InterceptRadio.com Forums

reprint of email that I found.

A quick “heads up” that the Western Washington Amateur Relay Association (WWARA – the repeater coordinating body for Washington State) is in the process of drafting and approving a proposal to require all FUTURE coordinations of repeaters to be narrow-band instead of wide-band. Under the current proposal existing systems will be able to remain as-is until a to-be-established future date. (this point is part of what is still being worked on)

Most of this stems from and parallels FCC requirements for commercial users to convert to Narrow-band back in the beginning of 2013. Amateur radio (and some others) are exempt from that requirement, but many users are moving to implement changes to narrow-banding before it becomes a requirement (there is currently no date established to do so).

In the Amateur world, channel sizes throughout the US are typically:

1) Wide – 20-25khz
2) Narrow (1) – 12.5khz
3) Narrow (2) – 6.25khz

It is important to note that there are both analog and digital “wide” and “narrow” systems. Just because it is “narrow band” doesn’t mean it’s a digital system.

Why do it at all if it’s not required?
Good question. Many will argue that there’s no need to move until needed. Here are a few reasons to do so:
1) Spectrum use – more channels mean the ability for more repeaters. Currently there are no open (unused) frequencies on 2m or 70cm. Moving to narrow-band will open up more channels for use.
2) Equipment availability – Currently there is quite a bit of “surplus” commercial equipment available from the commercial market as those users have replaced their old equipment with FCC mandated narrow-band equipment. While this is helpful to amateurs in the short run, most amateur equipment produced in the last 5-10 years has been made both wide and narrow band capable. Fusion, D-Star, and DMR equipment is already narrow-band. Going forward, wide-band equipment will become increasingly hard to get.

So what do we do?
The reason for this post is to make you aware that the change is coming, and to start a discussion around the topic. Inevitably there will be a lot of questions that will need to be answered for all involved. I would like for us as a club to consider moving our systems to narrow-band sometime next year if/when the WWARA’s plan is finalized and adopted. The reasons for this I’ll address in future emails.

Beyond that, it’s good to keep in mind when thinking about any future equipment purchases you may make. Our club Fusion repeaters are already narrow-capable, so are most HTs and mobile radios bought within the last several years. If you are unsure if your particular radio is narrow-band capable, take the time to break out that dusty owner’s manual and take a look!