Motorola TRBO

WQOQ867 · #1 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 2:27 AM

Hello All,

I work for a large company (300 Radios) the is currently on a UHF analog repeated system. If our department wanted to go to TRBO to use features like text messaging and the private calls could we do it by having a channel that is not repeated in TRBO format. Would the features still work when we were on the analog channel with all the other departments? i.e. If i were on the main analog channel and a private call came in for me would i still be able to get that call. We just don't have the money to have the entire place go TRBO but our department would really benefit from private calls to each other. Thanks.

szron · #2 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 3:05 AM

What I think you're asking is if a normal analog repeater would repeat TRBO.

Answer is no.

As far as I know you would have to go all the way to make it work.

If you can get your hands on MDC-1200 that would be the low cost alternative. No text messaging per se but you could do statuses and selective calling.

Thunderknight · #3 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 6:05 AM

I think there are a couple of questions to be answered here (I don't have those answers, but someone here does I'm sure):

1) Can a TRBO repeater pass both analog and TRBO (would not be at the same time though)? If so, you could buy a new repeater and some new portables, and keep the rest analog.

2) Can texting/private calls work in TRBO simplex?

Either way, if you only have 1 repeater, you won't be able to do both analog and TRBO features at the same time (simultanously) through the repeater.

MikeOxlong · #4 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 6:05 AM

No, your radio would need to be on the TRBO channel fulltime to receive the calls and text messages.

You could try scanning between the two channels but it wouldn't be very reliable.

WA0CBW · #5 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 11:57 AM

Text messaging/private calling only work in the MotoTrbo mode (digital). When using a MotoTrbo repeater in digital mode the modulation is a 2 time slot TDMA transmission. This would allow two simultaneous digital conversations. When in the analog mode it is like any other analog transmission with a single user/talkgroup at a time (no private call; no text messaging; one talkgroup only). When talking radio to radio in the MotoTrbo digital mode is is a single user/talkgroup at a time. Only when going through the MotoTrbo repeater is there 2 time slots.
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ramal121 · #6 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 9:09 PM

What you can do if you don't want to switch out the entire fleet, is to replace the repeater and your departments radios with TRBOs. Then run things in mixed mode. The other departments will work in analog only as before and your department could have two channels, one analog for compatibility with the old radios and one digital that would encompass all the frills of TRBO.

I will say I'm not a huge fan of running mixed mode. Not that it won't work as advertised, it's just a little more cumbersome and the mouth-breathers have a hard time with it, if you know what I mean.

szron · #7 (**permalink**) 01-22-2013, 10:45 PM

Find a company that deals with radios like that and go talk to them.

Tell them your budget and what you want. But my quick guesstimate is as follows:

300x $400 - Handhelds, and that is based on ebay prices adjusted for a bulk order (I had to start somewhere as there are no official Motorola price lists). If you want mobiles they usually are more expensive and come with mounting costs, antennas...

A repeater? Hmm... I would say 5k for Motorola one, you could try Hytera for maybe half of that.

And the accessories, extra batteries, chargers, hell... even training for the employees.

This fun party called "switching to digital" would cost at least 150k.

If you are serious look into Hytera, they offer same stuff but without Moneyrolla logo on it. And as I heard from a very good family source, their stuff is top notch quality.

JRayfield · #8 (**permalink**) 01-23-2013, 9:55 PM

Some of the MOTOTRBO equipment that has shown up on eBay was from out of the country and was not supposed to be sold in the U.S. This has been a problem for many years with Motorola equipment. Using a non-FCC Type Certified unit can be a very costly 'mistake'. Be very careful when buying any radio equipment on eBay if the price seems to be 'really really good' and the units appear to be new (or very close to new). Sometimes, you can really find a 'great deal' on eBay, but sometimes, the 'deals' are not so good for the buyer.

The cost of a MOTOTRBO portable will probably range from around $400 to $450 on up to around $800 per unit, depending upon the exact model and quantity purchased, and depending upon how much of a discount off of list price you can get. There are a couple of new models (the XPR3000 series) that don't come standard with all of the various 'modes' (trunking, for example) and they aren't submersible, so the cost for these units can be quite a bit less than the higher-tier models.

List price for an XPR8400 MOTOTRBO repeater is about $2800 (without duplexer).

As to Hytera offering the "same stuff" as Motorola, they do not. There are numerous differences between the Hytera DMR products and the MOTOTRBO products, for example in features, quality, performance, and durability. Anyone who is serious about purchasing DMR equipment, needs to make sure that they compare the two product lines carefully, before making a final decision to buy one based on a 'lower price'. There's a lot of truth in the old saying "You get what you pay for". For some applications, a 'lower price' product may be a perfect 'fit'. But in other cases, it can be the wrong 'fit'.

John Rayfield, Jr. CETma

Quote:

Originally Posted by szron

Find a company that deals with radios like that and go talk to them.

Tell them your budget and what you want. But my quick guesstimate is as follows:

300x $400 - Handhelds, and that is based on ebay prices adjusted for a bulk order (I had to start somewhere as there are no official Motorola price lists). If you want mobiles they usually are more expensive and come with mounting costs, antennas...

A repeater? Hmm... I would say 5k for Motorola one, you could try Hytera for maybe half of that.

And the accessories, extra batteries, chargers, hell... even training for the employees.

This fun party called "switching to digital" would cost at least 150k.

If you are serious look into Hytera, they offer same stuff but without Moneyrolla logo on it. And as I heard from a very good family source, their stuff is top notch quality.

MTS2000des · #9 (**permalink**) 01-25-2013, 10:04 PM

Hytera, great products, but they must be hiring a bunch of junior programmers to write their firmware.

Case in point: we have a handful of Hytera DMR systems in Georgia, and even a ham one. The problems with buggy firmware on repeaters is causing some customers to re-think their purchase decisions. When V5 firmware came out, it broke more things than it fixed.

Motorola, OTOH, seems to be more cautious about checking their work before releasing new FNE and subscriber firmware.

I have XPR6500 and XPR6550 radios, ironically, using them on the networked (non trunked) Hytera DMR systems- and don't experience the problems of dropouts and garble the Hytera subscribers are experiencing on the Hytera repeaters.

What does this tell you? What Rayfield said, you get what you pay for.