Topic: Uniden Bearcat CB Radio

[jfrabat]

So, I was getting tired of my old CB because, mounted in my Tuffy Overhead Console, I could barely hear the thing with the console closed, and I would bang my head into the thing if I left the tray open.  So, I figured I wanted something with a speaker on the bottom, and, since I was replacing, I wanted something that would be a bit of an upgrade as well...

After some research, i decided on the Uniden Bearcat 980SSB.  This radio incorporates Weather (not really important to me, as we don't have that service in Panama!) and SSB.  For those not familiar with the last option, Single Side Band (from Wikipedia) "is a refinement of amplitude modulation that more efficiently uses transmitter power and bandwidth. Amplitude modulation produces an output signal that has twice the bandwidth of the original baseband signal. Single-sideband modulation avoids this bandwidth doubling, and the power wasted on a carrier, at the cost of increased device complexity and more difficult tuning at the receiver."  In laymans terms, more range (has to do with the power; I will not get into that here), and clearer voice sound...

So far, I have not used it much, but here are the things I have noticed (for reference, I had a cheap Cobra CB installed before):

1. This radio does a MUCH better job of taking static out and reproducing only voices.  I am guessing that this being a premium CB, they have a much better filter on it.  Of course, the speaker on the bottom also helps with volume (the old radio had the speaker on the front; not good for my location)
2. Having an integrated SWR meter is also a very nice thing; especially since I have 2 antennas, I can always make sure the SWR is in check.  According to the radio, it is currently 1, which is pretty much what I had measured when I tuned the antennas some months ago...
3. It includes not only the channel, but also the frequency as well in the display; nice to have feature (although not that much use really)
4. The radio size is quite a bit larger than the old one; I had to change the bolts used to mount it to the cradle to make it fit in the tuffy console...

I still need to run tests to see if range is better or not, but receiving, it certainly easier to hear people now!  Anyway, if anyone is interested in any specifics about this model, please let me know!  Overall, so far, I am happy with my purchase!

 

[Jeffy]

I run a MRE external speaker for my CB.  The speaker is designed for radio use and filters out frequencies that aren't in the voice spectrum which is nice.

[jfrabat]

My old cobra did not allow for an external speaker; the new one does, and I even though about running a line from it to the stereo (I can always equalize it to focus on the frequencies I need), but to be honest, it's not necessary; the speaker on the unit is good enough. 

Online, I have read some reviews that say that this unit is not so great because (1) you cannot hack it to go into the free bands (I really don't care about that) and (2) that the average output hovers more in the 3W than 4W range (you can still hack it to make it go to 10W on AM and about 12 on SSB, but since I have an inline amplifier, I will not do this).

I do plan to ask a friend help me tune it, and maybe I will remove the annoying BEEP, but other than that, I think I will leave mine alone.  I would like to add the PA, though; may be fin to be able to cuss out stupid drivers without having to roll down the window!