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Difference in the bands

Cody Dixson

Cody Dixson

Active Member
May 3, 2020
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Hello hams I have a stupid question, really, but if I never ask it ill never know. So here it goes...
What are the differences in the bands. I'm new to radio ive only been exposed to the Cb band or 11 meters.
Whats the best band to be on?
Educate me the way you guys always do! I really do appreciate having a place to ask questions being new to the hobby. I've heard alot of people say 11 meters for chumps which in fairness all ive incountered are truckers and a few loudmouths when you flip to ch6. Again id love to know the difference between the bands and what band in most hams opinions is the best to be on.

73
 
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Welcome.
I use 11 meters,2 meters 70 cm . To get into ham ,you must take a test.im sure your gonna get lots of diffrent opinions on who likes what.
I use em all in my license range
 
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Cody Dixson said:
Thanks for your response @Rwb what if any advantages/disadvantages do you see between 2meters and 70cm?
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2 meters has more range lots of radios have more power on 2 mters than 70 cm otherwise both are ok
 
All of the bands have their benefits and drawbacks. 10 and 11 meters have maximum usable frequency on certain days 10 meters is dead as a door nail and 11 meters is rocking like crazy. If you get your General ham ticket you have a huge playground to dabble in.
The longer wave lengths work well at night and with extra power you would be surprised at the range and how repeatable the results can be.
 
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In general, the lower the frequency, the longer and higher the antenna needs to be. On VHF/UHF, smaller antennas work well for local comms but for long distance stuff, 40 through 15 meters usually do the trick. The class of license you have determines which bands you can use, with how much power and on which modes.
 
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For HF I hang my hat on 20 and 40 metres. I prefer 20 for daytime and 40 at late afternoon and night. I'm low power and portable. (QTH has high noise level)
For VHF I am again portable and mobile 2 metres. Longest portable contact from ht to mobile was 265 km. Normally 90-120 km easily achieved with ht.

Bin
 
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One huge thing for people new to the hobby to understand is the different propagation characteristics of the different bands. 40 meters is almost always open to somewhere, which is why it's a favorite for many HF folks. 80 meters can have a huge footprint coverage at night - say about 1/3 to 1/4 of the U.S. from wherever you're located. The higher VHF/UHF bands benefit from needing only very small antennas and thus work well with handhelds and small mobiles to local repeaters.

If you like playing radio on 11m, take the time to get your amateur license and expand your radio horizons exponentially.
 
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I appreciate all the feed back! It seems 40 meter is a ham favorite. I'll definitely do more independent research on 40 80 10 and 20 meters. My favorite thing throughout this journey has been studying antenna builds. So in combination with different meters it should definitely keep me out of trouble.
 
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Cody Dixson said:
I appreciate all the feed back! It seems 40 meter is a ham favorite. I'll definitely do more independent research on 40 80 10 and 20 meters. My favorite thing throughout this journey has been studying antenna builds. So in combination with different meters it should definitely keep me out of trouble.
Click to expand...

This may help. http://hamuniverse.com/hfbands.html

A lot of it depends on when you like to play radio. If you're still stirring around this late in the evening you might be a 75 meter guy. Most people will call the phone portion of the 80 meter band 75 meters.

I do like 40 meters but rarely get on the air during the day. By the time I do all the action has usually moved to 75.
 
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No matter what you decide,study hard for test.also you must pass tech test before general but can take both on same day. More to it than just getting questions correct, i learned what n why in each question.
Best of luck to you. Get on internet google local ham radio clubs near you arrl clubs and talk to members most be happy to assist you
 
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Getting my license will be an exciting day. I've got a cdl and every endorsement including hazmat. Feels like im learning to drive all over again LOL! Again I thank you all for your kindness. I think I'll continue to maintain an 11 meter rig, and explore getting into 20 and 40 meter. ill definitely check out 30m @sp5it talking skip on 11m is what got me more interested and driven to have some crazy power and illegal cb radio in a semi lol after learning more about the basics and watching 3watts make the trip from Canada to New Orleans on a cubic quad antenna, it was obvious I had alot more to learn! Again if anyone thinks one band has superior benefits over the others id love to know. I watched jim w6lg talk about his experience and involvement in Arizona during wildfires using radio. I wouldn't mind getting involved in stuff like this. These stories get me excited to learn more and become a better operator.
 
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