Can't access zones with CHIRP and F8HP-PRO

[Papa2118]

Picked up a couple F8HP-PROs from BTECH and so far loving the things.  What I've found though is I have to use the programming app from BTECH to access all the zones.  CHIRP won't do it.  It's not a huge deal since the purpose built app does it without issue, but odd since CHIRP has it as a listed model.

[SteveShannon]

21 minutes ago, Papa2118 said:

Picked up a couple F8HP-PROs from BTECH and so far loving the things.  What I've found though is I have to use the programming app from BTECH to access all the zones.  CHIRP won't do it.  It's not a huge deal since the purpose built app does it without issue, but odd since CHIRP has it as a listed model.

I found this on Reddit, but I have no way to test it:

 

 

Quote

 

•3mo ago

 

****I found out how****

What worked was pasting the second list after the 100 slot, that creates the second zone that is populated with the frequencies that were pasted above 100, if I had another list to program I would scroll down to 200 and paste is there.

 

 

[Seapup]

1 hour ago, Papa2118 said:

Picked up a couple F8HP-PROs from BTECH and so far loving the things.  What I've found though is I have to use the programming app from BTECH to access all the zones.  CHIRP won't do it.

As of CHIRP next-20250328, zone entries are: 

Zone 1: row 1 - row 100

Zone 2: row 101 - 200

Zone 3: row 201 - 300

...

Zone 10: row 901 - 1000

 

Zone names are editable and located under Settings > Bank Names

[Papa2118]

Thanks all.  I'll play with it.  Like I say, not a huge deal but was wondering.  Makes sense I guess.

I found something wonky with the native programming software today where it would write to the radio and some of the settings would be written with info from other cells.  For instance, even though everything was right before writing, after the write I found the same channel names would be written to more than one channel or values were being inserted into cells after the write that weren't there before the write.

[TerriKennedy]

On 4/2/2025 at 6:02 PM, Papa2118 said:

Thanks all.  I'll play with it.  Like I say, not a huge deal but was wondering.  Makes sense I guess.

I found something wonky with the native programming software today where it would write to the radio and some of the settings would be written with info from other cells.  For instance, even though everything was right before writing, after the write I found the same channel names would be written to more than one channel or values were being inserted into cells after the write that weren't there before the write.

CHIRP's idea of zones is very different from zoned Baofeng (and similar) brands. I think it may be based on some high-end radio. Anyway, to CHIRP, zones are a table where you can use a checkbox to put a channel into one (or more, or zero) zones. On the Baofeng radios, zone names are basically text strings that live in the settings menu and channels go into zones based on channel number as someone described above.

Regarding your issues with the BTECH CPS, I'd be very interested in hearing about them, since I wrote that software. Assuming you are using CPS version 1.2.5l, can you give me more details (via DM if you like). In particular, were the unexpected channels created on the radio after a write, or did the duplicates appear in the programming software? If you have a .dat file that causes the problem, I'd like to see it. You can either DM me here or email BTECH support (not putting the email address here to foil spam crawlers) and just put "Terri asked me to have you forward this to her" near the top of your email if you don't want to reach out to me directly (just because I say I wrote it is no proof that I did, although the "About" box will provide a hint).

Before we get that far, can you load your .dat file and just click "[Next]" at the bottom of the channel window to go through all 10 zones? You might get a message about corrupted data when moving to a new zone. The CPS assumes that if it's in a .dat file it can load, it's valid. But paging through each zone does additional checks to make sure all the settings are valid.

[Seapup]

59 minutes ago, TerriKennedy said:

I wrote that software

Please fix the SKey1 Shortcut bug in BTECH BF-F8HP PRO CPS Version 1.2.5l. Window > Radio Function includes SKey2, but SKey1 is absent. When writing to radio, user preference for SKey1 Shortcut is lost. For example, if I set SKey1 to FM via radio keypad, then subsequently use CPS to modify memory channels/zones and write changes to radio, Skey1 Shortcut becomes inoperable and requires resetting to preference via keypad.

Also, NOAA is an option for SKey1 and SKey2 via keypad, but not listed in the CPS shortcut picklist.

Much appreciated! ...73

[TerriKennedy]

6 hours ago, Seapup said:

Please fix the SKey1 Shortcut bug in BTECH BF-F8HP PRO CPS Version 1.2.5l. Window > Radio Function includes SKey2, but SKey1 is absent. When writing to radio, user preference for SKey1 Shortcut is lost. For example, if I set SKey1 to FM via radio keypad, then subsequently use CPS to modify memory channels/zones and write changes to radio, Skey1 Shortcut becomes inoperable and requires resetting to preference via keypad.

Also, NOAA is an option for SKey1 and SKey2 via keypad, but not listed in the CPS shortcut picklist.

Much appreciated! ...73

These and other fixes will be in 1.2.5m. Unfortunately, I can't make some changes to the CPS until I get firmware that's close to the release version, and then I deliver the CPS to BTECH and they validate it before releasing it. With the original V29 firmware and CPS 1.2.5l, new features in pre-release test firmware were pretty well set and the remaining firmware versions were bug fixes or UI improvements that didn't affect the CPS.

Firmware V33 was released while I was out in the Mojave Desert - the reason that elevation now works properly instead of telling you you're at an altitude that requires supplemental oxygen is because I took a radio to Badwater Basin (282 feet below sea level) as well as other locations (see picture) to verify the accuracy of the reported altitude. The firmware change notes were written by me at my campsite and uploaded via satcom ($$$) to BTECH because I was in the middle of nowhere. The changes to enable SK1 and add NOAA were felt to be minor enough to wait for 1.2.5m.

1.2.5m should release either with or within a few weeks after the next firmware update is released. That isn't entirely under my control. It adds the SK1 and NOAA changes as well as many other changes - both bugfixes and improvements to the CPS and its manual, as well as support for the new features coming in the next firmware release. One complicating factor is that Baofeng won't give BTECH certain critical information I need to make some CPS updates until BTECH says "this firmware is good - put it in new radios". Then it's a mad scramble for me to finish the CPS and get it to BTECH for testing.

I can't tell you about new features or other things in the upcoming firmware release, but I will say that 1.2.5l was my internal build number 290 (since 2023). The forthcoming 1.25m is now up to build number 319 and I still have 5 critical pending items and another 10 WIBNI (Wouldn't It Be Nice If...) feature requests that won't hold up the release of 1.2.5m if I don't get to them. 2 of the 5 critical ones can't be addressed until BTECH approves the next firmware release and I get the data I need from Baofeng.

[Seapup]

3 hours ago, TerriKennedy said:

WIBNI (Wouldn't It Be Nice If...)

Thank you for the info and great read! 

A few of my WIBNI items:

1. SK1&2 (or other unused long-press key) nuisance channel skip/temp channel delete from zone scan. Similar to AnyTone 878 Plus' nuisance delete, power off/on should restore channel scan preferences to baseline.
2. SK1&2 (or other unused long-press key) quick access to user-assigned zone/channel bank.
3. Ads and manual (page 9) advertise 10 squelch levels, but there are only 5. Would love 10 squelch levels.
4. User access via CPS to the squelch granularity assignment tables per frequency band. Similar to CHIRP's Settings > Service Settings for BF-F8HP, CHIRP allows user to customize BF-F8HP's keypad squelch settings (0-9) to the more granular values (0-123) per frequency band.   

Would be awesome if the BF-F8HP PRO CPS UI allowed the same user customization of squelch tables on a more granular level and on a frequency band basis. As is, adjusting BF-F8HP PRO squelch is an exercise in futility. 

5. Also... it would be nice if users could import data from stock/standard frequency tables and import data based on DB queries a la CHIRP:

Incorporating this import functionality would help reduce manual typing/plugging in data or running CHIRP in tandem with CPS to copy/paste data rows between apps.

[TerriKennedy]

4 hours ago, Seapup said:

Thank you for the info and great read! 

A few of my WIBNI items:

1. SK1&2 (or other unused long-press key) nuisance channel skip/temp channel delete from zone scan. Similar to AnyTone 878 Plus' nuisance delete, power off/on should restore channel scan preferences to baseline.
2. SK1&2 (or other unused long-press key) quick access to user-assigned zone/channel bank.
3. Ads and manual (page 9) advertise 10 squelch levels, but there are only 5. Would love 10 squelch levels.
4. User access via CPS to the squelch granularity assignment tables per frequency band. Similar to CHIRP's Settings > Service Settings for BF-F8HP, CHIRP allows user to customize BF-F8HP's keypad squelch settings (0-9) to the more granular values (0-123) per frequency band.  

Would be awesome if the BF-F8HP PRO CPS UI allowed the same user customization of squelch tables on a more granular level and on a frequency band basis. As is, adjusting BF-F8HP PRO squelch is an exercise in futility. 

5. Also... it would be nice if users could import data from stock/standard frequency tables and import data based on DB queries a la CHIRP.Incorporating this import functionality would help reduce manual typing/plugging in data or running CHIRP in tandem with CPS to copy/paste data rows between apps.

I'm glad you found it informative/helpful. I think I'm likely the only programming software author on here, except perhaps the CHIRP folks.

I can't tell you what will be in future firmware, sometimes because I have beta firmware but am under a non-disclosure agreement or because I don't have a specific firmware yet and sometimes there are surprises. I'm a contractor to BTECH for the CPS, firmware features/testing, and reviewing ad copy among a few other things, not an employee, so there can be ideas floated within BTECH that I only hear about when I see new firmware with them.

With that out of the way, I can say that you will get one of the things you asked for in the next public firmware release. 

To address some of your other points:

1) I'll add it to the feature request list. For technical reasons, it will likely only be for the duration of the scan in progress, not until the next power cycle.

2) Answered above. 

3&4) There are 10 levels in the radio. The radio just offers "every other one" because there isn't much difference between steps. The VHF table is currently 0, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32. These can be adjusted, but they live in the "calibration area" and we'd rather not access that with the CPS. There's too much other stuff nearby that the CPS would have to re-write that is radio-specific as tuned by the factory. Don't hold your breath, but some sort of unsupported utility might eventually appear.

5) This is very unlikely to appear in the CPS. However, you can write a radio with CHIRP and read it back with the CPS, or vice versa. So pick which one does a particular job best. CHIRP manages the regular settings for a huge number of radio models, while the CPS is specific to the BF-F8HP Pro and supports all of the other radio features - startup picture, voices, firmware updates, and so on.



 

[Lscott]

8 hours ago, TerriKennedy said:

These and other fixes will be in 1.2.5m. Unfortunately, I can't make some changes to the CPS until I get firmware that's close to the release version, and then I deliver the CPS to BTECH and they validate it before releasing it. With the original V29 firmware and CPS 1.2.5l, new features in pre-release test firmware were pretty well set and the remaining firmware versions were bug fixes or UI improvements that didn't affect the CPS.

Firmware V33 was released while I was out in the Mojave Desert - the reason that elevation now works properly instead of telling you you're at an altitude that requires supplemental oxygen is because I took a radio to Badwater Basin (282 feet below sea level) as well as other locations (see picture) to verify the accuracy of the reported altitude. The firmware change notes were written by me at my campsite and uploaded via satcom ($$$) to BTECH because I was in the middle of nowhere. The changes to enable SK1 and add NOAA were felt to be minor enough to wait for 1.2.5m.

1.2.5m should release either with or within a few weeks after the next firmware update is released. That isn't entirely under my control. It adds the SK1 and NOAA changes as well as many other changes - both bugfixes and improvements to the CPS and its manual, as well as support for the new features coming in the next firmware release. One complicating factor is that Baofeng won't give BTECH certain critical information I need to make some CPS updates until BTECH says "this firmware is good - put it in new radios". Then it's a mad scramble for me to finish the CPS and get it to BTECH for testing.

I can't tell you about new features or other things in the upcoming firmware release, but I will say that 1.2.5l was my internal build number 290 (since 2023). The forthcoming 1.25m is now up to build number 319 and I still have 5 critical pending items and another 10 WIBNI (Wouldn't It Be Nice If...) feature requests that won't hold up the release of 1.2.5m if I don't get to them. 2 of the 5 critical ones can't be addressed until BTECH approves the next firmware release and I get the data I need from Baofeng.

How many "undocumented" features will be in it?

[Seapup]

15 minutes ago, TerriKennedy said:

1) I'll add it to the feature request list. For technical reasons, it will likely only be for the duration of the scan in progress, not until the next power cycle.

Thank you! Duration of scan in progress is perfect! 

 

25 minutes ago, TerriKennedy said:

3&4) There are 10 levels in the radio. The radio just offers "every other one" because there isn't much difference between steps. The VHF table is currently 0, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32...

Thank you for the details. Even if no future access/change, that info better helps me understand what's going on "behind the scenes".

27 minutes ago, TerriKennedy said:

5) This is very unlikely to appear in the CPS. However, you can write a radio with CHIRP and read it back with the CPS, or vice versa. So pick which one does a particular job best...

Yep... currently doing things that way and I don't mind. But probably appears overcomplicated to Baofeng newcomers. 

[TerriKennedy]

23 minutes ago, Lscott said:

How many "undocumented" features will be in it?

There shouldn't be any in the firmware. I hate release notes that say "here's 2 new features and we fixed some other stuff". If you look at the V33 release notes, it covers everything, including stuff most users will never see (like fixing the diagnostic screen you get if you hold "8" while powering-on). There are some manufacturing keypress combos, and I know some, but not all of them (and can't tell).

In the CPS, what you see is what's there. The only "secret" (which I've previously mentioned) is that 1.2.5m will eventually (1-2 months after the BTECH release) become available in my "Modified UV-17 Pro GPS (and similar models)" CPS, and will include BF-F8HP Pro support along with all of the other models. It won't have the BTECH branding or the BTECH-exclusive features like the firmware update utility. The most recent UV-17/"Generic" release was 1.2.5k (1.25l was for the BF-F8HP Pro only) and you can get it here.