Freestar (Digital Voice) Repeater North Norfolk

[2E0AIV]

System panel with latest information on GB7NU Sheringham

http://gb7nu.freestar.co.uk/

[2E0AIV]

Information for Repeaters in North Norfolk Coastal Stip

http://www.gb3nu.co.uk/

Andy
2E0AIV (Co-Repeater Keeper)

[2E0AIV]

Sorry for the blatant plug on my local repeaters, but we are Independent Amateurs (no club affiliations) who have put our time and cash into providing hams communications when they visit the coastal strip which is hidden behind 275ft hills, and other wise there was no access to any repeaters or echolink from sheringham to cromer on the North Norfolk Coast.


http://xreflector.net/neu3/

[M3TSY]

Sorry for the blatant plug on my local repeaters

Hey no problem Andy plug away, this is the kind of thing we're here for and any radio information is glady received

I've worked GB3NU before, I'll have to dig out the old log book to see who it was I chatted to.

[DX Jim]

I have never heard of Freestar before. I am guessing its a cross between D-Star and Free repeater. Is D-star the only digital voice mode currently in use on 2m and 70cm repeaters?

[2E0AIV]

For a quick guide - D-star Digital comes along with the only choice an Icom repeater, system full of bugs and breaking up and not really ready for release, Icom a bit quick off the mark. Along come some amateurs who dont like being told what they can and cannot do, so they work and produce FreeStar Network, which is Digital voice (d-star repeater system) NOT running Icom repeaters. The Freestar is a system of Non-Icom repeaters which the Icom boys do their best to block. Time goes by and Freestar starts to overtake the Icom system with more repeaters worldwide. Freestar does not use the Reflectors as it has its own XReflectors, to make it more confusing the Germans release another software which can run DCS reflectors (just x-reflectors with the code messed around a bit). The original Icom system owners spit their dummies out and stick rigidly to the old icom system, but to date they cant stop progress (amateurs being what they are, experimenters and extremely tight with their cash lol ), but the Freestar system alongside ircddb system have won the day. There are a lot of politics and battles for control of these systems in the past, but i stay out of that as i enjoy playing with radios and experimentation and dont have time for petty squabbles and back stabbing. So if you are not bored, confused or fallen asleep by now, then "you are a braver man than i ghunga din". This is a simple guide to the freestar system for newbies and not intended to anyway be a technologically precise guide to the D-star repeater system.

Ps many people wrongly refer to the radios as D-star Radios, when in fact they are Digital Voice Radios (with D-star repeater capability, as I said D-Star is the Repeater and network system). For Info : I have had 3 years experience in digital radio and repeaters, I am the co-repeater keeper for GB7NU Digital D-Star Repeater.

Anyone who wants any more information of the system, i am always willing to provide guidance and assistance.

Andy
2E0AIV

[2E0AIV]

I have never heard of Freestar before. I am guessing its a cross between D-Star and Free repeater. Is D-star the only digital voice mode currently in use on 2m and 70cm repeaters?

In a Word Yes, There is Mototrbo Digital, but as yet there are no UK repeaters on the network, there is one pending in yorkshire, but there does not seem much interest in the system in the UK because of lack of repeaters (and expense). Yeasu have announced the Dawn of a new Digital era with the Yaesu FT1D using C4FM, which uses the same AMBE2 chip as Mototrbo (not campatible) but over a year later no sign of the Digital Revolution that Yaesu promised. Me thinks that they have missed the boat, and it would suffer in the same way as Mototrbo, No Repeaters, so why would amateurs buy one ? The cost of repeaters for both these systems is prohibitive.

So looks like we are stuck with the D-star repeaters for some time to come.

PS we have already cracked analogue to digital and vice versa on our repeaters last year, with the Allstar (analogue) system using bridging software.

Andy
2E0AIV

[DX Jim]

For a quick guide - D-star Digital comes along with the only choice an Icom repeater, system full of bugs and breaking up and not really ready for release, Icom a bit quick off the mark. Along come some amateurs who dont like being told what they can and cannot do, so they work and produce FreeStar Network, which is Digital voice (d-star repeater system) NOT running Icom repeaters. The Freestar is a system of Non-Icom repeaters which the Icom boys do their best to block. Time goes by and Freestar starts to overtake the Icom system with more repeaters worldwide.

After reading those first lines i was instantly behind it. The reason i asked my first question was because i was under the impression that icom had dominated the ham digital market or at least 2m and 70cm repeaters with d-star and wondered if there were any other alternatives to which you have answered that question with good news. It is nice to see the everyday man on the street do something for themselves instead of big business taking over it which seems to be the problem a lot nowadays.

I have read here and other places that d-star is ambe and the same standard dmr as mototrbo and nexedge etc so it seems fairly possible to have a repeater capable of handling all three. I may be wrong but i did hear that kenwood nxdn can be used on mototrbo systems and vice versa

[2E0AIV]

The AMBE Chip is the same - but the digital keys and software are proprietary - in other words none of the big 3 will share with each other as it is a dog eat dog market. When motorola swallowed up yaesu and vertex standard (pmr buisness name for yaesu) there was hope of interoperability, however, Motorola sold the yaesu name (ham branch) and business back and kept the lucrative Vertex Standard (business PMR radio), so Motorola and Yaesu are rivals again. Icom had at the time the IDAS system for business but again despite the AMBE2 chip was not compatible with Motorola or Yaesu and seems to have died a death by the price of IDAS equipment on FleaBay these days. I visited Icom as an advisor to a PMR business a few years ago and although i was impressed with IDAS and its capabilities, but the prices did not impress me. The IDAS equipment that was purchased for demo by the company is still in storage 3 years later through lack of contracts, after the military pulled out on the original contract due to military cutbacks, nothing to do with the capability of the system.