Telonics TR-8 User manual

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Telonics TR-8 Quick Start Guide
Visit www.telonics.com/products/vhfReceivers/tr-8.php
for the complete TR-8 User Manual.
Power On/Off
Press and hold the power button for a full second to turn the TR-8
on or off. If the TR-8 won’t turn on, and if the red LED comes on
instead, charge the battery.
Backlight
The TR-8 automatically turns on a backlight in the display whenever
you press any button or turn any knob (except in daylight). The
backlight automatically turns off after several seconds.
To turn on the backlight manually, momentarily press the power
button. Don’t hold it down too long, or the TR-8 will turn off. If you
want the backlight to remain on permanently, press the power
button twice. A special indicator appears on the display.
Over-gain condition
If an incoming signal is too strong, the red LED blinks, the display
indicates an over-gain condition, and the audio output may clip. If
this happens, turn down the gain so the audio levels can change with
the RF signal strength and facilitate direction finding.
Gain Knob: RF Gain and Audio Volume
The TR-8 has separate settings for RF gain and audio volume, but
both are controlled by the gain knob. Normally, the gain knob
controls RF gain. However, if you click the gain knob, its function toggles between RF gain
control and volume control, as indicated on the display. Note that volume control is a
temporary function, and the gain knob automatically reverts to RF gain control a few seconds
after you finish adjusting the volume.
Frequency Lists
The TR-8 stores 25 frequency lists, and each list holds up to 99 frequencies. Every frequency
can have its own meaningful label to help you identify the corresponding transmitter, and each
list also has its own label. You can sort each list by numerically by frequency or alphabetically
by label.
Gain/Vol Tune

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The TR-8 allows you to select which lists are “active” at any given time, and multiple lists can be
active at the same time. When a list is active, you can easily tune the receiver to any of the
list’s frequencies.
Manual Scan
When at least one frequency list is active, you can use the “Next” and “Prev” buttons to step
through the frequencies on the list(s). These buttons can optionally skip frequencies marked
for skipping. Press and hold either button to change the function of both buttons to skip, or not
to skip, those marked frequencies.
Auto Scan
During auto-scanning, the TR-8 uses a timer to advance automatically to the next frequency in
the active list(s). This method of scanning always skips frequencies marked for skipping.
Scrolling through List(s)
Normally, the tune knob allows small adjustments to the current frequency. However, if you
click the tune knob, its function toggles between fine tuning and scrolling through the active
frequency list(s), as shown on the display. Note that scrolling is a temporary function, and the
tune knob automatically reverts to the fine-tune function a few seconds after you stop scrolling.
Scrolling never skips frequencies, even those marked for skipping.
Skip (Mark/Unmark)
To mark (or unmark) a frequency on a list for skipping, press the “Skip” (zero) button. An icon
appears to indicate the marking. Press and hold the “Skip” button for a chance to unmark all of
the frequencies on the active list(s). The “Skip” button also works in the List Maintenance
menu, any time the TR-8 is displaying the contents of a list.
See the sections above (Manual Scan, Auto Scan, and Scrolling through Lists) to learn how the
TR-8 treats frequencies marked for skipping.
Automatic Signal Detection
When the TR-8 detects a transmitter, a graphical signal-strength meter automatically appears
on the display along with a digital pulse-strength indication and pulse-rate measurement. The
meter disappears when you change the frequency (but not when fine tuning).
Configuration and Updates by Windows PC
The “TR-8 Editor” software is the easiest way to update your TR-8 and to set up frequency lists.
TR-8 Editor can import TPFs for Telonics transmitters, and it can even interpret lists you’ve
made in Excel. Find it at https://www.telonics.com/products/vhfReceivers/tr-8.php.