General Info
Figure out what programming cable you need. Take a look at the mic connector.
If you need a programming cable for the P1820AX portable repeater, just use a regular mobile programming cable and program each radio individually.
The pinout of the 15 pin accessory connector on the Spectra 900 is as follows:
1 TX Audio 2 Emerg 3 VIP out 2 (dash mount only, not used in remote mount) 4 SWB+ 5 Ignition (dash mount only, not used in remote mount) 6 SPKR Hi 7 SPKR Lo 8 DIG GND 9 BUSY 10 BUS- 11 DET Audio 12 VIP out 1 (dash mount only, not used in remote mount) 13 DATA PTT 14 BUS + 15 MIC Hi
If you want the pinouts of the connectors on other Spectra models, refer to the installation diagrams at the bottom of the page.
If you have an Astro Spectra, you will want to look at the Astro Mobile page too.
Certain Spectra's like the Smartnet or Securenet radios don't have scan. You can't enable it in anyway. The board inside the radio that controls the scan feature is not present in the radio.
The scanning features on older radios is part of the programming in the MLM module. If its not in the MLM, and you want to get it, you have to "pay" for a MLM with scan in it from Motorola. The RSS won't unlock it, even though the RSS knows about scanning.
If you are hoping to find a way to get a Spectra to scan more than 16 channels, I think you will want to give up for now. We have yet to hear any method of doing this. However, should someone find a way, please let us know and we will post the results. BTW, if your radio is capable of zones, you can have a scanlist for each zone...
You can convert a Maxtrac DTMF mic for use on a Spectra by changing the cord, color for color, clipping R18 and adding jumper JU1. Note that you can get an almost identical schematic of the boards in a Maxtrac DTMF mic from the MCX1000 VHF Service Manual.
The Spectra VRM 600 which has a modem capable of RD-LAP data built in the front of the Spectra dash radio and no functioning control head uses PIN 4 (SW B+) for ignition sense. The standard dash mount programming cable power lead needs to be changed from pin 5 to pin 4 for this radio. I believe this is because of lack of a front panel power switch.
If you want to connect a MDC1200 unit to a Spectra, you need this diagram.
If you are looking for the pinout of the HLN1196A Auxilliary Switch Panel, then you will want to look here.
Spectra's come in many frequency bandsplits, called Ranges. Below is a list of the available ranges for VHF and UHF.
You cannot tell the range of the radio just by looking at the model number, you will have to read the radio with RSS in order to figure out what frequency range it covers.
If you connect a 9000 head to a A5 Spectra, the display shows gibberish but most functions still work.
When connecting an A7 head to an A5 radio, all A5 functions work but the A7 only functions do not (direct mode access etc.).
If you need to make a cable to connect an A9 Control Head to a DEK, you will need this pinout:
DEK A9 Head 7 Gnd 36 8 Data In 37 23 Clock 38 24 Strobe 34 40 Data Out 5 41 SW'D B+ 35
This is for the 3080248L01 interface cable.
The pinout of the KVL to Spectra Cable is as follows (refer to the mic connector pinout above for proper pin orientation):
KVL DESCRIPTION SPECTRA Mic 9 GND 1 8 Key 10 7 /WE 2 6 KID 9
This should be the 01-82997T04 cable, which used to be the TKN8531.
Hacking Codeplugs with LAB RSS
All the information you need to hack the codeplug for the Spectra can be found HERE.
Service Manuals
Here are a listing of the Service Manual part numbers for this series of radios:
Another good, detailed, source for manual part numbers is on Mike's Site.
| D | 2 | 7 | K | M | A | 7 | J | A | 9 | A | K |
| Radio Type | Power Level | Bandsplit | Unknown | System Operation | Model Specific | Operational Mode | Model Specific | Control Version | Control Type | Model Revision | Model Package |
| D Dash | 1 <10 W | 1 Low Band VHF | F ? | G Trunking | A Model Specific | 5 Trunking | J Model Specific | A Conventional | 2 Limited | A Original Version | K Model Package |
| L Consolette | 2 15 W | 2 Mid Band VHF | K ? | M Conventional | 7Conventional | B Privacy Plus | 3 HHCH | ||||
| M Motorcycle | 3 30 W | 3 High Band VHF | V ? | X SecureNet | C SmartNet | 4 Rotary | |||||
| T Trunk | 4 45 W | 4 UHF | D StarSite | 5 Standard (3 Button) | |||||||
| 6 75 W | 5 800 MHZ | E Enhanced | 7 Expanded (12 Button) | ||||||||
| 7 100 W | 7 900 MHZ | 8 Expanded Control Station | |||||||||
| 8 110 W | 9 Systems 9000 |
Opt L791 = Digital Remote Control for consolette Opt L1548 = Tone Remote Adaptor W388AL/H1271A = DES W793AB/H1279A = DVI-XL W794AC/H1269A = DVP W795AG/H1272A = DES-XL W797AG/H1270A = DVP-XL (Securenet KVL plugs into Microphone connector)
Spectra Interconnect Boards
I am sure most of you are aware of the HLN6285 interconnect board for the Spectra radio. This is the newest board which will allow you to run an A4 head or the newer advanced heads on a Spectra with out the radio going into a hissy fit and keying up as soon as you turn on the radio.If you are discarding your HLN6058's and HLN6066's and buying the HLN6285, YOU WAISTING YOUR $38.00 PLUS SHIPPING!!!!
Take your your 6058's and 6066's and isolate pins 4,5,22,and 29. To find these pins, look at your interconnect board while it is still in the radio after taking off the control head. They will be the pins at the top of the board, not to be confused with the lower black plug which the control head mates with.
Starting from the top row of pins at the very left which will be pin 1. As you get to pin 6 you will see that pin 7 is missing and then continues to pin 8 all the way to the far right which will be pin 19. Pin 20 starts at the bottom left bellow pin 1 and proceeds to the far right which will be pin 38.
You can cut the traces to each pin or just unsolder it and remove it like a bad tooth.
You now have an HLN6285.
Converting a UHF Spectra for Amateur use
The older versions of Spectra software wouldn't allow a 450-512 MHz radio to go below 449MHz. The latest Spectra RSS allows programming to 440. You may have to retune the VCO to get the radio to "lock" on freqs below 440.5 MHz in receive mode. This version of RSS also lets you program down to 140 MHz on the 146-174 MHz bandsplit radios.
If you need to modify your RSS to open it up to the ham band, then you will need to go here first.
The VCO modifications are covered here.
Converting a 900 MHz Spectra for Amateur use
Okay, here's what we've been told should work for converting a 900 MHz Spectra for use in the ham band.
You will want to program all your conventional channels with Hear Clear and the compander options turned OFF.
Then, you need to program some frequencies into your radio. You will no doubt find that normally the RSS will not allow you to enter frequencies that will work in the ham band. You will need to modify your RSS in order to get it to accept these out of band frequencies. For the out of band modifications, you will want to click here.
You may have heard references to a "SP" version of Spectra RSS, like SP06.00.10 RSS. There is some doubt as to whether this software really exists, or not. No one has been able to produce much concrete evidence. While it may work, modifying the normal RSS is probably a better idea.
For all those who have told you that you can enter the out of band frequencies with Lab RSS, they're lying. There have been many people who have tried, and they all come up with the same result... "Value outside range for this model. Please consult service manual."
You are also going to need to do some hardware modifications to the RF section of the radio. You can use the following procedure to modify the VCO, or you can click here for a different and more comprehensive procedure.
In order to get the VCO to lock, you need to play with resistor values (refer to schematic for resistor placement) in order to get the correct value to avoid a FAIL 001.
To get 5khz deviation on TX, solder .003 mfd across C651. You will get over 5 kHz TX deviation, so you must adjust the deviation in RSS to compensate.
For better receive response, you must replace the filters in the front end. Remove FL6301 and FL6302 (they are 7.5 kHz BW) and replace them with Motorola part# 91-80297k05, they are 12 khz BW. The filters are located in the center of the RF board, they are the blue squares. Be careful when de-soldering them, the traces are VERY small.
Corrupt Codeplugs
It appears that some Spectra's, when loaded with a corrupt codeplug, give the error FL01/82. Others lock themself into a repeating SELF CHK loop which is near impossible to do any more programming with.
We've been told that with lab software that you can get it out of this loop. You have to change the serial number of the radio, re-initialize and tune the radio, then read the codeplug and send it back to the radio in order to stop the repeating loop.
After changing the serial number the display reads FL01/82 (which is a corrupted codeplug), just keep going with the above procedure, and everything should be fine.
There is also something else you might try. We have heard that when the radio is stuck in this loop, if you play with the HOME and DIM buttons, you might be able to get the radio to stop looping and stay on a mode. You might have to try this a few times to get the timing right.
Once you have the radio stopped from looping, try dumping a good codeplug into it or cloning your backup codeplug to it (again it may take a few tries). If you're lucky, you may not have to go through the above procedure.
If this fails, you can also try the following. Hook up the Spectra to the RIB in the normal way for programming. Connect the Spectra to a variable voltage power supply, ideally one where you can switch the output voltage. Now power up the Spectra at about 6 or 7 volts. When the self check display first comes up quickly switch the power supply to the regular 12 volt level and the Spectra may stay on.
The MLM Board
Ok, here is a detailed explanation of what the MLM is and does in the Spectra, and what is involved in trying to upgrade them properly.
The MLM (Memory Logic Module) board contains the firmware and programming info as to what the radio can and will do. The MLM is located under this shield on the logic board. With the shield off, you can see the sticker which contains the serial number programmed in the MLM, as well as the firmware version (in this case, v6.15). If you pull the MLM out of the header on the logic board, you get a unit that looks like this. You will notice the two 27C512's which contain the firmware for the radio and the 28C64 which contains the codeplug data.
Most people who try to upgrade a Spectra (ie. try and make a Spectra 800 B5 into a C9) will not be 100% successful when using lab to force feed a C9 archive into a B5. The reason is, if the MLM board version of the C9 is say a 5.06 and the B5 MLM board you are trying to convert is a 3.22, you will not be successful because the lower version board does not have the all the chips and memory to hold all the info.
If you continue to try and trick the radio into taking the info, you will probably end up with a FAIL 01/90 when you turn the radio on and it will not stay on.
The correct way to upgrade the Spectra is to find as many Spectras as you can with all the features in the radio in all the band splits and check the MLM boards. If they are version 5.00 or higher, then you will want to extract the firmware out of them and save them.
The way to do this is to take out the MLM board and look at the chip side with the pins on the right side of the board. You will have to take off the first chip on the far left and use a programmer to read the info and then save it as a bin file and label it (ie. 800 C9 LEFT). Put this chip back on the board and remove the second chip and do the same, labeling it too (ie. 800 C9 RIGHT).
These are the firmware IC's which hold all the info such as, SECURNET, ZONE, 9000 CONTROL HEAD OPTIONS, ect. These chips are usually 27C512's and are EPROMS which can only be written once.
Now you need to remove the far right chip which is usually a 28C64. The procedure is the same as the previous (read it, and save the file with a name like 800 C9 MAIN). This chip is an EEPROM which can be erased and re-written. It contains information such as MODEL #, SERIAL#, codeplug data, ect.
If you have ever noticed when you use lab and force feed one codeplug into another with some success, you usually have to program from the archive to make any changes. If you tried reading the radio after upgrading with lab, you will usually loose all the features because all you did was store enough information into the the MAIN chip to make a couple of things work, but not always 100%.
The theory of the MLM board is when you read you're radio via RSS, you have read all three chips, the LEFT and RIGHT tell you what you can do and the MAIN is where you store all you're info such as, FREQUENCY, PL, MDC, HOME MODE, ect.
Now, you'd figure that if you replaced the firmware on your MLM with the newer firmware and replaced the codeplug EEPROM with a blank one, you should have a nice, new, blanked board, right? Wrong. If you put a blank chip on the board, you will get FAIL 01/90. The 28C64 also contains the info to fire up the Selfcheck and make the control head work. We are trying to figure out just what the minimum info the codeplug EEPROM needs in it to make the radio function so that you can get the proper model and serial number in it for your radio.
FAIL 01/90
We must point out that we do not claim this will work every time especially if you are trying to alter an MLM for extra features.
While reprogramming a Spectra, power accidently got killed to the radio. You know what happened next... FAIL 01/90.
The next day, we decided to do some programming on a VHF Syntor X9000. Well everything was on the bench, including the Spectra that got toasted. Not paying attention to what we were doing, everything was hooked up, and when we turned on the 9000 control head, some weird fail codes appeared.
After tracing the cable from the head, we realized it was connected to the Spectra. We had accidently put the Syntor X9000 head on the Spectra. More importantly, we noticed that the radio was no longer the the dreaded FAIL 01/90. Being curious, we put the A7 head back on the Spectra, and sure enough got the FAIL 01/90 cycle.
We put the 9000 head back on and went through the standard procedures like re-entering the serial number and reprogramming the radio. Well it worked. The radio came back to life.
This was tried on a couple different radios (scrambling them and recovering them). Each time when putting the Syntor X9000 head on the radio, it would cause the radio to stay on so that we could refresh the MLM back to its original state.
Again, we do not recommend this practice for modifying an MLM, only to as a last resort to try and restore it.
There are some other things to check if you are getting a FAIL 01/90. These are listed below:
If you are using it as the second head, change it to the primary and see if it still fails. If it works, you need a new dual interconnect port for your remotes.
If that is not the problem, then check all the pins on the head. Make sure all of them are getting continuity on the board and through the cable. I have had some that had bad pins and I ended up flowing some solder on them to get them to make better contact when the cable was hooked up.
You might also check the solder connections on the control head board, and trace them through out the head. You might have a failed SMD somewhere that is keeping a signal from getting through. I recently picked up a 1066 that would not key up. I ended up putting a jumper across the PTT pin at the mic connector to the PTT line on the cable connector. I found that alot of the A9 heads start to go bad at the pin connectors and the layered boards because to much flexing and pressure applied when constantly removing or cheap installation.
Spectra Systems 9000 Control Heads
There are a number of Spectra Systems 9000 (A9) control heads available. The part numbers we've seen are as follows:
| Part Number | Subs To | Description |
| HCN1045B | H1591A | NPD Clear Replacement |
| HCN1063A | H1591A | |
| HCN1066F | H1593A | Zone/Mode/Vol Replacement |
| HCN1071C | H1596A | Rear NPD Replacement |
| HCN1033D | HCN1073E | X9000 Head |
| HCN1063B | X9000 Head |
Now, you're probably wondering what all this means. Well, the "Clear NPD Replacement" is a normal replacement head from National Parts Division that has all buttons installed, but they are all clear (no labels).
The HCN1066 head is a Spectra head that has rocker positions for Zone, Mode, and Volume. This is kind of nice if you have a radio that is zone capable, then you can have a properly labeled zone rocker rather than having to use a couple of arrow keys.
The HCN1071 head is listed as a rear head, but it works just fine when programmed as a front head. Even in the Front/Rear Installation Manual, it states that there is no electrical difference between the front and rear heads, only the programming of the EEPROM (through RSS).
A note about the part number suffixes. The last letter on the end of the part number usually denotes the revision or release level of the part. So, while a HCN1066F and HCN1066G are exactly the same head, the G version was released later than the F version. I am making a note of this because when you search the Motorola Parts Database for part numbers, they may not have all the revisions listed, so your search may turn up a blank. The way around this is to use a * in place of the revision letter. The search will be a lot slower, but then you will see all the versions in the database as well as the substitute part numbers for each of them.
If anyone else has any part numbers of Systems 9000 heads that are confirmed to work with the Spectra, please email us with the part number and description so we can add it to the table.
Do you have a Spectra 9000 head that is VERY dead? Pull it apart and check the aluminum electrolytic capacitors on the back of the board. They have been known to leak and cause traces to open up. If you replace them, clean the board, and check/repair the traces, you will probably fix the problem.
Spectra Test Mode
Turn on radio. Press HOME 5 times within 15 seconds. Press MODE UP Radio
displays serial number Menu is presented - select by pressing
| HOME | RADIO | TST FREQ | CH TEST | EXIT |
| NAME | HOME SELECT | RADIO SVC | RADIO SVC | |
| CALL | PHONE | PASSWORD | PASSWORD | |
| SCAN | STATUS | |||
| EXIT | MESSAGE | |||
| SITE | ||||
| SECURE | ||||
| MPL NAME | ||||
| EXIT |
The Password required to get into the service menu should be the last four digits of the radio's serial number.
To enter Service mode, turn rig on, wait to see SELF CHK then press HOME 5 times quickly.
Display slowly shows:
Service
Rotate rotary mode knob once and display shows (for example):
S/N 617
AWL 1288
Then display goes to the main menu system with the following main headings. Scroll through with the rotary mode knob.
(PS: The HOME button is used as an ENTER key from now on.)
Zone, Mode, Radio, Tst Freq, Ch Test, Align and Exit.
ZONE
Press enter and you see the first ZONE name is flashing. Scroll thru all ZONE names (plus EXIT) with MODE knob. Pressing enter brings up a submenu with these choices: NAME, SCAN and EXIT. Selecting NAME allows you to actually change the ZONE name by using the MODE knob to highlight each letter in the name which can then be changed with the ZONE UP/DOWN buttons. All numbers and letters are available (use the + to enter a space). Press enter when done. Selecting SCAN at the submenu shows the further choices SEL MODE or EXIT. Pressing the SEL button alters between N PRI (none), flashing PRI (main) and PRI (secondary) priorities. I'm not sure why this menu is here as it gives one the felling that individual ZONES can be scanned thru and I don't think this is true.
MODE
Pressing enter shows the first MODE and it is flashing. Scroll thru all Modes with the MODE knob. Pressing enter brings up a submenu with the following choices: NAME, CALL, SCAN and EXIT. The NAME choice allows you to change the mode name, again using the rotary MODE knob to highlight individual letters and then use the ZONE UP/DOWN buttons to scroll thru all leters and numbers. Press enter to get back to submenu. The CALL menu item was unavailable (beeped) as was the SCAN choice.
RADIO
Pressing enter brings up a submenu with the following choices: HOME SEL, PHONE, STATUS, MESSAGE, SITE, SECURE, MPL NAME, ST NAME, RAC and EXIT. The HOME SEL choice was unavailable.
PHONE brings a display that altenates between PHONE 1 and --------. The rotary MODE knob scrolls up thru PHONE 9 plus EXIT. Pressing enter allows you to edit PHONE 1 using the now familiar rotary MODE knob and the ZONE UP/DOWN buttons. After this pressing enter allows you to enter a phone number using all digits plus * (asterik) and # (octothorp).
STATUS shows a bunch of characters some of which are unrecognizable. The rotary MODE knob scrolls thru a bunch more of these. Eventually you get back to EXIT.
MESSAGE, SITE, SECURE, MPL NAME, ST NAME and RAC were all unavailable.
TST FREQ
Pressing enter here brings up a display with PSWD----. Use the rotary MODE knob and ZONE UP/DOWN buttons to enter any of all letters and numbers. Enter the last four digits of the radios serial number here. This brings a display with a flashing 1 followed by 46025C5. The rotary MODE knob scrolls thru others....all starting with a flashing 1....60025C5....1739975C5 and EXIT. If you press enter on any of these choices the 1 goes steady but the C begins to flash. The rotary MODE knobs scrolls thru these choices: PL, PC, PD, DL, LS, M6, MC, HS, DF, and EXIT. The default is CS (Carrier Squelch). The volume knob is useless while in service mode.
CH TEST
Pessing enter here shows V 2 01 for a few seconds then the display slowly cycles thru all letters and numbers as well as the various indicators in the display. Then it stops while displaying KEY TEST. Now, any key pressed shows up a individual number assigned to that key....as follows:
H/L 47 PHONE 31 CALL 33 HOME 08 SCAN 32 SEL 34 MODE DOWN 41 MODE UP 42 MON 48 MODE knob 01 VOLUME (just beeps)
ALIGN
Brings a menu with LO POWER, HI POWER, REF OSC, DEV and EXIT. Selecting LO POWER shows LO 1 025. Rotary MODE knob scrolls up to LO 2 025 and LO 3 025, and the ZONE UP/DOWN buttons allow the 025 setting to be changed from a value of 000 to 127. This allows one to adjust a push-button setting of rf output (Lo Med and High) for either a Lo or High powered Spectra radio. You can toggle the transmitter on and off while doing this, and one of the test freqs is used. REF OSC programs just like the LO POWER and HI POWER settings, as does DEV.
EXIT
Just like it says.
Converting an A5 to A7
The A5 and A7 Spectra control head electronics are the same. The A5 control head has the electronics for the extra 9 buttons that are present in the A7 version. The radio will recognize these in control head test mode but the radio ignores them during regular operation. RSS will not let you program functions for the other three rows while editing an A5 codeplug. Like the Maxtracs the radio enables certain options depending on the model number programmed into the radio.
Now. Changing the model number and serial number. You can probably do this with the Lab software, by loading an A7 codeplug (same band and power) into an A5 radio. You may be able to make a "new" radio Maxtrac-style. I dunno. I haven't played with Spectra Lab Software.
Motorola, Fort Lauderdale will gladly send you a MLM with a generic serial number and whatever model number you wish, for about $220. This is the shop price.
Also, you have to purchase a new plastic front panel and buttons. The buttons available are listed and depicted in the various service manuals and there are some nice variations of legend and icon. You can find part numbers for most of the buttons in the chart below. The part number for plastic A7 front is also listed.
Converting an B5 to a C7
We received the following info regarding this topic:
I did get one engineer to tell me that all that I had to do was replace the MLM board with the serial number of my radio, and the model number of the radio that I wanted it to be. So with that info, I decided to be a $157 guinea pig and go for the gusto.
The results were worth it, my B-5 Privacy Plus radio became a Smartnet C-7 with my serial number and a new model number.
Now when you read the radio and go into More Features under the Radio Wide screen, it says that it is not Securenet compatible. But, I loaded one of our C-7 files into it (the same model number that I had the MLM programmed for) that is secure capable, and although it says it is still not capable, the secure key will load and it functions as though it should in conventional and trunked modes.
A tech. at Motorola said this wouldn't work because the micro processor had to be blanked out(sooner or later I'll figure out a way), and there were other issues involved in upgrading a radio this way. I can see why a B-5 isn't worth nearly as much as a C-5 or 7. He also said that upgrading from a B-5 to a C-7 is possible for the retail difference between the two, not really much of a deal.
So at any rate, a little more playing around and maybe we can figure this thing out, but I still think there's a way do do this without the big $ out of pocket."
Converting an A3 HHCH to A3/5/7 Display
To make the swap from a A3 HHCH to a display type radio you need to swap out the MLM, either with a new one or a used one. The A3 HHCH MLM doesn't have all the logic chips that the others have.
If it's a new board, initialize it and dump your file that you want it to be into it. If the board is used you will need a copy of LAB and change the serial # inside the MLM to match the command board, then dump your file into it that you want.
If you are lucky enough to have a late version of LAB it will have a field called "moflag" with which you can modify the radio without a new codeplug, although you will still need to change out the MLM from the A3 HHCH as it won't support the extra features of the regular display head.
Dash to Remote Mount Conversion
If you are looking to remote mount a dash mount radio (say, an A5), you will need a H1446A kit. This has all the parts necessary to remote mount the head from the radio.
The only caveat is that if you are trying to do this to a secure radio, you will need the special faceplate for the radio (with the keyloader port), in order to be able to load keys to the radio.
Spectra Dual Head Option (HHCH)
Apparently, several government agencies used these, ie. IRS and DEA, though it wouldn't surprise me that others had them too.
They consist of two Spectra 110W "A9" drawer units (one VHF range 2, one UHF range 1) with external ASN boxes, an SIU unit and a Hand-held control head.
The A9 drawer units are not stock A9's, however. They won't allow programming of the A9 head. Apparently this is blocked in the software somewhere (may be in the codeplug).
They use the "Main/Aux" feature found in the RSS (F9-F4, enable "Multiple Radios", it then grows an F2 option which allows you to set Main/Aux/Normal). The SIU appears to be the same physical hardware (VLN1120A) that they used for the Syntor setup, but with updated software, the ones are marked Rev V2.1. There might be others.
The HHCH uses a round plug instead of the usual Spectra DB-25, and there is a long cable with the socket for it that attaches to the SIU. It looks like the SIU is the actual "control head", simulating an A9, but without the ability to display alpha. It CAN be programmed to display 2-digit per channel, with the choices being 0 thru 9 plus A-F on a channel-by-channel basis. The SIU would seem to limit the setup to 99 channels per radio, but this is not true. If you program the #1 (Main) radio to more than 99, it uses the display codes for the #2 radio up to 28! The #2 radio would presumably display whatever is in the EEPROM above the last (99th) location, this hasn't been confirmed.
The external ASN box causes problems, it was found that a clone RIB wouldn't talk to them, while a "stock" Motorola would (the clone RIB talks to the radio itself and the SIU just fine!). If you can't talk to the ASN, the radio can't be read by the RSS if the ASN is enabled in the radio. I think this is behind some of the problems people have had with "surplus" A9s that "won't read". If you turn off the ASN (F4-F2-F9), then it safely ignores it, in fact, you can make a radio-SIU cable and get rid of the ASN once it is programmed out of the radio.
The Motorola Manual for the combination is: 68P07993D06-A.
Power-UP Self Check Error Codes
Below is a table that describes the error codes displayed on the VFD after the radio power-up self check, their causes, and possible remedies.
| Display | Possible Cause | Remedy | Condition |
| FL 01/81 | The pattern stored in the Memory Board ROM is incorrect | Replace Memory Board | A |
| FL 01/82 | The pattern stored in the Memory Board EEPROM is incorrect | a. Reprogram EEPROM from ARCHIVE file if available. b. Replace Memory Board | B |
| FL 01/83 | Radio has conditions A and B | C | |
| FL 01/84 | Memory Board EEPROM is blank | Replace Memory Board | D |
| FL 01/85 | Radio has conditions A and D | E | |
| FL 01/86 | Radio has conditions B and D | F | |
| FL 01/87 | Radio has conditions A, B and D | G | |
| FL 01/88 | Memory Board RAM defective | Replace Memory Board | H |
| FL 01/89 | Radio has conditions A and H | I | |
| FL 01/8A | Radio has conditions B and H | J | |
| FL 01/8B | Radio has conditons A, B and H | K | |
| FL 01/8C | Radio has conditions D and H | L | |
| FL 01/8D | Radio has conditions A, D and H | M | |
| FL 01/90 | Serial Bus Failure. May be control head failure, a radio command board failure, or a cabling failure | a. See Control Head Troubleshooting. b. Check rear options connector cabling. c. Replace Command Board. | N |
| FL 01/92 | The pattern stored within the microcomputer EEPROM is incorrect | Initialize EEPROM | O |
| FL 01/93 | Radio has conditions A and O | P | |
| FL 01/94 | Microcomputer EEPROM is blank | Replace Command Board | Q |
| FL 01/95 | Radio has conditions A and Q | R | |
| FL 05/81 | Control Head ROM is defective | Replace Control Head Board | S |
| FL 05/88 | Control Head RAM is defective | Replace Control Head Board | T |
| ER 01/02 | Radio has an error with its EEPROM; one or more modes in the radio has an incorrect pattern in the Memory Board EEPROM. Radio will function normally until a corrupted mode is accessed; then "FAIL 002" will be displayed (see below) | a. Reprogram EEPROM from ARCHIVE file if available. b. Replace Memory Board. | U |
| BLANK DISPLAY BUT TX AND BUSY LED'S LIT BRIEFLY AT POWER UP | Display malfunction | Replace Control Head Board | V |
| FAIL 001 | Synthesizer out-of-lock condition | See Synthesizer Troubleshooting | W |
| FAIL 002 | The mode which has been accessed has an incorrect pattern in the Memory Board EEPROM. (Refer to ER 01/02 above) | a. Reprogram EEPROM from ARCHIVE file if available. b. Replace Memory Board. | X |
| FAIL 003 | EEPROM data does not match control head configuration | Change control head configuration to match radio and reprogram | |
| FAIL 999 | Serial number in the Memory Board and the microcomputer do not match; Radio will not function but will enter test mode. | Replace the Memory Board with the proper one | Y |
For units with the Front/Rear Control Head option, there are some additional error codes that may show up. These codes are detailed below.
| Front Display | Rear Display | Description of Error |
| ERROR 06/10 | ----- | Rear unit not connected. |
| Radio can operate. | ||
| ----- | FAIL 05/90 | Front unit not connected. |
| FAIL 05/82 | FAIL 05/82 | Front EEPROM bad checksum. |
| ERROR 05/82 & | ERROR 06/10 | Rear EEPROM bad checksum. Remove |
| ERROR 06/10 | rear unit to operate system. | |
| FAIL 01/90 | FAIL 05/90 | Front unit bus failure. |
| ERROR 06/10 | FAIL 01/90 | Rear unit bus failure. |
Some other things to check if you get the Fail 01/90 error:
| Symptom | Action |
| Occurs @ Initial Self Test | Check 15A Fuse |
| Check F0500 (Command Board) | |
| Will Work if all A+ V Removed, Re-applied | Opt. Conn. Missing Emerg Jumper |
| No Regulated 9.6V, Switched 5V | Check RPCIC Enable, Low V Detect, Res SW V |
| Good Regulated 9.6V, 5V, Constant Reset | Check Paths From Cmd. Bd. to Control Head (BUS +/-, Busy, Etc) |
| Works Without HearClear Board Installed | F0500 Open on Cmd. Board |
And, if you run into the Fail 01/92 error, you may be able to clear it with Lab RSS. There is supposed to be a "reset micro" option in there somewhere that may help.
You never know when these part numbers might come in handy...
| Part Number | Alternate Part No. | Derscription | Part Number | Alternate Part No. | Description |
| HCN1071A | H1596A | Systems 9000 Control Unit | HMN1053B | HMN1032A | DTMF Microphone |
| HLN5654A | HLN6284D | Systems 9000 Control Unit Circuit Panel | HMN1052A | HMN1080A | Enhanced Palm Mic |
| HLN4921A | Sys. 9000 Head Trunion | HLN1220B | Handset with Hang-up | ||
| HMN1061A | Systems 9000 Microphone | HLN1196B | HLN1224B | Auxilliary Switch Panel | |
| HSN4018B | Speaker Assembly | HLN5131B | External Emergency Button | ||
| HKN4378B | 22' Rear Control Cable | HLN6025A | Locking Installation Kit | ||
| HKN4376B | T-Cable Assembly (Rear) | HKN4258B | External Alarm Relay | ||
| H1446A | Field Retrofit Remote Mount Kit | HKN4273A | DEK Cable Hardware | ||
| 3080248L01 | DEK Interface Cable | ||||
| HLN5575A | DEK Relay Pod Kit | TLN4533A | External Alarm Relay | ||
| HLN6275A | DEK Mounting Hardware | 0180756T38 | Reg. Head Remote Trunion | ||
| HLN5574A | Relay Pod Kit | HCN1063A | Systems 9000 Control Head (A9) | ||
| HLN5576A | 3805672X28 | F/R Button | HCN1066F | Systems 9000 Control Head (A9) w/Zone/Mode Rocker | |
| HKN5072A | 3805672X10 | H/L Button | 0180016R09 | A7 Head Plastic Front | |
| HLN5074A | 3805672X12 | Call Button | 3805671X02 | 1 Button | |
| HLN5076A | 3805672X14 | Rcl Button | 3805671X03 | 2 Button | |
| HLN5078A | 3805672X17 | Del Button | 3805671X04 | 3 Button | |
| HLN5079A | 3805672X18 | Sel Button | 3805671X05 | 4 Button | |
| HLN5083A | 3805672X26 | Emer Button | 3805671X06 | 5 Button | |
| HLN5085A | 3805672X31 | Sql Button | 3805671X07 | 6 Button | |
| HLN5087A | 3805672X39 | Home Button | 3805671X08 | 7 Button | |
| HLN5090A | 3805672X44 | Phone Button | 3805671X09 | 8 Button | |
| HLN5091A | 3805672X45 | Dir Button | 3805671X10 | 9 Button | |
| HLN5066A | 3805672X03 | Scan Button | 3805671X11 | 0 Button | |
| HLN5256A | 3805672X61 | Srch Button | 3805671X12 | * Button | |
| HLN5257A | 3805672X62 | Lock Button | 3805671X13 | # Button | |
| HLN5258A | 3805672X36 | Site Button | 1502117Z01 | A4 Face Plate | |
| HLN5259A | 3805672X41 | Rpgm Button | 1580020S02 | A5 Face Plate | |
| HLN5268A | 3805672X63 | Page Button | 1580020S01 | A7 Face Plate | |
| HLN5092A | 3805672X49 | DVP Button | 1580088J01 | A9 Face Plate | |
| HLN5095A | 3805672X01 | Blank Buttons | |||
| HLN5096A | 3880253K01 | Blank Plugs |
Here is another, more complete, table of replacement Spectra buttons.
Function Buttons
Old part numbers. New part numbers are now listed as 3805672X__. The last two digits are the same as the old part number.
| Part Number | Legend | Description |
| 3880197P02 | MPL | |
| 3880197P03 | Scan | |
| 3880197P12 | Call | |
| 3880197P13 | Msg | |
| 3880197P18 | Sel | |
| 3880197P19 | Mon | |
| 3880197P26 | Emer | |
| 3880197P44 | Phon | |
| 3880197P49 | Ř | |
| 3880197P52 | Emer | Red |
| 3880197P61 | Srch | |
| 3880197P63 | Page | |
| 3880197P72 | Pri | |
| 3880197P75 | RTT | |
| 3880197P92 | URG | |
| 3880196P37 | Home | |
| 3880196P38 | Dim |
Keypad Buttons
Old part numbers. New part numbers are now also listed as 3805671X__, except you have to add one to the last digit of the old part number. For example, a 3880196P01 is now a 3805671X02.
| Part Number | Legend | Description |
| 3880196P01 | 1 | |
| 3880196P02 | 2 | |
| 3880196P03 | 3 | |
| 3880196P04 | 4 | |
| 3880196P05 | 5 | |
| 3880196P06 | 6 | |
| 3880196P07 | 7 | |
| 3880196P08 | 8 | |
| 3880196P09 | 9 | |
| 3880196P10 | 0 | |
| 3880196P21 | *Rcl | |
| 3880196P22 | #Del | |
| 3880196P23 | 1Sta | |
| 3880196P24 | 2Pge | |
| 3880196P25 | 3Lck | |
| 3880196P26 | 4Sts | |
| 3880196P27 | 5Rpg | |
| 3880196P28 | 6Msg | |
| 3880196P29 | 7H/L | |
| 3880196P30 | 8Mon | |
| 3880196P31 | 9Dir | |
| 3880196P32 | Mon | |
| 3880196P33 | H/L | |
| 3880196P34 | DIR |
Rocker Buttons
| Part Number | Description | New P/N |
| 3880009P01 | vMode^ | 3805668X02 |
| 3880009P02 | vVol^ | 3805668X03 |
Emergency Button Kit
There is also available an emergency button kit, HLN6061D. It contains the following parts:
3800028M01 Emergency Button Housing 3800029M01 Emergency Button Plunger 3880197P26/3805672X26 White EMER 3880197P52/3805672X52 Red EMER
The first two parts make up a button that has a raised guard around it, with a red plunger in the center to prevent accidental activation.
Here are some various installation diagrams and schematics for the installation of Spectra radios.
Front Control Head to Radio Cable Schematic
Rear Control Head to Radio Cable Schematic (Dual Head Applications)
Control Head to Radio Cable Schematic with Siren "T" HKN4363C (Rear Control Head Shown)
High Power A3 Remote Installation Diagram
High Power A3, A5, A7, A9 Remote Installation Diagram
Low-/Mid-Power A3 Dash Installation Diagram
Low-/Mid-Power A4, A5, A7 Dash Installation Diagram
Low-/Mid-Power A3 Remote Installation Diagram
Low-/Mid-Power A4, A5, A7, A9 Remote Installation Diagram
Emergency Switch Connection Diagram
Lights and Horn Option Connection Diagram
Schematic of the HKN4244A Remote Cable
Schematic of the HLN1439A? Siren Cable for the Astro Spectra W3 only*
*Has plugs for the DEK and Switchbox. From manual 68P81093C18-O.
If you have a burning desire to know what the layout of the A9 remote cable make-up is, see below:
Spectra DB25 (Radio) Pinout Color Size DB25 pin Violet Thin 13 Brown Thin 16 Black/Brown Thin 19 Red Thin 17 Black/Green Thick 01 Black/Yellow Thick 11,12 Black/Brown Thick 09,10 Orange Thick 25 Yellow Thick 22 Green Thick 24 Blue Thick 18 Black/Red Shield 23 Black Shield 14 White Shield 05 Uninsulated Shield 21 01 Black/Green Thick 02 N/C 03 N/C 04 N/C 05 White Shield 06 N/C 07 N/C 08 N/C 09 Black/Brown Thick 10 Black/Brown Thick 11 Black/Yellow Thick 12 Black/Yellow Thick 13 Violet Thin 14 Black Shield 15 N/C 16 Brown Thin 17 Red Thin 18 Blue Thick 19 Black/Brown Thin 20 N/C 21 Uninsulated Shield 22 Yellow Thick 23 Black/Red Shield 24 Green Thick 25 Orange Thick DB25 on cable: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
If you are very patient, you CAN re-assemble a cut control cable by re-soldering it back together. Start by trimming and preparing the ends of each side of the cable kind of like this. Then, you cut a whole bunch of shrink tubing and start soldering and insulating as you go. When you are done, you'll have something that looks like this. The only thing left is to nicely shrink tube the entire bundle (make sure you think of that ahead of time :) ) and test it out. As long as you go color for color, it should function just fine.
Connecting a Spectra to a Command Data Encoder
Here are the installation and configuration instructions for connecting a Command Data Encoder to the Spectra
The Command Data encoder unit should be connected to the J6 connector on the Spectra radio.
Pinout Chart:
(25 pin cable) Radio connector Encoder wire Description Pin 1 RED/WHITE&GREEN PTT Pin 22 BLACK&BLACK/RED&BLACK/WHITE/RED SW A+ Pin 9 BLUE/BLACK RECEIVE AUDIO Pin 23 WHITE CARRIER DETECT Pin 18 WHITE/BLACK&WHITE/RED& WHITE/BLACK/RED&ORANGE/BLACK GROUND Pin 12 GREEN/BLACK TRANSMIT AUDIO (37 pin cable) NOTE: Audio adjustments are inside the RIC unit. Pin 1 RED/WHITE&GREEN PTT Pin 22 BLACK SW A+ Pin 9 BLUE/BLACK RECEIVE AUDIO Pin 23 WHITE CARRIER DETECT Pin 18 WHITE/BLACK&ORANGE/BLACK& BLACK/WHITE&GREEN/WHITE GROUND Pin 12 GREEN/BLACK TRANSMIT AUDIO (Audio level settings) Receive Level: 1Vp-p@1200Hz/4Khz Deviation 1800Hz/4Khz Deviation Transmit Level: 4Khz with a test tone from the encoder
Converting a Syntor X9000 VRS for a Spectra
It is possible to convert a VRS from a Syntor X9000 for use with the Spectra. The only thing that may be questionable is that mode steering to a Spectra Securenet mode may not work properly. This may just have been a programming issue.
The part number for the special low profile shield used by the Siren/PA and VRS combination in a single housing is 26-06360T01.
The VRS is located inside an External Options Housing or inside a Siren/PA housing.
To do the converstion, you will need a Spectra "SP02" microprocessor. The part number is 01-06711T02. The Spectra "SP02" microprocessor is used to convert Syntor X 9000 VRS "SP01" into a Spectra "SP02" VRS.
The VRS circuit board can be placed inside a Siren/PA housing. When this is done the large metal shield in the original Siren/PA must be replaced with the low profile shield above. This part was a special factory build part and Motorola only recently made it available as an individual part. R36 and C102 are removed from the Siren/PA board to attach the VRS circuit board power wires (they attach to the same place they were in the original External Options Housing).
System Watch II and Spectra RF Modem
Anytime a Spectra that is in the RF Modem mode and is accessed with RSS will drop out of the RF Modem mode. This includes just reading the codeplug with RSS.
In order to place it back into the RF Modem mode, the following steps must be done in RSS (Using RSS ver. R06.00.05 (RVN4001N)):
Caution: After enabling RF Modem mode (steps 1-4 above), DON'T DO ANYTHING ELSE WITH RSS to this radio or you will have to re-enable it again!!
Spectra DTMF Decode
The Spectra DTMF decoder option manual is titled "Model W946ALSP" and is part number 6807992D56.
It documents the HLN6151A DTMF decoder circuit (schematic and parts list), operation, RSS defaults, theory and troubleshooting. In spite of its price, it only has 12 pages (6 pieces of paper total). The circuit board only has 2 ICs on it (DTMF decoder and shift register).
The 900 MHz radio HLN6150A Hear Clear circuit board also has a DTMF decoder circuit built into it (the Hear Clear circuit board hardware is documented in the Detailed Service manuals).
One of the above circuit boards can plug into the Spectra Command Board J501 connector.
The DTMF manual trouble shooting flow chart says the MLM software version needs to be 5.10 or higher to support DTMF decoding.
So it looks like you need a HLN6150A or HLN6151A circuit board and MLM version 5.10 software or higher to get a Spectra to decode DTMF.
Spectra Data Option
Option W308CASP is a flat audio option where TX audio and RX audio and PTT are put on the 15 pin connector... with NO pre-emphasis or de-emphasis on the audio.
You get near DC response on the audio and very flat response up to the upper 3 dB limit to 5+ kHz on a 25 kHz channelized radio. This is good enough for 9600 GMSK data.
This info may be useful to those that want to do packet radio or other forms of data using a Spectra. Some of the service manuals identify this option so you can do it for yourself. It consists of moving some 0ohm smt jumpers in the radio.
The mic and speaker functions still work with this option.
There was another variant of this option with a different part number but it only differed in terms of audio levels.
Spectra Accessory Connector Interconnect Cable
There is a cable inside the radio that connects from the Command Board P0503 to the accessory connector and P0853 on the PA. The part number for this cable is 30-80239N02.
It is not referenced to in the Detailed Service Manual, at not least anywhere we can find. When it comes to trying to figure out what pins on the accessory connector connect to the Command Board, and where, that makes things difficult.
Presented below is the pinout of this cable.
| P0503 Command Board | P0853 PA | Description | P0503 Command Board | DB15 Accessory | Description |
| 1 | 2 | Control Volt Limit | 12 | 8 | Digital GND |
| 2 | 3 | Control Volt Drive | 13 | 15 | Mic Hi/GND |
| 3 | 4 | Current Sense + | 14 | 7 | Speaker Lo |
| 4 | 5 | Keyed 9.6V | 15 | 14 | BUS + |
| 5 | 6 | A+ to Command Brd | 16 | 6 | Speaker Hi |
| 6 | 7 | Temp Sense | 17 | 13 | /PTT / A+ |
| 7 | 8 | Key Slot | 18 | 5 | Ignition/SWB+ |
| 8 | 9 | Forward Detected Volt | 19 | 12 | VO1 |
| 9 | 10 | A+ to Command Brd | 20 | 4 | SWB+ |
| 10 | 11 | 9.6V | 21 | 11 | Detector Audio/Filtered Audio |
| 11 | 12 | Current Sense - | 22 | 3 | VO2 |
| 23 | 10 | BUS - | |||
| 24 | 2 | Emergency | |||
| 25 | 9 | BUSY | |||
| 26 | 1 | TX Audio/Reset |
The descriptions given are those from the pins on the Command Board. As you can see, some of the accessory connector pins have multiple functions. The function depends on jumper configuration on the Command Board. The standard configuration for these pins is shown on the installation diagrams.
