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Motorola Quantar Question

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RocketNJ

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I've dealt with Sunny Communications in Colorado. I needed some UHF R2 modules and they had tested modules with warranty.
 

kjl13

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I've dealt with Sunny Communications in Colorado. I needed some UHF R2 modules and they had tested modules with warranty.

I looked into this company, and it looks so they run used-radios.com.

They have a vhf quantar on their site but I find them over priced.


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mikewazowski

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As a coincidence, I'm picking up a VHF Quantar today real cheap. I'll be shopping for whatever control boards that will make it P25.

You shouldn't have to buy control boards to make it P25 unless the controller firmware can't be upgraded.
 

prcguy

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Picked up my VHF Quantar yesterday. I will be looking for info on upgrading to P25 and if that's just firmware I would like to know where to buy it. The repeater also has the power supply with about 80% ventilation holes and a big heatsink inside. I would like to find out if there are upgrades for that supply to make it more reliable.
 

Project25_MASTR

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Depends on what you are trying to do. Most Quantars are capable of ASTRO (VSLEP) and ASTRO CAI (P25) without any modification. Now, they will not decode P25 or encode it but simply pass it alongside analog.

As far as the power supply goes, check the fans and make sure they stay running. There are some "subs" available from Mouser but you'll have to drill out the rivets to replace the rear fan. If you have a dummy load rated for 125 W continuous, disable the the TOT and burn in (shift+PTT on the keypad) the repeater for an hour to make sure all the fans come on and they aren't making noises. You have to baby it as if you hear one of the fans seize you have about 90 seconds to kill the repeater before things start burning up.
 

kjl13

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Depends on what you are trying to do. Most Quantars are capable of ASTRO (VSLEP) and ASTRO CAI (P25) without any modification. Now, they will not decode P25 or encode it but simply pass it alongside analog.

As far as the power supply goes, check the fans and make sure they stay running. There are some "subs" available from Mouser but you'll have to drill out the rivets to replace the rear fan. If you have a dummy load rated for 125 W continuous, disable the the TOT and burn in (shift+PTT on the keypad) the repeater for an hour to make sure all the fans come on and they aren't making noises. You have to baby it as if you hear one of the fans seize you have about 90 seconds to kill the repeater before things start burning up.

Are you sure it just passes it through? I was under the impression that that was just the case for encryption.


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prcguy

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In my limited experience, some Quantars are analog only and will not pass P25. I encountered this working with a VHF Quantar owned by the USCG and it was eventually replaced with a newer unit that had P25.

Depends on what you are trying to do. Most Quantars are capable of ASTRO (VSLEP) and ASTRO CAI (P25) without any modification. Now, they will not decode P25 or encode it but simply pass it alongside analog.

As far as the power supply goes, check the fans and make sure they stay running. There are some "subs" available from Mouser but you'll have to drill out the rivets to replace the rear fan. If you have a dummy load rated for 125 W continuous, disable the the TOT and burn in (shift+PTT on the keypad) the repeater for an hour to make sure all the fans come on and they aren't making noises. You have to baby it as if you hear one of the fans seize you have about 90 seconds to kill the repeater before things start burning up.
 

mikewazowski

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Are you sure it just passes it through? I was under the impression that that was just the case for encryption.

There is nothing in the Quantar to decode digital.

In my limited experience, some Quantars are analog only and will not pass P25. I encountered this working with a VHF Quantar owned by the USCG and it was eventually replaced with a newer unit that had P25.

Unless it's an extremely old unit, changing it from analog to digital is just a programming change.
 

rescue161

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I have never run into a Quantar that couldn't be programmed for P25. Like others have stated, it won't decode P25, but for normal repeater use, it doesn't need to decode P25 anyway. It just passes it along.
 

kjl13

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I have never run into a Quantar that couldn't be programmed for P25. Like others have stated, it won't decode P25, but for normal repeater use, it doesn't need to decode P25 anyway. It just passes it along.

You can also use them as base stations.


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prcguy

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Update, finally got my VHF Quantar upgraded to P25, it needed a big firmware upgrade and the guy swapped out my range 2 receiver, transmitter and power amp for range 1 so its a happy hamster machine now. Price was very reasonable.

A friend who works on Quantars looked over the firmware and says mine does not have P25 but he is going to upgrade the firmware to make it P25 and do an alignment on it for $150.
 
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