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Motorola Radius M216

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badjob

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Oct 4, 2018
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I've got a radius M216 that I've programmed. Its 25watts according to model number but I couldn't find a PA part#, just the logic (16 pin) and the RF board. Reading the article on upgrading to 32 channel it asks for a specific maxtrac firmware chip and I know I don't have it since it's a radius board. I think its v20 or so.

Read that the channel # is actually stored in the codeplug. Since the firmware is wrong, would it be incorrect to change this radio via labRSS to maxtrac 300 with 32 channels? Should I just follow the guides on hex-editing the software? ie Maxtrac and Radius Mobiles to expand the actual model to 32? Would that work or will the channels just wrap around?
 

radioman2001

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Not unless you want a brick, the Radius line uses a different firmware all together. What I have done in the past is use LXb to rewrite (overwrite) the first 4 lines of the codeplug (Starting with the serial number) in hex to follow another model number and then dump in that version codeplug. From there you can then program what you want in it. There is one thing to watch out for, if you plan on exceeding 16 channels it better have the expansion e-prom under the can where the firmware chip is or you will brick it. We had a lot of them that didn't have the E-prom so we either added one or just left the radio as a 16 channel.
 

badjob

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I hex edited the RSS and got nowhere. It lets me add channel 17, etc but just wraps around. I may indeed have to add the correct firmware. Now you're saying it needs a bigger eeprom? The articles all don't have that step except for the 99 channel version. I dunno if ebaying the $12 chip is worth it for 16 more channels only. It is the fancy board so at least I have that going for me. I don't think this radio has the tail squelch eliminate feature so after every RX it goes hssss click. No narrow band either, but at least you can tune it down to ham frequencies. I'd probably bother if it was the 45 watt and not the 25watt.
 

k9wkj

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dont you have to blank the board and reinitialize for 32ch?
scary procedure, ive done it on a few lowband and a high band VHF radio
and added the firmware to allow happiness on the ham bands, as long as the eprom comes out to be reburned
 
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badjob

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Oct 4, 2018
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You can hex edit what channels and features each model supports. My guess is you don't have to blank the supported identifiers if RSS adds the extra channels to the code plug. In my case the fw v.20 doesn't support going over 16. The date on it was 1988 vs the newer date on the "correct" version. This thing is old enough to be my brother.
 
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