At our club meeting Michi HB9EIY didn’t just bring equipment, he put it straight into service. Since then the club station HB9TG has two new features: a repeater that gives you access to the FM-Funknetz, and an APRS station with the callsign HB9TG-10 that works as an iGate and digipeater. Michi built and configured both and wrote a guide for them. On behalf of everyone: thank you very much, Michi!
So that as many people as possible use the new repeater, I’ve summarised his guide here.
What is the FM-Funknetz?
The FM-Funknetz links repeaters, hotspots and apps over the internet. The technology behind it is SvxLink: a reflector distributes the traffic into talkgroups (TG). For you at the radio it stays plain analogue FM. You don’t need a DMR or C4FM radio.
The HB9TG repeater
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Callsign | HB9TG |
| Location | Club station HB9TG |
| Output (repeater transmits) | 439.4375 MHz |
| Input (repeater listens) | 431.8375 MHz |
| Channel spacing | 12.5 kHz |
| Sub-tone (CTCSS) | 71.9 Hz |
| Power | 15 W |
| Equipment | 2× Motorola GM340, SAULink9 interface |
| Antenna | X50 |
How to get in
- Set your radio to 439.4375 MHz, shift −7.6 MHz (transmit on 431.8375 MHz), CTCSS 71.9 Hz.
- Open the repeater. You are then automatically in the local talkgroup 228030 (HB9TG).
- Talk as you would on any other repeater.
Monitor talkgroups are active as well. If someone calls on the network in one of these TGs, you hear them on the repeater and can answer directly: 2280, 228010, 228020, 228040, 228050 and 26379.
Swiss talkgroups
| TG | Name | Repeaters |
|---|---|---|
| 2280 | CQ call, German-speaking Switzerland | Switzerland-wide |
| 228010 | SWISS-ARTG | HB9AK-L, HB9AK-R |
| 228020 | St. Gallen (HB9SG) | HB9SG, Hohe Buche AI (23 cm) |
| 228030 | HB9TG | HB9TG |
| 228040 | Winterthur (HB9W) | HB9W |
| 228050 | Group HB9HD | HB9HD (planned) |
| 26379 | Region Hochrhein (D) | HB9AK-L, HB9AK-R, HB9TG, DB0HRH, HB0WT |
DTMF commands
Control is by DTMF tones. End every entry with #.
| Command | Function |
|---|---|
| 91[TG]# | selects a talkgroup, e.g. 912280# |
| 91# | back to the previous talkgroup |
| 94[TG]# | temporarily monitors a TG or adds monitor TGs |
| 9*# | shows the talkgroup status |
| 92[TG]# | QSY of all participants to this TG |
| 92# | QSY of all participants to a TG chosen by the server |
| 93# | repeat the last QSY |
| 9# | disconnects from the reflector |
After the hang time, or after 9#, HB9TG works as a normal repeater again. Only one module can be active at a time.
Without a repeater: hotspot or app
You can also join the FM-Funknetz with a hotspot or straight from your smartphone. You request access via the FM-Funknetz ticket board.
New: APRS iGate and digipeater HB9TG-10
Right next to the repeater sits a Motorola GM360, the APRS station HB9TG-10. It listens on the APRS frequency 144.800 MHz and forwards the beacons it receives to the internet, into the APRS-IS network. That is where they show up on aprs.fi, for example. The station can also transmit and repeat packets as a digipeater on 144.800 MHz. If you use APRS on the move, in the car, in a camper or on a POTA activation, you will now be seen better in the region.
Links
- FM-Funknetz
- FM-Funknetz dashboard: see who is active in which TG right now
- FM-Funknetz ticket board: request access for hotspot and app
- SvxLink
Give it a try and call on 228030. Michi will surely be pleased with the first contacts through his repeater.
73 de Chris, HB9HJI
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