Relatively recently, I picked up a BTECH DMR 6x2 Pro for myself as my first DMR radio. It’s a very feature-packed radio, hosting satellite capability along with analog and digital APRS, and boasting a quite impressive 4000 memory channels and 500,000 contacts, alongside Bluetooth and an internal GPS, which I’ve found to be fairly accurate. It was fairly easy to get a codeplug set up for it with the help of some videos and the free programming software from BTECH, and I was on the air listening very quickly.

Fast forward a few months of mostly just listening to what repeaters I could reach, and I figured I should build out a hotspot so I could listen to whatever I wanted when I wanted. Of course, it wouldn’t happen smoothly—my first attempt resulted in frying the MMDVM hat by accidentally soldering on the header pins for the Raspberry Pi Zero 2W upside down. So, another 60 dollars later, with a new MMDVM hat and a new Pi with pre-soldered header pins, I was off to the races. After that fiasco, it was on to the software side of things, which thankfully went by very quickly. I also customized it a fair amount, changing up the backgrounds and a few other colors so the web interface wasn’t as bright, especially when checking settings late at night.

Since getting everything up and running, I’ve been spending more time exploring different talkgroups, seeing how far I can reach, and experimenting with settings to make the experience as smooth as possible. One of the coolest parts about DMR is just how connected it makes the ham community feel—no matter where someone is, you can find them on the network, and the clarity of the audio is a huge upgrade from analog.

Looking ahead, I’m excited to dive deeper into programming more advanced features, exploring international talkgroups, and seeing what other capabilities this setup can unlock. My initial foray into DMR has been equal parts frustration, fun, and fascination, and it’s safe to say I’m hooked.