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Is a SSB Radio


Guest Brett

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Guest Brett

Have a new cruising boat, it has a SSB is it worth getting new insulators on my new backstay or is ssb becoming obsolete with sat phones these days.

looking at doing NZ and then maybe the islands.

Thanks guys

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Main benefit of SSB is free weather & email via sailmail. (paid subscription though)

Cheaper than sat phone. And if you scream mayday there may be a boat handy that's listening, although I'd put my 10 cents on an EPIRB for that. 

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35 minutes ago, Guest Brett said:

Have a new cruising boat, it has a SSB is it worth getting new insulators on my new backstay or is ssb becoming obsolete with sat phones these days.

looking at doing NZ and then maybe the islands.

Thanks guys

for the small cost I would spend the money.

What Radio and Tuner do you have?

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38 minutes ago, marinheiro said:

for the small cost I would spend the money.

What Radio and Tuner do you have?

Icom and icom auto tuner.

‘it’s all there and apparently works, probably hasn’t been used for 8 years or so at a guess.

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1 hour ago, Brett said:

Icom and icom auto tuner.

‘it’s all there and apparently works, probably hasn’t been used for 8 years or so at a guess.

 do you know the model no's?

An ICOM Marine radio would be one of M700/M710/M802

Tuner AT130 or AT140 (for 802 only)

just checking if you have a marine set or a HAM set eg 718. 

 

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I don't agree with BP's post above. Although it is not as popular as it was once,  IMO SSB still has its place, especially on a long term offshore cruiser. It's cheaper to operate than an iridium go, and, coupled with a pactor 4, faster for email/forecasts etc as well.

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I accept your opinion IT but I’m with BP

 Cell coverage in most of the world cruising destinations are more than adequate to maintain normal life.

on a passage satph is a tech we all understand even if much more expensive however for a short time, however SSB is fiddly and often suffers from problems with either grounding or antenna or operational error.
Where I’d still use SSB is in a longterm liveaboard world cruiser that going to spend extended time in remote areas. Then you would probably have a satph also.

just my two cents worth

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4 hours ago, Black Panther said:

It's a  personal choice I think. The alternatives are easier to use, come with a monthly subscription ( can be suspended when not in use). The only thing you are excluded from is the ssb nets. 

Following Sea is a service that is bridging the gap between Sat Phones and SSB nets.

You subscribe to the right list and get emails from that net sent through to the sat phone. At least that's how I think it works. 

https://followingsea.net/nets  

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4 hours ago, Black Panther said:

It's a  personal choice I think. The alternatives are easier to use, come with a monthly subscription ( can be suspended when not in use). The only thing you are excluded from is the ssb nets. 

Agree. Setting up comms on a boat is a personal choice. SSB might be last century but is still quite fun to use in a geeky sort of way!

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10 minutes ago, Brett said:

Hi I have a icom M802 with a AT140, looks like I will add the backstay insulators and tidy it all up and learn how to use it.

Great radio,  and pretty modern! 

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