frankdrebbin
Member
All of the public service in Monroe County have gone to Starcom for a while now. I used to hear the tone-outs for the local fire dept. dispatches but now I don't hear them at all. Mainly using 996P2. What did they change??
Our local law enforcement uses in car laptops and a lot we can't hear anymore and now they've added an encrypted TG to the mix but our FDs are volunteer so they don't have the money or use really for in truck computers. They use a fire tac channel or an interop TG for comms.One thing I don't like is now with the CAD system (computer-aided-dispatch) there are very few responses from the fire dept mobiles, instead they use there computers when there on the scene or arrive at the hospital ...Much of the drama in listening to FD's has been taken out in todays world of high technology....
Our local fire departments still put out tones on VHF High Band to set off pagers and a Siren at the rural Fire Departments. The 911 center also sends a text message to the fire fighter’s cell phones. There is also an app which routes the fire dispatches to smart phones and tablets.
I used to listen to St. Louis Co. Police but now they've gone encrypted. Is all of SLATER encrypted? I have MOSWIN programmed in but I guess I'm too far out to hear the Missouri Highway Patrol. And I'm just over the other side of the big ditch.When you say tone out are you refering to using the tone out feature on your scanner or do you mean the basic tone out from the comm center on the TG assigned on StarCom for Monroe Co? I don't believe the tone out feature works on a trunked system like StarCom. It may only work on a single frequency type radio.
I live in SW St Louis city and it is nearly impossible to hear much at all from any StarCom radios where I am. I do get some reception (not too often) and very rarely get any fire or EMS tones. So, in part, I feel your pain.
I still have my conventional channels in a couple of scanners I'll have to crank them up again. I use my PSR-800 and have the MOSWIN sites in west and south counties programmed in. I'm in Monroe Co. so I'm not that far out. I didn't know they still used VHF I thought they were all P25 Phase II. I have my antennas in the 2nd floor of the house and still can't get MOSWIN. Next time I go to MO I'll have to bring my 800 with me and see what I get. I listened in when the Ferguson riots were going on. Very intense. As soon as Brown's daddeh said let's burn this b**** down my 3 scanners came to life and I couldn't keep up with it. I'm guessing after that melee they wanted to go encrypted.I looked at a basic map and I don't think you can get the 700/800 tower from St Louis City. But you should probably hear Jeff Co or Ste Genevieve, Co. You may give them a try unless that is what you are doing already. Good luck.