Definition Of Ctcss And Dcs

[shakey071]

In ARC 300, how do I figure out the mode in which CTCSS and DCS apply? I have frequencies and can't pick them up. I have a PRO-164 scanner. I would appreciate any and all feedback.

Thanx,

Shakey

[LarrySC]

You cant PICK THEM UP. They cant be heard. They are a squelch lock. Keeps you from hearing other stations on the same freq. Also stops inference and noise from reaching the speaker. The Fire freq in Gaffney is the same as one in Piedmont on And Co line. Without PL or the digital PL you would hear both stations. With PL you select the one you want to hear. Good Luck and I bet that program is working great?? Larry

[shakey071]

Originally Posted by LarrySC

You cant PICK THEM UP. They cant be heard. They are a squelch lock. Keeps you from hearing other stations on the same freq. Also stops inference and noise from reaching the speaker. The Fire freq in Gaffney is the same as one in Piedmont on And Co line. Without PL or the digital PL you would hear both stations. With PL you select the one you want to hear. Good Luck and I bet that program is working great?? Larry

i have used the conventinal inport in arc300 but i can't figure out the pl code because i thought it had to be picked up by CTCSS or DCS how do i know which tones i need to listin to to be able to listin to certain frequnceys that i have downloaded to arc300.

[texasemt13]

CTCSS and DCS squelch tones are used in analog, FM, conventional mode. The "equivalent" in digital mode (which the 164 doesn't can monitor) are NAC codes. Basically, a low frequency tune sent with a transmission.

Simply put, imagine an area where the RF spectrum is crowded. By using CTCSS or DCS tones, you can (as a transmitter- say a PD dispatcher) speak on a certain frequency and anyone listening on that freq can hear you. With these tones, it allows many different organizations to share a freq and only the people with similar CT or PL (DCS) tones can hear the transmission.

For instance: If Agency A and Agency B are 5 miles apart and both share the freq 123.4560MHz, one could use a CT tone of 103.5 and the other use 206.5 (for a list of the available tones see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CTCSS ). So now only Agency A, with CT 103.5, is hearing anything broadcast on 123.4560 CT 103.5 and any user w/o that CT programmed in couldn't hear the tx (except for those with none programmed or scanners who can monitor them). Or one agency could use DCS and one could use CTCSS.

[DELCOLHFC]

Originally Posted by shakey071

i have used the conventinal inport in arc300 but i can't figure out the pl code because i thought it had to be picked up by CTCSS or DCS how do i know which tones i need to listin to to be able to listin to certain frequnceys that i have downloaded to arc300.

I don't use ARC300 but I do have and use ARC15 & 996 but let me try to help.
You said that you have used the conventional import function, that process should have imported all the ctcss/dcs info along with the frequencies. Did it?
I looked at this screenshot from Butel's website http://www.butel.nl/products/arc300/edit300.jpg
Does your screen look similar after importing? As you can see in the third column ("Mode") the entries are filled in as "CTCSS" then in the next column (PL/DPL) the entries reflect the PL tones associated with the individual channels. Are you seeing this arrangement on you screen after an import?
I see a few DCS tones listed in Spartansburg Co. in the RRDB, these of course would show "DCS" in the Mode column and then the listed tone in the PL/DPL column.
If I am not understanding exactly what you are asking please provide some more info so we can attempt to sort out this issue.

[LarrySC]

Shakey>Email me direct: larryscan@charter.net