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XLAXX
| | Posted on Wednesday, January 01, 2003 - 8:36 pm: | 
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Got a little $$ saved and am in the market for a new meter for the base station. I kinda had my eye on a Dosy TC-4002 PSW but wasn't sure about it. I have heard from others on the forum that Dosy's give a little extra on the wattage reading. Can't afford a Bird and really don't need that extravagance, so any Dosy, PDC, or other meter owners that have any opinions would be nice!
Thanks!
XLAXX |
CM 3885
| | Posted on Wednesday, January 01, 2003 - 10:59 pm: |
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for the $$$ if i were you id get the Dosy.. Any Dosy will be fine. I agree the Bird is way to rich (and totaly 100% not needed) for my blood and after you buy the **** thing you have to buy those expensive slugs! Besides the average CBer doesnt need a bird anyways. If you are into repairs and are a tech then they are ok but or a average guy like me that just gets on to talk and not nitpick about wattage the dosy is great!! What im saying is get the Dosy and forget the rest!!!!!!!! |
Dx431
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 2:20 am: |
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I agree.....for the money, Dosey will serve the purpose for the average cber. I had the 4001P and loved it. |
bruce
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 4:54 am: |
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I have a bird and there is NO advantage for you having one i also have several small ones " CB " types and guess what they work too Your Dosey is fine. |
Scrapiron63
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 10:16 am: |
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Xlaxx, you'll like the TC4002PSW or the 4002SW-4, they are the same except the PSW has the light and headphone jack, which is kinda useless for me, but what the heck, just 10 bucks more. I've used a 4002PSW every since they came out. I like the RMS setting, it helps on getting a true picture of your forward swing, or lack of swing. Some of the Dosy's are pretty 'tight' when new, but with use will show more swing, mine's had so many amps run thur it, it almost swings like my PDC 700. Now if you like needle movement, the 700 is a REAL swinger. The 4002sw meters with the antenna switch built in are a better choice than lots of meters, because if you have more than one antenna or a dummy load, it saves another jumper and switch box.
Scrapiron |
Sparkomatic
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 11:33 am: |
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You can buy 10 different kinds of wattmeters and get 10 different readings of the same radio/amplifier. I have a Bird 43 remote line section and meter for my mobile. My amp keys 150 and swings to 250 but on a Dosy it'll swing to 600 watts......I'll stay with the Bird so my head won't swell up. |
CM 3885
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 12:06 pm: |
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Id never own a Bird... Never have liked them and never will. Too much $$$$!!!! For the $$$ the Dosys are great. yes a little happy if you will on the power reading buyt they are A-OK for my purposes.... |
Wm Pokora
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 12:22 pm: |
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Try a Bulldog They look bad but are GREAT!!!! |
bruce
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 12:23 pm: |
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Spark i also have a bird 43 it is a fine meter but i also bought from copper a ant matcher / watt meter $24 guess what i get the same readings!
You know the old saying GOOD ENOUGHT FOR GOVERMENT WORK! |
XLAXX
| | Posted on Thursday, January 02, 2003 - 9:06 pm: |
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I finally broke down and decided to purchase a meter because I have a PDC 7000 meter that wasn't really giving me accurate readings. I have a dummy load and antenna switch box so I think the 4002psw was a good choice,... no beams yet, so the antenna switches on the 4002 are a little impractical 4 now. SWR's look OK though.
The PDC 7000 has a screw on the front for adjustment but I could never get the needle to zero no matter how much I turned it right or left. Also, I had a radio worked on by 307 and he was getting readings that were far better than what I was getting on my meter?????!!!!! I got frustrated so I looked into the Dosy. Scrap- lights are kinda kool, huh???.... lolol
How do you adjust the PDC 7000, do I have to open it up???
BTW-
Can someone explain what RMS is???? I think its root mean square right, so it's an average of the wattage produced right?
Peak is just regular top-side swing of the watts (MAX)...
Thanks for the replies!
XLAXX |
XLAXX
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 12:22 am: |
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OK- Already have a problem with this TC-4002 PSW Dosy!!!!!!!
I have a dummy load running through the AUX. switch on the meter, I keyed up to check a dead key and said AAAUUUDDDIIIOOO to check swing and all of a sudden I could hear in a low volume, someone saying "That radio sounds pretty good." I switched back to the Vertical setting on the meter and asked the guy if he could hear me. He said that, "Yes he could hear me and that my dummy load shouldn't be letting me transmit like that." This dummy load is an Ameritron from HRO. The oil is at the proper height in the can too. The guy I was talking with, runs a 4 element beam and plenty of power, I could hear him through my speaker while on the dummy load, pretty clearly I might add, he lives about 17 miles away. He said he had about a half pound on me of signal, but could definitely hear me! I could hear others talking too but not as clearly and they were somewhat broken up. I went up to channel 20 to chat with him and I switched back and forth and he still could hear me although my signal was weaker.
Do I have this set-up right or not? OR Is something wrong with the meter switches?????
Thanks for the help and sorry for the trouble.
XLAXX |
Alsworld
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 1:26 am: |
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XLAXX,
I just bought the 4002 PSW in November from Copper and like it quite a bit. The lighted meter I really enjoy. I have different results from Sparkomatic as mine appears tighter on the wattage than looser. I get just about what I would expect concerning what my radio and box is expected to put out.
Maybe each is different, I don't know....but the one I have is great. I must agree though, I only have a vertical antenna but the 4002 gives the option of dummy loads as well as horizontal antennas.
Alsworld |
Scrapiron63
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 8:31 am: |
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Xlaxx, you don't have a problem, all switch boxes will have some 'bleed thur'. I've talked several miles off my dummy load. Even if your hooked direct to the dummy load without a switch box you will be heard for some distance, according to how much power your using. scrapiron |
CM 3885
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 11:05 am: |
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Yes Scrappy is right those switches do bleed some especially when you have a multiple switch for a beam. I know this because ive had it happen numerous times. But now i only use a regular switchbox and a regular meter. I traded off my 4002 for a mobile a year or so ago... When i use my dummy load i only hook one coax up to it and use it that way so that i dont have the bleed. I used to pull pranks on my locals and talk to a guy that lived 3 blocks from me on my dummy load and the other guys would ask him "who are you talking to? Because whoever you are talking to we cant hear them!!!!" LOL! It was a riot!!!!! |
XLAXX
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 12:49 pm: |
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Hey fellas,...Thanks for the encouraging words for sure! I was getting a bit worried. Was talking on a Cobra at the time,... and barefoot so I was thinking that there must be something wrong with this meter. 307 had worked on this particular radio and I was checking it out (more to come about the review on this radio too, 307 brought this rig back from the dead).
Alsworld- me too, I like the lite on it. It's pretty cool looking when it's on but I can hear a hummmmm through my headphones when the light is on. You can not hear the hummm though when you transmit thru the antenna but you can thru the dummy load. I like to hear if I'm pinched or not when I do run a seldom box, and that's very rare.
Right outta the box the Dosy was swinging away. My PDC was either too tight or on its last leg, I'd like to calibrate it or somehow fix it as I have had it since only July 2002! I haven't run much power through it but did have an SWR problem (too high) for a couple months, maybe too much reflected power back through the line???
Scrap/Alsworld/3885-can you explain RMS or peak. On the Cobra my RMS was about 6-7, peak about 18+, what should you be looking for ideally and legally?
Thanks again guys, I like this forum a lot, man am I learning so much!!
XLAXX |
Alsworld
| | Posted on Friday, January 03, 2003 - 7:40 pm: |
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XLAXX,
I think DE posted a great reply in another post about the RMS/PEP power. Yes, it's like your true average power. The PEP shows what you swing up to. Basically, a legal CB is only allowed to deadkey 4 watts of power. If you are DKing 6-7 watts, no one will shoot you. Swing is another thing all together that swings the watts up to PEP, 18+ in your case. I think you have it figured out now.
My 4002 also hums in the headphones, but it's funny I had never noticed it did not with the light off until I read your post and checked mine. Yep, same thing. Hey thanks! I learned something new.
Alsworld |
Sparkomatic
| | Posted on Saturday, January 04, 2003 - 8:14 am: |
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Birds are the best meters for reading true average power.........but for tuning up a radio a peak reading Dosy is much better. |
Bigbob
| | Posted on Saturday, January 04, 2003 - 9:42 am: |
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Hey look at Tech671s post in "what kind of meter do you need" vote for it load up coppers e-mail,lol. |
Czar
| | Posted on Saturday, January 04, 2003 - 8:50 pm: |
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scrapirion is right about the "differance" between the bird and other meters.Over the years I have seen some radios and amps differ as much as 40% in power readings between bird and so-called "good" meters.If you want one for general purposes then get ANY one,anything but a bird is just relative ,not accurate at all.This is why we use birds at our shop,broadcast engineers use them,land mobile and marine shops use them,because NOTHING comes even remotely close to being as accurate as a bird.It is the industry standard.I had a friend the other day come over and wanted me to put my bird on hias mobile.He said on his dosy he was getting about 400 watts average,on the bird it was about 260 average.All meters except birds are only good to tell you you are puting out rf.To show power output they are all give or take 5000 watts !!!!! |
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