iCom Handheld

[VASailor10]

Hi all,

I have a iCom IC-M72 radio and it doesnt have a squelch button. I have never been able to hear anything. However I just realized I didnt not have it on high so I switched it on high. Although there has been minimal traffic since I have switched it on high I still have not heard anything has anyone else had this problem?

Spencer
Surprise
___________
Catalina 22

[sailingdog]

Please RTFM... Setting the squelch is shown on Page 4.

The manual, should you not have one, is available here. it was on the first page of a google search for "icom m72 manual"

[Pamlicotraveler]

I have that radio and would much prefer a separate turning squelch button. It's not a big deal for me since I don't use the handheld that much, but the small squelch electronic button that you push doesn't feel natural and makes it hard to quickly check your volume by turning the squelch down and back. Hopefully iCom reads this thread and will quickly change their design.

[TrueBlue]

I bought the IC-M72 because it's submersible, is very loud with low distortion and has the longest battery life of any handheld on the market.

After playing with it a while though, my only disatisfaction with the IC-M72 is the squelch function. Depress a dedicated push-button on the left side of the unit and then turn the top dial to select a digital value - 1 having the lowest signal filter.

The 2-step squelch feature is a bit awkward - but works OK once you get the hang of it.

[sneuman]

Originally Posted by TrueBlue

I bought the IC-M72 because it's submersible, is very loud with low distortion and has the longest battery life of any handheld on the market.

After playing with it a while though, my only disatisfaction with the IC-M72 is the squelch function. Depress a dedicated push-button on the left side of the unit and then turn the top dial to select a digital value - 1 having the lowest signal filter.

The 2-step squelch feature is a bit awkward - but works OK once you get the hang of it.

Hope it is indeed submersible! I bought an ICOM handheld a few years ago (can't remember the model now) and it quit after getting a dose of saltwater!

[TrueBlue]

Originally Posted by sneuman

Hope it is indeed submersible! I bought an ICOM handheld a few years ago (can't remember the model now) and it quit after getting a dose of saltwater!

I've not had the misfortune to test it yet, but have no reason to challenge Icom's claims . . . ICOM IC-M72

[merlin2375]

Originally Posted by VASailor10

I have a iCom IC-M72 radio and it doesnt have a squelch button. I have never been able to hear anything. However I just realized I didnt not have it on high so I switched it on high. Although there has been minimal traffic since I have switched it on high I still have not heard anything has anyone else had this problem?

If you want to hear weaker and/or more distant transmissions you should turn your Squelch down, not up. Generally you should set the squelch to the lowest possible setting where you don't just hear white noise/static.

[sailingdog]

Merlin-

I think the OP really needs to RTFM... The high setting on a handheld VHF usually refers to broadcast power—5 watts vs 3 watts or 1 watt, which are medium and low respectively. It has nothing at all to do with the unit's ability to receive VHF transmissions. The squelch, which is "digital" is probably represented by a number on the display. I prefer the Standard Horizon units, which have a real squelch knob...

BTW, the broadcast power isn't always user-selectable on all units. Some frequencies, like 13, which is the bridge-to-bridge frequency are designated for short-range, local communications, and many handhelds will only transmit on these frequencies at 1 Watt.

Originally Posted by merlin2375

If you want to hear weaker and/or more distant transmissions you should turn your Squelch down, not up. Generally you should set the squelch to the lowest possible setting where you don't just hear white noise/static.

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by merlin2375

If you want to hear weaker and/or more distant transmissions you should turn your Squelch down, not up. Generally you should set the squelch to the lowest possible setting where you don't just hear white noise/static.

It's instructive here to have the base unit VHF and the handheld monitoring the same channel. The 40 foot or so higher antenna of the base unit (and the likely greater sensitivity) when compared to the handheld with a touch of squelch means you miss a fair bit of traffic merely by using the handheld in the cockpit instead of a remote speaker.

I performed a test once where I went about 6 NM downrange on a Zodiac with an intervening spit of low land between myself and my wife on our main boat with the 40 foot of height. We used a pre-arranged time and channel, and while I could hear her (maybe a 3 out of 5), she missed about 40% of my replies. By contrast, on the handheld and on open water, I am almost always able to reach the CG to report logs, picnic tables and assorted other nav hazards in the water. The same CG cannot frequently hear the handheld (a SH 5 watt "typical" VHF) from the club basin, probably due to nearby buildings and the forest of radio-reflective masts.

This isn't necessarily a problem, of course. 95% of VHF traffic on 16/9 is trivial and rarely needs one's full attention.

But it can help one set the handheld squelch effectively: A perfectly received but distant (say, more than 4-5 NMs) call on the base unit will sound like static with a few faint words littered here and there on the handheld. This is why I usually monitor 16 on the base unit and use the handheld for weather alerts, etc. or for calling other boats within visual range. If I hear a pan-pan or something, I will switch the handheld on deck to 16, but I don't expect to be heard at more than 5 NM of distance by other boats.