Midland 75-822 40 Channel CB-Way Radio
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ABOUT MIDLAND
Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, Midland has led the way in supplying CB, FRS, GMRS, weather alert, and emergency radio technology.
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Midland provides reliable communication for every adventure.
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OUR MISSION
Midland is committed to providing best-in-class quality products.
We strive to be flexible and understand the needs of those we serve.
Specification: Midland 75-822 40 Channel CB-Way Radio
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Photos: Midland 75-822 40 Channel CB-Way Radio
10 reviews for Midland 75-822 40 Channel CB-Way Radio
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$92.78
Braden –
I good friend of mine and I each purchased one of these a few weeks ago. This is a fantastic CB! Since then, I’ve purchased another one for a gift for one of my other buddies.I have had zero issues with the fit/finish of the product. No snags or struggles when switching between battery pack to the mobile adapter. The controls are all easy to use and have a good feel to them. I have had a few CB’s in my day, and I’d say it’s safe to claim this is just as good as any of the standard CB’s you could mount in a car. The output power is the same, so there is really no difference. Everything else is antenna and, if you’re in a car, good ground plane and antenna/SWR tuning.I have read a lot of reviews saying that the distance is poor, reception is poor etc. Most of these are probably people that aren’t using a tuned antenna, or are expecting the full CB band range capability out of the rubber antenna that comes with this unit. Nothing against Midland at all here, because almost every handheld CB comes with a small “rubber ducky” antenna, but those things are good for very short range only. If you’re going to use it in the handheld configuration and want some decent range, get the Cobra HA-TA handheld CB antenna. When fully retracted it is 1 inch taller than the rubber one, but it extends to 27 inches and it works very well. Note to people new to this – if you’re using it in the car but in the handheld mode, you’ll be lucky if get more than half a mile of distance for reception and transmission. Since the antenna is in the car, it is shielded by the vehicle. Windows down helps some, but not a lot. If you’re going to use it in the car, use the mobile adapter and an external antenna.For the car, get a decent magnet mount (I recommend either the Lil Wil made by Wilson, or the Cobra HG A 1500. Also, make sure you find a good SWR meter and learn how to tune the antenna. Just Google “How to tune a CB antenna” and you’ll find lots of fantastic resources with step by step directions. You’ll quickly realize that you don’t have to be an engineer to do this! I must stress, if you use this in a vehicle with an external CB antenna you MUST tune the antenna/SWR. If you don’t, you will most likely not be happy with the performance and you may damage the CB internal electronics. This is true with ANY CB radio used with an external antenna. With the provided rubber antenna or aftermarket extendable antenna in the handheld configuration, tuning is not a factor.If you can, go with a fiberglass antenna. The best of the best is a 102 inch steel whip, but let’s face it – that’s not practical for most of us so a good, reputable brand fiberglass antenna in 3 or 4 feet, if you can manage, will work wonderfully (again as long as it’s tuned and properly installed).This is an excellent radio. I’ve also seen some comments from people who drive trucks for a living that are using this thing. With that, as well as my own personal experience, I would highly recommend this CB radio.
Joe K. –
CB radios were very popular in the 70s. 1 in 10 cars had one! In the mid 90s there was some what of a come back that may have lasted for a couple of years. In 2013 there really are not that many CB radios out there. This is the reason I think some of the reviewers think their radio doesn’t work, there is just nothing for them to pick up! This being said, CB radio is still alive and used. Truckers use them so you can always find out what the traffic is like, or where a speed trap is, and there are still people out there with base stations and mobile cbs providing for interesting conversation. Just not as many as 35 yrs ago. Having base stations, mobiles, and handhelds in the past I decided to re-enter the cb world with this Midland. It came nicely packaged with everything that is advertised. First I put batteries in it and listened in the house. Heard truckers on 19 plus found that on 20 there is a whole group of locals that talk on their radios nightly. This was just using the included antenna. Next I hooked it up to an old Firestik IBA5 Indoor Cb Base Antenna I had stored away, and I was picking up enough transmissions for the radio to be entertaining! Next day I drove around with the radio in my F150 with the stock antenna and batteries. Nothing. Not a single thing to be heard. Last night I put a magnet mount Midland 18-2442 Mobile CB Antenna on top of my truck, and used the unique cable accessory that came with the radio. You snap it on to the bottom of the radio where the battery pack goes, and you plug one connector into the cigarette lighter and the other to your antenna cable. The radio pack and this device slide off very easily and slide back on securely, so you can attach it to the radio or take it off in a few seconds. I ran the cable from the antenna through the door. Closing the door on it was just fine with no damage to the cable. Now for the big test! I drove 15 miles to work this morning during a major snow storm! The radio worked like a charm. I was picking up all the truckers (a lot of them) and getting reports of conditions around the whole area! The rechargable battery pack allows you to run the radio home off of your AC current, or if you prefer use the regular battery pack for normal batteries, or use the car device with your cigarette lighter. There are also jacks for a speaker and mike. So essentially you can use this radio as a base station, a mobile radio, or as a handheld! Small enough to just slip in your pocket. Also the sound, although not really loud, is vey clear and easy to understand. Radio also picks up the weather bands. I’m very happy with it. I haven’t transmitted to anybody yet, but I can tell transmit works well by testing it with an old handheld I had. Distance would be measured by the type of antenna I use and how I tune it. Once I make a few contacts I’ll get back here and let you know how far I got. I buy radios for fun and in the week I’ve had this I have had a lot of fun with it, and would recommend it if you want to have some fun with cb radio.Update: Yesterday I was in a higher area (in my pick up using the Midland 18-2442 antenna) talking to a base station 7 miles away! He said the radio sounded good! So after using it for a few weeks now, I’m very satisfied and really glad I bought it!
MrCrobos –
I was looking for a radio in case of emergency situations, and this was the perfect solution. More people have CB’s then any other type of radio because of the truck drivers, so I know there’s a better then average chance I could reach someone else in an emergency with this radio. I live fairly close to one of the busiest freeways in the U.S., and can get a signal with this if I step outside of my house. I purchased a simple magnetic car antenna, and love how easy it is to swap this from car power to handheld power, so I know I’ll be ready either way.the sound isn’t super loud, but I can drive with the heater on full blast and the windows cracked on the freeway and hear it if it’s near my head. I’ve had no complaints about the sound quality, and get fairly good reception (so far 4 miles with the car mounted antenna for certain)Most CB’s require a calibrated antenna of a certain length for maximum range, so I’m certain I could get farther range with a smal amount of effort, this functions as well as my old truck mounted CB I had when professionally driving.Great for camping, we talked the whole way down with the car mounts, then kept in touch in the park with the handheld packs. Has a powersave option that keeps you going as long as your batteries can stand (I had to buy 8 rechargeable AA batteries seperately for the charger pack) We did have a few issues when on the far side of the park from each other, but getting to higher ground put us back in touch again (this was a mapped distance of 6 miles from hilltop to hilltop)I’ve had otehr small scale cig lighter powered radios and this one has been better in every reguard. The unit doesn’t overheat, hasn’t blown a fuse, and functions just like you’d expect a quality item to. Standard mounts and plugs for everything but a talk mic. You can purchase a headset unit, or else you’ll have to use this as if it were a Standard CB mic, but you can easily plug any headphone jack in for headphone or external speaker sound.Overall this is a really functional, solidly built, hybrid design for the non-professional driver in need of a radio. I’d recommend anyone who doesn’t wish to purchase and install a full blown CB in their personal vehicle buy one of these, the more people around you with one, the better off you’ll be in an emergency situation.
Flynbike –
Before a recent off-road group outing, a CB was on my short list. After reading plenty of reviews I kept finding myself turning back to this. Finally pulled the trigger and ordered one – even picking up a ~$10 savings on a repackaged one from Amazon’s Warehouse Deals.I’ve had such success with the AA battery base attached that I haven’t even been deeply tempted to permanently install the unit with a fixed antenna. Here’s my take on it after a half dozen trips.Pros – Comes with everything needed to be functional, short of batteries and a fixed mount antenna. – Adequate range on alkaline battery power and stubby antenna. – More than adequate battery life. I did 2 day-long trips before I was tempted – not forced – to change batteries. – Startling clarity. A fellow 4 wheeler asked me what unit I was using, that he wanted to buy one for a backup / handheldCons – might be a minor point – or a technical nightmare – but it’d be mad handy if the unit could be used with 12v power and the whip antenna..In short – there’s not much more to be added to the fine reviews and the strong performance of this unit. For value, clarity, power, versatility and installation flexibility, I can’t see this unit getting beat.Update:Relative to the “Con” noted above… I emailed Midland support to ask about the 12v / whip antenna issue, and to ask about a replacement volume knob. They very quickly and graciously responded that it is indeed possible to use the unit on 12v power with the included antenna. Here’s their clarification: “When you slide the mobile adapter on the bottom of the radio it disconnects the rubber duck antenna on the top of the radio. To avoid that from happening you canplace a small piece of tape on the bottom of the radio over the small squared contact right next to the 2 screws on the bottom of the radio before you slide on the mobile adapter.”A replacement knob was sent as well.I tried out the unit with the 8 AA rechargeable base. Worked great for the trip, staying on a total of 30 hours in scan mode while I ran the batteries out. (Eneloop rechargeables)
AlAl –
This is a really nice compact CB that works great for the occasional user. If you’re planing on using this on a daily basis I would recommend getting a regular CB if you have the room for it (I don’t think a trucker would be happy using this every day).Responding to the negative reviews that say something like “It didn’t work at all”, I wonder what “at all” means. I suspect some of those people may have tried to use the mobile adapter and the small included whip antenna at the same time. My CB’s (I bought 2 of them) didn’t get any reception that way without a simple modification. Note: If you’re using the battery pack it works fine with the included antenna.The mobile adapter has two connectors. One connector plugs into the cigarette lighter and another connector is for an external antenna. When the mobile adapter is hooked up (on mine anyway) it’s assuming you’re using an external antenna so it ignores the included antenna. Without an external antenna hooked up, I wouldn’t get any reception. To get it to work I had to put a piece of electrical tape over the terminal for the external antenna. One of the attached pictures shows the yellow electrical tape I used. This way I could use the external power and the included antenna.ProsIt can fit in the arm rest of a car (at least it fits in mine)It can easily be stored in the glove compartmentIt can be used similar to a walkie talkieAccess the 10 NOAA weather radio channelsThe battery life is excellentConsThe range isn’t as good as a normal CB.I would (and have) recommend this to my friends.
GH60 –
CB radio is no longer the go-to way of communication with the advent of GMRS but I bought this as a back up. Midland is a well known brand and their equipment is reliable.
Barry hollenbach –
As a first responder i been looking for a way to communicate with the truckers on emergency scenes. i have tried every single cb radio portable radio possible and nothing would work or would quit in the middle of the call. i finally found this setup and couldn’t believe how versatile it is.Not only can i use it in the car or truck or the squad but i can quickly go from base to portable on any call and be out there doing traffic control and help the truckers get around. i have used it so much that the county has requested special grants from the state fire board and other agencies to get these for every fire police group in our system
Paul Spencer –
So far this unit seems to be perfect for me. I did order an external antenna and rechargeable batteries.
frank c. –
Works like it should
Evan –
I’m not a trucker but I’m on the road a lot, logging around 30K miles per year. It’s really nice to have a little advance warning before approaching a traffic jam on the interstate and the truckers are usually pretty entertaining, too.I don’t often talk on it but my first trip with it, I was able to warn a trucker that he was dragging one of his brake cannisters off of his rear axle. I felt like that justified the purchase.I have it permanently configured for mobile use in my truck, using the vehicle power outlet and external antenna adapters, so I cannot rate battery life. To get the best results in this configuration, an external antenna (I use Midland antenna model number 18-2442) is needed, and an SWR meter and patch cable to tune the radio to the antenna is recommended. All are available on Amazon.