P25?

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mitch619911

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Hi, I'm trying to listen to my local police, I have a BAOFENG UV-5R but its analog?
and my police use digital P25?
I also have 2 RTL SDR USB dongles.

Here is a list of my frequencies
https://i.imgur.com/dR9QksP.png

I'm lookin for a scanner that can listen to P25 systems, I've looked around and they are over $300+, does anyone sell cheaper ones?
 

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My dude.... Baofeng cheap radios will NEVER do P25.... The radio you are referring to is analog ONLY.

If you are going to get into the word of SDR and dongles, I suggest you learn the types of systems available and what picks up what. Not to be a prick, but dongles are complicated to set up. But once you learn the basics, you'll be happy.

Research....

Research...

And then do more research... Watch videos over and over, till you think you understand.
 

IAmSixNine

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On the plus side they are not on a trunking system. So finding a radio that supports a digital conventional channel is going to be a lot easier then say if it was on a Phase 1 or 2 system.
XTS3000 with the right flash option enabled will work just fine. They also are going for 200 or less on the internet. Another great radio is the xts2500 and i believe Kenwood and Relm/BK and EF Johnson make radios that will also pick that up.
 

ramblin82

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You could get an older scanner such as a bc898t or pro-2006 and perform a discriminator tap, then use DSDPlus to decode with. Also you could use SDRSharp with the scanner plugin and pipe the audio to DSDPlus using vb-cable. All this software is free, unless you get DSDPlus fastlane.
 

Linkero

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$300 is about as cheap as you'll find for a good p25 scanner unless you get extremely lucky. Since you have an SDR, it'd be best to just set one of them up until you can get an appropriate scanner. I've linked a tutorial for it below. As MaximusTheGreat said, it is a bit complicated so take your time with it.


https://www.rtl-sdr.com/rtl-sdr-radio-scanner-tutorial-decoding-digital-voice-p25-with-dsd/

The tutorial is a bit old but should be able to get you started.
 

bob550

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Since you've experienced the joys of digital sticker shock, you may want to consider the used scanner market. Because your requirements are basic, at least for the time being, there will be plenty of pre-owned scanners available to suit your needs.
 

SteveSimpkin

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mitch619911

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First, thank you all.

I've also looked around with my SDR, can it capture and decode P25 Phase 1? I thought I saw a post about the little USB dongle doing P25 Phase 1.
 

slicerwizard

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An RTL SDR dongle and the free DSD+ 1.101 is all that's required to monitor conventional P25 channels. The OP doesn't need to spend a dime or acquire any other software.
 

ramblin82

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First, thank you all.

I've also looked around with my SDR, can it capture and decode P25 Phase 1? I thought I saw a post about the little USB dongle doing P25 Phase 1.

It can decode phase 1. You will need SDRSharp, DSD+, and VB-Cable. Then set SDRSharp to output to VB-Cable and set DSD+ to listen to VB-Cable. For DSD+ you need to download the DLL files and unzip them to the same folder as DSD+. You could decode phase 2 with OP25 software, however it's difficult to setup on windows.

1. SDRSharp official site (Use the install-rtlsdr bat file after unzipping): https://airspy.com/download/
2. DSD+ official site: https://www.dsdplus.com/download-2/
3. VB-Cable official site: https://www.vb-audio.com/Cable/

Good luck!
 
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Wrong information my man!!!

All you need is DSD plus... No vb cable, no sdr sharp etc... A good old copy of DSD plus and that will work. You may need the "fast lane", I just don't remember the difference between the free and paid versions are right now...

Like I said, DSD plus will be your best friend for none trunking freqs.. Now if you need, trunking, then you'll need other software..

As I stated, read... Read.. Watch more videos.. Use the advice here to as a guideline.
It can decode phase 1. You will need SDRSharp, DSD+, and VB-Cable. Then set SDRSharp to output to VB-Cable and set DSD+ to listen to VB-Cable. For DSD+ you need to download the DLL files and unzip them to the same folder as DSD+. You could decode phase 2 with OP25 software, however it's difficult to setup on windows.

1. SDRSharp official site (Use the install-rtlsdr bat file after unzipping): https://airspy.com/download/
2. DSD+ official site: https://www.dsdplus.com/download-2/
3. VB-Cable official site: https://www.vb-audio.com/Cable/

Good luck!
 

slicerwizard

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Free DSD+ 1.101, the included FMP program (to interface with an rtlsdr dongle) and the DLL file bundle is all that's needed for conventional P25 monitoring. It also handles NXDN, DMR and ProVoice. No SDR# or virtual audio cables required.

Fast Lane adds D-Star, Fusion, P25 trunking, better support for NXDN and DMR trunking and data broadcasts, yadda yadda. (Not going to post the entire FL change log here...)
 

ramblin82

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Wrong information my man!!!

Well excuse the crap out of me. I knew that DSD+ uses FMP as a tuner but I thought it was only for trunking, in which this case the OP has conventional frequencies. I really didn't know you could set it up to monitor conventional. I mainly use a discriminator tapped scanner with DSD+ because it seems to get a better signal.

The OP can disregard anything I've stated here. I won't be trying to help anyone out any further, in this thread or part of the forums anymore. Good luck though to the OP!
 
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Well excuse the crap out of me. I knew that DSD+ uses FMP as a tuner but I thought it was only for trunking, in which this case the OP has conventional frequencies. I really didn't know you could set it up to monitor conventional. I mainly use a discriminator tapped scanner with DSD+ because it seems to get a better signal.

The OP can disregard anything I've stated here. I won't be trying to help anyone out any further, in this thread or part of the forums anymore. Good luck though to the OP!
Dude chill out... There's no need to get your panties in an uproar. Don't take things to heart.

You posted information that is misleading, someone corrected you, just say "my bad" and move on to the next post. it's not a big deal.
 

ramblin82

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You posted information that is misleading

What I posted wasn't entirely misleading, because it could technically be done the way I posted it. Alot of the older tutorials online say to do it the way I posted. I just didn't know FMP could do conventional.

Let's just ignore everything I've said, I don't want to be accused of derailing this thread.
 
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KF5YBZ

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Hi, I'm trying to listen to my local police, I have a BAOFENG UV-5R but its analog?
and my police use digital P25?
I also have 2 RTL SDR USB dongles.

Here is a list of my frequencies
https://i.imgur.com/dR9QksP.png

I'm lookin for a scanner that can listen to P25 systems, I've looked around and they are over $300+, does anyone sell cheaper ones?

There are 19 Stockton's being hosted right now. Chances are you can listen to your town for free on your phone or computer.

https://www.broadcastify.com/listen/feed/9340
 

Linkero

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What I posted wasn't entirely misleading, because it could technically be done the way I posted it.

I personally do it the way you have posted, hence the link I gave previously. It's no where near misleading. As a wise man once said, there's more than 1 way to fold a piece of paper. I think we both need to check out the method Maximus described, especially if it's easier!
 

slicerwizard

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Alot of the older tutorials online say to do it the way I posted.
Those old tutorials need to die, but of course they never will. Doesn't matter how outdated the info gets, those sites will keep wasting newcomers' time for the next decade at least.

BTW, this sentiment is in no way directed at the person I'm replying to. I don't expect everyone to know everything and to keep up with changes. Trying to help others is no sin.
 
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