Batboard

hello all. this i belive is my first post here. i have just purchased a maxtrac uhf model# D44MJA77A3CK. i am planning on using this on the amatuer radio bands. i am trying to find out what i will need to program and set it up. i am also trying to find out if there is a way of increasing the number of stored channels. what kind of RIB am i going to need and what version of the RSS will be best? what kind of computer will i need to program after attaining the other items? i am new to the programing side and this is my first personal moto radio. i have used the handhelds at work for years. any help would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

Start here:

http://batlabs.com/maxrad.html

Then use the Search Function on this Board to dig up more information.

thank you tom.
i used the search but it came up with a bunch of old f/s or wanted posts.
i will be using the link you sent just as soon as the radio gets here.
i was trying to get an idea of what was necessary so i could start scrounging things up while it is in transit.

Hello:
And welcome to the bd.
Well lets start with what the model number tells me.
Its a 40 watt / 6ch / UHF in one of these two band splits 403 to 430 mhz or the 449 to 470 mhz split.( Does not as it is now do scan)
If its a 16 pin logic bd then it will do pri 1 @ 2 scanning.
If its a 9123 5 pin logic bd then i can make it scan but no priority scanning and it will stop scan when the mike is lifted and youd need to press the scan button again to resume scanning= Only the 16 pin 9313 logic bd will resume scanning if you lift the mike after replacing the mike into its holder.
Hopefully it will be the 449/470 split for the 440 ham band.
The only way to tell will be to read the radio which at this point
sounds like you dont have the rss or rib and a old DOS type computer.
Windows is not suitable but the windows 98 can be booted into DOS mode.
Best to get a DOS computer only in for example a 286 or 386 running at 25 mhz clock speed or less.
That was Motorolas spec for the programming computer.
Yes many have used the 75 mhz speed and got away with it - But your asking for trouble if you press your luck and are not savy enough to reload a code plug to replace the corupted plug if you run too fast for the radio.
Ok - another way to verify the radios specs is to open the radio and post the logic bd number and the rf bds number.
Its usualy an ink printed number on the bd itself.
A logic bd number would be for example =HLN9123A or HLN9313 .
The rf bd number as an example would be HLE4425 A or B otherwise a HLE9310A or B.
Open your radio up and find the numbers and post back and i will let you know what your options are for expanding the chanels.
Also post whether you have a 16 pin or 5 pin option port on the rear of the radio near the antenae conector port to help me identify your logic bd number matches up for further clarification.
Also the front on the radio you posted the model number of will not have the extra button needed for scan function = unless someone swapped the front out for one that does or a trunked radio front will do the same for scan function control.
Ill get to what you have for options when you post the info im looking for and describe the radios front as to how many buttons you have on it = 3 buttons or 5 buttons.
Satelite

well i finally got the radio on fri.
today was the first chance i had to look at it.
logic board is the hln9123a 5 pin
the rf board is the hle4425b so it is the 449 to 470 band split.
i have powered it up and it shows 6 channels on the selector.
it was marked as not programed when i recieved it.
i had it connected to a dummy load and attempted to check transmit but radio just turned off the mon light.
not sure if the lack of key up is due to no program?
if this is the case is there a way to test output before trying to program.

thanks for any help.
paul

i forgot to add that i have bought a parts lot from a member of the board here and one of the items is a hln9313b board
would it be worth it to put the expanded board into this radio. it may be a week or so before i get the parts so i do have some time to consider options.
thanks again
paul

Hello :
The HLN9123 5 pin logic bd will do 16 channels max if you blank the bd and reinitiate and realign it properly with the rf bd.
You can get it to scan but will need the 5 button front to scan and it will not resume scan if you lift the mike until the scan button is again pressed.
If the radio came as unprogrammed then id suspect its actualy programmed with a recieve freq and rather than a freq entered into the transmit spot it was programmed as BLANK to disable the transmitter.
If thats the case you will not be able to test for
wattage output /modulation/freq accuracy/ect.
Must return from blank to a test frq atleast to do those tests.
Is it worth it to put the expanded bd in it ? = Depends on your desire.
If you wanted the scan function to resume scan when the mike is hung back up then yes - youd want the HLN9313 bd.
If you dont mind pressing the scan button to start scan and press the button again after you have removed the mike to start scanning again - Then i wouldnt bother.
But you can with the HLN9313 bd get 32 channels with 2 tone paging and pri 1 and pri 2 scan with resume scan when you hang the mike back up.
Actualy the HLN9313 bd has been already modified successfully to do 99 channels in VHF / UHF and well the lo band version was factory
available in the 42 to 50 mhz split.
But its not as easy as one might think thats already up to speed on conversion of the 16 to 32 ch mods to do a 99ch conversion.
Hex editing with soft spot values ect come into play and are tricky to properly do.
Thats just the tip of the mountain because the radios program in DOS mode needs changed and its not the same for UHF/VHF conversions as the lo band program that motorola already developed ect.
Chips and proms are no longer available from motorola and now need to be burnt to replicate the chip needed.
I thought at one time that a Maxtrac 300 converted to 99ch in the VHF version would be a prized item to do and sell - Plenty of interest but you couldnt get the cash amount from anyone to make it worth
doing and those that really wanted the 99ch ability found the Motorola M400 as the cheaper answer.
Satelite

thank you for all the great info.
i recieved the parts in the mail today.
i think i am going to try the 9313 board out and install the 5 button face possibly with the remote mount kit also have.
32 channels on the uhf radio should be plenty for my location here in ga.
i am alo going to look into modifying the radio that cam with the parts to see if i can put it on the 900 mhz ham band.
it is a maxtrac ls model #m07ujq6fu1an. i was told it is an 800mhz unit. it also has the 9313 logic board and hlf9122a pa board.
the only thing i have noticed about this one is it has a longer back end with a larger board in it.
any helpis greatly appreciated.

thanks paul

Hello:
The longer finned power amplifier you noticed with the larger bd is a 35 watt output amp in the 800 mhz split.
If it was the shorter one then it would be the 15 watt power amp.
On UHF and VHF models the 25 or 40 watt power amps are the same phisical size.
But not true in the Lo band 42/50 mhz split /800/900 models.
From your post - You have the 800 mhz longer pa and its the 35 watt version.
Also the 800 radio you provided info on will not do tx in the 900 ham band but will be great for recieving the 900 mhz ham band with modification.
I myself have not bothered to do a 800 into a 900 rx ham radio.
But i have done the 900 mhz maxtrac into 900 ham with mods.
This way i had transmit and recieve in the same radio.
The 800 could be used as a reciever for the 900 repeater or as recieve only as i recall.
If you do a 900 D27 or D37 maxtrac be aware the the 5 button multi front on a 900 maxtrac has an extra bd in it refered to as the HEAR CLEAR BD.
I have done the conversion with and without the hear clear bd . but you really do want it - it does inprove rx .
Also the 16 pin logic bd in a 900 maxtrac IS NOT a hln9313 bd.
In a 900 mhz maxtrac it would be a FRN5529 a or b version 16 pin bd.
I normaly swap out the 900 mhz trunking prom to a 16 ch conventional prom .
I have a prom reader / burner that i duplicate the prom .
Yes you could probably get me to make it if you decided to try the 900 conversion.
You posibly may be biting off a bit more than your ready for but it makes good learning experience at the least.
You will need access to a service monitor / dc volt meter / and watt meter if you dont have it in the monitor for some reason.
And also some patience for the first time doer.
But its worth the experience if you like this sort of thing.
Now - you probably got more qestions - So heres my qestion.
Wheres your qestions ????
PS : Just looked up your call sign out of curiousity and see your a Ham class general.
Im not quite up that high so i bow to you out of respect.
Satelite

thanks again for the info.
i found some infoon how to convert the 800 to 900 trans and recv.
a little more involved than the recieve mods.
first i am going to see what i can get going on the uhf radio.
just trying to pull everything together for it.
i will most likely be askng more questions asi get further into it.

as for the bowing thing there is no reason for that.
i passed my tech/general written back in 1987 while waiting for my novice call to come in.
when the morse requirement was lowered to 5wpm i was grandfathered into general after many years as a tech/ techplus.
i never could get the 13 wpm code.

ok now a computer question.
the computer i have sitting here that i hope to use for programming the maxtracs is an old toshiba satellite pro 430cdt.
it will be dedicated to programing but i want to make sure i have everything right before trying.
it has a 120 mhz processor. will this be too fast for the maxtrac.
is there something i could use to slow it down if it is?
i have no other real use for the laptop so i figured it would be a good starting point.
i am in the process of cleaning out the small hardrive to make room for the software.

thanks paul

well the uhf maxtrac was not blanked. the mic it came with is no good. tried it out with a different mic and it is putting out 40 watts into a dummy load.
cant wait for the programing cables to get here. just have to get the software up and running on the old laptop.
thanks again for all the help.
paul
kb2crk

Hello:
The 120 mhz speed is too fast per Motorlas specs but many here have sucessfuly read and programmed back to the maxtracs with no issues.
But your day will more than likely come as a crash eventualy doing this.
But if you read and save / archive the reading of the maxtrac before rewriting back to the maxtrac you will have the save your butt card needed should you have an issue.
Mo Slow was a program out and about that slow the computer down by percentage that may be of some help to you running at 120 mhz clock speed.
As an example 120 mhz slowed down by MoSlow by 75% would give you a speedof aprox 30 mhz clock speed which would work quite nicely.
Satelite

i have done a little searching on moslow and i have heard it works well.
i have to work the next coupe nights and thursday try and locate my floppy drive for the laptop.
i have found two of the cd drives but the floppy is in a box somewhere in the garage...
i dont plan on reprograming it often but will be looking into more moto radios for vhf and low band.

ok finally found it.
thanks for moving this to the correct forum.

With the latest version of the Maxtrac RSS i can program just fine with the 1.8Ghz workbench desktop. Been doing it that way for a long time and no problems.

http://www.repeater-builder.com/maxtrac ... index.html

Another page with a lot more Maxtrac info then you will even find on here. Also since your working on a UHF make sure you tweak the VCO to be reliable in the ham band if your going down that far. Anything below 446 and they can act really weird on hot and cold days, been there done that.

One other program that seems to solve a few problems with the older radio software is called "CACHEOFF.EXE".
I have used it to make the Syntor X9000 software work. Even using the 'MOSLOW", the computer would
throw a fit and bomb out. The "CACHEOFF" seemed to resolve the problem and let the computer be happy.
It even let me use a faster computer.

Not saying that will solve your issue, but it might be worth a try. It didn't work on a couple of other computers.
I guess it depends on the internal configuration of the computer your using.

If you do a web search, you should find a couple of sites that will let you download the program. I forgot just
where I obtained it from. It was in just the last month or so. So you should be able to still locate it.

Jim

kb2crk wrote:i have done a little searching on moslow and i have heard it works well.
i have to work the next coupe nights and thursday try and locate my floppy drive for the laptop.
i have found two of the cd drives but the floppy is in a box somewhere in the garage...
i dont plan on reprograming it often but will be looking into more moto radios for vhf and low band.

well now i have a maratrac hi band vhf to mess with also. i just have to get one of the old computers running dos and the software working. i cant wait to get them programmed and installed. it should be fun.

this may sound like a stupid question.
i have having issues trying to get dos and the rss running. it is mainly a drive issue as i only have cd roms at this time.
i have a toshiba satellite pro 430 cdt running windows 98 and has a dos option but when i enter dos and exit windows i cant get to the rss software. i can also boot this dell up in dos but again have not found a way to access the software once booted. any help would be appreciated.
thanks. paul

This subject has been covered extensively in previous posts on this Board.

The so-called DOS that runs under Windows will usually NOT work with a Motorola RSS. You may be able to READ the radio but you won't be able to write TO the radio. You must have a copy of DOS 6.22 to make most DOS RSS versions operate properly. Your computer must be booted from DOS and not have the Windows platform operating. Looking back over your past posts and the replies you got it looks as if no one ever bothered to tell you about this, so now you know.

my problem is that i can boot dos 6.22 but when i do i cant access the rss.
i have the rss on cd but when i pull the dos cd and put in the rss cd it wont recognize the drivr that dos booted from.

You can run the Maxtrac, late version, with the DOS in Windows 98. Use the F10 key to boot directly to the command prompt. When in this DOS 7 mode you do not have the cdrom drive drivers and can not access the CD drive.

You would have have the Maxtrac RSS properly installed on the hard drive.

i have the rss on the hard drive but it is in a windows folder and i have not been able to bring it up.
i am trying to figure it out but i am dos illiterate after not using it for ove 20 years except in a plc-3 enviroment and those were dedicated terminals.

go to true dos not a windows PIF version

EXIT Windows and select the option that lets you go to DOS, don't open a dos promt from windows, you need to exit windows first.

make sure your pointing to your C: drive when you get the dos prompt, which you should be then point to your directory where the RSS is at.

as an example:
if you are in dos you will see the dos prompt
C:\>

type the full directory path where the maxtrac RSS is

For example ifyour RSS for maxtrac is in c:\windows\rss\maxtrac
then when you see C:\>
type

C:\windows\rss\maxtrac

you should get the following dos promt if everything is typed correctly

C:\windows\rss\maxtrac>

type maxtrac.exe and press enter

thank you for that info. i will give it a try in the morning with the toshiba if i can get into the bios and get it to boot from the cd drive.

One of the big no no's in DOS is the length of the file name and the directory name.
Eight ( 8 ) characters is all you get. The name can be less, but no more.

I have seen some computers that won't let you even see the C drive when you
boot from the floppy and run DOS. Guess it has to do with how the motherboard
and the BIOS were set up to run. Might also be an issue with the length of the
name you assigned to the C drive. The DOS boot should be able to locate and
use the C drive. Unless you formatted it in something other than FAT or FAT32.
Then DOS can't see the drive. The drive does have a limit in size running under
DOS. Unless I have forgot the limit, I believe 120 GB hard drive is the upper
limit. I have always used computers with something like 20 GB. They work just
fine.

One other thought comes up and that is what version of DOS you are trying to
run. The 6.22 or higher will be needed for the larger hard drives on your computer.

Jim

kb2crk wrote:i have the rss on the hard drive but it is in a windows folder and i have not been able to bring it up.
i am trying to figure it out but i am dos illiterate after not using it for ove 20 years except in a plc-3 enviroment and those were dedicated terminals.

ok i was able to get the maratrac programed and running. the maxtrac is a different story. the software just does not want to open under dos. if i enter C:\maxtrac.exe all i get is another c promt. if i type C:\MAXTRAC. BAT i get an attept to open but it says i am missing files that are on the drive. if i open it in a window environment the rss will open and i can get it to attempt a read of the code plug. i knew this would not work for programing but i was told i may be able to read this way. any ideas? any help is greatly appreciated.

thanks paul

ok after copying all the files one at a time into dos i have the rss running. now the issue is that it keeps saying the model is not supported.
give an error 21. this is with the uhf maxtrac 300 and a maxtrac ls that is a 800mhz trunking radio. comm test works and the radio will talk to the computer but i cant pull the codeplug. am i still missing something? i am getting closer and any help would be great.

thanks again paul

Maxtrac LS uses the MAX-LS package.
UHF Maxtrac 300 uses the MAXTRAC package.
Both are different than MAXTRACS, which is for Privacy Plus, Smartnet, and CoveragePlus trunking radios.

Which one do you have?

Also, c:\maxtrac.exe shouldn't be correct. The software should properly reside in C:\MRSS\MAXTRAC\MAXTRAC.EXE.

Finally, your 430CDT may be too fast for this software.

well i messed up and lost the codeplug on the 300. i hit the wrong keys and ended up blanking the thing. time to start from scratch. i am now running an old desktop with the clock speed set down to 16 mhz. i was not sure about the ls and thought it might use a different rss.
i am using the lab software if that helps.
thanks
paul

Thus why people shouldn't play around with things they don't understand. By blanking the radio, you nuked the tuning block as well... the radio will need a full alignment before you even consider plugging it into anything besides a dummy load.

You might slow up a bit and think before punching buttons. It saves doing things like nuking radios that don't need it.

tvsjr wrote:Thus why people shouldn't play around with things they don't understand. By blanking the radio, you nuked the tuning block as well... the radio will need a full alignment before you even consider plugging it into anything besides a dummy load.

You might slow up a bit and think before punching buttons. It saves doing things like nuking radios that don't need it.

thanks for the slam.
but on another note i should be able to re-initialize the board and as soon as i can locate a good codeplug and start all over.
the radio needed to aligned anyway as it was going to be stretched down to the amateur band. i am not giving up on it as of yet and as long as i am starting from scratch i will be putting a 16 pin board and a full function head. something i was going to wait on.
thanks for the help.

!
I learned something new. I'm going to have to drill through Maxtrac. I didn't know you could blank a codeplug in standard old RSS.

Sorry for your troubles Paul. At least it sounds like you're enjoying the challenge. Sometimes trying to resurrect old pc's and dos apps can be way too much fun. I keep a couple old laptops around the shop just to run MSF and a couple others. I hope they never die at least before I retire.

well the rss i was in was a lab rss. that is how i managed to blank the board.
i love to learn by doing. yes there will be casualties. but there will be successes also. tried and found out the spare 16 pin board i had acquired was a dead indian as after putting it in the radio would not power up. i'll dig through the parts bin and see what else i have.
i still have the ls which might end up being stripped down for parts. either that or sold as i do not need it.

well it is up and running. 6 local repeaters programed. i found the problem by doing some more reading on batlabs and repeater builder.
i was using lab software and it took me a while to figure out why the standard rss would not start. i had them both under the same file
name and the lab was there first. i transferred the standard rss to a floppy and worked from a drive to resurrect the radio. as for putting the the 16 pin board in, that was dropped when i discovered it was no good and the radio would not even power on with it in. so for now it is a six channel 40 watt radio. as for tuning parameters being bad, they were not lost when blanked and the radio checks out fine.
out of the six repeaters programmed two are in range of the driveway and the rest are on the way to work. now it is time to work on finding a spot to mount it.
thank you for all the great advice and tips.