Bristol County Mass Freq HELP!

[w1av]

Hi

I am listening to the following frequencies: 855.6625, 855.9125, 858.3625, 855.8875, 855.6375, 855.3625, & 858.7375. These frequencies seem to be state police and other agencies. They are listed here for Bristol County trunked system. I am listening to them on a Radio Shack Pro-2055 with a homebrew vertical dipole cut for VHF up about 22'. I live in Cranston RI in a generally good spot for monitoring. I am curious as to why I can hear these transmissions so good with the WRONG ANTENNA! The signals are close to about an S7-8 with good audio. Are the towers for these agencies really powerful and high? I have a BIG hill to the east of me and very surprised to hear these frequencies and they are very active. Sounds like a combination of agencies using them. There are also listed 2 "control frequencies" but I only hear noise on them. I tested them out and don't have them programmed cause all you hear is noise bursts. I don't have digital capabilities and still use analog scanners.

 

[wtp]

about the antenna...
any piece of metal will receive something.
it length is about the frequency, longer for lower.
but there is also some math involved and harmonics are a factor.
full wave, half wave, quarter wave. math.

as for the data channel.
it could be the control channel and that is the data being sent.
if it is in bursts then it could be a CAD frequency.
that is the computer terminals in the cars getting their own data, license lookup, looking up a person,etc

i also don't see those frequencies listed for bristol county or riscon, but i did not look hard.

 

[garys]

That's Zone 3 on the MSP trunk system. It's a simulcast system that covers most of the southeast corner of MA, and a bit over the bridge onto the Cape.

I don't know how many sites it has, but it's no surprised that you are hearing it. There should only be one control channel operational at any one time on any zone. All you'll hear is a steady stream of control data going out to the radios, that's how it works.

Since the Pro 2055 will do Motorola Smartnet trunking, you'll get better results if you set that up as a trunk system.

 

[w1av]

That's Zone 3 on the MSP trunk system. It's a simulcast system that covers most of the southeast corner of MA, and a bit over the bridge onto the Cape.

I don't know how many sites it has, but it's no surprised that you are hearing it. There should only be one control channel operational at any one time on any zone. All you'll hear is a steady stream of control data going out to the radios, that's how it works.

Since the Pro 2055 will do Motorola Smartnet trunking, you'll get better results if you set that up as a trunk system.

OK thank you. Thats what I have been hearing.....the different locations, etc. I have no clue how to set this radio for trunking. The instructions are lame. If you have some time I would like to ask for help doing this. I tried to set up trunking before but it didnt work. The only trunk modes this radio does is "Motorola" "LTR" and "EDACS". It is further complicated by things called "fleet maps" and talkgroups......I am old school analog listener. I looked on Youtube for help but nothing for this radio.

 

[garys]

Try the manual at this link, Easier to Read Pro-97/2055 Scanner Manual

Don't worry about Fleet Maps, as they aren't used any longer. You want Motorola for the type of trunk system. For your purposes, this is a Type II system.

Go to the section marked Programming Trunking Systems

You want Normal for the base frequency.

Then enter the frequencies. Order doesn't matter, but you have to enter all of the frequencies for trunking to work. You want Zone 3 for the frequencies.

Go to this site, Massachusetts State Police - Scan New England Wiki for the frequency and talk group information. Again, you want Zone 3 for the frequencies. For Talk Groups you should put in all of the "Troop D" ones, and "H Patrol 2" from Troop H. You may want to put in the Special Operations talk groups as well. You'll get radio traffic around Gillette Stadium when there's a Patriots game or other big event.

Talk Group 35472 is used by the Air Wing statewide, so it's good to have.

Once you start, you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

 

[w1av]

Try the manual at this link, Easier to Read Pro-97/2055 Scanner Manual

Don't worry about Fleet Maps, as they aren't used any longer. You want Motorola for the type of trunk system. For your purposes, this is a Type II system.

Go to the section marked Programming Trunking Systems

You want Normal for the base frequency.

Then enter the frequencies. Order doesn't matter, but you have to enter all of the frequencies for trunking to work. You want Zone 3 for the frequencies.

Go to this site, Massachusetts State Police - Scan New England Wiki for the frequency and talk group information. Again, you want Zone 3 for the frequencies. For Talk Groups you should put in all of the "Troop D" ones, and "H Patrol 2" from Troop H. You may want to put in the Special Operations talk groups as well. You'll get radio traffic around Gillette Stadium when there's a Patriots game or other big event.

Talk Group 35472 is used by the Air Wing statewide, so it's good to have.

Once you start, you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

OK, Great! Thank you. I will follow these instructions and hopefully get this done. I was able to enter all the frequencies. And I think I have it somewhat right. I have a "control channel" as the first frequency in channel"800", which is bank 8. When there is a transmission, regardless of which frequency, it always shows up on channel "800". and it is also automatically showing talk group ID's......I crossed referenced some of them and they correspond to the chart in the WIKI list for troop "D". Also squelch is on even though I turn the squelch knob all the way off. It seems to be working pretty good and I am getting talk groups from other areas. I am not sure how to manually put in a talk group number. The instructions on the "Easier to read Pro-97/2055 scanner" page is kind of confusing for manually entering a talk group.

 

[wtp]

look up open and closed modes.
control F works wonders here to find it.
i would just listen for a while and enjoy it.
open means to hear everybody and closed is for the ones you select.
and just leave the squelch where it always is, don't worry about it.

 

[w1av]

OK, Great! Thank you. I will follow these instructions and hopefully get this done.

Try the manual at this link, Easier to Read Pro-97/2055 Scanner Manual

Don't worry about Fleet Maps, as they aren't used any longer. You want Motorola for the type of trunk system. For your purposes, this is a Type II system.

Go to the section marked Programming Trunking Systems

You want Normal for the base frequency.

Then enter the frequencies. Order doesn't matter, but you have to enter all of the frequencies for trunking to work. You want Zone 3 for the frequencies.

Go to this site, Massachusetts State Police - Scan New England Wiki for the frequency and talk group information. Again, you want Zone 3 for the frequencies. For Talk Groups you should put in all of the "Troop D" ones, and "H Patrol 2" from Troop H. You may want to put in the Special Operations talk groups as well. You'll get radio traffic around Gillette Stadium when there's a Patriots game or other big event.

Talk Group 35472 is used by the Air Wing statewide, so it's good to have.

Once you start, you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

 

[w1av]

OK I seem to have gotten this to work. I did enter a few talk group numbers and I have about 20 in there programmed. I do have radio set for OPEN mode. I am hearing many different things....the D.O.T. towing companies, police, fire, very interesting listening and always lots of activity. My next inquiry is if it would be worth the $70 or so to buy one of those small 800 mhz beam antennas. Since they are small, like 5 to 7 elements I would be able to get it up a little higher and possibly get more signal. I realize, like WTP said that any piece of metal will pick up some signal, a dedicated antenna cut for this band might work better and last longer than my homemade one. Plus a beam would hone in more on the signal. But I don't know if what I am listening to is coming from more than 1 tower and in different directions. I will post a pic of my antenna later once I get outside. BTW I am using 75 ohm cable TV cable since I am only monitoring and not transmitting. I had a big roll of it and thought I would try it to see how it works. It works fine on pretty much everything. Pretty good shielding and cheap.

 

[garys]

If you're hearing the site okay, there's probably no need to change antennas. The Zone has more than one transmitter site, but they all carry the same traffic.

You might want to try setting up Zone 5 as a separate system and see how much traffic you get. If you can receive that, you'll get units from the NH line down to RI, and west out to Worcester.

In "Open" mode, you're going to hear every talk group that is using the site. You're hearing some Cape Cod fire departments as they are on the MSP trunk. Mostly the Cape Cod police departments are on 800, but not on the trunk.

 

[w1av]

If you're hearing the site okay, there's probably no need to change antennas. The Zone has more than one transmitter site, but they all carry the same traffic.

You might want to try setting up Zone 5 as a separate system and see how much traffic you get. If you can receive that, you'll get units from the NH line down to RI, and west out to Worcester.

In "Open" mode, you're going to hear every talk group that is using the site. You're hearing some Cape Cod fire departments as they are on the MSP trunk. Mostly the Cape Cod police departments are on 800, but not on the trunk.

Thank you Garys.....I will take any advice at this point because I am totally unfamiliar with the modern day systems. I used to be into this hobby back in the 80's and 90's when all we had was analog. Things were so much simpler. Right now I have 10 channels in BANK 8 in my Radio Shack PRO 2055. Those 10 frequencies are the ones for ZONE 3. I could try to put in the freqs from another zone like you said. I did try to monitor control freqs on other zones but no signals so I am wondering if I will be able to use anything other than zone 3. I prefer to leave radio in open mode so I can have more to hear. I live in Cranston RI but to the east of me there is a high ridge (Dean Estates) so that might block some signals. This is why I am surprised I can hear 800 mhz signals on a vhf antenna with a big hill right in my path! Another thing that is confusing me is the radio seems to automatically pick up talk groups. Those 5 digit numbers. I did however program about 20 of them in manually. Some of the groups I could identify and others I couldnt. Maybe instead of changing antennas I could CUT this one down to 800mhz? It will be pretty stubby though. Well maybe mathematically the vhf elements are some kind of multiple to work on 800 mhz. OK I am going to program in the freqs and tg's for zone 5 in bank 7 and see what I can hear.

 

[w1av]

Here are some pics of my homebrew vhf vertical dipole.....up about 20 feet or so. Mounted on some bamboo poles and a small aluminum mop handle. Looks crappy but works well. Told wife it is temporary till I can put on garage with other antennae. The other pic is my Diamond discone up about the same height as dipole on house. Under the discone is a better quality homebrew airband dipole. Eventually I want to come up with a better mounting system. But I cant climb anymore so getting on roof is out of question. But it would be nice to mount the antennas on chimney. I was thinking of getting a small 25' lightweight tower to mount on back of garage and hang antennas off that.

 

[garys]

You might be able to pick up the Zone 5 Control Channels, but the only way to be sure is to try it. You'll want to program Zone 5 into a different bank because the scanner is going to lock onto the first control channel it finds and won't look for any others.

All of the Talk Groups you're going to hear will be five digits.

The discone should work better, if you can connect the scanner to it. My roof climbing days are pretty much over too. My last trip was during the fall when I put some gutter guards on the lower part of the roof.

 

[w1av]

You might be able to pick up the Zone 5 Control Channels, but the only way to be sure is to try it. You'll want to program Zone 5 into a different bank because the scanner is going to lock onto the first control channel it finds and won't look for any others.

All of the Talk Groups you're going to hear will be five digits.

The discone should work better, if you can connect the scanner to it. My roof climbing days are pretty much over too. My last trip was during the fall when I put some gutter guards on the lower part of the roof.

Hi Garys.....I did program ZONE 5 and I am picking up signals a bit weaker than ZONE 3. And Zone 5 is in separate bank. But it looks like I am getting direct frequencies, nothing over control channels. But the talk group ID's still show up too. I need to replace the coax on that discone. It came with the antenna and is real junk, Works ok for local stuff but I need to replace it with some LMR 400 or something better. That coax is so crappy, I cant hear ANY trunked stuff on it! The VHF dipole works better!
Yeah wife said NO ROOF! After a couple mishaps with my back and shoulder, I am permanently grounded.

 

[garys]

You'll never get voice traffic over a control channel, just data. In fact, you won't even hear that if the scanner is operating correctly. If the Talk Group IDs are showing up, the scanner is doing it's thing properly.

 

[Nascar18]

Bob,
Before you spend any more money square away that discone antenna. That is one of the best scanner antenna made today. Next get a better understanding of trunk system scanning, Control channels (2 the most) and talkgroups and edit the name (#34000 - D-Patrol-1), all the other system frequencies run in the background and you don't enter them. Look into the programming cable and software, all though I think you need a new digital scanner for your area with all the P25 that is active in RI just RISCON/Providence alone. I just finally figured out my TRX-1 scanner programming from a SD card more fun. Good luck.

 

[w1av]

Bob,
Before you spend any more money square away that discone antenna. That is one of the best scanner antenna made today. Next get a better understanding of trunk system scanning, Control channels (2 the most) and talkgroups and edit the name (#34000 - D-Patrol-1), all the other system frequencies run in the background and you don't enter them. Look into the programming cable and software, all though I think you need a new digital scanner for your area with all the P25 that is active in RI just RISCON/Providence alone. I just finally figured out my TRX-1 scanner programming from a SD card more fun. Good luck.

Hi NASCAR18....I hear ya......I am going to REPLACE that crummy cheep coax with good quality cable this Spring on that discone. And also try to get it up higher. I am still struggling with trunking to a point. I took your suggestion and locked out everything on scanner except bank "D". Starting fresh, I entered 2 CONTROL FREQS for Bristol County. Then entered a bunch of the talk groups. Locked out the rest of channels in that bank except for channels 1 and 2 where those control freqs are. Set radio to SCAN and it seems to be working fine. I read in the instructions to enter ALL FREQUENCIES but I guess you only need the CONTROL freq(s) and talk group numbers. It is showing talk group ID"s that I didnt even program! As for DIGITAL scanner I am still waiting till I can justify spending that much on a scanner. I might put aside a few bucks from income tax refund. Eventually I will get one and have to bug you guys to help me figure out how to program it!

 

[Nascar18]

Bob,
Any future programming you will be doing you will be using your PC. The only time you will touch the scanner is to turn it on!! The new trunking systems MSP and RISCON and you can even pull in the Conn St Police they have so many talkgroups. I just updated my 996P2 it has 336 channels. You will get a better understanding programming with the the PC and software. Just need to decide on the scanner now.

 

[w1av]

Bob,
Any future programming you will be doing you will be using your PC. The only time you will touch the scanner is to turn it on!! The new trunking systems MSP and RISCON and you can even pull in the Conn St Police they have so many talkgroups. I just updated my 996P2 it has 336 channels. You will get a better understanding programming with the the PC and software. Just need to decide on the scanner now.

Yeah I am looking at possibly a Uniden. Just have to save up. Glad to be able to program via PC....less cumbersome than touchpad. I used to live near the Connecticut State Police Barracks in Danielson back in 2003-4.....I thought their comms were encrypted back then. I didn't think their (digital) signal would reach way over here from there. Many BIG hills in the way.