Rome / Floyd P25 System

[Metrofire31]

I meant to add that I was using a BC 396XT with a remote head and I did not detect any audio distortion. The sound seemed very clear - in fact, it was much clearer that what I usually experience with the Cobb County system.

[RomeRon]

Originally Posted by TheHaydenator

Another quick update to everyone. I decided to take my new scanner along on my trip to Atlanta yesterday to see how it did with the P-25 systems there and in Cobb. It did excellent. Even at interstate speeds there was barely any interference at all unlike what we all experiencing here in Floyd. It was all crystal clear with the exception of the digital voice distortion that happens everywhere. It's not just us scanner listeners either finding bugs with the Floyd System either, as I've heard too many complaints to count from my public safety friends.

All I can say, and I'm no expert on it, but everyone who's talked to Williams Comm. say that they've been told to give it time (The date of Valentine's Day has been tentatively thrown around) and these problems will clear up, as they are daily working on and fine tuning the system on everything from power and signal to volume. I believe them too, and I hope that when they do get it fined tuned finally, that it will be and sound just as good as those systems in Metro Atlanta.

When you think about it, it's a complicated and advanced system, so it's got to be tuned before it's perfect. You could buy the nicest and most accurate hunting rifle ever, but it's still not going to be perfect for you until you take it to the gun range and zero it in, lol. Same thing goes for the radio system. Just because they've worked on it for a year now, still doesn't mean it would be perfect as soon as they switched it on for public safety last month. It was then that the time to try it out and fine tune it actually began, and it will be a process that I expect will continue for a few weeks from now.

Ha, Williams/Harris may be able to get the bugs out of those seven thousand dollar radios, but evendently they haven't listened to a scanner to see what we are talking about on the scanner end, it's not a few bugs, it is infeasted with cockroachs.

If something is this complicated to set up then whats going to happen when they have a problem with the system? God help us all.

If I can buy a 49.00 cell phone that can pick up then pick up again when it changes towers it looks like the scanner manufacturers could make a scanner do the same.

[RomeRon]

Originally Posted by Metrofire31

Traveled thru Rome twice this weekend. Picked up the following:
402 - Floyd EMS Dispatch
54 - Rome Police
13 - Floyd County PD Dispatch
206 - Rome Fire Dispatch

How much of the conversation did you pick up? Hope you got more than two words at a time.

[Metrofire31]

It seemed to be a normal conversation. Just remember, I was passing through (actually around on the bypass) so I may have been lucky. I can tell you that I got stopped for speeding by a FCPD officer and I can assure you that Talkgroup 013 works perfectly. I listen as the officer in the car behind me ran my drivers license. Heard both sides of conversation all too plainly!

[gfkeith]

I was Cobb County today and I agree, the systems sounded great. Hope Harris/Williams Communcations will be about to fine tune Rome/Floyd's system soon. I was beginning to think that it was my PSR 800.

[TheHaydenator]

Ok everyone, got another update. I talked to someone today that is close to the new radio system, and Williams and Harris have said that the major adjustments are complete. Which means, what your hearing is what you get. The system is fine (even on my end), so now if your having problems scanning, its definitely not the system, but its your scanner needs some fine tuning. Also, I was told that County PD just started the process of having the mobile radios put in the cars, meaning everything we've heard so far has been from the less powerful portables, The other agencies will get their car radios installed over the next few weeks, so that should improve our listening also.

On my Uniden BCD396XT scanner, I have also learned a few things this past week. For one, just like the radio system itself, our scanners actually adjust and fine tune themselves automatically to better scan the radio system its set to. It actually learns the system over time, meaning the more you scan Floyd's system, the better your able to hear it, as it decodes better. Also, that choppiness is not problems with signal reception, but actually with our scanners decoding it. If you plug your scanner up to FreeScan of look at its P25 Threshold numbers, it will give you an error rate. These are the errors it has as it decodes. Of course, you want as close to 0 as you can get for that rate. For the Uniden scanners, you can hold down the Hold button and turn the power on, and it will let you go in and tweak the P25 level yourself, which adjusts the threshold voltages and hopefully allows for less decoding errors and better audio. On the Uniden scanners, the screen will flash colors when you turn it on like this. Then you go to settings, p25 level, and then you have a few choices. The default level is 50, and allows for a more flexible scanning for p25 systems threshold wise. You can change it to 100, which is a good medium between 50, and your last choice, 200. 200 pretty much locks the threshold down. I have found in programming these scanners the past few days that 200 is better for base scanners, while 50 is more suitable for portable scanners. As said though, your scanner learns the system over time. Keep it scanning and it should get better for the audio you hear because it knows how to decode better. I can also say that since playing with the level and getting my error rate down to 0, and into the teens at the most, that it's as clear as a whistle, even when traveling at highway speeds where it was choppy before.

[RomeRon]

Originally Posted by TheHaydenator

Ok everyone, got another update. I talked to someone today that is close to the new radio system, and Williams and Harris have said that the major adjustments are complete. Which means, what your hearing is what you get. The system is fine (even on my end), so now if your having problems scanning, its definitely not the system, but its your scanner needs some fine tuning. Also, I was told that County PD just started the process of having the mobile radios put in the cars, meaning everything we've heard so far has been from the less powerful portables, The other agencies will get their car radios installed over the next few weeks, so that should improve our listening also.

On my Uniden BCD396XT scanner, I have also learned a few things this past week. For one, just like the radio system itself, our scanners actually adjust and fine tune themselves automatically to better scan the radio system its set to. It actually learns the system over time, meaning the more you scan Floyd's system, the better your able to hear it, as it decodes better. Also, that choppiness is not problems with signal reception, but actually with our scanners decoding it. If you plug your scanner up to FreeScan of look at its P25 Threshold numbers, it will give you an error rate. These are the errors it has as it decodes. Of course, you want as close to 0 as you can get for that rate. For the Uniden scanners, you can hold down the Hold button and turn the power on, and it will let you go in and tweak the P25 level yourself, which adjusts the threshold voltages and hopefully allows for less decoding errors and better audio. On the Uniden scanners, the screen will flash colors when you turn it on like this. Then you go to settings, p25 level, and then you have a few choices. The default level is 50, and allows for a more flexible scanning for p25 systems threshold wise. You can change it to 100, which is a good medium between 50, and your last choice, 200. 200 pretty much locks the threshold down. I have found in programming these scanners the past few days that 200 is better for base scanners, while 50 is more suitable for portable scanners. As said though, your scanner learns the system over time. Keep it scanning and it should get better for the audio you hear because it knows how to decode better. I can also say that since playing with the level and getting my error rate down to 0, and into the teens at the most, that it's as clear as a whistle, even when traveling at highway speeds where it was choppy before.

Yeah, I can tell william harris has the system peaked to optimum performance, Know how I know, my pro106 that never missed a beat at home is now like driving down Shorter Ave picking up every other two words.
To bad I don't have a family member that is a high ranking Rome/Floyd county government official, If I did I could have a harris radio (scanner) with the push to talk button disabled at the expense of the tax payers.

[b7spectra]

Thanks to everyone who has submitted the talk groups, I have updated the Floyd/Rome page.

[RomeRon]

In todays Rome News Tribune paper, Floyd County to patch into Polk radios, just one question who is paying who to patch Polk county into the Rome system?
I bet we end up paying for the patch to Polk county.

[RomeRon]

Rome News Tribune link

RN-T.com - Floyd County to patch into Polk radios

[t0xPro-197]

wow thanks for the update i live in cedartown and only thing we hera here is the ems/fire dispatch atm i have floyd co in my radio the systems working well i believe will be paying for it here in polk if ive heard right cause we paying more for garbage pickup water ect ill check into it more myself thanks for the update thought i wouldnt have ever known

[codeplug]

Any updates on how scanners are working now on the new Rome / Floyd County P-25 System.

[t0xPro-197]

i montor from home i live in polk co there systems getting too be alot claerer and been very good i get 5 bars on my pro-197 its been doing very well so far

[Cedartown1]

Before I drive myself nuts changing settings for Floyd Co ya'll please tell me if these are correct or what you would suggest other than what I'm doing.

Uniden BCD396XT
Floyd Co. (programmed in all towers)
Floyd co= (programed in a LOT of TGID's, all from here)
ID scan/search = Scan
Delay time= 5 seconds
Hold Time= 2 seconds
P25 filter=Off
P25 Adjust mode=11
P25 Adjust level= 50
Adjust Audio AGC
**** Digital AGC
******** Response Time=0
******** Reference Gain=0

I have no idea if something needs set for LSM mode or if anything needs setting or changed in "Band Defaults"

Thanks, I'm about to go nuts fine tuning for the choppy audio and usualy only hearing one side of the conversation!

[Cedartown1]

Thanks to Codeplug for replying. If it's OK with ya'll I'm posting on open forum to maybe help someone else with the same questions about Floyd Co.
If someone will look at my previous post about the P25 ( BCD396XT) settings and how it applies to Floyd county I would ever be greatful!!!


Codeplug: I have no idea what the Mutual Freqs are, but if I knew I would program them also!!! <hint..hint>



Looking on RR website there is a section : "Rome / Floyd County 700 & 800 mhz"
I noticed four of them said P25 and one was 800mhz FM. So.... is there any use in entering them in, and if so should it be entered in a different system in the radio? ( I know how to handle the FM freq)

Thanks everyone, hopefully all this will help me and someone else also.

[akelley24]

Hi-
I know this is a repetitive question but....I have a Uniden BCD396XT scanner. I bought it new in February. I understand the more it scans the system, the better it will decode and adjust. I just wanted to make sure I have everything programmed correctly. All of my programming information came from Radio Reference. I have it programmed as follows...

System - Rome/Floyd
Site - Programmed all frequencies in Red from RR
Groups - All TGID's that I want
ID Scan/Search - Scan
Delay time - 5 seconds
Hold time - 2 seconds
P25 LP Filter - Off
P25 Adjust Level - 50
P25 Adjust Mode - 11
Close Call - Off
Priority Scan - Off
WX Alt Priority - Off

Firmware Version - 1.11.01
RadioShack 800MHz antenna

I programmed it manually as P25-Standard Trunk

If anyone has any information on if this the correct programming, PM me please.

[Cedartown1]

It looks good to me. How are you doing with it?

[akelley24]

Doing ok with it. Reception and choppiness are getting a little better. Just mainly wanted to make sure I programmed it right. Thanks for your help.

[Cedartown1]

This is a friend of a friend story <roll eyes>

A friend of mine talked to a guy that said he worked / works on Floyd Co radio system. They compared my friends BCD396XT to the other guys city handy talkie radio. The handy talkie sounded GREAT and picked up more channels than the bearcat. The channels on his radio were clear with no choppyines and sounded great.
The other guy said that was since all of the towers broadcast at the same time (simulcast) that it confused the reciever on the BC396 and it would lock and unlock on a particular tower hence the choppiness. The city radios he said had a circuit to compensate and or ignore the other towers when a broadcast is recieved. My buddy said the other guys radio sounded great!
He alluded to "someone" in Rome that could program the scanners to do this also. (I don't think so, IMHO) but that is what he said anyway.
Just throwing this out for whatever it is worth.

[akelley24]

I noticed today that there are some new TGID's showing up while in ID SEARCH. When I'm off on weekdays I switch over to ID SEARCH just out of curiosity. Today I noticed the ID# 57098 and ID# 57002. They sounded like law tacs but I'm not sure. Just wondering if anyone else has seen these or might know what they belong to.