SDS100 on NE Tarrant County System

Has anyone here tested the SDS100 on the NE Tarrant County system? I'm wondering if it handles the simulcast distortion as well as Uniden claims. I'm using a G5 now and it works very well, but I'd like to monitor some additional areas, and a scanner would meet my needs better than a pager.

Thanks!

Jim

That was one of my primary testing areas. Worked great.

Jimco said:

Has anyone here tested the SDS100 on the NE Tarrant County system? I'm wondering if it handles the simulcast distortion as well as Uniden claims. I'm using a G5 now and it works very well, but I'd like to monitor some additional areas, and a scanner would meet my needs better than a pager.

Thanks!

Jim

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While I live in Dallas, I regularly visit a friend in Grapevine, and we usually go to lunch somewhere in NE Tarrant County.

My SDS100 has worked very well every place I've tried it in the NETCO area, for both the NE Tarrant cities, as well as the Denton County Phase II system (both the Denton & Lewisville simulcast layers). Also worked well for the Metrocrest Phase II system in Coppell as well as over in NE Tarrant.

Thanks, Paul and Steve. That's promising.

I'm a little apprehensive. I've been reading a LOT of threads in RR that seem to indicate some reception problems with the SDS100 on simulcast systems. I also listened to Paul's recordings he made, and I definitely noticed some simulcast distortion on the SDS100. Granted, that post was prior to the latest firmware updates.

If anyone else has any input, I'd love to hear it. I'm a contributor for a major source of public safety updates in our area, and I am looking for a very reliable radio. I understand that the SDS100 and the G5 aren't in the same category, but I'm looking for performance that is equivalent to what I get out of my G5. At this point, I'm leaning towards a second G5, but I sure would like the flexibility of the SDS100.

Jim

The SDS works very well in the Tarrant County area. I would compare it to an APX radio for sound and clarity. I have not run into as system yet that the SDS couldn’t handle. I have not at all experienced the simulcast distortion, and also is very well on DMR and NXDN. Also FL SLERS without a problem.

jason51 said:

The SDS works very well in the Tarrant County area. I would compare it to an APX radio for sound and clarity. I have not run into as system yet that the SDS couldn’t handle. I have not at all experienced the simulcast distortion, and also is very well on DMR and NXDN. Also FL SLERS without a problem.

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Thanks, Jason. Do you monitor the NE Tarrant County site on the FW Regional Radio System? That site, and the Layer 2 talkgroups as well, are the primary problems with simulcast. If you just casually monitor them, you may not notice it too much.

jason51 said:

The SDS works very well in the Tarrant County area. I would compare it to an APX radio for sound and clarity. I have not run into as system yet that the SDS couldn’t handle. I have not at all experienced the simulcast distortion, and also is very well on DMR and NXDN. Also FL SLERS without a problem.

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I believe you are the first person i have read who would actually put the SDS100 (or any other scanner) on equal ground sound / clarity wise with an APX.

I was loaned a SDS100 for a few weeks, (given it was 2 months ago) and while it was good i would not say it was that good.
The G4/5 is much closer in audio quality to the APX. I think the G4/5 has better audio then the SDS100.
The KNG2-P800 is on par with an APX.
I do think the SDS100 is a step in the right direction for 700/800 P25 digital systems.

Yes, I listen to Layer 2 and NETCO site quite a bit. The SDS’, in my opinion is the best scanner yet. I could send you some recording if you like.

IAmSixNine said:

I believe you are the first person i have read who would actually put the SDS100 (or any other scanner) on equal ground sound / clarity wise with an APX.

I was loaned a SDS100 for a few weeks, (given it was 2 months ago) and while it was good i would not say it was that good.
The G4/5 is much closer in audio quality to the APX. I think the G4/5 has better audio then the SDS100.
The KNG2-P800 is on par with an APX.
I do think the SDS100 is a step in the right direction for 700/800 P25 digital systems.

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I was an APX user for several years, and I honestly can’t tell a difference in the two as far as receive. I do not have a G5 and can’t speak for that. Just my honest opinion.

I am reading the topic with interest as I have just moved back to Tarrant county near downtown Fort Worth. I have not had time to set up my scanners yet and am wondering if I should get an SDS100, or is so much of the traffic here encrypted that it is not worth the upgrade?
Thanks,
Randy

Sound quality on the G5 with Phase 2 update is excellent for sure. The G5 also handles simulcast extremely well. However, it has its disadvantages because it's not a scanner.

I appreciate the info, Jason. I think what I'll probably end up doing is purchasing an SDS100 and test it for myself in my particular situation. If it doesn't fit my needs, I'll return it and buy another G5. I posted my 436HP in classifieds today, so we'll see what happens.

Thanks!

Jim

rware96 said:

I am reading the topic with interest as I have just moved back to Tarrant county near downtown Fort Worth. I have not had time to set up my scanners yet and am wondering if I should get an SDS100, or is so much of the traffic here encrypted that it is not worth the upgrade?
Thanks,
Randy

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Randy,

There are some encrypted systems around here. FW PD is encrypted, so you won't be able to monitor them with any scanner. However, there are also numerous simulcast systems around here. Some people don't suffer too badly because of that, but I find that I really can't effectively monitor the NETCOM 911 combined dispatch TGs on my 436 because of simulcast distortion. My G5 does an excellent job of that, but I am now needing to expand the areas I monitor. I could buy another G5 to do that, but it limits me due to the fact that it's primarily P25 only.

I'm almost certainly going to end up buying an SDS100. If I do, I'll definitely post info on my experience with it in this area.

Jim

Thanks Jim!

Funny y’all mention having issues on NETCOM. I never used to have any issues with the Northeast Tarrant site on my 436 for about the last 2 years, however, since about October or so I’ve begun having bad issues with simulcast distortion. I only used to really have issues on Layers 1 and 2.

I picked up the SDS100 last week and it seems to have really helped quite a bit on both sites, not 100% perfect but pretty close. I am a little concerned how hot the antenna area gets though...


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chaseboyer said:

Funny y’all mention having issues on NETCOM. I never used to have any issues with the Northeast Tarrant site on my 436 for about the last 2 years, however, since about October or so I’ve begun having bad issues with simulcast distortion. I only used to really have issues on Layers 1 and 2.

I picked up the SDS100 last week and it seems to have really helped quite a bit on both sites, not 100% perfect but pretty close. I am a little concerned how hot the antenna area gets though...

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Quality on Site 3 varies for me. Sometimes I can hear okay (but nowhere near what I really need), but other times, it's so bad that it's completely unusable. I bought an SDS100 last night from ScannerMaster and I assume it will be here next week sometime. Hopefully it will work for me.

The heat issue is interesting. I wonder why it would heat up close to the antenna area? Weird.

Jimco said:

Quality on Site 3 varies for me. Sometimes I can hear okay (but nowhere near what I really need), but other times, it's so bad that it's completely unusable. I bought an SDS100 last night from ScannerMaster and I assume it will be here next week sometime. Hopefully it will work for me.

The heat issue is interesting. I wonder why it would heat up close to the antenna area? Weird.

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IIRC, the heat in that area is from the SDR chip used. That uses more current, than older designs. Someone else made a comparison of how warm their SDR dongle got when running one of the software packages.

It gets a little warm, but not what I'd call "hot", The 'waffle maker' that's been kicked around, on and off, in the Uniden Tavern, would not function with temperatures I've seen. Also, I've seen a few comments that the scanner seems to be running cooler (even if slightly so) with the larger battery as opposed to the early-adopter small battery. (I'm an early adopter.) I get somewhat the same impression.

I would also note that I am not seeing a problem with weak Vhf/Uhf reception. I know some owners have mentioned it, but I'm not seeing an issue at this time. Some of the ones that reported issues did send their units in for repair, and when receiving back either their repaired scanner, or in some cases a whole unit replacement, the problem was solved. I think that the wide ranging comments, from 'works very well', to 'it's deaf as a post', are more indicative of a larger than expected variance between individual units as opposed to a design flaw.

I've had my SDS100 now for just a very short time. I've got it sitting to my left and my G5 to my right. I'm listening to Netcom 911 combined dispatch. So far, I'm quite impressed. Once so far, I have heard a very slight sign of LSM distortion. Outside of that, it's been perfect and performance has been equal to the G5. I'll need to listen for a much longer period before I'm completely convinced, but the performance has far surpassed my expectations at this point.

I'll update this thread if anything changes.

30 minute update (and I won't be posting every 30 minutes.)

I'm still impressed, but I'm noticing the following. (This is on the current release firmware. I've not yet installed any betas.)

• The SDS100 is occasionally missing the beginning of transmissions, sometimes several seconds of a transmission. This happens about three times per minute. (This is when on channel hold.)
• I am still getting some minor LSM distortion. It has only prevented me from understanding the transmission a few times. Most of the time, it's not very noticeable.

After a while, I may put the beta firmware on here. I just want to spend enough time to be confident in current performance. Bottom line so far: My 436HP was unusable (really) on this system from my home. The SDS100 is orders of magnitude better. I'd really like to solve my first bullet point above, so I'm off to dig through the forums to look for advice.

Thanks.

Jim

For the missed beginning of transmissions, are you also holding on the particular site the traffic is on?
When i program up anything for FTW i only use the Sites associated with what i am listening to and remove the other sites.