SDS100/SDS200: SDS100 some signal loss

[Quickcall]

Last evening my SDS100 stopped picking up 'distant' signals. All local transmitters/repeaters come in fine but anything more that maybe 15 miles out has stopped. Same results on multiple base antennas. Other scanners and radios are working as they should. I've checked the settings up and down numerous times and have even formatted the SD card and started fresh with no change. Filters, attenuation, IFX, etc all with no luck. I do know about the cold solder joint issues but all the issues I've read have had full reception loss, not just some. Hoping someone has an idea before I attempt to send it in for repair. Thanks!

 

[hiegtx]

Last evening my SDS100 stopped picking up 'distant' signals. All local transmitters/repeaters come in fine but anything more that maybe 15 miles out has stopped. Same results on multiple base antennas. Other scanners and radios are working as they should. I've checked the settings up and down numerous times and have even formatted the SD card and started fresh with no change. Filters, attenuation, IFX, etc all with no luck. I do know about the cold solder joint issues but all the issues I've read have had full reception loss, not just some. Hoping someone has an idea before I attempt to send it in for repair. Thanks!

Are you, by chance, losing location control? Or, perhaps has it accidentally been engaged?

If you lose reception past a certain distance, that could be because of location control. If it was some other fault with the scanner, either you would lose everything (as sometimes happens with the cold solder joint), or get a mix of systems received, some closer, some farther than your 15 mile limit.

 

[Quickcall]

Are you, by chance, losing location control? Or, perhaps has it accidentally been engaged?

If you lose reception past a certain distance, that could be because of location control. If it was some other fault with the scanner, either you would lose everything (as sometimes happens with the cold solder joint), or get a mix of systems received, some closer, some farther than your 15 mile limit.

I don’t use any of the location features.

 

[hiegtx]

I don’t use any of the location features.

Neither do I, but check, if perhgaps, it somehow got turned on unintentionally.

 

[Quickcall]

Neither do I, but check, if perhgaps, it somehow got turned on unintentionally.

Just double checked, location services are not on.

 

[freqseeker]

What is your squelch set at?

 

[Quickcall]

What is your squelch set at?

Squelch is at 2.

 

[tvengr]

Are you having trouble with conventional frequencies, trunked systems, or both? If just a trunked system, the SDS scanners are the only ones capable of using site NAC. Try setting the scanner to Ignore Site NAC. The site NAC on the system may have changed. Also, a jumper cable or adapter feeding your scanner may be bad.

 

[n1chu]

You mention numerous antennas… are they all connected through an antenna switch, where only one lead connects to the scanner? That coaxial jumper (the only lead) that connects from the switch to the radio may have developed a problem.

 

[Ubbe]

Check using analog signals, perhaps NOAA weather channels, if they have the same amount of background noise as other scanners, set squelch to 0 to hear the weak ones. If there are more noise in the SDS100 then the preamplifier transistors in it might have gone bad. It seems to be a common problem with portable scanners.

/Ubbe

 

[Quickcall]

Check using analog signals, perhaps NOAA weather channels, if they have the same amount of background noise as other scanners, set squelch to 0 to hear the weak ones. If there are more noise in the SDS100 then the preamplifier transistors in it might have gone bad. It seems to be a common problem with portable scanners.

/Ubbe

That’s usually my go to for seeing how VHF is coming in. I can usually get all WX freqs but now I can only get the one in town. I suppose it’s time to send it in for repair.