Uniden Atlantis 155 Marine VHF Radio User Manual

Uniden Atlantis 155 Marine VHF Radio

MAKING A DISTRESS CALL

For future reference, write your boat’s name & call sign here:

Speak slowly – clearly – calmly.

1. Make sure your radio is on.
2. Press the 16/9 TRI button to switch to Channel 16 (156.8 MHz). (If the display does not show 16, press the 16/9 TRI button again until it does.)
3. Press the Push to Talk button and say: “MAYDAY — MAYDAY– MAYDAY.”
4. Say “THIS IS {name of your boat (three times) and call sign/boat registration number (once)}.”
5. Repeat “MAYDAY {name of your boat}” once.
6. Tell where you are: (what navigational aids or landmarks are near, or read the latitude and longitude from your GPS).
7. State the nature of your distress (e.g. sinking, medical emergency, man overboard, on fire, adrift, etc.).
8. State the type of assistance you need (medical, towing, pumps, etc.).
9. Give the number of persons aboard and describe the condition of any injured persons.
10. Estimate the present seaworthiness of your ship (e.g. how immediate is the danger due to flooding or fire).
11. Briefly describe your ship, giving the ship name (i.e., “Blue Duck is a 32-foot cabin cruiser, white hull, blue deck house”).
12. Say: “I WILL BE LISTENING ON CHANNEL 16.”
13. End the message by saying “THIS IS {name or call sign of your boat}, OVER.”
14. Release the Push to Talk button and listen. If you do not get an answer after 30 seconds, repeat your call beginning at step 3 above.

FEATURES

• US, Canadian, and International Marine Channels
• Built-in Precision Matched Antenna
• Floating / Waterproof to IPX8
• Key Beep
• Emergency CH16/ CH9 Mode
• 10 Weather Channel/Weather Alert
• Battery Level Display
• Battery Low Alert sounds every 5 seconds at Level 1
• Boost capability
• Battery Save
• Memory Scan
• Triple Watch
• TX Power Select
• Channel Select
• Volume Select
• 4-Level Digital Squelch
• Keypad Lock On / Off
• Background color changes – 2 colors and 4 levels (Uniden recommends Day – White; Night – Amber).
• User-Selectable LCD Contrast (32 levels from 0 to 31)
• Speaker Vibration Tone
• DC Adapter
• Detachable wrist strap

*Protected against the effects of continuous immersion in water. The Atlantis 155 can withstand immersion in water up to 1.5 meters depth for 30 minutes. The Atlantis 155 has a special tone that will vibrate the speaker to remove water inside the casing (see page 24).

Note: This is not suitable for scuba diving.

GETTING STARTED

WHAT’S INCLUDED

CONTROLS AND INDICATORS

No.	Description	No.	Description
1	Antenna	11	SQL UIC (Squelch)
2	PTT (Push-To-Talk)	12	VOL ▼
3	Power Boost	13	WX ALERT
4	CH ▲	14	VOL ▲
5	CH ▼	15	16/9 TRI
6	H/L LOCK	16	LCD Screen
7	Speaker	17	DC IN/Headset Jacks
8	Drainage Opening	18	Wrist Strap
9	SCAN MEM	19
10	Microphone

KEY OPERATION

Key	Press to…	Press and hold to…
Push-to-Talk	NA	Transmit on a channel
BOOST	NA	Boost transmission power to 3W.
Channel Up/ Channel Down	Move up or down one channel at a time.	Move quickly up or down the channels.
H/L Lock	Change the transmit power from Low (1W) to High (3W).	Lock the keys; press again to unlock.
SCAN MEM	Start scanning the channels saved in memory.	Save a channel into memory or delete a channel from memory.
SQL UIC	Enter Squelch Setting mode. Press SQL UIC to select squelch settings (Levels = 0 – 3).	Switch between US, Canadian, or International channels.
VOL ▼	Lower the volume (Levels = 0 – 15).	Quickly lower the volume.
WX ALERT	Listen to the weather channels.	Turn the Weather Alert Watch on and off.
VOL ▲	Raise the volume (Levels = 0 – 15).	Quickly raise the volume.
16/9 TRI	1st press: Go to channel 16. 2nd press: Go to channel 9. 3rd press: Go back to the starting channel.	Turn Triple Watch on and off.
	Select LCD backlight level (high, middle, or low) then color (white or amber).	Turn the radio on and off.

ATLANTIS 155 LCD DISPLAY

CONNECTING POWER

The radio connects to power through a single DC adapter.

1. Connect the DC adapter to the DC 12V jack on the side of the radio.
2. Plug the other end of the adapter into the cigarette lighter.

INSTALL THE BATTERIES

Your radio uses the supplied 4 rechargeable AAA NiMH batteries. To install the batteries:

1. Make sure the radio is off.
2. Remove the belt clip if necessary.
3. Use a screwdriver or the screwdriver tip on the belt clip to turn the battery compartment screw counterclockwise and then lift up and remove the battery cover.
4. Insert the batteries into the battery compartment.
5. Before placing the battery cover back on the radio, check the rubber seal around the battery compartment. Make sure that the seal is in good condition and that there is no foreign matter
   under the seal. If the rubber seal appears worn, nicked, or dried out, replace it. Visit www.uniden.com to order a replacement seal.
6. Replace the battery compartment door. Tighten the screw securely.

RECHARGING THE ATLANTIS 155

Your radio includes a DC adapter for charging. Follow these instructions to recharge the radio.

1. Insert the adapter into the cigarette lighter. Refer to page 12.
2. Connect the other end of the adapter to the radio. Make sure that the battery icon animates.
3. Charge the radio for 13 hours then disconnect it from the adapter.

Battery Level Display
The battery icon at the bottom of the screen indicates the battery level (displayed as one of the following 5 levels) at all times except while charging.

OPERATION

In order to get the most out of your new radio, read this owner’s manual completely before attempting to operate the unit.

BASICS

Power On/Off

1. Press and holdto turn the radio ON. A channel number and battery level should appear on the display.
2. Press and holdto turn the radio OFF.

Volume

The volume level can be adjusted from 0 (no volume) to 15 (maximum volume). Press VOL▲or VOL▼to increase or decrease the volume level. The current volume level flashes.

Select a Channel

Press CH▲ or CH▼ to scroll through the channels individually. Press and hold CH or CH to scroll rapidly through the channel numbers. Refer to page 28 for a list of available channels and their corresponding frequencies and usage guidelines.

Set Squelch

Use squelch to eliminate any annoying background noise when there are no signals present.

Think of the squelch control as a gate. If you increase the squelch level to the maximum, it raises the “Squelch Gate” so only the strongest signals get through.

If you decrease the squelch level to a minimum, it lowers the “Squelch Gate”’ to the extent that weak signals can get through.If unwanted weak and noisy signals are getting through, increase the squelch level (raise the “Squelch Gate”) to a medium level. Now only medium and strong signals get through.

S1 – minimum squelch
S2 – medium squelch
S3 – maximum/tight squelch

1. Press SQL UIC. SQL displays and the current squelch level flashes.
2. Press SQL UIC while the squelch level displays to change the squelch level to the next step (0-3, then repeat again from 0).
3. After 2 seconds the unit exits the squelch setting.

TRANSMITTING AND RECEIVING

Selecting Channel Modes
The radio uses U.S., Canadian, and International Marine channels (modes). Press and hold SQL UIC to change modes. Each time you press and hold SQL UIC, the mode indicator changes (US – United States; CAN – Canada; INT – International). Refer to page 28 for a list of the available channels and corresponding frequencies.

Transmitting

The radio can transmit for up to 3 minutes. TX displays when transmitting. After 3 minutes of continuous transmission, transmission is canceled and an error tone sounds. The radio transmits at 1W; press BOOST to transmit at 3W.

Boosting Transmission Power

1. Hold the radio approximately 2 inches in front of your mouth with the antenna at approximately 45º angle away from your head.
2. Press BOOST on the side of the radio to change the transmit power from Low (1W) to High (3W). Speak in a clear, normal, conversational voice.
3. When you have finished speaking, release PTT or BOOST to listen for a response. TX then disappears.
4. When the channel is clear, press and hold PTT or BOOST to transmit. TX displays again.

HOW IT WORKS

Your radio has three main operation modes: normal, scan, and weather.

In addition to the three operation modes, your radio provides two different watch modes which you can activate during any operation mode. In the watch modes, the radio briefly checks for activity on a specific channel, then returns to its previous operation.

Note: Private boats must monitor Channel 16 whenever they are underway. Water-going vessels should have Triple Watch on at all times.

NORMAL MODE OPERATION

• To transmit, remove the radio from the charger, then press and hold the PTT key. Release the key when you are finished talking.
• For the best sound quality, hold the microphone about two inches from your mouth while you’re talking.
• Press the CH▲ key to move up one channel at a time. Press and hold the key to scroll quickly up the channels.
• Press the CH▼ key to move down one channel at a time. Press and hold the key to scroll quickly down the channels.
• To change the transmit power, press the H/L LOCK key. The transmit power switches to the next transmit power each time you press this key.

Using the radio in scan mode

• To activate scan mode, press SCAN MEM.
• You must have at least two channels in memory to start a scan.
• To save a channel into memory, select the channel, then press and hold the SCAN MEM key. The MEM icon displays whenever you tune to that channel.
• To remove a channel from memory, set the radio to that channel, then press and hold the SCAN MEM key. The MEM icon no longer displays.
• When the radio stays on a channel, press CH▲ or CH▼ to leave that channel and resume scanning.
• To end the scan, press the SCAN MEM key again; the radio remains on the last scanned channel.

WEATHER MODE

The NOAA weather channels cooperate with the FCC to alert you of other hazards besides weather (child abduction alerts, nuclear, biological, etc.). In weather mode, the radio monitors one of the nine NOAA weather channels. If any type of alert is received, the radio sounds an alert tone and the display blinks.

Using the radio in weather mode

• You cannot transmit while in weather mode.
• To enter weather mode, press the WX ALERT key.
• If the radio sets a WX Alert signal, it sounds an alert tone 3 times.
• To turn off the radio’s alert tone, press any key.
• To cancel weather mode and return to the previous marine channel including emergency channels 16 and 9, press the

WX ALERT key again.

Weather mode with Weather Alert Watch Because weather mode already monitors the weather channels, you don’t need Weather Alert Watch to check the weather channel every seven seconds. If you activate the Weather Alert Watch while operating in weather mode, it operates as a type of “sleep” mode; the radio stays on the weather channel and mutes the speaker. If an alert is detected, the radio sounds an alert tone and turns the speaker back on. This mode is very useful when you are anchoring for the night but want to keep informed of hazards.

DROP-OUT DELAY

While scanning, the radio stops on channels when it receives a signal. When the received signal is over, there is a drop-out delay of 2 seconds for the return of the signal. After 2 seconds, if the signal does not return, the radio resumes scanning.

BATTERY SAVE

This feature extends the battery life by switching the receiver circuit power on and off. Battery Save automatically activates during standby mode (RX mode without signal).

MAINTENANCE & TROUBLESHOOTING

Due to its rugged design, your radio requires very little maintenance. However, it is a precision electronic instrument, so you should follow a few precautions:

• If the antenna has been damaged, do not transmit except in an emergency situation. Transmitting with a defective antenna may cause further radio damage.
• You are responsible for continued FCC technical compliance of your radio.
• You should arrange for periodic performance checks with your Uniden dealer.

UPDATING THE FIRMWARE/DATABASE

Uniden recommends that you update your firmware and database periodically. Go to uniden.com, find your model, and check if you have the latest firmware.

COMMON QUESTIONS

SPECIFICATIONS

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Uniden Atlantis 155 Marine VHF Radio-FAQs