Citizens band radio or more commonly called “cb radio” offers many types of radio experiences, such as a small number of channelized radio frequencies legal to use. As an example, the man wants a cb in his car or in his house. Maybe you have a business reason, you are interested in starting a new hobby, whatever it is.

This article is written for cb radio beginners or people who may be thinking of buying a radio. I’ll cover what kinds of radios are best to get when starting out and why, and if you decide to give the hobby a try, what will happen to most newcomers. Don’t worry, it only hurts your pocket.

Almost all CB radios have a channel selector on the front and some type of indicator light that displays a number, usually 1-40 or 1-23. Radios with 23 channels are older and unless you get one really cheap or free I wouldn’t buy one of these units. There are plenty of great old units out there, but for reasons I’ll explain later, you have to get a newer setup. If it doesn’t make sense, keep reading and everything will become very clear to you.

Mobile type units vs. base

CBs, for the most part, come in two flavors, basic or mobile types. Mobile units are smaller but can have all the features of a base radio, same power output, however there is a downside to the small size and that is the size of the control knobs on the front. Generally speaking, base radios have larger knobs, and in most cases more compared to the OB. What does this all mean? If you have fat, chubby beer-drinking fingers, fiddling with the small knobs in heavy traffic can be a complete pain in the butt. That choice will be up to you.

Almost all mobile CB radios have an internal speaker, usually at the bottom of the radio. These speakers are garbage. They are overrated, they are cheap and they sound bad. Consider an external speaker when space is available.

Some base cb radios will have a built in speaker, they sound better than mobile but a quality external speaker should also be considered.

Most base station radios also have an internal power supply. It’s something to consider when shopping for a setup. Cell phones are designed to run on a car battery, so they generally don’t have a 110 volt plug. Base units, on the other hand, have built-in power supplies and it’s easy to just plug them in. If you decide to use a mobile as a base station remember that you will need to get a 12 volt power supply or have a spare car battery on hand.

Range distances on mobiles are also much shorter compared to base station due to the size of the antenna. The minimum length for a mobile setup to start working decently is 40 inches. Anything less is a waste, so a cell phone might look great, but it won’t have a very good range, maybe a mile or so.

Basically it all comes down to the bigger and higher your antenna is physically, the longer your radio range will be, assuming everything is working properly.

CB radios as road trip companions

A cb radio in your car can be a very valuable tool. You can get tons of real-time road information from truckers, you don’t even have to talk. Just listening will tell you a lot about road conditions later, you’ll hear about accidents or traffic jams long before any broadcast band gets the information. The best part is that almost all the time you can hear where the speed traps might be. The downside to all this wonderful information is what you have to listen to between reports. It’s not something you want your kids to listen to in general. If you don’t care and it’s just you and your wife or girlfriend, turn up the volume and join in. It can make a long drive seem short when you’re blabbering all the time. You can even make a report if you see something first. The question I hear the most from truckers is about the condition of road scales. You can talk all the fuss you want on the radio, but pay attention when you pass the scales on the other side of the road you’re driving on. For example, if you are traveling north on a highway, look for stops on the south side. Check to see if they are open or closed and relay that information to truckers as you drive down the highway and carry on your rhetoric.

CB radios as base station

And yet another side of the CB radio is the base station. You will find that there is usually a “local channel” in almost any city. There you will find normal people, tweakers and everything in between, and like truckers, you most likely do not want your children to listen to what people are saying.

Having a base station usually means a bigger antenna, which equates to considerably longer communications in terms of distance. Even with a 4 watt radio (the FCC legal limit) it’s not uncommon to get to 10 or 20 miles. If you live in or near a big city, there will be a lot of people at all hours. The CB never closes.

CB begins to get ahead of his life

So get your base going and get out there. He becomes addictive instantly. Friday nights will be spent more in the garage drinking beer and talking on the radio. You will hear many things on the radio and receive advice from many people. One of the first things almost every CB’er wants is radio modifications. In general, being louder and having great signals at receiving stations are the 2 most common mods, with louder possibly being number one.

To be stronger? What does that mean?

This is where the line is drawn between what is technically correct and what people want. It is true that a “stock” radio will be able to be heard on one receiving end, but the real question regarding the human psyche is What listening

You can compare modifications on a CB radio to owning a car and by changing certain parts or modifying the engine, wheels, tires etc. you will improve its performance and make your driving experience more enjoyable. It is further validated when a friendly street race is won. This is absolutely not unlike modifications to a CB radio where fellow CBs notice that your voice on their speaker is louder than others. It is often referred to as “Tree Top Tall or Walkin’ the Dog and Kickin’ the Cat”. You get the idea.

This is where your first questions will need to be answered. I am of the opinion that having a great microphone is important first. It won’t be long before you hear about the infamous Astatic D104 base microphone. (Note that there is a mobile version that is loud but its tonality sucks) The base version is an impressive piece and has a reputation for being a “loud” mic, which means all you have to do is plug it in and instantly Your volume will change, and it will most likely do so from the original microphone.

I find the D104 to be a good microphone and it is loud, however its tonality is not acceptable due to its preamp (the electronics contained in the base of the unit). When I use the word tonality, I mean how well it is amplified in terms of sound quality, not necessarily loudness. Of course, there are a lot more variables than just the mic preamp, but if the mic doesn’t have the ability to capture and reproduce natural, tonally pleasing sound, or if your chance for better-than-average audio is gone, it’s gone. At this point, you can also hammer a screw into a wall with a wrench. It won’t make much difference what modifications you make to the radio if the microphone can’t keep up.

Radios that I think make great starter units

I have to say that there are a lot of great radios out there. I have created this list based on

1. Cost vs Performance
2. Parts Availability
3. Popularity
4. Ease of finding stores that work on the models.
5. Abundant information available and easily accessible
6. good resale value

Cobra

25/29 Classic, LTD

148 GTL

Cobra 2000 GTL – Base unit

Cobra 142 GTL – Base unit

Uniden

personal computer 66/76

Uniden XL

President Washington – Base unit (There are two versions) one with one meter or two meters. The unit with a meter is almost a cobra 148/2000. Technically, there are some slight differences, but the two-meter version is nothing like any of the radios listed here despite the same name. If you end up with an obscure radio, the time it will take for a technician to go through the schematic and bring in some modifications may or may not be possible or simply too expensive to justify.

Example One: You buy a little-known radio for $40 in working, stock condition. Then you get a D104 and I’ll just say it’s 60 bucks. You take the radio to the technician’s place, he has little experience with this model. If the technician doesn’t have the schematic, he will have to provide one or wait and it will cost more money, say $15. Now wait more until the technician discovers a modification. Or maybe he just gives it a “tune up” (that’s left for anyone to interpret what it really is) and charges you 40. So after 155 bucks you have a D104 and a radio that doesn’t really have anything done on it. When people ask you about your radio setup (and they will), you will come up with excuses as to why you have that radio as in “I bought it cheap”.

Example Two: You buy a Cobra 25 or 29 for $40 + D104 for $60. The technician has made many of these radios, probably has all the parts on hand, and can do some good mods in just a few hours. It may cost $75, but look at the math. It adds up to a total of 175, but you get your radius back in no time, the mods will have made a world of difference and your love life. When people ask you about your setup, you’re proud of it and instead of making excuses, you talk about taking it to the next level, moving up in the CB world. It can make or break your CB radio experience. Trust me on that.