| KE4WFD |
Rating:     |
2023-01-07 | |
| Great little radio (WATERPROOF) |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
Tough little unit.
I bought it to use on my motorcycle due to it's waterproof rating. Haven't had a chance to install it so I've been using it in my work vehicle.
Yes, programming on the unit is the usual odd combo of face and mic clicks but is doable.
There is a programing program and cable, details can be found here:
https://cqqrz.github.io/projects/tyt-th-8600/
Edit on 1/7/23
Had a problem with intermittent no audio on transmit so I took the mic apart and it turned out the molex connector on the board was just BARELY making contact. Seated it fully and no problems now.
The good side is that I saw how the mic was constructed. The case screws go into brass bushings rather than just plastic so that is another indication of the build quality.
That the connector wasn't seated fully is just another example of "Customer Quality Control" in Chinese goods.
They always need a good looking over before use. |
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| W4LIT |
Rating:      |
2022-12-06 | |
| Excellent waterproof dual bander! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Bought this and received a discount through an eBay retailer. Installed in a side by side, Polaris Ranger XP1000. There is a windshield but no side doors, so when the blowing rain occurs, it gets soaked. One year in and it works very well. Mostly used for local 2m/440 repeaters, never had to use high power, although nice to know it's there. Mated to a basic mag mount dual band antenna stuck horizontally on the roll cage, so it is not getting whacked by brush on top and moveable for the dump bed action. Always good tx audio reports and receive audio is clear as well. If I could link this to my BT helmet, I would install one on the motorcyle. My fourth happy experience with TYT products.
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| KD8NCP |
Rating:    |
2022-11-19 | |
| Great little radio but not immediately user friendly |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| This is a great sounding little 2m/70cm radio that I move between mobile and base use. It is NOT supported by CHIRP but manually programming is really pretty easy once you get the hang of it, but it does require the use of both the panel and hand mic to enter repeater information into memory. To speed things up during manually programming, use the A/B button on the front panel to enter UHF stations on the top and VHF on the bottom of split screen. That way offsets are already default for that band and you use the LO panel button to choose + or - for that offset. Setting the PL requires using the mic but that too becomes quick once you do a few entries, and then saving the entry to the radio's memory. Tip: The PL of the last entry is "saved" so if you do all of your UHF entries (103.5 PL for example) in succession you can save a few manual programming steps by NOT having to enter the PL if it is the same as the previous entry. The Function key is labelled F on the front panel of the radio, but is labelled FUN on the mic, why not just F? The small radio size makes it a bit difficult to correctly push the panel buttons when you have big fingers like I do, and the manual is pretty useless except for generally deciphering the menus and submenus. But otherwise great value for the money I spent ($50) |
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| W8LM |
Rating:  |
2022-08-10 | |
| Returned the rig with a problem and they credited me $70. |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
R&L Electronics had a special bundle this rig with a 30 amp power supply, for $159 so I bit. The power supply is fine and I installed the TH-8600 in the truck after spending a rainy afternoon programming it. Chirp does not work with this rig and Chirp developers say they will NEVER add it to their list. The reasons for the return:
#1 A/B and other buttons both on the faceplate and microphone go to sleep and only recovery is to power cycle the radio.
#2 Squelch will not close after a received signal ends, Even with the squelch setting at it's highest. So it hisses static till the receive signal reappears or you cycle power on the radio..
#3. Both the above problems are intermittent but occur after a "warm up" time of about 1/2 hour radio on time. Obviously heat related. So if you started a scan and lost keypad controls, if there was a signal the speaker would "pop" and the rig would continue scanning. You could not do a thing but power down.
I notified the seller and told them to fix it, replace it, or return my money. I sent it back doubled boxed just like I received it to R&L Electronics, the seller. Looked new in package. They only credited my credit card $70... No explanation. I was 33 days into the 1 year warranty.
So, No more off brand radio's or R&L Electronics. |
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| NJ8J |
Rating:    |
2021-12-07 | |
| OK, if a bit klunky |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I was given one of these last Christmas, and have been using it as a base VHF/UHF radio. It's been ok - receive audio and (as far as I know) transmit audio are good. It's programmable from the front panel and microphone, but isn't nearly as easy as the other VHF/UHF radios I've had in the past (Yaesu FT-530, FT-51, and FT-60, and an Icom IC-207H). When programming manually, I've typically found myself doing part of a channel from the front panel, and part from the mic. It's easier than trying to do everything from one or the other.
I've found programming to be easier using the program supplied on a CD. The CD appears to have programs for a number of TYT radios, so you have to hunt for the TYT-8600 one, and you'll need to have archiver software capable of handling .rar files (7Zip will do). The program is usable, if a bit klunky. It makes me wish Chirp handled the TH-8600 (it doesn't yet, even though a few people have offered the loan of the radio for programming purposes, and one person offered to give one right out). There are some dialogs that come up in chinese, even though you've specified English, but it's possible to use the program despite this. I'll note there's a newer version on the web site (the CD came with a version dated 2016-11-08, while the version on the web site is dated in 2017), but so far, that version comes up with all chinese text, even though you tell it to install the english version.
The mike cable is rather stiff, and the scan rate is rather slow (maybe 3 channels/sec, much slower than the Yaesu's I've had, and even than a Baofeng UV-5R).
I've basically dinged this radio for the sloppy programming on the supplied software, the slow scan rate, and the overall klunkiness. It's usable, but not outstanding.
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| EA2EFI |
Rating:    |
2021-02-02 | |
| TyT TH 8600 [ Spanish Review ] |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Lo primero destacar que el producto vino de un proveedor asiático...( he oído que equipos más antiguas, tenían mayor espectro disponible. Esta va desde 136-174/400-480 R&TX ) la calidad de fabricación así como el aspecto general de la radio no defrauda. Es una radio pequeña, sus botones son pequeños, su altavoz es pequeño, pero no así su pantalla ni su micrófono. Creo que con manos grandes y/o con guantes... será muy difícil manejar algunas funciones. Mención al SOFT de programación que sólo he conseguido en su versión 1.0 ( del 2017 ) que REQUIERE privilegios de ADMINISTADOR tanto para instalarse como para ejecutarse en windows.
Laborioso, dejar al descubierto el puerto de comunicaciones y la entrada de jack de audio al estar tapados por un tapón de goma atornillado al chasis - para preservar la estanqueidad - y mención al jack de entrada de mico que es de ocho pines, pero MICRO ( nula compatibilidad ).
Los VFOs están divididos en DOS.: A y A1 & B y B1
SOLAMENTE los " A " permiten almacenar frecuencias con desviación ( + / - ) para repetidores. Si quieres, puedes MEMORIZAR frecuencias tonos, etc, etc.. en cualquiera de sus BANCOS, peero si quieres acceder a un repetidor que te encuentres por ahí... deberá des en el BANCO del VFO " A ".
La función SCANER abarca TODOS los CANALES memorizados sin que puedas hacer " GRUPOS ", pero puedes EXCLUIR cuantos quieras. NO encuentro la función Canal Prioritario ¿!??
Si estás buscando una radio PORTATIL que sea ANALOGICA esta es una OPCION ASEQUIBLE que recomiendo.
(*) NO encuentro - ninguna - con la OPCION GPS que he leído que hay... pero no veo disponible.
(*) Si tienes algún TIP ó TRICK que compartir... por favor a mi correo. 73s NOL. |
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| KN6LQO |
Rating:      |
2020-12-19 | |
| A good value |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I got mine as a discounted customer return from Amazon; found the previous owner's information preprogrammed. It looked like he wanted a DMR radio, because it had been programmed as if he were trying to connect to a hotspot. This radio doesn't speak DMR, so that wasn't going to happen.
It does appear to work nicely as a low-power very small mobile unit. It's about 4.5" deep, 4" wide, and 1.8" tall.
Getting the programming cable/software working was a little frustrating; ultimately what got it working was following the instructions/downloading the Prolific driver from this page at Miklor: https://www.miklor.com/COM/UV_Drivers.php
It would be nice if it were CHIRP supported, but it's not.
Receive audio seems fine, no complaints about transmitted audio quality/volume, but I'll see how it goes as time passes. |
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| BOGDAN_DUMITRU |
Rating:     |
2020-11-05 | |
| Still in the learning curve. |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Good receiveing, good audio reports.
I own the waterproof model.
No intermodulation, but a hiss at low volume, built like a tank, never tested the IP67 certification.
You may use the manual for Midland CT2000 instead of the chinese manual, both rigs are the same.
The manual could be downloaded from the Midland Europe site |
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| KN4RA |
Rating:   |
2020-04-07 | |
| Wasted $99 |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
Bought this radio for a base unit only. Receive is fine, but transmit audio is low and I am constantly asked to speak louder into the mic. Yelling into a mic is not what I do. TYT has absolutely no customer service. None. Software in box is useless. Not very pleased with this radio overall.
Caveat Emptor |
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| KE7GGZ |
Rating:      |
2020-03-01 | |
| Worth the money, especially for the WP model |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I've had the radio for several days and so far, I'm impressed. More than enough power for communications, since I live a good distance from a local repeater. I'm roughly guessing at least 35 miles, or so line of sight, using a mag mount Diamond MR77 antenna on a metal roof, for now.
It was easy to manually program, once I figured out how to do it, I'd say it's much easier to program, than a Baofeng UV5R, manually. You must use the mic and radio controls, to program manually.
I like the fact, it is built like a tank. Has a metal case, heat fins everywhere and a cooling fan. It's also waterproof, as well as the mic and I have nothing but good audio reports, without asking for a radio check.
Prior to this, I had a 5 watt hand held, and it just didnt get into the repeater well at all; to much noise was the reports and unintelligible audio. Now, my reports are:
"what did you do?" Lol! Best report possible !
So, well worth the money @ $109.00 and free shipping for the water proof version.
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