Mike,
If you're looking for a "commercial-grade" repeater, buy a TKR-740
rather than a TKR-750, or a TKR-840 instead of a TKR-850.
The Kenwood TKR-x50 repeaters are their economy, low-tier repeaters that
do quite well at construction sites and non-demanding applications. As
integrated, full-duplex transceivers, they are comparable to Motorola's
GR-1225 repeaters. While they ARE offered commercially, they are of
modest quality. Such repeaters have a number of useful features and are
fairly reliable, but neither Kenwood nor Motorola is even suggesting
that they are their "top-of-the-line" offerings. I wince at any
suggestion that such repeaters are even considered for public-safety
service.
I have experience with both TKR-750 and TKR-740 repeaters, and there is
NO comparison. The TKR-740K3 is a fantastic machine in Kenwood's
high-tier line, light years ahead of the TKR-750K2, for 2m service. The
TKR-740 is a 1U rack-mount unit that does NOT contain a power
amplifier. It is essentially a full-duplex receiver and exciter that
can output a drive signal between 100mW and 5W. Most of the
public-safety agencies in my county use TKR-840 repeaters in a simulcast
system, since it has a an input for a 10 MHz GPS reference signal. My
current project is the marriage of a Kenwood TKR-740K3 repeater with a
Motorola TLD1692D 100W power amplifier. It was an easy task to adjust
the power output of the TKR-740 to 500mW (+26.99 dBm) to drive the PA,
and there is a TXS output already in place to key the A- line input on
the PA. Unfortunately, the TKR-740 receiver cannot properly respond to
a Motorola reverse burst, but that is a deficiency that I can live
with. (Geez, I wish Ham radios could encode and decode reverse burst!)
It's true that a TKR-740K3 costs about $2,200 to the TKR-750K2's $1,100,
and the former does not include a power amplifier, but the quality and
feature differences are significant. Caveat Emptor!
I personally prefer Motorola products, and the MTR2000 is my preference
for an excellent repeater, but I have to give Kenwood credit for the
excellent design and execution of the TKR-740 and TKR-840 repeaters.
73, Eric Lemmon WB6FLY
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