Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

VHF Marine Band radios, protocol, radio communication theory, practical advice; AIS; DSC; MMSI; EPIRB.
PatSea
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Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby PatSea » Sun Dec 15, 2019 4:34 pm

A friend of mine is allowing me to use his new HX 890 handheld VHF radio for several months while I am boating in Florida. This is the DSC model and he has registered the radio through the FCC and they have assigned the MMSI number which he has programmed into the radio. He has his personal data registered to the MMSI number. Now he and I want to change the personal data attached to the MMSI to describe me and my boat while I am using it. The idea is to change the data but keep the same MMSI number with the radio. (I know that changing the MMSI number in a radio requires that it be sent back to the radio manufacturer or to a qualified dealer). Is it possible to change the data attached to the MMSI? I'm assuming we need to go back through the FCC? Thanks for your help.

Jefecinco
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby Jefecinco » Mon Dec 16, 2019 9:55 am

If the MMSI wasere obtained from BOAT/US I believe the information can be changed on the BOAT/US web site. When we moved to another home I was able to change some MMSI information.
Butch

PatSea
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby PatSea » Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:24 am

That's really the crux of the question. The MMSI was NOT obtained through BoatUS or Power Squadron. It was obtained through the FCC. I'm not sure if I can make the changes through the FCC.

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:45 am

PatSea wrote:I know that changing the MMSI number in a radio requires that it be sent back to the radio manufacturer or to a qualified dealer.


Standard-Horizon HX890 radios can have their MMSI changed in the field. Contact technical support at Standard-Horizon for details.

MMSI IN GENERAL

In general, an MMSI is assigned to a vessel, not to a radio, but for hand held radios NOT associated with one particular vessel, that rule is not maintained, and a special category MMSI should be used, in which the MMSI is associated with the hand held RADIO and the OWNER of the radio is the contact person.

If a handheld radio is not associated with one particular boat--which is the situation we are discussing in this topic--then the hand held radio should not be programmed with an MMSI that is associated with one particular boat. The radio should have its own MMSI.

There is a special category of MMSI that has been created specifically for hand held radios NOT associated with a particular boat. But, in the USA, the FCC cannot provide these special MMSI numbers, and instead recommends the hand held radio not associated with a particular boat be programmed with an MMSI from a private registry agent (such as BoatUS or United States Power Squadron).

A hand held radio not associated with a particular vessel IS ASSOCIATED with a particular person.

There is no category of MMSI that NOT associated with a particular vessel and also NOT associated with a particular person.

WHAT TO DO IN THIS SITUATION

If the HX890 radio that is to be removed from the boat it has been associated with by encoding of that boat's FCC-issued MMSI and then used on another boat, there really is no particularly recommended procedure for this that does not involve changing the MMSI in the radio.

The most logical way to proceed, from what I can see, would be to:

--get a new MMSI for the new boat on which the radio will be used from a licensed-by-rule registry agency like BoatUS
--contact Standard Horizon; give them the new MMSI you want in the radio, and they will give you an unlock code to re-program it
--reprogram the radio to the MMSI of the new boat
--use the radio

When the radio is returned to the owner, repeat the process above. Here I assume the radio can be re-programmed more than once, so you better verify that with Standard-Horizon.

Actually, the simplest procedure will be to just buy a radio for the other boat, get an MMSI (either from the FCC if necessary or from a licensed-by-rule registry agency, and follow the normal procedure. You can buy a great DSC radio for $140. You can get an MMSI from BoatUS for free. In the total cost of a long trip by boat, $140 cannot be a deal-breaker.

If the owner of the HX890 has an FCC-issued MMSI encoded into the radio, there is no way you can use that radio properly without changing the MMSI. If you were to contact the FCC and transfer the MMSI to another boat, it could cost $220 (for another FCC MMSI) and probably $60 (to modify the the existing license).

You are proposing to do something that was really not ever envisioned in the administration of MMSI numbers. The concept of a MMSI did not envision that people would loan their DSC radio to a friend for temporary use.

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:55 am

PatSea wrote:That's really the crux of the question. The MMSI was NOT obtained through BoatUS or Power Squadron. It was obtained through the FCC. I'm not sure if I can make the changes through the FCC.


To get an FCC-issued MMSI the ship must also have an FCC ship station license and callsign. The MMSI is part of the ship station license, not a separately administered element. Only the licensee of the ship station license can modify the license.

I don't believe there is a method to transfer a ship station license to another person. I would expect that you'd have to get a new ship station license from the FCC and the request that the MMSI of your friend's vessel be associated with it because you were the new owner. It would be complicated, if it's even possible, and probably involve a lot of fees. The minimum administrative fee is $60, as I recall. A new license is about $220. It's cheaper to get your own radio.

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:57 am

PatSea wrote:A friend of mine ...has his personal data registered to the MMSI number.


Actually, the MMSI is associated with a ship, not a person. The MMSI is part of the ship station license, and the owner of the ship is the licensee.

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:01 am

For more about MMSI and hand held radios see

Handheld DSC Radio in USA: Use; MMSI Assignment
http://continuouswave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=2646

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:02 am

For more about changing the MMSI on a DSC radio by the end user, see

Reset of MMSI for DSC Radio by End User
http://continuouswave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=2676

PatSea
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby PatSea » Wed Dec 18, 2019 7:33 am

Here is an update. I learned yesterday that my friend had originally registered for the MMSI through the United States Power Squadron, not through the FCC as I reported earlier. A few days ago he went into the Power Squadron site and updated the data to show my data, and for the vessel name/classification he listed small boat/unspecified.
I had an opportunity to use the SH HX890 radio yesterday and it appears to be a very high quality unit. I also have a SH fixed mount GX2100 which I am also impressed with.

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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Wed Dec 18, 2019 8:44 am

With the change in the situation to the MMSI being issued by a licensed-by-rule agency, there weren’t any fees associated with the transfer of the MMSI to you. Essentially, he “sold” his vessel identification to you, and you can “sell” it back to him later. Of course, if your friend has a fixed mount radio on his boat with that same MMSI, it will now identify you and your boat, not him and his boat. I presume his boat is in storage for the winter.

PatSea
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby PatSea » Wed Dec 18, 2019 8:55 am

Jim, my friend does not have a fixed mount radio or another MMSI, so no complications.

jimh
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Re: Standard-Horizon HX890: Change MMSI

Postby jimh » Wed Dec 18, 2019 11:29 am

That worked out well.

Actually, for a hand-held radio that MIGHT be used on more than one boat, having an MMSI from a licensed-by-rule agency in the USA is the recommended procedure.

Standard-Horizon has been a leader in making DSC radios whose MMSI can be changed in the field, and since we have been discussing an HX890, you could have changed the MMSI without the hassle of sending it out to California and paying a fee.