BC536

[radar614]

Is there an easy way of setting up channels like scanners of years ago when you could just turn a channel off or on? I’m 78 and can’t quite get the hang of quick keys. Thanks for any help.

 

[trentbob]

Unfortunately, favorites list quick keys are the way you are going to set up your scanner as close to what you are used to in the old days. Think of a favorites list as a bank of frequencies. If you want to put one frequency on each favorites list and then number them 0 1 2 3 4 Etc you can activate or deactivate each favorites list or frequency using the quick key.

If you are listening to favorites list number 2, number 6 and number 7, and you want to deactivate 7 and activate 9 then while in scanning mode you would push 9 enter enabling list 9, then press 7 enter and disable list 7. Now you are listening to number 2, 6 and 9.

You don't have to put just one frequency on a favorites list but if it makes you more comfortable you can as long as you know they are banks of frequencies and you can put as many as you want on each list that you can enable and disable.

It's a must that you do more reading on Quick Lists, even if you're using them just on favorites list or Banks.

 

[radar614]

Unfortunately, favorites list quick keys are the way you are going to set up your scanner as close to what you are used to in the old days. Think of a favorites list as a bank of frequencies. If you want to put one frequency on each favorites list and then number them 0 1 2 3 4 Etc you can activate or deactivate each favorites list or frequency using the quick key.

If you are listening to favorites list number 2, number 6 and number 7, and you want to deactivate 7 and activate 9 then while in scanning mode you would push 9 enter enabling list 9, then press 7 enter and disable list 7. Now you are listening to number 2, 6 and 9.

You don't have to put just one frequency on a favorites list but if it makes you more comfortable you can as long as you know they are banks of frequencies and you can put as many as you want on each list that you can enable and disable.

It's a must that you do more reading on Quick Lists, even if you're using them just on favorites list or Banks.

The more I read up on quick lists, the more I’m confused. Thanks for your fast reply!

 

[trentbob]

Yep I just happened to see it. Keep at it. You can Google how to set bcd536 Quick keys, or help with quick keys on bcd536, try different variations and Google will give you tons of threads of people asking for help setting quick keys.

You just started the thread so you will probably get a lot of replies from folks.

It depends on how your program your radio, what your level of understanding is, what is the system that you are listening to...

When you say setting it like the old days I'm thinking my first Crystal controlled scanners, transitioning from tunable monitors. I'm 67 but I started very young LOL.

 

[radar614]

Unfortunately, favorites list quick keys are the way you are going to set up your scanner as close to what you are used to in the old days. Think of a favorites list as a bank of frequencies. If you want to put one frequency on each favorites list and then number them 0 1 2 3 4 Etc you can activate or deactivate each favorites list or frequency using the quick key.

If you are listening to favorites list number 2, number 6 and number 7, and you want to deactivate 7 and activate 9 then while in scanning mode you would push 9 enter enabling list 9, then press 7 enter and disable list 7. Now you are listening to number 2, 6 and 9.

You don't have to put just one frequency on a favorites list but if it makes you more comfortable you can as long as you know they are banks of frequencies and you can put as many as you want on each list that you can enable and disable.

It's a must that you do more reading on Quick Lists, even if you're using them just on favorites list or Banks.

Unfortunately, favorites list quick keys are the way you are going to set up your scanner as close to what you are used to in the old days. Think of a favorites list as a bank of frequencies. If you want to put one frequency on each favorites list and then number them 0 1 2 3 4 Etc you can activate or deactivate each favorites list or frequency using the quick key.

If you are listening to favorites list number 2, number 6 and number 7, and you want to deactivate 7 and activate 9 then while in scanning mode you would push 9 enter enabling list 9, then press 7 enter and disable list 7. Now you are listening to number 2, 6 and 9.

You don't have to put just one frequency on a favorites list but if it makes you more comfortable you can as long as you know they are banks of frequencies and you can put as many as you want on each list that you can enable and disable.

It's a must that you do more reading on Quick Lists, even if you're using them just on favorites list or Banks.

OK, I followed your suggestions and made up 25 favorites using QK 1 to 25. Now I have another question, how do I put those 25 into one folder so that when I sit at my computer and make changes I can access that folder to bring up all lists at once instead of one at a time? Thanks.

 

[trentbob]

Not exactly sure what you're asking but your original desire was to set up the 536 the way scanners used to work. So I said if you wanted to make each favorites list one frequency and give it a number you could literally be scanning 25 frequencies now assuming that you are analog like scanners used to be and with a quick key number you could hit the number of the favorites list and press enter to toggle it on and off. That was the closest we could get to how scanners used to work. The 536 definitely doesn't work the way scanners used to work but this would mimic as close as we could get to the old days.

So I guess I would have to ask what is it that you are listening to? What is your state, county and hometown and let's try to pin this down as far as what you've done. If these are analog frequencies you certainly could put them all on one favorites list meaning that you would be scanning all 25 at one time on scan list number one and you would avoid or not avoid, what we used to call lockout whatever you wanted to. What are you listening to and what do you have on those 25 favorites list that you can key on and off by toggling the favorite list number and enter.

 

[trentbob]

Okay so I see your hometown in your profile and you live in Yuba County which amazingly is all conventional frequencies and it looks like there would be I think around 25 conventional frequencies you would want to put in. That is provided that you would want every frequency. It looks like you have some kind of a phase II system that is being built out that has no talk groups yet only testing. It appears to be encrypted or at least the testing talk groups are encrypted. I'll make some screenshots of what I'm talking about and you tell me if these are the frequencies that you put in one on each favorites list. Understand this is very atypical and nobody does this but you could actually set your 536 up like an old time scanner.

 

[ofd8001]

Unfortunately radio systems have gotten pretty complicated over the years and scanners have had to follow. Your model scanner is very robust and there are several routes to arrive at the same result.

If all you want to receive is that shown in the above image, it can be done a little more "friendly" than what you have done. Quick Keys are used for turning "groups" of things on or off. If you are looking to jump or navigate to one specific channel, Number Tags might be another option. All you would need to do is a button press sequence and the scanner would "jump" to the desired channel.

It is a little more effort, but it would be the least required of any.

Essentially after setting Number Tags up in the scanner and you want to jump to a channel, here is what you would do:

Stop scanning by pressing the Channel button
Key in the "address" of the desired Channel
Complete the process by pressing the Channel button again.

If this interests you, please let us know and we can walk you through setting up those channel "addresses" or Number Tags.

 

[trentbob]

Personally original poster I was just giving you and idea of how to make your scanner work like an old time scanner. When I started as a kid we did not have scanners, we had tunable receivers and it was a thrill to actually be able to listen to 4 channels at a time on a old Electra Bearcat 4 channel Crystal controlled radio.

Although I showed you how to make your 536 work like an old scanner I certainly don't recommend doing it. Judging by your County's set up I would make a handful of favorites list. You could call 1 the Sheriff's Department, you could put fire and EMS on another, you could put the City of Marysville on another. That is the only logical way to do it and it's intended for the 536 to do it that way.

The method I showed you to make your scanner work like an old scanner is clunky and inefficient but I showed you how to do it nevertheless, I wouldn't do it myself.