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Midland MXT500 MicroMobile™ GMRS Radio – Full User Guide

Customer Experience
Updated

Thank you for purchasing the Midland MXT500 2-way radio. Engineered for General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS), the MXT500 is built to perform reliably in extreme environments. With solid-state circuitry and premium components, your MXT500 is built for years of reliable operation.

Features

  • 50-Watt GMRS radio

  • 15 GMRS channels

  • 8 GMRS repeater channels

  • Split Privacy Tones (CTCSS/DCS)

  • NOAA Weather Radio with Alert

  • Narrow and Wide Band support

  • Water resistant (IPX6 rated)

  • Adjustable color and brightness backlit LCD

  • Talk Around Function

  • Keypad Lock and Silent Operation

  • Roger Beep and Call Alert

  • USB-C port (charging + programming)

  • External Speaker & Intercom Jacks

  • Compatible with all Midland FRS/GMRS radios

  • GMRS license required

FCC Notice & RF Exposure

The MXT500 operates on GMRS channels 1–7 and 15–22 (including repeater RP15–22), requiring an FCC license. Unlicensed operation may result in serious penalties.

To comply with RF exposure requirements:

  • Use only antennas with ≤2.5 dBi gain.

  • Maintain a minimum of 60 inches (152 cm) between the antenna and people during transmission.

  • Transmit no more than 50% of the time.

Installing Your Radio

Preparation

  1. Ensure your vehicle has a 12V negative ground system.
  2. Disconnect the negative (-) battery cable before installation.
  3. Choose a mounting location with good visibility, access, and ventilation.

Mounting Bracket

  1. Use bracket as a template to mark screw holes.

  2. Drill carefully and screw in the bracket (do not over-tighten).

  3. Slide radio into the bracket until it locks.

About Range

Your MXT500 is designed to give you maximum operating range under optimum conditions:

"Optimum condition" examples for maximum operating range are:

  • Over water
  • In open rural areas without obstructions
  • On flat areas where you can see the other radio user

To ensure you get maximum range:

  • Be sure to mount the antenna as high as possible on your vehicle
  • Be sure to set your radio to use High power

Antenna Installation

  • Mount as high as possible, ideally centered on a metal surface.

  • Avoid vinyl or fiberglass-covered surfaces.

  • Route the antenna cable carefully to avoid damage or electrical interference.

  • Use grommets/weather stripping when passing through openings.

Power Connection

  • Connect red wire to the fuse block or positive battery terminal.

  • Connect black wire to a clean metal ground.

  • You may connect to the vehicle’s Accessory terminal for ignition-linked power.

Microphone, External Speaker & Intercom

  • Plug microphone into the front jack.

  • Use the mounting clip to place it within reach.

  • External speaker jack supports 8-ohm, 4W minimum speakers.

  • Intercom jack supports TA5 mini-XLR headsets. Disconnect mic during use.

Controls and Indicators

Radio Operating Controls

  1. Power and volume knob
  2. Mic jack
  3. Menu button
  4. Scan/Scan Skip button
  5. Monitor button
  6. WX button
  7. Lock button
  8. Power indicator
  9. TX/RX indicator
  10. Channel/Menu selection knob
  11. USB-C port

Microphone Operating Controls

  1. Channel down
  2. Channel up
  3. PTT
  4. Microphone

Rear Panel Connections

  1. Antenna jack
  2. Intercom jack
  3. External Speaker jack

LCD Display

2. Medium power

3. Low power

4. Narrow band channel

5. Auto power off

6. Repeater offset direction

7. CTCSS Privacy tone

8. DCS Privacy tone

9. Key lock

10. Compander indicator

11. Weather band

12. Channel number

13. Menu item indicator

14. Receive indicator

15. Receive and transmit signal strength

Operating Your Radio

Power On/Off

  • Press Power knob to turn on.

  • Hold Power knob to turn off.

Channel Selection

  • Rotate Channel/Menu knob or use mic buttons.

  • Must match channel and privacy code with the other radio to communicate.

Volume Control

  • Rotate Power knob to adjust audio level.

Transmit & Receive

  • Transmit: Hold PTT and speak. Red LED illuminates.

  • Receive: Release PTT. Green LED illuminates on reception.

  • Hold mic 2–3 inches from mouth.

Selecting a Transmit (TX) Power Level

  • Press MENU. Use CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob to navigate to menu setting #02 - PWR
  • Use CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob to choose between Hi, Mi, and Lo. Press the knob to confirm selection

Utility Functions

Locking the Keypad

  • Hold Lock button to toggle.

  • Key Lock icon appears/disappears.

  • PTT and Volume still function when locked.

Monitor Mode

  • Press MON button to enter Monitor Mode and check for channel activity.

  • Rotate the Power and Volume knob to increase or decrease volume

  • Release the MON button to exit Monitor Mode

Scanning & Weather

Channel Scan

  • Press Scan to enter auto-scan.

  • Pauses on active channels for 5 sec.

  • Use PTT to respond or Scan to exit.

Scan Skip

  • While on a channel, hold Scan to remove it from scan list (removes “M” icon).

  • Hold again to re-add.

NOAA Weather

  • Press WX to scan NOAA weather stations.

  • Locks on to strongest signal.

  • Use mic to manually change weather channels.

Weather Alert

To enter and exit Weather Scan

    • Press and release the WX button to enter weather mode

    • The radio will then scan all 10 weather channels and will lock on to the strongest weather channel in your area 

    • Use the Channel Up and Channel DN on the microphone to force the radio to re-scan the weather channels

      • Pressing the Scan button takes the radio out of scanning mode, locking in the active channel Press and release the Scan button to reactivate weather scan

  • Press the PTT to exit Weather Mode

To Manually Set the Weather Channel

  • With the Weather Scan activated, press the Scan button to exit scanning mode
  • Use the Channel Up / Channel DN buttons on the microphone, manually set the active weather channel

To Enable Weather Alert

  • With Weather mode activated, press the Scan button to exit scanning mode
  • Use the Channel Up or Channel DN on the microphone to select the desired Weather Channel
  • Press and hold the WX button to turn the Weather Alert on
    • The WX icon will begin flashing
  • To return to GMRS mode, press and release the WX or PTT button
    • When a Weather Alert goes off, the MXT500 will sound an alert tone. Pressing any button on the mobile will take you to the assigned weather channel and you will be able to hear the alert tone. If the siren stops prior to you entering the weather mode, the mobile will automatically take you to weather mode.

Call Alert & Public Address

Call Alert

  • Hold PTT + Channel Up to send a call tone.

  • Stops automatically or when PTT is released.

Public Address

  • Hold Menu until PA appears.

  • Speak with PTT – voice is routed to speaker.

  • Adjust volume with Volume knob.

  • Hold Menu again to exit.

Privacy Codes

Selecting a Privacy Code

Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System (CTCSS) and Digitally Coded Squelch (DCS) are systems that allow several users to share the same channel without disturbing each other. When CTCSS or DCS are enabled for a selected channel, the channel is muted to all incoming signals unless they carry the correct CTCSS or DCS tone.

When a transmission with the correct tone is received, the mute is removed, and the voice audio can be heard. When the transmission ends, the channel is muted again. Transmissions that do not have the correct tone are not heard.

The MXT500 has 154 Privacy Codes (50 CTCSS frequencies and 104 DCS codes), which can be applied to any channel. If desired, you can select a different Privacy Code for each channel. See CTCSS Privacy Codes Frequency Chart and DCS Privacy Codes Chart for lists of available Privacy Codes.

IMPORTANT! To communicate between two MXT500 radios or any GMRS radio, both radios must be set to the same channel and privacy code selections.

  1. Press MENU.  Use CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob to navigate to menu setting #01 - PRIVACY
  2. To edit the privacy codes, press the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob. Use the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob to choose between OFF, TSQ, or DCS for the receive privacy code (RCP).
    1. OFF - Privacy codes are disabled
    2. TSQ - CTCSS privacy codes
    3. DCS - DCS privacy codes

To Select a CTCSS Privacy Code

The MXT500 has 50 CTCSS privacy codes

  1. Follow steps 1-3 under SELECTING A PRIVACY CODE
  2. For receive privacy code (RCP), select TSQ in the privacy menu by pressing the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob
  3. Use the CHANNEL/MENU Selection to navigate through the privacy code options .Select the desired privacy code by pressing the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob
    1. Once the CTCS privacy code is enabled the SQ icon will appear on the LCD. The T an SQ icon will appear when the radio is transmitting
  4. Repeat steps 2-3 for transmit privacy code (TRP).
  5. Press MENU button to exit the privacy code settings

To Select a DCS Privacy Code

The MXT500 has 104 DCS privacy codes

  1. Follow steps 1-3 under SELECTING A PRIVACY CODE
  2. For receive privacy code (RCP), select DCS in the privacy menu by pressing the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob
  3. Use the CHANNEL/MENU Selection to navigate through the privacy code options. Select the desired privacy code by pressing the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob.
    1. Once the DCS privacy code is enabled, the DCS icon will appear on the LCD
  4. Repeat steps 2-3 for transmit privacy code (TRP).
  5. Press the MENU button to exit the privacy code settings 

To Disable Privacy Codes

  1. Follow steps 1 & 2 under SELECTING A PRIVACY CODE
  2. Select OFF in the privacy menu by pressing the CHANNEL/MENU SELECTION knob
  3. Press the MENU button to exit the privacy code settings

NOTE: If you select a CTCSS Privacy Code, any pre-selected DCS Privacy Code will be cancelled, and vice-versa.

NOTE: The LCD icons for privacy tones (TSQ and DCS) will be displayed while receiving and transmitting. Example: If a DCS tone is set for receive the radio will show DCS when in receive mode. If a CTCSS tone is set for transmitting, the LCD will show TSQ when in transmit mode.

Menu Mode Functions

Access by pressing Menu. Use Channel/Menu knob to navigate and select.

Menu functions let you configure several operational parameters of the MXT500 to suit your personal preferences. NOTE: All menu functions are automatically saved after making selection. The menu will timeout after 10 seconds of inactivity or can be closed by pressing the menu button.

  1. Privacy Code (CTCSS/DCS)

  2. Transmit Power Level (Hi/Mi/Lo)

  3. Channel Bandwidth (NB = Narrow / Wide)

  4. Talk Around Mode

  5. Voice Compander (Comp)

  6. Silent Operation (Mute)

  7. Time Out Timer (TOT)

  8. Auto Power Off (APO)

  9. Squelch Sensitivity (01–09)

  10. LCD Color (7 options)

  11. Display Brightness (6 levels)

  12. Enable Repeater Channels (RP15–RP22)

  13. Roger Beep (on/off)

  14. Call Alert Tone (1–5 or Off)

  15. USB-C Programming Mode

  16. Automatic Noise Cancellation (ANC 1–5 or Off)

  17. Restore Factory Settings

Care and Maintenance

  • Use water-moistened soft cloth to clean.

  • Avoid alcohol and immersion in water.

  • Dry with lint-free cloth if wet.

Troubleshooting Guide

If you experience difficulties using your MXT500, refer to the following chart to correct common operation problems. If you have a problem which you believe requires service, please call our Midland customer service representatives at 816-241-8500 on Monday – Friday between 9 AM to 4:00 PM CST. Many problems can be remedied over the phone without returning the unit for service.

Channels:  15 GMRS channels and 8 repeater channels

Privacy Codes:  50 CTCSS; 104 DCS

Receive Frequency:  UHF; 462.550 - 462.725

Transmit Frequency:  UHF; 462.550 - 467.725

Power Source:  13.8 VC nominal

 

Limited Warranty (U.S. Only)

  • Three-year warranty from date of purchase on radios.

  • 90-day warranty on accessories.

  • Does not cover misuse, water damage, or unauthorized repair.

  • Submit warranty claims in the Midland Returns and Claims Portal

Download full owners manual here. 

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