Production Supported Radios

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AA3RP
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Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2021 3:22 am

Production Supported Radios

Post by AA3RP » Thu Jun 30, 2022 10:51 pm

I love the Open**** firmware as I have GD77's / DM-1801's / RD-5R / MD-9600's radios. What I have been noticing during the last few months (apx 6) is that the ability is less and less to get any of the DMR HT's that Open**** Firmware runs on. The clearest example is the 'new' 2022 DM-1801 which is different hardware then the previous. I see that getting the original GD-77 is nearly impossible except as used, and Radioddity is not promising when they will have more. Lately here in the USA I can no longer find new RD-5R as most suppliers that still list them show out of stock or back order.

I have no direct connection to the manufacture(s) or such but it does seem the Hardware (CPU / Chipset) that the OpenGD77 firmware is written for my be headed to past history when it comes to HT's. Regardless, getting a new HT that is capable of running OpenGD77 is becoming harder and harder.

Fortunately on the Mobile side the MD-9600 is still produced and earliest to the current versions of Hardware seem capable of running Open**** firmware. Personally I find that the Open**** firmware improves the MD-9600 the most of all the radios that I use it on. The HTs were 'ok' with the factory firmware even as a DMR HT, but the I found the MD-9600 barely usable and as such delayed placing it in my vehicles and used it only in my shack. Now with the OpenMD9600 firmware I have it in both my vehicles / shack / go box and have purchased a 'spare'. That is 5 working MD-9600 and they all run the OpenMD9600 firmware. I travel at least monthly and sometimes more and this is the most enjoyable mobile to use, especially with DMR repeaters along the route.

The point of this post is that the MD-9600 maybe the only current production radio that will run the Open**** firmware. Looking at the past, present, and possible future, this is what I forsee.

VK1NME
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Joined: Wed Jun 22, 2022 2:39 am

Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by VK1NME » Fri Jul 01, 2022 5:30 am

Yes I have been looking my self for compatible radios.
Does the GA-510 work with open GD77?

VK3KYY
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Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:25 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by VK3KYY » Fri Jul 01, 2022 5:43 am

VK1NME wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 5:30 am
Does the GA-510 work with open GD77?
No.

VK3KYY
Posts: 7473
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Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by VK3KYY » Fri Jul 01, 2022 6:03 am

People have reported that the TYT MD-760 is still available.

The MD-760 is GD-77 but for the Chinese market. i.e TYT makes the MD-760 and sells it to Radioddity who load slightly different firmware and then stick their badge on it.

Ignore the name written on the sticker on these radios. Retevis and Radioddity just buy the hardware from TYT and stick their name on them.
Baofeng seem to manufacture the radios.

Neither TYT or Baofeng write the firmware for these radios; the firmware is written by some unkown / shady software development company; most likely a state run company.
Someone in TYT and Baofeng must know who writes the firmware but Retevis and Radioddity don't know. They just liaise with TYT when bug fixes are required...

Anyway, I digress....


Currently I can now only see one vendor on AliExpress listing the MD-760, so these may be old stock.

It's impossible to know why exactly there is a shortage of compatible radios.

There appears to be no shortage of TYT MD-9600, or MD-UV380 or MD-2017 etc on AliExpress, and these radio uses the same DMR chip as the GD77, so the DMR chip may not be the problem.

However there is a shortage of the NXP / MK22FN512 CPU used in the GD-77/RD-5R etc, which may be why they are not being manufactured.
Looking on mouser.com they have no stock whatsoever of these CPUs

Baofeng chose to completely redesign their DM-1801 to use a single module, which replaces the CPU, RF and DMR chip. This was probably done to future proof themselves by no longer using any components from outside china. Baofeng are likely to redesign the RD-5R as well soon, to use the same DMR module.

TYT can probably still make the MD-9600, or MD-UV380 or MD-2017 etc, because the CPU is available, but can't make the MD-760 (GD-77), and Baofeng can't make the old RD-5R.

VK1NME
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Joined: Wed Jun 22, 2022 2:39 am

Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by VK1NME » Sun Jul 10, 2022 2:15 am

So the MD-9600 is hard to get atm I can get one for $580 with a wait to August so likely another $100 on top for postage.

So it seems these Open GD77 compatible radios are getting hard to aquire.

Is there a way maybe that you can run the firmware on a Raspberry PI (which are hard to get too) and use other types of HT's?

VK3KYY
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Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by VK3KYY » Sun Jul 10, 2022 2:24 am

VK1NME wrote:
Sun Jul 10, 2022 2:15 am
So the MD-9600 is hard to get atm I can get one for $580 with a wait to August so likely another $100 on top for postage.

So it seems these Open GD77 compatible radios are getting hard to aquire.

Is there a way maybe that you can run the firmware on a Raspberry PI (which are hard to get too) and use other types of HT's?
Try QSL comms in QLD

They were supposed to getting some in stock soon.

https://www.qslcomms.shop/product-page/ ... o-preorder

You could try emailing them

kt4lh
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Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by kt4lh » Sun Jul 10, 2022 1:14 pm

I wonder how many hams have a GD77 in a drawer because they were commonly referred to as the "God Damned 77" with the stock firmware, at least by several hams I've talked to, and replaced them with MD380's at the time (2018, 2019 timeframe).

OE1MWW
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Re: Production Supported Radios

Post by OE1MWW » Sun Jul 10, 2022 1:36 pm

Be warned, on Aliexpress twice MD-760 had been offered in recent days. On one was even the note
'2 in stock'. None of the dealer could deliver. One delayed for 7 days and gave me an info via message
box, that 'he can't find one' (?). The other one, with the mentioned '2 on stock' sent me a note next
day that he can't deliver - out of stock. Both came with the response: '...please select a similar model' ;-)

Canceled both orders - Aliexpress confirmed a refund within 3 to 20 business days - I hope so.

very sad situation

73's de OE1MWW
Wolfgang

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