The Scanner Obsession Begins - HELP PLEASE

[pingdew]

Hi Guys,

Considering purchasing a scanner and I'd like some guidance if possible. I'll list some background information for you.

Experience: Newbie, however very capable at adapting to and learning new fields and technologies. Electrical Engineer and computer programmer for a living.

Purchasing Power: I'm fortunate enough to be able to afford the best and I've started saving for those choices while I do my research. I'm in no hurry and won't be making an impulse purchase.

Zip Code: 49056 (I definately live out in the country). I would like to grab the Kalamazoo (City) area (~20 miles) in addition to my local county Van Buren, MI. If this is possible?

Portable vs. Desktop: I would rarely if ever use a portable scanner. However what am I actually giving up by choosing a desktop over a portable. Use the BCD536HP vs. BCD436HP as an example. Why "wouldn't" I buy a portable for the rare occassion I'd want to use one? What do I lose?

The Future: My biggest concern is what I understand the least about. I read that new radio technology may be making even the most highest end scanners obsolete. I don't want to buy a $600 scanner that will be a paper weight in 1 yr.

Antenna's: I know ZERO about them. So if I want to pickup up the city police (Kalamazoo) that is ~ 20 miles away will I need to install an antenna at my home? Or because of repeaters (Not even sure if this stuff exists) I'd be "okay."

I'm sure I'll have more questions later but they are summarized below.
1. Is my area using radio technologies that a modern scanner can monitor now and for a reasonable of time into the future.
2. Portable vs. Desktop. Which would you choose and why? (Knowing that I "may" never take it out of my house).
3. Antenna's - Please explan or point me to a solid resource.

Thanks in advance for any help you provide.

 

[trap5858]

Welcome, you have come to the right place to gain knowledge and experience and get a lot of insight and of course opinions.

Analyzing your needs is priority. Of course there is no one perfect scanner. Like cars everyone has a favorite brand or model. One scanner tends to lead to another and as technology changes our need to keep up with the changes also escalates.

Scanners today can do so much and have a very steep learning curve- you might be ahead of the curve with your professional background. Continue reading the forums for the various brands and models out there. Try to find some locals who have scanners and see what they use, watch listen and learn.

Over the course of my scanning career I have owned base scanners as well as portables and prefer portable for just that reason- go anywhere with it. Now that they are programmable they are even more versatile. Antennas- there is no perfect one- all are a compromise especially multi- band antennas.

Good luck and keep asking

 

[bharvey2]

Your definitely in the right place if you're a new (or even a seasoned) scanner user. RadioReference and its members offer a wealth of information.

I think the best way to approach your new hobby is to first determine what you'd like to listen to. It seems you've started that. I just visited my wife's family in Michigan (Cass County) earlier this month and found that most of the local traffic is pretty easy to monitor. With only a few exceptions, my scanner (Radioshack PRO-668) was capable of monitoring everything that was listed in the RR database. Even with a handheld, I was able to hear quite a bit, even out on the farm where she grew up. Michigan does have a statewide system and I didn't get an opportunity to monitor that although my scanner was technically capable.

That being said, I have no doubt that a desktop scanner with a suitable roof mounted antenna would increase the listening area substantially. I've always purchased handheld scanners so that I can go portable if desired but have also installed outdoor antennas and connected them to the portables to aid in reception. The setup isn't as "refined" as a desktop model and looks a little more "klutzy" but it affords me the best of both worlds.

Also, I've always been slow in purchasing new models of scanners. Like computers, It seems you're always behind in the latest and greatest technology. Unfortunately, it seems to be worse in the scanner world. The are some established radio technologies that still have little if any support by scanner manufacturers.

One thing you may want to consider is purchasing one of the USB receiving dongles and downloading the appropriate software. (Examples are Nooelec RTL-SDR dongle and SDR#) Not only will this appeal to the computer geek in you but you'll be able to monitor many more types of systems such as DMR and NXDN which are out of reach of the current lineup of scanners. For less that $50 and some sweat-equity, you could buy and build a pretty decent monitoring setup. In doing so, you'd likely learn a lot on the way and you'd probably get a better feel for what you want in an off the shelf scanner.

- I hope this helps.

 

[pingdew]

Thanks guys for the great replies. I'll now try to be a bit more specific and short with my questions.

Zip Code 49056
1. Is my area using radio technologies that a modern scanner can monitor now and for a reasonable of time into the future.

If you answer this, how did you find what my area is using and what key words were you looking for? Finally, where ever you looked does it give any indication if an area is using an encrypted system or a system that can't be scanned by a conventional scanner (DMR, MotoTRBO, etc.)




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[ab3a]

Greetings and welcome!

In your case, especially because you live in a rural area, I will pass along the advice my mentors gave to me as a young ham radio enthusiast: Put your money in the antenna first.

The first rule of antennas is get it up as high as you can. Obviously there are limits. Spouses and neighbors may not appreciate a radio tower. Home Owner's Associations may actually have rules against such structures. But do try to get it up as high as possible. I live on a small farm, so my main limit is my home budget and buy-in from my wife (she likes to listen too, so as long as it's reasonable she's cool with it).

The second rule of antennas is to use good transmission line. Avoid the cheap stuff, especially for UHF band. Do not use that cheap RG-58-type junk from the local radio supply store. You will hear things much better if you use a quality transmission line. Real RG-213 coax isn't bad; hard-line coax is much better. You will hear a lot more with quality cable.

The third rule is to ensure that you have safely grounded that structure directly to a ground rod below and that you have bonded that ground rod to your home electrical ground as well. SAFETY FIRST! Even a nearby lightning storm can cause significant damage, and a direct strike could easily burn down your house unless you take these measures.

Next, look up your counties of interest in the RadioReference database. I looked at Van Buren county and found that there aren't many trunked radio systems there except for a Phase I P25 system for the state public safety system.

This means that you should be able to do fine even with older P25 trunking scanners. Feel free to look in the used market for one if you're not willing to drop big money in to this right away.

In rural areas, the big issue with radio system upgrades are the Federal Communications Commission rule changes. There is usually no reason to change unless the FCC tells them to. It costs them millions of dollars and frankly, many of them would rather spend it on other stuff. Talk to your local police department about what timelines they're thinking of using to upgrade. However, I would bet they're not likely to upgrade unless the FCC forces them to.

Regarding the use of portable scanners, please be careful. Michigan has laws regarding the use of a scanner during the commission, or attempted commission of a crime. I'm not sure what a "crime" is. Is it a misdemeanor like speeding? I would leave the thing off and stowed in the trunk while driving around. Some like to bring scanners to sporting events, especially NASCAR and air shows. If you think that might be you, then consider a portable scanner.

If you do find yourself frequently listening and carrying a portable scanner, there is a way to do this legally in nearly all states: Get a ham radio license. The police are supposed to recognize this license. In most states with scanner laws, there are exceptions for ham radio enthusiasts.

Good luck!

 

[pingdew]

Thanks guys. I need to do more research but currently I'm leaning towards a BCD436HP. Unless I'm doing some poor research, even the older P25 trunking scanners are still relatively expensive. So why not do a little future proofing with the 436 for another couple hundred dollars. However, the dimming issues do concern me and the fact that while it's on my night stand it will look clunky compared to a having base scanner. But I think portablility is going to debate the portable / base debate for me. Anyways, more research.

 

[Ronaldski]

Before you decide to do so look to this link that does show the police at least is encrypted - aka scrambled cant listen to them.
Encrypted Agencies - The RadioReference Wiki

 

[prplehz]

Buy a Whistler. Uniden has a bunch of problems and the Whistler scanners work better in my experience.