Uniden MHS127 User manual

MHS127
Handheld VHF Marine Transceiver
For more exciting new products please visit our website:
Australia: www.uniden.com.au
New Zealand: www.uniden.co.nz

Making a Distress Call
Speak slowly - clearly - calmly.
For future reference, write your boat’s name & call sign here:
1. Make sure your radio is on.
2. On the radio, press the 16/67-Tri button to switch to Channel 16
(156.8 MHz). (If the corner of the display does not show 16, press
the 16/67-Tri button again until it does.)
3. Press the push to talk button and say: “MAYDAY -- MAYDAY --
MAYDAY.”
4. Say “THIS IS {name of your boat (three times) and call sign/boat
registration number (once)}.”
5. Say “MAYDAY {name or call sign of your boat}.”
6. Tell where you are: (what navigational aids or landmarks are near,
or read the latitude and longitude from your GPS).
7. State the nature of your distress, (e.g. are you sinking, medical
emergency, man overboard, on re, adrift, etc.)
8. State the type of assistance you need (medical, towing, pumps,
etc.).
9. Give number of persons aboard and conditions of any injured
persons.
10. Estimate present seaworthiness of your ship (e.g. how immediate is
the danger due to ooding or re or proximity to shore).
11. Briey describe your ship, giving the ship name (e.g. “Blue Duck is
32 foot cabin cruiser, white hull, blue deck house”).
12. Say: “I WILL BE LISTENING ON CHANNEL 16.”
13. End message by saying “THIS IS {name or call sign of your boat},
OVER.”
14. Release the push to talk button and listen.
If you do not get an answer after 30 seconds, repeat your
call, beginning at step 3, above.
2Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Warning
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is
intended to alert the user to the presence of important
operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the
literature accompanying the appliance.
NOTE
Floating/Waterproof: JIS8
Uniden’s MHS127 radio is designed to meet the water proong standard of
JIS8 and will oat in water.
This Means: Protected against the effects of continuous immersion in water.
The MHS127 can withstand immersion in water up to 1.5m depth for 1hr.
Note this is not suitable for scuba diving.
The MHS127 will only meet this rating if fully assembled
and all rubber seals are well maintained and correctly tted.
This means that the carabiner clip is not connected and the
battery cover securely fastened.
NOTE
After your radio is submerged in water, you might notice that the sound is
distorted. This is because there is still water remaining in and around the
speaker and microphone. Just shake the radio to clear excess water, and the
sound should return to normal.
If your radio is exposed to salt water, clean your radio
thoroughly with fresh water, and dry it before turning it on.
NOTE
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Contents
Making a Distress Call ..............................................................2
Warning ..................................................................................... 3
Introduction ...............................................................................6
Features ................................................................................................. 6
Getting Started ..........................................................................7
What’s Included? ....................................................................................7
Controls and Indicators ........................................................... 8
MHS127 Radio .......................................................................................8
Charger ................................................................................................ 10
Reading the Display ............................................................................. 10
How it Works? .........................................................................12
Normal Mode Operation .........................................................13
Normal mode with Triple Watch or Dual Watch ....................................13
Scan Mode Operation .......................................................................... 14
Using the radio in Scan Mode .............................................................. 14
Scan mode with Triple Watch or Dual Watch ....................................... 15
Weather Mode ......................................................................................15
Using the radio in Weather Mode ..........................................15
Setting up the Hardware ....................................................... 16
Attaching the Antenna .......................................................................... 16
Installing the Battery .............................................................................16
Using the Alkaline Battery Tray ............................................................ 16
Mounting the Charger .......................................................................... 17
Charging the Battery ............................................................................ 18
Attaching the Belt Clip ..........................................................................18
Using Your Radio ....................................................................19
Turning It On ........................................................................................ 19
Setting It Up ..........................................................................................19
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Changing the Volume ...........................................................................19
Setting the Squelch level ...................................................................... 19
Making a Transmission .........................................................................20
Selecting a channel ..............................................................................20
Making a Transmission .........................................................................20
Boosting the transmission power ......................................................... 21
Saving Channels to Memory ............................................................... 21
Special Features .................................................................................. 22
Using the Strobe SOS Light/Flashlight ...............................................22
Turning the key beep on and off ...........................................................22
Setting Key Lock .................................................................................. 22
Using the external speaker/Mic jack ..................................................... 23
Using the Battery Save feature ............................................................ 23
Maintenance and Troubleshooting ....................................... 24
Specications ......................................................................... 26
Channels and Frequencies (MHz) ......................................... 28
US Channel Frequencies and Names ..................................................28
Canadian Channel Frequencies and Names ....................................... 30
International Channel Frequencies and Names ................................... 32
Regulations and Safety Warnings ........................................ 34
Warranty .................................................................................. 35
5Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Introduction
The MHS127 is a oating, waterproof, portable two-way VHF transceiver. It is
compact, lightweight, rugged and ts easily in your hand. This handheld VHF
marine radio will give you consistent, outstanding performance in virtually all
conditions and situations.
To ensure that you get the most from the MHS127’s features, please read this
operating guide carefully before using the unit.
Features
Your radio provides the following key features:
• Submersible design. Complies with oating JIS8/IPX8 water-resistant
standards.
• Memory Scan mode. Lets you save channels to memory and monitor them
in quick succession.
• Transmitter power level select/Boost. Lets you boost the transmitter power
from 1W to 2.5W or 5W for added transmission distance.
• Battery level display and low battery alert.
• Dual Watch: This mode lets you monitor Instant CH along with one regular
marine channel.
• Triple Watch: This mode lets you monitor 16CH, 67CH along with one
regular marine channel.
• Battery Save. The Battery Save feature automatically turns off RX power at
regular intervals to save battery power.
• SOS Strobe/Flashlight. A high intensity strobe LED can be set to blink an
SOS pattern or to be steady on.
• Emergency 16/67 Channel monitoring. Set unit to scan one or both of
these emergency channels regularly within normal scanning cycles.
• Key Lock. Locks keys to prevent accidentally changing channels or
entering data.
• Selectable Volume (0 - 9) and Squelch (0 - 3) levels.
6Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Getting Started
What’s Included?
MHS127 Radio
Wrist Strap
Charging Cradle
Antenna
Lithium Ion Poly
Battery
Alkaline Battery Tray
(batteries not included)
AC-DC Charging
Adaptor
DC Charging
Adaptor
Screws
Belt Clip
• If any items are missing or damaged, contact your place of purchase
immediately. Never use damaged products!
• Need help? Get answers at our website:
www.uniden.com.au for Australian model
www.uniden.co.nz for New Zealand model.
7Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Controls and Indicators
Antenna
Power
Push to talk
Boost
16/67-Tri
WX/SOS
DUAL/
LOCK
Strobe
SOS Light
Speaker
External Speaker
and microphone
jack
Wrist strap
anchor
LCD
Channel
up
VOL /
TX PWR
SQL/UIC
Channel down
INST
SCAN/MEM
Microphone
MHS127 Radio
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Controls and Indicators
Belt Clip
Battery charging
contacts
Battery
latch
Battery
Button Press to... Press and hold to...
Power NA Turn the radio on or off.
PTT (Push to Talk) NA Talk/transmit on a channel.
Boost NA Transmit with a higher
power level.
16/67/TRI 1st press: Go to
channel 16.
2nd press: Go to
channel 67.
3rd press: Go back to
the starting channel.
Turn Triple Watch on and
off.
WX/SOS Select WX channel. Strobe SOS Light function.
Consecutive lighting
function.
DUAL/LOCK Select Dual Watch
function.
Select Key Lock function.
Channel Up Move up channel or
squelch/volume one
step at a time.
Move quickly up the
channels/ squelch/volume
steps.
SCAN/MEM Select Scan function. Save a channel into
memory or delete a
channel from memory.
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Controls and Indicators
VOL/TX PWR Enter volume setting
condition.
Select transmit power L,
M or H.
SQL/UIC Enter squelch level
setting condition.
Select US, International or
Canadian mode.
INST Instant CH Call Instant CH programming
Charging
contacts
CHARGE LEDScrew holes
for mounting
Power jack
[cigarette (DC) or
wall (AC) plug]
Charging
latches
Reading the Display
Charger
The LCD display shows different information depending on what you are
doing. This sample screen shows some of this information. The following
table shows all the possible icons and what they mean.
Transmit
power level
This channel is
stored in memory.
Watch
mode The radio is in
scan mode
Key lock
is on
The radio is
transmitting Current
channel
number
UIC channel
mode
Battery
status icon
Weather
Channel
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Controls and Indicators
Icon Detail
TX You are currently transmitting.
LO MID HI The transmitter power is set to L (Low - 1W), M (Mid
- 2.5W), or H (HIGH - 5W).
LOCK The keys are locked.
US, CAN, or INT Indicates if the radio is set for US channels,
CANadian channels, or INTernational channels.
TRI or DUAL TRIple Watch or DUAL Watch is turned on.
MEM The current channel is saved in memory.
SCAN The radio is in Scan mode.
WX The weather channels are displayed.
The battery is fully charged, mostly charged,
halfcharged, mostly empty, or completely empty.
88A Current channel number.
11 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

How it Works?
Your radio has three main operation modes: Normal, Scan and Weather.
Mode What it does Use it when you
want to...
To turn it on/off
Normal Monitors a single
marine channel and
lets you talk on that
channel.
Monitor a
channel or talk to
another radio.
(default mode)
Scan Monitors all the
channels you save
into memory.
Check a small
group of
regularly-used
channels for
trafc.
Press SCAN.
Weather Monitors the
selected weather
channel
Hear the current
or forecasted
weather.
Press WX/SOS
In addition to the three operation modes, your radio provides two different
watch modes which you can activate during any operation mode. In the watch
modes, the radio briey checks for activity on a specic channel, then returns
to its previous operation.
Watch
Mode
What it does To turn it on/off
Dual
Watch
Checks Instant CH for activity
every 2 seconds.
Press DUAL/LOCK.
Triple
Watch
Checks channels 16 and 67 for
activity every 2 seconds.
Press and hold 16/67/TRI
for 2 seconds.
Private boats must monitor channel 16 whenever they are
underway. Water-going vessels should have either Triple
Watch or Dual Watch on at all times.
NOTE
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How it Works?
Normal Mode Operation
• To transmit, remove the radio from the charger, then press and hold Push
to Talk. Release the button when you are nished talking.
• For the best sound quality, hold the microphone about two inches from
your mouth while you’re talking.
• Press Channel up to move up one channel at a time. Press and hold the
button to scroll quickly up the channels.
• Press Channel down to move down one channel at a time.
• Press and hold the button to scroll quickly down the channels.
• To change the transmit power, press and hold TX PWR button. The
transmit power switches to the next transmit power each time you press
and hold this button.
If you activate Triple Watch while operating in Normal mode, the radio checks
channels 16 and 67 every two seconds; with Dual Watch turned on, the radio
checks Instant channel every two seconds. The radio will not check channels
16 or 67 while you are actively transmitting; it waits until your transmission is
nished and then checks the channels.
Normal mode with Triple Watch or Dual Watch
16 67 16 67 16 67
Every 2 seconds, the radio
checks channels 16 & 67.
Triple Watch on
Monitoring Channel 25
Example:
13 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Scan Mode Operation
You can save channels into memory and then use Scan mode to monitor
those channels from lowest to highest. If the radio detects a signal on a
channel, it stays on that channel as long as the signal is received; when the
signal stops, the radio continues scanning.
11
1008 1312 14 17
15
The radio scans about
5 channels in 0.5 seconds.
When it detects a signal, the radio stays
on the channel until you press the
Channel Up button or the signal stops. Resume
scan
• To activate Scan mode, press SCAN/MEM.
• You must have at least two channels in memory to start a scan. However,
you cannot save marine channel 70 or Weather channels.
• You cannot transmit while in Scan mode.
• To save a channel into memory, select the channel, then press and hold
SCAN/MEM. The MEM icon displays whenever you tune to that channel.
• To remove a channel from memory, set the radio to that channel, then
press and hold SCAN/MEM. The MEM icon no longer displays.
• When the radio stays on a channel, press Channel Up to leave that
channel and resume scanning.
• To end the scan, press the SCAN/MEM button again; the radio remains on
the last scanned channel.
How it Works?
Using the radio in Scan Mode
14 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Scan mode with Triple Watch or Dual Watch
If you activate Triple Watch while operating in Scan mode, the radio checks
channels 16 and 67 every two seconds, then goes on to scan the next
channel; with Dual Watch turned on, the radio checks Instant channel every
two seconds.
16 67
Every 2 seconds, the
radio checks channels
16 & 67, then scans
the next channel.
Triple
Watch on
Memory Channel Scan
08 252417151413121110 20
How it Works?
Weather Mode
In Weather mode, the radio monitors one of the ve weather channels.
Using the radio in Weather Mode
Press the WX/SOS button to access Weather mode. WX displays. Press
Channel Up and Channel Down to scroll through the weather channels.To
cancel Weather and return to the previous marine channel, press the WX/
SOS button again. The last active weather channel displays the next time
you access Weather mode.
15 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127
Allows you to store one channel to the Instant key for one-touch access.
To program the Instant Channel:
Press and hold [INST] for 2 seconds to program the current channel as the
Instant CH. Note: there is no INST icon.
To use the Instant Feature:
Press [INST] to toggle between the Instant Channel and the current channel.
INSTANT Channel Feature

Setting up the Hardware
Attaching the Antenna
The antenna detaches from the radio for easy shipping
or storage. To attach the antenna to your radio, screw it
tightly onto the anchor post at the top of the radio.
Installing the Battery
Your radio comes with a rechargeable Li-Ion Polymer battery; for shipping
safety, the battery is not installed at the factory. The empty alkaline battery
tray is installed as a placeholder.
1. Insert the tabs on the battery into the notches at the top of the battery
compartment.
2. Lower the battery until it rests  at in the compartment.
3. Bring the battery latch up and snap it into place.
Each time you remove the battery, check the rubber seal
around the battery compartment. Make sure the seal is seated
in the groove and there is no dirt or debris on it. If the seal
looks worn or damaged, contact customer service to order a
replacement (see front cover page for contact information).
NOTE
Using the Alkaline Battery Tray
The radio also comes with an alkaline battery tray that holds four AAA-type
alkaline batteries (not included). You can use alkaline batteries as a backup
for the Li-Ion Polymer battery so you can still use your radio while your Li-Ion
Polymer battery is recharging.
CAUTION: If you are using your radio in a cold-weather environment, Uniden
recommends using nonrechargeable Lithium batteries.
When using alkaline batteries, transmit power is limited to
a maximum of 2.5W.
NOTE
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1. Hold the lower part of the tray in one hand with the three battery contacts
facing down. Use your thumb to hold the notch on the lower part of the tray.
2. With your other hand, grip the upper part of the tray and lift the cover open.
3. Align the batteries’ positive and negative terminals with the drawing on the
tray and snap each battery into place.
4. Insert the two hooks on the lower part of the tray into the notches on the
cover; close the cover. (The cover ts snugly but you should not have to
force it closed.)
5. Install the alkaline battery tray in your radio just as you do the Li-Ion
Polymer battery (see page 16).
Follow these steps to use the alkaline battery tray:
WARNING! The tray is designed to prevent the accidental
charging of alkaline batteries. Never use alkaline batteries in
the radio without the alkaline battery tray. Do not attempt to
modify the battery tray design.
NOTE
Mounting the Charger
1. Use the two holes at the base of the charger as a
template to mark the drill holes.
2. Using a 3mm (1/8-inch) drill bit, drill two holes
13mm (1/2 inch) deep.
3. Use the provided screws to attach the charger to
the surface.
You can mount the charger on any at surface.
Setting up the Hardware
17 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Charging the Battery
Setting up the Hardware
Your radio includes a charger and a rechargeable battery
pack. Place your radio in the charger with the display facing
forward. Make sure that the CHARGE LED on the charger
turns orange.
Cautions:
• Use only the battery and charger supplied with this radio.
Using a different charger or battery can damage the
radio and create a risk of  re or shock.
• The charger is not waterproof. If the charger falls into
the water, unplug it before attempting to remove it from the water. After
you remove the charger from the water, please contact our Customer Care
Line.
• Wipe off dirt or shake water from your radio before placing in the charger if
your radio gets dirty or wet.
• Charge the battery fully before using the radio. When the battery is
completely charged, the CHARGE LED turns green.
• Don’t use the charger when the ambient temperature is below 0° C (32° F)
or above 45° C (113° F).
• If the radio is powered down, the battery can charge in about seven hours.
(If the radio is powered on, the battery takes longer to charge.)
Important notes on charging the battery
Attaching the Belt Clip
1. Rotate the belt clip so that the  nger indentation
is towards the top of the radio.
2. Align the center of the clip with the anchor post.
3. Place the clip on the post and slide the clip
upwards until it clicks into place.
To attach the belt clip:
To remove the belt clip:
1. Rotate the clip so that the  nger indentation is
towards the bottom of the radio.
2. Slide the clip up until it comes free of the
anchor post.
18 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Using Your Radio
Turning It On
Press and hold POWER for at least two seconds to turn the radio on. Press
and hold POWER again to turn the unit off.
Setting It Up
Even though you can change your radio’s settings at anytime, you will
probably want to establish initial settings after you have turned it on for the
 rst time. You will adjust some of these settings on an as-needed basis, but
some settings might only need to be set once.
Changing the Volume
To change the speaker volume, press VOL/TX PWR to enter Volume Setting
mode. 0 (for volume level 0 - 9) displays. Press CHANNEL UP or CHANNEL
DOWN to increase or decrease the volume levels. Press VOL/TX PWR to
save.
Setting the Squelch level
The MHS127 recognizes signals as transmissions if they exceed a signal
strength threshold.
Adjusting the squelch sets this threshold level. Increasing squelch requires
a signal to be stronger to be seen as a transmission. If you set the squelch
too high, you will risk not receiving transmissions that are lower than that
threshold. Reducing the squelch allows weaker signals to be accepted.
However, if you lower the squelch too much, you will hear white noise all the
time
While listening to a channel, press SQL/UIC to enter Squelch Setting mode.
The SQUELCH Level (S0) number displays on the LCD. Press CHANNEL UP
or CHANNEL DOWN to increase or decrease the squelch levels (0 - 3). Press
SQL/UIC to save the setting.
Weak signals
No
Squelch
Medium
Squelch
High
Squelch
Strong signals
Noise
19 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127

Using Your Radio
Setting the squelch level too high may prevent you from
hearing weaker transmissions. If you are having difculty
hearing a transmission, try setting the squelch level lower.
NOTE
Reading volume and squelch level on battery icon
When you adjust the volume or squelch levels, the 4 bars on the battery icon
display according to the volume and squelch levels. For example, two bars
display for VOL levels 3 and 4, and Squelch level 2.
Setting the UIC channel mode (USA/CAN/INT)
You can select marine channels for the USA, Canada, or International waters.
Press and hold SQL/UIC to scroll through USA, CANada, or INTernational
channel options.
Making a Transmission
Selecting a channel
Press Channel Up and Channel Down briey to scroll through the channels
one channel at a time. Press and hold Channel Up or Channel Down to
quickly scroll through the channels.
Making a Transmission
Press and hold Push to Talk.TX displays while you are transmitting. Release
Push to Talk when you’re nished talking to let the other party respond.
• To prevent stuck microphone problems or situations where Push to Talk is
pushed accidentally, the radio limits your talk time to 5 minutes in a single
transmission.
• For the best sound quality, hold the microphone about two inches away
from your mouth.
7 - 9
5 - 6
3 - 4
1 - 2
VOL
Level
(0 - 9)
SQ Level
(0 - 3)
3
2
1
0
No bars Squelch
20 Handheld VHF Marine TransceiverUNIDEN MHS127