Shiva wrote:
Hi,
I was sent here by some folks from RAT (rec.audio.tubes), and was attracted
by the "boatanchor" part of this NG's name

Hi Shiva,

Ham radio is no more 'rocket science' than the audio world...in many
respects less so.
I hate to wax on about the licencing because it has already been
addressed but the true test of an xmtr is how well it gets out and
sounds to the guy on the receiving end. Until then you never really
know...akin to driving your audio rig into a piece of test gear and
never really hearing it.
The fact that your Tempo One came with a CB amp suggests that it has
been "worked on"
They pretty much give away licenses anymore and yes, we're only a step
away from total no-code licensing. Doesn't mean that learning the code
is a waste of time, though. Its a fun medium in its own right.
If you monkey around with the old rig and still find it interesting go
ahead and make the jump and don't wait around for them to drop the code.
There's guys waiting 20-25 years for that to happen. Take it like a
dose of bitters and get on with your hobby.
Then you can get into the fun stuff like antennas...the radio equivalent
to audio speaker mythology.
Good luck,
Bill
http://www.sparkbench.com