Batboard

I have a box full of Maxtrac 888s, model D35MWA5GF5, with firmware HLN9383D V71.23.

Normally, I would convert all of these for ATCS monitoring, which involves yanking the filters, converting to conventional, and shorting Q205 so it will listen in the talkaround range. I've done hundreds of them without incident.

Out of this batch, though, I decided to set one back to use as a control channel monitor to feed into UniTrunker. I wanted to program in all the primary and secondary control channels for the surrounding counties, which adds up to more than the 3 conventional channels the 888 seems to afford. Plus, the 888 seems to lack the ability to scan conventional channels.

So, using my normal process, I converted one to a conventional Maxtrac 300, D35MJA7DA6, with firmware HLN5569A V5.34. I programmed in the 7-8 channels I needed, and got ... absolutely nothing. None of the control channels produced so much as a peep.

Just to verify, I grabbed one of the 888s and programmed the three closest sites as conventional channels. They come booming in.

Now I'm scratching my head, and I have a few questions I hope someone can answer.

Is there some reason why a generic conventional Maxtrac in the appropriate range wouldn't be able to hear the control channels?

If it can't, is there some way I can convert the now-conventional unit back to an 888, or better yet, to a trunking model with more than 3 conventional modes and scan? I've always initialized blanked boards with the conventional RSS, not trunking. Or can I clone one of the existing 888s back into the conventional unit if I replace the original firmware?

I had considered just converting a second unit, but I really don't want to do that until I get a little more information. Hope someone can help, thanks in advance.

Well, I guess we're just going to have to chalk this one up to aliens, or bizzaro world, or both.

I reinitialized the deaf conventional radio again, thinking I might have just missed an option or made some other mistake. Still deaf.

I archived the codeplug from one of the other 888s, and reinitialized the deaf radio as an 888 again, then cloned one of the working radios. Control channels come booming in on conventional personalities. Seriously?

So I converted it to conventional AGAIN. Deaf as a post.

As a reference, I took one of the other 888s, converted it to conventional, and it works just fine. Sigh.

So, as bizarre as it seems, there is just something about that one problem radio that DOES NOT like the conventional firmware. I'm at a loss to understand it. In all the radios I've converted, this is the first time I've ever had this happen. Sounds like that one is going to be a candidate for the parts bin.

And naturally, out of a box of a dozen radios, I had to pull the problem child out first, making me suspect my process instead of the radio itself.