Carrollton P25 system-Dallas TRS-Farmers branch PD.

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tonypl056

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Hello fellow listens,

I am inquiring today about the new Carrollton P25 system., i am mostly interested in Farmers Branch for now.
i have been trying to monitor this new system and they have been testing their
radios daily and so far i can't hear anything. i have a brand new BCD436HP
and i have followed all the set up and programming directions and i have updated the firmware
and updated the full database for our area. i see that the old system in Carrollton is still up and running and all the info. and i receive all of them fine, and for what i need is there,
but after checking the databases from both here and Uniden i noticed that there isn't any
new channels for FBPD on the new Carrollton P25 system, i noticed that Russell updated the freq's/ for the new system but that's all there is there. no id's or anything else.
does anyone have input on this please?
also i remember when we first started talking about this new build that there was mention of FBPD and other agencies going and being on the Dallas TRS system which i believe is up and running, as well as on the Carrollton P25 system but i don't hear any traffic from them either.
i spent a lot of money on this new scanner and i took the advice of buying it from some friends i have here, i want to make sure that i set it up right and not damage it by over-programming because i missed something or didn't set something right.
at this point in my life my eyesight is rather bad and trying to read this owners manual that came with this new unit plus working on the Sentinel software on my computer gives me frequent headaches which totally stink because i work on this radio daily because i never know when my internet will go down.

I am grateful for any and all help with this situation.

Stay Safe and God bless

Tony
 

Ensnared

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New System

During the initial stages of installing a radio system, the listeners tend to do field work to ascertain which talk groups (channels) are being used by various agencies using the radio system in question. At present, none of these are listed in the RR DB. I would imagine that it will take a while for these to be added to the RR DB. If the other system is still active, or partially it might mean the migration to the new system has yet to be activated. If you would like to find various talk groups, there is a way to set your radio up to find new talk groups, "discovery mode." Well, I believe this is correct. Again, it might be a while before the radio parameters are defined to the listeners.
 
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tonypl056

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new system

Greetings Ensnared,

Thank you for the info. i am sure you are right on what you have explained here,
i did not even think to try the " Discovery Mode" just for chuckles
it may prove to be a good thing, i am sure they will migrate from one to another but they are active off and on testing channels mostly trying channel 3. on the new system.
at my last look into the new system frequencies and so forth there were only
5 of them, including control channel but i have yet to get those into my scanner and see whats on them. they were updated by one of our folks here so i am certain they are legit.
but i guess i'll just keep searching and listening and see what pops up
i am sure the Discovery Mode will prove very useful.


I appreciate your time and effort

thanks again..

Stay Safe and God Bless

Tony
 

n5ims

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The new P-25 Phase II system will use the same frequencies as the old Analog system. At this point (for build-out and testing), they've split off a couple of frequencies for the new system and as they migrate over, they'll drop them off the old system and add them to the new one to help balance out the users.

They've kept two frequencies that are part of the Nextel rebanding process to have some additional frequencies available during the migration. Those will be given to Nextel once the migration is completed. The two 854 MHz frequencies are the new ones that they'll keep and the two 860 MHz frequencies are the two that will go away once the migration is completed. Since the new system is Phase II, it can handle twice the traffic as the old Analog one could so they'll end up with extra voice channels, even with giving those two away.
 

IAmSixNine

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Nextel?
Nextel no longer exists. The iDen system has been decommissioned a long time ago.
Any channels given up during rebanding were the channels above 861.xxxx so the 860.xxx channel in use now can still stay in use by them.
 

KevinC

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Nextel?
Nextel no longer exists. The iDen system has been decommissioned a long time ago.
Any channels given up during rebanding were the channels above 861.xxxx so the 860.xxx channel in use now can still stay in use by them.

Trading of 860.xxxx frequencies is optional, but most agencies chose to do so.
 

IAmSixNine

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The whole purpose of it was to get users on the 861.xxxx to 865.xxxx frequencies off to give a larger buffer in that range. It went from a 5mhz window to 10mhz.
If you had 861.xxxx to 865.xxxx you were re-farmed 15mhz down.
If you had 855.xxx to 860.xxxx you were safe as those channels were not touched.
I had or have a pretty good grasp of the re-banding concept as i was part of it back in the nextel days but what n5ims is saying didnt make much sense to me so i was merely trying to get a clarification.
If carrollton holds the licensing for all of their channels and they have updated it for the new system they dont need to give any up as he suggested.
The other part about mixing and matching from old system to new system is correct as many agencies do that.

Ill go back to lurk mode as its not really on topic for the scanner question that was asked.
 

tonypl056

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New system #2 Carrollton

Hi guys, thanks for the information, yes Nextel is gone here in the USA, but it is from what i have heard very active in Mexico, not a problem 6x9 i appreciate the extended info,
Hey N5 long time no chat! thanks for the info as well. i guess there's alot going on with that change over as far as Carrollton goes, i could be mistaken but i remember when all this information started coming out about the P25 ll system and the Dallas TRS system
i could be wrong but i think i saw somewhere on the license app's for at least FBPD
that they were applying for frequencies in the 700 band range too, i have to look through
my other computers and see where i saved the data but i'm sure if that is still a go, that might be an add-on too. so far, the only traffic i am getting while they are " breaking in" the new Harris radio's is all on the current system, the frequencies i mentioned i found that were updated on the new P25 system i have not have a chance to monitor as of yet.

Ensnared suggested i try using the "Discovery mode" on my 436 but when i try to "name" the session i can't get letter to type on the screen. the manual that comes with this radio has small print and i have one heck of a time trying to read it and follow what it says to do, heck! it took me two hours just to find the settings in the Sentinel area so i could get the darn back light to stay on infinite so i could at least see the screen longer and try to do the set up before it went out and totally messed me up. and after that headache, i gave up for the day..
i also can't seem to find any info. on how to run this radio without batteries of any kind.i want to use batteries only for portable use or if we have a power failure.
i want to find a way to operate this unit on a power supply or something other than batteries because once it is set the way i want it, it's going to be on constantly and man i'll go through batteries like mad for sure.. so if anyone has some thoughts on that issue please feel free to add on..i am slowly warming up to this radio but i am still " gun shy with it, because if i kill it, i'm out a lot of $$$..

i appreciate every one's input and help. i too am still in the learning phase of all this new stuff including the P25 systems..

Also i wanted to add, if you good folks don't see any feedback or input from me that will mostly likely will be because my internet will be down..

it's either internet, or food, so i'm sure you understand..

if my thread is still active once my service is restored next month i will certainly
thank and comment for everyones help and input.

until then...
THANK YOU ALL!

Stay Safe and God bless!!!

Tony
 

IAmSixNine

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Hey Tony, the main thing to remember is these changes will take time. As of now i would not worry to much about the new P25 system as the old system still has all the traffic. Which is really what scanning is all about.
Let the hard core users identify the new talk groups on the new system then you can update your scanner. This will save you some headaches. Im doing that now with grand prairie.
I live just far enough away that i can pick up Irving fine but GP is still hit and miss for me. So for now i have given up on GP and every week or so i check for an update for it.

Good luck with everything and I wish you the best.
 

tonypl056

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Hey 6x9 i will keep all that in mind,

thanks for the good luck i need all i can get..


ttyl..


Thanks again


Stay Safe and God bless

Tony
 

DustyH777

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Hey Everyone,

I mostly listen to Addison, they must have the new radios installed and using them in conventional mode, I do hear the dispatchers complaining about the "New Radio System" mostly its dispatch cant hear the unit (FIRE and PD) or the unit cant hear Dispatch.....*sigh* I just wish they would make the switch already, Carrollton PD they all sound like their in a barrel all the time now.

Dusty H
BCD436HP
 

n5ims

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On the rebanding issue with the old analog system. I'll let the FCC do the talking.

ULS Application - PubSafty/SpecEmer/PubSaftyNtlPlan,806-817/851-862MHz,Trunked - 0004352789 - City of Carrollton, Texas - Administration
The application filed herewith is related to 800 MHz Band Reconfiguration and is intended only to correct typographical errors that were part of the City of Carrollton’s (“Carrollton”) initial rebanded application to add their replacement frequencies, 854.2875 and 854.7875 MHz. The initial application under file number 0004254751, incorrectly listed some of the parameters for Location 1 frequencies 854.2875 and 854.7875 MHz. and the parties were not able to amend prior to FCC grant. When adding these replacement frequencies, the parameters should 100% match the frequencies Carrollton is being rebanded from (860.2625 and 860.7625 MHz). This application is purely making
these minor corrections to match their license prior to rebanding.

If you have any questions regarding this application please feel free to contact Robert Cosgrove at Sprint Nextel at 703-433-3951. Thank you.

On giving the 860.x MHz frequencies to Sprint Nextel:
ULS Application - 0004287747 - Nextel of Texas, Inc. - Administration
This transaction represents a part of a voluntary Frequency Reconfiguration Agreement (“Agreement”) between the City of Carrollton, (“Carrollton”) and Nextel of Texas, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sprint Nextel Corporation (“Sprint Nextel”). This Agreement will further the goals established by the Federal Communications Commission (“Commission”) in its recent rulemaking proceeding to reconfigure the 800 MHz Band. 1

The instant application requests the partial assignment to Sprint Nextel of two 800 MHz frequencies, 860.2625 and 860.7625 MHz, from Carrollton call sign KNJU868, located in Carrollton, Texas. KNJU868 recently received its replacement frequencies 854.2875 and 854.7875 MHz under ULS File No. 0004254751.

In the Report and Order, the FCC repeatedly expressed the intent of the 800 MHz band reconfiguration to "abate 'unacceptable interference' to non-cellular systems operating in the 800 MHz band" and "minimize disruption to existing services".2 The reconfiguration of Carrollton will assist Sprint Nextel in abating unacceptable interference to Public Safety and other non-cellular licensees by expediting the clearance of incumbent licensees. Accordingly, Carrollton and Sprint Nextel respectfully request that the Commission approve the assignment application as expeditiously as possible


Yes, this process has taken quite a while. There have been requests to extend the time many times. Initially this was because of invoice issues between the two parties, but later it was to give time for the new system to be approved by the various agencies, contracts to be granted, purchases to be made, equipment to be installed and configured. Delays were part of the process, as with many things (like my response with the FCC database being down so access to this information being blocked until today).
 

n5ims

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Once migration has completed, the new Carrollton P-25 Phase II system will host Carrollton, Addison, Farmer's Branch, and Coppell. All but Coppell currently use the old Analog system while Coppell will move from the Lewisville system once the new P25 system is ready. There is a new site for this system in Coppell to help with coverage once they are migrated over.
 

n5ims

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Hey Everyone,

I mostly listen to Addison, they must have the new radios installed and using them in conventional mode, I do hear the dispatchers complaining about the "New Radio System" mostly its dispatch cant hear the unit (FIRE and PD) or the unit cant hear Dispatch.....*sigh* I just wish they would make the switch already, Carrollton PD they all sound like their in a barrel all the time now.

Dusty H
BCD436HP

I agree that the quality of the old system has dropped lately. There are many requests for retransmissions and the officers often give up and move to their phones. The radio group does know about the issues and appear to be working on them (they've even apologized on air to some users about the issues).
 

jack2929

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Carrollton P25 Conversion

Information about the new Carrollton, Addison, Farmers Branch and Coppell P25 system is very limited. I have learned the current plan is to encrypt all police dispatch talk groups, but not fire dispatch. This is useful information for those looking to purchase a P25 capable scanner. Moving towards dispatch encryption makes sense since they now send sensitive dispatch information via MDT because such data is not allowed on the voice channels. Encryption will remove that constraint and allow a more flexible use of all communication types, especially P25. I've been monitoring police and fire traffic since 1965. I am not looking forward to the hobby slowly disappearing in this area.
 

BenScan

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I have not heard of the new Carrollton system being connected or linked to the Fort Worth Regional Radio System. However, Farmers Branch, and probably the other cities on the Carrollton system will have access to Fort Worth's interop channels, according to the city council agenda item, at the link below.
M&C Review
 

procopper7005

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ALL Carrollton PD talk groups will be encrypted full time. I cannot confirm if the other 3 agencies will also. They will also have a combined dispatch/911 center for Addison/FB/Carrollton.

BYE BYE SCANNING IN THESE AREAS!
 

n5ims

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ALL Carrollton PD talk groups will be encrypted full time. I cannot confirm if the other 3 agencies will also. They will also have a combined dispatch/911 center for Addison/FB/Carrollton.

BYE BYE SCANNING IN THESE AREAS!

Don't forget that Coppell will also be part of the system and combined dispatch center.
 

tonypl056

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good morning fellow radio listeners well it appears that there's a lot of good reads here a lot of useful information and yes I found a way to actually login to the site again without using my internet who'da thought anyway I wanted to add that as of Thursday this past week the radio traffic for Farmers Branch police department on the Carrollton system old one has ceasedaccording to the last radio transmission I heard by one of the assistant chief Thursday afternoon they are using the Farmers Branch police and one as an inter operative channel I have not heard any police activity on the old Carrollton system for Farmers Branch police department Business since Thursday afternoon there was no traffic yesterday and the only traffic I heard this morning was them doing a radio test with DPS. whether this is temporary or not I do not know I do know it is very frustrating because I do not know how to set up the discovery mode on my 436 to see if I can find where they've gone if anyone has any input here please feel free to add I've tried several times to use the discovery mode on my 436 and it will not allow me to enter alphanumeric things to name the sessions and it does not explain any where in my owners manual of how to do this it looks that the scanning hobby for me is going to be in the trash can very soon again if anyone has any input here I will check back as often as I can because I'm using my cell phone to access the site I appreciate everybody's input and I apologize for being so frustrated with this whole situation because I planned on me in 10 steps ahead of it before it happened but I'm not..

thank you everyone stay safe and God bless..

p.s if there are type of graphical errors here I apologize I am working with a very small cell phoneand it is hard for me to see and correct keyboard errors..

Tony
 
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