna (so people won't be drawn to it).
I even think that you would see a difference if it was plugged into the UV5R. 

Beams are great for PMR/70cms. The down side is the motor and powering it, controlling the motor and then mapping out where stations are so you can swing it round and round.

Best 73

Ray 2290

Thank you

Razz229 wrote:

Hi Adam

In my humble opinion and with the small amount of knowledge I have in regards to PMR 446.

I would say no to the amp for the reasons given by Mike & Deb.

The CRT Space U is a good little radio for PMR (yes I'm aware that it is not compliant for PMR use).
If your going to use it at the full 17 watts I would suggest a little cooling fan as the unit does get hot!
I have even heard people say that if you stand a mug of coffee on the radio, it will keep the coffee warm for longer.

I have not used a Sirio antenna but it should work well. It's about 2 foot long and when up on a pole will not look with a traditional CB antenna (so people won't be drawn to it).
I even think that you would see a difference if it was plugged into the UV5R. 

Beams are great for PMR/70cms. The down side is the motor and powering it, controlling the motor and then mapping out where stations are so you can swing it round and round.

Best 73

Ray 2290

It depends on what antenna setup you use. For 70cms UHF I sometimes use a Yagi beam on a pole I can manually rotate with ease from my balcony simply just by turning the pole then locking it into place with a bolt. I drilled a hole into the pole and did some modifications to make it easy. There are all kinds of antenna setups that can be done to make life easy and the beauty of UHF is that antennas are small which leaves room for ideas and all kinds of setups to try. I keep my coax runs as short as possible to minimize loss, I normally go with RG8 for VHF/UHF I'm used to working around antenna restrictions so my mind has to be creative when doing these things with antennas. My antennas mostly go just above the roof line on a modified aluminum pole. I have quite a few VHF/UHF antennas I use and various yagi beams for UHF.

Spider281 wrote:

Razz229 wrote:

Hi Adam

In my humble opinion and with the small amount of knowledge I have in regards to PMR 446.

I would say no to the amp for the reasons given by Mike & Deb.

The CRT Space U is a good little radio for PMR (yes I'm aware that it is not compliant for PMR use).
If your going to use it at the full 17 watts I would suggest a little cooling fan as the unit does get hot!
I have even heard people say that if you stand a mug of coffee on the radio, it will keep the coffee warm for longer.

I have not used a Sirio antenna but it should work well. It's about 2 foot long and when up on a pole will not look with a traditional CB antenna (so people won't be drawn to it).
I even think that you would see a difference if it was plugged into the UV5R. 

Beams are great for PMR/70cms. The down side is the motor and powering it, controlling the motor and then mapping out where stations are so you can swing it round and round.

Best 73

Ray 2290

It depends on what antenna setup you use. For 70cms UHF I sometimes use a Yagi beam on a pole I can manually rotate with ease from my balcony simply just by turning the pole then locking it into place with a bolt. I drilled a hole into the pole and did some modifications to make it easy. There are all kinds of antenna setups that can be done to make life easy and the beauty of UHF is that antennas are small which leaves room for ideas and all kinds of setups to try. I keep my coax runs as short as possible to minimize loss, I normally go with RG8 for VHF/UHF I'm used to working around antenna restrictions so my mind has to be creative when doing these things with antennas. My antennas mostly go just above the roof line on a modified aluminum pole. I have quite a few VHF/UHF antennas I use and various yagi beams for UHF.

Great information, thanks. 
I do have my have my cb antenna ready to go up, but i want to get my uhf up there too at the same time. I’ve just made an experimental uhf 1/2 wave for the mag mount on my car, which i will run tests against the 1/4 wave i already have. I just picked up a Baojie BJ-218 For what was only a few pounds. It gives me something to play with i guess.

Ad-the-pad wrote:

Spider281 wrote:

Razz229 wrote:

Hi Adam

In my humble opinion and with the small amount of knowledge I have in regards to PMR 446.

I would say no to the amp for the reasons given by Mike & Deb.

The CRT Space U is a good little radio for PMR (yes I'm aware that it is not compliant for PMR use).
If your going to use it at the full 17 watts I would suggest a little cooling fan as the unit does get hot!
I have even heard people say that if you stand a mug of coffee on the radio, it will keep the coffee warm for longer.

I have not used a Sirio antenna but it should work well. It's about 2 foot long and when up on a pole will not look with a traditional CB antenna (so people won't be drawn to it).
I even think that you would see a difference if it was plugged into the UV5R. 

Beams are great for PMR/70cms. The down side is the motor and powering it, controlling the motor and then mapping out where stations are so you can swing it round and round.

Best 73

Ray 2290

It depends on what antenna setup you use. For 70cms UHF I sometimes use a Yagi beam on a pole I can manually rotate with ease from my balcony simply just by turning the pole then locking it into place with a bolt. I drilled a hole into the pole and did some modifications to make it easy. There are all kinds of antenna setups that can be done to make life easy and the beauty of UHF is that antennas are small which leaves room for ideas and all kinds of setups to try. I keep my coax runs as short as possible to minimize loss, I normally go with RG8 for VHF/UHF I'm used to working around antenna restrictions so my mind has to be creative when doing these things with antennas. My antennas mostly go just above the roof line on a modified aluminum pole. I have quite a few VHF/UHF antennas I use and various yagi beams for UHF.

Great information, thanks. 
I do have my have my cb antenna ready to go up, but i want to get my uhf up there too at the same time. I’ve just made an experimental uhf 1/2 wave for the mag mount on my car, which i will run tests against the 1/4 wave i already have. I just picked up a Baojie BJ-218 For what was only a few pounds. It gives me something to play with i guess.

There are some good UHF antennas you can build like the high gain coaxial antenna by simply joining many quarter wave sections together or you can make a double 5/8 wave UHF antenna which work really well. Also there are plenty of the Diamond series antennas which pack plenty of gain.