[Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

The General forum is where users can discuss any topic regarding Motorola communications equipment - hardware, software, etc. There are also several focused forums on this board, so please take the time to ensure that your questions doesn't fall into one of those categories before posting here!

Moderator: Queue Moderator

Post Reply
I. R. insane
New User
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Jun 28, 2007 8:03 pm

[Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

Post by I. R. insane »

i have a Maratrac that i want to use for APR[S]. Can the maratrac transmit and receive without the remote head? I would like to mount my tiny tracker inside the case in the empty cavity next to the receiver. then connect the ptt. mic out, speaker, and go, with no external wires except power and antenna.

[Welcome to the board... please make sure that when you make your posts, they have the correct subject title for the message. This should be a short 60-100 character summary of whatever your post is about before starting a new topic. Make sure you take time to read the announcements, FAQ, and board rules as well. Thanks! -Alex]
Will
Posts: 6823
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2001 4:00 pm

Re: [Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

Post by Will »

Yes with a couple of jumpers the Maratrac will run without the control head.

Also the speaker output is not a good point to get the receive data from. The top of the volume control is a better pick-off point for the data.
I. R. insane
New User
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Jun 28, 2007 8:03 pm

Re: [Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

Post by I. R. insane »

:D Great, I am new to these motrola radios and i appreciate all the help i can get with my insane ideas. I found on this site that i need to connect pin 17 and 13 to ground and 19 and 14 to 12 volt supply that i could power up the radio. do i need to jump data out to data in or anything else or will this get me up and talk en?
pete01
Posts: 33
Joined: Sat Apr 22, 2006 8:22 pm

Re: [Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

Post by pete01 »

Maratrac and SignaLink for FLDIGI. Trying to do this. Read a section concerning using two Maratrac as repeaters, http://www.repeater-builder.com/motorol ... acing.html and it mentioned using the programing RJ-45 for the interface signals. RJ-45: pin 4 Ground, pin 5 Mic audio in, pin 6 PTT, pin 8 rec audio. I tried, no PTT. Anyone tried this ? Any solutions ?
A friend of mine has stated:
A quote to live by:
"Any program that works perfectly, just hasn't been tested properly!"
pete01
Posts: 33
Joined: Sat Apr 22, 2006 8:22 pm

Re: [Can I use a maratrac for APRS without a control head?]

Post by pete01 »

Follow up to question above. Read another web page :http://www.kb1uny.com/KB1UNY/the-kb1uny ... nk-project . Reading it, a part indicates the diagram they were using, in reference to the RJ-45 pinout of the programing jack was reversed. I suspect we were using the same diagram I was. Confirming that I had no +B voltage on pin 1, I checked pin 8. Still no high (13VDC) on that pin. Confirmed that the diagram in question does have the RX Audio reversed, it is on pin 1 (not pin 8). Keep in mind I am going by the pin outs on the PCB of the SignaLink, (unless the SignaLink is reversed) and yes it does appear reversed. Watching the waterfall on FLDIGI I see the changes when I open the squelch on the radio. So with that in mind I started swapping the "Jumpers" in the SignaLink accordingly. PTT well, this gets interesting. PTT to pin 5 got the MaraTrac to transmit but, no tone (TX AUDIO from FLDIGI). Note: MIC TX AUDIO is now on pin 3. Swapped PTT pin 5 to pin 3. Swapped MIC TX AUDIO pin 3 to pin 5. MaraTrac still transmitted but no audio. Started thinking....maybe an RC circuit , ICOM W32A that I own uses that on their mic jack, separate the PTT DC and audio ac. If so, need suggestions for capacitor and resistor valves. ( I would have to research the radio,s DCV drop value for triggering the PTT) if I am on the right track, or am I ??
A friend of mine has stated:
A quote to live by:
"Any program that works perfectly, just hasn't been tested properly!"
Post Reply

Return to “General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion”