(Moderator's Note: Only FCC Part 97 Amateur Radio actions are shown below.)

Daily Digest

Vol. 31 No. 229 November 3
0, 2012



[...]

Released: 11/30/2012. WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU, PUBLIC SAFETY
AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU, AND OFFICE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY PROV
IDE REMINDER OF JANUARY 1, 2013 DEADLINE FOR TRANSITION TO NARROWBAND OPERA
TIONS IN THE 150-174 MHZ AND 421-470 MHZ BANDS. (DA No. 12-1914). OET PSH
SB WTB . Contact: Melvin Spann at (202) 418-1333, email: Melvin.Spann@fcc.
gov, Roberto Mussenden at (202) 418-1428, email:
or Andy Leimer at (301) 362-3049, email: http://hraun
foss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-12-1914A1.doc
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_publi...-12-1914A1.pdf
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_publi...-12-1914A1.txt

[...]

On 11/30/2012 11:29 AM, wrote:

Released: 11/30/2012. WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU, PUBLIC SAFETY
AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU, AND OFFICE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY PROV
IDE REMINDER OF JANUARY 1, 2013 DEADLINE FOR TRANSITION TO NARROWBAND OPERA
TIONS IN THE 150-174 MHZ AND 421-470 MHZ BANDS.

I'm going to ask the readers to re-educate an old FM tech a little bit.
As I understand it, the "new" bandwidths require +/- 2.5 KHz deviation,
which I /thought/ was called "sliver" band, but I haven't seen that term
used lately.

Here's another question: I think the majority of "current" commercial FM
transceivers are computer programmable, but I wonder if they are able to
change their transmit deviation and/or receiver bandwidth to the new
requirements under software control: if not, hams might be able to make
use of them for our public service efforts. A primer on the current
"state of the art" in programmable FM rigs would be nice.

Since the "new" spacing is 12.5 KHz, I assume that the "old" +/- 5 KHz
units will have to be replaced, especially if their software doesn't
allow the transmitters to be cut back to the more narrow deviation. If
that's the case, I wonder if any of the manufacturers will be willing to
cooperate in a program like the one we used to have for Teletype
machines, where hams could buy units that were being replaced, as long
as they agreed to keep them from being used in commercial service.

Come to think of it, are police/fire/municipal licensees subject to the
changes that other Part 90 users are going through? If they are, then
there might be an opportunity to transfer /their/ old gear into ARES or
RACES use.

Thoughts? Ideas?

TIA.

73,

Bill, W1AC

--
Bill Horne

On 12/1/2012 9:45 PM, Bill Horne wrote:
On 11/30/2012 11:29 AM, wrote:

Released: 11/30/2012. WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU, PUBLIC
SAFETY
AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU, AND OFFICE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY
PROV
IDE REMINDER OF JANUARY 1, 2013 DEADLINE FOR TRANSITION TO NARROWBAND
OPERA
TIONS IN THE 150-174 MHZ AND 421-470 MHZ BANDS.

I'm going to ask the readers to re-educate an old FM tech a little bit.
As I understand it, the "new" bandwidths require +/- 2.5 KHz deviation,
which I /thought/ was called "sliver" band, but I haven't seen that term
used lately.

Here's another question: I think the majority of "current" commercial FM
transceivers are computer programmable, but I wonder if they are able to
change their transmit deviation and/or receiver bandwidth to the new
requirements under software control: if not, hams might be able to make
use of them for our public service efforts. A primer on the current
"state of the art" in programmable FM rigs would be nice.

Since the "new" spacing is 12.5 KHz, I assume that the "old" +/- 5 KHz
units will have to be replaced, especially if their software doesn't
allow the transmitters to be cut back to the more narrow deviation. If
that's the case, I wonder if any of the manufacturers will be willing to
cooperate in a program like the one we used to have for Teletype
machines, where hams could buy units that were being replaced, as long
as they agreed to keep them from being used in commercial service.

Come to think of it, are police/fire/municipal licensees subject to the
changes that other Part 90 users are going through? If they are, then
there might be an opportunity to transfer /their/ old gear into ARES or
RACES use.

Thoughts? Ideas?

TIA.

73,

Bill, W1AC


Bill,

That would be great if it could happen. I remember back in the late
60's and early 70's when we could get Motorola "G" and "A" strips and GE
Prog Lines cheap. This was before commercial 2 meter ham radios were
available. I converted a number of them from VHF High band to 2 meters.
Even though they were only one channel (a few had two channels), we
were tickled to get our hands on them.

--
==================
Remove the "x" from my email address
Jerry, AI0K

==================

On Sat, 1 Dec 2012 21:45:01 EST, Bill Horne wrote:

I'm going to ask the readers to re-educate an old FM tech a little bit.
As I understand it, the "new" bandwidths require +/- 2.5 KHz deviation,
which I /thought/ was called "sliver" band, but I haven't seen that term
used lately.

Are you thinking of "splinter frequencies" which were half the
bandwidth of "regular" frequencies? They existed at the boundaries of
services that had different channel plans and were used primarily for
data.

Here's another question: I think the majority of "current" commercial FM
transceivers are computer programmable, but I wonder if they are able to
change their transmit deviation and/or receiver bandwidth to the new
requirements under software control:

Yes.

Since the "new" spacing is 12.5 KHz, I assume that the "old" +/- 5 KHz
units will have to be replaced, especially if their software doesn't
allow the transmitters to be cut back to the more narrow deviation. If
that's the case, I wonder if any of the manufacturers will be willing to
cooperate in a program like the one we used to have for Teletype
machines, where hams could buy units that were being replaced, as long
as they agreed to keep them from being used in commercial service.

Dream on. Equipment certified and manufactured for the last decade or
so has been required to be "narrow-band-able". One of the deals that
most manufacturers have is a discount for turning in old equipment
which are sent to the crusher. The days of giving or selling them to
the hams are history.

Come to think of it, are police/fire/municipal licensees subject to the
changes that other Part 90 users are going through? If they are, then
there might be an opportunity to transfer /their/ old gear into ARES or
RACES use.

See above. The only delays in the mandatory narrow-banding date
(1/1/2013) have been granted when the licensee has ordered the new
equipment in a timely manner and the production, installation, and
cutover date has been delayed. They are granted on a case-by-case
basis (my consutrling engineering firm has handled the paperwork for
several of our clients in these circumstances).

73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane

From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon

On 12/2/2012 1:07 AM, Phil Kane wrote:
... Equipment certified and manufactured for the last decade or
so has been required to be "narrow-band-able". One of the deals that
most manufacturers have is a discount for turning in old equipment
which are sent to the crusher. The days of giving or selling them to
the hams are history.

Say it ain't so!

(Shakes head, takes a deep breath)

OK, I'll grasp at a few straws:

* Does "Narrow-band-able" mean that techs can only turn
down the transmitter deviation, or is there a way to
actually reduce the receiver bandwidth as well? I
worked on FM gear when there were crystal or LC filters,
so even if hams can't benefit, I'm curious how the
receivers are updated "in place".

* Are the discounts you mention significant? I mean,
are they deep enough that a purchasing agent could
not consider offers from Amateur clubs or organizations?

* How can hams find out who/where the old gear might be for
sale? Have all the contracts already been written, or
are there any users that are still shopping for the
new gear?

TIA.

73,

Bill, W1AC

--
Bill Horne

On Sun, 2 Dec 2012 06:55:42 EST, Bill Horne wrote:

* Does "Narrow-band-able" mean that techs can only turn
down the transmitter deviation, or is there a way to
actually reduce the receiver bandwidth as well? I
worked on FM gear when there were crystal or LC filters,
so even if hams can't benefit, I'm curious how the
receivers are updated "in place".

It's built into the receiver design (filters). The receiver bandwidth
needs to be narrowed lest adjacent-channel signals cause impaired
reception. The FCC has gone on record that they will not protect
receivers that have not been narrow-banded.

* Are the discounts you mention significant? I mean,
are they deep enough that a purchasing agent could
not consider offers from Amateur clubs or organizations?

It's part of the package.

* How can hams find out who/where the old gear might be for
sale? Have all the contracts already been written, or
are there any users that are still shopping for the
new gear?

You can try to contact the agencies, but in general, the newer gear is
now in service and the old stuff gone.

73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane

From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon

On Sun, 2 Dec 2012 01:07:45 EST, Phil Kane wrote:

On Sat, 1 Dec 2012 21:45:01 EST, Bill Horne wrote:

Since the "new" spacing is 12.5 KHz, I assume that the "old" +/- 5 KHz
units will have to be replaced, especially if their software doesn't
allow the transmitters to be cut back to the more narrow deviation. If
that's the case, I wonder if any of the manufacturers will be willing to
cooperate in a program like the one we used to have for Teletype
machines, where hams could buy units that were being replaced, as long
as they agreed to keep them from being used in commercial service.

Dream on. Equipment certified and manufactured for the last decade or
so has been required to be "narrow-band-able". One of the deals that
most manufacturers have is a discount for turning in old equipment
which are sent to the crusher. The days of giving or selling them to
the hams are history.

Come to think of it, are police/fire/municipal licensees subject to the
changes that other Part 90 users are going through? If they are, then
there might be an opportunity to transfer /their/ old gear into ARES or
RACES use.

Everyone in the VHF/UHF range must change to narrow-band FM, except
for Amateurs.

In my county of Nye, NV, one of our ARES members worked with a county
radio tech, traveling all over the county (third largest in area in
U.S.) readjusting radios to the new deviation standard. About 1/5 of
the radios were too old to convert, so the county has to buy new
replacements. The county is giving the old radios to our county ARES
group.

We have an excellent relationship with the county emergency services
department. We have demonstrated that we can communicate into areas
where they cannot with their radios. They have purchased HF and V/UHF
ham radios for use in radio rooms in their buildings in the three
largest towns in the county. ARES uses their building in Pahrump for
meetings and training. We also hold VE license exams there. Even the
emergency services department head is a ham and an ARES member.

Dick Grady, AC7EL

On Sun, 2 Dec 2012 19:11:57 EST, wrote:

Everyone in the VHF/UHF range must change to narrow-band FM, except
for Amateurs.

And maritime (ships and coast stations).

73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane

From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon

The Public Safety organizations are under the same FCC as everyone
else. Our little volunteer fire department was required to update
working radios to the latest requirements. It is costing us $65,000
and our annual budget is about $95,000. The new radios will not have
any advantage for us, but we need to remain in sync with the other
organizations in our state. The old radios are not likely to be of any
use to Amateur Radio considering 2 meter / 440mhz HT's are available
below $100. OTH, the cases are very rugged and might encourage some
Ham experimenting on microwaves. I am thinking Crossband links.

The problem driving the required upgrades is to free more spectrum for
commercial activity.

73, W8CCW John

On Sat, 1 Dec 2012 21:45:01 EST, Bill Horne wrote:

On 11/30/2012 11:29 AM, wrote:

Released: 11/30/2012. WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU, PUBLIC SAFETY
AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU, AND OFFICE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY PROV
IDE REMINDER OF JANUARY 1, 2013 DEADLINE FOR TRANSITION TO NARROWBAND OPERA
TIONS IN THE 150-174 MHZ AND 421-470 MHZ BANDS.

I'm going to ask the readers to re-educate an old FM tech a little bit.
As I understand it, the "new" bandwidths require +/- 2.5 KHz deviation,
which I /thought/ was called "sliver" band, but I haven't seen that term
used lately.

Here's another question: I think the majority of "current" commercial FM
transceivers are computer programmable, but I wonder if they are able to
change their transmit deviation and/or receiver bandwidth to the new
requirements under software control: if not, hams might be able to make
use of them for our public service efforts. A primer on the current
"state of the art" in programmable FM rigs would be nice.

Since the "new" spacing is 12.5 KHz, I assume that the "old" +/- 5 KHz
units will have to be replaced, especially if their software doesn't
allow the transmitters to be cut back to the more narrow deviation. If
that's the case, I wonder if any of the manufacturers will be willing to
cooperate in a program like the one we used to have for Teletype
machines, where hams could buy units that were being replaced, as long
as they agreed to keep them from being used in commercial service.

Come to think of it, are police/fire/municipal licensees subject to the
changes that other Part 90 users are going through? If they are, then
there might be an opportunity to transfer /their/ old gear into ARES or
RACES use.

Thoughts? Ideas?

TIA.

73,

Bill, W1AC
John Ferrell W8CCW