Hi all,
I'm currently looking at getting a new CB for my truck. I currently have a Cobra 25 NW ST. It's a nice radio, but I'm looking to upgrade. A few that have really caught my eye are the Midland 77-250 CXL, Cobra 29 WX NW ST, and the Cobra 29 NW Classic. The two Cobra's I listed are the same except for the weatherband, which is kind of nice to have, but not required. Everyone in my family has Cobra's so I'm wondering how good the Midland is? Anyone know? It's got all the features I like (Instant 9/19, SWR Calibration, ESP 2 Noise Reduction). My question with this one is - does it have PA capability 'cause that will be my next wild hair. I know the Cobra's do. They, like the Midland, also have Instant 9/19, SWR Calibration, Sound Tracker, etc. The thing I really like about the Cobra 29 WX NW ST is the NightWatch. My current one has it and I think it's pretty sweet. What's everyone's opinions on these three radios?? thanks

Jake

 

I would say you can't go wrong with any of them. I have used the classic and it Is a great radio but in the past I have also used midlands and they are also good. I would choose the one that you like the looks of the best and has the features you want because any of the three will do you good.

 

Well,
Thanks for that bit of info. Right now I'm really leaning towards the Midland. Anyone know if it is capable of a PA system? I would do the Cobra 29 WX NW ST but 2 of my 3 brothers have them, and the 29 NW Classic is almost the exact same!! Well, you see how it is, I just gotta be different. If the Midland doesn't have a PA then I may go with the 29 NW Classic.
thanks again

Jake

 

Yes the midland does have a p.a. capability. go to site for specs.b http://extremetech.shopping.com/xPF-Midland_77_250_CXL

 

Hot dang, looks like I'm gonna get me a Midland!!!! Thanks for that site.

Jake

 

The link shows that this radio does not have PA ability. In all the specs I have seen I have not seen any sign of the midland having PA. Sorry

 

thats what I thought, but I saw a big picture of it, and near as I can tell, there is a switch thats "CB - PA" I guess I will check it out before I buy it and then I'll know for sure!!!

 

Well guys, I decided to go with the Cobra 29 WX NW ST. It also just happens to be the most expensive of the 3 (go figure right?). Also, the Midland 77-250 is a nice radio, but there is no PA ability, and since I'm a kid and I want a PA eventually this was a deciding factor. If it weren't for that, I would have a Midland.

 

You should check out this Midland, http://www.bills2way.com/equip/79-290.html

It has the PA jack.

 

[Giving you s**t mode]

Got an echo mike and a roger beep and a 200 watt amp to go along with that CeeBee radio???

[ducks and runs]

 

lol, I don't, but my dad has the echo mike in his semi. It's pretty sweet. I may have to look into it I will never grow up. I have been corrupted by everyone here

Howdy, thanks for that link. I saw that that model does, but I'm not too fond of the looks. AM/SSB. Could someone explain this to me please?

 

AM is your basic 40 channels of CB. SSB are channels on the side (side band) or basically a channel halfway above or below.

 

I can try without getting too deep.. I'll save heterodyning for another day.

Your normal 40 channel CB uses an AM band with the carrier signal looking like the sine wave everyone is familiar with. If your on ch. 19 the freq. is 27.185 Mhz. When you talk into the mic, the audio is mixed to the signal as another sine wave. This shows up as the carrier, audio (mixed) and two sidebands, upper and lower. The sidebands show up a little above and below the carrier freq. and are a byproduct of the carrier/audio signal. (This is as deep as I'm getting.) AM can hold a lot of information, but most of the power is going to the carrier. When you have a strong carrier, you can hear just fine and maybe even get to use your squelch..
But...as everyone has found out, cb range isn't the greatest. Some try to increase by using big power mics. This increases the amplitude of the carrier and also the sidebands to greater bandwidth which causes bleeding into the upper and lower channels. (Unless your receiver is so wide it can "hear" over three channels at once, it doesn't do much good - Kind of like pushing a 1/2" bolt into a 3/8" hole.)
Others try boosting carrier power with linears. This isn't best answer either, because all the voice info is in the AF and sidebands and it fights a losing battle with physics.

I'm not saying a little power mic'ing and linears don't help, but after a point it's like beating a dead horse.

What they do with SSB is use one of the sidebands and a little of the carrier to send most of the signal. It doesn't carry as much info as having both sidebands, but it will carry it MUCH farther - because most of the signal power is used for the sideband (real basic voice) and not the carrier. (That Midland I showed you has 120 channels - 40 carrier channels, 40 upper sideband and 40 lower sideband. 12 Watts power on SSB and built in power mic.)

Kind of like making .wav files. 64 bit files can hold a lot of info, taking up a bunch of memory, but they make songs sound great. 16 bit sound like crud, but don't take up much room. You can record your voice at 8 bit and understand what you said. Voice doesn't take much resolution. SSB takes advantage of this.

A CB with SSB is capable of real HF communication, like going long distances with legal power and is a really nice feature.

Don't confuse it with channel splitting or shifting the carrier over to make Ch. 19.5..SSB is much different.

 

OK, I get it now. Thanks for that explaination.

Now for another *dumb* question. Is it worth the extra $$$ to get one with it or not? I noticed they are more. I also noticed, there is that Cobra I like with the SSB.

 

It's kind of a personal preference to get it or not. SSB is an option that changes the way your signal is transmitted and received. It's not a roger beep, reverb or something that you can key the mic and go, "wow."

On normal 40 channels you are limited to 4 Watts carrier. That means just keying into a wattmeter with no voice the power should be no more than 4 watts. Carrier signals don't propagate well. Most of the time your range is 1 - 5 miles, sometimes more if you're up high or conditions are really good. Even listening to a small AM radio station while driving, you might get 40 -50 miles range from the station during the day, more at night - maybe a state away at night with good propogation. Seems far, but remember these stations are pushing at least 1KW with antennas 200' tall. The whole tower is an antenna.. AM stations on SSB can transmit thousands of miles, (that's Mike W's world).

Since SSB transmits on the sideband instead of the carrier, they aren't rated by the 4 watt limit, but by the 12 watt Peak Envelope Power limit (PEP). This is by how much power is put out when you talk into the mic. If you yell the power goes up. On a 40 channel this over modulates (flattops) the signal into other channels. On SSB, since the bandwidth is narrower anyway, because one sideband and the carrier is removed - you have plenty of bandwidth to talk loud within the channel. Power mics were made for SSB. SSB signals propogate very well. That's why the FCC set the limit on distance to 155.3 miles. This limit seems kind of stupid for a regular 40 channel that might have a hard time talking across town, but for SSB under the right conditions - that's a short hop.

If you just have buddies around town that you talk to or use it hunting/camping whatever, A regular 40 channel would do just fine. But with SSB you might hear someone a couple states away talking, and you can talk back.

The SSB option is pretty cheap for what you get, (that Cobra W/SSB is sweet), and the radios with SSB keep their value up fairly well.