Baofeng UV-5R

[BadgerSE]

Good post, interesting read.

I already ordered my Baofeng UV5R the other dayafter going by another 3/4 reviews from other sources about how good these little radios are. Now I have read this I am even more excited to get mine.

People are mentioning programming the radio and downloading CHIRP? Can someone please explain what CHIRP is and why I should download it?

(you can tell I am a complete novice - but I am learning!!)

Thank you.

[HBP]

Can someone please explain what CHIRP is and why I should download it?

(you can tell I am a complete novice - but I am learning!!)

Thank you.

CHIRP is radio programing software. You can program the memories in a baofeng radio manually from the keypad but it a real pain to do. If you know what frequencies etc you want to have in a memory then you can use chirp to program the radio.

A good example is it makes things like setting up a ham radio repeater a lot easier. A repeater will have:
-The frequency for receive
-The frequency offset as you transmit on a different frequency
-The CTCSS code that is sent to open the repeater
-The bandwidth used (narrow or wide)
-The power you want to use (High or low)

You may not be using it for this but it shows how doing all that once on the computer and then saving it in a memory on ther radio is a lot easier.

I hope that makes sense?

What are you intending on using the radio for?

[BadgerSE]

Thanks for that, yes that makes sense.

It will only be for personal use/ emergency situation usage etc.

[HBP]

Thanks for that, yes that makes sense.

It will only be for personal use/ emergency situation usage etc.

If you can come up with a list of frequencies etc you want to use then CHIRP can be used to store it all for you

[Hamradioop]

Chirp looks like a spread sheet to use, You can also download Baofeng's own software from their website.
A word of caution some of the programming leads use a prolific chip to do the work to convert to serial data, Now this chip was heavily copied and as a result a lot of the drivers will only work with a genuine chip and not the copy.
More info on this here http://www.miklor.com/COM/UV_Drivers.php
More info and downloads of CHIRP here http://www.miklor.com/COM/UV_CHIRP.php

[TheOldHObbit]

Well I have now been playing and learning my way around my new Baofeng 5r5's since getting them at Christmas. Now some find these little radio's the simplest thing in the world to use which obviously includes programming, well I have to admit I almost gave up as I found it very confusing never having delved into all this amature radio stuff . But I had a break through and have now learned to programme my radio by hand. I can put in simplex, repeater TX RX, offset and direction, CTCSS tone and channel management. Its opened a whole new world and I now find myself listening in as much as I can.

I have programmed the local 70cm repeaters near me (7 miles and 5 miles) and one 2mtr repeater (17 miles). I have written out simple instructions so I can remember the steps but now need to understand CHIRP. I have downloaded the software and managed to finally get my programming lead to work and my radio can now talk to my computer. I have cloned the frequencies that were already in my radio when it arrived and now know how to save these files in a place where I can find them. What I don't understand is what all the columns in the spreadsheet do.

I have watched a couple of youtube tutorials but still cant quite get my head around it. The naming of the channels is what I would find very useful but I will keep plugging away and who knows it may just fall into place.

What I can say is, anyone wanting an entry level radio for either prepping or licenced use, as a complete noob, I would recommend the Baofeng 5R series, great fun.

[TheOldHObbit]

Well I have now been playing and learning my way around my new Baofeng 5r5's since getting them at Christmas. Now some find these little radio's the simplest thing in the world to use which obviously includes programming, well I have to admit I almost gave up as I found it very confusing never having delved into all this amature radio stuff . But I had a break through and have now learned to programme my radio by hand. I can put in simplex, repeater TX RX, offset and direction, CTCSS tone and channel management. Its opened a whole new world and I now find myself listening in as much as I can.

I have programmed the local 70cm repeaters near me (7 miles and 5 miles) and one 2mtr repeater (17 miles). I have written out simple instructions so I can remember the steps but now need to understand CHIRP. I have downloaded the software and managed to finally get my programming lead to work and my radio can now talk to my computer. I have cloned the frequencies that were already in my radio when it arrived and now know how to save these files in a place where I can find them. What I don't understand is what all the columns in the spreadsheet do.

I have watched a couple of youtube tutorials but still cant quite get my head around it. The naming of the channels is what I would find very useful but I will keep plugging away and who knows it may just fall into place.

What I can say is, anyone wanting an entry level radio for either prepping or licenced use, as a complete noob, I would recommend the Baofeng 5R series, great fun.

Since writing the above post, I have now cracked CHIRP and like others have said, its a great little programme. Not only can I clone my radios and set them up identically, but I have managed to give each channel a name relating to its use which I find very useful. I think the only downside is that it is so good to use, I might forget how to programme manually

[Toddie]

I've just ordered a UV-5R with the data cable, and like other having read through this thread i cant wait to get cracking and start learning.

I just hope the data cable i bought works. I did pay a fair bit more for it in the hopes it'd be a genuine.

For the guys who posted there initial "noob" stories, thanks for them and i'm sure i'll be writing my own soon enough.

[TheOldHObbit]

I've just ordered a UV-5R with the data cable, and like other having read through this thread i cant wait to get cracking and start learning.

I just hope the data cable i bought works. I did pay a fair bit more for it in the hopes it'd be a genuine.

For the guys who posted there initial "noob" stories, thanks for them and i'm sure i'll be writing my own soon enough.

You will not regret your decision. I'm the worlds worst for getting frustrated very quickly when I don't understand something and it usually ends up in the back of a cupboard somewhere, but these little R5's are really good value. Things made no sense to me to begin with, but when it clicked they are so easy. Good luck with your radio and the chaps and chapesses on here are a real help.

[BadgerSE]

I've got my Baofeng UV-5R and I've seen loads of youtube and self help websites but I am still non the wiser on how to use the damn thing. All it makes is a loud white noise sound. If I turn off the squelch then I loose my signal bars. I can't even work out how to use CHIRP (I've managed to get the com port to work though). I have no idea what frequency I should be on or anything. Needless to say I've signed up with an amateur radio course.