Simulcast

[hooten3]

Greetings,
I really hate to be a pain in the neck, but I am really confused. I have the BCD325P2. There are times when I can receive the simulcast fine. However, most of the time there are issues because I have to move around to find the best reception. Often I can see the display showing the ID but no audio. I know I have multipath issues also. So, here is my question, does it appear I have more of reception issues or decoding issues. The SDS100 may certainly be a solution, but I would hate to spend the money and still have issues. I am not very technically oriented, so be kind.
Thanks.

 

[Reconrider]

The sds100/200 might be the best choice.

I was going to suggest sdrs and dsd+ but you said you are technically oriented so I don't want to make setting it up worse.

 

[dcr_inc]

Look at the G4/G5 Unication.. Less money than a SDS100/200.. Much better simulcast Rx..
www.dtwradio.com

 

[hooten3]

The sds100/200 might be the best choice.
Actually, I am not very technically oriented. So, any suggestions with my scanner or antenna setup that may help is greatly appreciated. FYI-signal strength is very good. Multipath distortions can be problematic. I do have a YAGI.

I was going to suggest sdrs and dsd+ but you said you are technically oriented so I don't want to make setting it up worse.

 

[KK4JUG]

The SDS scanners would be your best choice. While the Unication may work well for simulcast, it's not a scanner and if you travel, even within Texas, you'll want a scanner and not a pager.

 

[ofd8001]

Its definitely a decoding issue with simulcast. Your scanner is being bombarded with signals for two or more sites, but just a tad out of sync with each other. Your scanner is having trouble "understanding" or decoding, what it hears. So you get garble or no audio. What you are experiencing is classic with simulcast distortion.

x36 scanners and earlier didn't do very well with simulcast as you and many of us have seen.

SDS is best option. Unications are good receivers, but not nearly as flexible as scanners.

 

[hooten3]

I really appreciate the input. Thank you all very much.

 

[hooten3]

One last question - Until I upgrade to an SDS, are there settings on my 325 that would possibly improve the simulcast reception?

 

[62Truck]

One last question - Until I upgrade to an SDS, are there settings on my 325 that would possibly improve the simulcast reception?

You can play around with the p25 threshold settings, also make sure your firmware is up to date. You can try playing around with attenuation and directional antennas too.

 

[62Truck]

I see there area few sites that are part of the lubbock system that aren't simulcast, have you tried any of those sites?

 

[hiegtx]

I see there area few sites that are part of the lubbock system that aren't simulcast, have you tried any of those sites?

Those are basically fill-in sites for outlying areas. None of them would be carrying all of the system's traffic.

One last question - Until I upgrade to an SDS, are there settings on my 325 that would possibly improve the simulcast reception?

For use at home, you might have better reception with a directional antenna, focused on a single site. That might isolate the scanner from the out of synch signals from the other parts of the simulcast system. But that's not an option when you are out and about the area.

You might try the threshold settings, or perhaps use 'less antenna'. If you are using a gain antenna, such as one of the Remtronix 800NHz antennas (or the "RadioShack" labeled version of the same antenna), see if using the original antenna helps any. You could also try a paper clip to see if that reduces signals enough to make a difference, or use the attenuator, which would also reduce signal strength.