Calvert County

Firemantincan · Apr 21, 2018

Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

ThePhotoGuy · Apr 21, 2018

Firemantincan said:
Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

I was down in Dorchester County a week or so ago and could monitor Calvert perfectly fine then (downloaded from Sentinel on my BCD436HP).

maus92 · Apr 28, 2018

Firemantincan said:
Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

I don't know where you live, but I noticed that the control channel channel in the southern area of the county was slight off frequency. There is some *weirdness* going on with this system atm. UT2 was unable to keep a lock on the control channel for very long. UT2 has no problem tracking the AA County system of a similar design.

maus92 · Apr 28, 2018

maus92 said:
I don't know where you live, but I noticed that the control channel channel in the southern area of the county was slight off frequency. There is some *weirdness* going on with this system atm. UT2 was unable to keep a lock on the control channel for very long. UT2 has no problem tracking the AA County system of a similar design.

I take back "AA County system of a similar design." AACo is a SmartZone system, while Calvert is a SmartNet system. I'll have to verify if UT2 is capable of reliably decoding a SmartNet system.

Calvert has a bunch of new licenses for frequencies and antenna locations, so lots of changes coming later this year.

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
I take back "AA County system of a similar design." AACo is a SmartZone system, while Calvert is a SmartNet system. I'll have to verify if UT2 is capable of reliably decoding a SmartNet system.

Calvert has a bunch of new licenses for frequencies and antenna locations, so lots of changes coming later this year.

I seen that a lot of the new towers for the new system are up, like Huntingtown has finished there tower development but I noticed that the water tower in Chesapeake beach is suppose to have a new system antenna on top of it but it doesn’t yet. I have no reception in north beach at all it says finding control channel over and over again and it might pick up something for a second ! , but that’s all I put the control channel on hold and i can’t hearcrap only for a split second if I I walk down the street but then it’s gone in a second later . I also noticed that there is a sprit antenna on top of the water tower in my town and it’s less than a mile away from me . I can see it out my back window , maybe that’s why I don’t get signal ?

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

Firemantincan said:
Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

That is totally normal for a trunking system , you won’t be able to hear both talk at the same time , when two talk groups are talking at the same time you will only be able to hear which one is scanned first if this is what you are having a issue with .

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

Firemantincan said:
Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

I also live in Calvert , what are you trying to listen too? And what response are you not hearing ? Are you hearing a talk group like fire dispatch but not hearing a reponse to the dispatcher from the unit contacting back in regards? Is this your problem ?

maus92 · May 1, 2018

Joshheartbrake said:
I seen that a lot of the new towers for the new system are up, like Huntingtown has finished there tower development but I noticed that the water tower in Chesapeake beach is suppose to have a new system antenna on top of it but it doesn’t yet. I have no reception in north beach at all it says finding control channel over and over again and it might pick up something for a second ! , but that’s all I put the control channel on hold and i can’t hearcrap only for a split second if I I walk down the street but then it’s gone in a second later . I also noticed that there is a sprit antenna on top of the water tower in my town and it’s less than a mile away from me . I can see it out my back window , maybe that’s why I don’t get signal ?

Are you running the stock antenna on your 325P2? You might what to try one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009LOTRYG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What control channel are you using? It was 853.350 the other day, which is an alternate cch according to RRDB. I'd make sure to enter all system frequencies into your scanner.

I answered you question about the cell tower in another thread you started, but I'm skeptical on whether it directly affects your reception.

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
Are you running the stock antenna on your 325P2? You might what to try one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009LOTRYG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What control channel are you using? It was 853.350 the other day, which is an alternate cch according to RRDB. I'd make sure to enter all system frequencies into your scanner.

I answered you question about the cell tower in another thread you started, but I'm skeptical on whether it directly affects your reception.

Yes sir , I have tried many antennas and I have the 800mhz scope antenna from radio shack and I also have a car magnet mount antenna that’s like 2 foot tall and I also have a huge centerfire discone antenna on a 10 foot mast in my roof and non get signal ! I also entered all control channels in my scanner . I am aware they alternate sometimes . This isn’t the problem I have no idea what is , this is why I assumed it was the cell tower , but as you said they did reband there system so I guess yor right ! It’s not the tower then I have no idea why I get no signal . I can’t hold any of the control channels and when I do it’s for a second and then it’s all choppy and goes out of range again and I didn’t even have to move my scanner it just goes out . It’s crazy man

maus92 · May 1, 2018

Joshheartbrake said:
Yes sir , I have tried many antennas and I have the 800mhz scope antenna from radio shack and I also have a car magnet mount antenna that’s like 2 foot tall and I also have a huge centerfire discone antenna on a 10 foot mast in my roof and non get signal ! I also entered all control channels in my scanner . I am aware they alternate sometimes . This isn’t the problem I have no idea what is , this is why I assumed it was the cell tower , but as you said they did reband there system so I guess yor right ! It’s not the tower then I have no idea why I get no signal . I can’t hold any of the control channels and when I do it’s for a second and then it’s all choppy and goes out of range again and I didn’t even have to move my scanner it just goes out . It’s crazy man

Hmm, next time I'm in southern AA County, I'll roll the border into North Beach and check out the signal strength. I'm pretty sure that is the problem. BTW, trunking system tower sites have roughly a 8-12 mile signal footprint. It's affected by a number of variables - particularly geography and foliage - but it's a good rule of thumb.

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
Hmm, next time I'm in southern AA County, I'll roll the border into North Beach and check out the signal strength. I'm pretty sure that is the problem. BTW, trunking system tower sites have roughly a 8-12 mile signal footprint. It's affected by a number of variables - particularly geography and foliage - but it's a good rule of thumb.

What are you sure the problem is? I need to set a annenutation setting on my scanner?
Also Can you get Calvert in southern Anne Arundel? If so then I don’t think it’s the distance from the towers? Idk

Come to Mexico’s restaurant sometime in north beach, that’s where I live by and there is no singal I wonder if you can resolve the issue

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

Firemantincan said:
Does anyone else have a hard time tracking the county 800 Mhz System? Seems like my BCD996P2 has a hard time tracking it today. Some times I can hear one unit but not another when they are in the middle of a conversation. I have a nice strong signal but there is some kind of tracking issue. I have Firmware Version 1.06.00 installed.

Make sure you have all the control channels programmed, idk why you can’t hear another unit or follow the whole conversation .

maus92 · May 1, 2018

Joshheartbrake said:
What are you sure the problem is? I need to set a annenutation setting on my scanner?
Also Can you get Calvert in southern Anne Arundel? If so then I don’t think it’s the distance from the towers? Idk

Come to Mexico’s restaurant sometime in north beach, that’s where I live by and there is no singal I wonder if you can resolve the issue

I'm pretty sure the problem for your scanner is signal strength, and / or system signal timing , but it's worth experimenting with the scanner's attenuation setting since you've tried everything else. You could also try a Yagi antenna like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EC804SO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and point it in the direction of the nearest system tower to your town (Sunderland?). The Yagi is a directional antenna, and is sensitive to signal sources it points towards, and rejects signals it is not pointed at, if that makes sense.

I don't think I can *solve* your reception problems, but I can verify a signal quality issue. I need to resolve an equipment issue, and a south county / Calvert trip might provide some useful data. I can probably start to receive Calvert in Tracys Landing / Deale, but if I have the time I'll roll into North Beach.

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
I'm pretty sure the problem for your scanner is signal strength, and / or system signal timing , but it's worth experimenting with the scanner's attenuation setting since you've tried everything else. You could also try a Yagi antenna like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EC804SO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and point it in the direction of the nearest system tower to your town (Sunderland?). The Yagi is a directional antenna, and is sensitive to signal sources it points towards, and rejects signals it is not pointed at, if that makes sense.

I don't think I can *solve* your reception problems, but I can verify a signal quality issue. I need to resolve an equipment issue, and a south county / Calvert trip might provide some useful data. I can probably start to receive Calvert in Tracys Landing / Deale, but if I have the time I'll roll into North Beach.

So when the new system is updated and switches to digitial do you think the single would be reachable more? Especially if they are adding a new antenna on top of the water tower on dark star lane in chesapke beach ( even though it seems like there not doing any work on it )

maus92 · May 1, 2018

Joshheartbrake said:
So when the new system is updated and switches to digitial do you think the single would be reachable more? Especially if they are adding a new antenna on top of the water tower on dark star lane in chesapke beach ( even though it seems like there not doing any work on it )

Theoretically Calvert's new system should provide better, more comprehensive signal coverage - with public safety grade radios. Scanners are not "public safety grade" radios, so while your reception with your 325P2 is likely to improve, it may have problems not unlike what people are experiencing in St Marys County. The good news is receiving Maryland's FiRST system (which is similar to Calvert's new system) on a Uniden scanner generally works well for me at my location.

The Dark Star water tank site should be up shortly - I'm surprised that it's not up by now, but it should be a fairly easy evolution compared to building a brand new tower. The county wants to finish all tower construction by the middle of June. The new system won't come online for a while, but I'm sure they want to get testing done while leaves are on the trees.

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
I'm pretty sure the problem for your scanner is signal strength, and / or system signal timing , but it's worth experimenting with the scanner's attenuation setting since you've tried everything else. You could also try a Yagi antenna like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EC804SO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and point it in the direction of the nearest system tower to your town (Sunderland?). The Yagi is a directional antenna, and is sensitive to signal sources it points towards, and rejects signals it is not pointed at, if that makes sense.

I don't think I can *solve* your reception problems, but I can verify a signal quality issue. I need to resolve an equipment issue, and a south county / Calvert trip might provide some useful data. I can probably start to receive Calvert in Tracys Landing / Deale, but if I have the time I'll roll into North Beach.

It’s very wierd but I loose both Anne Arundel and Calvert , and I’m right at the border but when Farther south like dunkirk or even Huntingtown I can get Anne Arundel just fine , I’m right next to rose haven which is the Anne Arundel county version of north beach . I’m litterly one street away from Anne Arundel county . But when I lay my scanner on the ground and point it a certain way I can pick up stuff , only when it’s low on the ground side ways. When it’s standing straight up it doesn’t get anything

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

And there it goes it’s gone without touching it again, sucks Man can’t seem to get it back even if i try the same spot that had perfect reception for a while , doesn’t do it again

maus92 · May 1, 2018

If you have a PC and buy a good ~$26 SDR and run SDR#, you can literally watch the radio signal and judge it's quality. And in the case of Calvert county (for now while it's still analog,) listen to individual channels. The SDR dongle is probably a better receiver than the scanner.

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/buy-rtl-sdr-dvb-t-dongles/

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
If you have a PC and buy a good ~$26 SDR and run SDR#, you can literally watch the radio signal and judge it's quality. And in the case of Calvert county (for now while it's still analog,) listen to individual channels. The SDR dongle is probably a better receiver than the scanner.

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/buy-rtl-sdr-dvb-t-dongles/

What goes on the end of the SMA female connector??

Joshheartbrake · May 1, 2018

maus92 said:
If you have a PC and buy a good ~$26 SDR and run SDR#, you can literally watch the radio signal and judge it's quality. And in the case of Calvert county (for now while it's still analog,) listen to individual channels. The SDR dongle is probably a better receiver than the scanner.

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/buy-rtl-sdr-dvb-t-dongles/

I’m probably better off just running a live feed using webserver from proscan , I get perfect reception at my mothers house( in Calvert as well) so then when I’m at my house I can listen to it still but the only thing is it will be delayed 25 mins or so .

Also sometimes I have to refresh my internet connection on my phone Becuase the audio of the feed cuts out and then I have to press play again .

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