New guy needing help

[eastfire510]

Hello everyone! i am new to the board and i need some help. I am in the market for a MTS-2000...i have been using a radio that isn't the greatest for public safety. I know little about that model and would like to know....what should i look for in a radio? Also, i heard someone talking about if the radio is a model or version I, II, or III....whats that mean? Thanks in advance,

Ryan

[Tom in D.C.]

We need more info to possibly help you out, such as:

What radio are you now using?
Is the radio for use in your job?
If it is, what are others using?
Are you permitted to furnish your own radio if it's job related?
What band is in use, and what type of transmission, etc.? FM,
digital, trunked, etc.?

There are probably a couple of hundred ways to answer your question
but if you narrow things down it will be easier to give you a useful reply.

[eastfire510]

Well, right now im useing a ham rig for my volunteer fire department...i know....big no no. I have been useing that radio due to the poor quailty of my fire departments radios, the batteries only last about 5 minutes on scan. This radio i want to use in my fire department as well as for use as a ham rig. The department uses legacy PL5161 radios which aren't bad but they have not been cared for since they recieved them. And yes, we are allowd to ues our own radio and equipment. My county is useing the vhf high band (153.XXX) without any trunking or digital communication.

[HLA]

an mts2000 would definately work but probablly be more of a headache in the long run, you would probablly do better with a mt2000, it does more right out of the box. realistically tho a newer ht1250 would probablly suite you better and it will also do everything you will need right out of the box? and it's easier to program than the mt or mts. how many channels do you need?

[eastfire510]

I looked into the 1250s and they look alittle to pricy to me. being on a college budget i could only dream of one of those at this point. As far as channels go I need at least 30 channels for my home county and i need probably another 15-20 for my college county. I'll keep my eye in both the HT1250 and the MT2000....im just a tad confused on what model of radio to get. Thanks for the feedback!

[witthoft]

Kenwood tk-280. Around $200 on used market, does ham stuff and public service. I think it holds 250 conventional channels.

[eastfire510]

Thank you for the responses, i think i might have found what i needed.