[seanxair]

Can anyone explain what benefits there are with hand held radios in terms of output power?

E.g. Icom say about the A25:

1.8 / 6 Watts Selectable High RF Output Power
For expanded communication coverage, output power has been increased to approximately 6 W typical (PEP) 1.8 W (carrier) compared to the IC-A24E (5/1.5 W (PEP/carrier)).

Would there be a noticeable difference between 6W/1.5W and 5W/1.5W?

Thanks,

Sean

PS - no idea what PEP stands for either!

[Paul_Sengupta]

Usually means Peak Effective Power when talking radio. Normally only used when talking about SSB (Single SideBand). But I guess they're using the Peak Envelope Power definition for AM.

Assuming linear, perfectly symmetrical, 100% modulation of a carrier, PEP output of an AM transmitter is four times its carrier PEP; in other words, a typical modern 100-watt amateur transceiver is usually rated for no more than, and often less than, 25 watts carrier output when operating in AM.

It's a bit strange to quote that for AM, as you'd normally talk about carrier power. Using PEP for AM is a bit like quoting 500W for a ghetto blaster where what they should be using is the RMS power.

[lobstaboy]

Absolutely no noticeable benefit whatsoever in terms of normal use. Marketing hype.

[Charles Hunt]

Maybe, but 6 is more than 5.

[seanxair]

Maybe, but 6 is more than 5.

But worse if playing golf

[Charles Hunt]

Did a few of those today