Subject: VX-5R Expanded frequency Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 19:18:51 -0500 VX-5R Expanded frequency Remove the battery pack, beneath where the pack was, is a black cover (heavy duty paper) it's just stuck and is removable to install the optional barometer/temperature module. Remove this and you'll see 8 solder pads, for some reason some have 3 pads bridged, in my case there were 4 bridged. In either case unsolder the 5th pad counting right to left. Do a full reset, the HT is now open. This worked fine on my VX-5R, but you are on your own. K9UO ---------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Fellow HAMsters, I just traded my FT-51 for the tri-band VX5. This radio is a marvel. I like the advanced features like selecting the receive mode (narrow, wide or am). Anyways, this radio is locked up pretty well if no modification has been done. I found some mods on the internet but all of them were the MARS/CAP mod. So, I decided to experiment with my radio and find the full mod. As usual, yaesu was kind enough to provide us with a schematic diagram of the radio. I glanced at the schematic and after finding the section regarding the jumpers on the back of the radio, it was quite obvious what needed to be done. First, take the battery out. In the upper half of the battery compartment, there is a black piece of paper covering the radios circuitry. Remove it by lifting it from the side with your fingernail or flat-head etc...DO NOT THROW IT AWAY. In case you're wondering why there is a hole in your radio, its for the altimeter/barometer gadget you can add to your radio. After removing the black piece of paper, you will see 8 solder pads going across the bottom. On my radio, the middle two solder pads were shorted. If you unsolder the fourth solder pad counting from the left, you will do the MARS/CAP mod. If you unsolder all of the pads, you will open up your radio. Now I must say that the full mod on this radio isnt a FULL mod - its nothing like the FT-51. Unfortunately, the radio is somewhat handicapped by the microprocessor and there is nothing you can do(unless you plan on replacing the microprocessor). When I did the full mod on my FT-51, it could receive almost everything (fm radio was garbled because of narrow bandwidth) and it could transmit on a whole range of frequencies including 900 MHz. This isnt the case with the VX5. In fact, you cant even enter certain frequencies. If you enter lets say 35 MHz, the radio will beep and it will return to your previous entry. Also, the radio skips over 868-890 which prevents you from listening to cell phones. Anyways, the FT-51 was a sweet radio...too bad too sad!! At least you can listen to radio, shortwave, and tv on the VX5. OH, one interesting thing - NOT that I did it - but, you can transmit on CBS (59.7 MHz) and if you're close enough to the TV antenna you can hear your voice on the TV. -hrach KF6PEM P.S. Here is a list of exactly what you can receive and transmit. RX: .53-16 48-728 800-999 TX: 48-66 108-222 305-577 P.S. #2 When you try to transmit on the frequencies not listed above, the radio gives a TX error. Now this might be good news, because this means that the radio is still somewhat locked and that the TX error is not because the radio is incapable of transmitting. Maybe there is another modification which can be done to allow this transmission. If anybody finds out, please email me at hrachs@ucla.edu P.S. #3 Please be careful when modifying your radio. Although this mod should be fine with all VX5's, your's might be different! Also, make sure you dont leave any extra solder in the radio. Little bits can splatter here and there and to your luck, it might land on the pins of the microprocessor. Anyways, I better wrap this up - 7 am its almost bedtime. Have fun and DONT transmit illegaly. -hrach ----------------------------------------------------------- From: "Glenn" My VX-5R like many others had a chronic loose antenna. I bought a male smc connector with a 6 point nut for 3.00 at a hamfest and replaced the old spanner type nut with the 6 point. I also used the small washer that came with the new connector under the nut. Using a 8mm - 6 point Craftsman thinwall socket and a firm but gentle twist is all it takes to snug the nut down. It has been over 2 months and several antenna swaps and the connecor is still tight. This simple and cheap mod has made the radio much more enjoyable and no more worry about blowing the finals. One final note: The socket needs to be a quality 6 point thin- wall. The Craftsman 12 point and even their 6 point nut driver would not drop into the antenna recess. I imagine any higher quality 6 point socket should work just fine. Good luck and 73 Glenn Cerny KB9WCM