And they don’t seem to be very good.
They are quiet and there is a delay from when I speak into one and the sound comes out the others.
They are model no. PD508
No screen, just a power/volume knob, a channel selector with 16 channels and a PTT button.
It seems these can be digital or analogue but I can’t work out how to switch between the 2.
Can anyone point me in the right direction to switch these to analogue or somehow improve them? They are brand new.
Well, they’re quite nice radios - they can be digital or analogue, but the delay you mention indicates they are programmed for digital. Not really quite sure what you mean when you say ‘improve’ them. They are doing their job, aren’t they?
To programme them you need a cable and the software. You can then enter new frequencies and switch between the with the selector. Any selection of analogue or digital to suit what you want to do, and what kind of license you have. They are not legal to use on the license free bands - and you could have VHF or UHF ones. The VHF has no license free options, but because of their power and detachable aerial although you could use them on PMR446 if they are UHF, but you’d be operating illegally - probably never have an issues - but the law is the law.
What exactly have you got in mind?
I guess the biggest issue is how quiet they are. Looking at the manual it seems they have some sort of auto-volume system. They are currently no use on site as the voice gets drowned out with any background noise. The delay turns out to not really be an issue, it is just the volume.
I have ordered a programming cable and I have the software ready.
I am in a third world country with no real regulation on radios as far as I can tell. The aerial says “UHF:410-480MHZ PRS”
If licensing isn’t an issue - I’d just programme a few analogue and a few digital channels and have a play? To be honest, if you just have the two - analogue could be better? The audio is usually crisper and might carry better?
Yeah, hopefully I can figure out the software once the cable arrives!
You need to do a check at a government website to make sure you are not interfering with any users! Almost ALL countries have licensing regulations.
I just revisited the spec - the audio output is half a watt! However, this is exactly the same spec as my Kenwoods - and they are quite loud? Maybe, just maybe, yours have a parameter in the programming that limits sound output level? Fingers crossed!