'L04' Base Stations

fogster · Post by **fogster** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:29 pm

I'm eying a nice ASTRO Spectra in a 'consolette' base station. It's exactly the radio I want, but I want it in a mobile configuration. But I have a few questions:

- Can I simply rip the radio out of the consolette and use it as a mobile radio?
- It's got something that looks kind of like a Maxtrac 'screen' with buttons. What the heck is it?
- Do the consolettes, with radio removed, have any/much resale value?

fogster · Post by **fogster** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:58 pm

Oh, #1 seems to be answered here http://batboard.batlabs.com/viewtopic.php?t=66465

Although I'm not too familiar with those steps--what would it cost to do that? And I don't fully understand why I can't use the control head from the consolette--is it permanently attached to the consolette frame?

Also, the Maxtrac-looking thing was off to the side, in addition to the Spectra head.

Bruce1807 · Post by **Bruce1807** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:20 pm

Ive certainly put mobiles in a consollete and put a consolette radio in a mobile application however everything had the correct control heads

fogster · Post by **fogster** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:23 pm

Bruce1807 wrote:Ive certainly put mobiles in a consollete and put a consolette radio in a mobile application however everything had the correct control heads

Call me stupid, but I've never seen the inside of a consolette. (Or really, worked with mobile /\/\ gear at all.) I still fail to understand what's wrong with the head on the radio in the consolette.

RKG · Post by **RKG** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:55 pm

1. I believe the extra display you're referring to is an optional time display.

2. Within the consolette, the control head you're seeing (probably an A5?) is not directly connected to the mobile radio deck; it is connected, rather, either to an AIS board or a TRC board. In theory, you could remove the control head, remove the deck, and marry the two; some programming may be required to remove the consolette features. But this seems an awful expensive way to get an XTL mobile.

motorola_otaku · Post by **motorola_otaku** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 9:30 am

Simple answer: yes, you can pull the radio and head out of a consolette and turn it into a regular dashmount radio. All you need is a dashmount control head interconnect board. I don't have the part # for the Astro radio part handy, but the HLN6285 from the conventional Spectra series will also work.

The guys in the other thread are talking about converting a consolette radio into a remote-mount radio.. I think. Kinda confusing.

fogster · Post by **fogster** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 10:12 am

motorola_otaku wrote:The guys in the other thread are talking about converting a consolette radio into a remote-mount radio.. I think. Kinda confusing.

I'm interested in remote-mounting, actually, but I'm very new to the whole Motorola mobile thing. Space is tight, so I'm hoping to mount the radio in the back (or under a seat) and put the control head up front. I thought it just took a cable to separate the head and the radio.

Leadenwah · Post by **Leadenwah** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:51 pm

The Consolette is nothing more than a power supply and cooling fan inside of a big plastic box which contains a radio. If you want to reuse the case, be very careful. There are plastic latches at the rear which if not properly disengaged can break.

Once open you have only 4 screws which hold the Spectra in place which occupy the same threaded holes used by the mobile mount bracket's screws. You have to back out the screws on either side of both connectors at the front section of the radio then ease those connectors away. Then simply unscrew the regular old antenna connector from the radio and pull off the power plug. Most also have the accessory connector at the rear which comes off just as a regular mobile.

Needless to say, all of this is done with the AC power plug disconnected. If you lose the power plug just grab a common desktop computer's AC power cord as it's the same type. I'm sure that Motorola will sell you one of these very common cables for a pile of money if you insist.

Check previous postings on the finding and fitting of a control head of the type the radio needs. But, before anything else, before you buy, DO make certain whether the radio in that particular Consolette is the model you want and not some other type. Not all Consolettes had Spectras.

If you are drawn to the treacherous territory of a popular auction site, make sure you see pictures that are pictures of the item being sold. Believe none of what you read and only half of what you see.