West Marine VHF200 User Manual

VHF200 VHF Radio

Owner’s Manual

Table of Contents

Introduction ........................................2

Service...............................................2

Licensing............................................2

LCD Description.................................3

Turning the Radio On ........................3

Adjusting the Volume.........................3

Receive Mode....................................4

Changing Channels ...........................4

Channel Descriptions.........................5

Changing Between USA,

International and Canadian Modes....5

Adjusting the Squelch........................6

Transmitting a Signal.........................6

Selecting the Transmit Power............7

Battery Level Display.........................8

Weather Mode ...................................9

Weather Alert ...................................10

16/9 Operation .................................11

Triple Watch Mode ...........................12

Scanning Channels..........................12

STEP Mode .....................................15

Keypad Lock ....................................16

Restore Factory Settings .................16

Time Out Transmit Setting ...............17

Display Back-Light ...........................17

Battery Options for the VHF200 ......17

Maintenance ....................................18

Troubleshooting Guide.....................19

USA Frequency Chart......................20

International Frequency Chart .........21

Canadian Frequency Chart .............22

WX Frequency Chart .......................23

Accessories and Parts.....................24

Specifications...................................24

Warnings and Safety Precautions ...25

Emergency Communications...........26

Welcome!

Radio Licenses:

Thank you for purchasing the West
Marine VHF200. This product was
designed and built for boaters to use in
the harsh marine environment. With prop­er care this product should provide you
with years of trouble-free operation.

Your satisfaction with this product is
backed by the entire West Marine organi­zation worldwide.

Remember:

• Safety and distress calls take priority

over all others.

• You must monitor Channel 16 when

you are not operating on another
channel.

• False or fraudulent distress calls are

prohibited under law.

• Information overheard but not intend-

ed for you cannot lawfully be used in
any way.

• Indecent or profane language is pro-

hibited.

Service:

In the event that the radio fails to per­form, or needs servicing, please send
directly to our Electronics Repair Center
in Hollister, CA. Be sure to include your
return mailing information and a detailed
accounting of the problems experienced
and/or the service requested.

West Marine
Electronics Repair Center
2395 Bert Court
Hollister, CA 95023

1. Ship Station License

An FCC ship station license is no longer
required for any vessel traveling in US
waters which uses a VHF marine radio,
RADAR, EPIRB, and which is not
required to carry radio equipment. A
license is necessary however for a DSC
MMSI number, or for any vessel required
to carry a marine radio on an international
voyage, carrying a HF single side band
radiotelephone or marine satellite termi­nal. For more information, see the FCC’s
Fact Sheet PR 5000 #14. FCC license
forms, including applications for ship
(506) and land station licenses can be
downloaded via the Internet at
www.fcc.gov/forms. To obtain a form
from the FCC, call [phone].

2. Radio Call Sign

Currently the FCC does not require recre­ational boaters to have a Ship Radio
Station License. The USCG recommends
that the boat’s registration number and the
state to be used.

3. Canadian Ship Station
Licensing

You do not need a license if your vessel is
not operated in sovereign waters of a
country other than Canada or the USA. If
you do need a license, contact their near­est field office or regional office or write:

Industry Canada
Radio Regulatory Branch
Attn: DOSP
300 Slater Street
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada, K1A OCA

2 West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual

LCD Description

LCD Display

USA/INTERNATION­AL/CANADIAN (UIC)
Mode display (page 5)

Channel Number
display (page 4)

Battery Level display
indicator (page 8)

Radio Status Display; shows long and short channel
descriptions, warnings, and radio information (page 5)

MEM

STEP

TRI

WX

ALERT

Fig. 1: Power On Display

Shown when channel is in scan
memory (page 14)

Shown when radio is in STEP
mode (page 15)

Shown when Triple Watch has
been selected (Page 12)

Shown when radio is in Weather
(WX) Mode (page 9)

Shown when radio is in Weather
Alert Mode (page 10)

M

L

LOCK

TX

BUSY

Shown when medium transmit
power is selected (page 7)

Shown when low transmit
power is selected (page 7)

Shown when keypad is locked
(page 16)

Shown when transmitting (page

6)

Shown when radio is receiving a
signal (page 3)

1. Turning the Radio On

Turn the Power/Volume Knob clockwise
until it clicks. The radio will power up in
the same condition as it was last used.
The last Channel Mode (USA/INT/CAN),
Channel, TX Power, Key Lock, Squelch
Level, etc. are restored. The Radio Status
Display will show POWER ON. (Fig. 1)

2. Adjusting the Volume

Turn the Volume Knob clockwise to
increase volume and counterclockwise to
decrease volume.

West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual 3

Fig. 3a: Receive Display

Fig. 3b: Stand By Display

3. Receive Mode

When the radio receives a signal, the
Radio Status Display will show the mes­sage RECEIVE (Fig. 3a) for three sec­onds before reverting to the channel
description. The BUSY indicator will also
be shown. This is an indication that you
should not transmit until the BUSY indi-
cator is not showing.

When the signal ceases the radio will dis­play STAND BY. (Fig. 3b)

• After three seconds, the display

returns to the channel name.

4. Changing Channels

To change channels, press the ▲ or ▼
keys.

• If the ▲ or ▼ key is pressed for

more than one second, the channel
will change rapidly.

• The radio displays memory status

and TX Power status of the channel
as you change the channels. (Fig. 4)

Fig. 4: Channel number and memory status

4 West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual

Fig. 5: Current Channel, MAR OPER Display

5. Channel Descriptions

The Radio Status Display indicates the
type of channel you have selected with
both a long and a short description. (Fig.

5) The long description will scroll from

right to left, and will be replaced by a
shorter description that stays in the Radio
Status Display. There is no universal
agreement on how to describe each chan­nel, and some channels have different
purposes depending on where you’re
located in the US, but we’ve done our
best to provide helpful information. See
the appendix for a complete list of long
and short channel descriptions (pp. 20-23)

• Channels used by recreational boaters

for ship to ship conversations are list­ed as NON-COMMERCIAL in the
description. Examples are Channels
68, 69, 71, and 72.

6. Changing Between

USA, International,
and Canadian Modes

Fig. 6a: Selecting USA Mode

Fig. 6b: Select

International Mode

Fig. 6c: Select

Canadian Mode

West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual 5

Different areas of the world use different
VHF frequencies, although the channel
designation (1–88) may be the same.
There are three modes: USA,
International, and Canadian. Press and
hold the UIC key for two seconds to
change from USA to International to
Canadian Modes in turn.

• When Country Mode is changed,

Channel 16 is automatically selected,
not the last channel used. (Fig.
6a–6c)

• The Radio Status Display will verify

your selection with SEL USA, SEL

INTERNATIONAL, and SEL
CANADIAN.

Fig. 7a: Squelch Level Setting Mode

Fig. 7b: Squelch Level Changed display

7. Adjusting the

Squelch

The Squelch Control reduces the static
and noise heard on the radio, but allows
strong signals to be heard clearly. To
adjust the squelch setting, press the
SQL/UIC key quickly. The Radio Status
Display will show SQL - 0X, where X is
the current squelch setting. (Fig. 7a) Press
the ▲ or ▼ keys to adjust the squelch set­ting from 00 to 08. Higher settings allow
only stronger signals will be heard, while
lower settings allow weak signals to be
received (and possibly annoying static).
Generally, the squelch control should be
set for the lowest setting that eliminates
unwanted static.

• Level 00 allows all signals to be

heard.

• After no buttons are pressed for 3

seconds, the radio will return to nor­mal receiving mode and the Radio
Status Display will show SQUELCH
LEVEL CHANGED. (Fig. 7b)

8. Transmitting a Signal

To transmit a signal, press the Push-To­Talk (PTT) button on the left side of the
radio. When PTT button is released, the
radio returns to Receive Mode.

• As soon as the PTT key is pressed,

the Radio Status Display will show
the transmit power selected. (Fig. 8a)

Fig. 8a: Tr ansmitting at High Transmit Power

6 West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual

Fig. 8b: Tr ansmission Ended Display

Blinking

Fig. 8c: Message shown when trying to transmit

on a receive-only channel

Fig. 9a: High Power Display

• When the PTT key is released, the

Radio Status Display will show TX
END (Fig. 8b)

• You cannot transmit on receive-only

channels like the weather channels or
Channels 15 and 70. If you try, an
error tone will sound, the channel
number and TX indicator will blink
three times and the Radio Status
Display will show REC ONLY (Fig
8c). After 3 seconds, the radio returns
to the normal display, then goes back
to the normal display.

• If the PTT button is pressed when

the battery condition is low, the radio
will send one last transmission, then
it will sound the Error Beep Tone
with BAT LO display. No further
transmission will be allowed. See
page 8.

9. Selecting the

Transmit Power

By law, Marine VHF radios must be able
to transmit at 1 watt power as well as the
radio’s maximum transmit power. The
West Marine VHF200 radio actually has
three transmit powers: 5 watts (HI), 1
watt (MED), and 0.5 watts (LOW).

The general rule is to use the lowest
transmit power that results in clear com­munications with whomever you are com­municating. At distances less than a mile,
for example, 0.5 watts may result in clear
and consistent communications, and will
have the benefit of greatly extended bat­tery life.

Pressing the H/L key will change the
transmit power from 5 watts (HI) to 1
watt (MED) to 0.5 watts (LOW) and back
to 5 watts with each press. The Radio
Status Display will indicate the newly
selected transmit power as follows:

• When High Power is selected, the

bottom of the screen will Radio

West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual 7

Fig. 9b: Medium Power Display

Fig. 9c: Low Power Display

Status Display will show XMIT HI
for three seconds. (Fig. 9a)

• When Medium Power is selected, the

Radio Status Display will show

XMIT MED for three seconds and the
M indicator will show. (Fig. 9b)

• When Low Power is selected, the

Radio Status Display will show
XMIT LOW for three seconds and
the L indicator will show. (Fig. 9c)

Certain channels are limited by law to 1
watt transmit power: USA Mode Channel
13, 17, 67, 77; INT Mode Channel 15, 17;
CAN Mode Channel 13, 15, 17, 20, 66,

77. Therefore, the radio will automatically

select 1 watt power when operating on
these channels, and efforts to change the
transmit power will result in the error tone.

• You cannot change the transmit

power setting on channels which are
receive-only channels: all weather
channels; USA Mode Channel 15,
70; INT Mode Channel 70; CAN
Mode Channel 70.

• Pressing the H/L key while scanning

or while in the Weather Mode will
result in the error tone and transmit
power will not change.

10. Battery Level Display

The battery level is checked periodically
and is shown using the Battery Level
Indicator (1–3 bars). More bars indicate
more battery capacity is left.

• When the battery capacity is very

Blinking

Fig. 10: Low Battery Warning Display

8 West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual

low, the low battery warning alarm
will sound every 10 seconds, the low
battery message LOW BATT will be
shown on the Radio Status Display,
and the battery indicator will blink.
(Fig. 10)

• When the low battery warning mes-

sage is displayed, the radio allows
one final transmission but it will not
allow further transmissions.

Fig. 11a: Weather Mode Display

Fig. 11b: Marine Mode Display

11. Weather Mode

Virtually all areas of the US and many
areas around the world are covered by
VHF weather reports on one of 10 chan­nels. These reports provide current condi­tions, forecasts, and warnings of danger­ous weather 24 hours per day.

Press and release the WX/ALERT key to
toggle between Weather and Marine
Modes. In Weather Mode the Radio
Status Display will show WX MODE for
three seconds and the WX indicator will
be shown. (Fig. 11a) When switching
back to Marine Mode, the Radio Status
Display will show USA MODE or INT
MODE or CAN MODE for three sec-
onds. (Fig. 11b)

• While in Weather Mode, use the ▲ or

▼ keys to select from ten weather
channels. Most areas of the US are
covered by Weather Channels 01, 02,
and 03. The Radio Status Display
will verify which channel you’ve
selected (WEATHER1) as you
change channels.

• If you press the 16/9/TRI key while

in weather Mode, the radio will
change from the current weather
channel to Channel 16, then to
Channel 9, and then back to the
weather channel. The WX indicator
will flash, indicating that you are still
in weather Mode, while listening to
Channels 16 and 9.

• While in Weather Mode, the MEM,

UIC, SCAN, H/L keys will not work.
If they are pressed , the radio will
sound an error tone.

West Marine VHF200 Owner’s Manual 9