FTM-350R: The Fix Is In

It looks like at least one—and the most critical—of the problems facing owners of Yaesu’s new FTM-350R APRS-enabled mobile V/UHF transceiver can now be solved. After reproducing my complaints about “heading up” GPS navigation pointing in the wrong direction, Yaesu got its Japanese engineers on the case and supposedly have developed a fix.

My radio is now down at Yaesu in Orange County and is having the fix applied. This problem (described in the video posted below) appears to effect all FTM-350R’s now available.

Not being fixed—because it cannot be reliably reproduced—is the problem of the radio hanging, apparently while receiving an APRS packet. I have had this happen on five occasions, so it’s not a showstopper. But, the only way to restart the radio is to remove power from the base unit, which can be inconvenient and shouldn’t be necessary, in any case.

I have had other reports of this problem, but am aware of no specific cause or cure. Seems to be a software issue.

Finally, the Bluetooth VOX on my FTM-350R is useless, which makes Bluetooth hands-free impossible. I am not sure how common this problem is. I sent my Yaesu Bluetooth headset in with the radio for testing.

It is a shame that a radio that in many ways is such a breakthrough was not better tested (and fixed) before release.

Yaesu Confirms FTM-350R Troubles

This morning, I received an e-mail from Yaesu tech support telling me they had reproduced the NAVIgation problems that I’ve been experiencing and reporting on. Yaesu USA has sought help from Japan in dealing with the problem.

Do you suppose this radio was actually tested before it was released? How difficult is it drive around and see if the navigation function points in the right direction?

It appears the radio cannot be changed with a firmware upgrade, so I am expecting they may all need to go back to the factory. As I remember, there was also a recall of VX-8’s when they were released.

FTM-350R Bad Navigation Video

As a demonstration for Yaesu, I drove around and documented the problems I am having with the NAVI feature of the new FTM-350R receiver. I misspeak a couple of times—reversing left and right—but the video clearly shows what I am describing and I repeat the correct information a number of times. Also, I had another crash tonight, while the radio was running in my parked car.

The FTM-350R: Navigation Doesn't Work

Click for larger imageThis photo illustrates—you have to take my word for it until I can post a video—how my FTM-350R will not properly navigate to a “point” stored in the radio’s memory. In this case, I want to navigate to WY6E-11, which is ahead of me and off to the left.

However, the display clearly shows the destination “D” as being behind me and off to the right.

The error changes depending on the direction of travel.

Going north, the target error is to the right but north and south seem to be ahead and behind, where they should be.

Going west, a target that should be ahead displays as behind and vice versa. But, when when due south, appears properly in the display. Until you drive past, when the destination becomes ahead of you when it’s really behind. Not to worry, when the destination was in front, it displayed as behind.

I am talking to Yaesu about this.

Odd FTM-350R Behavior

I need the help of my fellow FTM-350R owners to figure out whether I am doing something wrong or if this radio has a real problem. (No, the crashing issue has not recurred).

OK, I want to use the NAVI function to drive to a location or “point” as the radio calls it. I have received a packet from a friend at his house. I saved the location as a point.

I am now navigating to the point. I am south of the point, headed north, the NAVI screen (which I think is “heading up” on the display) shows me heading toward the point.

The point is two blocks off the road I am on. It is to the west (left on the display) of the road. But, as I get closer, instead of deviating to the left (west) and pointing toward the point, the target moves right (east) about the same number of degrees as is should me moving to the left.

When I am going west (and the target is north of me) it seems to do the same thing, moving the target northeast when it should be moving northwest. 

When I drive to the target, I get the GOAL indication as I would expect.

Can someone attempt to reproduce this behavior? It must be something I’ve set-up wrong, but with these lousy manuals, who can tell?

Yaesu FTM-350R Update

As of today, I have not had any additional crash incidents. I have heard from a reader who has experienced crashes and hope to get an update.

However, my lack of crashes could be a lack of “on time” for the radio, which has not seen lots of use. With the help of Dan, N6VLG, I now have a longer Ethernet cable to connect the radio head to the base unit. This will allow me to move the base unit closer to my Powerpole block and reduce by a number of feet the length of the power cord.

If the lock-ups are really a function of occasional voltage drops, then my problems should be over.

Yaesu has asked that I send the machine in for a look-see, which I will wait to do only if the problem recurs after I get the power lead shortened.

Otherwise, this is a very nice radio that has some changes that I hope can be fixed. I need to find out if Yaesu plans to provide firmware upgrades for this radio, or whether than is even possible. I was shocked to find out that adding additional APRS capabilities to the VX-8 requires changing physical componentry.

I will be talking about the radio and what it is like from a happy user perspective soon.

Crash Caused by Low Voltage?

First word from Yaesu is that the crashes experienced with the FTM-350R are caused by low supply voltage. That is a possibility with my temporary wiring in the vehicle and I am investigating.

Basically, I have power running from the battery to the rear deck. Usually, the radio is mounted right there at a Powerpole block. But the short control head cable requires me to use all of the supplied power cable with the 350 and that could be the issue.

I am working on this issue and will report back.

Another Day, Another Crash

Today the FTM-350R crashed after about five minutes of use. Two crashes in less that two hours of power-on.

Second Thoughts: FTM-350R Crashes!

About six hours into the drive to Los Angeles today, the new radio hung while displaying a received packet.

The FTM-350R became totally unresponsive and only removing power from the radio brought it back to life. A quick disconnect did the trick.

Not a great beginning for the second day of use, huh?

First Thoughts: Yaesu FTM-350R

This is the first in a series of posts about using the new Yaesu FTM-350R VHF/UHF APRS-capable transceiver ($780 list, $600 at HRO). If you want to find me, my mobile is N5FDL-9. (The iPhone, running IBCNU software, is N5FDL-12).

Installation of the accessories—the GPS antenna, voice synthesizer/recorder, Bluetooth adapter, and mounting/power sleeve for the Yaesu BH-1/2 Bluetooth headset—look less than an hour. The antenna mounts to the control head, integrating the GPS with the radio. The Bluetooth adapter goes inside the control head. The headset sleeve goes onto the back of the control head. The voice synthesizer/recorder goes inside the radio.

None of these accessories are supplied with the radio. Nor is software included for programming the radio. I have asked the vendor of the software, RT Systems, when it will be available and have not heard back.

I solved the mounting problem using a RAM-MOUNT suggested by Steggy, WY6E, and purchased at Bass Pro Shops. This is not a perfect solution, as the radio head really needs more than a single attachment point (screw mount).

The supplied suction cup mount from Yaesu is completely unusable and a major setback for the design of the company’s mobile radios. (Lido mounts, from HRO, and Panavise mounts should work as well).

Steggy and I spent about an hour installing the radio, temporarily, into my car. The supplied control cable (looks like an Ethernet cable) is 10 feet long and that isn’t long enough to get to the back of even a fairly small vehicle, such as my Pontiac Vibe.

Setup is straightforward, but you will want to have the two manuals—one for the radio, another for APRS—handy.

Things I like about the radio:

• Considering the complexity of the radio, it’s easy to use.
• Bluetooth! Though the audio from the Yaesu headset seems low. XYL will appreciate that use of the headset can automatically mute the speakers.
• Charger for the headset on the control head.
• Control head is huge, as are the characters on the display.
• Speakers in the control head work really well. This is such a great idea.
• Push-to-talk button (and mic) on the control head. Yes, you still get a hand mic, but being able to just push the button on the control head and talk has been more useful than I’d have guessed. People say the audio isn’t bad, too.
• Microphone level control.
• No fan! The radio is basically a big, heavy heatsink. But, a quiet one.

Things I don’t like about the radio:

• The reason I like the FT-8900 and similar radios is because of the six “Hyper-memory” buttons clustered around the LCD display. Each can be programmed to set the memories on both “sides” of the radio. This is a great feature for my wife, who can completely set the radio back to “normal” by pressing a single button. A great thing to have when I change the channels on the radio and she wants to change them back (with a single push).
• The radio is designed to replace/supplement an AM/FM radio, a set of features I don’t plan to use.
• Barometric pressure, anyone? Also included, but why?
• Control head is huge.
• Supplied mount and mounting options for the control head aren’t what they should be.
• At this price, programming software should be free.
• There are some issues with APRS itself, which I will cover later.
• Requires a special cable if you want to connect an outboard TNC. There appear to be no TNC functions available in the radio itself. The radio has an 8-pin DIN connector.

Those are my thoughts have about 20 hours of having the radio operational. Please send questions or comments.