PROBLEM

Radio will not do anything, or when reading radio it produces "gibbershed" frequencies and text.

 Here are a few suggestions to solve this problem. Normally one of these will "fix it". The radio send a constant stream of encrypted data to the PC, not stopping for ANYthing. If even one character is "missed", this will corrupt the entire decryption process and give an error such as you are seeing, OR, the database will be filled with "gibberish" rather than valid frequencies or text.

If you have other programs running in the background, they can interfere with the data going to the radio. ANY disruption, even one missed character can cause something like this. Usually disabling Norton or McAfee virus program will solve this issue.

Do you have a Palm Pilot or other PDA attached to your computer? the "Sync software" is notorious for grabbing all available resources. An example would be if you are using the USB connection for your Palm Cradle, the software will by default take over the USB port and all the serial ports also. Check your settings. If you have a modem in your computer, check that you have selected the correct com port that you have your cable plugged into. On your scanner, check the Menu under Xfer Information, PC Control and set it to 57600 bps. It could be "Off". Set the speed the same on your PC software.

In the database screen area, go to:
        FILE > Settings for radio
          Adjust the timing slider to 1/2 scale (or even 3/4)
            (It's on bottom of that window)
          And, make sure the XP Switch is "checked"

If you are using a USB to RS232 Adaptor, many times the driver is at fault, and windows may have placed a "generic" driver in the system instead of the one made specifically for that device. Go to the Adaptor's OEM website and get the latest driver.

Normally this is a hardware related issue. So if you have more than one computer that you can place our software on, I'd suggest trying it on the 2nd computer. Most times this will solve the issues and also let you determine just what is causing the problem on the other computer.


- The Proper cable is a 20-289 (Off White in color).
- The Radio does not go into clone mode until you select in the software to load the radio. IF it DOES, that would indicate something else using the port and that could also be the cause of your problems.

Best regards

Jim Springer
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