Batboard

My VFD is jumping on the County's System II analog. They hope to go digital within 2 years. I was looking at the XTL1500. Will this radio upgrade to digital? can you get it analog/digital. Is this unit worth the effort or do we need to go at least XTL2500.

We are not going to get more than 16 channels assigned to fire plus the interop stuff.

Comments, suggestions?

Same thing on the XTS1500 1.5!

When in doubt, the motorola site with the really long url:

http://www.motorola.com/governmentanden ... ochure.pdf

and

http://www.motorola.com/governmentanden ... i/id_1491i

It will do Type II in analog or digital, but you cannot have Type II AND ASTRO25 (9600bps system) in the same radio. One or the other.

Interestinly enough there will be an analog only flashcode released for the rebanding.
You want your MTS2000 replaced, No problem, here is your analog replacement. Motorola will then offer the customer a deal to ship the radio digital enabled.

Thanks guys.

Does anyone have the XTS1500 in service (1.5 ver)? How do they rate overall? Would they be suitable for a small FD?

This wouldn't happen to be Williamson or McLennan County, would it?

jban wrote:Thanks guys.

Does anyone have the XTS1500 in service (1.5 ver)? How do they rate overall? Would they be suitable for a small FD?

I have tons of XTS2500 v1.5's and II's in service. The II's are in Fire
and the same case type as the XTS1500's.

IMO you can't go wrong, except that if you plan to use the PS speaker mic you will loose the on-radio antenna which could be a safety issue. The RF switch isn't the same as the XTS3000/5000.

Mark

Bastrop County

I have loads of XTS1500 model I's out there and either they are all lost or they work good as I've never had on back in for repair.
I also have lots of Model I, 1.5 and Model III XTS2500 radios with the police and they rarely come back.
Overall Motorola have made a great seies.
Bear in mind that if you will need any units encryted at a later date you need 2500 series.

Thanks for that information.

Anyone have feedback on the XTL1500/

jban wrote:Bastrop County

Ah, Bastrop, I forgot about you guys. I still hear the old Firenet channel all the time over here in Houston on top of Woodlands Fire.

Anywho, both the 1500s and 2500s will do what you want to do on the county system. Bear in mind, however, that your neighbors to the west in Travis County are using an Astro25 system (9600 bps control channel) and if there's a possibility that Bastrop might migrate to Astro25 at a later date or if you want to be able to talk to anyone on Travis County, you will need to have whatever you end up with reflashed for Astro25.

Again I don't have any XTL1500 radios but I do have XTL2500 and XTL5000 radios. They seem very reliable, I have not had one failure.
The XTL1500 lacks on display and if you have lots of channels I would opt for the XTL2500 simply from an operational usability. The XTL1500 is upgradable at a later date to a 2500 or 5000. If you plan encryption the 1500 wont do it but can be upgraded to a 2500 which will.

When you say the 1500 can be upgraded to a 2500 or 5000 do you mean software and new head or what. Excuse my lack of knowledge on the Astros

Bruce1807 wrote:Interestinly enough there will be an analog only flashcode released for the rebanding.
You want your MTS2000 replaced, No problem, here is your analog replacement. Motorola will then offer the customer a deal to ship the radio digital enabled.

why would they replace an MTS2000 with an astro radio? the flashport versions will do rebanding.

Two Parts.
Yes the XTL1500 can become a XTL2500 or a XTL5000
Upgrade the control head and a flash upgrade.
No idea of cost yet but the upgrade is available, as is from the old w heads to the 05 head int he XTL5000 series. (I'nm waiting on the upgrade kit part numters as we speak)

why would they replace an MTS2000 with an astro radio? the flashport versions will do rebanding.

Bad choice of radio, ok GTX, MTX8000, will that do!

grem467 wrote:

Bruce1807 wrote:Interestinly enough there will be an analog only flashcode released for the rebanding.
You want your MTS2000 replaced, No problem, here is your analog replacement. Motorola will then offer the customer a deal to ship the radio digital enabled.

why would they replace an MTS2000 with an astro radio? the flashport versions will do rebanding.

They might have older ones that are almost up for replacement anyway. A lot of agencies get rid of their radios after 7 - 10 years.

Nextel wont pay for that though. They pay for flashing to the new band plan and replacing any radio or infrastucture that can't do 700Mhz with an equivelent. Hence the analog only XTS1500

NEXTEL isn't paying for the capabilites to go 700 MHz. It is only to reprogram radios and infrastructure (or to replace those that won't) to a re-located NPSPAC band between 806-809/854-857 with a new FCC bandplan.

If they were replacing infrastructure/subscribers to ones that do 700 MHz as part of the consensus plan, they would go out of business as over 95% of the users out there don't have those capabilites.

An analog XTS1500 is re-programmable and will not be replaced.

Thanks Bruce1807

NEXTEL isn't paying for the capabilites to go 700 MHz. It is only to reprogram radios and infrastructure (or to replace those that won't) to a re-located NPSPAC band between 806-809/854-857 with a new FCC bandplan.

Quite true but those analog systems running MSF5000 repeaters wont all fit into the 3 megs so lots will be moved to 700Mhz in crowded spectrum areas

If they were replacing infrastructure/subscribers to ones that do 700 MHz as part of the consensus plan, they would go out of business as over 95% of the users out there don't have those capabilites.

I think it would be well below 90% judging from the quantity of XTS series radios sold over the past few years. Also most mobiles are being replaced with 700Mhz capable XTL series and non digital portables are all being replaced with the XTS series.(MTS2000 excluded)

An analog XTS1500 is re-programmable and will not be replaced.
.

There is no analog XTS1500 but there will be to replace MTX8000 and so forth and of course it is repgramable to 700Mhz as well. A flash upgrade will be available to digital at time of purchase

NPSPAC is moving exactly 15 MHz down, one for one with 1 thru 120 becoming 1-240 once it's cleared. No one will be left out. As for the SMR's, with the spectrum that NEXTEL will be vacating I can't see how there will be a shortage.

MSF5000's will be retuned according to Motorola's own website (page 6):
http://www.motorola.com/governmentanden ... _09_06.pdf

South Florida is one of those "congested areas" and no one is moving to 700, considering 700 is a different R&O by the FCC with TV stations 64-69 vacating in 2009 the timing isn't right. Besides there is no mention of 700 in the TA's presentation on their site or the FCC's rebanding websites:

http://www.800mhzrebanding.com/text/TAIWCERef.pdf

http://wireless.fcc.gov/publicsafety/80 ... ndex2.html

http://wireless.fcc.gov/publicsafety/80 ... n/faq.html


Motorola's XTS1500RB and XTS2500RB are analog only radios and can be upgraded at a later time to digital, but they are not being supplied that way to those licensees that are analog:
http://www.motorola.com/governmentanden ... tables.pdf

Instead of making this into a re-banding thread I'm going to cease posting on the topic as there is a rebanding thread all to itself.