BridgeCom Official Blog

220 MHz amateur radio boasts of a long and colorful history, affording it a special place in the hearts of amateur radio enthusiasts. 

Conceptually, amateur radio repeaters are not too different from public safety devices (fire, first response, police) or those in use at federal, business or military services. However, they are often assembled (power supplies, transmitter, receivers, antenna etc.) or commercially packaged to operate only within amateur RF (radio frequency) bands, like 222-224.995 220 MHz band.

History

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved VHF bands as early as 1938, one of them being 1.25 meters (224 MHz) band. Amateur radio activity spiked rapidly in 1960s and 1970s, as 2m and 70cm bands swiftly rose to prominence in the hobby. The commercial spectrum of the VHF and UHF bands became the backbone of emergency service communications like police, fire and ems. The 1.25m band however, escaped the commercial popularity - partly due to lack of enough commercial frequency allocations. Add to it, commercial radio equipment for the band has been scarce. Amateurs willing to go live on this band have had to build their own equipment or buy specialized amateur radio equipment from designated manufacturers.

Duplexers and Repeaters Some Basic Information BY ROBERT A. LEHNING*, WA2YSJ All across the country there are many amateur repeate  stations operating on 2 meters, 220  and 440 MHz, and to some extent on 1.2 GHz.  Several  modes of operating such as FM, ATV, and packet (digital) have also become...

How to link over 45 repeater sites with Motorola’s MotoTRBO IP-Site Connect using BridgeCom Systems’ TL-NET MV Series.   INTRODUCTION/PROBLEM Now more than ever, school districts covering large areas are seeing the necessity of providing reliable communications during times of...

What is a Repeater?

In the world of modern communication there is an ever increasing need for providing higher outreach. The traditional portable radios offer limited coverage area. However, a dedicated transceiver can help us achieve the requisite coverage.

A repeater is essentially a communication device which acts as a link between two radio operators to cover a large area. If you need a large coverage area like your 50,000 acre ranch, city, county or even an entire state, a repeater system comes in handy.

How it Works?

It is a two-way radio frequency communication system which receives a frequency from portable two-way radios, and re-transmits it at another frequency in real-time, albeit at a higher wattage than typical portable radios. This mechanism allows repeaters to broadcast to a much wider reception spectrum. Since it is capable of both transmitting and receiving at the same time, it is also called a ‘Transceiver’.