Yaesu: VX-6R stuck on 144MHz and 430MHz

[Carolina_]

Hi everyone!

I am a new radioamateur who bought my first radio recently, a Yaesu VX-6 (European version). When trying to change bands, it is stuck on 144 MHz and 430 MHz, whereas it should support 11 bands. I also cannot enter any frequency outside these bands. Could it be stuck in some specific mode?

A few weeks ago when I used the radio for receiving, then all frequencies were working. However, I remember that I could not simply change bands using the "BAND" button but had to click other settings or start a scan in other to reach other bands. A factory reset does not help for my issue.

I am following this manual entry on pg. 16 in this PDF "Selecting the operating band": https://www.yaesu.com/downloadFile...._20111019.pdf&FileContentType=application/pdf

It seems similar to the issue that others have had in this thread, but resetting the radio does not help: VX-6R Not Receiving all Bands

If anyone would have more experience from this model and could give a hint about what else to try before contacting the customer support I would be very grateful. I have read the manual back and forth to no avail. It's a brand new radio so I'd be surprised if some component is broken. Thanks in advance.

 

[ko6jw_2]

Are you pressing the V/M key to get into the VFO mode? Then pressing BAND should step through the bands. The 144 and 430 frequencies are in the memory after a reset. Look at getting a programming cable from RT Systems. There is free software called VX-6 Commander for programming.

The European versions may not have full band coverage for the US. Most European band plans are 144-146Mhz on 2 meters and 430-440Mhz on 70cm. European versions will not have 220Mz at all.

On a recent visit to Tokyo I went to four ham radio stores. The do not sell export versions of any radios. Thus, if you buy a radio there it will not be useful in the US. No 220 radios at all since it cannot be used outside North America and Somalia. I don't know about you, but Somalia is not on my list of countries to visit.

I don't know if the export model of the VX6-R can be opened up for US use. Somebody out there may know.

 

[majoco]

The 'Commander' software is very good, I use it for my VX2 - and the interface is a homebrew that I built way back in 2002 - I may have make another now that COM ports have disappeared from more modern laptops! Without the programme the VX2 would be almost impossible to set up, also given that Yaesu manuals are notoriously bad. It was only by experimenting that I found you can also use it as a scanner! The interface also works with the Icom R7000 receiver. The software is here....

KC8UNJ - Jim Mitchell - Radio Programming Software

Free radio programming software for handheld ham radio transcievers and scanners made by Yaesu and Icom. Homepage of VX-7 Commander, VX-2 Commander, VX-5 Commander, VR-120 Commander, and IC-R2 Commander.

kc8unj.com

 

[Carolina_]

Thank you for your responses and suggestions

I'm living in Europe and bought it from a radio shop here, so it should not be a matter of the band coverage or regional issues. Could you elaborate on why I should get a programming cable? Does the radio need programming before the BANDS button will work after a reset?

Here is what I do in more detail:
I press the V/M key to make sure that I'm not in memory mode, i.e. in VFO mode (I only see these two modes when pressing the V/M key) and then I press the BANDS button and can only switch between the two bands mentioned in my original post.

If I can't find any other thing to try then my next step will be to contact the customer support and ask there.

 

[ko6jw_2]

The programming cable is the easiest way to store frequencies in the radio with appropriate software. I'm at a loss to explain why you can't select the bands.

I thought that doing a reset might erase the bands, but I don't think that is the case. However, with the software and programming cable you can examine all the settings in the radio and see what is going on.

 

[SteveSimpkin]

No it should not be doing that. I have seen this issue reported before. Some were able to fix it themselves while others sent it in to Yaesu for repair. See:

VX-6R Not Receiving all Bands

Hi Everyone, I'm looking for help with a problem on a new (to me) VX-6R rig. The radio was working fine when I received it and would receive on the full range 550khz to 999mhz. I decided to reset everything to factory settings to clear all the previous users data. After doing that using the...

forums.radioreference.com

 

[majoco]

Now don't quote me yet, 'cos I'm nowhere near my VX2 or the cable but.... IMHO if there are no frequencies entered into the band, then it won't stop on them.
I extracted some of the instructions and put them in a small card holder booklet. When I get back home I'll see if I can find the master copy. I don't know why they call it 'band' when it should be 'bank'.

 

[ko6jw_2]

Bands and banks are not the same thing. Banks are a way of organizing stored memories into convenient groups like "FIRE" or "HAM". The bands are preprogrammed search ranges. Example 108-136Mhz for searching aircraft frequencies. Or, 66-108Mhz for FM broadcast including European allocations. There are a number of them including AM broadcast, short wave and various two-way and ham bands. These are what seem to be missing from his radio. I think they are part of the firmware and not memories which he has reset.

 

[majoco]

Yaesu VX-6 (European version)

I wonder if this is the problem. In Germany you cannot buy a radio that receives anything outside the broadcast bands - perhaps your radio is only going to allow you to receive/transmit on the amateur bands.

 

[ko6jw_2]

There is nothing to indicate that the VX6R/E cannot receive the same signals as the VX6R. The transmit ranges are different and there is no 220 coverage, but the receive ranges are basically the same.

 

[Carolina_]

I contacted the Yaesu customer support about this issue and they advised me to send it in for repair, so it seems like it is broken. Thanks everyone for the suggestions and help!