Manual_EN

Using the Menu

The radio includes a menu system that uses a short term to describe a function that can be somewhat unclear to users, especially users for whom this is their first radio. This explanation of the menu items should help all users understand each menu item.

Entering the Menu

The large key labeled M on the radio serves to enter the menu of the radio. A short press will open the menu to the first item. A long press will open the menu to the last item accessed in the menu.

Exiting the Menu

The large key labeled EXIT on the radio serves to exit the menu of the radio. A short press will exit the menu. A long press registers as a short press and exits the menu.

Selecting a Menu Item

Once in the main menu, the menu items will be displayed on the left-hand side of the screen. The currently selected menu item will be highlighted. The currently selected value for that menu item will be shown on the right. Also, at the bottom of the left-hand side is shown the number of the menu item, ranging from 01 to 51. To find the menu item to access, the up and down arrow keys may be used, or the menu item number may be entered on the keypad. For instance, to access the VOX settings, the down arrow can be pressed 14 times, or the number 15 can be entered on the keypad.

Accessing a Menu Item

Once the desired menu item is highlighted, pressing the menu key will enter into that menu item. This is shown by a small black arrowhead at the top left of the right-hand panel.

Adjusting a Menu Item

Once the menu item is selected, pressing the up and down arrow keys will adjust the setting for that menu item. To confirm the selection, press the Menu key. To cancel the selection, press the exit key. To cancel the selection and return to the top of the menu, long press the exit key.

Menu Explanations

• 01 SQL – Squelch Level – 0-9 – Squelch is a feature of a radio that cuts the speaker when there is no transmission. It usually uses the presence of a carrier signal to detect a transmission and turn the speaker back on. In some cases, it can use an audio frequency as well. The squelch level determines how strong the detected carrier signal has to be before turning the speaker back on and ranges from 0 (off) to 9 (very strong) with the default being 4.
• 02 STEP – Step Frequency – 2.5K/5K/6.25K/10K/12.5K/25K – Step frequency is the step from one frequency to the next when the up or down key is pressed in frequency mode. If you are at 300MHz and the step is 25K (Khz), then pressing the UP key once will give you a frequency of 300.025MHz. Smaller STEP sizes allow for finer control but require more key presses to make large changes in frequency. The default is 12.5Khz.
• 03 TXP – Output Power – LOW/MID/HIGH – This is the Transmit Power of the radio. While the actual values vary depending on the frequency, the basic values are Low - 1.25W, Medium - 2.5W, High – 5W. The default value is H.
• 04 R_DCS – Receive DCS – (OFF,1-104:DCS, 105-208: reverse DCS). – Short Press F+* on the keypad to trigger DCS to scanning. – DCS is Digital Code Squelch. It is a 3 digit binary code that is encoded in the audio transmission below at a low frequency and should be filtered out by the HT so it isn’t heard. It is used to control access to repeaters and other radios which won’t accept transmissions from radios not including the correct DCS code. While the option says it ranges from 1-208, the actual DCS codes are also shown on the menu for selecting. Pressing the F button and then the * (F + *) on the keypad button will start the radio scanning on the current frequency for DCS tones. When a tone is detected it is displayed on the screen and you have the option to save it. See Table 1 for a list of the codes for this radio. The default value is OFF.
• 05 R_CTCS – Receive CTCSS – (OFF, 1-50:CTCSS) – Short Press F+* to trigger CTCSS scanning. - CTCSS is Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System. This system is older than DCS and uses a sub-audible tone added to the audio transmission to deactivate the squelch. Pressing the F button and then the * button (F + *) on the keypad will start the radio scanning on the current frequency for CTCSS tones. When a tone is detected, it is displayed on the screen and you have the option to save it. See Table 2 for a list of the codes for this radio. The default value is OFF.
• 06 T_DCS – Transmit DCS – (OFF, 1-104: DCS, 105-208:reverse DCS) – DCS is Digital Code Squelch. It is a 3 digit binary code that is encoded in the audio transmission at a low frequency and should be filtered out by the HT so it isn’t heard. It is used to control access to repeaters and other radios which won’t accept transmissions from radios not including the correct DCS code. The selection ranges from OFF to 208 and displays the actual DCS code on the screen. See Table 1 for a list of the codes for this radio. The default value is OFF.
• 07 T_CTCS – Transmit CTCSS – (OFF, 1-50:CTCSS) – CTCSS is Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System. This system is older than DCS and uses a sub-audible tone added to the audio transmission to deactivate the squelch. Pressing the F button and then the * button (F + *) on the keypad will start the radio scanning on the current frequency for CTCSS tones. When a tone is detected, it is displayed on the screen and you have the option to save it. See Table 2 for a list of the codes for this radio. The default value is OFF.
• 08 SFT-D – Frequency Deviation Setting – (OFF: TX frequency=RX frequency; ADD: TX frequency=RX frequency + frequency deviation; SUB: TX frequency=RX frequency-frequency deviation) – This setting allows the transmit (TX) frequency to be offset from the receive (RX) frequency. It uses the TX frequency as the starting point and then changes the RX frequency according to this setting and the OFFSET setting. The three options are OFF, ADD and SUB. OFF means that the RX frequency is the same as the TX setting. This is the default. ADD means that the RX frequency will be HIGHER than the TX frequency by the OFFSET. SUB means that the RX frequency will be LOWER than the TX frequency by the OFFSET. The default value is OFF.
• 09 OFFSET – Frequency of Frequency Deviation – (0-999.9999M) – This is the offset amount for the difference between the Transmit (TX) and Receive (RX) frequencies. It can be changed by the STEP frequency to any value that the radio can cover. The default value is 0.
• 10 W/N – Channel Bandwidth – (0:WIDE; 1:NARROW) – This sets the bandwidth of the FM modulation. Since the signal is encoded by modulating the frequency of the carrier (main) frequency, the bandwidth defines how much the frequency can vary from the main frequency. Narrow band can vary a maximum of 12.5KHz. Wide band can vary a maximum of 25KHz. The default value is 1.
• 11 SCR – Encrypted Communication – (OFF, 1-10: 1 to 10 types of scrambling frequency.) - This radio has the ability to use a simple form of audio encryption called voice inversion. This is done by amplitude modulating the audio with a carrier frequency and then using a low-pass filter to select the lower side-band. This basically flips the tones in the voice but it does not change the cadence of the words. Voice Inversion is easily decrypted with basic equipment. The inversion frequencies can be found in Table 3. The default value is OFF.
• 12 BCL – Busy Channel Lock – (OFF/ON) – When enabled, this feature will disable the ability to transmit (TX) when the radio detects a transmission already on the channel. It is possible you will not hear the transmission if you are using DCS or CSTSS squelch codes but the radio will also detect the transmission and prevent you from transmitting. The default value is OFF.
• 13 MEM-CH – Channel Save – (Choose the channel by Up/Down Key and Number Key, press MENU key to Save the channel.) - This will save the current frequency, mode, power level and DCS/CTCSS setting into the chosen channel. This will allow you to program in the different channels you wish to save, without using a separate computer.
• 14 SAVE – Battery Save – (OFF/1:1/1:2/1:3/1:4) The rate between active time and sleep time. - This setting will add a period of time where the radio does not scan the frequencies it is monitoring for activity. This will extend battery life. This includes not only the two dual-watch (DW) frequencies but also the NOAA weather warnings. The default is 1:4.
• 15 VOX – VOX Setting – (OFF: turn off VOX, 1-10: 1 to 10 grade.) VOX is the latin word for voice. This setting uses the beginning of speech, your voice, to start transmitting. This means that you do not have to press the transmit button (PTT) in order to begin a transmission. This is most useful when using a hands-free headset. The VOX number defines how sensitive the VOX circuitry is with 1 being very sensitive, starting a transmission with low talk and 10 being very insensitive, starting a transmission with a shout only. The default is OFF.
• 16 ABR – Auto Backlight – (OFF: turn off Backlight; 1-5: turn off Backlight in 1-5 seconds) – The screen has a backlight which allows for the screen to be seen in low-light environments. However, the backlight also uses power. The firmware is designed to always turn the backlight off after a certain amount of time, or just leave the backlight off. This setting will allow you to set the backlight timeout time in seconds. The default is 5 seconds.
• 17 TDR – Dual-watch On/Off – (OFF: Close, CHAN_A: Default TX Channel is A channel, CHAN_B: Default TX Channel is B channel.) - Dual-watch is a feature of the radio where the radio will listen to both channel A and Channel B for transmissions. If a signal is detected on either channel that is higher than the squelch level, that signal will be broadcast through the speaker. However, since there is only one microphone, the user must decide which channel will be activated for transmission when the Press To Talk (PTT) button is pressed. The transmit channel can be changed without going into the menu by pressing F key and then the 2 key (F + 2) on the keypad. TDR and WX are similar in function however, TDR allows you to hear both channels. This means that having TDR enabled overrides WX. The default is CHAN_A.
• 18 WX – Cross-Band Receiving/Transmitting – (OFF: Close, CHAN_A: TX Channel is A channel, CHAN_B: TX Channel is B channel.) – Much like TDR, WX allows for two frequencies to be setup on the radio. One is for receive (RX) and one it for transmit (TX). If there are other other transmissions on the TX channel, they will not be received by the radio. Only transmissions on the RX channel. Activating TDR will override WX and allow the radio to receive transmission on both channels. The default is OFF.
• 19 BEEP – BEEP Control – (OFF, ON) – Each button push can emit a beep. This setting turn the button beep on or off. The default is ON.
• 20 TOT – Time-Out-Timer – (1-10min) – This is a time out timer for transmission. This means that after a set time of transmitting, the radio will stop transmitting. This will preserve the battery as well as clear the frequency from accidental or intentional overuse. The default is 2 minutes.
• 21 VOICE – Voice Prompt – (OFF, CHI: Chinese, ENG: English) – The radio can announce every key press as well as every menu with a voice. The default is ENG.
• 22 SC-REV – Scan Resume Mode – (TO: Resume scan after 5 seconds pause; CO: Resume scan after signal disappear; SE: After receive the signal, stop scan.) – This radio has the ability to scan through a set of frequencies stored in a scan list. There are two scan lists. This is similar to dual watch, but covers a many more frequencies. When scanning through the scan list(s), if a signal is detected, the radio will stop scanning and allow the signal to play through the speaker. This setting controls the behaviour of the radio after a signal is detected. The three options are TO, CO and SE. TO, or Time-Out, will only let you listen to the signal until the time runs out. This time is fixed at 5 seconds. After that 5 seconds, the radio will resume scanning. CO, or Carrier Off, will continue to allow you to listen to the signal until the signal stops. Then the radio will resume scanning. SE, or Scan End, will stop the scanning process on the channel where the signal was detected. The user must manual restart scanning. The default is CO.
• 23 MDF – Channel Display Mode – (FREQ: Display frequency, CH: Display channel No., NAME: Display channel name) – When the radio is in channel mode (MR) rather than frequency (VFO) mode, it will display the channel(s) currently tuned in on the screen. There are three options: FREQ displays the frequency of the channel in MHz. CH displays the channel number on the screen. This is the ‘slot’ number that the current channel is programmed into. NAME displays the name of the channel as entered into the memory of the radio. This can be done via CHIRP or other software. In VFO mode, the frequency in MHz is displayed. The default is FREQ.
• 24 AUTOLK – Auto Keypad Lock – (OFF,ON) – When turned on, the keypad will automatically lock after 15 seconds. It will tell you to hold the # key to unlock. The default value is OFF.
• 25 S-ADD1 – Whether to participate in list 1 scanning – (OFF: not participating, ON: participation) – When SCAN mode is activated, the radio will scan through all of the channels stored in the selected scan lists. Turning on this option adds the currently active channel to SLIST1. If this option is ON, the channel is in SLIST1. Changing this option to OFF removes the channel from SLIST1. The default value is OFF.
• 26 S-ADD2 – Whether to participate in list 2 scanning – (OFF: not participating, ON: participation) – When SCAN mode is activated, the radio will scan through all of the channels stored in the selected scan lists. Turning on this option adds the currently active channel to SLIST2. If this option is ON, the channel is in SLIST2. Changing this option to OFF removes the channel from SLIST2. The default value is OFF.
• 27 STE – Tail Tone Elimination – (OFF,ON) – Squelch Tail Elimination (STE). When a transmission is complete, and the Press-To-Talk (PTT) key is released, the receiving radio detects the loss of the carrier and turns the speaker off. However, this process is not instantaneous and a short burst of static is heard on the radio. One way to avoid this burst of static is to send a short, sub-audible, tone (55kHz) for ~280ms when the PTT key is released, before stopping the transmission. This signal is detected by the receiving radio, assuming they are using the same system, and it turns off the speaker before the carrier disappears. This eliminated the short burst of static. The default value is OFF.
• 28 RP-STE – Repeater Tail Tone Elimination – (OFF, 1-10 * 100ms) – Repeater Squelch Tail Elimination (RP-STE) continues to transmit for an amount of time after the Press-To-Talk (PTT) button is released. It is able to be set in increments of 100ms from 100ms to 1000ms (1 second). The default value is OFF.
• 29 MIC – MIC Sensitivity – (0-4: 0-4 level) – This sets the sensitivity level of the microphone with higher numbers being more sensitive. The default value is 2.
• 30 1-CALL – One Key Call Channel – (Select the channel through the Up/Down keys and the Number keys) – One Key Call Channel . The default value is CH-001.
• 31 S-LIST – Channel Scan List Select – (LIST1: Scan list 1; LIST2: Scan list 2) – When selecting SCAN (F + *), the radio will scan through each of the channels in one of the two scan lists, LIST1 or LIST2. This option allows the user to select which list will be scanned through. The default value is LIST1.
• 32 SLIST1 – Channel Scan List 1 Configuration – Scan List 1 (SLIST1) can be scrolled through to see which channels are included in the list. If the list is empty, NULL is displayed. No configuration is done in this menu item.
• 33 SLIST2 – Channel Scan List 2 Configuration – Scan List 2 (SLIST2) can be scrolled through to see which channels are included in the list. If the list is empty, NULL is displayed. No configuration is done in this menu item.
• 34 AL-MOD – Alarm Mode – (SITE: local alarm; TONE: Distant + local alarm) – The radio has the ability to emit an alarm tone. This setting determines if the alarm tone will be emitted only from the radio’s speaker (SITE), or if the signal will be emitted both from the speaker and transmitted over the air (TONE).
• 35 ANI-ID – ANI-ID, DTMF communication radio ID – The radio has the ability to respond to a three (3) digit ID code using Dual Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) code. This code can only be set using software, not from the front panel of the radio. The code can contain any digit (0-9) and any of the letters A,B,C or D. The setting to enable the radio to respond to the DTMF calling code is 43 D-DCD.
• 36 UPCODE – DTMF UP CODE – The radio has the ability to send a three (3) digit ID code using Dual Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) code at the beginning of a transmission. This code can only be set using software, not from the front panel of the radio. The code can contain any digit (0-9) and any of the letters A, B, C, or D. Menu entry 42 PTT-ID controls if this code is sent or not.
• 37 DWCODE – DTMF DOWN CODE – The radio has the ability to send a three (3) digit ID code using Dual Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) code at the end of a transmission. This code can only be set using software, not from the front panel of the radio. The code can contain any digit (0-9) and any of the letters A, B, C, or D. Menu entry 42 PTT-ID controls if this code is sent or now.
• 38 D-ST – DTMF Side Tone Switch – (OFF,ON) – This setting controls if the DTMF side tones are echoed through the speaker of the radio when DTMF codes are being transmitted. When set to OFF, the tones are still transmitted, but not echoed through the speaker of the radio.