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Bug #10065

closed

Retevis RB27 with repeaters

Added by Tyler Akins over 1 year ago. Updated about 1 year ago.

Status:
Closed
Priority:
Normal
Assignee:
-
Category:
-
Target version:
-
Start date:
10/03/2022
Due date:
% Done:

0%

Estimated time:
Chirp Version:
daily
Model affected:
Retevis RB27
Platform:
Windows
Debug Log:
I read the instructions above:

Description

I'm trying to program some Retevis RB27 GMRS radios to use a repeater. When I set an offset direction and frequency (+ and 5), then write to the radio and read it back from the radio, the offset direction and frequency are blanked out again.

I am using the Linux flatpak daily, 20221002.


Files

2022-10-03 14_43_00-CHIRP.png (37 KB) 2022-10-03 14_43_00-CHIRP.png Jim Unroe, 10/03/2022 07:09 PM
Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-04-59.png (111 KB) Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-04-59.png Downloaded from radio Tyler Akins, 10/03/2022 11:08 PM
Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-06-51.png (59.5 KB) Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-06-51.png Can't set duplex/offset Tyler Akins, 10/03/2022 11:08 PM
Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-07-23.png (13.3 KB) Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-07-23.png Trying to only change the power Tyler Akins, 10/03/2022 11:08 PM
Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-08-14.png (34.5 KB) Screenshot from 2022-10-03 18-08-14.png Trying to change the power of a FRS channel Tyler Akins, 10/03/2022 11:08 PM
Retevis_RB27_20220926-Matches-Jenny-b.img (4.23 KB) Retevis_RB27_20220926-Matches-Jenny-b.img Tyler Akins, 10/05/2022 02:18 AM
Retevis_RB27_20221004-original.img (4.22 KB) Retevis_RB27_20221004-original.img Tyler Akins, 10/05/2022 02:18 AM
Actions #1

Updated by Jim Unroe over 1 year ago

Not much detail is given. I would expect that you are doing something wrong. See the attached screen capture. The screen capture was obtained after programming channels 31-41, uploading them to the radio and then downloading them back to CHIRP.

Channels 23-30 were copy-and-pasted to channels 31-38. They are identical to channels 23-30.

Channels 39-40 were manually edited. They retain their Duplex and Offset settings.

When programming channels with CHIRP running under Windows you have to make sure that you complete your choices. For example, when you choose + from the drop down list of choices, it is not fully selected until you either press [Enter] or click on to another cell with the mouse. It will not "stick" until you do this and if you don't, anything that causes CHIRP to "refresh" (clicking the [Refresh] button, uploading, etc) will cause the value to revert back.

One way to verify that you have fully selected your choice is to click the [Refresh] button at the top of the spreadsheet style memory editor. If the choice reverts back to the previous value, you didn't complete the choice.

One way to guarantee your choices are fully made is to use the Memory Properties editor. Click the memory row that you want to edit to highlight it. Then click the [Properties] button at the top of the spreadsheet style memory editor. Make the changes that you desire in this editor. Click the [OK] button make the changes permanent or click the [Cancel] button to abort the changes.

Channel 41 is a ham repeater. The RB27 is a GMRS radio and only GMRS frequencies are permitted to transmit. So even if you set Duplex = "+" and Offset = "5.000000", Duplex will be changed to "Off" (Transmit disabled) and Offset = "" {blank} at the next "refresh". So if the enter frequency is not one of the 30 authorized GMRS frequencies, CHIRP will automatically set Duplex = "off".

Jim KC9HI

Actions #2

Updated by Tyler Akins over 1 year ago

I download from the radio and get a list of channels. I change the bottom one to have duplex + and offset 5, then press refresh and the values revert. I click on the row and press Properties and make the same change, but can not save. There is a red (!) icon on the right side of the duplex and offset values and hovering shows "Field duplex is not mutable on this memory" and "Field offset is not mutable on this memory". Out of curiosity, I tried changing the power to Low and did not get the error icon, but pressing "Ok" made a popup show "Field freq is not mutable on this memory. Going past that alert will remove the channel from the list.

I tried editing the properties of another channel to change the power from low to high and got a message of "Field power is not mutable on this memory" - this might make sense because it's a FRS channel and "high" on the radio might be above the FCC's limit.

Actions #3

Updated by Tyler Akins over 1 year ago

I pulled down a copy of the programming software from a third party because Retevis removed it from their website - http://mvrn.org/configuring-the-radio/

I wrote to my test radio and then I was able to read the reset channel list using CHiRP. I think there's something wrong with how these radios were programmed before (not related to CHiRP).

CHiRP still can't turn a repeater channel into a non-repeater channel (by setting duplex and offset), a non-repeater channel into a repeater channel, nor change frequencies to other GMRS channels. Is there a way I can figure out what the restrictions are and why they exist?

Actions #4

Updated by Tyler Akins over 1 year ago

Sorry, I neglected to say that my radios are now programmed. I exported the list to CSV, edited the CSV, then imported the CSV on top of the channels and can set everything how I want it. Not sure why CHiRP won't let me do this in the UI, but at least there's a workaround.

If you feel everything is operating as expected, close this issue. Otherwise, I would be happy to provide any additional information you would want.

Actions #5

Updated by Jim Unroe over 1 year ago

Tyler Akins wrote:

I pulled down a copy of the programming software from a third party because Retevis removed it from their website - http://mvrn.org/configuring-the-radio/

I wrote to my test radio and then I was able to read the reset channel list using CHiRP. I think there's something wrong with how these radios were programmed before (not related to CHiRP).

CHiRP still can't turn a repeater channel into a non-repeater channel (by setting duplex and offset), a non-repeater channel into a repeater channel, nor change frequencies to other GMRS channels. Is there a way I can figure out what the restrictions are and why they exist?

Hi Tyler,

Why is it that your screen capture is only showing 16 channels? The radio and the CHRIP driver supports 99 channels. The RB27 (GMRS model) has 30 channels programmed from the factory with channels 23-30 set as repeater channels and 69 channels available for programming. Your screen capture shouldn't stop at 16. Even if you loaded an RB27B image (FRS model) there would be 22 programmed channels and and additional 77 available (but none would be available for programming repeaters).

It is almost as if you downloaded from your radio using the RB627B selection (PMR model) which only supports 16 channels.

For the fun of it, I even fired up a Linux machine net yet running the latest flatpak CHIRP, updated CHIRP to the latest CHIRP and then loaded the "factory" RB27 image. It displays all 99 channels with the 30 programming GMRS channels including the 8 repeater channels. I then entered 462.550000 into the next available memory row, changed Duplex to "+" and set Offset to "5.000000". It works fine.

Would you attach your CHIRP Radio Images (*.img) file to this issue so I can use it for testing?

Also, did you save an unedited "backup" image from your radio before editing with CHIRP (it is a good practice)? If you did, please attach it as well.

Jim KC9HI

Actions #6

Updated by Tyler Akins over 1 year ago

The radios were not stock - they had been programmed earlier using tools that certainly did not do anything good. Attached is an image of that, which mentions "Jenny-b" in the filename. They were trying to match some Baofeng radios that only have 16 channels.

When you entered 462.550000 into the next available memory row, that is not reproducing what I was doing. I was trying to edit a row that already had a frequency. When I try to change the frequency of a memory, then I get errors. When I delete the memory and make it from scratch, I can do whatever I want. This behavior is odd and I'm wondering why I can delete and set anything I want but I can't simply edit the channel directly.

I did save a backup from the radio today after I nuked the 16 channels via the official programming software, and I have attached that image as well. It's got today's date in the filename.

Actions #7

Updated by Jim Unroe over 1 year ago

You can't change the first 30 channels. They are the default 22 GMRS simplex channels + 8 GMRS repeater channels.

1-7: simplex only. You can change tones, bandwidth and power level.
8-14: simplex only. You can change tone only. Bandwidth is narrow only and power level is low only.
15-22: simplex only. You can change tones, bandwidth and power level.
23-30: repeater only. You can change tones, bandwidth and power level.

It is only channels 31-99 that you can free-form program in am combination of simplex/repeater channels.

This is exactly how the Retevis RT27 GMRS v1.5 programming software works. The first 30 channels are kept this way to be compatible with any other standard 30 channel GMRS radio on the market today.

CHIRP is working exactly as intended and expected.

So if you want to program this radio to match the channels of a 16 channel model, you would just program any 16 channels in the range of 31-99.

Jim KC9HI

Actions #8

Updated by Bernhard Hailer about 1 year ago

  • Status changed from Feedback to Closed

Closed assuming that Jim's response is sufficient to explain the radio's behavior.

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