Kenwood TK350 to TK3201

[The Heff]

Hi all.

Can anyone assist with a radio pairing problem?

I have a Kenwood ProTalk TK3201 working through an Autocom system which works fine as I regularly ride with others using the same radio set up.

The problem is this:

I have a mate who has managed to get hold of a Kenwood TK350 radio but he has no user manual/instructions on how it works. It is also wired through an Autocom system. We tried to get it to work with mine without success. The radio is bike powered and seems to work, as the led comes on when transmitting.

Does anyone know if it is possible to get the TK350 programmed to work with the TK3201, and if so how is it done?

He has also got hold of a Midland radio but dont know which one yet, would this work any easier?

Any suggestions



Thanks

Heff

 

[Bumpkin]

Should be possible to get the Kenwood TK350 reprogrammed to work on PMR. However, I think it will require the appropriate lead and software to do so though.

If the Midland is a PMR radio then that should work with your TK3201, you'll need to look in the TK3201 owners manual where there's table of the frequencies and tones that the Kenwood channels translate to so he can set his Midland up.

 

[Boon]

Yes the tk350 can be programmed for pmr 446

your problem will be either finding someone to do it for you or get the programming lead,kpg program to re program the radio and an ancient lappy with a serial port to plug the lead into and run the ancient kpg dos programming software

radio shops know its technically naughty to put a 2 or 4 watt radio onto frequencies with a 0.5 w limit so they might not do it for you



its a faff setting up the re programming kit but if your handy its very do able

if your asking someone to do it for you........consider which ctcss/dcs freqs

you and your mates use and get them programmed in from the start


there are only 8 tx/rx frequencies (channels)

but 38 sub tone frequencies per channel



you need to set both for every channel you programme on the tk350


eg. channel 1 is 446.00625mhz but the ctcss code needs to match your mates....I tend to leave mine off as I dont need them where I live......

On another thread I notice some guys are using ctcss code 10 for this frequency as default.........

find out what your mates use........they are sub tone frequencies that mean unless both radios are the same you will know the other set is transmitting but you wont hear it and it wont hear you........

as your in NI I reckon it wont be busy so all your mates could leave the subtone off and you program the radio with no subtone for each 8 channels

as a backup program the same 8 channels with subtone 1......from memory I think its 67.3 (ch 9 -16)

and another 8 with sub tone 2 etc etc to give you more options

the tk has hundreds of storeable channels so you could repeat the 8 tx/rx freqs with almost all the subtones


there are guys on here that may be able to sort you out programming wise but I cant

my use of the kit is for technical study only

dont ask

 

[Boon]

Just re read your post .....try this

which channel on the 3201?

if ch 1 sub tone 10 for example

then see how many channels are in the 350........it holds 128

if it goes up past 8 its maybe already programmed for various sub tones


for , say sub tone 10 ch 1

try ch 81

the tenth bank of channels, the first frequency,logically should be 446.00625 sub tone 10

 

[Bumpkin]

These are the default channels for a TK3201

 

[Boon]

Ahh that will be why folks are using ctcss code 10 on ch 1

when did kenwood start programming thier radios like this?

ok try your tk350 and see how many channels it has


if its not 16 then its been programmed up to a different setup than the 3201

if its not too much hassle I would just prog it up as per the 3201

on most other pmr446 sets you can select channel then ctcss code separately.

if you dont have a dcs/ctcss search function on another radio..........my icom 208 has an auto seek for sub tones..........then you can try cycling thru all the channels on the tk350 untill one opens the squelch on the 3201........if it has a load of channels I would try every 8th one.



someone really needs to do a tossers guide to ex pmr kit

 

[chas820]

Try this page for more info,manual etc.

http://www.amnet.net.au/~mackat/kenwood_tk.html

Just had a look through the specs and i`m not sure if you will get all the pmr channels with this radio,to get pmr channels you need 6.25 spacing and this radio appears not to have that.

 

[Bumpkin]

Just had a look through the specs and i`m not sure if you will get all the pmr channels with this radio,to get pmr channels you need 6.25 spacing and this radio appears not to have that.

That's odd the Puxing PX888 has Wide and Narrow settings, 25kHz and 12.5kHz respectively Using the Narrow setting gives all 8 channels, each of which are 12.5kHz apart.

 

[chas820]

Yep you`re right,long time since i programmed mine,12.5 it is

 

[The Heff]

Thanks

Thanks for your prompt and informative replies folks.

Have passed on all the relevent details, so we'll see what happens next

Thanks again

Heff

 

[Bumpkin]

Just be aware that not all manufacturers use the same tone numbers matched to a particular frequency. The good news is that most use the same as Kenwood, though there are some exceptions. See this PDF.

 

[Boon]

Very interesting.

But why do kenwood use that crazy ctcss/dcs system?

Most kit I use is non pmr/pmr446..........normally I choose a frequency,choose a sub tone then memorise it for use later.

some of the pmr 446 stuff I have seen has channels from 1 to 8 then once on that channel you can choose a ctcss tone

strange.

still I just gave my bro in law a couple of tk350's to take back to lunnon with him and pointed him to this thread so he can fit one to his GSA........

hello rab

right about now you are probrably messing with battery eliminators and kpg23.......


good luck and I did offer to program them up for you

 

[Bumpkin]

But why do kenwood use that crazy ctcss/dcs system?

The Kenwoods are designed to be given to security guards and the like, pre-programmed and ready to go. No user tuning other than selecting the channel number.

The default arrangement of the Kenwood channels and tones as shown are presumably the result of research by them to give the best spacing combinations

 

[Boon]

Yeh that would fit.

Makes them a bit of an arse to program up though........does anyone have a kenwood kpg file with the info pre programmed?


Last kenwoods I did were 809's for expedition radios...........well I can hope.......

have 4 359's left for playing with...........then I wanna try playing with ht600's if I can find cheap batts for them.............


the little 350's are nice though........and plentiful.........


would be willing to swap a tk709 trunked unit on VHF for a 350 series body

350/359 got softwear for both and its the same lead so either or.........

 

[Boon]

Does the 3201 use kpg 88d running windows?

I have 87 91 and 100




see here for compatability





http://www.repeater-builder.com/kenwood/kenwood-software-and-cable-list.html