My name is Collin McKinley, KC1TIZ. I am an extra class ham operator out of Boston, MA. I primarily operate on 2m and 70cm, with 70cm being my favorite. However, I have also been known to work HF. You can check out my page on QRZ here. I am a part of Northeastern Universitiy's amateur radio club, NU Wireless. So you may also hear me using the call W1KBN. Either way, if you hear any of those calls, make sure to say hi.
Me, using a scanner to listen to marine traffic in Salem, MA
I have a legal obligation to document my digital mode called DTFSK. It uses DTMF tones to send digital data. Its horribly slow, but easy to implement and fun to use, and probably been done before. I claim no credit over it.
Below is some of the gear I use and very highly recommend.
Radioddity DB-25D
I originally bought this radio because I wanted to use DMR on a local repeater, but it quickly became one of my favorite radios I own. The interface is awful but I have learned it through trial and error. Aside from the bad interface, the radio itself is really packing a punch. It is able to output 20 watts and can easily reach any repeater in the Boston area extending out about 20 miles! The voice quality on it is likewise pretty good. The DMR implementation is also quite good. Overall pretty nice mobile radio.
Yaesu FT-65r
This was my first upgrade radio I bought, and for the price its a pretty sick radio. I like to describe it as 4 times a Baofeng UV-5R, since its about 4 times the price, and also 4 times as nice to use. The radio itself is built like a tank, and is even IP-65. The receiver is fairly good at blocking out nearby high powered transmissions, and the transmitter is specturally pure. Overall a great upgrade from a Baofeng or similar!
Baofeng UV-5R
Who doesn't own one of these. They are so cheap, you can usually pick one up for around or under $20, and man does it show. These radios are cheap, but because they are cheap, they are a great radio to buy just to see if you'd like the hobby or not. If you already have other radios, you probably shouldn't pick one up. But if you are new to the hobby and need a good starter radio, by all means buy one.
Aside from amateur radio, I have also been pretty active in the scanner community for quite a while. In the future I'm planning on making articles and tutorials showing how to use scanners and RTL-SDRs to listen to the wide world of radio all around you. Maybe even host some live audio streams on here too! I just need to find the time to set it up.
