I was in Jackson Tn today and the county (Madison County) is still having trouble with their 5 site tait DMR system using tait radios. They are still having LSM problems and the radio shop is still getting help from factory techs.
The official "I want LSM to work properly in my scanner" thread
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Are there any scanners that do simulcast good? Current or future? I've tried pro 652, hp1 and now 396xt and no luck with simulcast.
seth21w
Member
x36 are ok with good antenna and im currently using a 668 with good results however i have tweaked all the settings to handle the system i monitor.
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How can I tell what settings to tweak? Are there specific settings for each simulcast?
No it is basic settings for the decode levels in the digital settings area.
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How can I tell what settings to use for my area?
NO, there are no "simulcast" settings in any hardware scanner, they don't support simulcast at all (hence this thread). Anyone who tells you a certain scanner "supports" simulcast is deceiving themselves. No scanner manufacturer has ever claimed to support simulcast, and for good reason.
Aside from OP-25 (which, while difficult/time consuming to install, is free and fully supports simulcast), you're best bet is probably a Yagi directional antenna. Or, of course, the unmentionable XTS option.
seth21w
Member
Actually there is you just have to find the right combo for your location! And ive worked with op25 and "hardware" scanners and i have had no luck with op25 but i can tweak my pro668 to do just about any system.
teufler
Member
on simulcast, the best I have done is with antenna choice. You get a good outside antenna, you reach out but you get most of the antennas too. Less is more, going into the site and selecting the closest site to your location, then I am using an old Motorola rubber duck that used to be on an mtx-1000, or mts-800. Rubber duck, beats the standard 396xt duck, .Other ducks may pick up farther, but then the problem of receiving multiple towers at the same time. Course you use a specific 800 mhz antenna, vhf hardly works. The choices I have are hear the cty on 800 and forget the hp on vhf, hear both and then sometimes nothing intelligible because of simulcast. The beam concept works good but you have to play with the direction to get one tower, not 2 or 3..
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Would this radio shack antenna work? https://www.radioshack.com/products...canner-ham-discone-antenna?variant=5717063813
Probably not because it is omni-directional.
BUT, nobody can tell you what will work at your location. With simulcast systems, it is all local - trial and error specific to you. Are you mobile or fixed? What is your location in regards to towers? Where in the house is your antenna? Etc, etc.
Have fun experimenting and when you find the perfect combo pat yourself on the back.
LSM is fixed as it ever will be.
Everyone always whines about this. Its as good as it gets guys. The PRO-96 can handle P25 LSM's fine with tiny adjustment internally, and the right software. The Uniden BCD396/996XT's handle it fine with proper software/firmware updates and settings. And these are scanners with the "wrong" vocoders. The BCDX36HP's handle it just as good with the "right" vocoder, AND still usually need end user adjustments to settings. As far as I know the new P2's also have the "wrong" vocoder but still can handle it fine with same aforementioned adjusting. The only way to get that even better is playing with antenna, and attenuation tricks. I seriously think that its not ever going to truly be solved on the scanner radio's manufacturer end. I hate to say it, but the only way you will ever fully solve the problem, is by getting lucky enough to be an actual user of the system you want to hear, and having an actual system radio. Its an dead horse issue. Onward to the next episode!
Everyone always whines about this. Its as good as it gets guys. The PRO-96 can handle P25 LSM's fine with tiny adjustment internally, and the right software. The Uniden BCD396/996XT's handle it fine with proper software/firmware updates and settings. And these are scanners with the "wrong" vocoders. The BCDX36HP's handle it just as good with the "right" vocoder, AND still usually need end user adjustments to settings. As far as I know the new P2's also have the "wrong" vocoder but still can handle it fine with same aforementioned adjusting. The only way to get that even better is playing with antenna, and attenuation tricks. I seriously think that its not ever going to truly be solved on the scanner radio's manufacturer end. I hate to say it, but the only way you will ever fully solve the problem, is by getting lucky enough to be an actual user of the system you want to hear, and having an actual system radio. Its an dead horse issue. Onward to the next episode!
Or buy a Unication G4. Receive only (no worrysome programming), yet works fine in simulcast environments.
There is a long thread about them in the other receivers forum.
APX8000
Sarcastic Member
Use a Yagi....on your car...looks good while scanning mobile. Just remember every time you make a turn to adjust your Yagi in the new direction.
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OMG! I just saw a youtube video of this radio, I almost fell out of my chair. Incredible. Yeah, it's not as cheap as a hardware scanner, but if you compare it to the price of a XTS with programming cable and software, it's really quite reasonable. I want 10 of those.
slicerwizard
Member
So these scanners don't use IMBE and AMBE vocoders? What do posters mean when they write "wrong" vocoders?
If they get DMR into the G4 or G5 then that would make them a great alternative. If the price was closer to $500 that would also greatly help, because in general they are less flexible than scanners, and probably made off shore in the same region as the Baofeng, and i bet at $500 they would still be making a great profit.
kayn1n32008
ØÆSØ
Right?
The older scanners use IMBE, the X36's use AMBE. LSM systems are usually using AMBE with Phase II ones using AMBE II. But even with AMBE Vocoders, the X36's still do not even compare to say an APX on an P25 LSM system. Something scanner owners whine about.. I even used to til I realized, a scanner, no matter how good, is not an commercially designed radio specifically designed to handle multiple types of format to professional standards of 2 way comms. If an scanner was, then we would be paying over 2 grand for them. WEG!
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Isn't there a new scanner coming out this summer that is supposed to be better at simulcast?
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