Midland X-Talker T290 Series - Two-Way Radios Manual

Introduction

Congratulations on the purchase of your high quality MIDLAND product. Your two-way radio represents state-of-the-art high-tech engineering and is designed for GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) operation. It is a quality piece of electronic equipment, skillfully constructed with the finest components. The circuitry is all solid-state and mounted on a rugged printed circuit board. Your twoway radio is designed for reliable and trouble-free performance for years to come.

Features

• 22 GMRS Channels
• 14 Midland Preset Channels
• 121 Privacy Codes (38 CTCSS / 83 DCS)
• VOX
• 5 Selectable Call Alerts (5 additional Animal Sounds on T295)
• Vibrate Alert (T295 only)
• NOAA Weather Scan
• NOAA Weather Radio
• NOAA Weather Alert
• Scan Function
• Monitor Function
• Roger Beep Tone
• Silent Operation
• Key Pad Lock
• Power HI/MED/LO Settings
• Speaker / Microphone Jacks
• Battery Meter / Battery Low Indicator

Important Notice

The radios operate on GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) frequencies which require an FCC (Federal Communications Commission) license. You must be licensed prior to operating on channels 1 - 36. Serious penalties could result from unlicensed use of GMRS channels, in violation of FCC rules, as stipulated in the Communications Acts Sections 501 and 502 (amended).
You will be issued a call sign by the FCC which should be used for station identification when operating the radio on GMRS channels. You should also cooperate by engaging in permissible transmissions only, avoiding channel interference with other GMRS users, and being prudent with the length of your transmission time.
To obtain a license or ask questions about the license application, contact the FCC at 1-888-CALL FCC or go to the FCC's website: http://www.fcc.gov and request form 605.

Body-Worn Operation

If you wear the radio on your body when transmitting always use Midland- supplied or approved belt clip, holster, case, or body harness for this product. Use of any accessories not supplied or approved by Midland may exceed FCC RF exposure guidelines. If you do not use any accessories supplied or approved by Midland, ensure the radio and its antenna are at least 1 inch (2.5cm) from your body when transmitting.

LCD DISPLAY

1. TRANSMIT POWER LEVEL ICON – Indicates TX Power setting (H/M/L).
2. NOAA WEATHER (WX) BAND ICON – Indicates when the radio is in Weather Band mode.
3. KEY LOCK ICON – Indicates KEY LOCK mode is on.
4. VOX ICON – Indicates when VOX mode is active.
5. CHANNEL NUMBER – Changes from 1~36 on GMRS band (1~10 on WX band).
6. VIBRATE ALERT ICON – Indicates when the Vibrate-Alert feature is on (Model T295 only).
7. BATTERY METER – Indicates the battery level.
8. RECEIVE (RX) ICON – Indicates radio is receiving a transmission.
9. TRANSMIT (TX) ICON – Indicates radio is transmitting a signal.
10. PRIVACY CODE ICON – Indicates Privacy Code setting (CTCSS/DCS).
11. PRIVACY CODE – Indicates Privacy Code selected by user (oF~38/oF~83). It can only be set on Ch 1~22.

CONTROLS

12. POWER/VOLUME KNOB – Turn clockwise to turn the power on and increase the volume level. Turn counter-clockwise to decrease the volume level and turn the power off.
13. PTT Button – Press and hold to transmit voice communication.
14. CALL/LOCK Button – Press to send a CALL ALERT signal. Press and hold to turn KEY LOCK on/off.
15. MIC – Built-in microphone.
16. SPEAKER – Built-in speaker.
17. ANTENNA
18. EXTERNAL SPEAKER/MIC JACK
19. MENU Button – Press momentarily to access Menu mode.
20. MONITOR/SCAN Button – Press to enter SCAN mode. Press and hold to enter MONITOR mode.
21. UP / WX SCAN and DOWN Buttons – Make adjustments in MENU mode. Press and hold the UP button for 5 seconds to activate the NOAA Weather Scan function.

BATTERY INSTALLATION

Your radio operates with a rechargeable NiMH battery pack (BATT5RX). The belt clip should be removed (see below) to ease installation or removal of the battery pack.
To install the battery pack:

1. With the back of the radio facing you, remove the belt clip (see diagram below) for easy access, then remove the Battery Cover by pulling down the Battery Cover Lock Tab and lifting up the Battery Cover from the radio.
   
2. Insert the battery pack observing the polarity as shown. Installingthe batteries incorrectly will prevent the radio from operating or may damage the radio.
   
3. Return the Battery Cover by sliding it down on the radio and pushdown the Battery Cover Lock Tab until it locks into place. Replace the belt clip, making sure it locks into place.

INSTALLING THE BELT CLIP

To install the BELT CLIP, slide the clip down into the slot on the back of the radio until the BELT CLIP LATCH clicks. To remove the BELT CLIP, pull the LOCK TAB away from the radio, then gently pull the belt clip up toward the top of the radio.

CHARGING THE BATTERY PACK

Your radios are equipped for using a rechargeable NiMH battery pack which can be recharged using a desktop charger (as described below). While charging, the Battery Meter will flash from 1 to 3 bars. The Battery Meter will stop flashing when charging is complete. For maximum battery life, Midland recommends charging the battery pack when the low battery icon comes on. Remove the radios from the charger when the charging is finished.

To charge using the Desktop Charger:

1. Place the rechargeable battery packs in the radios.
2. Connect the AC adapter into an AC wall outlet.
3. Insert the AC adapter plug into the desktop charger jack.
4. Place the radios into the desktop charger slot. While charging, theBattery Meter will flash from 1 to 3 bars, and stop flashing when charging is finished.

In order to ensure that the battery pack is fully charged, it is recommended that the battery pack be charged with the radio turned OFF.

1. Only use the Midland NiMH battery pack.
2. Do not attempt to charge alkaline batteries or any batteries or battery packs other than the one indicated in the manual. This may cause leakage and damage to the radio.
3. For long term storage of the radio, turn the radio OFF and remove the batteries from the radio.

BATTERY LEVEL INDICATOR

Your radio has a BATTERY LEVEL METER that shows the battery power level. The greater the number of bars visible, the stronger the battery level. When the battery level is low, the Battery Shell icon and "bt Lo" will flash in the display indicating your battery pack should be replaced or recharged.

OPERATING YOUR DEVICE

POWER ON/OFF AND VOLUME

Rotate the POWER/VOLUME knob clockwise to turn the radio on and increase the volume level. Rotate the control counter-clockwise to reduce the volume level and to turn the radio off. During Power On, the radio will beep 2 times with different tones, the LCD will display all icons for 1 second and the LCD display will indicate the last channel selected.

RESTORING YOUR UNIT TO THE ORIGINAL SETTING

To reset your radio to the original (default) setting, turn on the radio while pressing and holding the button. The LCD display will briefly show the firmware version number and then reset to standby mode on channel 1 with no Privacy Code.

TRANSMITTING AND RECEIVING A CALL

To communicate, all radios in your group must be set to the same channel and/or Privacy Code.

1. For maximum clarity, hold the radio at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) from your mouth.
2. Press and hold the PTT button and speak in a normal voice into the microphone. The TX icon will appear continuously on the LCD display while transmitting.
3. To receive a call, release the PTT button. The RX icon will appear on the display when your radio is receiving a transmission.

ABOUT RANGE

Your radios are designed to give you maximum range under optimum conditions.

Maximum Range / Little to No Sight Obstruction

Medium Range / Partial Obstruction to Line of Sight

Short Range / Major Obstruction to Line of Sight

Optimum Conditions are:

• Over water
• Open rural areas without obstructions
• Flat areas where you can see the other person

To ensure you get maximum range:

• Be sure to use fresh or fully charged batteries - low batteries will cause low power conditions.
• Be sure you are on a GMRS only channel - channels 8 through 14 are restricted by the FCC to low power.
• Be sure to set your radio to use Hi power.

DEVICE QUICK REFERENCE CHART

T290/295 SERIES

MONITOR

Pressing and holding the MONITOR button fo r 3 seconds will let you hear noise so you can adjust the volume level of the radio when not receiving a signal. This could also be used to check any activity on your current channel before transmitting.
Press and hold the MONITOR button for 3 seconds again to get out of MONITOR mode.

SCAN

Your radio can scan all 36 channels for activity. To enter, quickly press the SCAN button. Repeat the same procedure to exit. Your radio will rapidly scan each of the 36 channels and stop on any active channel for 6 seconds before resuming scan.

When you press the PTT button to transmit on an active channel, the scanning function will stop and remain on the active channel. To resume scanning, quickly press the SCAN button.

CALL ALERT

Your radio can transmit a call alert. To send a call alert, press the CALL button. The TX icon will appear while transmitting a call alert and a tone can be heard on the speaker for confirmation. The T290 radio has 5 call alert selections while the T295 has 10 call alerts including 5 "animal sound" call alerts - Cougar, Duck, Crow, Wolf, and Turkey.

KEYPAD LOCK

To avoid accidentally changing the radio setting, press the LOCK button for 4 seconds. The icon will appear on the display. PTT and CALL will still be active. Repeat the same procedure to unlock the keypad.

CHANNEL SELECTION (GMRS BAND)

Press the MENU button once, and then the buttons to select one of the 36 GMRS channels. To confirm the selection, press the PTT button or press the MENU button again to move to the next feature setting.

SETTING PRIVACY CODES

Your radio has 121 Privacy Codes available. The selected Privacy Code may be different for each channel. To select a Privacy Code for the current channel press the MENU button twice, and then the buttons to select between Off/CTCSS/DCS. Press the MENU button again and the buttons to select one of the 38 CTCSS Codes or one of the 83 DCS Codes. The Privacy Code icon on the display will indicate whether you set your Privacy Code in CTCSS or DCS mode. To confirm the selection, press the PTT button or press the MENU button again to move to the next feature setting.

Note : If you select a CTCSS Privacy Code, any previously selected DCS Privacy Code will be cancelled and vice-versa.
Selecting a Privacy Code of "oF" will disable the Privacy feature. To communicate between two radios, all radios in your group must be set to the same channel and/or Privacy Code selections.
The Privacy Code can only be set on channels 1~22.

TRANSMIT (TX) POWER LEVEL SELECTION

Your radio has 3 power level settings. To select the power level on channels 1~7 and 15~36, press the MENU button until a "Pr" icon will appear blinking on the display. Then press the buttons to select TRANSMIT POWER LEVEL icon, "H" for high, "M" for medium, and "L" for low power. To confirm, press the PTT button or press the MENU button again to move to the next feature setting. When the PTT button is pressed during Low Battery Level condition, the TX Power will automatically switch from Hi(H) or Med(M) to Lo(L) level.

Note: You cannot adjust the power setting on channels 8 through 14. These channels are set to Low power per FCC regulations.

VOX

Your radio has 9 VOX level settings: (oF/1~9).

To set VOX, press the MENU button until the display shows "VOX". On the right of the CHANNEL NUMBER display, an "oF" icon appears. Select "1" ~ "9" by pressing the buttons and push the PTT key, or press the MENU button again to move to the next feature setting. VOX will be more sensitive on the lower setting than on the higher setting.

To turn VOX off, press the MENU button until the display shows "VOX". On the right of the CHANNEL NUMBER display, a "1" ~ "9" icon appears. Select "oF" by pressing the buttons and push the PTT key, or press the MENU button again to move to the next feature setting.

ROGER BEEP (end of transmission) TONE

When the PTT button is released, the radio will beep to confirm to other users that your transmission has finished.
To set the ROGER BEEP tone, press the MENU button until the display shows an "rb" icon. Select "on" or "oF" by pressing the buttons and push the PTT key, or press the MENU button to move to the next feature setting.

CALL ALERT SELECTION

Your radio has 5 selectable CALL ALERTS (10 for T295). To select, press the MENU button until a "CA" icon appears and to the right of the "CA" icon the current CALL ALERT setting is displayed. Then press the buttons to make the CALL ALERT selections, and the radio will emit a corresponding tone for each selection. To confirm, press the PTT button or press the MENU button to move to the next feature setting.

SILENT OPERATION

Your radio has a SILENT OPERATION mode. In this mode, all "beeps" and "tones" are disabled.
To set the SILENT OPERATION, press the MENU button until the display shows a "bP" icon. Select "on" or "oF" by pressing the buttons and push the PTT key or MENU button.

VIBRATE ALERT

MODEL T295 only
To set the VIBRATE ALERT, press the MENU button until the display shows the icon. Select "on" or "oF" by pressing the buttons and push the PTT button, or press the MENU button. The icon will remain on the display if set to "on".

NOAA WEATHER RADIO/SCAN

Your radio has a NOAA WEATHER RADIO function to enable the user to receive weather reports from designated NOAA stations.

Your radio also has a NOAA WEATHER SCAN function to enable the user to scan all 10 channels of the NOAA WEATHER RADIO. To turn the NOAA WEATHER SCAN on, press and hold the WX/ button for 5 seconds while in GMRS mode. The radio will go to WX Band mode and start scanning all 10 channels and stop on any active channel. When the channel becomes inactive for 10 seconds the radio will resume scanning.

To stop the NOAA WEATHER (WX) SCAN and set the channel manually on the WX Band, press the MENU button during NOAA WEATHER (WX) SCAN. The radio will stop scanning and the display will show the current WX Band channel setting. While on WX Band mode press the buttons to select one of the 10 NOAA WEATHER (WX) BAND channels.

To confirm, press the PTT button or press the MENU button to move to the next feature setting.

To turn the NOAA WEATHER RADIO off, press the PTT button. The current GMRS radio setting will be displayed and the icon will go off.

NOAA WEATHER ALERT

Your radio has a NOAA WEATHER ALERT function, to enable you to automatically receive weather alerts from designated NOAA stations.

The NOAA WEATHER (WX) ALERT is automatically on during NOAA WEATHER SCAN mode.

To turn the NOAA WEATHER (WX) ALERT on during normal NOAA WEATHER RADIO mode, press the MENU button twice while in NOAA WEATHER SCAN mode. The display shows "AL," while on the right an "oF" icon appears. Select "on" by pressing the buttons. To confirm, press the PTT button or press MENU. The radio will return to WX BAND and the icon will blink. If the radio receives a WX ALERT signal from a designated NOAA station while in GMRS Radio mode, the radio will beep for 20 seconds while an "AL" and "In" icon will appear on the display, after which it will automatically go to WX BAND.

If any button is pressed during beeping while in GMRS Radio mode, the radio will automatically go to WX BAND.
To turn the NOAA WEATHER (WX) ALERT off, press the MENU button twice while in WX Band. The display shows "AL," while on the right an "on" icon appears. Select "oF" by pressing the buttons. To confirm, press the PTT button or press MENU.

Note: The WX Alert is automatically ON during WX SCAN mode.

EXTERNAL SPEAKER/MICROPHONE JACK

Your radio can be used with an optional external speaker/ microphone or headset, freeing your hands for other tasks. To use an optional speaker/microphone or headset:

• Insert the plug(s) into the SPK/MIC jacks.
  
• Place the earbud into your ear, and adjust the mic into your desired position.

Changes or modifications to this unit not expressly approved by MIDLAND RADIO CORP. could void your right to operate this unit. Your radio is set up to transmit a regulated signal on an assigned frequency. It is against the law to alter or adjust the settings inside the COMMUNICATOR to exceed those limitations. Any adjustment to your radio must be made by qualified technicians.

TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE

USE AND CARE

1. Use a soft damp cloth to clean the radio.
2. Do not use alcohol or cleaning solutions to clean the radio.
3. Do not immerse the radio in water.
4. Dry the radio with a dry lint-free cloth should it get wet.
5. Turn off the radio and remove the batteries during long-term storage.

If you have a problem which you believe requires service, please call first and speak with a service technician at 816-241-8500. Many problems can be remedied over the phone without returning the unit for service.

SPECIFICATIONS

GMRS FREQUENCY CHART

(MHz)

* Channels 8~14 are low-power GMRS channels

MIDLAND PRESET CHANNELS

* Channels 34 - 36 are low power channels

NOAA WEATHER (WX) RADIO FREQUENCY CHART

(MHz)

* Channels 8, 9 and 10 are designated Canadian Marine Frequencies

PRIVACY CODES FREQUENCY CHART

(Hz)

Note: Privacy codes can be programmed for use on Channels 1~22 only

DCS PRIVACY CODE CHART

Note: Privacy codes can be programmed for use on Channels 1~22 only

Documents / Resources

Download manual

Here you can download full pdf version of manual, it may contain additional safety instructions, warranty information, FCC rules, etc.

Download Midland X-Talker T290 Series - Two-Way Radios Manual