W0DBW- Disambiguation on Repeater Tone Encoded Squelch and How PL Can Benefit SWIARC

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The SWIARC repeater on 146.820 shares the same frequency and offset as a repeater in Des Moines Iowa. Some repeater users east of Council Bluffs are plagued by interference coming from the Des Moines repeater. It has been suggested that SWIARC add a PL Tone to the repeater to eliminate the interference experienced by these remote users further east of Council Bluffs.

Debate on the negative impact of the presence of PL on the repeater is driven to some degree by a misunderstanding of PL Tone. An explanation of PL, more correctly known as Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System or CTCSS is not covered here. What this memo accomplishes is a suggestion that could best serve users on both sides of the debate.

Update: The SWIARC repeater failed to file coordination renewal in 2016 and therefore is no longer "grandfathered" from the requirement that all Iowa repeaters shall have a PL tone. The SWIARC repeater is currently in violation of ARRL coordination policy for the state of Iowa by not requiring CTCSS to bring up the repeater.

-w0dbw