Isle of Wight Repeater – Page 2 – Analogue FM/Allstar/Echolink

The repeater is licensed for both analogue and C4FM but only analogue FM is currently live and we will be creating a C4FM repeater in the future and the plan is for connection to the Southern Fusion Network. The antenna is a 4 stack so that we have some directivity to prevent interference with both Vectis Radio and the SAR who are also sharing the mast.

I would like to thank Vectis radio for the use of their mast which is located on the high ground at St Georges in Newport on the golf course. They also provide the internet connection and the power, Rack etc and the space for the equipment and without whom we may still be looking for a location.

And Island Crane Hire, without whom we could not have got the antenna up onto the mast.

And our internet providers.

The repeater also has Echolink connected to it so that people outside of its range are able to join the weekly nets that take place on GB3IW. This allows for the amateurs in other countries to join in along with many fellow amateurs that are all over the UK.

The repeater is 2 x TAIT 8200 radios connected with a Raspberry Pi running Allstarlink which will also give it a connection to the Hubnet. I would like to thank Peter G7RPG for all his assistance in setting this up. I would also like to thank Andy G4MYS for the loan of some equipment which has helped to get the repeater working to its best. Once the analogue side is sorted we will activate the digital side so that the island then has a C4FM repeater on it which we will connect to the southern fusion network but it will be in a different location with more signal up the coast towards Brighton.

This is the anticipated coverage with the current antenna which is the 4 stack. This is only an estimation as we have had a 59 report from as far away as Caversham, just outside Reading which was over 90K away

We do have a co-linear antenna ready to be used but want to make a few adjustments to the current 4 stack first. This is what the coverage may look like with a colinear which is not hugely different but the extra gain may help with the incoming signal.

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