M17 is a new digital radio protocol in development as an alternative to those currently available, with freedom in mind. Freedom in the code, protocol, voice codecs, and hardware. The goal is to provide a better option for digital radios in the future.
The OpenRTX firmware implements the M17 protocol on the following radios:
- MD-380 UHF, GPS and non-GPS versions
- MD-390 UHF, GPS and non-GPS versions
- RT3 UHF
- MD-UV380, GPS and non-GPS versions
- MD-UV390, GPS and non-GPS versions
- RT3s
VHF version of MD-380, MD-390 and RT3 currently support only RX mode.
For the protocol to work properly, there is need for a few hardware modifications to be done on the device. Below we provide a detailed guide on how to disassemble and modify your radio to make it able to support the M17 protocol.
Proceed at your own risk, if you don't feel comfortable modding your radio, you can ask a fellow ham to do the mod for you.
- Modding guide for MD-380, difficulty: Easy
- Modding guide for MD-UV380, difficulty: Medium