What makes bigger chassis radios that much better?

[Turbo T]

It seems the small chassis radios like the Uniden Pro 510 are written off as junk, and the bigger chassis radios like the Cobra 29 are hailed. Yet both put out the same 4 watts of power stock.

Just curious if the bigger chassis radios have better filtering in them or what....what makes them as big as they are?

I'm talking newer radios, and not ones with sideband either.

Debating on putting this tiny Midland in my truck....

 

[oldslowchevy]

It seems the small chassis radios like the Uniden Pro 510 are written off as junk, and the bigger chassis radios like the Cobra 29 are hailed. Yet both put out the same 4 watts of power stock.

Just curious if the bigger chassis radios have better filtering in them or what....what makes them as big as they are?

I'm talking newer radios, and not ones with sideband either.

Debating on putting this tiny Midland in my truck....

it is all in what you like for the most part, the bigger radios have more user ajustments that makes new users very uneasy and un user friendly compared to some thing like a uniden 510 or simalar, with only channel volume and squelch. i have a friend that got some pretty impressive numbers out of a uniden 510, dk about 2-3 watts swings about 25 watts and 95% modulation. i wanted that little radio but that is for another thread.

 

[Turbo T]

That makes sense, except for when you take a radio such as my old Cobra 78x which is every bit as big as a Cobra 25....and it has the same features my old Cobra 19 GTL did.....the only real difference is the 78x had the rotary 40 channel dial, but it also had the basic squelch and volume knob plus the PA mode and the ANL....and that's it.

 

[AudioShockwav]

IMHO.
I does not.
While bigger ( and lets say older radios ) sometimes allow more adjustments to be made inside, or out side, the basic radio still has to function, that means it has to do what it is sold to do, transmit and receive in the cb radio service.
Add on`s like PA, tone controls, delta-tune, switchable Noise Blanker and Automatic Noise Limiters are all extra features that you usually pay extra for.
If you look at the older radio`s that used through lead components, big VR`s and a ton of point to point wiring inside they were crammed with stuff.
The tech used to build these radio`s has progressed from banks of crystals to a single PLL chip and 2 or 3 crystals.
Smaller Audio IC`s instead of 2 transistors used in the audio section in push/pull.
Less point to point wiring and more traces on the boards as manufacturing got better.
And now with service mount devices being used you can open the new Uniden SSB radio and it almost looks empty inside, but it is a fully functional radio.
Look at the CRE radios , the Alpha mini radios and others that are getting all of the features in such a small chassis.
It has progressed to a point where IC`s have a ton of stuff packed into a single 64 pin package so there is no need for a huge radio.....a great example is to open one of the big three`s Handie talkies, Tri-band radios packed into a radio the size of a pack of smokes.
As for the 510, actually is is a good little radio if you need something small and just want to talk on it and not twiddle knobs.

73
Jeff

 

[Beetle]

The larger the enclosure, the easier it is to work on, and (more important), the easier it is to get rid of the heat that builds up. Particularly in a radio that's been modified beyond recognition.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

there are many big chassis radios that are pieces of crap .
the cobra 146 is a heavyweight performer in a bantam weight chassis .

CBRadioMagazine.com - Cobra 146 GTL AM/SSB CB Radio Review

 

[KingCobra_CDX882]

I used to have the 146 GTL and what a Great radio that was.
Nothing was as good until i went to the AR3500

 

[W5LZ]

'Size' is more a convenience thingy than related to ability. There are different types of 'building', old 'dead-bug' wiring methods and surface mount technology for two. Usually, the older the building method the easier it is to work on, also 'larger' because it just takes that much 'room' to hold all the parts. It's probably the exact same circuit, just different physical sizes of components.
If you are interested in modifying things, then the older style construction is easier to make changes to. Don't know about you, but I'm not messing with the newer SMT stuff, I can't even tell what the components are much less change them!
So why the change to the itty-bitty components? It's cheaper for the manufacturer. It's usually automated, don't need a person who knows what they are doing to assemble things.
- 'Doc