A New XTL5000: can it be hooked up to a lighter socket?

[mmckenna]

I'm a tad bit confused.

Correct me if I'm wrong here...
You have an XTL5000 110 watt VHF radio at your house. You have it connected to a 12 volt power supply and a base antenna.

You want to have the ability to take it out of the house and use it in your car without doing a permanent mount antenna or tapping into the battery.

Sounds like there is no compromise on the battery connection or antenna install.


Here's what I'd suggest:
Leave the XTL5K in the house. Use a 25 amp power supply if you really need to run it at full power. If you can program it so all channels are set to low power and there is not a button to accidentally put it in high power, then a 13-15amp supply would work for that radio. If you have a bunch of other radios, then you may need to upsize your power supply. Only transmit with one at a time. Use an ammeter to figure out what your total power draw is and acquire a suitable 12 volt power supply with that number of amps or more.

Running 110 watts compared to 50 isn't going to make a big deal. Many agencies have moved away from high power radios since it's not needed in most instances. Even CalFire has gone to 50 watt mobiles… 50 watts versus 100 watts does not equal twice the range, but it will kill your battery twice as fast. Avoid the CB'er attitude of "more watts is better".

For the car, take one of your CDM's or acquire a used one. 25 watts would be ideal. That way you could (more or less) safely use the cigarette lighter plug and a mag mount. But pay close attention to the cigarette lighter plug, it may give you issues in the long run.

I don't know what kind of car you drive, so it's hard to give you much other advice. Usually there really isn't any adequate free connection points in most non-commercial vehicles. They just are not designed for that. Using fuse taps is a bad idea, about equal with cig-lighter plugs.

What if you had a professional shop do the installation for you? Would your parents approve of that?

 

[XTS5000wellesleywv]

Possibly. First off, I don’t really transmit often and when I do it will be for ham; I’m not concerned about using full power. In addition, the reason the CDM idea won’t work is because I primarily will need to use the radio in the car to simply just monitor a p25 system. Currently I use a handheld XTS5000 for that however reception is a bit spotty. In a year or two I am going to get a new vehicle and get a console and everything to do a real good install. For the time being, I drive a VW alltrack wagon and there is really no good way to install a radio in there. Thanks so much for all of the advice!

 

[mmckenna]

OK,

Still, if you are going to transmit at your home, even for a short period, you need a power supply capable of handling that radio.
If you run it at the full 110 watts, you really need a 25 amp 12 volt supply.
If you run it at 50 watts, you probably will need a 12-13 amp supply.


For mobile,
The CDM idea is out.

Putting a high power XTL in a temporary situation like that isn't ideal. If you are ONLY using it to receive, then it's only going to pull 1-2 amps at the most, and running that off a cigarette lighter plug will probably be OK.

Personally I'd get a mag mount VHF antenna and the SMA connector to hook your XTS up, that'll likely solve the reception issues, won't require any vehicle modifications, won't overtax the ciggy lighter, and when you get the new ride, do the XTL install right.

I'd not waste a whole lot of time on this if it's only for a year and given your limitation. Don't overthink it, don't overdo it. Slap a mag mount on the roof and use the XTS. The issue is the portable radio inside the metal cage with likely tinted windows, defroster, noise sources, etc. Get the antenna outside and you'll probably be happy.

 

[XTS5000wellesleywv]

Thank you so much! Really appreciate everything. Last question is a programming question but I already started a new thread on that.

 

[chrismol1]

An XTVA convertacom for the XTS is what I use with an external antenna works very well-
it has a loud amplified speaker
a handheld control head with all the buttons and display you'll ever need
and if you so wish a power amplifier that puts out what was it 20 watts UHF/30 VHF?

 

[kayn1n32008]

Do NOT try and run a 110w radio through a cigarette lighter plug. It will melt. Period.

To transmit on high power, a 110w radio is going to want at least a 20A power source.

A 10A power supply is not going to cut it.

 

[XTS5000wellesleywv]

Yes but for strictly monitoring it should be fine right?

 

[cmdrwill]

Yes but for strictly monitoring it should be fine right?

IF the radio IS programmed to receive only. Most RX only radio setups are fused at 4 amps or less.

 

[RKG]

Not to pile on, but trunk mount XTLs expect the deck to see full time power, while the control head is powered up as needed, either via the ignition sense line or the head's power button. This means that when the head powers up, it expects to see the deck already fully booted. If you do otherwise (such as paralleling the deck and head power cables), you are likely to see power up errors.

The bottom line is that a tool has to fit the job. Given your stipulations on hook up to the car, a high power trunk mount XTL is the wrong tool for your application.

 

[cmdrwill]

RKG, RIGHT on again.

 

[brndnstffrd]

OK,

Still, if you are going to transmit at your home, even for a short period, you need a power supply capable of handling that radio.
If you run it at the full 110 watts, you really need a 25 amp 12 volt supply.
If you run it at 50 watts, you probably will need a 12-13 amp supply.


For mobile,
The CDM idea is out.

Putting a high power XTL in a temporary situation like that isn't ideal. If you are ONLY using it to receive, then it's only going to pull 1-2 amps at the most, and running that off a cigarette lighter plug will probably be OK.

Personally I'd get a mag mount VHF antenna and the SMA connector to hook your XTS up, that'll likely solve the reception issues, won't require any vehicle modifications, won't overtax the ciggy lighter, and when you get the new ride, do the XTL install right.

I'd not waste a whole lot of time on this if it's only for a year and given your limitation. Don't overthink it, don't overdo it. Slap a mag mount on the roof and use the XTS. The issue is the portable radio inside the metal cage with likely tinted windows, defroster, noise sources, etc. Get the antenna outside and you'll probably be happy.

To build off of the external antenna idea, I would go with the XTVA with handheld control head solution previously mentioned in this thread. Less strain from repeated connections on the antenna jack and it doubles as a charger. You can find them for around $100. Running an XTVA off the cigarette lighter plug will work just fine if you aren't running an amp (you wont need one for recieve only.) Put the base under a seat or in the rear cargo area and run the speaker and control head cable up front. Put the XTS5000 in when you get in the car, pop it out when you leave.
Picture for reference:

 

[mmckenna]

Yep, those are a great option if you can find one in good shape and for a decent price.

 

[vagrant]

I have an XTVA and it may be the best solution for the OP. You can use the 12V power plug in the car or your home adapter. It will trickle charge your HT as well. Additionally, that speaker in the picture is not mandatory but it can help. There are several additional items you will need to purchase and eBay is friendly on the prices.
1. The adapter (NTN8327) that goes on the radio antenna port in order to connect it to the XTVA antenna port and whatever antenna. (You still attach your regular HT antenna on the top of the adapter.)
2. The wrench (NTN8270) to fasten that adapter. You may be able to do it with needle nose pliers, especially when you only plan on doing it once. It is definitely better with the wrench though.
3. A mini UHF adapter, or pigtail unless your antenna coax has the correct connector already.

You could leave the XTVA in the vehicle or move it back and forth to the house. Obviously, being able to remove the HT from the XTVA is quite convenient when away from the vehicle. You just press a button on top to release it.

The XTVA is actually new to me. I installed an XTL5000 in the vehicle, but would have gone the XTVA route. The 5W with an external antenna will easily hit my nearby repeaters. I run the XTL5000 at 10W and can go to 40W, but never need to. Your coverage will be different.

 

[Project25_MASTR]

Yep, those are a great option if you can find one in good shape and for a decent price.

I saw a handful packaged as complete kits on eBay not too long ago....tracking down a UHF XTS5000 for a reasonable price, that's where the challenge is for me at least.

 

[brndnstffrd]

Some additional info to add to this is that the XTVA will also work with an XTS3000 if the features of a 5000 are not necessary. That is a cheap way to add an additional band of coverage cheaply, just swap the radio, or if you want to get a radio to just leave in the XTVA.