BCD436HP/BCD536HP: How loud is the BCD436HP?

What are your comments on the loudness of the speaker of the BCD436HP. Is one able to hear this walking down the road in a downtown area and can still hear it on your hip? How loud is this unit?

The more comments the better!

Thanks in advance!

I have both the 436 and the 396xt...the 396xt is much louder.you would not hear the 436 with it on your belt in a downtown setting.if you had it in your hand you might.i love the loudness of the 396xt.hope they make a 396 p2 model.

TheWarlock said:

What are your comments on the loudness of the speaker of the BCD436HP. Is one able to hear this walking down the road in a downtown area and can still hear

Click to expand...

A Question that is impossible to answer as it is simply a matter of opinion...first of all do you want everyone also ' walking down the road' to hear what you are listening ? (I wouldn't want that attention from others also walking down the road. And what is a downtown area? Lot of difference between the ambient noise levels in different cities?

My 436 I never use in that fashion, it is loud enough on the front seat of my vehicle to be easily heard with the windows closed and seems to meet all the specifications.

Depends on how loud the others are around you.

I normally use volume setting 10 with setting 7 in a quiet restaurant. Rarely have I needed to go above 12. I would say in most cases you will hear it on your hip, but downtown Pittsburgh is different from downtown New York City. My volume 10 works with the car windows down with the scanner mounted on the dash if that is any indication.

That is one thing I miss about the 396 form factor - the ability to use it in my shirt pocket. I could always hear it at volume 10.

Wow. I run it at 12 in my truck only because the large tires introduce a lot of road noise to overcome. In my office I feel intrusive if I have it any higher than 5 - I normally keep it at 4.

If I have all the windows and sunroof open in my truck, on the highway, even 15 won't do. If I were going to make a habit of doing so, I'd need an amplified speaker.

Walking down a city street, you should be able to get away with 7 to 10. Remember, as others said, not everyone around you wants to hear what you're listening to.

If you have issues hearing it, look for a bargain pair of earbuds of the type that will fit any smartphone or music player.

If you want a cheap (free) way of making it sound louder in a vehicle, do what, again, smartphone or music player people do, and stick it in the cupholder. The speaker being at the bottom of the radio, the sound will reverberate around the enclosed area of the cupholder and give the impression that it's amplified. I know plenty of people who put their phone in the (empty!) sink or a plastic tub, to focus the sound from its downward-facing speaker out into the room.

436 Loudness

Although some have talked about the relative term of loudness, I can say this after own one of these radios, it pales in comparison to my PSR 500. But, I have maximized my listening experience by using the Uniden external speaker using their stereo design. Of course, this feature prevents me from using my Kenwood 3.5 mm axillary jack to pipe the radio through my stereo system, a much louder option for my PSR 500. No, I'm not thrilled with the audio on this radio, but it has other features that keeps my interest.

Ok I am 57 bifocals and partial hearing loss from 5 years of supercharged racing motors 6 to 7 in quite area 10 to 11 in a car driving down the road. Never have I had to hook up my scanners to a home or car stereo to hear them. Like I stated I can see the screen on my 436 sitting in the console cup holder and can hear the 436 fine from the cup holder. My GRE Whistler built PRO-18 and PRO-668 have less audio but larger screen fonts on a smaller display with less information than my 436. Youtube is your friend look up videos you will see these scanners in action and hear them and that should help you with your choice.

For only having 3 AA's (4.5V), the 436 produces surprisingly loud audio. No problems hearing it in a cheap car...