APX Newbie Questions

[huntercody]

I’m primarily familiar with Kenwood but am looking for a VHF/700/800 solution for my alternative public safety radio. The APX 7000 seems like a viable option. Our system operates on both P25 and conventional.

As I’m sure many have asked before:

- What should I look for (or avoid) when buying a used radio?
- How accessible and difficult is programming?

Appreciate any insights!

 

[K2NEC]

Honestly if this is going to be a public safety radio, something you are going to trust your life with, you'd be better off buying a new APX8000 with just VHF/7-800 enabled. You'll at least have the peace of mind that the radio won't crap out on you and will be under warranty if something goes bad with the radio. That being said...

If you are set on an APX7000 just know that they are known for having the volume knobs go bad. It's a known issue with the AN series radios and not much you can really do to fix it since they are end of life. If you do get a 7000, inquire about the firmness of the knob and if it has a "click". Some of these radios are also 10 years old (or older) and could probably use a tune up. And despite physically being in good condition, internally they may have some issues.

APX CPS is free from Motorola with an MOL account

 

[mtp850]

One of the most important things to double-check when buying secondhand Motorola APX radios is to make sure they do not have the QA01648 ASK Enable option activated or enabled.

 

[northstarfire0693]

Watch for radios coming out of China. These have no tags and are parts built, hacked POS. The APX 7K is not a bad radio, but as others said, It's EOL. Look at your budget and other options out there.

 

[mtp850]

Above is mostly correct! However, there are a few Chinese sellers providing brand new radios with tags; of course, those radios cost a lot more than the frankenstein versions on eBay.

 

[K2NEC]

Above is mostly correct! However, there are a few Chinese sellers providing brand new radios with tags; of course, those radios cost a lot more than the frankenstein versions on eBay.

Just because the radio has a tag doesn't mean anything unless you verify that the serial/tracking number matches the actual radio. Given that the APX7000 has been cancelled since 2016/2017 I highly doubt anyone has these radios brand new in box anymore.

 

[AM909]

Doesn't have to come out of China to be parts-built, sometimes from stolen parts.

I've seen radios with mostly-legitimate-looking tags that include date codes either before or after the actual manufacturing run of the model. You'd think the fake tags would look fake but a lot of the legit Motorola tags are really poorly printed so it can be hard to tell the difference. They change between production lines/runs, too. As is often said, buy the seller.

As far as old NIB stuff, I've got a couple NIB VHF CP200 from 2017.

 

[mtp850]

No issue, I can check serial against database and see what is going on.

 

[otobmark]

Radio options:
APX8000 (getting cheaper every day used). Programming for conventional channels not so bad and software is free. If you are on a trunked system they won’t let you do the trunking part yourself. If they will they can unrestrict the plug enough for you to play with the conventional channels on your own.
-VP8000 is what I use and I like it. Software is free and one of the easier to use. It is new enough that there are very few used ones and the 2 I’ve seen were $4500 and one was loaded. Will do DMR. Good news is there will not be any “parts” radios around. One possible issue is if the radio is tied to EFJ user account may take some effort to get it switched to yours (cooperation of original owner would expedite things). Account is pretty much free and “might” require a dealer to do it.
-Harris XG-100P—-plenty of cheap used ones and generally liked by my friends that have them. Software is expensive ($800 ish) but I’m told it’s out there in the wild..
Will work on Phase II trunk systems. I would be reluctant to throw one against the wall. There is also the newer XT-200P model which is pretty slick.
-The BK and Tait multiband are new and I have no experience with them. Will do DMR. Tait has gone through a few models and earlier ones are probably on used market.
In general the APX8000 and Harris XT-100P (if u can solve software issue) will be cheapest. APX8000 (without ASK!) from reliable source is the no brainer option in my opinion if you don’t need DMR.
My lightly informed opinions!

 

[WB5UOM]

Might want to ask your system administrator what they will put on the system for you.
Even P25 conventional, asking first can save heartache later