I have a pair of Motorola MJ270 radios that just won’t communicate. Independently, the both cycle through the available options, audible tones are good, I’m able to listen to the NOAH channels; but, I can’t get them to communicate with one another. I’v tried replacing the batteries, switching channels…nothing works. Any advice???
This can happen if one or both of your radios are using different CTCSS/DCS codes on the channel you are on.
If you are using privacy codes on any of the channels, both radios must use the same code to communicate with each other. Check to be sure both radios are on the same channel and neither is assigned a CTCSS/DCS privacy code or interference eliminator code on that channel. The Motorola MJ270 has 121 privacy codes to choose from, so it is quite possible this is the issue.
Here is a brief explanation of CTCSS/DCS codes and how they are used.
This video explains how to set CTCSS/DCS interference eliminator codes on Motorola Talkabout radios such as the MJ270.
For a more in-depth explanation, listen to Episode 8 our podcast, The Two Way Radio Show.
TWRS-08 - Talking Publicly About Privacy Codes