--- by Rick Eaton KD4HGR

Well you are probably wondering if CB is still alive and the answer would be yes it is very much alive and well.

You now have a new mode on CB which is now legal in the USA which is FM. The modes you now can use on CB are FM/AM/USB/LSB and the channels are still only 1-40.

This is the legal stuff as stated by the FCC. There is also what is called the free bands which are roughly 40 channels below channel 1 and 40 channels above channel 40.

I'm writing this to tell you about this radio called the QT40 by Radioddity. It sells for $199.99 but is on sale from time to time for $174.99 direct from their website

www.radioddity.com

First let me be honest and say this is a really great CB radio for your money. Its Specs are better then most CB’s as its actually a ham radio which require better standards by the FCC versus the CB Radio. It is completely software programable by your computer with the free downloadable software from the website listed above. One simple dropdown box change to CB and one simple internal jumper change from pins one and two to pins two and three you do first and it’s a CB with a lot of features.

One is it has all the local weather channels programed in. It has a SWR built in that shows up in where the channel Led is It also will display frequency 2 digits at a time where it shows the channels. It has 5 different roger beeps and 32 different levels of volume for the echo and 32 different delays for the echo. When you do look at the software pay close attention to the RX and TX NR. This is noise reduction settings. Not to be confused with a noise blanker as these are too different animals. Noise reduction actually works as where noise blanker NB are usually very useless. The NR in TX is like a noise canceling microphone. Don’t change it unless you have a lot of background noise. For the RX change that as you need to if you have a good strong static noise level. I left both of mine on 3 which seems to be more than enough.

I have used this at home on SSB on my HF Dipole for Ham Radio on the CB band and have made so really good long distance contacts into South America and Europe around channels 38-40 on USB. I have also used this in my car and pretty much the same results. The Noise RX works fantastic in this radio as it kills a lot of the hash noise and bring in the audio you were straining your ears to hear. Excellent on this part as we all know CB is a noisy band. This also has a VOX feature which when turned on means you do not have to push in the button but simply just start talking into the microphone but remember to turn this off when you do not want to talk otherwise everyone listening here’s everything your saying…lol

Also Think about this radio in a longer term for the price you pay. If you ever decide to get a ham radio license you wont have to get a new radio as this does the ham bands right out of the box. It’s a great CB radio but an even better Ham Radio as well.

This layout look very similar to the old style cobra radios like the 138 XLR or 142XLR.

The specs for this radio is as follows:
- Powerful Performance: The Radioddity QT40 radio boasts a 40 watts transmission power.
- Noise Reduction: With both TX and RX digital noise reduction technology, the QT40 ensures that you'll never have to strain to hear or be heard in noisy environments.
- Accurate Signal Meter: The PWR/RX RSSI Signal Meter provides you with a clear picture of your signal strength, helping you to optimize your communication for the best possible results.
- Weather Channel: With its impressive weather band and NOAA alert feature, you can stay ahead of the curve and be prepared for any sudden changes in the weather.
- Customizable Features: The QT40 is equipped with a range of features, including CTCSS/DCS, PC program, ASQ, SQ, RF gain, VOX, HI-CUT,etc.

You Also get a lot of channels as you have a switch that has A thru F with 40 channels each so this gives you 240 channels which each has AM/FM/USB/LSB this is a lot of options right out of the box.

For a Low priced CB compared to the others of this type and Price range you will be hard pressed to beat this rig.

I love this radio and have been playing with it quite a lot as I wanted to give it a fair test out against the other out their and I would buy this radio if I dint have one already. I have run into a few truckers I know and had them play with it when its in my car and they could believe what it does for the price.

So if your looking for a good Priced good quality CB versus the other Guys then give this a try as feel you will not be disappointed at all.

It’s got a lot of features for the price. So give it a close look

Good luck and happy Skip chasing as they say in the CB world.

Rick KD4HGR