Very new to this

[taikamiya44]

I Dont know if i should be asking these questions and i dont know what exactly im looking for. But im basically looking to know what the best overall scanner i should purchase these days. I would like to look at our local police frequency like many people have as a hobby for years in our small town. But they have encrypted it with a mototrbo Radio the last ive heard of. I dont know exactly how these work let alone can scanners be tracked ? i would like to buy a scanner and listen to all the frequencies fire, police and ambulance if i could but i know the police one is coded. Ps i am really new to this so if im asking dumb questions im sorry.

 

[captclint]

Welcome to RR. Anything that is encrypted can not be monitored by ANY scanner. You say you live in a small town. New York is hardly a small town. It would help it you could tell us the town and county so we can determine if anything else can be monitored.

 

[ofd8001]

Newer scanners have "stuff" inside that "passes over" encrypted radio transmissions.

If you had an older scanner, you could "hear" an encrypted transmission, but what you heard is noise. It could be something like a long hiss, "motorboating", "machine gunning" or just plain racket - certainly nothing intelligible.

Mototrbo is not an encrypted "thing" per se, rather it is a digital radio format that cannot be decoded by any scanner currently on the market. Whether that changes is anyone's guess. And it is possible that a Motortrbo signal could also be encrypted. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Motortrbo doesn't automatically mean "encrypted".

 

[Voyager]

Either encrypted anything or MotoTRBO will not be usable on a scanner. And scanners cannot be tracked (generally speaking). As cc said, need more info for a better answer.

 

[kc2kth]

I think for a first scanner a handheld is probably the most flexible due to its portability. Take it with you anywhere in the house - or out of it. The Uniden Home Patrol 2 was released recently and it makes getting going as easy as putting in your zip code. Not quite a handheld but still pretty portable. The Uniden BCD436HP is a handheld and can scan based on zip code as well but probably isn't as user friendly as the HP2.

Personally I find the local PD something I don't care to listen to anymore, so I don't care that they are encrypted in my area. Local fire and EMS, public works department can all be interested. Air and rail monitoring can be fun as well. There is a lot to listen to besides traffic stops and other stuff typically heard on the PD channels.

I'd also recommend smart phone apps or computer access to some of the online scanner streams. You might even find someone is already streaming your local public services. I've used an app called 5-0 Radio Promfor a few years in my iPhone. Works well and I can listen to any area in the US I want. Although if I want to hear something local I turnon one of my dozen or so scanners!

 

[taikamiya44]

Ok so encrytped means i cant get in. Does that mean theres a code? or does that mean there is no way possible no matter what i do i cant listen in on it. Because if theres a code i can get it

 

[Spitfire8520]

It would be very helpful if you could provide a specific location you are trying to monitor. It's hard to provide accurate recommendations if others don't know what you are trying to listen to.

Ok so encrytped means i cant get in. Does that mean theres a code? or does that mean there is no way possible no matter what i do i cant listen in on it. Because if theres a code i can get it

It means both (in a way). The codes are actually encryption keys and highly doubtful that you can get you hands on it if you don't personally know a radio technician who is ready to lose their job and get into legal trouble. Even if you did have the key, no scanner will allow you to do anything with the key as receiving such transmissions are illegal and no manufacturer wants to get into that kind of trouble.

However as others have previously stated, MOTOTRBO may not automatically mean encryption. TRBO is a digital format and a way of encoding voice information. No scanners on the market will allow you to monitor TRBO, but software like DSD and DSDPlus may allow you to decode the format (if unencrypted) when paired with a RTL-SDR or a Discriminator output. Note that this method is very well involved and is nowhere close to being as easy as buying a scanner.

 

[toastycookies]

Ok so encrytped means i cant get in. Does that mean theres a code? or does that mean there is no way possible no matter what i do i cant listen in on it. Because if theres a code i can get it

Not with a scanner.

If you can "get the code" you would need a mototrbo radio to listen.

 

[puzzleriddle]

ONLY Uniden pass or mute ENC