syntor x9000 programing

[havmedic26]

I understand that these are the most temperamental radios to program, but here goes. I have never programed one before. I have had trouble since the very beginning. I believe my first RIB (sandy gantz) did not have the handshake line, so I ordered a new one to be safe. It is a KawaMall RLN4008 RIB, which they say will will program the syntor x9000, as well as a list of other radios. Although they are a generic replica company, I have always had great experiences with them. I had my own homebuilt radio interface, and to be safe I also bought a motorola cable. I have a really slow computer (can't remember the speed but I seem to recall it is a 286, but maybe a 386 though I doubt it.) I have used the com port (com2) to program other radios today (like an ht1000). battery in the rib is good.

Whether I select the port that the RIB is connected to or the one that it is not I get the same result. It says "Serial bus failure Power fault"

If it matters, I am powering the radio with a 30 amp power supply.
Any ideas why the radio will not read? I haven't found this error anywhere in my searching.

thanks

JT

[Jim202]

I understand that these are the most temperamental radios to program, but here goes. I have never programed one before. I have had trouble since the very beginning. I believe my first RIB (sandy gantz) did not have the handshake line, so I ordered a new one to be safe. It is a KawaMall RLN4008 RIB, which they say will will program the syntor x9000, as well as a list of other radios. Although they are a generic replica company, I have always had great experiences with them. I had my own homebuilt radio interface, and to be safe I also bought a motorola cable. I have a really slow computer (can't remember the speed but I seem to recall it is a 286, but maybe a 386 though I doubt it.) I have used the com port (com2) to program other radios today (like an ht1000). battery in the rib is good.

Whether I select the port that the RIB is connected to or the one that it is not I get the same result. It says "Serial bus failure Power fault"

If it matters, I am powering the radio with a 30 amp power supply.
Any ideas why the radio will not read? I haven't found this error anywhere in my searching.

thanks

JT

First of all you need t make sure you are running the computer in a pure DOS boot mode. Don't try running it under Windows 98 in a DOS window.

Second, there is a small program called "CACHEOFF>COM" that has solved a number of issues on many computers with the way the cache is used. I now start that program on all of my low speed computers on most of the DOS required software.

Third, there are a number of different versions of the Syntor X9000 software floating around. Some of them work fine and some of them don't. I would try and use one of the original versions to get you programming system functional before going to some of the modified versions to give you extra channels and out of band programming. The original software only allowed 32 channels. Depending on which software you ended up with it will go to 128 or 256 channels.

If you haven't already made a visit to the batlabs radio info site, you need to go there. Then the second spot to visit is the repeater builders site. Both have a wealth of info. One of the links you need to follow is the one that takes you to Mike B's site. He has a huge wealth of info on the Syntor X9000. His site goes into the control head models, how to modify the radios, different cable connections and so on.

One area to look at is the difference between what a Syntor radio is and what a Syntor X9000 is. They are not the same and can't be programmed the same or use the same software.

Keep us posted on your success. The radio is a rock solid player, once you get them running. There are some tricks that can be done with the different versions of the control heads. If you ended up with a piece meal radio package and not a complete running one, you may have ended up with a trunking control head. If so, it too can be made to work on a conventional X9000. You just need a functional Spectra radio to beat it into submission. Some fast footwork with the programming can bring those heads into working order.

If you haven't figured it out yet, you actually need 2 different programs to make your radio work. One is the "DPROG.EXE" software for the radio programming. The second one is "CHPROG.EXE" that is used to program the control head. They do not talk to each other.

As a suggestion, I would try using an Excel file to lay out how you want the radio programmed. You will need to make sure that what channel is in the radio, is the same channel that you set up the control head as. It can get real confusing real fast. So I use a simple sheet with all the channel info on when I do my programming. It has the channel position (number), RX freq, RX tone, TX freq, TX tone and channel name to be displayed. With the 9000 series control heads, you can have up to an 11 digit alpha numeric name displayed.

Setting up the scan list is a pain in the lower end. You actually can have a different scan list for the first 64 channels in the radio. if you get lucky and find the firmware, there is a 128 channel scan one around. You will need to be able to program an EEPROM to use it. I have never been that lucky to be able to find it and have a prom programmer to make a firmware chip.

Jim

[havmedic26]

my computer is only a dos boot. don't even think it would boot windows if I tried.

I will look for that program cacheoff>com

I have the original version of motorola software. didn't even know there were others. I actually have a couple versions of it from along the years.

I have read all three of those sites extensively, and none make mention of this error.

I do know the difference between the 2 radios, as I have a stack of each type. I was just playing with the x9000's first

I also know there are 2 different programs, although on my software it is rdprog and chprog. perhaps a typo? or a different version of the software?

Thanks for the help

[Jim202]

my computer is only a dos boot. don't even think it would boot windows if I tried.

I will look for that program cacheoff>com

I have the original version of motorola software. didn't even know there were others. I actually have a couple versions of it from along the years.

I have read all three of those sites extensively, and none make mention of this error.

I do know the difference between the 2 radios, as I have a stack of each type. I was just playing with the x9000's first

I also know there are 2 different programs, although on my software it is rdprog and chprog. perhaps a typo? or a different version of the software?

Thanks for the help

Your right on the program names. I was in a rush and failed to proof read my poor typing skills. I have seen the program come up with all sorts of complaints over the course of time. Once you get all the hardware and software into the planetary alignment, they all should play well. Don't forget to change the computer port setting in the software to match the com port you think your using. Make sure you start from a fresh boot and not after any other programs have been running.

If you have what you think is a good software package, stick to the normal commercial frequencies until things settle down. Keep me in the loop as to how your progress is coming. I have about 6 or 7 of these radios all up and modified for the ham bands with extra channels. It is a fairly simple task to make them go the extra channels.

Jim

[havmedic26]

Thanks, I definitely will. I would be interested in those topics once I get everything talking happily. I am doing everything you mentioned, except that I can not find that software that you mentioned. tried all kinds of searches and nothing. even a search of this site reveals numerous mentions of that and similar software, but never a link. Do you have an idea where I might find it?

[DavidJ]

it's cacheoff.com and should be on your DOS disk. there are several threads here on this topic