20 Most Recent Motorola Talkabout T5720 (7 Channels) 2-Way Radio - Page 8 Questions & Answers

According to the owners manual for this unit the cord cannot be replaced. They instruct the user to call Motorola at 800-353-2729. Most likely they will offer you a new charger. If not, get the part number from them and either google it, or repost it here on FixYa and I will respond with pricing/availability information.

http://www.usersmanualguide.com/motorola/2-way_radio/t5820

Try here


Good Luck

Likely it is a low battery issue. Either the rechargeable battery needs to be replaced or the charger isn't working properly. Try replacing the battery with 4 AAs (IIRC) and see if that works.

We have several Motorola radios, two of which came with the rechargeable batteries. In the past year, neither of the rechargeable radios would recharge. The batteries won't make good contact with the charger even when not in the radio. Now one works with AAs but the other lost its settings and we haven't been able to reset to contact the other radios.

Cindy Wells
(we looked into replacing the batteries. Motorola lists chargers and batteries for our older radios but not the two that came with their own chargers. The local battery store wanted ~$40 dollars to try and rebuild the units. Since the chargers are not making good contact, we decided to go with the regular batteries.)

Set both the frequency and the interference eliminator code to match one another. (The big number and the small number) Here is a link to the owners manual: http://www.motorola.com/mdirect/manuals/T56XX_57XX_User%20_Manual_E.pdf

Basic instructions:
Press the Menu Button
The freq number will flash
Use the + or - button to select the frequency.
Press the PTT button to save the channel setting.

To set the code:
Press the menu button until the code starts to flash (the small number)
Press the + or - to select the code.
Press the PTT to save the code setting.

Once you have both radios matching on frequency and code, they should communicate together.

Line-of-sight.

Generally speaking a 2-way radio will talk as far as it can see. Height and placement of antenna determines range. So if you were talking from a Mountain to a valley you could talk a great distance. However, in the real world there are obstacles, such as trees, houses, varied terrain. You generally would expect a radio to talk line-of-sight up to two miles. Or 1/4 to 1/2 mile if talking from inside a building to outside. The quote of 5 miles in literature is referencing ideal conditions. (Much like when the new car you are looking at quotes the MPG.)

HI,
The charger cradle for this model is 220V.  
Hope this helps
 

Hello bella-9,

The T5500 is a 2 channel radio and the T5725 is a 14 channel radio. However, the radios should be compatible with each other on FRS channels 1-14 as long as both radios are using the same Quiet Talk code. If the Quiet Talk settings are different the radios will not be able to communicate with one another.

Assuming all settings are the same (as you say) and the units are within range of each other (typically less then a mile over clear, level terrain) they should work just fine.

Best Regards,
Ken
"Go Ahead. Use Us."

Hell ssalah,

Most of the time when one radio cannot talk to the other radio it means that the Privacy Codes are not configured properly. In order for the two radios to talk to one another they both have to be set to the same channel and Privacy Code or the Privacy Code function needs to be turned off on both radios.

The Privacy Codes can be used to keep the radios silent unless they receive a signal from another radio using the same code. This enables the radios to be used on busy channels with a minimum of interference. If Privacy Codes are turned off on one radio and turned on for the other radio, the situation you describe will occur.

Consult the user's manual for information on the Privacy Code function and either disable the function on both radios or set both radios to the same code.
Best Regards,
Ken
"Go Ahead. Use Us."

Hello cataway43,

These type of low power handhelds are good for "line of sight" communications and their range is very dependant on local geography. Over level ground with no obstructions you can expect about a mile of effective communications range, on average. If you are operating in an area with decreased line of site due to obstructions such as tall buildings or heavy vegetation then the range will be decreased; likewise if you are in an area with increased line of site (such as on top of a tall hill or mountain) you can expect increased range.

Best Regards,
Ken
"Go Ahead. Use Us."

Hello kenyond,

The range that you can expect to see when using two-way radios is very dependent on local conditions. These radios are very line-of-sight dependent. Obstructions like mountains, hills, tall buildings, thick vegetation, and using the radio in a shielded environment such as inside of an automobile can block your line of sight and limit your effective communications range.

That “maximum 5 mile” advertised range is probably only practical in a situation where the user of one of the radios has some significant elevation (such as being on top of a tall hill) and therefore has increased line of sight. When communicating over relatively level ground that is clear of obstructions, you can probably expect a reliable communications range of about a mile.

Best Regards,
Agent Ken
"Go Ahead. Use Us."

Hello oldskolhippy,

The two radios do not appear to be compatible with one another. The Motorola is a Family Radio hybrid manufactured for the USA market and the Twintalker is a PMR446 radio made for consumers in the European Union. The two radios serve roughly the same purpose (short distance, unlicensed communications) but they do not share any channels in common.

I am not sure where you are located, but it is technically a violation of FCC rules to operate the PMR446 radio in the United States. Likewise the FRS radio cannot legally be used within the EU. I'd recommend replacing one of the radios with a more appropriate one.

Best Regards,
Ken
"Go Ahead. Use Us."

Hello Ruaal,

The frequencies in the TalkAbout T5720 are not adjustable. The radio operates on the designated Family Radio Service channels located at 462 and 467 MHz. There is no way to change these channels to be at 463 and 464 MHz.

Best regards,
Ken
Go Ahead. Use Us.

Hello, Thanks for requst me, As far as I understood, you have same settings in both radios, you mentined QT this is the 3° requirment to recive a signal, 1° channel, 2° subchannel (ctcss, pl, etc) and the 3° QT.
if you are using QT you must to send a Call from the other radio, I recomed to set the QT to Off in both radios and tray if you can communicate in both directions.
if does not receive, there is the possibility that one of your radios the Sub channel decoder is not working.
If you could test your radios with a Third radio to know wich radio is not working right.
Good luck

Hello jayhawkrx,

Check the Continuous Tone Coded Squelch (CTCSS) settings on all the radios. (Note that some manufacturers refer to this feature as a Privacy Code or Quiet Code. The actual name of the feature may vary.) This feature encodes a low-frequency signal on your radio transmission. This signal is below the range of human hearing but can be detected by other radios. When the CTCSS feature is active your radio will ignore any signal that it receives that does not have the proper tone encoded on it.

In order for these radios to communicate, all of the radios need to be on the same channel and have the same CTCSS code programmed or the CTCSS feature must be disabled.

I suspect that CTCSS is activated on one of your radios but not on the other. This would result in the situation you describe.

Also take note that when using different brands / models of radios to communicate with one another that the CTCSS code numbering scheme may not necessarily be the same from radio to radio. For instance, CTCSS code 4 on the Motorola TalkAbout series actually corresponds to code A on the Motorola Sport models.

Best Regards,

Agent Ken
Go Ahead. Use Us.

Hi, here is a link for some mods;
http://www.ham.dmz.ro/kenwood/th-k2at.php
This one might be more what your looking for;
http://www.kenwood.com/i/products/info/amateur/handy_thk2k4_soft.html
This seems to have the mods but you have to sign in;
http://www.mods.dk/index.php?ModelId=432&RadioRec=kenwood
Hope these help you,, Mechanic

my guess is that the battery is too weak install new ones and see if it works out good luck windman

Turn your radio on, then hold the (+) button while turing it off then back on.

If you are using vox (voice activated transmit) go into the menu and make sure you don't have the VOX setting too high. You should be able to put the headset on... hit the "push to talk" button on the radio and transmit you audio. Turn the other radio on and make sure the radio is "keying" (tx with no auio) then make sure there is audio. If you don't have audio but the radio is transmitting.. you might have the wrong type of plug on your headset for the audio..... there are 2 plugs... 1 for transmit audio....1 for recieve audio. It could be the wrong type of plug for the jack in the radio. Regardless.. the way the headset works is either you push the "push to talk button" onj the radio OR you use the VOX function... with the vox function you just have to talk into the mic to transmit. This is what your headset is designed for. You will have to go into the menu and set up the radio for VOX. If you still have problems follow my directions at the top of this page ( check mic jack and stuff) I think you just have to set the radio up for VOX operation and set the VOX setting. You should be able to push the push to talk button and talk through the mic on the headset. If you don't get any audio that way there is a problem and you should check the jack and plug on the headset.

In order to rest it all you have to do is click the ptt button twice