Antenna work has been done to the recieve antenna for 145.350, W4TTR.  Dave.KX4I, and crew made a climp early June to install a new db-224 antenna for the D-star machine.  Also the UHF box, 442.900, was removed as it has been down from some time.  Efforts will be made to get it fixed and back on the air as soon as possible.  Also there is plans to put the 1.2 box on as well.  Hopefully it will work great at this height.  

Stay tuned for other updates as I belive other trips are planned soon and there is still discussion on how to get the internet connection to the sever box on the tower.

Hope to hear you on the tall tower soon.

W4MD - David

The Tall Tower Repeater Group (KX4I, W4MD, KG4MPU, KG4QBE, W5TW) is a group of hams that have an extreme interest in D-Star.  This interest accelerated around the 2006 Dayton Hamfest and by June 2006, the first D-Star system was on the air in Tuscaloosa, Alabama under the call of W4KCQ (Tuscaloosa Amateur Radio Club).  Dave, KX4I, expressed interest in putting a D-Star system on the Tall Tower located about 23 miles North of Tuscaloosa, Alabama.  Icom indicated the D-Star equipment was not designed to function under conditions that would exist from being mounted on a tower at 1900 feet.  That provided our incentive to try the impossible and a complete D-Star system was purchased by the group at the Huntsville Hamfest in August 2006 (from Mark at HRO Atlanta). The W4TTR repeater call arrived August 31, 2006 and Ports C and B went on the air at 1900 feet.  Port C has separate DB 224 antennas mounted above and below the repeater box.  The repeater drives a power amp with about 50 watts out.  The receiver has a pre-amp as well.  Port B is duplexed into a Hustler antenna.  Coverage is exceptional on both ports and port A is to be installed soon.  The Gateway machine is loaded, tested, and installed at 1900 feet awaiting the Internet connection.

D-STAR (Digital Smart Technologies for Amateur Radio) is a digital voice and data protocol specification developed for use in amateur radio. D-Star compatible radios are available on VHF and UHF amateur radio bands. In addition to the over-the-air protocol, D-Star also provides specifications for network connectivity, enabling D-Star radios to be connected to the Internet or other networks. D-STAR is the result of research by the Japan Amateur Radio League to investigate digital technologies for amateur radio.

The W4TTR Tall Tower Repeater Group     welcomes you to the W4TTR Website! 

The W4TTR Web Site Support:

W4MD
David Drummond

KG4MPU
Tommy Howell

W4TTR D-STAR NET

The W4TTR tall tower net will be re-starting soon on Wednesdays at 8:30 PM.  Check for the date.