APX Non-required ASK on an APX?

[fog]

I recently picked up a second-hand APX6000 radio. I will use it purely for conventional systems, but I noticed that it has the following under the Radio Wide view:

ASK Required: (not checked)
Owner Advanced Key Type: Advanced System Key
Owner System ID: (populated)

The flashcode includes QA01648 (ASK Enable), but "Used" is false.

It's not giving me any trouble, but I'm curious what, if anything, the impact of this is, mostly around potential resale value. I have only a basic understanding of ASKs: I know that system admins can use them to prevent modification to a trunking config, and I learned the hard way ages ago that a cheap XTL1500 from eBay from a disreputable seller can be locked with an ASK to prevent you from even reading the thing. But I don't know what to make of there being a (grayed out) system ID shown but "ASK Required" being false.

Is this the sort of thing that I should be upset about having set on the radio, or does it not have any impact if it's not checked?

 

[clbsquared]

Just because a radio has an option, it doesn’t mean it has to be used. Leave “ASK Required” unchecked and it will not be an issue.

 

[MightyMan]

It's not giving me any trouble

If there is no trouble, then nothing is required to be changed

 

[ElroyJetson]

It's better for resale value if the radio does NOT have ASK required. So that's good.
In my opinion, Motorola committed a blunder in their implementation of ASK. You can't remove it from the radio once it's enabled, if you don't have the matching key in your software installation. (Essentially....don't bother me about the details. Not here to explain that.)

We've seen LOTS of radios that are surplus and still locked to their original system because of the ASK. And you can't even deprogram/reprogram them without the matching ASK.

That's the problem. You can't even deprogram the radio. Well, there are ways, but all require extra effort.

If the original agency doesn't put forth the effort to have their retired radios wiped properly, the next owner has to deal with that.

And then....if one of the retired, still programmed radios is turned on within range of its original system, guess what happens?
At best it's simply denied. At worst it may get inhibited to whatever level the system administrator deems appropriate.
In any event it's a pain in the butt. At the LEAST.

I swear, Motorola did NOT think this through.

 

[fog]

If the original agency doesn't put forth the effort to have their retired radios wiped properly, the next owner has to deal with that.

I've gotten the impression that Motorola would really rather there wasn't a secondhand market at all. So many of the problems we see could be avoided if they'd implemented an "I only want to receive" box on trunked programming. I feel like a lot of people have the intuitively-reasonable notion that they can use a Motorola radio as a high-quality scanner like they do for conventional systems, unaware that the radio is going to transmit on its own and potentially get itself bricked and/or interfere with the system.

I still wonder if this whole mess is a feature, rather than a bug, from Motorola's perspective... If you make the sale of used radios sufficiently annoying, maybe people like volunteer firefighters will end up just buying new radios instead, boosting sales (by a minuscule amount).

Just because a radio has an option, it doesn’t mean it has to be used. Leave “ASK Required” unchecked and it will not be an issue.

Thanks, this is what I was getting at. I didn't know if having an "owner system ID" would restrict what a future radio owner could do. It's not an 800 MHz radio so realistically I doubt anyone would ever have reason to put this on a trunk as a used radio anyway, but it sounds like it's a moot issue if "ASK Required" is unchecked.

 

[ElroyJetson]

Motorola has had more than 30 years to add a TRUE "rx only" functionality to their trunked radio programming software, and has chosen not to do so. So it stands to reason that they feel that it is not in THEIR best interests to do so. Why that is, I can't say. Because I don't know.

 

[clbsquared]

I've gotten the impression that Motorola would really rather there wasn't a secondhand market at all. So many of the problems we see could be avoided if they'd implemented an "I only want to receive" box on trunked programming. I feel like a lot of people have the intuitively-reasonable notion that they can use a Motorola radio as a high-quality scanner like they do for conventional systems, unaware that the radio is going to transmit on its own and potentially get itself bricked and/or interfere with the system.

I still wonder if this whole mess is a feature, rather than a bug, from Motorola's perspective... If you make the sale of used radios sufficiently annoying, maybe people like volunteer firefighters will end up just buying new radios instead, boosting sales (by a minuscule amount).



Thanks, this is what I was getting at. I didn't know if having an "owner system ID" would restrict what a future radio owner could do. It's not an 800 MHz radio so realistically I doubt anyone would ever have reason to put this on a trunk as a used radio anyway, but it sounds like it's a moot issue if "ASK Required" is unchecked.

There are UHF and VHF P25 trunking systems out there. They’re not limited to just 700/800

 

[RFI-EMI-GUY]

Motorola has had more than 30 years to add a TRUE "rx only" functionality to their trunked radio programming software, and has chosen not to do so. So it stands to reason that they feel that it is not in THEIR best interests to do so. Why that is, I can't say. Because I don't know.

Motorola wants the system owner, and by extension, Motorola themselves, to have total control of subscriber units.