Alinco: Review: Alinco DJ-500T (2nd Generation)

[prcguy]

Thanks for the link and I don't find any mention of cross band repeat or full duplex on the Alinco DJ0500T. Can someone who owns one confirm if it has cross band repeat built in?

If the Alinco is an Anytone 3208 series and not the 3318UV-D that would be a shame since the Anytone 3208 only costs $59 new and the DJ500T is around $99.
prcguy

i think it's a re-badged 3208 if anything. that manual matches the closest. and i did mention i had way too many radios, right? i have the 3318e (tri-band), the a8r (anilr8r) and t8r (trmn8r) as well. since i have no need for 220, the t8r is about my favorite handheld with the fm/lw/sw/air capabilities (i realize the 3318e has some or most of these bands) and many very nice touches and originally was certified for gmrs (which was the reason i bought it) but anytone evidently screwed up the application to the fcc and the certificate has been in question for nearly two years and the anytone site says the t8r is 'coming soon'. it's been coming soon for a long time, so i cherish the one i got, dispute or not.

here's the alinco product page where you can view the manual about the cross-band repeat. i have no need of that function, so i can't say off the top of my head.

ALINCO

since the alinco _is_ basically an anytone, it is in the easiest class of chinese radios to program and use. most of the 'problems' you're reading about here are for expanding the freq range whereas, as you point out, most of the other chicom radios come with full range from the factory. but the alinco has a pt90 certification which none of those but the t8r has.


/guy (73 de kg5vt | wqpz784)

 

[golftango]

mtc was closing these out and i got mine for about $75 if i remember correctly. and remember the anytone doesn't have the fcc certification for operation on the business bands.

and i'm pretty sure it doesn't have cross-band since it would need two receivers and i remember seeing no mention of that when i was setting mine up. but that would mean the 3208 doesn't have it either, right?

/guy (73 de kg5vt | wqpz784)

 

[Sporrt]

I was thinking that the DJ-500 is similar to the 3318UV-A. They have interchangeable batteries, and both feature internal VOX.

 

[prcguy]

The Anytone 3208 and 3318 series batteries are not interchangeable, and the 3208 and 3318UV-A do not have cross band repeat. Looks like the DJ500T might be more related to the 3318UV-A.

Still a very good radio and in my personal experience a much better performing radio than any of the other Chinese handhelds like the Wouxun KG-UV8D and all of the Baofengs. BTW the Anytone 3208 and AT-3318UV-A, E and D appear to still have FCC part 90 type acceptance according to the importer.
prcguy

I was thinking that the DJ-500 is similar to the 3318UV-A. They have interchangeable batteries, and both feature internal VOX.

 

[Sporrt]

I ordered a DJ-500t, at 8 ounces, it should carry well in the pocket of a light jacket. I have an FT-60, and it always stays at home. At 15 ounces it's more suited for belt carry, which I don't like.

After receiving it, I'll look at the Anytone batteries.
A lot of good info in this thread.

 

[Sporrt]

I considered that but I'm ignorant at the moment about the emission designations and like. Thanks a lot for clearing that up for me.

The reason I was questioning it was because radios such as the Yaesu FT-60R can transmit narrow but cannot receive narrow. There is, I guess, an audio level loss that the radio has to bump up the volume to compensate for.

Yes, your statement about the FT-60 is correct. The W/N setting did not affect receive. One of my complaints with the FT-60 is the low audio when listening to CPD.

Regarding the DJ-500, I've changed the W/N setting while monitoring a CPD frequency, and there's an increase in audio volume with the N setting. The narrow setting also helped quiet the squelch tail.

 

[kf6olc]

I just bought the Alinco DJ-500 the other day. I was just wondering what type of antenna brand would any of you recommend?

 

[Hans13]

I just bought the Alinco DJ-500 the other day. I was just wondering what type of antenna brand would any of you recommend?

The three antennas that we use are: Hypario 508 (stubby), stock antenna, and a Signal Stick from Signal Stuff (long, durable). The stock antenna seems to do surprisingly well for VHF and UHF. The Hypario performs a little less well on UHF and a little more "less well" on VHF. This is the antenna on my radio 99% of the time because it is very convenient and doesn't trade off too much on performance. The Signal Stick seems to improve VHF but doesn't seem to improve UHF all that much over stock. This antenna is uber-durable for the field.

 

[rbranch]

while scanning channels/freqs and it stops on an active channel, should the display light up or is it normal not to?

 

[Hans13]

while scanning channels/freqs and it stops on an active channel, should the display light up or is it normal not to?

None of ours do. The LED on top does light up (green or blue / primary or secondary TDR).

 

[rbranch]

Ah good to know, thanks for the confirmation.

 

[Hans13]

Anytime.

 

[Baker845]

The PF1 or PF2 and push the D bottom to put it into mode doesnt work. I tried many times doesn't work.

 

[AI6VX]

I bought a DJ-500T from CheapHam and received it a few days ago.
What little I've use it, I like the radio other than the battery life seems really short. For example today I just had it on scanning channels, listened to a net for 20 mins, transmitted 1x for about 20 seconds and by 5 hours later the battery was barely 2 bars, dropping to 1 bar when keyed. Other than the 20 mins of listening activity, the band was dead. Should have been very little power used up.

Right now I have the pack on my CBA battery analyzer to see how it really measures up.

Anyone else think the battery life is poor? Manual says over 12 hours 5-5-90 usage. What does this mean?

 

[AI6VX]

Right now I have the pack on my CBA battery analyzer to see how it really measures up.

Anyone else think the battery life is poor? Manual says over 12 hours 5-5-90 usage. What does this mean?

Completed my test. Looks like the battery is good, 1.25AH at a 0.5A load. I'll have to measure what the current draw of the radio is when not transmitting.

 

[wrath]

There is a big difference in draw when the power saving features are used and if your back light is set correctly , if it's on when it scans it's s battery hog if it lights and stays lit for more than a few seconds on the channel it's chowing down on the battery , also the quality of the antenna plays a role , the higher the gain the easier it hears and the better it transmits , if you have every feature of the radio enabled it's chowing down just listening or scanning in high power more on some rigs draws down the battery , squelch and volume plays ad major role also .

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

 

[AI6VX]

There is a big difference in draw when the power saving features are used and if your back light is set correctly , if it's on when it scans it's s battery hog if it lights and stays lit for more than a few seconds on the channel it's chowing down on the battery , also the quality of the antenna plays a role , the higher the gain the easier it hears and the better it transmits , if you have every feature of the radio enabled it's chowing down just listening or scanning in high power more on some rigs draws down the battery , squelch and volume plays ad major role also .

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

Thanks, I kind of came to that conclusion today. Remembering reading up on power down mode for a different HT, I wondered if scanning all the time was high power consumption.

Today I have it set to a single channel, listened to a net for half an hour but otherwise the channel is quiet. Battery voltage looks stable.

Do you know what "5-5-90 usage" means? Talk, listen, standby?

 

[AK9R]

Yes, 5-5-90 refers to transmit, receive (squelch open), and standby percentages.

 

[wrath]

Look into that 5- 5-90 that's why many repeaters don't go digital because the analog GE master II'S dont wear out they are 100% duty cycle , newer digital machines dont have that built into them any more.

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

 

[AI6VX]

FWIW, I put in an order for the Anytone 3318UV 12V battery eliminator so I can use it to make a larger battery pack for the DJ-500T. Mainly looking to carry it back and forth from home to work and have the battery last for a day of scanning/listening. Will update you guys if I make anything worthwhile out of it.