Limiting Range (Distance)

I am trying to cut back on the frequencies my 536 scans and wanted to set it by range or distance. I set the "range" to 5 miles, selected the services that I wanted to listen to and entered the zip code. It loaded the data and started scanning. When I looked at what it was listening to, it had listed stations that were on the other side of my state, over 200 miles away. When I hit the "range" button again, it had reset to 20 miles!

What in the world is going on here?

With the range set to even 20 miles, it is loading the nation coast guard frequencies!

What does this thing actually mean by 'range'?

It means that the services you will hear have to overlap within 20 (or 5) miles of your location. If they serve areas 200 miles in diameter, and that area overlaps your range, you will hear them.

I would set it as you have it, then create a FL based on the current channels, then edit that FL and remove those users you don't want to hear and use that FL for scanning.

This site should be informative: How it Works: Location, Location, Location

Suffice it to say "Range" is a complicated subject that takes some time to fully grasp. It is not something that limits you to hearing "things" that are X miles away from you.

Rather the concept is that each system has a range, generally the limits of the geopolitcal area. Usually it is a ring with a radius in miles. Thus, cities have a small range, counties larger, states even larger with national frequencies, such as coast guard, being huge. That is one half of the equation.

The other half of the equation is the range setting on the scanner. That too is most often a ring.

When the scanner is on, it is looking for those "System" ranges that may overlap the "Scanner" range. Where there is overlap, the scanner does its thing.

In your example, the 200 mile away stuff probably has a range of 200 miles in the system settings.

If you want to limit your scanning to just certain things, creation of one or more Favorites Lists is recommended. That way you are scanning only what you have programmed. My scanning methodology is that at home or a travel destination, I use Favorites Lists with the full database off. When travelling between the two, Favorites Lists are off and the full database is on. My GPS device works with the scanner to turn the appropriate "stuff" on and off.

The link ofd posted is important to read. As to why it reset to 20 miles, it probably did that when you set the zip code. I think the scanner automatically selects 20 miles when a zip (or post) code is configured. Maybe change the order of your steps so that you choose the zip first, the range second, and the services last.

What everyone else said, but to add Coast Guard is part of the nationwide, as are CB,Marine, and others, - just as it says, range is nationwide. Can't advise on exact process to do this in the scanner - use HP1/2 and maybe different.

If not needed, either un-select all the nationwide or avoid in Sentinel - yhen write to scanner.

phask said:

What everyone else said, but to add Coast Guard is part of the nationwide, as are CB,Marine, and others, - just as it says, range is nationwide. Can't advise on exact process to do this in the scanner - use HP1/2 and maybe different.

If not needed, either un-select all the nationwide or avoid in Sentinel - yhen write to scanner.

Click to expand...

Menu>Set Scan Selection>Set Nationwide Systems

poppafred said:

I set the "range" to 5 miles, selected the services that I wanted to listen to and entered the zip code. It loaded the data and started scanning. When I looked at what it was listening to, it had listed stations that were on the other side of my state, over 200 miles away.

Click to expand...

There are a few reasons this happens,

Some systems in the database just have out of date or wrong range settings that are set too high.

Some systems may have a "statewide" or "system wide" freq or talk group. The gps data would be set as such to cover as much of the state a possible. Also the state next to you may have this ( and may be near the state line) and it may overlap your area you have set to scan. For a trunked system, it will download all sites, but only the affected talk groups. For an analog system, it would only download the affected freq or all freqs in that subcategory.

Some systems have the wrong ranges set because a few db admins do not understand how range actually should work. The following is quoted from UPMAN in another thread and the example is for a town system, not an agency with in a town that would have its own geopolitical boundaries.

"To add a bit, the circle should just cover the geographic area for the intended agency's geopolitical boundaries. For example, a town 3 miles across would have a circle centered on the town with a radius of about 1.5 miles, even though the actual signal might propagate for 10 miles or more."

poppafred said:

With the range set to even 20 miles, it is loading the nation coast guard frequencies!

Click to expand...

It will, if you have the federal service type set to on and have not turned off the selected nationwide systems like Phask and Jay911 described.

Also, The nationwide freqs use rectangular style gps coordinates that I believe cover the entire nation.


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I hope this isn't hijacking the thread, if it is let me know and I'll start a new one. I have the opposite concern from the OP in the fact that I live in Central MD and like listen to a National Park located in VA, which is on a high band P25 system, on my current 396t, and is approximately 80 miles from me. I also listen to mostly fire and police located much closer to my home. Would I be able to configure "location services" for each group and system programmed into a BCDX36HP scanner?

My local fire department recently switched to a P25 Phase 2 system obviously rendering my 396t useless for monitoring that system. I have been considering the purchase of either a BCD436HP or a Whistler 1098 when they are released, but am not sure that I will be able to program it. I started in the early '70's with a Regency 4 channel low band scanner and have had black box Bearcats, a Plectron, and several Uniden scanners since, but have never done my own programming. Probably needless to say, I am not computer savvy in the least.

I have read the manual for the 436, but it's almost like it's written in a foreign language. I'm beginning to think that it might be time for me to make the transition to scanner aps....

I ahd the x96 series of scanners when I got my x36 scanners. While Butel has software that allows importing of the older files into the x96, it isn't complete. That's because the x36 adds Service Types into the mix.

So I bit the bullet and re-created all my programming for the x36 using Sentinel. It was more time consuming than difficult.

Forunately a lot of the "old" programming was associated with travel. With the full database scanning feature, there was much less programming needed.

ofd8001 said:

I ahd the x96 series of scanners when I got my x36 scanners. While Butel has software that allows importing of the older files into the x96, it isn't complete. That's because the x36 adds Service Types into the mix.

So I bit the bullet and re-created all my programming for the x36 using Sentinel. It was more time consuming than difficult.

Forunately a lot of the "old" programming was associated with travel. With the full database scanning feature, there was much less programming needed.

Click to expand...

If I did buy a 436, it would be the first time I have programmed a scanner, I always had someone do the programming on my 396. I'm pretty technologically challenged.

poppafred said:

I am trying to cut back on the frequencies my 536 scans and wanted to set it by range or distance. I set the "range" to 5 miles, selected the services that I wanted to listen to and entered the zip code. It loaded the data and started scanning. When I looked at what it was listening to, it had listed stations that were on the other side of my state, over 200 miles away. When I hit the "range" button again, it had reset to 20 miles!

What in the world is going on here?

With the range set to even 20 miles, it is loading the nation coast guard frequencies!

What does this thing actually mean by 'range'?

Click to expand...

In favorites lists you can change the tower ranges. I had to do this on the Indiana SAFE-T system to keep from scanning towers I know are too far away to hear while mobile. And while mobile I always keep the range at ZERO.

The best way to fine tune what your scanner receives is to make a Favorites List. The Zip Code feature will bring too many unwanted channels and such. Thus, when the favorites list is created, you have Quick keys to either turn on or turn off the stuff you want or don't want.

+1 on the FL.

What makes the range issue worse is when you have an admin who sets the range way too high because that is one HE wants to hear farther away. They are not always set per RR policy.

Voyager said:

+1 on the FL.

What makes the range issue worse is when you have an admin who sets the range way too high because that is one HE wants to hear farther away. They are not always set per RR policy.

Click to expand...

AMEN: SAFE T towers are set sometimes to 30 miles. No way you can hear a tower 30 miles out in a mobile. Hard to do with a YAGI at home. In my FL's I set the range at 10 for the towers, so when I drive as I leave one county the next counties tower comes on. Even has a little overlap.

LeSueurC said:

The best way to fine tune what your scanner receives is to make a Favorites List. The Zip Code feature will bring too many unwanted channels and such. Thus, when the favorites list is created, you have Quick keys to either turn on or turn off the stuff you want or don't want.

Click to expand...

So if I set up a favorites list for the distant system in VA, and favorites lists for all of my other commonly used stuff, I can set different distance parameters for each FL?

1075 said:

So if I set up a favorites list for the distant system in VA, and favorites lists for all of my other commonly used stuff, I can set different distance parameters for each FL?

Click to expand...

Do you mean the range setting , or for each system, dept. .. etc.

You can change range only for whatever you have loaded. But you can set or revise ant range setting on any system,dept, etc.

phask said:

Do you mean the range setting , or for each system, dept. .. etc.

You can change range only for whatever you have loaded. But you can set or revise ant range setting on any system,dept, etc.

Click to expand...

Yes, range setting, thanks. By loaded, you mean programmed into the scanner as a favorites list correct?

I apologize for not stating it clearly, Never programmed before and I'm trying to get a feel for whether I'm going be able to listen to what I currently have on my 396t and if I will be able to actually figure out to program the scanner if I purchase it. Doing a lot of reading manuals and forum threads and have lots of questions....

Anything you can receive on your 396T will be received by the 436. The 436 will "receive" more than the 396T, such as P25 Phase II.

I usually change the pre-set ranges for sites and departments when I create a Favorites List. There are certain parameters RR uses for administrators in setting ranges for things like departments. These are comparable to the boundaries of the service area, however I find I can receive traffic much farther away than the pre-set ranges.

This will fall in to the "to each his own" category: I don't see too much harm with generous ranges. If the scanner attempts to receive a site too far away, it skips over it, just like an inactive conventional channel. If it is just a handful of sites, then minimal degradation in efficiency occurs.

ofd8001 said:

Anything you can receive on your 396T will be received by the 436. The 436 will "receive" more than the 396T, such as P25 Phase II.

I usually change the pre-set ranges for sites and departments when I create a Favorites List. There are certain parameters RR uses for administrators in setting ranges for things like departments. These are comparable to the boundaries of the service area, however I find I can receive traffic much farther away than the pre-set ranges.

This will fall in to the "to each his own" category: I don't see too much harm with generous ranges. If the scanner attempts to receive a site too far away, it skips over it, just like an inactive conventional channel. If it is just a handful of sites, then minimal degradation in efficiency occurs.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info., that answers my question. My local fire department recently went to a P25 Phase II system which is why I am considering a 436. Just trying to figure out if I'm up to the challenge of programming it.