Tutorial: How to change Channel on Midland Walkie Talkie

Owning a Midland walkie talkie is a worthy purchase because it provides quality and performance for its price. Because it has many buttons, it cannot be evident to use it, especially when choosing and changing a channel. Read on to know the steps on changing the channel with your Midland device if it’s the first time you’re using it.

A Midland Walkie Talkie functionalities and features are easy to familiarize and understand despite the model type. Hence, it is easy if you want to change the channel. You only need to use a few buttons for a walkie talkie to function. But before doing it, make sure to install the batteries beforehand, then turn it on to start the activity. Below I explain to you how to change the channel on a particular Midland walkie talkie.

What is a channel?

In simple terms, a channel is a frequency band used in radio to communicate with other people. In a walkie talkie, there are many channels to choose from to enable communication. As long as you and the other person are within the same range and channel, you can easily convey my message. You can also hear what is broadcasting on all channels while your friends are communicating with each other.

However, if I want to create a channel exclusively for private communication and filter out other people’s broadcasts, a privacy code is recommended.

How to detect a clear channel

Hiss and static sounds are present when a frequency is available. On the other hand, if it is in use, a broadcast is heard. Make sure to select the clear frequency and privacy code to prevent missing messages and radio interruptions.

Changing Channels with X-Talker Two Way Radios (T70 Series and T20 Series)

Both the Midland T70 and T20 series are ideal walkie talkies for indoor and simple outdoor activities. Both exclusively use FRS; hence it does not require a license to operate it.

For this model, changing the channel and choosing a privacy code is easy. Follow the steps below:

1. Press the MENU button once
2. Click the up/down arrow buttons to choose any of the FRS channels available.
3. To confirm the channel, press either the PTT or MENU button to move to the next feature.

T70 Series has 121 Privacy codes, while T20 has 36 Privacy Codes. The selected privacy code may differ for each channel. To choose a privacy code, you need to:

1. Press the MENU button twice
2. Click the up/down arrow buttons to choose between DCS/CTCSS/Off.
3. Press the MENU and up and down buttons again to select CDS and CTCSS Codes. The Privacy Code icon shown on display will indicate the chosen privacy code.
4. Press the PTT button to confirm.
5. Click the MENU button to exit.

To check if any activity has been occurring on the selected current channel, press and hold the MONITOR for 3 seconds. To scan all the channels, pressing the SCAN button will do. To stop scanning, press the PTT button.

To add, the scan direction changes to increasing and decreasing if one clicks the up/down arrow during the scanning.

Changing Channels with X-TRA Talk GXT Series

The Midland GXT series are created for GMRS use only, which requires an FCC license. It has 22 GMRS channels and 142 privacy codes to choose from.

To select a channel for GMRS:

1. Press the MENU button once
2. Click the up/down arrow buttons to choose one of the GMRS channels.
3. Press the PTT button to confirm

To select a privacy code:

1. Press the MENU button three times
2. Click the up/down arrow button to select between DCS/CTCSS/Off.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to select one of the 38 CTCSS and 104 DCS Codes. A privacy code icon will appear to determine if it is CTCSS or DCS.
4. Press the PTT button to confirm
5. Click the MENU button to exit.

To check the current channel activity, press the MONITOR button for 1 second and repeat it to get out of the monitor mode.

To scan all channels, press the SCAN button. The radio restarts scanning after four seconds when the channel is inactive. When the PTT button is triggered to transmit to an active channel, the scanning will stop. The active channel will display for 10 seconds. Press the up/down arrow button to return scanning.

Changing Channels with X-TRA Talk LXT Series

The Midland LXT Series is an FRS exclusive device which comprises 36 channels and 121 privacy codes.

To select a channel:

1. Press the MENU button once
2. Click the up/down arrow buttons to choose a channel.
3. Press the PTT button to confirm
4. Repeat step 1 to exit

To set a privacy code:

1. Press the MENU button twice
2. Click the up/down arrow button to choose one of the 38 CTCSS Codes.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to select one of the 83 DCS Codes. A privacy code icon will appear to determine if it is CTCSS or DCS.
4. Press the PTT button to confirm.
5. Press the MENU button to exit.

To check the current channel activity, press the MONITOR button for 3 seconds, and then click the button again once to exit.

To scan all channels, press the SCAN button. The radio restarts scanning after four seconds when the channel is inactive. On the other hand, the scanning will stop when pressing the PTT button. The active channel will display for 10 seconds. Then, press the SCAN button to return scanning.

Conclusion – How to Change Channel on Midland Walkie Talkie

Using the Midland Walkie Talkie is easy. Whether scanning or choosing a channel and privacy code, it only takes a few steps to accomplish it. Practice makes perfect, so make sure to use the Midland walkie talkie frequently to get familiarized with its functionalities.