New member here and also very new to radios and GMRS.
Anyway, I wanted a radio that would be useful during hurricane season with family and SHTF scenarios, as well as NOAA Alerts. Naturally I did some searching on YouTube and ended up buying a Wouxun KG-935G Plus (which was also on sale!).
Now I feel like these are stupid questions, and they probably are however my curiosity will not let this go, so here we go.
I understand I can transmit on Channels 1-7, with a Transmit Power Limit of 5 watts. Now the Manual for this radio says I can set the transmit power to Low (0.5 watts) or medium (not clear what wattage this actually is) for 1-7. Can I not just set this to High? What is 0.5 Watts? To add, I am sure the actual output is at or under 5 watts, no?
Or, should I just use Channel’s 15-19 (20 is typically local emergency, yes?)
Also, is the point of using channels 8-14 (0.5watts) for close communication and to limit how far out your transmission goes out, so less people can snoop in? Trying to understand the purpose of these.
I also saw this in the manual: “The KG-935G Plus will automatically adjust the power to the FCC limits.” - so perhaps they cannot even be adjusted? However the manual also talks about the ability to set the Transmit Power. Maybe I’m missing something here.
I understand I can transmit on Channels 1-7, with a Transmit Power Limit of 5 watts. Now the Manual for this radio says I can set the transmit power to Low (0.5 watts) or medium (not clear what wattage this actually is) for 1-7. Can I not just set this to High? What is 0.5 Watts? To add, I am sure the actual output is at or under 5 watts, no?
The chart of Default GMRS Simplex Channels and Frequencies on page 105 of the manual lists the maximum power level you can set for channels 1-7 is Medium. This is because High power on the KG-935G Plus maxes out at 5.5 watts, which is above the maximum power allowed on those channels by the FCC. The actual wattage on any power level may be at or below the rated wattage for each level, but may fluctuate somewhat based on the frequency you are using and/or the strength of the battery output at the time, since battery power may decrease as it is drained.
Or, should I just use Channel’s 15-19 (20 is typically local emergency, yes?)
You can use channels 15-22 as desired. There is no official emergency channel for GMRS, although some acknowledge channel 19 as the emergency channel, depending on who you talk to.
Also, is the point of using channels 8-14 (0.5watts) for close communication and to limit how far out your transmission goes out, so less people can snoop in? Trying to understand the purpose of these.
I also saw this in the manual: “The KG-935G Plus will automatically adjust the power to the FCC limits.” - so perhaps they cannot even be adjusted?
What that means is the radio automatically presets the maximum allowable wattage for each channel. If you are on channels 8-14, the maximum is Low power and cannot be changed. The other channels can be adjusted to whatever their maximum power is. For instance, channels 1-7 can be set from low to medium and channels 15-22 can be set to low, medium or high.
Thank you very much for all the great info. That video was also quite helpful.
So aside from the Watt Limitations, are there any other differences to be aware of or perhaps a reason why you would choose: 1-7 over 15-22? Judging from the video, I would think 15-22 take priority as they were once exclusive to GMRS?
8-14 I would probably just avoid, unless I am trying to communicate with someone on a low watt FRS Radio.
