PCI Kenwood radio

[KELLENC]

Does any one have this radio? is it worth the cost? or should i just stick to the roadmaster?

http://www.pciraceradios.com/catalog...roductID=10219

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[ShaneR]

We use that radio in the race car, chase trucks, and prerunner. It is great if you need to switch channels to talk to different teams or people and the alpha display lets you put in the team name instead of having to remeber the frequency number. Not sure if it transmits better or farther or not? We do not switch the channel in the race car very often, if we see a wreck or something we radio our pit and have them call and notify someone.

[josh909]

I have two of them at work and I love them.

[Superfab]

The Roadmaster is plenty powerful for the job. The only place that extra power will work is if their are no mountains or other large obstructions in the way. Radio waves don't follow the terrain. This is why emergency services and police use repeaters to get proper coverage. Also why weatherman sits on the highest mountain point he can. Generally a 50 watt radio is sufficient with a properly tuned antenna (All antennas must be cut to a particular length for optimum tuning in the freq. range you use the most which a radio dealer can do for you.) and proper ground plane for the antenna. Make sure the base of the antenna is hooked to chassis ground also. Mount the antenna in the center of the roof panel so it can use it as a ground plane. Also keep all antennas 18 inches away from each other. We use a short 1/4 wave antenna instead of a tall one due to the fact that a tall one is usually bent over when driving which aims much of the radio transmission to the ground or straight up into the sky. We have a tall one stashed in the car as a spare and if we need more range if we are broken down we can switch it out. The kenwood is nice if you have plenty of cash but you really don't need it in most cases.

[Kritter]

http://www.helmetkits.com/images/acc.../CUTLENGTH.jpg

[J.JOHNSON]

Hey Keleen, Go get the Icom and you can get it programmed with all of our channels if you want. That is what I have in my 4 seater and in the fuertes. It works great.

[pciscott]

There are three things that determine range in our race environments. #1 output power and a 110watt radio will not only talk farther than a 50watt, but will also be a much stronger signal. In VHF the strongest signal wins. #2 Terrain the flatter the farther the more rugged less range and VHF does curve and bounce so it is not 100% line o site. #3 Saturation, the biggest problem and the killer of range on race day!!!!!!! When you key up on any radio across the band you contribute to the problem of saturation. Depending on how many radios are in a small geographic area and the quality of equipment this can cut range from 1/3 to 2/3 of range when there is heavy radio traffic. My Father the Weatherman is working on a video to address this problem in depth and ask that everyone only use the radio for race business and keep the chit chat to a minimum on all channels across the band on race day. To answer your question about the Kenwood radio if you have the budget it is a far superior radio and will talk farther and is built to public safety standards. The difference between a standard VHF is they are rated at a 5% transmit, 10% receive, and 85% stand by duty cycle. When you transmit heavy your radio will get hot and loose efficiency. The Kenwood 110 watt is a premium product designed for the public safety and law enforcement industry it has a 100% transmit duty cycle and if you just compare the two you will see the quality of the microphone and how the radio is built. In conclusion a 110watt Kenwood will talk farther and put you on top of the communication food chain at any off-road event.