Motorola xpr7550

[SirJ]

For the last couple of years I have been heavily into P25 gear. I live a a mile west of Los Angeles, have a few local p25 repeaters and thats what got me stuck on p25 radios, Motorola, EFJ and even BK, midland. Lately I have been pretty bored with my p25 gear because as a ham op, p25 is not widely used. I have been wanting to have a go with DMR, and am uncertain if I should invest in a xpr7550e. I am not clear if I'd be able to access a local dmr repeater but def could use it to listen to analog and local commercial dmr. Before I go and spend $800 on a new portable I am in the need to know.

How durable is a xpr7550 to say a xts5000?
How's the battery life on the xpr7550 "impress lion"?
Is a xpr7550 the same setup is the xts, xtl,efj as far as zones go? For exmp, I want a minimum of 8 zones, ham analog for zone 1, ham dmr for zone 2, commercial dmr for zone 3 etc etc with 16 scan channels in each zone with separate scan lists.
What's the differences between the standard xpr7550 vs the E series? Only differences I have read are better sensitivity on the E series and slight change on the housing to make it water proof up to 6 feet for 3 hours.

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[K2NEC]

What you have to consider is an XTS5000 is a PUBLIC SAFETY radio. No radio is more durable than that. The XPR series are commercial so they will definitely not beat the XTS however I have dropped my XPR6550 and only had minor dents that aren't very noticeable.
It depends on the battery but I get good battery life out of my IMPRES battery. Enough to last you 2 days.
No the XPR7550 is nothing like the XTS. The 7550 has an infinite channel knob meaning you can have 100 channels on 1 zone if you wished. The programming is also very different. With the XTS you have channel parameters under 1 tab and channel to zone assignment in another menu. With the XPR series if you click on a channel in the software all the options for that channel show up including frequency.
There is a very minor difference between the 7550 and the 7550e. Just audio and speaker fixes. Most people won't know the difference. As for the housing I don't think there is a difference but I could be wrong. If I were you I would just get the 7550. For HAM purposes there isn't a feature on the 7550e that will make a noticeable difference in your communication and it saves you a few $$$.

 

[jackel0228]

I have the XPR 7550e myself and I like it. The only thing different between the regular and the e model is the audio clarity is a little bit better but not 200 dollars worth of better. I do a lot of listening and my battery lasts 2+days no problem. As a matter of fact the only reason I have the e model is because of the character flaw I possess that makes me NEED the best version. Save the money and buy an additional toy

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[SirJ]

I have the XPR 7550e myself and I like it. The only thing different between the regular and the e model is the audio clarity is a little bit better but not 200 dollars worth of better. I do a lot of listening and my battery lasts 2+days no problem. As a matter of fact the only reason I have the e model is because of the character flaw I possess that makes me NEED the best version. Save the money and buy an additional toy

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I have cps open for the xpr7550, where is the option to add multiple zones? I see an option to add more channels if that helps.

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[W2PDX]

Right click on "Channels" on the left hand column, Add -> Zone

The new Zone will appear at the bottom of the list of your current zones and will be called "Zone 1" by default. Right click on "Zone 1" and you can select Rename to rename it. Then right click on that zone and start adding channels (analog, digital, etc.).

 

[SirJ]

Right click on "Channels" on the left hand column, Add -> Zone

The new Zone will appear at the bottom of the list of your current zones and will be called "Zone 1" by default. Right click on "Zone 1" and you can select Rename to rename it. Then right click on that zone and start adding channels (analog, digital, etc.).

Thank you.
Question I went under one of the menus and changed cps to expert mode which enabled fpp via cps, will this make the radio do fpp direct frequency changes ? Seeing how I'd use the radio in the ham band fpp would be fantastic. I know it's a commercial radio and not a ham toy radio like icom,Kenwood and those chinese junk radios, but did see a few videos of the radio doing fpp.

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[alcahuete]

I have a 7550e and absolutely love it. The audio leveling license (I know that's not the exact name) is a friggin' godsend when it comes to listening to amateur radio, just because of the mix of radios. In an environment where everybody is using the same radio, it isn't as much of a necessity, but for amateur use, it's great. The "infinite" channel knob is also great. I have several radios that are limited to the old school 16 channels per zone, and it is a huge hassle.

I also use it for general analog/digital monitoring, as well as various amateur and business repeaters. Works great.

As far as battery life, the 25 or 29 hours or whatever they claim with the 3000 mAh battery is very accurate. It will easily last several days under tx/rx use, and I've gone over a month with just monitoring an hour or two a day, without transmit. That said, the 3000 mAh battery is noticeably thicker and heavier, so I also have a 1650 mAh that is WAY more comfortable for short periods of portable use. That might last 12-15 hours or so under normal use.

 

[mikewazowski]

Thank you.
Question I went under one of the menus and changed cps to expert mode which enabled fpp via cps, will this make the radio do fpp direct frequency changes ?

Sorry but no, you cannot do direct frequency entry on the 7550 or 7550e.

 

[alcahuete]

As far as difference between the 'e' series and regular series, people are missing the major differences, and they might make it worth the extra $$ for you. Just depends.

E series has better receive sensitivity supposedly. Is it noticeable? I don't know.
E Series Enabled model has 3000 mAh battery.
Enabled has Capacity Max
Enabled has WiFi

Note that this is on the ENABLED model and not the Capable model.

That said, the added features for me (namely larger battery and WiFi) were worth the additional cost, which was extremely minimal.

 

[jackel0228]

As far as difference between the 'e' series and regular series, people are missing the major differences, and they might make it worth the extra $$ for you. Just depends.

E series has better receive sensitivity supposedly. Is it noticeable? I don't know.
E Series Enabled model has 3000 mAh battery.
Enabled has Capacity Max
Enabled has WiFi

Note that this is on the ENABLED model and not the Capable model.

That said, the added features for me (namely larger battery and WiFi) were worth the additional cost, which was extremely minimal.

What do you use the WiFi for? The only thing I can see it used for is otap....

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[K2NEC]

What do you use the WiFi for? The only thing I can see it used for is otap...

That's it

 

[N4KVE]

As far as difference between the 'e' series and regular series, people are missing the major differences, and they might make it worth the extra $$ for you. Just depends.

E series has better receive sensitivity supposedly. Is it noticeable? I don't know.
E Series Enabled model has 3000 mAh battery.
Enabled has Capacity Max
Enabled has WiFi.

That said, the added features for me (namely larger battery and WiFi) were worth the additional cost, which was extremely minimal.

The E series comes with the battery the selling dealer orders. In my case, my dealer had inventory of E radios with the slim 2100 ma battery. OTOH, a 7580E from another dealer did come with a 3000 ma battery. So do NOT assume all E radios will come with 3000 ma batteries. You can however direct entry channel numbers. So with the keypad, you can direct enter ch1, 12, 22, etc. I do not notice any difference with audio between the E, & non E. In my case, I sold my used mint non E, for $500, & bought a new E for $500. So it was a free upgrade with 3 more years of warranty.

 

[K2NEC]

The E series comes with the battery the selling dealer orders. In my case, my dealer had inventory of E radios with the slim 2100 ma battery. OTOH, a 7580E from another dealer did come with a 3000 ma battery. So do NOT assume all E radios will come with 3000 ma batteries. You can however direct entry channel numbers. So with the keypad, you can direct enter ch1, 12, 22, etc. I do not notice any difference with audio between the E, & non E. In my case, I sold my used mint non E, for $500, & bought a new E for $500. So it was a free upgrade for free. 3 more years of warranty.

Sounds like a good deal!

 

[jackel0228]

That's it

I did hear there was a new wifi feature set in the works, but I have no evidence of that.

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[Project25_MASTR]

As far as difference between the 'e' series and regular series, people are missing the major differences, and they might make it worth the extra $$ for you. Just depends.

E series has better receive sensitivity supposedly. Is it noticeable? I don't know.
E Series Enabled model has 3000 mAh battery.
Enabled has Capacity Max
Enabled has WiFi

Note that this is on the ENABLED model and not the Capable model.

That said, the added features for me (namely larger battery and WiFi) were worth the additional cost, which was extremely minimal.

All 2nd gen radios are capable of capacity max. Not just the gen 2.5 (e models).

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[Batman_]

Sorry but no, you cannot do direct frequency entry on the 7550 or 7550e.

Should they pull down the four YT videos where they're doing exactly that ?

 

[N4KVE]

Should they pull down the four YT videos where they're doing exactly that ?

Only 7550's with CPS, & FW from the Orient. Or there is a 3rd party program where you can temporarily dial up a freq, but it's lost when the radio is turned off. GARY.

 

[K2NEC]

Only 7550's with CPS, & FW from the Orient. Or there is a 3rd party program where you can temporarily dial up a freq, but it's lost when the radio is turned off. GARY.

Some even say you have to use the option board. It might work but it has to void some warranty

 

[N4KVE]

Some even say you have to use the option board. It might work but it has to void some warranty

I was under the impression the 7550 came with the option board. It was optional in the 6550.

 

[Batman_]

Only 7550's with CPS, & FW from the Orient. Or there is a 3rd party program where you can temporarily dial up a freq, but it's lost when the radio is turned off. GARY.

Nothing wrong with it's lost when you turn it off, because you can reload the entered settings by flipping through a few menu's as he demostrates, and the best part is, it works.

And like one says, if you go travelling or hamfest, you can quickly join in on a group with your new friends without needing a laptop.

Ham radio is like that.

I want that.