Notes and Helps for the TYT UV8000E
Radioddity gave me (as in for free) a couple VHF/UHF dual-band radios, including the TYT UV8000E, on condition that I review them. So, while I’ve made every attempt to be blunt (particularly about the manual!) this is a sponsored product review. And if you purchase the radio through this link, you are also helping to sponsor my YouTube channel, “Ham Radio Answers,” and this blog. I’ll be putting some tips below to help explain the rather sketchy manual, so check back on this page from time to time to see the updates.
(BTW, what do I do with those tips and advertising revenue? Well, in September, 2016, I purchased a Panasonic DMC-G7 camera that should greatly improve video quality. Also, I purchased an oscilloscope to use for demonstrations for future Ask Dave videos and updates to training videos.)
Do I recommend this radio for a brand new Tech? Yes! There are many choices out there, and this is a radio that you can grow with. I recommend that new Technicians purchase a handheld radio first (and a mobile rig second, etc.) and this one is a good choice. The price is well less than a hundred dollars at this link. If you find that link too slow, try the one in the Amazon advertisement to the right of this paragraph (price a bit higher).
Here’s the review, and do feel free to comment on this page, or, better yet, on YouTube.
(BTW, I took the thumbnail picture with the new G7. Nice, huh?)
Where to get the obsolete USB cable driver
The only source I’ve found is actually via the PowerWerx website. Click here for the link that lets you download the old driver. Please note that after this is installed, you will need to go into Device Driver on your PC to select the older driver. The newer drivers don’t work. The chip used in the TYT USB cable are either way old or else are counterfeit. I feel hesitant about providing this info. The more-sure way is to order the red cable from PowerWerx, which works with the up-do-date Prolific driver. It contains the genuine and more recent Prolific chip. Note that although the Wouxun cable works with TYT, you will still need to install the specific TYT software for the UV8000E. I’ve also heard, but have not personally verified, that CHIRP now works with the UV8000E.
Am I selling out?
This is a really important topic to me. I received the following message from N3LKZ, which I quote in full and without editing. After that is the reply I sent him.
Kudos for at least being honest that TYT paid you in one way or another for making the infomercial. However, you didn’t mention whether the radio is FCC type approved, and you didn’t say whether you got a kickback if somebody bought the radio using your link.
I’m not sending this to be snarky, but instead to let you know that YouTube viewers aren’t, by in large, stupid. Some of us have finely tuned bullshit detectors, and some of us can spot a shill a mile off. As a former PR person, I know just how devious a seller can be, and I hate to see YouTube creators become dupes and shills, perhaps unknowingly or, alternatively, thinking their viewers won’t catch on.
Arjay N3LKZ
Arjay, you bring up some really important points, and I wish you had posted this as a comment to the video as your points need to be addressed. I will put a record of this conversation on my website at www.ke0og.net/uv8000e. First, yes, Radioddity gave me this radio and another that I have yet to review. I get to keep them. (The logistics were that I ordered them online on Amazon, and then they reimbursed me.) And, yes (which I thought I made clear, but apparently not clearly enough) is that I get a kickback. The way I phrased it is that if you order via the rather lengthy URL that I put up at www.ke0og.net/uv8000e, doing so will support my channel. I could have been more clear, and will make it crystal clear on my website. Lastly, I’ll mention that I did the review with considerable trepidation. Over the past several years I’ve built up some level of trust with my viewership, and I want to respect that by not selling out. So I made it really clear it’s a sponsored product review. If this doesn’t go over well, I won’t do another, and if it goes really badly, I’ll take the review down. Regarding FCC type acceptance, it never crossed my mind to research that topic. I will certainly do so now. Type acceptance of the Chinese radios has been an issue and I should have thought of it. Thanks for your thoughtful comments. 73, Dave, KEØOG
Is it FCC type-accepted?
Photo of the inside of the UV8000E radio, showing FCC logo.
This is the most frequent question I get. I’ve inquired of Radioddity but have not heard back yet. In the meantime, I took this photo of the inside of the radio with the battery off. It has the FCC logo.
Factory Reset
Resetting to factory defaults will remove any and all programming. Also, it’ll delete all your memories, etc. You have saved them with the programming software, right? Anyway, here’s how to do that: press and hold the “F” key while you are turning the radio on. Screen will ask “RESET?” Press “F” to accept or “U/V” to cancel. NOTE!!! If you used the software to enable the cross-band repeat function, resetting will require that you go back into the software and do it again!
Menu Items and Defaults
The manual lists the menu options, but does not make note of which are the defaults. This table provides the defaults as near as I could determine them:
|
Menu # |
LCD Display |
Values |
Default |
Name |
|
1 |
Scan |
/ |
/ |
Frequency or channel scan |
|
2 |
TX SEL |
Edit/Busy |
Edit |
Priority transmit |
|
3 |
VOX |
1-8 |
5 |
VOX level setting |
|
4 |
Power |
Low/High |
High |
High/Low TX power |
|
5 |
SQL |
0-9 |
5 |
SQL Level Setting |
|
6 |
D.Wait |
On/Off |
On |
Dual Wait/Standby |
|
7 |
LED |
On/Auto/Off |
Auto |
LED Display Mode |
|
8 |
Light |
Color1/2/3 |
Color 1 |
Background light color |
|
9 |
Beep |
On/Off |
Off |
Keypad Beeper Setting |
|
10 |
ANI |
On/Off |
Off |
Automatic Number Identity |
|
11 |
Turn |
On/Off |
Off |
Crossband repeater |
|
12 |
ID |
0-9 |
‘000 |
ID |
|
13 |
PTT ID |
BOT/EOT/BOTH/OFF |
OFF |
Code |
|
14 |
TOT |
Off/30/60/…/360 |
180 |
TX Time Out Timer |
|
15 |
BCLO |
Off/Wave/Call |
Off |
Busy channel lock-out |
|
16 |
VOX.SW |
On/Off |
Off |
VOX Switch on/off |
|
17 |
ROGER |
On/Off |
Off |
Transmit over beeper |
|
18 |
DW |
On/Off |
On |
Dual Watch/Monitor |
|
19 |
RX.SAV |
On/Off |
On |
Receive saver |
|
20 |
Scan.S |
TO/CO/SE |
CO |
Scan mode |
|
21 |
Autolock |
On/Off |
Off |
Auto keypad lock |
|
22 |
Voice |
On/Off |
ENG |
Voice prompt language |
|
23 |
Talk Tail |
On/Off |
ON |
End tone elimination |
|
24 |
OPNSET |
Off/DC/Msg |
DC |
Power-on display |
|
25 |
VTL |
/ |
/ |
Battery voltage |
|
26 |
MSGSET |
-1A,@ |
(blank) |
Power-on Message |
|
27 |
DIS.NM |
On/Off |
(blank) |
Display channel name |
|
28 |
CHNAME |
-1A,@ |
(blank) |
Channel name editing |
|
29 |
C-CDC |
Off/67.0/D023N |
Off |
TX/RX Tone Coder |
|
30 |
R-CDC |
Off/67.0/D023N |
Off |
RX Tone Coder |
|
31 |
T-CDC |
Off/67.0/D023N |
Off |
TX Tone coder |
|
32 |
S-D |
+/-/OFF |
Off |
Shift Direction |
|
33 |
OFFSET |
0.000-99.995MHz |
‘0.000 |
Repeater Shift (VFO mode) |
|
34 |
Step |
2.5K/5K/6.25K/…/25K |
25K |
VFO step |
|
35 |
N/W |
Wide/Narrow |
Wide |
Select channel spacing |
|
36 |
SEEK 67.0 |
/ |
67 |
CTCSS Scanning |
|
37 |
SEEK D023N |
/ |
DCS Scanning |