Another Baofang GM-15 PRO that will not program

[WRWU395]

I saw the post from last September. No help there.

I bought two Baofang GM-15 Pro radios and the programming cable with the 12303 chip in it. It will talk to the radios with no problems. The problem is the radio will not except any additional info for DIY/ RPT channels or repeaters. In the soft ware the  Freq STEP is set to factory 2.5 and I need 5.00. If I select the 5.0 and the green enter button the radio says "canceled"

If I'm using the software screen ( as in the Sept post ) the Freq Step is Grayed out and cannot be turned on with no listed option to turn it on.

It WILL allow you to change it in VFO mode but the radio is programmed from the factory to not TX if anything is changed / added in the VFO mode!

The radio list a DIY mode with no instructions anywhere I can find. ( Do It Yourself ? )

I'm at my wits-end after hours trying to program one repeater two miles away with no luck. The radio will not accept inputs that are needed.

Any ideas how to get these radios to work?

[KAF6045]

Every radio I own, "Freq Step" only applies to the VFO increment and has no use with memory channels. The only difference between 2.5 and 5.0 is that the former requires one to make two "clicks" when changing the VFO.

GMRS main channels are on 25kHz steps (462.550 -> 462.575). When you include the interstitials, the steps become 12.5kHz (462.550 -> 462.5625 -> 462.757). Note that 12.5kHz is not a multiple of 5.0 but 2.5 is.

For repeaters, the OFFSET is 5.0MHz (not kHz) -- and that is likely fixed in the radio programming.

Misleadingly: According to https://www.baofengradio.com/products/gm-15-pro the model is preloaded with the 22 simplex channels, and the 8 duplex (repeater channels); I'd expect the only modifiable items for those 30 channels to be CTCSS/DCS codes. The other 220 memory slots are receive-only so offset does not apply, and for memories, step is meaningless -- they may support a receive CTCSS/DCS code. Step only becomes of use IF you have the ability to do a Memory->VFO copy and then use a dial to increment/decrement from the loaded VFO frequency.

But one of the images does claim 24 modifiable GMRS repeater channels (can't tell if that includes the initial 8, or is in addition to them). It appears that one can select the receive frequency, the transmit frequency is automatic at 5MHz offset. Unfortunately, the only mention Google finds of "DIY" channels for the model just happens to be this forum...

 

[WRWU395]

Thank you for the info. Being a HAM I tried to program as if the radio was a UHF/VHF HT. I programmed the two radios for my local channels and they will TX to my GMRS base station.

I'm miles away from the repeaters even though I can see one of the towers,the radio will not trip the repeater.

My wife will be hiking much closer today to one of the repeaters and will try to contact me at my QTH if she can trip the repeater with the HT. It says 5 Watts but in real life it will be closer to 3.5 Watts if that.

[WRWU395]

My wife is very close to a local repeater. The PL tone TX and RX is set to the local repeater and the radio is showing TX but is not working. ( not tripping the repeater ) Both radios are doing this.

I'm assuming the offset is automatic as the radio will not allow change the factory 2.5 to 5 where it needs to be. You can select it but not save it.

At this point I do not know what to do. The radios are as if they are in Simplex mode only and will not transmit the PL tone to activate the repeater.

This is day 3 trying to get the radios to work.

[OffRoaderX]

EDIT: ...nevermind.. i'm out

 

[KAF6045]

33 minutes ago, WRWU395 said:

I'm assuming the offset is automatic as the radio will not allow change the factory 2.5 to 5 where it needs to be. You can select it but not save it.

Presuming you are using the computer programming software, perform a screen-grab of the channels in question and paste it here (I still don't know where you are seeing the 2.5 -- since you don't state kHz or MHz; offset is in MHz and GMRS only uses a +5MHz offset. That means for a repeater channel receiving on 462.550MHz, the transmit frequency will be 467.550MHz).

I'd also recommend you do NOT set a receive tone -- at least not until you've confirmed the transmit tone is correct. Monitor using the simplex channel with the corresponding receive frequency and no tones defined.

[WRWU395]

Heres a few screenshots and photos. PLEASE zoom the image if need be.

notice 19-21

Heres other menus for same SANDIA channel

You are allowed to select the 5 KHZ but if the G R E E N button for save is pressed the voice says "canceled"

According to my local clubs channel and repeater list you have to have ENCODE and DECODE PL tones programmed,as you see above.

Im open to any ideas as to what to try.

I can find NOTHING anywhere on DIY channels listed in the radio.

The software is 06.03.009 which is NOT shown anywhere. 06.03.006 is the most recent at the Radiodity/ Boafeng site. I cannot use CHIRP as neither of the radios are listed. Baofeng/radiodity

As you can see in the one image the two TX/RX freqs are the same. You cannot change them. The offset is also grayed out as are other selections which are either automatic by software or your not allowed to change them.

I have a 50 Watt radio and I put in the tones and 5 Khz offset and it works perfectly. Been able to hit three repeaters miles from my QTH.

[SteveShannon]

Step has nothing to do with the PL tones. The column marked “TX QT/DQT” is where you program the Encode PL tone. 
I advise leaving the RX QT/DQT blank at first. Putting a PL tone in there will filter everything out that doesn’t include that specific tone. 
These tones are also called CTCSS. 

[WRWU395]

I removed the RX portion and still no contacts or repeater acknowledgement of receiving a signal from my radios. I can clearly hear stations having a QSO.

[SteveShannon]

13 minutes ago, WRWU395 said:

I removed the RX portion and still no contacts or repeater acknowledgement of receiving a signal from my radios. I can clearly hear stations having a QSO.

Well, it looks like you programmed Sandia on channel 20 which is a simplex channel instead of channel 28, which is a repeater channel. 
In order to access a repeater you must use one of the repeater channels which are Rpt-1 through Rpt-8, or #23-30 in the CPS. 
And you must have the right tone. 

[WRWU395]

I got it to work. The issue was that the DIY channels are hidden but active if you select one to make it a channel. No instructions. Your 100% right about ch.20. Can't be programmed but will take the info and do nothing with it. Should be locked out in the software.

I made three new DIY channels which became 31-33 in the radios memory,but you have no indication they have been saved when you hit enter. I had the software write to the radio and on the 2nd try the new channels were saved. A bug there. Would go to 99% and just run forever.

Radio test with the Rubber Ducky antenna will hit two of the three repeaters in my area. With the included "Long Range" antennas the seller included I can hit the third repeater that is not line of sight and 12 miles away. Sandia repeater is 16 miles away at 10,000 feet on top of the mountain and the little radio hits it like gang-busters.

My signal report was very good with great audio through several repeaters out 200 miles to my East, and I was able to hit AZ with very strong signals as well.

Thank you for your help guys. I think I will post instructions on how to program the new software 06.03.009 which is diff from the earlier software. Leave it to the Chinese.

I still cannot find any info on DIY channels but have figured out how to use them. 

73

 

[KAF6045]

5 hours ago, WRWU395 said:

According to my local clubs channel and repeater list you have to have ENCODE and DECODE PL tones programmed,as you see above.

Im open to any ideas as to what to try.

You've already been chided for the fact that you are programming SIMPLEX channels with the tones. Under the consolidated (FRS & GMRS) channel numbering scheme #1-7 are the 5W (W)FM (2W NFM for FRS) 462MHz interstitials, #8-14 are the 0.5W NFM 467MHz interstitials (for both FRS and GMRS), #15-22 are the 50W (W)FM (again 2W NFM for FRS) MAIN simplex frequencies. #23-30 are 50W (W)FM REPEATER frequencies (not available to FRS). The repeater block has 462MHz receive and 467MHz transmit

You don't /need/ to have the decode tones programmed -- if you leave that blank you will hear all traffic on the frequency, whether from the specific repeater or not. You /do/ need to have the encode tone programmed in order to activate the repeater.

5 hours ago, WRWU395 said:

I have a 50 Watt radio and I put in the tones and 5 Khz offset and it works perfectly. Been able to hit three repeaters miles from my QTH.

If you entered a 5kHz offset you are splattering your transmission across two adjacent 462MHz channels.

You are mixing up VFO STEP (which is kHz) with REPEATER OFFSET (which is MHz). The "step" is only used for VFO tuning, and means nothing for memory channels. The repeater channels already have the 5MHz offset programmed.

 

Just for kicks -- the settings from my KG-935G

I can put in any value for "RX Freq", but the only choices for "TX Freq" are "OFF", or a GMRS frequency (including the interstitials -- this radio allows for custom simplex channels -- so one could have two memory slots with identical TX/RX frequencies, but having different CTCSS/DCS tones

 

VFO settings

This is the only place "STEP" appears. And is meaningless for me as I don't use the VFO for tuning.

[WRUU653]

4 hours ago, WRWU395 said:

I still cannot find any info on DIY channels but have figured out how to use them

I would highly recommend choose one that works with Chirp. When first getting your feet wet with programming it is far easier. Once you grasp things better you can make better use of front loading the radios. IMO.

changed my statement as I had missed that you were using proprietary software. My mistake. 

Edited April 12, 2023 by WRUU653
Amended my statement

[WRUU653]

As mentioned by @Sshannon you are programming repeaters in the wrong location. So you won’t have the offset that is already on the repeater channels/frequencies in those locations. 
 

[WRWU395]

Thank you to SShannon who got me thinking in the right direction out of the box. The DIY channels are the modifiable channels for repeaters  with the .009 software. There is NO mention  of, let alone any instructions on DIY channels in the manual or on line for either the Baofang or the Radiodity radios.

I wish the others here today had chimed in at the beginning of my post with your helpful replies. It would have saved several days of frustration with the wrong manual for the new radios software that were provided by the maker with the instructions lacking the correct method of programming the new software.

Both radios are working very well now.

[KAF6045]

13 hours ago, WRWU395 said:

I wish the others here today had chimed in at the beginning of my post with your helpful replies. It would have saved several days of frustration with the wrong manual for the new radios software that were provided by the maker with the instructions lacking the correct method of programming the new software.

Very few companies reprint updated manuals for what qualifies as a "software patch update". At best, the manufacturer will have some document of release notes for the firmware update -- though I suspect, given the manufacturer in question, any such release notes are in Chinese and probably not even on-line.