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Best value radio units for a small team
- Thread starter callumbagshaw
- Start date
jcheeseright
Supporters
- Jun 14, 2012
- 4,280
- 2,261
Even expensive throat mics are rubbish.
callumbagshaw
Members
- Mar 7, 2011
- 406
- 30
- Thread starter
- #23
Oh really?
That's a shame because I find the "push to talk" thingys that clip to your collar etc. are a bit rubbish too - means you have to take a hand off your rife, fumble around under your face protection and feel for it!
jcheeseright
Supporters
- Jun 14, 2012
- 4,280
- 2,261
There's plenty of other options; headsets, fist mics, etc.
Throat mics sound awful on the receiving end and regardless of what setup you get you're going to have to push a button to transmit. Don't be the guy who thinks vox is a good idea, it's not!
Throat mics sound awful on the receiving end and regardless of what setup you get you're going to have to push a button to transmit. Don't be the guy who thinks vox is a good idea, it's not!
skarra333
Members
- Jul 31, 2014
- 195
- 118
I wear a Paintball mask and used to have a Motorcycle headset on it, with the PTT on my weapon grip.
It's all non-intrusive stuff - the mic is grape sized, cable-tie attached. There is no boom, just a wire again cable tied, as were the earphones (Pringle sized). It was all easily detachable so when the mask comes off or the weapon is put down, you just unplug the respective cable. The sound quality seemed fine.
I briefly did the same thing on a half-face mesh mask once and while less comfortable on the ear - it was ok.
It's all non-intrusive stuff - the mic is grape sized, cable-tie attached. There is no boom, just a wire again cable tied, as were the earphones (Pringle sized). It was all easily detachable so when the mask comes off or the weapon is put down, you just unplug the respective cable. The sound quality seemed fine.
I briefly did the same thing on a half-face mesh mask once and while less comfortable on the ear - it was ok.
Last edited by a moderator:
djben9
Moderator
- Jul 7, 2015
- 2,371
- 308
interesting topic (even found it with the search, ok I used radio 
), was asked on sunday if any one in our 9 man team had a radio, only 1 of us, the guy who asked, realised soon after how usefull one would have been as waving and other hand gestures were not so good!
so a PMR 446 was mentioned, i'll look at a double pack, lend to a friend and all that, ideal for me to get mounts for fast helmet but also the PTT for the times I don't wear it
cheers guys
*this post was brought to you by the search function and no FARTing here F$%^&@£ Annoying Repeated Topic .........its been a long day!
), was asked on sunday if any one in our 9 man team had a radio, only 1 of us, the guy who asked, realised soon after how usefull one would have been as waving and other hand gestures were not so good!so a PMR 446 was mentioned, i'll look at a double pack, lend to a friend and all that, ideal for me to get mounts for fast helmet but also the PTT for the times I don't wear it
cheers guys
*this post was brought to you by the search function and no FARTing here F$%^&@£ Annoying Repeated Topic .........its been a long day!
jcheeseright
Supporters
- Jun 14, 2012
- 4,280
- 2,261
Bought and used a Baofeng UV5R this weekend, massively impressed. Even when in a shipping container half a mile away from the command post I was able to both transmit and receive clearly while on low power.
If you're after a decent budget radio for airsoft purposes and don't mind programming it yourself then the Baofeng UV5R is now my absolute 100% recommendation.
If you're after a decent budget radio for airsoft purposes and don't mind programming it yourself then the Baofeng UV5R is now my absolute 100% recommendation.
Baz JJ
Members
- May 23, 2013
- 2,349
- 502
Players need to make sure they buy an OFCOM licence to run these or make sure their site licence covers them.
They are technically over powered for PMR446 frequencies so should be used for the PMR business lite frequencies provided by OFCOM. A lot of airsofters ignore this and the chances of getting caught might be slim, but it is illegal.
We use these radios for our milsims using our sites licence and they are very good radios.
They are technically over powered for PMR446 frequencies so should be used for the PMR business lite frequencies provided by OFCOM. A lot of airsofters ignore this and the chances of getting caught might be slim, but it is illegal.
We use these radios for our milsims using our sites licence and they are very good radios.
jcheeseright
Supporters
- Jun 14, 2012
- 4,280
- 2,261
Agreed, what Baz said above applies in a big way, make sure if you do buy a Baofeng that you're using it on the right frequencies and not interfering with commercial users!
The chances of being caught are almost zero as OFCOM don't have the time/motivation to look for people using 1W radios on the PMR band, but a non-zero possibility is still a possibility.
The chances of being caught are almost zero as OFCOM don't have the time/motivation to look for people using 1W radios on the PMR band, but a non-zero possibility is still a possibility.
- Oct 20, 2012
- 5,101
- 1,668
Feel like I'm having to echo exactly what I've already typed on page before. Such is life on any forum I guess.
I'll say what I said literally one page before: Just because they aren't looking today doesn't mean they won't be tomorrow. They could happily have a crackdown if things got too out of hand so staying on the right side of the law is always a good idea given how fragile the whole situation is when it comes to airsoft legalities anyway.
Do not be the dick that ruins it for all of us. That goes out to anyone reading this - not you in particular, jcheese
The UV-5R is not - let's admit it - an incredibly userfriendly handset if it's your first radio. Yes, there videos out there and yes you can very easily sit down and spend an hour making sure you're on the right side of the law but this is airsoft. We get people who don't even know the difference between UKARA and VCRA; the intricacies of programming a radio properly are absolutely lost on them. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there with their handsets on reserved frequencies right now at 5W who think it's fine that their team are using it just because they've not been caught yet.
When it comes to recommending handsets can we all please just be sure that the person we're speaking to is as least semi-likely to get their OFCOM business/site licence sorted and understand that they will get a radio that may not come preconfigured to PMR 446. If there's any doubt, it's a really good idea to just recommend a PMR 446-locked radio.
If you're reading this in the future then check out https://www.facebook.com/groups/498486806994797/ - I don't usually recommend Facebook groups for getting any kind of reliable information, but there are a few regulars on there that know the legalities of running most amateur and business radios like the back of their collective hands, and will reply to you in a few hours tops. For the sake of the future of this hobby, don't f*ck around with restricted frequencies unless you are absolutely sure you know what you're doing. If you don't have 6 hours to spend on learning the law/properly configuring your handset and the £75 to get yourself and your team a licence (or the ability to use a site one) then please cough up the extra £20-30 for a PMR 446 friendly handset. They are made user friendly for this very kind of application.
I'll say what I said literally one page before: Just because they aren't looking today doesn't mean they won't be tomorrow. They could happily have a crackdown if things got too out of hand so staying on the right side of the law is always a good idea given how fragile the whole situation is when it comes to airsoft legalities anyway.
Do not be the dick that ruins it for all of us. That goes out to anyone reading this - not you in particular, jcheese
The UV-5R is not - let's admit it - an incredibly userfriendly handset if it's your first radio. Yes, there videos out there and yes you can very easily sit down and spend an hour making sure you're on the right side of the law but this is airsoft. We get people who don't even know the difference between UKARA and VCRA; the intricacies of programming a radio properly are absolutely lost on them. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there with their handsets on reserved frequencies right now at 5W who think it's fine that their team are using it just because they've not been caught yet.
When it comes to recommending handsets can we all please just be sure that the person we're speaking to is as least semi-likely to get their OFCOM business/site licence sorted and understand that they will get a radio that may not come preconfigured to PMR 446. If there's any doubt, it's a really good idea to just recommend a PMR 446-locked radio.
If you're reading this in the future then check out https://www.facebook.com/groups/498486806994797/ - I don't usually recommend Facebook groups for getting any kind of reliable information, but there are a few regulars on there that know the legalities of running most amateur and business radios like the back of their collective hands, and will reply to you in a few hours tops. For the sake of the future of this hobby, don't f*ck around with restricted frequencies unless you are absolutely sure you know what you're doing. If you don't have 6 hours to spend on learning the law/properly configuring your handset and the £75 to get yourself and your team a licence (or the ability to use a site one) then please cough up the extra £20-30 for a PMR 446 friendly handset. They are made user friendly for this very kind of application.
Last edited by a moderator:
BrightCandle
Members
- Apr 15, 2014
- 1,013
- 422
Its important to understand the PMR laws are not just about 0.5W output, they also require the unit is not capable of any other frequencies and does not have removeable antennas. A Baofeng can never be PMR compatible even if it were possible to get it down to 0.5W output (which it kind of is with the right stubby antenna).
It'll cost you £80 for 5 years worth of licence which will get you access to the UK business range of frequencies, 12 of which are usable on a Baofeng radio and this is the way to go for a small team IMO. Vastly better range and you aren't breaking the law. Its not that expensive considering the additional performance you get from it.
Because its worth noting any crime you commit while holding an airsoft gun in UK law is done "armed". Currently that involves mandatory prison sentences and frankly I don't think that is worth it for the purpose of saving £80.
It'll cost you £80 for 5 years worth of licence which will get you access to the UK business range of frequencies, 12 of which are usable on a Baofeng radio and this is the way to go for a small team IMO. Vastly better range and you aren't breaking the law. Its not that expensive considering the additional performance you get from it.
Because its worth noting any crime you commit while holding an airsoft gun in UK law is done "armed". Currently that involves mandatory prison sentences and frankly I don't think that is worth it for the purpose of saving £80.
GunmanAirsoft
Members
- Feb 5, 2016
- 119
- 9
Guess what? You can buy a cheap wreck of a car for very little money and drive it on the road with no licence, MOT or insurance - the chances of getting caught are very slim...
Please don't recommend that people break the law in whatever circumstances, it really doesn't help.
I've seen people using Baofeng radios on all sorts of horrible setups because they've bought them and have no idea how to set them up in the slightest.
Most common mistake? The bandwidth is set to 25k instead of 12.5k. They work absolutely fine set like that, but guess what? They interfere with the next frequencies down and up making 3 channels unusable while you transmit.
Not to mention people setting them on whatever frequency they feel like. Our sites have a simple licence which allows us to operate 3 UHF frequencies and several VHF ones. Some of these are used as marshal/emergency frequencies on our site. Always ask if the site you play at has any frequencies which you should avoid, licensed or not.
As it happens, we permit players to operate their programmable radios on our frequencies under our licence.
When we need extra frequencies we get in radios on short term hire frequencies.
As for OFCOM not investigating abuse of frequencies, if your radio causes problems for other legitimate users and they report it to OFCOM, they will investigate and both you and your site will be in a lot of trouble if caught.
Please don't recommend that people break the law in whatever circumstances, it really doesn't help.
I've seen people using Baofeng radios on all sorts of horrible setups because they've bought them and have no idea how to set them up in the slightest.
Most common mistake? The bandwidth is set to 25k instead of 12.5k. They work absolutely fine set like that, but guess what? They interfere with the next frequencies down and up making 3 channels unusable while you transmit.
Not to mention people setting them on whatever frequency they feel like. Our sites have a simple licence which allows us to operate 3 UHF frequencies and several VHF ones. Some of these are used as marshal/emergency frequencies on our site. Always ask if the site you play at has any frequencies which you should avoid, licensed or not.
As it happens, we permit players to operate their programmable radios on our frequencies under our licence.
When we need extra frequencies we get in radios on short term hire frequencies.
As for OFCOM not investigating abuse of frequencies, if your radio causes problems for other legitimate users and they report it to OFCOM, they will investigate and both you and your site will be in a lot of trouble if caught.
- Oct 20, 2012
- 5,101
- 1,668
This is exactly the worry I had on the other page. Someone at a woodland site near some fields transmitting too high-a-power and across multiple frequencies and interfering with some farmer's vehicle radios or something. One report and it'll be obvious where the source is coming from.
djben9
Moderator
- Jul 7, 2015
- 2,371
- 308
just someone who messed with his radio illegally.....browsing a link Proffink sent me....weirdly I never saw it online when reading the paper....
http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Radio-interference-Cambridge-International/story-28861318-detail/story.html#ixzz420wEMsv0
saved starting a new topic.....mmmm maybe a 'wally of the day topic'....???
http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Radio-interference-Cambridge-International/story-28861318-detail/story.html#ixzz420wEMsv0
saved starting a new topic.....mmmm maybe a 'wally of the day topic'....???
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