MXT275 or MXT575

[Thunderbolt]

MXT275 or MXT575. Which one does everyone like best? I only do light trails. Nothing way off the grid. Also looking for antenna and mounting options? Where is the best mounting inside for the radio?

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[Gvsukids]

MXT275 or MXT575. Which one does everyone like best? I only do light trails. Nothing way off the grid. Also looking for antenna and mounting options? Where is the best mounting inside for the radio?

Midland mxt-275 is more than sufficient. A lot of the people that follow me use handheld radios. My mxt-575 is mounted above the steering wheel on top of the inverter. The 275 is small enough you could tuck it between the seats or in the glove box.

 

[Thunderbolt]

Motorola mxt-275 is more than sufficient. A lot of the people that follow me use handheld radios. My mxt-575 is mounted above the steering wheel on top of the inverter. The 275 is small enough you could tuck it between the seats or in the glove box.

Thanks.

 

[SC Notary]

I run the MXT-275 with a 5/8 wave stacked antenna. Works fine for me.
Radioddity CS-47 for CB. Nothing but the mics visible, units under the front seats.

 

[Thunderbolt]

Motorola mxt-275 is more than sufficient. A lot of the people that follow me use handheld radios. My mxt-575 is mounted above the steering wheel on top of the inverter. The 275 is small enough you could tuck it between the seats or in the glove box.

Do you have yours wired directly to the battery or wired through the aux switches?

 

[Uparms]

Motorola mxt-275 is more than sufficient. A lot of the people that follow me use handheld radios. My mxt-575 is mounted above the steering wheel on top of the inverter. The 275 is small enough you could tuck it between the seats or in the glove box.

You mean Midland??? ""Motorola mxt-275"".

 

[bd100]

I use the 275 with velcro straps mounted underneath the steering wheel behind the dash panel. The panel pulls straight out. The velcro straps wrap around existing stuff on a horizontal bracket, and the straps hold the unit but also insulate against vibration.

I have it grounded to a bolt nearby but probably should run it to a grounding point nearby. Positive is off the AUX feed to the interior. It picks up minor digital noise from the dashboard display.

Edits:

One advantage of the 275 is you can run it off a cig lighter / 12V plug, and move it between vehicles.

For the antenna, I think the 575 comes with a better antenna, but the 275 comes with a little thin 1/4 wave antenna with a tiny mag mount and a stick-on circle of metal which lets you mount it on an aluminum hood, such as we have with the Jeeps. You can mag mount it onto the windshield hinge bolt in front of the driver and it actually works pretty well there, and since it's such a small antenna it isn't too obnoxious in the windshield. What I did, though, is I used the stick-on disc and mounted the antenna further off to the side, at the back of the metal hood, near the point where there is a seam for the plastic cowl side piece. I put a grounded wire in this seam for the cowl, attached to the under side of the hood, to provide a bit of ground radial under the antenna pointing backwards. The aluminum hood itself works well as a ground plane off to the side and forwards. The result is a 1/4 wave antenna which works well in all directions, including up and down, which is good for use in mountains. If you stay on level ground then a larger antenna with more horizontal gain could be beneficial.

The little antenna for the 275 comes with something like 20 feet of thin coax. That's good for threading through the door seals, but it's also way too long and that eats up signal for both receive and transmit. I got some thicker RG-58 cable, only 6 feet in length, and some connectors and a crimp tool, and ended up with only one foot of the original cable to snake it under the hood, then attached to six feet of thicker cable running the rest of the way to the radio. There is a noticeable improvement in signal, but it cost time and money to do this. Therefore, what I'd recommend instead is that you order a mag mount base and antenna, pre-made with 6-10 feet of cable, and an adhesive mounting disc if necessary. You may have to trim the disc some to fit to the curve of the hood, since the bases are larger than the tiny stock 275 antenna.

Links, for example:

adhesive disc:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...b/misc-antenna-parts/12656-taf-disc3-5-detail

mag-mount NMO base:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...ustom-fitting/7563-larsen-nmommrud25nc-detail

A 1/4 wave NMO antenna:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...wo-way-radio-antenna-nmo-type-mounting-detail

There are other bases and antennas listed as well. Be sure to chose a GMRS antenna. Some may offer custom cable lengths. Plan ahead where you will mount the disc if you go that route.

Seach this forum for other people's examples of brackets instead of mag mounts. Try to keep the antenna way from the FM antenna and also metal such as the window frame and the sides of the hood.

I like the idea of a small 1/4 wave antenna at the back of the hood near the cowl as it stays away from tree branches, and being 1/4 wave it works equally well when talking to people above and below.

A few other random thoughts:

The 275 and 575 can do repeaters, but only one at a time per channel, and you cannot give them names. Other mobiles and handhelds allow hundreds of named repeaters, but don't have all the controls on the mike the way the 275/575 do.

Repeaters are less fun now that the FCC has cracked down on linking. There used to be repeaters linked together in networks all across the country, but that's mostly gone now.

You could use a nice GMRS handheld instead, attached to the external antenna, external microphone, and external power supply. You get 5W instead of 15W or 50W of power, but 5W is still pretty good with the external antenna. This is what I use at home right now, with a base antenna, and it does great.

15W vs 50W is not much difference unless you are trying to push the limits. But the 275 at 15W can run off the cig lighter, and the unit is smaller and doesn't get as hot.

A few weeks in Ouray and Moab and hardly anyone was on the radios. Don't be surprised if you end up not talking to anyone. But it may be worth leaving it on scan in case someone is in trouble and trying to reach out.

Signals can be blocked by hills and forest, but they can also travel along a canyon, bounce off a mountain, and go up the next canyon. Surprising results, sometimes.

A satellite messenger is much more reliable for emergency comms if out of cell range.

 

[DanW]

MXT275 or MXT575. Which one does everyone like best? I only do light trails. Nothing way off the grid. Also looking for antenna and mounting options? Where is the best mounting inside for the radio?

I have both...switched from the 275 to 575 mainly to get wide band. I think the 275 now has wide band. I don´t perceive any range advantage with the higher power of the 575, in real world use. The 275 seems to do just as well.

I did a Midland 6db antenna mount on the front base of the A-pillar on my JL. For my JT, I am for now using handhelds. But I may throw the 275 in there, eventually.

I´ll post up a couple pics with options. I like the CB antenna location on my JT better for GMRS. I´ll show pics of both. Too tired tonight and too much to do at work tomorrow, but I´ll do my best to get those to you.

 

[Thunderbolt]

I use the 275 with velcro straps mounted underneath the steering wheel behind the dash panel. The panel pulls straight out. The velcro straps wrap around existing stuff on a horizontal bracket, and the straps hold the unit but also insulate against vibration.

I have it grounded to a bolt nearby but probably should run it to a grounding point nearby. Positive is off the AUX feed to the interior. It picks up minor digital noise from the dashboard display.

Edits:

One advantage of the 275 is you can run it off a cig lighter / 12V plug, and move it between vehicles.

For the antenna, I think the 575 comes with a better antenna, but the 275 comes with a little thin 1/4 wave antenna with a tiny mag mount and a stick-on circle of metal which lets you mount it on an aluminum hood, such as we have with the Jeeps. You can mag mount it onto the windshield hinge bolt in front of the driver and it actually works pretty well there, and since it's such a small antenna it isn't too obnoxious in the windshield. What I did, though, is I used the stick-on disc and mounted the antenna further off to the side, at the back of the metal hood, near the point where there is a seam for the plastic cowl side piece. I put a grounded wire in this seam for the cowl, attached to the under side of the hood, to provide a bit of ground radial under the antenna pointing backwards. The aluminum hood itself works well as a ground plane off to the side and forwards. The result is a 1/4 wave antenna which works well in all directions, including up and down, which is good for use in mountains. If you stay on level ground then a larger antenna with more horizontal gain could be beneficial.

The little antenna for the 275 comes with something like 20 feet of thin coax. That's good for threading through the door seals, but it's also way too long and that eats up signal for both receive and transmit. I got some thicker RG-58 cable, only 6 feet in length, and some connectors and a crimp tool, and ended up with only one foot of the original cable to snake it under the hood, then attached to six feet of thicker cable running the rest of the way to the radio. There is a noticeable improvement in signal, but it cost time and money to do this. Therefore, what I'd recommend instead is that you order a mag mount base and antenna, pre-made with 6-10 feet of cable, and an adhesive mounting disc if necessary. You may have to trim the disc some to fit to the curve of the hood, since the bases are larger than the tiny stock 275 antenna.

Links, for example:

adhesive disc:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...b/misc-antenna-parts/12656-taf-disc3-5-detail

mag-mount NMO base:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...ustom-fitting/7563-larsen-nmommrud25nc-detail

A 1/4 wave NMO antenna:
https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...wo-way-radio-antenna-nmo-type-mounting-detail

There are other bases and antennas listed as well. Be sure to chose a GMRS antenna. Some may offer custom cable lengths. Plan ahead where you will mount the disc if you go that route.

Seach this forum for other people's examples of brackets instead of mag mounts. Try to keep the antenna way from the FM antenna and also metal such as the window frame and the sides of the hood.

I like the idea of a small 1/4 wave antenna at the back of the hood near the cowl as it stays away from tree branches, and being 1/4 wave it works equally well when talking to people above and below.

A few other random thoughts:

The 275 and 575 can do repeaters, but only one at a time per channel, and you cannot give them names. Other mobiles and handhelds allow hundreds of named repeaters, but don't have all the controls on the mike the way the 275/575 do.

Repeaters are less fun now that the FCC has cracked down on linking. There used to be repeaters linked together in networks all across the country, but that's mostly gone now.

You could use a nice GMRS handheld instead, attached to the external antenna, external microphone, and external power supply. You get 5W instead of 15W or 50W of power, but 5W is still pretty good with the external antenna. This is what I use at home right now, with a base antenna, and it does great.

15W vs 50W is not much difference unless you are trying to push the limits. But the 275 at 15W can run off the cig lighter, and the unit is smaller and doesn't get as hot.

A few weeks in Ouray and Moab and hardly anyone was on the radios. Don't be surprised if you end up not talking to anyone. But it may be worth leaving it on scan in case someone is in trouble and trying to reach out.

Signals can be blocked by hills and forest, but they can also travel along a canyon, bounce off a mountain, and go up the next canyon. Surprising results, sometimes.

A satellite messenger is much more reliable for emergency comms if out of cell range.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Thunderbolt]

I have both...switched from the 275 to 575 mainly to get wide band. I think the 275 now has wide band. I don´t perceive any range advantage with the higher power of the 575, in real world use. The 275 seems to do just as well.

I did a Midland 6db antenna mount on the front base of the A-pillar on my JL. For my JT, I am for now using handhelds. But I may throw the 275 in there, eventually.

I´ll post up a couple pics with options. I like the CB antenna location on my JT better for GMRS. I´ll show pics of both. Too tired tonight and too much to do at work tomorrow, but I´ll do my best to get those to you.

Thanks. Pic would be great when you have time.

 

[bd100]

Yes the newer 275s have wide band for the repeater channels, and if you get an older one with USB-C then you can mail it in for a software update to enable wide band. The older still ones without USB-C cannot be upgraded.

There is also an upgrade microphone you can purchase for the 275 and maybe the 575 as well.

 

[Alpine Warthog]

I've got the 275 and the 3db Ghost antenna mounted on the left side cowl. It seems to do pretty well. I chose the ghost antenna because I originally wanted the fact that I had a radio in the truck low key but since then I've added a CB with the 3 foot firestick. The stealth thing is kinda moot at this point. I've been considering the heavy duty Midland antennas recently because they should have better range than the little ghost. I haven't had any complaints with the 275 and ghost antenna yet. Like you I haven't done a ton of wheeling in the JT. But when testing in the city and wooded hills in my area it's gotten clear reception with handhelds for roughly a two mile radius. This is good enough for trail running IMO

 

[Alpine Warthog]

Yes the newer 275s have wide band for the repeater channels, and if you get an older one with USB-C then you can mail it in for a software update to enable wide band. The older still ones without USB-C cannot be upgraded.

There is also an upgrade microphone you can purchase for the 275 and maybe the 575 as well.

I bought that mic. I love it. Better and BIGGER dispay and the on/off volume is a turn knob. It's a huge upgrade over the one in the box.

 

[Gvsukids]

Do you have yours wired directly to the battery or wired through the aux switches?

Yes to the battery. Do not wire it to an AUX switch.

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/cb-radio-and-antenna-mount.70969/

 

[Gvsukids]

You mean Midland??? ""Motorola mxt-275"".

Yes, Midland. Corrected it.

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