Baofeng UV-5R The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project http://radiodoc.github.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Baofeng UV-5R: The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project: http://radiodoc.github.com/ by Lennart Lidberg Copyright © 2012 Lennart Lidberg This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Baofeng UV-5R Table of Contents Preface .................................................................................................... vii I. Getting started ......................................................................................... 1 1. Initial setup .................................................................................... 3 What's in the box ........................................................................ 3 Assembly .................................................
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project DTMF-Side Tone iv 6. Dual Watch .................................................................................. 7. DTMF ......................................................................................... 8. Selective calling ............................................................................ CTCSS .................................................................................... DCS .............................................................
Baofeng UV-5R 20 PTT-LT - Signal code sending delay. ............................................... 21 MDF-A - Channel Mode A Display ................................................. 22 MDF-B - Channel Mode B Display .................................................. 23 BCL - Busy Channel Lock-out ........................................................ 24 AUTOLK - Automatic Keypad Lock ................................................ 25 SFT-D - Frequency Shift Direction .................................
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project vi Baofeng UV-5R
Baofeng UV-5R Preface Lennart Lidberg November 10th, 2012. Please excuse the crudity of this model. I didn't have time to build it to scale or paint it. —Dr. Emmet Brown This manual started out as a bit of a joke between friends, saying that "Someone should write a better manual!". As it turns out, that someone turned out to be I.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project viii Preface
Baofeng UV-5R Part I. Getting started Part one covers the basic setup and use of your hand-held two-way transceiver.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 2 Getting started
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 1. Initial setup What's in the box This transceiver comes shipped with the following items in the box: • • • • • • Radio body Lithium-Ion battery pack Antenna Desk charger (With accompanying wall-wart) Optional belt clip Optional wrist-strap Items included may vary depending on country of purchase. For further information please contact your local vendor or dealer.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Do not use any form of glue to fix the screws on the battery clip. The solvents in the glue may cause damage to the battery casing. Battery Before attaching or removing the battery make sure your radio is turned off by turning the power/volume knob all the way counter-clockwise. Installation Make sure the battery is aligned in parallel with the radio body with the lower edge of the battery about 1-2cm below the edge of the radio.
Charging and battery maintenance Baofeng UV-5R Table 1.1. Charger LED codes Red LED Green LED Status flashing steady Standby (charger empty) Error (charger with radio) steady off Charging off steady Charge complete. The charger and battery are fitted with matching notches so that you can charge your battery on its own! Practical if you have two batteries. That way you can charge one battery while still using your radio.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project If your battery has become wet, remove it from the radio, wipe it dry with a towel and put it in a plastic bag with a handful of dry rice. Tie the bag up and let it sit over night. The rice will absorb any remaining moisture in the battery. This method is only effective against minor splashes (light rain for instance). A soaked radio may very well be beyond repair.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 2. Getting to know your radio Figure 2.1. Baofeng UV-5R, overview 1. Antenna, see the section called “Assembly” for details. 2. Power / Volume knob, usage discussed in the section called “Power and volume”. 3. Two-line LCD 4. Call key 5. PTT key, usage discussed in the section called “Making a call”. 6. Monitor key 7. Keypad 8. Speaker and microphone 9. Accessory jack 10.VFO/MR mode key 11.Status LED 12.A / B select key 13.Band select key 14.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project The main display Figure 2.2. Baofeng UV-5R, display The transceiver is fitted with a seven character by two line dot-matrix alphanumeric LCD, with auxiliary icons for miscellaneous features. Table 2.1. LCD icon summary +, -, +[+] or [-] are only in VFO mode [+-] is in channel mode when TX is different from RX Icon Description 188 Memory channel 25, 75 Least significant modifiers.
Status LED Baofeng UV-5R Battery Level Indicator When the battery level indicator reads the battery is depleated. At this point the radio will start beeping periodically as well as flash the backlight of the display, indicating that you need to change your battery or put your radio in the charger. Status LED The status LED has a very simple and traditional design. When you receive a signal it turns green, when you transmit it turns red, and it's off in standby.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project To save frequencies to channel memory you must be on the A display. Band key The key switches between VHF and UHF bands when in Frequency (VFO) mode. When listening to broadcast FM, the MHz bands. key switches between 65-75 MHz and 76-108 Numeric keypad The Baofeng UV-5R hand-held transceiver comes standard with a full numeric keypad. Figure 2.3.
Accessory jack Baofeng UV-5R Star key A short momentary press of the key enables the reverse function (see Chapter 11, Repeaters). When listening to broadcast FM a momentary press will start the scanning. Scanning in broadcast FM will stop as soon as an active station is found, regardless of scanner resume method. To enable the scanner, press and hold the Scanning for details. key for about two seconds. See Chapter 5, Menu and function keys The key, used to enter the menu and confirm menu options.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project connectors To attach accessories such as headsets, speaker-mics or programming cables, align the connecors and push in fully. The fit isn't always perfect on cheap cables and connectors and may require a bit of force to wiggle them in completely. Make sure the radio is off before attaching any accessories.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 3. Basic Use Power and volume Before we turn the power on, make sure you have attached the battery and antenna as described in Chapter 1, Initial setup. Turning the unit on To turn the unit on, simply rotate the volume/power knob clockwise until you hear a "click". If your radio powers on correctly there should be an audible double beep and the display and backlight should turn on, looking something like this: Figure 3.1.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project By using the monitor function, enabled from the key below the PTT, you can more easily adjust your volume by adjusting it to the un-squelched static. Making a call Press and hold the PTT button on the side of the radio body to transmit. While transmitting, speak approximately 3-5cm from the microphone. When you release the PTT your transceiver will go back to receive mode. Channel selection There are two modes of operation.
Channel selection 4. Enter Baofeng UV-5R on the numeric keypad, it should look something like this: Figure 3.2. Half-entered frequency input. When it rounds down to 145.675, just tap the [▲] key once. But I agree, 5. rounding up is the better way to do it. Now, for the final four digits. Note that you can only enter three decimals on the keypad, if you type 687 it wont work. So how do you get the fourth and final digit 5 in there? By rounding 145.6875 up to 145.6880 MHz.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 16 Basic Use
Baofeng UV-5R Part II. Advanced topics Part two covers the more advanced topics, such as setup of repeater offset and programming via computer link.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 18 Advanced topics
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 4. Working the menu system For a complete reference on available menu items and parameters, see Appendix B, Menu definitions. If your radio is set to Memory (MR) mode, the following menu items will not take any effect: STEP, TXP, W/N, CTCSS, DCS, S-CODE, PTT-ID, BCL, SFT-D, OFFSET, MEM-CH, BAND Basic use Procedure 4.1. Using the menu with arrow keys 1. Press the 2. Use the 3. Once you find the desired menu item, press 4. Use the 5.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project The parameters also have a number associated with them, see Appendix B, Menu definitions for details. Procedure 4.2. Using the menu with short-cuts 1. Press the 2. Use the numerical keypad to enter the number of the menu item. 3. To enter the menu item, press the 4. For entering the desired parameter you have two options: a. key to enter the menu. key. Use the arrow keys as we did in the previous section; or b. 5. 6.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 5. Scanning The Baofeng UV-5R features a built in scanner for the VHF and UHF bands. When in Frequency (VFO) mode it will scan in steps according to your set frequency step. In Channel (MR) mode it will scan your channels. At approximately three frequencies per second, it's not the fastest scanner in the world, but it is nonetheless a useful feature to have at times. To enable the scanner, press and hold the key for about two seconds.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project To resume scanning you must press and hold the key again. Tone Scanning In frequency mode you can scan for CTCSS tones and DCS codes on active frequencies. To scan for CTCSS or DCS on active channels, follow these steps: Procedure 5.2. Tone scanning 1. Press the 2. Enter one of the following on the numeric keypad: key to enter the menu. a. to scan for DCS codes, or b. to scan for CTCSS sub-tones. 3. Press the key to select. 4.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 6. Dual Watch In certain situations, the ability to monitor two channels at once can be a valuable asset. This can be achieved in one of two ways. You can either have one receiver in your radio and flip-flop between two frequencies at a fixed interval (known as Dual Watch), or you can equip a radio with two receivers (known as Dual Receive or Dual VFO). The former method is cheaper to implement and far more common than the latter.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 5. Press the key to confirm. 6. Press the key to exit the menu. If you want to momentarily override the lock without having to setting the menu option to OFF, you can do so by pressing the key an instant before pressing the PTT. Another option for overriding the lock momentarily, is to program in the reverse of Channel (MR) mode into Frequency (VFO) mode and using the key to swap between primary and secondary channels.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 7. DTMF DTMF is an in-band signalling method using dual sinusoidal signals for any given code. Originally developed for telephony systems, it has proved a very versatile tool in many other areas. In two-way radio systems, DTMF is most commonly used for automation systems and remote control. A common example would be in amateur radio repeaters where some repeaters are activated by sending out a DTMF sequence (usually a simple single-digit sequence). Table 7.1.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 26 DTMF
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 8. Selective calling Some times when you're working with larger groups of people using the same channel, things can get very crowded, very fast. To minimize this problem, several methods of blocking out unwanted transmissions on your frequency has developed. In general, there are two forms of selective calling in two-way radio systems: Group calling, and individual calling. Group calling, as the name suggest, is a one-to-many form of communication.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 2. Enter 3. Press 4. Enter desired CTCSS sub-tone frequency in hertz on the numeric keypad. 5. Press 6. Enter 7. Press 8. Enter desired CTCSS sub-tone frequency in hertz on the numeric keypad. Make sure it's the same frequency as that you entered for receiver CTCSS. 9. Press 10. Press on the numeric keypad to get to receiver CTCSS. to select. to confirm and save. on the numeric keypad to go to transmitter CTCSS. to select. to confirm and save.
1750Hz Tone-burst Baofeng UV-5R 8. Enter desired DCS code on the numeric keypad. Make sure it's the same code as that you entered for receiver DCS. 9. Press to confirm and save. 10. Press to exit the menu system. To turn DCS off, follow the same procedure but set it to off with the of selecting a DCS code. key instead For more information see the section called “10 R-DCS - Receiver DCS” and the section called “12 T-DCS - Transmitter DCS” in Appendix B, Menu definitions.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 30 Selective calling
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 9. Customization The Baofeng UV-5R allows for customization of both the power-on message (via computer link only), and the backlight colour during the three states of the transceiver (Transmit, Receive and Standby). Display The LCD on the Baofeng UV-5R is backlit by multi-colour LEDs, the colour of which can be pre-set from the menu system into a variety of colours. To change the colours, follow these steps: Procedure 9.1. Changing backlight colour 1. Press the 2.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 5. Press to confirm and save. 6. Press to exit the menu. For details see the section called “29 WT-LED - Display back-light colour, Standby” and onward in Appendix B, Menu definitions. Power-on message The power-on message can only be set via computer link, see the section called “Computer programming” for details on how to set up a link with your computer.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 10. Programming Memory channels are an easy way to store commonly used frequencies so that they can easily be retrieved at a later date. The Baofeng UV-5R features 128 memory channels that each can hold: Receive and transmit frequencies, transmit power, group signalling information, bandwidth, ANI/ PTT-ID settings and a six character alphanumeric identifier or channel name 1 .
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Switch to Channel (MR) mode with the key to test your new channel. If you would like to name your channel you will need to do that from a computer. More on that in the section called “Computer programming”. Duplex channels The following assumes you've set up a duplex channel in VFO mode on the upper display, as described in Chapter 11, Repeaters, and that you're still in VFO mode. 1.
Computer programming Baofeng UV-5R memory channels. If the Channel Information window doesn't show automatically, you can bring it up by going to Edit -> Channel Information. Before we start adding channels, go to Communication to select the port your cable is attached to. Next go to Program -> Read from radio and click Read to read in any existing channel information on the radio. This is also a good way to test the connection of the programming cable.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project To add a new channel, go to the row for the channel number you want to edit (you do not have to go sequentially, you can skip channel numbers if you so desire) and follow these steps: Procedure 10.1. Adding a channel If you're adding a RX only (TX inhibited) channel, delete the TX Frequency field Not necessary 1. Select the Band. 2. Click in the RX Frequency field next to it and enter your receive frequency. 3.
Radio to radio cloning Baofeng UV-5R 2. Turn on the slave radio, (the radio you want to clone to). 3. Turn on the master radio, (the radio you want to clone from) while holding down the key. The master will show COPING in the display, and if makes a successful connection to the slave it will start flashing red to indicate it's transmitting data. The slave will at that same time flash green to indicate it's receiving data. 4.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 38 Programming
Baofeng UV-5R Part III. How-to and setup guides. Part three covers is a collection of how-to documents to help you set up your radio for specific working environments.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 40 How-to and setup guides.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 11. Repeaters A radio repeater is an automated transceiver in a fixed location. Usually mounted high up on hill tops or on tall buildings, but sometimes they operate within buildings for internal use. A repeater takes one signal and relays it, usually after amplifying it by orders of magnitude. This can be very handy, as this enables you to use a small low powered handheld two-way transceiver such as the Baofeng UV-5R to reach great distances.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 9. Use the and 10. Press keys to select + (positive) or - (negative) offset. to confirm and save. 11. Optional: a. Save to memory, see the section called “Manual programming” for details. b. Set up CTCSS, see the section called “CTCSS” for details. 12. Press to exit the menu. If everything went well, you should be able to make a test call through the repeater.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 12. Automatic Number Identification In dispatch environments it's common to have a system in place that will allow radios to automatically identify themselves to the dispatcher. This is known as Automatic Number Identification, or sometimes PTT-ID since the radio sends a data burst containing the ID code at the beginning or end of a transmission. The Baofeng UV-5R uses DTMF signalling for it's ANI implementation.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Unfortunately Baofeng decided to split up related functions in the programming software, so in order to enable ANI we'll have to open up yet another window and do some final configuration before the radio is ready for use. The following assumes that you've still got the programming software running from earlier. This is completely incorrect. Procedure 12.2. Setting ANI settings DTMF-ST only determines if the DTMF side tones will be heard in the speaker or not.
Baofeng UV-5R Chapter 13. Application Specific Setup This section is only true for VFO mode. WN is settable on a per channel basis and has to be set prior to storing a channel. Commercial Radio Setup Once a channel has been programmed, PLMR users in the United States are mandated to move to 12.5 kHz narrowband com- the channel must be munication in the 150-174 MHz VHF and 421-512MHz UHF bands by January 1, 2013.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project • Turn DCS and CTCSS off (menu items 10 through 13). • Turn ANI, DTMFST, S-CODE, PTT-ID off and PTT-LT to 0ms (menu items 15 through 17 and 19 through 20). • Turn off Squelch Tail Elimination (STE) features (menu items 35 through 37). • Turn roger beep (ROGER) off (menu item 39). For further information see Appendix B, Menu definitions and Chapter 4, Working the menu system.
Baofeng UV-5R Appendix A. Troubleshooting Symptom Possible cause solution The radio doesn't start. The battery is too low. Change or recharge the batThe battery isn't correctly tery. installed. Remove the battery and reinstall it. The battery dies quickly. The battery is dead. The battery isn't charged. Purchase a new battery. fully Recharge the battery. The LED indicates recep- Volume is too low. tion, but the speaker is CTCSS or DCS enabled. silent. Turn up the volume.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 48 Troubleshooting
Baofeng UV-5R Appendix B. Menu definitions See Chapter 4, Working the menu system for more info about using the menu-system. 0 SQL - Squelch Level Selects the squelch noise threshold. Values Notes Default value 0-9 5 3 Setting the squelch to 0 will open up the squelch entirely. 1 STEP - Frequency Step Selects the step in frequency when using the the scanner will run at. and keys. This is also the interval 2.5K Key Values (kHz) 0 2.5K 1 5.0K 2 6.25K 3 10.0K 4 12.5K 5 25.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Values Notes Default value 1 - 4 3 OFF 4 VOX - Voice Operated TX Adjusts the sensitivity of the VOX feature, if enabled. Values Notes Default value 1 - 10 OFF OFF The lower the setting, the louder your voice have to be in order to engage the transmitter. 5 WN - Wideband / Narrowband Sets maximum band deviation. Key Values Notes Default value 0 WIDE 5kHz WIDE 1 NARR 2.
8 BEEP - Keypad Beep Baofeng UV-5R It should be noted that this radio does not possess a dual VFO, meaning that the Dual Watch feature is a time sharing operation. Your radio will flip-flop between A and B channels at a fixed rate. This will not allow you to receive two frequencies in paralell. 8 BEEP - Keypad Beep When enabled your radio will emit an audible tone at every key press.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Values (Hz) Default value 67.0 - 254.1 (R-CTCS ≤ 136.5 Hz) Scanning never stops regardless of the correct CTCSS tone being received (R-CTCS ≥ 141.3 Hz) Scanning stops and squelch opens regardless of the actual CTCSS tone being received Notes OFF OFF See Table C.2, “CTCSS Frequencies” for a complete reference of CTCSS sub tones. To enter a CTCSS tone on the numerical keypad, enter its frequency directly rather than the numerical code.
15 ANI-ID - Automatic Number ID Baofeng UV-5R Key Values Notes 2 CHI Chinese 0 OFF Default value In some versions of the firmware your options may be restricted to ON and OFF. 15 ANI-ID - Automatic Number ID This can only be set via Computer Linked programming.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project factory fixed Key Values Notes Default value 0 TO Time Operation TO 1 CO Carrier Operation 2 SE Search Operation • Time Operation: The scanner will resume after a pre set time. • Carrier Operation: The scanner will resume once the signal disappears. • Search Operation: The scanner holds on the frequency with detected activity. 19 PTT-ID - When to send the PTT-ID frequency/channel Sets when to send the PTT-ID (ANI and/or S-CODE) code(s).
22 MDF-B - Channel Mode B Display Baofeng UV-5R 22 MDF-B - Channel Mode B Display Sets the display mode for the lower display. Key Values Notes Default value 0 CH Channel number FREQ 1 NAME Channel name 2 FREQ Frequency Channel name can only be set via Computer. 23 BCL - Busy Channel Lock-out If there is no 'channel name' programmed, the 'channel number' is shown If enabled your radio will prevent you from transmitting on active frequencies.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 26 OFFSET - Frequency shift amount VFO mode only Sets the amount of offset on the transmit frequency relative the receive frequency. 00.600 Values (MHz) Notes Default value 00.000 - 69.990 00.000 To input an offset frequency with the numeric keypad, enter the frequency in 10 megahertz with leading zeroes. For a 2MHz shift, enter . For a 600kHz shift, enter .
30 RX-LED - Display back-light colour, Receive Baofeng UV-5R 30 RX-LED - Display back-light colour, Receive Sets the back-light colour while receiving a signal. Key Values 1 BLUE 2 ORANGE 3 PURPLE 0 OFF Notes Default value BLUE 31 TX-LED - Display back-light colour, Transmit Sets the back-light colour while transmitting a signal.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Key Values 0 VHF 1 UHF Notes Default value VHF 34 TDR-AB - Transmit selection while in Dual Watch mode If enabled, this will force the radio to transmit on the selected frequency when in Dual Watch mode.
38 PONMGS - Power On Message Baofeng UV-5R PONMSG Values Notes Default value OFF 38 PONMGS - Power On Message When enabled it displays a 2 line message on the display. Message can only be set via computer. Key Values Notes Default value 0 FULL Flash entire LCD MSG 1 MSG Displays a 2 line welcome message FULL 39 ROGER - Roger Beep Transmits an audible tone after you release the PTT.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 60 Menu definitions
Baofeng UV-5R Appendix C. Technical specifications General General specifications Specification Frequency Range (MHz) Memory channels Frequency stability Frequency step (kHz) Antenna impedance Operating temperature Supply voltage Consumption Mode of operation Duty cycle Dimensions (mm) Weight (g) Value 65-108 (Rx only) 136-174 (Rx/Tx) 400-480 (Rx/Tx) 128 2.5ppm 2.5 / 5 / 6.25 / 10 / 12.5 / 25 50 Ohm -20°C to +60°C 7.4 ≤ 75mA (standby) 380mA (reception) ≤ 1.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project Receiver Receiver specifications Specification Receiver sensitivity Intermodulation Audio Output Adjacent channel selectivity Value 0.2µV (at 12dB SINAD) 60dB 1000mW 65/60dB DCS table Table C.1.
CTCSS table Baofeng UV-5R Number Code Number Code Number Code 067 D413N 068 D423N 069 D431N 070 D432N 071 D445N 072 D446N 073 D452N 074 D454N 075 D455N 076 D462N 077 D464N 078 D465N 079 D466N 080 D503N 081 D506N 082 D516N 083 D523N 084 D526N 085 D532N 086 D546N 087 D565N 088 D606N 089 D612N 090 D624N 091 D627N 092 D631N 093 D632N 094 D645N 095 D654N 096 D662N 097 D664N 098 D703N 099 D718N 100 D723N 101 D731N 102 D732N 103 D734N
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 64 Number Frequency Number Frequency 31 171.3 32 173.8 33 177.8 34 179.9 35 183.5 36 186.2 37 189.9 38 192.8 39 196.6 40 199.5 41 203.5 42 206.5 43 210.7 44 218.1 45 225.7 46 229.1 47 233.6 48 241.8 49 250.3 50 254.
Baofeng UV-5R Colophon All linework drawings were recreated in Inkscape [http://inkscape.org/] using the original Baofeng manual artwork as reference.
The (Chinese) Radio Documentation Project 66 Colophon
