Dismal battery life

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n9mxq

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Monitoring 1 P25 system and I only get an hour and a half out of a pair of batteries. Absolutely disgusted. I now just keep the scanner plugged in at work..

And no, I don't charge the batteries in the scanner...I've tried 3 different manufacturers batteries all with the same results...
 

tumegpc

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Monitoring 1 P25 system and I only get an hour and a half out of a pair of batteries. Absolutely disgusted. I now just keep the scanner plugged in at work..

And no, I don't charge the batteries in the scanner...I've tried 3 different manufacturers batteries all with the same results...

What kind of battery charger are you using ? I have the Powerex MH-c9000 charger and easily get 4-5 hours out of a set of Duracell,Powerex and eneloop batteries.
 

scannersnstuff

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on a set of duracell 2500 mah rechargeables, i get an easy 8 hour's, give or take. this is with a mix of frequencies,including p25 <which is supposed to be a real battery sucker>. I also run the backlight on constant on. I keep a spare set charged.
 

GM

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I get a solid 6 hours of charge on eneloop 2500 mAh batteries with multiple P25 and DMR systems. I have to say the 325P2 scanner is one of the best out there. I always keep a charged spare set with me when out and about. Better to carry two spare batteries than 3 or 4 like I have to with other scanners.
 

scannersnstuff

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GM. Could not have said it better. Hot little receiver. This is probably going to go down as one of my all time favorite's.
 

baayers

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I have to agree with the other posters as well. With the light off monitoring the Pinellas county P25 system which normally means that I am scanning a total of 3 sites and also the Clearwater police system my 325 gets between 7&#8211;8 hours and my 436 gets between 11&#8211;12 hours

If you are having the same results with different batteries then I would take a serious look at your charger. If your charger is not a smart charger then one of your batteries may not be getting a full enough charge causing them to die prematurely. A lot of the off-the-shelf chargers that you buy charge them in pairs instead of analyzing each specific battery.
 

phask

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I get 4-6 with original 2 year old (or so) batteries and ONLY charge in the radio, mainly P25.

With that said - there are way too many variables to compare 1 user to another. Volume, various settings, activity, individual batteries, etc.
 

marksmith

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I have a question, is it true that monitoring digital uses more power as the radio has to work harder to decode the different systems?
I doubt this. Most of the battery is consumed based on where you have the volume control, and how active the radio is with what you are monitoring.

I use a set of earbuds to bike ride and the 325p2 radio goes a long time and is less conspicuous. People think I am listening to music.

536/436/ws1095/996p2/996xt/325p2/396xt/psr800/396t/HP-1/HP-2 & others
 

KK4JUG

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tumegpc has the right idea. Maybe it's the charger.
 

jonwienke

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I have a question, is it true that monitoring digital uses more power as the radio has to work harder to decode the different systems?

To a small extent, yes, as the CPU has to do more work to decode the digital data. But not to the extent that battery life is only an hour or two.

I would get one of these to check to see if the scanner is consuming excess power:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D9Y6ZFW/

That will identify whether the scanner or the batteries are at fault.
 

jonwienke

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It doesn't. You run the scanner off USB power, with the meter I linked inline. That will tell you if the problem is the scanner drawing too much power, or bad batteries/charger. If the scanner is only drawing 200mA, then it's obviously a battery problem. But if it's drawing 2000mA, then it would be a scanner issue.
 

hiegtx

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To a small extent, yes, as the CPU has to do more work to decode the digital data. But not to the extent that battery life is only an hour or two.

I would get one of these to check to see if the scanner is consuming excess power:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D9Y6ZFW/

That will identify whether the scanner or the batteries are at fault.
Interesting device.

Thanks for the link; I'll pick one up.
 

jonwienke

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You're welcome. It's helpful for diagnosing a variety of USB issues.
 

n9mxq

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Never thought to question the brand new charger.. Thanks guys.. I'll dig around and see if I can find another one. I need one that does AC and DC input as I mainly use my scanner at work in the truck. I've been keeping the scanner plugged in, but at times have to carry it along with me..
 

RoninJoliet

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I get about 4 and a half hours on my 325P2 on Energizer 2500 rechargables and I have 8 IL-Starcom digital sites and 5 analog systems pgm'ed in the little jewel...I also have volume on (8) with the volume menu increase on (2) on most low volume people....
 

JamesO

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