Aftermarket RIBs and programming cables any good?

[wwhitby]

I'm new to owning Motorola HTs - I bought my first one, an HT600 last night. Eventually, i'd like to purchase a RIB and programming cable to program it myself (as well as purchase the software from Motorola, of course.)

In doing research, i've noticed that some aftermarked RIB and cables don't work too well. Does anyone have a recommendation for an aftermarket RIB and cable that will work with an HT600?

Thanks,

Warren

[k2hz]

I have used a Polaris PA-1 RIB and their HT600 cable for many years with excellent results.

http://www.polarisradio.com/

[Bat2way]

Same here. I would suggest making up your own cables. Plenty of spare parts out there to do it.

[wwhitby]

Has anyone used one of radiostew's RIBs with an HT600?

Thanks,

Warren

[tvsjr]

Note: Some are good and some are bad.

I've used a Polaris RIB for many years without problems. When I got my hands on some ProRadio models, I ordered one of their Waris cables. It programmed fine... much to my chagrin, they didn't bother to include the boot control line, so you can't flash with them. I ended up ordering a genuine M, at about the same price.

[kc7gr]

...They're done right.

Aftermarket hardware can be just as good (if not better) than an RLN4008.

Notice I said 'can be.' The kicker is how much attention gets given to the design itself. Sandy Ganz's blank PC board duplicates the Motorola design in the electrical sense, and improves on it in the connection sense. You can buy the boards here...

http://www.geocities.com/sganz.geo/RibPage.html

Once you have said board, it's a simple matter to get the rest of the required components from any convenient electronics distributor. Full instructions are included with the boards, as well as a parts list.

I will say that I'm not pleased with the inexpensive slide switches called out in said list, nor am I fond of the mass-produced D-sub connectors. What I do is build up the RIB using high-end components, such as 1% precision resistors, sealed toggle switches, machine-pin sockets for the two IC's, and mil-spec D-sub connectors. The increased cost is minimal for what amounts to an order of magnitude jump in end-product quality.

Some of these components, notably the high-end switches and D-subs, will not fit into the original hole patterns on the PC board. However, it's easy enough just to mount them off-board (on the enclosure end panels), and run the necessary wires back to the board.

Oh, and the RadioStew units are built using this RIB design, so yes... They're probably a pretty safe bet.

Keep the peace(es).

[Will]

I still have a couple of the Audio adaptors for the HT600 radios that can be reworked to make a programming cable, or RF/EXT antenna adaptor. The info needed is on the BatLabs.com .

http://batboard.batlabs.com/viewtopic.php?t=52086

Also the HT600, MT1000, P200 series radios requires two 'data' lines plus ground for the programming cable. Some non Motorola RIB's do not have the Busy line needed, or BUSS- lines.

[SPEAKER MIC]

i have all aftermarket equip and i made all of my cables and alls good..

[kf4sqb]

You could always do what I did. Go all homebrew! I used an enclosure I already had laying around, and a lot of junk-box parts (resistors, caps, etc...), along with a few parts I had to purchase new, and a 'project board' from Rat Shack. It's almost an exact (electricly speaking) replica of a genuine /\/\ RIB, and hasn't balked at anything I've thrown at it yet. All of my cables are also homebrew. Check out the 'main' site, Batwing Laboratories, for lots more programming hardware info.

One word of caution: NEVER ASK FOR RSS ON THE FORUM!!!! Sorry to shout, but I want to stress how important that is! Ask once, you get a nifty little tag added to your username. Ask twice, you get booted .

[Zap]

Well I use an aftermarket, and I am looking at the posted schematic of the original RIB.
Nothing special.

My aftermarket uses all the same parts except for one, the OP-AMP I use is a LMT358N instead of the CA3140.

Otherwise layout is good, traces aren't thin, power supply is always 8V through a regulator from a beefy 14V micor power supply.

Do you (and you, and you..) believe that not using precision resistors and substituting the op-amp , and using 8V instead of 9V will account for some radios not able to read/programmed ???


Anyone have trouble reading Sabers with aftermarket or home brew RIBs?

Z

[mr.syntrx]

My electrically identical 4008B clone reads Sabers fine.

[AEC]

I have several aftermarket RIBs and they all work with every radio I have had to program, and without fail.

I have an old Polaris I use, along with a genuine Circle-M RIB, and a few others I can't recall the names of, as well as one I bought from Kawa on Ebay 3 years ago which I use bare without enclosure due to its odd shape, it's difficult to obtain a case for it, so i left it 'open' and don't have troubles with it, and besides, It's always in the van and if seen, it's doubtful I'll have to worry about it being stolen as it doesn't look like anything important enough to warrant close inspection, as is the laptop, it's been repaired so many times to keep it running, with its covers off, it looks like a high school science project, again, nothing worth taking.

If properly built, most RIBs should work fine, and homebuilt ones can easily match factory as well.

High tolerance components simply minimize the 'drift' due to age and is probably the best way to go when building your own as even a single 10K resistor can change over time to a higher or lower value and often several ohms if not up to a 1K difference, and it can make a difference if that resistor is doing a 'critical' job, and can make/break a programming session due to read/write issues.

[Zap]

...
<snip>

I will say that I'm not pleased with the inexpensive slide switches called out in said list, nor am I fond of the mass-produced D-sub connectors. What I do is build up the RIB using high-end components, such as 1% precision resistors, sealed toggle switches, machine-pin sockets for the two IC's, and mil-spec D-sub connectors. The increased cost is minimal for what amounts to an order of magnitude jump in end-product quality.

<snip>

I am curious, did the precision parts yeild noticable results.
I am converting mine as per the recommend part upgardes in hopes it
solves a problem.

http://www.batlabs.com/images/rib_mod.jpg

[kc7gr]

...
<snip>

I will say that I'm not pleased with the inexpensive slide switches called out in said list, nor am I fond of the mass-produced D-sub connectors. What I do is build up the RIB using high-end components, such as 1% precision resistors, sealed toggle switches, machine-pin sockets for the two IC's, and mil-spec D-sub connectors. The increased cost is minimal for what amounts to an order of magnitude jump in end-product quality.

<snip>

I am curious, did the precision parts yeild noticable results.
I am converting mine as per the recommend part upgardes in hopes it
solves a problem.

http://www.batlabs.com/images/rib_mod.jpg

Noticeable results in terms of durability? Most definitely. Both RIBs I've built with the Ganz board have been pretty much indestructible, and I've not yet found a radio that didn't reliably read or program with them.

There was also a visible improvement, in terms of electrical performance, when reading or programming older radios such as the Syntor X9000. I have a "stock" RLN4008 that consistently gets "Busy Line Locked" errors when doing the X9000's. However, the same radio, programmed with the Ganz RIB I built with the component upgrades, never has the problem.

So: In summary, yes, I did get very noticeable results.

Happy building.