GME TX685 - Manual (Page 3)

T X 6 1 5 0 / T X 6 8 5 I N S T R U C T I O N M A N UA L PA G E 3
IMpORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING uHF CB RAdIO
The use of the Citizen Band radio service is licensed in Australia by the ACMA
Radiocommunications (Citizens Band radio Stations) Class Licence and in New Zealand by
the Ministry of Economic Development New Zealand (MED). A General User Radio Licence
for Citizens Band radio and operation is subject to conditions contained in those licences.
The class licence for users and equipment operating in the CB/PRS 477 MHz band has been
amended. This radio meets the new 80 channel standard.
In simple terms the same amount of spectrum is available; however, radio transceivers can
now operate in a narrower bandwidth and hence use less spectrum. These radios are generally
referred to as narrowband or 12.5 kHz radios. By using 12.5 kHz channel spacing instead of
25 kHz, the 40 channels originally allocated can now be expanded to 80 channels thereby
doubling the channel capacity and relieving congestion in the UHF CB/PRS band.
Original 40 channel wideband radios will continue to operate on the original 40 channels,
however they will not be able to converse on the newer channels 41 – 80. The newer
narrowband radios will be able to converse with all older 40 channel wideband radios on all
channels 1 to 40 as well as the newer channels allocated from 41 to 80.
The mixing of narrowband and wideband radios in the same spectrum can cause some
possible operating issues of interference and varying levels of received volume.
Possible issues
When a new narrowband radio receives a transmission from an older wideband radio the
speech may sound loud and distorted – simply adjust your radio volume for best performance.
When an older wideband radio receives a signal from a new narrowband radio, the speech
may sound quiet – simply adjust your radio volume for best performance.
Depending on how close your receiving radio is to another transmitting radio, there can be
interference from the transmitting radio if it is using a channel adjacent to the channel you are
listening to. Simply try going up or down a few channels from the currently selected channel.
The above situations are not a fault of the radio but a symptom of operating wideband and
narrowband radios in the same bandwidth. This possible interference will decrease over time
as the population of wideband radios ages and decreases.
Further information and updates are available from the Australian Communications and Media
Authority (ACMA) at www.acma.gov.au and the Ministry of Economic Development (MED),
Radio Spectrum Management at: www.rsm.govt.nz
eMeRGeNCY CHANNels
The ACMA has allocated channels 5/35 for emergency use only. Channel 5 is the primary
Simplex Emergency Channel. Where a channel 5 repeater is available, you should select
Duplex on CH 5.
NoTe: Channel 35 is the input channel for the channel 5 repeater therefore channel 35
should also not be used for anything other than emergency transmissions.
TeleMeTRY CHANNels
ACMA regulations have allocated channels 22 and 23 for telemetry-only applications and have
prohibited the transmission of speech on these channels. Consequently the radio has a
transmit-inhibit applied to channels 22 and 23.
In the event that additional telemetry/telecommand channels are approved by the ACMA,
these channels shall be added to those currently listed where voice transmission is inhibited.
Currently, transmissions on channels 61, 62 and 63 are also inhibited and these channels are
reserved for future allocation.