Virginia's Amateur DMR Linked Repeater Network
Virginia's Amateur DMR Linked Repeater Network
DMRVA is a Virginia-based, Commonwealth-focused digital mobile radio linked repeater system for amateur radio. For updates on the status of the system and repeaters, check the posts below often.
If you have questions please drop us a line.
73,
Jay – KD4BPZ
James – K4JK
Effective this week the local talkgroups of DMRVA repeaters in South Hill, South Boston and Farmville (new) are tied together. Click on the map to enlarge.
This allows stations throughout southside Virginia to enjoy coverage through many areas including the counties of Halifax, Mecklenburg, Lunenburg, Prince Edward as well as portions of Charlotte, Nottoway, Cumberland and Amelia. This will be especially useful for travel along 360, 460, 15 and other roads. There will always be low spots in areas especially near rivers, etc. Of course you can use VA Statewide to make calls to all repeaters across the state as well.
An updated version of the TG matrix / repeater listing has been published for all to review. This is the official up to date list of repeaters and talkgroups that are available on the repeater system. There are no major changes to talkgroups. One repeater had a frequency change (South Hill) and there are two new repeaters (Franklin and Middlesex Counties). See changes highlighted in red on that page.
Also for the moment we have paused updates and hidden the repeater page on this site, and will rather focus on ensuring that the TG matrix / repeater listing is the most up to date source. Hopefully this will reduce any confusion.
This won’t impact users of DMRVA, but if you operate on the BM network at any point and have a radio ID that starts with a 1 (i.e. 1xxxxx) then you won’t be able to use their system. The full announcement from BM is available at this link. At a glance, this will require 9,000+ users worldwide to reconfigure their radios, including some 230 hams in Virginia. To be clear, if you have a properly issued radio ID from radioid.net, it will continue to work just fine on DMRVA repeaters.
The South Hill (Mecklenburg county) area DMRVA repeater changed frequency pairs to 444.125 MHz (+5) this weekend. Please spread the word about this change and reprogram your gear as needed. There are no changes to talkgroups and repeater coverage should not change. Please feel free to send any comments or questions . The DMRVA team wishes to thank several amateurs who have been involved in ensuring DMR coverage is available in this area. K4MJO (both Sammy and Matt) have been instrumental supporters. WB4EOT and KO4YXG have often been boots on the ground and are always willing to assist. We hope all amateurs enjoy this system as a continued resource to the community.
Happy New Year! We are pleased to report two more repeaters joining the network in the coming weeks. K2VIZ is adding a site in the Middle Peninsula / Middlesex County area on 440.625 MHz +5 CC1 with a January 2025 ETA. WB4EOT and the Roanoke team is adding a Franklin County / Thornton Mountain area site on 145.080 MHz out/146.480 MHz in +1.4 MHz split CC1 (yes it’s an odd split but SERA approved) with a March/April 2025 ETA. This will be our third VHF site on the system.
The lower pin on the map reflects the combined coverage of the new Franklin County site along with the other Roanoke area systems. Look for more announcements and more specific maps/pictures in the coming weeks.
Please keep clear of TS1 talkgroups on the RATS 443.5875 repeater (DMRVA “RIC” zone) during this event. This includes Richmond Metro, TAC A & B, the Virginia regional talkgroups, and “private” radio-to-radio calls. Virginia Statewide and HEARS on TS2 may be used as normal without interference to marathon operations.Please keep clear of RVA Metro (27500/31511) on all repeaters and hotspots. If you wish to utilize one of the TAC channels or regional talkgroups, please use one of these other DMRVA network repeaters serving our area: Beaverdam (BEA), Goochland (GCH), New Kent (NKC), or Powhatan (POW). Note that you will be be competing against TS1 activity on Richmond Metro; VA Statewide is recommended. Full details about this event can be found at this link.
A new talkgroup matrix has been published for all users. This covers small changes to the system including the addition of the Goochland repeater, the VHF repeater in Roanoke/Salem and other small tweaks. The Linden repeater has been off the air for a few months due to a lightning strike and we are working with the admin to see if we can assist with restoring that system. For the moment it has been removed from the matrix. We are always looking for new areas of the state to add coverage. Feel free to drop us a line if you have ideas.
We have learned about the recent passing of Sammy (Simmons) K4MJO. Sammy operated the South Hill site and played a prominent role in expanding DMR to this and other areas of Southside Virginia. Sammy was a friend to all on the air and was also involved with numerous other repeater projects for many years. We will certainly miss his involvement in the hobby. The South Hill repeater site will continue to operate without interruption.
The K2VIZ 443.4375 MHz (CC1) repeater located in the Gum Springs area of Goochland has joined the network. Testing with a mobile radio has demonstrated coverage from Ferncliff (Louisa County) to Rockville (Goochland) along I-64. This repeater will bring coverage to other areas in Goochland, including Shannon Hill, Gum Springs and Hadensville including routes 250 and 33.
The TG line up is the standard DMRVA talkgroup including Richmond Metro. This system enhances the coverage around metro Richmond, complementing the existing sites such as Beaverdam, Richmond, Petersburg, Powhatan and New Kent. Look for an updated talkgroup matrix to be published shortly.
8/13/2024 update: all links are restored and operating properly.
Previous post from late July: Most links between DMRVA and N4HRS sites are experiencing issues at the moment. This is impacting all N4HRS sites with the exception of NRV, South Boston and Rocky. Virginia Statewide works to all DMRVA repeaters and to external networks (like K4USD) but is not passing to N4HRS at this time. This includes TAC channels and others. We hope to have this resolved soon.