Kenwood TK-280 Has Static on EVERY Channel?

[jmesches]

Hey guys,
I do SAR in Colorado and I purchased a Kenwood TK-280 2-way radio. I am using an antenna given to me by the generous person who does the radios for our organization. I am picking up static on almost every single channel except for our home channel (155.160) and NOAA channels. If I angle the antenna the static stops completely and I can still hear radio transmissions fine (just no constant static). The Rx light comes on when it is receiving the static. Do I need a new antenna? (By the way, the other radios right next to mine did not have the problem and they're the same). Thanks in advance.

 

[kayn1n32008]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPad; CPU OS 6_1_3 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/536.26 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/6.0 Mobile/10B329 Safari/8536.25)

Sounds like the squelch needs to be adjusted. It is a soft pot and you need to do it via the programming software

 

[cabletech]

In order to do the adjustment correctly, you will need a service monitor.

 

[jmesches]

Could it be the antenna? Because the person who programmed it with the same program as all of the other 280s we use.

He is rather inaccessible when it comes to needing repairs and can only do it about once a year and I don't want to have to bribe him to come help me again.

 

[kayn1n32008]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9900; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.11+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/7.1.0.746 Mobile Safari/534.11+)

My money is on the squelch level being too low. Changing the antenna will not fix it.

 

[jmesches]

I have a few questions... And please bear with me I am new to the radio community.

1. What is a service monitor, and why is it necessary to adjust squelch?

2. If my 280 was programmed on another computer, can I change just the squelch and nothing else (no changes to channels, keys, etc.)

3. What programming software/ cable do I use and can I get free versions of the software (Mac possible?)

4. If it's a squelch issue then why do some channels not have the issue?

And lastly: The static problem completely goes away when I bend the antenna sideways, but I still pick up voices and everything that I want to crystal clear. Could it possibly be an antenna issue?

Thank you all very much for your experience, feedback, and generosity in helping me out. It is very much appreciated.

 

[cabletech]

I have a few questions... And please bear with me I am new to the radio community.

1. What is a service monitor, and why is it necessary to adjust squelch?

Ans: A VERY expense piece of radio test equipment that is used to service radio equipment.

2. If my 280 was programmed on another computer, can I change just the squelch and nothing else (no changes to channels, keys, etc.)

Ans: If you have the software, cable, and knowledge, to make the changes, then yes, any computer (NOT MAC) can be used, and you can select what changes to make.

3. What programming software/ cable do I use and can I get free versions of the software (Mac possible?)

Ans: Their is NO FREE software or cables and NO MAC versions.

4. If it's a squelch issue then why do some channels not have the issue?

Ans: It is very possible that the squelch is set just low enough, that when not recieving a signal, then you will hear static or white noise.

5. And lastly: The static problem completely goes away when I bend the antenna sideways, but I still pick up voices and everything that I want to crystal clear. Could it possibly be an antenna issue?

Ans: Even if you did not bend the antenna, by putting your hand on it it will restrict the amount of noise the radio is recieving, but not restrict a strong clear signal from another radio.

Thank you all very much for your experience, feedback, and generosity in helping me out. It is very much appreciated.

I am sure that their is a radio shop close to you that has the ablity to check your equipment and make changes. You can not be that far away from a shop.

 

[jmesches]

Thank you very much for your answers.

I figured out a partial reason why everything was static...
I was less than 10ft. away from my wireless router!

I went outside and the squelch issue practically cleared itself up completely.


However, I still need it to be adjusted a little bit because I get a little bit of the same issue when I scan it while driving...


I never though to go outside and it seems so obvious now!

Again thank you all VERY much!

 

[ramal121]

The TK-280 can have a button assigned as squelch. Press it and you can set squelch level between zero and fifteen. In lieu of a button, a single default squelch level can be set in the programming software. If it seems like there just isn't enough adjustment with the zero to fifteen range, the squelch can be re-aligned in test mode with the proper gear as cabletech mentioned.