MA SP Zones 1 and 5?

[fog]

I have a long commute that takes me from New Hampshire into downtown Boston. I'm trying to set up my radio (Pro-96) for the State Police, but I'm a bit confused on the usage of Zone 1 versus Zone 5.

Zone 5 has lots of traffic, but as I was closer to Boston, I noticed several marked cruisers go flying by me on 93 (Medford area), yet there was no radio traffic about anything occurring. I tried programming Zone 1, but in the 15 minutes or so I listened, I didn't hear anything but maintenance/janitorial-type communication.

Do the State Police use Zone 1 at all? Do Troops A and H use anything but Zone 5?

Thanks in advance for any guidance!

[ecps92]

Think of it this way.

Zone 5 is MSP and the other Law Enforcement type Agencies
Zone 1 is the DCR, MWRA and Convention Center

If all you want is the MSP use Zone 5

You can try the other Zones, but unless you travel Rte-3 they would not be of value to you [reception] Zone 8 then the Cape Cod/Bristol/Plymouth Zones

Originally Posted by fog

I have a long commute that takes me from New Hampshire into downtown Boston. I'm trying to set up my radio (Pro-96) for the State Police, but I'm a bit confused on the usage of Zone 1 versus Zone 5.

Zone 5 has lots of traffic, but as I was closer to Boston, I noticed several marked cruisers go flying by me on 93 (Medford area), yet there was no radio traffic about anything occurring. I tried programming Zone 1, but in the 15 minutes or so I listened, I didn't hear anything but maintenance/janitorial-type communication.

Do the State Police use Zone 1 at all? Do Troops A and H use anything but Zone 5?

Thanks in advance for any guidance!

[investigator16]

When I travel to Boston I only use Zone 5 (CC 860.962 & 860.987) I get A & H Troops also some of the E Troop. Plus other TG pop up like C-PTL-1 and D-PTL-1. It says in the DB that F-PTL-1 is in Zone 5, but I have never heard them.

Mark

[fog]

It wasn't clear to me that Zone 1 didn't have police traffic. Thanks for confirming that.

It's funny -- I can hear traffic on Zone 5 from the New Hampshire line to Boston, surely jumping between a few towers. And yet, the whole way, it's scratchy. I figured there'd be some pockets, but plenty of points where it came in booming. No such luck. Then again, 800 MHz, rubber ducky, and inside a car is maybe not the best pairing.

[gordon115]

You want Zone 5 for the MSP in the Boston area and north on Routes 93/95 to the NH border. Zone 1 is MWRA, DCR and a few other state agencies. Zone 5 is a multi site simulcast system that covers a pretty large area from the NH border out to 495 and south along most of 495 toward the cape.

In the Medford area you want talk group A Patrol 2 Station A4 which is the Medford barracks. If the units were in the barracks when the call came in, there may not have been any radio transmissions until they arrived on scene. If there was some type of special event/operation going on it would be on one of the SOPS talk groups or the BIS, Detective or NARC talk groups depending on the units involved.

Gordon

[ecps92]

Lots of Nextel interference. Even right under a Tower it still might be scratchy. Maybe try an 800 Antenna?

Originally Posted by fog

It wasn't clear to me that Zone 1 didn't have police traffic. Thanks for confirming that.

It's funny -- I can hear traffic on Zone 5 from the New Hampshire line to Boston, surely jumping between a few towers. And yet, the whole way, it's scratchy. I figured there'd be some pockets, but plenty of points where it came in booming. No such luck. Then again, 800 MHz, rubber ducky, and inside a car is maybe not the best pairing.

[ecps92]

F-PTL-1 is rarely used by F-Troop.
It's more for Interop with those Troopers not assigned to F-Troop.

F-Troop's primary operation is on the Massport TRS

Originally Posted by investigator16

When I travel to Boston I only use Zone 5 (CC 860.962 & 860.987) I get A & H Troops also some of the E Troop. Plus other TG pop up like C-PTL-1 and D-PTL-1. It says in the DB that F-PTL-1 is in Zone 5, but I have never heard them.

Mark

[investigator16]

Thanks 92... That is what I was thinking. We be in town on 11/27 for a Celtics game. Will be there til 12/1..

[N1BHH]

The only time you will hear any F-Patrol-1 traffic on that zone is if the trooper is out of range of the airport.

[cja1987]

Originally Posted by fog

I have a long commute that takes me from New Hampshire into downtown Boston. I'm trying to set up my radio (Pro-96) for the State Police, but I'm a bit confused on the usage of Zone 1 versus Zone 5.

Zone 5 has lots of traffic, but as I was closer to Boston, I noticed several marked cruisers go flying by me on 93 (Medford area), yet there was no radio traffic about anything occurring. I tried programming Zone 1, but in the 15 minutes or so I listened, I didn't hear anything but maintenance/janitorial-type communication.

Do the State Police use Zone 1 at all? Do Troops A and H use anything but Zone 5?

Thanks in advance for any guidance!

I'm assuming you have just the A and H talkgroups programmed and your not simply using a wildcard on Zone 5?

If so, punch in E Patrol 1 at least and maybe try some of the other Troop E talkgroups and VHF freqs. It may be that your seeing Troop E units, I was once in the same state of confusion over this paradox. I believe E (turnpike) responds to the Leverett Connector and other areas near the Zakim bridge. You can identify them because they seem, unlike the other troops (except for F), to have on there license plates "xxxxxx E" and sometimes a unit number painted on the back/sides that inculdes an E at the beginning or end, don't remember which. Don't ask me what E is doing that far north besides turning around but I have seen them southbound in the Medford area many, many times.

MSP is also known to run in large groups, lights and sirens to get through traffic (and there is alot of it in the Medford area) to lucrative details and the like, no radio traffic involved. SOPS also a possibility but maybe not as likely cause I used to listen to the SOPS channels all the time and it was usually routine special event traffic.

I often made that same drive going to college in Plymouth, NH and living in Randolph, MA. I got great reception overall, but the blasts of static you describe are NEXTEL interference and it wont make any difference whether you have a mobile antenna (I use one) or the rubber duck, it will completely blow you away. While on I-93, listen for the static and when it comes look around your car (if you can do so safely) you will usually find the culprit in some type of communications tower near the road.

Nothing you can do about it until the corrupt hacks in Massachusetts decide to bring there system up with the times and re band the damn thing. Never noticed these kinds of problems with other states 800 mhz systems.

[ecps92]

There is nothing in Rebanding that deals with Hacks ! Much to learn young one.

There is a lot of coordination, that needs to occur.

Nextel needs to abandon the Frequencies first [which means loss of signal for lots of customers]

Then a coordinated effort to RETUNE, ReProgram [more than once] Portables, Mobiles [Not just the MSP] and Base Stations, then the Repeater Sites and Re-Align them. Some of the Cape Cod Dept's have already done this [Conventional] as did Worcesters TRS.

The Larger ones Massport, Boston, MSP are a long process.

Originally Posted by cja1987

I'm assuming you have just the A and H talkgroups programmed and your not simply using a wildcard on Zone 5?

Nothing you can do about it until the corrupt hacks in Massachusetts decide to bring there system up with the times and re band the damn thing. Never noticed these kinds of problems with other states 800 mhz systems.

[rad1oreference]

I use Zone 5 from Boston all the way to the 95 or 495 north border with NH. Not always clear. I can be driving on 495 with clear reception ,then the minute i enter 95N, it gets scratchy. I use a RS mobile antenna.

I'm closer to the Andover barracks. It has also happened to me that I'm around wilmington on 93 and 3 cruisers jet by me with lights flashing and no comms on the radio, just to find out that they were arresting someone 4 miles away. I didn't hear one single communication indicating that.

The other day, I see a cruiser pulling over a car around Haverhill on the highway, and I didn't hear even the communication at all.

The bad reception i get is where 93 meets 95 in Woburn. It gets really bad there. The strangest one is when Im driving to Maine on 95 even on the Piscataqua bridge (NH-ME border), I can hear the Mass State Police clear.

I normally use my Pro-97 in the car.

[ecps92]

Even the MSP Radios [Ports and Mobiles] have issues along some of those areas of Rte-95/Rte-93/Rte-128

Originally Posted by rad1oreference

I use Zone 5 from Boston all the way to the 95 or 495 north border with NH. Not always clear. I can be driving on 495 with clear reception ,then the minute i enter 95N, it gets scratchy. I use a RS mobile antenna.

I'm closer to the Andover barracks. It has also happened to me that I'm around wilmington on 93 and 3 cruisers jet by me with lights flashing and no comms on the radio, just to find out that they were arresting someone 4 miles away. I didn't hear one single communication indicating that.

The other day, I see a cruiser pulling over a car around Haverhill on the highway, and I didn't hear even the communication at all.

The bad reception i get is where 93 meets 95 in Woburn. It gets really bad there. The strangest one is when Im driving to Maine on 95 even on the Piscataqua bridge (NH-ME border), I can hear the Mass State Police clear.

I normally use my Pro-97 in the car.