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TK-840 Power question

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Josh380

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I just picked up a TK-840 from ebay for $32, mic, power cord and bracket included...sweet.

I can't seem to find any information that indicates how much current this radio draws. I'm looking for a power supply, and want to find one as cheap as possible.

I'm seeing a lot of 10A power supplies, but I'm not sure if it's enough for the radio. Thoughts?
 

N4KVE

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I grabbed a UHF one I have laying around, & on the ser # tag on the back right under the words Kenwood UHF FM transceiver, it says DC 13.6 volts 7a. I would get a supply that can deliver 10 amps continuous. A 14 amp supply should be able to do that.
 

cmdrwill

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Garry, why a 14 amp supply when the radio is NOT continuous duty?

I vote for the 10 amp supply.
 

N4KVE

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I just like to play it safe & always have a few extra amps in reserve, & get 1 step above what would work. Some supplies are a bit generous in their "claimed" output. So for a few $ more, get a few amps more to be safe. One tip. These radios were made for an electrician, or plumber to say What's the location of my next call, or I'm going to lunch now. Any more than that, & they get hot fast while transmitting. They were not designed for a ham to rag chew, if that's why you bought it. A small cooling fan blowing on the heat sink fins really helps with transmissions longer than 10 seconds. Otherwise, they are great radios.
 

N4KVE

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Great, so it is narrow band, & can still be used for commercial communications. But ham is still wide band, so the radio won't do that very well. Most 840's were wide band, so when the narrow band rules started, many people sold them cheap to hams, or threw them out. They are great radios though, & do ham, & GMRS very well.
 

Josh380

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Wait I don't understand. Are you saying that this radio won't do gmrs? I've read threads that seem to end up saying that the radio will do wideband as well. And the seller even said it would do gmrs. If that's not the case then I have a problem.

Upon a little more searching, the model number alhtk-840n-1 is 450-488, which is the one I have.
 
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N4KVE

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The 840 was an early radio that was either narrow band, or wide band, but not both. Your radio has the "N", which means it's narrow band. It operates in the proper frequency range, but GMRS, is wide band, not narrow. So transmitting narrow band on a wide band system will give you low tx audio. Receiving wide band with a narrow band radio will make everyone sound very loud, & could peak out on loud audio. I also have some TK-880's, which are similar newer radios, but you can choose wide, or narrow band while programming. But with the 840, it's either the 840 which is wide band, or the 840n which is narrow band. So yes, your radio is in the proper band split, but GMRS is wide band, & your radio is narrow band. I actually asked this same question in 2011 when I bought my 4 TK-840's, & was told the 840 was wide, & the 840n was narrow.
http://forums.radioreference.com/kenwood-forum/213316-difference-between-tk840-tk840n.html
 
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Josh380

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So the answer is no. OK I'm upset now. Obviously the seller didn't know what he was talking about and now I'm stuck with a radio that won't work for what I want. Grrrr
 

MTS2000des

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So the answer is no. OK I'm upset now. Obviously the seller didn't know what he was talking about and now I'm stuck with a radio that won't work for what I want. Grrrr

Sell it or trade it for an non-N version. The good news is unlike the old wideband only version, the narrow version is legal to use on part 90 and theoretically may have slightly more value. OTOH, these are 20 year old radios long in the tooth. At least you did not overpay.
 

Josh380

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I wish there were more people around here that use radios. It'll take months to sell or trade. I'll probably lose money selling it on ebay.
 

MTS2000des

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Look at it this way: you paid $32 and got a good mike, bracket and power cable. Those items in good shape alone would easily exceed what you paid for the complete setup.

Find a TK-840 wide version, radio only, for cheap. If it's beat up, parts like the front panel and top/bottom cover, speaker, etc even the PA module are the same and could be swapped over. You've got plenty of spare parts on hand and all the accessories you need.
 

N4GIX

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So the answer is no. OK I'm upset now. Obviously the seller didn't know what he was talking about and now I'm stuck with a radio that won't work for what I want. Grrrr

Josh, I just programmed my (new to me) TK-840(N) and have tested it thoroughly on both my repeater and another repeater in the northwest Indiana area.

Everyone I talked to said my audio was excellent, and I had no trouble at all hearing them. I also programmed in a couple of 70cm repeaters in this area and the signal reports were likewise excellent. Granted I am using a 2m/70cm dual-band antenna up about 42' AGL, but still it is nice for me. I actually plan on using it mostly as a "control station" for my GMRS repeater.

I found a source for the USB programming cable and the DOS programming software KPG-25D. I dusted off one of my "old" computers running WinXP, and with a bit of effort changed the USB com port 7 to use port 2 so the software would connect to the radio. The software will only work on com port 1 or 2.

While the KPG-25D software is available for "free download" several places, I just don't trust pirated software to not carry any "nasties" along with the download. It is an original Kenwood CD. Unfortunately, I believe I got the last one from that source. If you need the real software, let me know and I will pass it along for what I paid for it, $19... ;)

This is where I got the cable: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MUHIT0E?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00

I'm so used to using a mouse now, that I caught myself many times reaching for it while using the primitive DOS software. At the resolution I have the monitor set, the DOS Window is relatively small and hard to read. Whenever I create my list of frequencies I want to program completed, I'll reset the resolution to pump up the display for easier reading!
 
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N4KVE

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Josh. Try what N4GIX said. Program the radio up on the freq's you want to use, & if you don't like the way it sounds, I will send you one of my 840's for free. You would just have to pay the exact cost of what USPS wants for postage. I have 4, but don't really use them anymore as I prefer the 880, & the Windows programming ability. So after you're up, & running, decide what you want to do. 1 radio only that works fine for the cost of shipping.
 

Josh380

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Josh, I just programmed my (new to me) TK-840(N) and have tested it thoroughly on both my repeater and another repeater in the northwest Indiana area.

Everyone I talked to said my audio was excellent, and I had no trouble at all hearing them. I also programmed in a couple of 70cm repeaters in this area and the signal reports were likewise excellent. Granted I am using a 2m/70cm dual-band antenna up about 42' AGL, but still it is nice for me. I actually plan on using it mostly as a "control station" for my GMRS repeater.

You know, it's interesting you say that. My HT1000 is the narrowband model, yet after thoroughly going through the rss, I couldn't find any place to designate whether or not a frequency ran wide or narrow. I just programmed the frequencies and ran with it. All reports said I sounded fine. Granted, it's a completely different brand, but still...I see tons of sellers saying that the 840N is wideband capable.

I'll try programming it and see what happens. I still have to get a power supply, coax, antenna, and programming cable (I don't have a car). I'm not sure if I even need an antenna though. I built a 1/4 wave ground plane antenna that I may use, provided that design can push 25w without feeding back into the radio. I have no clue how to test that though.

Moonboots...thank you for the offer. I may take you up on that. We'll see how it goes. It's a way down the road though. Being self employed in a field with a TON of local competition, it takes quite a while to save up cash for even the cheapest things. It took me 3 mos to save up for the radio. I actually posted my HT1000 on Craigslist for trade for a power supply or antenna, but no responses as of yet.
 
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N4KVE

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No problem. After you get all set up you let me know if you don't like the way the radio sounds. By the way, any HT1000 that did narrow band, also did wide. You chose it in the RSS.
 

N4GIX

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Josh, to check your antenna and coax, you really should have (or borrow) an SWR meter. If you have less than 1.5:1 you should be good to go. I normally tune my antenna to the frequency I'm using to try for about 1.2:1 SWR. (See: SWR and TRANSMITTERS - What is SWR all about? Making Sense of SWR Readings for more info).

BTW, there is another Kenwood CD with the KPG-25D programming software available here: Kenwood KPG 25D Programming Software for TK 940 941 840 Series Radio | eBay $15 + $4 postage.

The link in my previous reply will get you the USB programming cable.

Gary, if you would like to divest yourself of another TK-840, I'd be happy to pay double the shipping! I am thinking of putting up another GMRS repeater using a pair of TK-840's and a homebrew controller.

I'm going to keep my eyes open for a TK-880 mainly because of its ability for FFP... ;)
 

Josh380

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Ok. I'm used to testing SWR on CB, not UHF. I never knew that the amount of power an antenna can handle was determined by SWR. Since CB is only (legally) 5W, power wasn't a thought when I was checking SWR. I always used a 102" steel whip on my setup and always had a perfect match.

So is the method for checking SWR similar to CB (Check the high end, then the low, or vice versa)?

Oh, and incidentally I'm going with the DB9 cable vs. the USB. I'm using an XP system that has a serial port. And I've already got the software.
 
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