Methinks those who might have owned a BC890/PRO-2036 (or may still ) would be
less inclined to berate it. For an older scanner, it offers great functionality. The weak
point is its RF front-end which has great problems when connected to a rooftop
antenna. This is not unique, my BC780 on VHF/UHF has problems with this.
What's not clear is whether this "breakup" is due to a defect, or is a normal
case of overload. In the latter case, any money spent on repair would be wasted.
As for lack of trunking capability....big deal. Why tie up an expensive trunked
(digital) scanner listening to some conventional frequencies? This scanner was
discontinued about 10 years back. Everything gets old! Even great old scanners
like the PRO2004/5/6 are becoming more limited due to narrowbanding.
My old BC890 has a discriminator tap used to monitor trunked data channels.
Once the signal level is controlled, it works OK (using filter or attenuator). I scan
LTR systems conventionally, and search the lowband (using search/store) etc.
It can sit on a conventional channel for days, maybe weeks.
I picked up an old BC148XLT for $10...10 channels, no CTCSS, no 800MHz,
no search function...etc. Was it worth it...for me, yes. For a price, things can find
their niche.
I agree that sometimes the cost if servicing equipment makes it not worth fixing.
Try the following: partly straighten out a paper clip and insert into the antenna
BNC. If the signals you want are still there (even noisy) and the breakup improves,
the problem is overload. If it continues, and you are inclined towards simple
servicing (of obvious things; broken wires etc.), open it up and have a look.
Dave
