Grovertown DPS digital?

[firefighter479]

I've been hearing a digital signal on the Grovetown DPS frequency 155.520mhz. Heard it for the first time yesterday morning and again this morning after I got off duty. Sounds sort of like NXDN... anyone have any input?

[rapidcharger]

According to the ULS the city of grovetown has the emission designators for 12.5khz NXDN on the freq for voice and data.

[firefighter479]

Well..... another one down the tubes as far as monitoring goes. First it was McDuffie County going to NXDN, Gold Cross switched to MotoTrbo, then Columbia County went to phase II P25 encrypted, and now Grovetown went NXDN. My monitoring hobby is dwindling down more and more. Using a computer, soundcard, and software to monitor NXDN and/or MotoTrbo is not feasible for me as 98% of my monitoring is done mobile and via my handheld at work.

Why the big rush/push to go digital? Not just any digital but formats that can't be monitored with a scanner? I'm about to give up on this hobby, it's becoming too much of a PITA.

[rapidcharger]

Originally Posted by frootydawg

Well..... another one down the tubes as far as monitoring goes. First it was McDuffie County going to NXDN, Gold Cross switched to MotoTrbo, then Columbia County went to phase II P25 encrypted, and now Grovetown went NXDN. My monitoring hobby is dwindling down more and more. Using a computer, soundcard, and software to monitor NXDN and/or MotoTrbo is not feasible for me as 98% of my monitoring is done mobile and via my handheld at work. )))

Chances are "work" will soon be on nxdn or dmr/trbo soon too and then you can once again listen.... maybe.

Originally Posted by frootydawg

(((Why the big rush/push to go digital? )))

The big push to go digital was the narrowbanding mandate. And not just the one to the current 12.5khz narrowband specification but also to a future 6.25 khz "Very narrowband" requirement. That... and they kinda sell themselves. NXDN and DMR are not real expensive radios. With DMR, one repeater literally does the job of two. It's easily networkable. If you've got a lot of places in the coverage area that are marginally or even barely useable on analogue, with digital, those become loud and clear with no static whatsoever. And a number of police departments (particularly the small town rural departments with zero homeland security threat) like that you can hide behind a layer of cheap encryption to conceal one's activities.

Originally Posted by frootydawg

(((Not just any digital but formats that can't be monitored with a scanner? I'm about to give up on this hobby, it's becoming too much of a PITA.

That's how I felt 20 years ago when the majority of what there was worth listening to went to trunked. That was before a scanner made it really easy for you to monitor trunking systems with a single frequency entry or even none at all in the case of home patrol scanners. As time goes on, I do believe scanners will also support DMR and NXDN however the big problem is encryption. Encryption is the hobby killer. Assuming all you want to listen to are cops.

For what it's worth, I picked up a NXDN portable AND a DMR portable for the price that just one of these fancy new scanners costs. Assuming what you want to listen to isn't encrypted or doesn't require authentication (nexedge) then consider this a brief intermission.

[RRR]

It should be noted that it is not certian there will be a 6.25Khz requirement in the forseeable future.

[nbarco]

Are they still on 173.8 ctcss?

[firefighter479]

Are they still on 173.8 ctcss?

Not if they're using NXDN. I heard the Grovetown FD using NXDN today as well. Columbia County SO still has VHF antennas on their cars... why? Unless they plan to use that band to talk to GSP and Harlem City, no one else in the county is using VHF that I'm aware of. With NXDN, MotoTrbo, and P25 phase II it seems that everyone wants their own little protocol and to heck with interoperability. I refuse to buy commercial radios just to listen to a few agencies. I may have a few scanners for sale soon....

[nbarco]

So, what kind of radio did you purchase for NXDN? Since I live in Grovetown, it wouldn't be a bad idea.


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[nbarco]

Can anyone advise if they know what Grovetown is using? I can here the digital-like noise, but don't know the difference between NXDN and Motorbo. I have a PSR-800 and know that I cannot monitor with it, but what radio would work? How can I tell if they are encrypted, beyond the basic inversion that is standard on NXDN radios.

[rapidcharger]

If you can post a brief recording of the noise someone can tell you what it is.

[nbarco]

I have done some listening online and the digital stream sounds more like MotoTRBO than NXDN. What kind of inexpensive radio can be used to monitor?


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[rapidcharger]

Originally Posted by nbarco

I have done some listening online and the digital stream sounds more like MotoTRBO than NXDN. What kind of inexpensive radio can be used to monitor?

That's unfortunate since DMR radios are more costly to get ahold of and monitoring them involves a guessing game of finding color codes and time slots. The DSD software and a modifiable scanner is the least expensive route and from what I hear it does the guesswork for you. Once you know that you can perhaps find an non-display Motorola XPR radio on the second hand market. Perhaps a Hytera or Vertex Standard could work too.

[firefighter479]

I'm assuming Grovetown is using NXDN. AFAIK, they've been a Kenwood customer and Wilson Communications, THE local Kenwood dealer, has their business located in Grovetown. To the best of my knowledge, Wilson's does all their installs, repeater service, etc. If Grovetown was needed to comply with the narrow band mandate then I understand the move to digital, if they had to buy new radios why not make the switch? I hate it because it cuts out my listening but c'est la vie.

I own several commercial radios but I still refuse to spend hundreds of dollars just to listen to a couple of agencies.

[nbarco]

It is 12.5 kHz spaced Nexedge. I am researching an inexpensive solution for monitoring. I would like to be under $200. Then I can monitor McDuffie, too.

[rapidcharger]

Originally Posted by nbarco

It is 12.5 kHz spaced Nexedge. I am researching an inexpensive solution for monitoring. I would like to be under $200. Then I can monitor McDuffie, too.

I kinda suspected that. 12.5 NXDN sounds more like DMR/motoTRBO than 6.26khz NXDN which is a very distinguishable, rather non-offensive low grumble.

It sucks that it isn't 6.25 because that would really open the doors to low cost monitoring using an Icom which can be had for less than $200 if you're patient and wait for the right deal to come around. The Kenwoods seem to be in much higher demand and I haven't seen anything kenwood for less than $300. In fairness I sort of stopped looking for them a while ago because icoms were such a better deal so the prices may have come down as more and more get ripped out of school buses and fall out of UPS trucks.

[nbarco]

So, if I can get the "how to" on what I need to scan Grovetown and McDuffie I will look into the purchase of a Nexedge radio and stream the feed.

[nbarco]

Does anyone know what radios Grovetown has? I caught a glimpse this morning and it did not look like anything on Kenwood or Icom's site.

[rapidcharger]

Well since nobody has answered yet, if you can't figure it out but can manage to get a picture of one of their radios I can probably identify what it is if you want to PM it to me. If not maybe just call them up and ask them. You might want to be a little careful how you do since small towns like that are prone to flipping the switch to Big E if they think someone is interested in listening in to their "private" "highly sensitive" communications.