PRO-97, Baltimore City

[pcjackson06]

This post is duped in the Maryland Regional thread. Hoping by double-posting, perhaps I'll increase my chances of an answer. To the administrator, thanks for understanding.

...

Hi all, I just purchased a Pro-97 and am having some trouble programming it for Baltimore City.

I've erased the default scanner frequencies and programmed the following "control" freq's into the scanner for Baltimore City:

At M000MO, 868.95000
In a manual mode, I see the "MOT: SYS 562-A 9x%"

By pressing PGM, MODE, TRUNK... I've programmed talk groups from the following page:
http://www.radioreference.com/modules.php?name=RR&sid=188

I've programmed the DEC four digit talk group ID's (IE - 2704,3506,etc.) in BANK 0-0, TGID #00 - #29.

When I press SCAN I see the frequency changing and the MOT: XXXX changing, and it sits on channels, however everything is "static".

Any thoughts? Would greatly be appriciated! Baltimore City is a MOT II Smart Zone.

Cheers,
Phil

 

[bwhite]

I don't know much about the 97 or balto city, but, I believe balt city is digital and the 97 ain't. If I'm correct (and I'm sure others will clarify), you won't get trunked transmissions other than static. You can monitor their VHF Hi dispatches, but, you coulda done that with a lesser receiver.

 

[hiegtx]

While that system is a Motorola Type II, it looks like most of it's talkgroups are digital.
Look at the system voice description:
System Voice:Analog and APCO-25 Common Air Interface
That means at least some of the talkgroups are digital, hence the "static" you are hearing. The Pro-97 is capable of tracking the channel assignments on the system, but it can't decode the digital transmissions, so you hear static.
The Mode column on the talkgroup listing tells you which ones are which. Anything marked with a "D" has been reported to be digital.

To receive this trunked system, & all the talkgroups, you'd need a Pro-96 instead (or the Pro-2096 if you went base/mobile instead of handheld). If you bought it new, from a Radio Shack store, you can generally return it within 30 days if you really feel the need to make the switch for this system. I believe the 96 & 2096 may be on sale at this time as well.

 

[pcjackson06]

And it's only $400!

Thanks so much for the quick feedback. I'll pick one up tomorrow - any preference as to which one I should get? While mobility is nice, I'm hoping to stream this online... so, a "base" unit is just fine.

 

[hiegtx]

Operationally, the 96 & 2096 are the same, other than the obvious handheld vs base/mobile. If you're planning on using in the house, instead of carrying it around, I'd get the 2096. If you got the 96, you'd have to also buy an ac adapter at an additional charge. The 2096 should come with everything you need.

Regardless of which you choose, consider, at some point, adding Win96 & a pc programming cable. It will make setup, or subsequent updates, much easier. Read through the software forum for more. I believe you can download it for a trial period as well.

 

[BaLa]

the good news for you is, if you do decide on the Pro96.
programming and operation is similar to the 97.