BCD436HP/BCD536HP: How to stop scanning USA content

[radioroo]

I'm in Canada. I've entered my post code and set my range to 20. My 436 scans all sorts of USA content like FBI, Coastguard, Bank of Chicago etc. that I don't want it to scan because there's nothing there to listen to.

I see some USA content listed in 'Select Nationwide System' but since the screen doesn't display the full line of text I can only see the USA part of a few of the shorter lines of text. They do not scroll across to let me read them (bad design?). How can I read what these lines of text actually say so I can disable the USA ones?

And if I do figure that out am I even on the right path? I don't know which of those system the Chicago bank is part of.

At the moment the scanning procedure takes several minutes because it's scanning a lot of useless content that isn't applicable to my location.

Thanks for the help gentlemen.

 

[fxdscon]

You can create a favorites list with only the agencies you wish to hear, and scan only that list..... and ignore the master database altogether.

.

 

[radioroo]

I'm finding the favourites list feature too complicated. I just want to lock out all USA content. I dint want to start from scratch and have to manually figure out the names and freqs of everything I want to listen to. I'm not an expert or advanced scanner user.

 

[radioroo]

When I turn the full database off and use the Search with Scan instead, I can't pick up anything at all.

 

[KE5MC]

You are not starting from scratch. All the information from the main database of the selected items you want to put in a favorites list is copied. Or in Sentinel delete the USA section of the main database and load only Canada into the scanner. Then you will only be scanning all of Canada. :roll:

 

[Jay911]

Where precisely in Canada are you? If you're close to the border, your range settings (20 miles) may be including some American states and counties.

For the nationwide systems, hit Menu, Set Scan Selection, Set Nationwide Systems, and then turn off anything you don't want to hear. Yes, some of them have names which are too long to fit, but that's how things work. Here are the ones which are Canadian:

Amateur Radio - CAN
Environment Canada (this is Weatheradio)
General Public Use
Interop - CAN
Marine Channels -
Rail - CAN

Actually, when you get into that menu, if you've set your location up to be in Canada, the American ones are marked with dashes instead of "On" or "Off". They can't be selected, they're already turned off.

If you are close to the border, as I said in the top of this post, let me know precisely where, and I can probably help you fine-tune it to avoid the US data.

 

[radioroo]

You are not starting from scratch. All the information from the main database of the selected items you want to put in a favorites list is copied. Or in Sentinel delete the USA section of the main database and load only Canada into the scanner. Then you will only be scanning all of Canada. :roll:

There is no option to delete the whole USA section of the database in Sentinel. Unless I am missing something. Since you know how to do so please do share.

And there's no need to roll your eyes. We all were scanning newbies at one point in life.

 

[Jay911]

Don't delete all of the USA in Sentinel, or even in some other third-party software people might recommend to you - because you will have to do it every Monday when Uniden releases a database update (they pull data down from the RR database every Monday morning).

You can figure out what US systems you are receiving and put them on permanent Avoid status. I saw in another post of yours that you're near London. With a range setting of 20 miles, you're likely getting a lot of stuff in Cleveland, Erie (PA), and possibly Detroit, Buffalo, and maybe even Niagara.

 

[LIScanner101]

There is no option to delete the whole USA section of the database in Sentinel. Unless I am missing something. Since you know how to do so please do share.

And there's no need to roll your eyes. We all were scanning newbies at one point in life.

I don't own one of these scanners and I have VERY often been told that I am NOT ALLOWED to even TALK about them on RR for that very reason but I'll give it a shot anyway...

My understand is with the x36HPs it's more a matter of telling them what you don't want to listen to rather than what you do. You might very well need to just create a favorites list and put in there ONLY what you WANT to listen to. I'm pretty sure that would be the best way.

 

[radioroo]

I don't own one of these scanners and I have VERY often been told that I am NOT ALLOWED to even TALK about them on RR for that very reason but I'll give it a shot anyway...

My understand is with the x36HPs it's more a matter of telling them what you don't want to listen to rather than what you do. You might very well need to just create a favorites list and put in there ONLY what you WANT to listen to. I'm pretty sure that would be the best way.

Your post is contradictory but I get what you're saying. I still haven't figured out the whole favourites list thing. It seems complex from a newbie's perspective. I was hoping that I could in fact just tell the scanner what I DON'T want to listen to rather than create a favourites list and start adding everything I DO want to listen to.

 

[LIScanner101]

Your post is contradictory but I get what you're saying.

What about my post is contradictory

I still haven't figured out the whole favourites list thing. It seems complex from a newbie's perspective. I was hoping that I could in fact just tell the scanner what I DON'T want to listen to rather than create a favourites list and start adding everything I DO want to listen to.

If I am right about what I said then I think you'd be on the right track with a FL. It give you the power to have full control over exactly what you listen to. Since the entire DB is so much larger than what most people really want to listen to at any given time, it's much easier to just compartmentalize what you want into a FL, as opposed to "avoiding" a huge amount of data in the main DB.

 

[radioroo]

Don't delete all of the USA in Sentinel, or even in some other third-party software people might recommend to you - because you will have to do it every Monday when Uniden releases a database update (they pull data down from the RR database every Monday morning).

You can figure out what US systems you are receiving and put them on permanent Avoid status. I saw in another post of yours that you're near London. With a range setting of 20 miles, you're likely getting a lot of stuff in Cleveland, Erie (PA), and possibly Detroit, Buffalo, and maybe even Niagara.

Thanks for the reply. Yes I do see the scanner scan a lot of stuff in Michigan and Ohio but it doesn't actually pick anything up from those areas. If it did I'd be happy to listen in, but as it is not picking anything up it's just slowing down the scan time greatly.

If I could somehow read the full lines of text in the 'Select Nationwide System' section I might be getting somewhere but there's no way to read them. I like the scanner but gosh there are a lot of simple design flaws that sure need addressing which would be very easy to fix and would make the device more enjoyable to use. With things like what I just mentioned as well as the spelling mistakes and the record feature muting your sound for a couple of seconds when you start recording or the hold button momentarily muting the sound every time you press it, it makes me wonder how these things went unnoticed prior to release. If I was releasing a product I'd at least spend an hour going through all the menus and settings to notice the typos and illogical decisions.

 

[Jay911]

Another thing which might help is reading this article: How it Works: Location, Location, Location

It may be that 20 miles is too big of a range setting. You might be able to get away with a much smaller setting, which will also tune out the US stuff.

 

[phask]

Turn off all of the Nationwide settings - not sure on the newer ones as I have a HP1.

Jay or someone with a new one explain how to avoid the Nationwide.

 

[radioroo]

What about my post is contradictory

You said we need to tell the scanner what we DON'T want to listen to rather than what we DO want to listen to, but went on to describe how to tell the scanner what we DO want to listen to by using the favourites list.

Like I said, I got what you were trying to say

 

[KE5MC]

Jay911 is correct about deleting from the main as it will come back. Thought it could be done from Sentinel, but looks like one would need to do it from the file manager of the OS. Might be an issue if the database is indexed and the data is removed and index is not updated. Much better to copy data to favorites lists.

Small apology for sarcasm. It was based on your comments that was limiting your options. I have and will from time to be a newbie too depending on subject. If I decide in advance a course of action not supported by options/facts I will not achieve success. That was the point of the sarcasm.

There is no option to delete the whole USA section of the database in Sentinel. Unless I am missing something. Since you know how to do so please do share.

And there's no need to roll your eyes. We all were scanning newbies at one point in life.

 

[radioroo]

Turn off all of the Nationwide settings - not sure on the newer ones as I have a HP1.

Jay or someone with a new one explain how to avoid the Nationwide.

If someone knows that it would be great. I wondered if I could disable Nation Wide. When the scanner boots up it loads Michigan, Ontario and Nationwide. I don't see any way to disable Michigan and Nationwide and only load Ontario.

 

[radioroo]

Jay911 is correct about deleting from the main as it will come back. Thought it could be done from Sentinel, but looks like one would need to do it from the file manager. Might be an issue if the database is indexed and the data is removed and index is not updated. Much better to move data to favorites lists.

Small apology for sarcasm. It was based on your comments that was limiting your options. I have and will from time to be a newbie too depending on subject. If I decide in advance a course of action not supported by options/facts I will not achieve success.

Hey it's no problem. It's just that telling me what I should do and then rolling your eyes as if to suggest that I should already know this, was a bit off, considering what you told me to do was incorrect

I know it's frustrating for the knowledgeable people to see lots of newbies struggling with relatively simple (to the knowledgeable people) things. But to me having only a week of analogue experience and a day with the 436 a lot of this still seems complex. I appreciate you taking the time to help.

 

[KE5MC]

Sounds like you have Michigan, Ontario and Nationwide in a favorites list. When mine boots I see the list I have created. I rely on using Sentinel for setup and not very good at setup at the radio buttons. If they are in a list as seen in Sentinel it is a right click on the offending item in the list and 'select remove from list'. Then reload to scanner.

snip...
When the scanner boots up it loads Michigan, Ontario and Nationwide. I don't see any way to disable Michigan and Nationwide and only load Ontario.

 

[radioroo]

I'm making a favourites list for Police. I see the same list of items under every country in Ontario. Do I need to go through every county 1 by 1 and add the same police related items to the favourites list?

And then do the same thing for Medical, Rail etc? I must have the wrong idea here surely.