Will the MB400 Business Radio work with my BR200 Business Radio?

Short answer is, yes, but there’s more to the story. Not only does it work with the BR200, it will also work with many other models of on-site business radios.

 

What other radios will my MB400 work with?

The Midland BizTalk BR200 and the MB400 use the UHF frequency spectrum between 450MHz to 470MHz, specifically, the “On-site Business & Industrial Band Pool” of frequencies.

More importantly, they are pre-programmed to the exact same channels, making them compatible with each other - right out of the box. The pre-programmed channels are the same as used on popular models from Motorola® and Kenwood®.



They are also programmable to selected business band frequencies making them compatible with other brands of on-site business radios. Programming is easy with our free software and step by step instructions. If you are already using radios in your business, check the chart to see if your frequency is included.

Business Band Frequency Pool Chart

 

What about the transmit power difference?

Keep in mind the MB400 is a more powerful business radio than the BR200. At 4 watts of transmit power, it will give you much more coverage than radios at lower power levels. The MB400 will be able to be received by lower power radios, but they may not be able to reach back to the MB400.

So, as long as you are within range of the lower power radio, you're fine.

What won't my BR200 or MB400 business radios work with?

There are a lot of other 2-way radio technologies out there; many are very expensive and not compatible with the MB400 or the BR200. Here’s why - the BR200 and MB400 use the FM Analog transmission method, the most common and reliable method for on-site business radios.

Transmission methods not compatible with FM analog include the following:

• Digital Mobile Radio (“DMR”) that uses a TDMA transmission method. Examples from Motorola® are called MotoTrbo®. Their SL and XPR series radios are in this group and not compatible with the MB400 or BR200.

• NEXEDGE® is Kenwood’s® version of a digital radio using a FDMA transmission method. Also referred to “NXDN®” with models that start with “NX” or “TK-DXXX” are not compatible with the BR200 or MB400.

• 900 MHz Digital Radios, using DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology) which is a legacy cordless phone technology. Models from Motorola® starting with “DLR and DTR” are not compatible with the BR200 or MB400.

While the BR200 and MB400 use the UHF On-Site Business Band, there are other frequency bands outside this UHF pool which, also, are not compatible:

• VHF (Very High Frequency, 136-174MHz)

• MURS (Multi-User Radio Service)

• FRS (Family Radio Service)

• GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service)

• 800 MHz

• 900 MHz

Even though FRS (Family Radio Service) and GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) do use the UHF band, they’re restricted to certain frequencies and not compatible with the MB400 or BR200.

 

One last word on business radio compatibility

This write-up is looking at technical radio compatibility only, asking the question “will they talk to each other”. There may be differences in features or functions between the various makes and models that are too numerous to identify here.

If you want to go to the next step and drill down further, here is a Compatibility Guideline Chart that may help.

*All company and product names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.