avoidthelloyd
Active Member
I have used my trusty LS and T2 for the past 2.5 years and have experienced radio range issues in heavy canopy with it. I have had my ups and downs while learning best practices with setup, cabling, battery power, etc. I was rarely able to work more than 1.5 miles away when using 35 watts. I had spent $800 to find there was nothing wring with my radio and learned to adapt my workflow to limp through large projects.
I had real concerns with the radio range when considering my T3 purchase and knew there was an expected 10% decrease in range when using D8PSK modulation. Well, I am confident that the range decrease is well above 10%, but I don't think it is from the modulation change alone.
I have had my T3 for a month or so and have been back to previous projects several times. With my T2/LS setup, I had to pull out my external antenna sometimes, but with this new LS+, it is a daily requirement for me to work. This feels so regressive.
I am using a good radio with 11.4v at the working battery (bolted cables) pushing 35 watts (which leaves my radio too hot to handle by the end of the day) and antenna as high as the cable will let me go with ground plane (all good cabling) and last Thursday, I couldn't get 700 feet away from my radio before I had to switch to the external antenna. This was the case every week last month.
I feel like this "super engine" (which is great) has compromised the internal radio. I like the fact that they can upgrade our unit without a redesign, but I feel like they can go setup and test things outside their office within 100 feet of their base units and conclude that the super engine works well, but nobody is testing the actual radio range at the lab.
I may be in the extreme minority of users who depend on radio to work, I don't know...
It feels like the focus has been the "super engine" and the radio portion just had to make room. It's like cramming a 454 into your old chevy, but you had to move things around and even though you have all that horsepower, you can't punch it cause you're gonna tear your driveshaft off. Boy, you can talk about how awesome your engine is, but you can't use it's power.
Just bummed out I guess. I know before I started, the company I worked for had the yellow boxes and we would work all over these mountains on a 5 watt internal radio and weren't scared to go for it. I wish the radio range was truly tested and given some attention. I feel like there is nothing the engineers can do with it now and radio range is simply not a priority.
Since I upgraded and didn't buy a new LS+, I'm sure I can't get a refund and I also bet that the LS+ will still be weaker in range if I use my T2, so I may as well go on.
I love this company and that was the selling factor to me when @Shawn Billings was introducing me to JAVAD. It was the small, friendly community and innovative engineers that was exciting. I have had a good time with my first unit. Just this dang range. And for it to be worse with a new and expensive upgrade makes me wish they would've just had a new design and paid attention to the radio.
@Nate The Surveyor offered to come do a side by side test and I need to take him up on that to give JAVAD some insight.
I had real concerns with the radio range when considering my T3 purchase and knew there was an expected 10% decrease in range when using D8PSK modulation. Well, I am confident that the range decrease is well above 10%, but I don't think it is from the modulation change alone.
I have had my T3 for a month or so and have been back to previous projects several times. With my T2/LS setup, I had to pull out my external antenna sometimes, but with this new LS+, it is a daily requirement for me to work. This feels so regressive.
I am using a good radio with 11.4v at the working battery (bolted cables) pushing 35 watts (which leaves my radio too hot to handle by the end of the day) and antenna as high as the cable will let me go with ground plane (all good cabling) and last Thursday, I couldn't get 700 feet away from my radio before I had to switch to the external antenna. This was the case every week last month.
I feel like this "super engine" (which is great) has compromised the internal radio. I like the fact that they can upgrade our unit without a redesign, but I feel like they can go setup and test things outside their office within 100 feet of their base units and conclude that the super engine works well, but nobody is testing the actual radio range at the lab.
I may be in the extreme minority of users who depend on radio to work, I don't know...
It feels like the focus has been the "super engine" and the radio portion just had to make room. It's like cramming a 454 into your old chevy, but you had to move things around and even though you have all that horsepower, you can't punch it cause you're gonna tear your driveshaft off. Boy, you can talk about how awesome your engine is, but you can't use it's power.
Just bummed out I guess. I know before I started, the company I worked for had the yellow boxes and we would work all over these mountains on a 5 watt internal radio and weren't scared to go for it. I wish the radio range was truly tested and given some attention. I feel like there is nothing the engineers can do with it now and radio range is simply not a priority.
Since I upgraded and didn't buy a new LS+, I'm sure I can't get a refund and I also bet that the LS+ will still be weaker in range if I use my T2, so I may as well go on.
I love this company and that was the selling factor to me when @Shawn Billings was introducing me to JAVAD. It was the small, friendly community and innovative engineers that was exciting. I have had a good time with my first unit. Just this dang range. And for it to be worse with a new and expensive upgrade makes me wish they would've just had a new design and paid attention to the radio.
@Nate The Surveyor offered to come do a side by side test and I need to take him up on that to give JAVAD some insight.
