HT600 Beginner Help

[Pugy365]

I recently purchased 3 Motorola HT600's off of eBay. I have a computer running DOS for the programming along with the software and the proper serial cables. I am just started learning about these radios and Im trying to figure out what kind of license I need to legally operate them and what frequencies I can use. I researched into what was available and read about GMRS and MURS on the FCC website. I know that the HT600's I purchased are on the VHF but I don't know what the band-split is yet as I have yet to get them in the mail. I would just like some guidance and recommendations on how I should go about setting these radios up, Thank You.

 

[jhooten]

The only thing you may be able to do legally with those, depending on the band split, are the two 154.xx MURS channels and amateur radio. To use them on amateur radio you will need to get a Technician class license. To use them on MURS you will have to turn the power output down to under two watts. They do not meet the emission mask standards for the three 151.xx MURS channels.

 

[mmckenna]

There are 3 VHF bandsplits for these radios:
136-151MHz. Good for amateur radio. Will probably program up to the MURS frequencies using the "shift key" trick.
146-162MHz, good for amateur radio and MURS.
157-174MHz. Might stretch down to MURS, but won't do amateur.

From what I've seen, the 146-162MHz versions are the most popular.

I had a couple of the HT600 & P200's on UHF. Used them on GMRS for a while. Good solid radios and will take a serious beating. We used these while riding ATV's for a few years. Dropped a few along the trail. Could pick them up and they'd work just fine.
They are pretty heavy as radios go, but not a big deal.
Accessories are cheap.
Lots of stories on the internet about these radios being used as wheel chocks, window smashers, etc.

 

[Pugy365]

Thanks for the reply, I just got the radios in the mail today. I took one of them apart and determined that they are 146-162Mhz. They are definitely quite sturdy, and I'm very impressed with the build quality. So the next step is programming. When programming is there any specific things I need to do? I was exploring the programming software just to get a feel for it but Im unsure what steps I should take. Thanks again for the replies. They have been very helpful!

 

[SCPD]

HT600 programming

Thanks for the reply, I just got the radios in the mail today. I took one of them apart and determined that they are 146-162Mhz. They are definitely quite sturdy, and I'm very impressed with the build quality. So the next step is programming. When programming is there any specific things I need to do? I was exploring the programming software just to get a feel for it but Im unsure what steps I should take. Thanks again for the replies. They have been very helpful!

Programming is pretty straight forward. Most of the navigation is F keys and Tab.
If you're gonna use them for ham, the shift key trick will work for freqs below 146 Mhz on this radio.
Hold down the shift key, enter the frequency, except for the period. Enter all the trailing zeros.
As an example, 145.3300 would look like !$%.##)) when you enter it. Only needed for freqs below 146. When you tab out of the window, it will look normal.

Only thing I can think of that may trip you up is the PL/DPL setting.
There is a screen that you select what PL's and DPL's you want to use (Been a while, poke around to you find it). You basically select up to 4 different PL's and DPL's to use in the radio. If you have a six channel needing six different PL's, you're outta luck. And if I remember right, when you go back to the programming page, you'll have a dropdown of the 4 different tones you selected on the other page.

 

[Pugy365]

Yeah I was exploring the software and it did seem pretty straight forward. I plan on using my 3 VHF 146-162 MHZ radios on the MURS channels. I also ordered 8 UHF models for use on the GMRS channels. I applied for a license for GMRS so I am just waiting for my application to get processed so I will be licensed to use the GMRS channels. Out of curiosity, how can you program these radios outside of their set frequency range? Isn't there a physical limitation on the radio or is it just software related? Thanks again for all the help so far, this has been a fun learning experience.

 

[mmckenna]

Out of curiosity, how can you program these radios outside of their set frequency range? Isn't there a physical limitation on the radio or is it just software related? Thanks again for all the help so far, this has been a fun learning experience.

It's a bit of both. The programming software will error if you try to program something outside of the radio models range.
The radios VCO will unlock if you get too far out of range and it won't work.

Each radios VCO will likely unlock at a different point, so each radio will vary.

You should be able to get around the radio programming software by typing in the frequency while holding down the shift key. It's been a while since I've done this, so it would be a good idea to do a google search on how to do it.
If I recall correctly when you go to push the file into the radio it'll show an error, but you can still program the radio.