I purchased a Kenwood TH-D75 a few weeks ago and now it's in my grubby little mitts. I didn't get the chance to buy a second TH-D74 as a backup, so this is the next best thing.
So far, it's almost exactly like the TH-D74. Physically it's a little larger by a millimeter or so but won't feel too off. The volume ring is shorter on it that the D74, probably to keep from bumping it.
My first issue came up when I tried importing all of my frequencies over from the D74 to the D75. If you use Windows, use Kenwood's new virtual COM port file to ensure your PC recognizes that your radio is a radio and not just a USB device. If you used the old MCP-74 software to manipulate your radio's memory, you will need to upgrade to the MCP-75 software. The D74 saves information as .d74 files and the D75 does not read them, it only reads .d75 files. Thankfully the new software is backwards-compatible and you can convert .d74 files to the .d75 standard. It isn't as easy to clone settings as I would have liked, but the problem is fixed.
It comes with a KNB-75LA battery, but can still use the old KNB-75L batteries. It also uses the same charging cradle and accessories, which is nice.
Once I get a chance to work outside with it I'll try running APRS. It should be the same as the D74. Overall, I'm happy I have a good backup to my old radio.
The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
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SoupOrMan
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The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
Remember, folks, you can't spell "douche" without "Che."
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
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randy
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Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
Cool!
I'm not looking at getting a D75 right now as it does not seem to do anything (that I'm interested in) that my D74 doesn't do. And I have a D72 for my Truck radio/backup.
What I'm really interested in, and have not seen a clear answer to date (as these are rare out in the wild) is if Kenwood fixed the USB port.
On the D74 the USB port can only be used for programming the radio, not for accessing the internal TNC from an external program (such as APRSIS32). The TNC on the D74 can only be accessed through Bluetooth, which is flaky and unreliable, especially in the field. I bent the ear of one of the Kenwood reps at Hamvention last year, but I'm not sure he understood what I was saying (his English was better than my Japanese, but...)
If you get an answer to that question I would be interested in hearing about it.
Enjoy the new toy!
73
I'm not looking at getting a D75 right now as it does not seem to do anything (that I'm interested in) that my D74 doesn't do. And I have a D72 for my Truck radio/backup.
What I'm really interested in, and have not seen a clear answer to date (as these are rare out in the wild) is if Kenwood fixed the USB port.
On the D74 the USB port can only be used for programming the radio, not for accessing the internal TNC from an external program (such as APRSIS32). The TNC on the D74 can only be accessed through Bluetooth, which is flaky and unreliable, especially in the field. I bent the ear of one of the Kenwood reps at Hamvention last year, but I'm not sure he understood what I was saying (his English was better than my Japanese, but...)
If you get an answer to that question I would be interested in hearing about it.
Enjoy the new toy!
73
...even before I read MHI, my response to seeing a poster for the stars of the latest Twilight movies was "I see 2 targets and a collaborator".
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SoupOrMan
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Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
I will give that a try to link APRS via the USB-C port. It also has an interesting DV Gateway function that I'm trying to figure out from the manual. That sounds like it might turn the radio into a mini-repeater for local D-Star simplex, but I'm still looking for better instructions.
But yeah, if you have two D74s or a D74/D72 combo, it's probably not worth the upgrade.
But yeah, if you have two D74s or a D74/D72 combo, it's probably not worth the upgrade.
Remember, folks, you can't spell "douche" without "Che."
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
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SoupOrMan
- Posts: 5686
- Joined: Tue Aug 19, 2008 2:58 am
Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
I got APRSdroid for my tablet and was all ready to fire up the HT to use as a TNC... and then realized I have no USB micro to USB-C cable to connect them. Off to Amazon because none of the local stores carry Micro to C cables.
Remember, folks, you can't spell "douche" without "Che."
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
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SoupOrMan
- Posts: 5686
- Joined: Tue Aug 19, 2008 2:58 am
Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
Another update. My HT will pair with my Fire tablet, but it won't connect. Apparently the Bluetooth protocols used by the tablet are older than the ones in either my D74 or D75 or phone, so it will pair without fully connecting. I managed to pick up a Micro USB to USB-C cable, but that doesn't seem to help.
So I guess it's time to pick up a tablet and use it for nothing but radio and save my Fire tablet for books.
So I guess it's time to pick up a tablet and use it for nothing but radio and save my Fire tablet for books.
Remember, folks, you can't spell "douche" without "Che."
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
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SoupOrMan
- Posts: 5686
- Joined: Tue Aug 19, 2008 2:58 am
Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
I went to Walmart, picked up a cheap onn tablet, downloaded APRSDroid for it, and got it to work via Bluetooth. It's definitely more feature rich than just trying to use APRS directly on the radio.
The D75's interface menu, 980, is similar to the D74. It also states it can do PC output for GPS, APRS and the KISS TNC all via USB like the D74.
I hooked up the tablet to the D75 via a USB-C transfer cable, set the connection preference for the TNC to USB serial and tried to fire it up. The baud rates for APRSDroid start at 4800 so I set it to that. As soon as I tried to send my position, the program stopped working and dumped me to the main screen of the tablet. It did the same with the baud rate set to 9600. I'm going to see if any of the other baud rate settings help, but I doubt it. The D75 may be Bluetooth-only for APRSDroid, but I'll keep messing with it and see if I'm wrong.
The D75's interface menu, 980, is similar to the D74. It also states it can do PC output for GPS, APRS and the KISS TNC all via USB like the D74.
I hooked up the tablet to the D75 via a USB-C transfer cable, set the connection preference for the TNC to USB serial and tried to fire it up. The baud rates for APRSDroid start at 4800 so I set it to that. As soon as I tried to send my position, the program stopped working and dumped me to the main screen of the tablet. It did the same with the baud rate set to 9600. I'm going to see if any of the other baud rate settings help, but I doubt it. The D75 may be Bluetooth-only for APRSDroid, but I'll keep messing with it and see if I'm wrong.
Remember, folks, you can't spell "douche" without "Che."
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
“PET PARENTS?” You’re not a “pet parent.” You’re a pet owner. Unless you’ve committed an unnatural act that succeeded in spite of biology. - Glenn Reynolds
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randy
- Posts: 8334
- Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2008 11:33 pm
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Re: The New HT is here! The new HT is here!
I've never got that to work on the D74. Neither has anyone discussing it on the Kenwood and D74 mail groups that I've seen
...even before I read MHI, my response to seeing a poster for the stars of the latest Twilight movies was "I see 2 targets and a collaborator".