Please Help a Confused Newbie Decide

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gordiebill

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Posted in Newbie section but thought maybe I should put it here as well. I apologize in advance for the double post.

Greetings all!

I want to get back into scanning after a 30 year absence and I'm confused as to what receiver to get. My last scanner had 12 crystals in it,

I want a handheld unit and have narrowed it down to 3 (I think). They are the Uniden BCD396XT, GRE PSR500, and the GRE PSR800.

I live in southwestern Ontario Canada and would like to listen to Emergency Services in Chatham-Kent, London, Windsor and Detroit Michigan. Also would like to use the scanner at the NASCAR races. I know that some police agencies in my area are encrypted and that I will not be able to receive those.

I would REALLY appreciate input as to what would work best for me.

Thanks in advance;
 

IdleMonitor

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As a fan of Uniden radios, my suggestion would be the BCD396XT, I have the 396T and it's everything that I need.

Welcome aboard.

Posted in Newbie section but thought maybe I should put it here as well. I apologize in advance for the double post.

Greetings all!

I want to get back into scanning after a 30 year absence and I'm confused as to what receiver to get. My last scanner had 12 crystals in it,

I want a handheld unit and have narrowed it down to 3 (I think). They are the Uniden BCD396XT, GRE PSR500, and the GRE PSR800.

I live in southwestern Ontario Canada and would like to listen to Emergency Services in Chatham-Kent, London, Windsor and Detroit Michigan. Also would like to use the scanner at the NASCAR races. I know that some police agencies in my area are encrypted and that I will not be able to receive those.

I would REALLY appreciate input as to what would work best for me.

Thanks in advance;
 

LesWurk

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Joined
Dec 17, 2009
Messages
223
Location
Land of RF
Posted in Newbie section but thought maybe I should put it here as well. I apologize in advance for the double post.

Greetings all!

"I want to get back into scanning after a 30 year absence and I'm confused as to what receiver to get. My last scanner had 12 crystals in it,

I want a handheld unit and have narrowed it down to 3 (I think). They are the Uniden BCD396XT, GRE PSR500, and the GRE PSR800.I live in southwestern Ontario Canada and would like to listen to Emergency Services in Chatham-Kent, London, Windsor and Detroit Michigan. Also would like to use the scanner at the NASCAR races. I know that some police agencies in my area are encrypted and that I will not be able to receive those."






Your probably facing huge learning curve. Are you computer savvy, guessing yes? Its helps programming the newer scanners. The PSR800 comes with a library with much of what your interested in, included software allows additions.

The Uniden has a smaller footprint followed by the PSR800 and the PSR 500 the largest. My experience has been the 396T (not a 396XT) is harder on batteries than the PSR500.

Make a list of what is important to you and then rate them.
 

VE3JSO

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Mar 3, 2007
Messages
988
Location
sarnia ont
Posted in Newbie section but thought maybe I should put it here as well. I apologize in advance for the double post.

Greetings all!

I want to get back into scanning after a 30 year absence and I'm confused as to what receiver to get. My last scanner had 12 crystals in it,

I want a handheld unit and have narrowed it down to 3 (I think). They are the Uniden BCD396XT, GRE PSR500, and the GRE PSR800.

I live in southwestern Ontario Canada and would like to listen to Emergency Services in Chatham-Kent, London, Windsor and Detroit Michigan. Also would like to use the scanner at the NASCAR races. I know that some police agencies in my area are encrypted and that I will not be able to receive those.

I would REALLY appreciate input as to what would work best for me.

Thanks in advance;

i am a fan of the gre and radio shack brand of scanners and i suggest getting the psr 800 that has both canadian and american database preloaded on a micro sd card that is with the scanner if you don't really want to mess around but if you like to play around and program the scanner by hand i would suggest the psr-500 only thing with that model is that it would takes a little time to read the manual and to play around with it to get it to where you want it but after that it is a breeze to program by hand and you still have the option to program it with a computer,software i.e win500,arc500,etc and the supplied programming cable.
 

69stiles

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Apr 21, 2003
Messages
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Location
Waterloo Region
A lot has changed in 30 years. The newer scanners like the Uniden XT models have gotten a bit complicated. If you want it all pre-loaded & all that's required is the simple skills of inputing a postal code or city then you might consider the Uniden Home Patrol. HomePatrol
 

se

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Feb 15, 2005
Messages
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Location
Minto, New Brunswick Canada
Hi.

I would 2nd that on the UNIDEN HomePatrol, since I have one. Although some things on it for me are slightly annoying. But the ease of use is what I really like about it, plus theres some good third party spftware for it. Its a fully digital scanner that scans both conventional and trunking radio systems. But I would say to do your research first ;-)

Sheldon.
 

torontokris

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Toronto Canada
In my opinion you Can't go wrong with either the 396xt the 500 or the 800. All have great features

Note the 800 has north america pre-programmed on it (you still have to sleect what u want to listen to).
Also of note the 800 is the ONLY scanner out right now that is reportably able to decode P25 phase 2 (a newer type of P25 that some agencies are switching to)

On the downside the 800 comes with nothing. Scanner antenna usb cable belt clip. That's it. No home adapter etc.

All that being said the uniden is a small amazing little scanner as well.

I sell the 500 for $400 brand new, the 800 for $450 brand new and the 396xt for $500 brand new no taxes (shipping is extra). Just send me a private message if interested so we can talk and not disturb others or torontokris at yahoo dot com
 

unlisted

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Western Canada
If you have the funds for it, and don't want to really worry about the hassle of programming I'd recommend the uniden Homepatrol or the psr800. I recently upgraded to the homepatrol extreme (paid software upgrade) and I'm really liking it. Now I'm considering a psr800 simply for the P25 phase 2 coverage...


Slightly off topic- torontokris - can you take a "side by side" photo of the homepatrol and psr800? I'm curious on the size differences..
 

torontokris

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pictures to compare the HP-1 home patrol (largest with the touch screen face) vs the gre psr-800 (all black) and uniden bcd396xt (smallest no antenna put on it).. i should have thrown in a 500/pro-106 as well, it would be bigger then all of the above scanners
 

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torontokris

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the psr-800 is definitely small compared to normal GRE radio shack handhelds,
the 800 is as thin as the 396xt BUT taller and wider.

your welcome, hope that helps the original poster as well in his decision.

Again note the accessories, all come with a CD however the
800 comes with scanner antenna belt clip mini-usb cable
the 396xt scanner antenna belt clip SERIAL PC cable home/wall adapter wrist strap bnc adapter 3 AA rechargeable batteries
the hp-1 comes with scanner antenna mini-usb cable home/wall adapter CAR cigarette lighter adapter desk stand 4aa rechargeable batteries
 

EJB

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If you have the funds for it, and don't want to really worry about the hassle of programming I'd recommend the uniden Homepatrol or the psr800. I recently upgraded to the homepatrol extreme (paid software upgrade) and I'm really liking it. Now I'm considering a psr800 simply for the P25 phase 2 coverage...


Slightly off topic- torontokris - can you take a "side by side" photo of the homepatrol and psr800? I'm curious on the size differences..

Will the new P25 systems that Halton Hamilton and Toronto have been talking about (and on here) work with the PSR800 and not any of the Uniden scanners?

Unlisted. Please shoot me a PM. I have a question to ask you if I may.
I feel kinda dumb cause you did tell me your name and I forgot it

Eric
 

VE3JSO

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sarnia ont
this might have been asked before not sure but does anyone know when toronto is making the switch
 

SCPD

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Virginia
From a user interface point of view, I would stay away from the Uniden 396 models. IMHO the GRE units are easier to use. :wink:

To me ... that is a major concern, just as much as performance.

I don't know about what is happening in Toronto in the future but from a pure usability point of view I would go with a GRE model.
 

gordiebill

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Aug 25, 2011
Messages
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Location
Ontario Canada
I want to thank everyone for their comments and input regarding my scanner choice. I think I muddied the water a bit when someone suggested the ZHomePatrol-1. I like the user interface of the HP-1, but the frequency range isn't as high as the PSR800.

Decisions, decisions, decisions...

Thanks again folks!
Gord

Ontario Canada
 
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