TRX-1 a total piece of junk?

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NSfan98

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Okay, as the title suggests, my TRX-1 may be a total piece of junk.
I received it second-hand from a responsible scanner owner, all stock. Naturally, the stock antenna isn't good at all, so I upgraded to the Remtronix 800B. Even with the 800B on, it doesn't receive transmissions until 1-2 seconds into the transmission, it has extreme distortion, and a long squelch tail after the transmission, thus cutting off other traffic. I have messed with the squelch to no avail.

On top of this, I have a half-cracked LCD from a minor fall it took off of my desk, onto my hardwood floor. This unit doesn't not have a warranty. Can I send this to Whistler and get it fixed, if so at what rates? Or heck, maybe get a full unit replacement for cheaper than MSRP? Thanks in advanced.
 

mule1075

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Okay, as the title suggests, my TRX-1 may be a total piece of junk.
I received it second-hand from a responsible scanner owner, all stock. Naturally, the stock antenna isn't good at all, so I upgraded to the Remtronix 800B. Even with the 800B on, it doesn't receive transmissions until 1-2 seconds into the transmission, it has extreme distortion, and a long squelch tail after the transmission, thus cutting off other traffic. I have messed with the squelch to no avail.

On top of this, I have a half-cracked LCD from a minor fall it took off of my desk, onto my hardwood floor. This unit doesn't not have a warranty. Can I send this to Whistler and get it fixed, if so at what rates? Or heck, maybe get a full unit replacement for cheaper than MSRP? Thanks in advanced.
$120 for repair if I remember correctly.
 

allend

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Okay, as the title suggests, my TRX-1 may be a total piece of junk.
I received it second-hand from a responsible scanner owner, all stock. Naturally, the stock antenna isn't good at all, so I upgraded to the Remtronix 800B. Even with the 800B on, it doesn't receive transmissions until 1-2 seconds into the transmission, it has extreme distortion, and a long squelch tail after the transmission, thus cutting off other traffic. I have messed with the squelch to no avail.

On top of this, I have a half-cracked LCD from a minor fall it took off of my desk, onto my hardwood floor. This unit doesn't not have a warranty. Can I send this to Whistler and get it fixed, if so at what rates? Or heck, maybe get a full unit replacement for cheaper than MSRP? Thanks in advanced.

I would just take the scanner out back and dig a hole and take it as a loss. Invest your money somewhere else like Uniden and you will be happier.
 

Fast1eddie

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Crafton Pennsylvania
Can't compare Whistler against Uniden; each has their own strengths and weaknesses. Not knocking Uniden here, I ditched my 436 due to the learning curve and I ain't no dumbass. I prefer a imstinctive user friendly radio which does not neccesitate carrying a manual around, and the TRX-1 fulfills that need. Enjoying excellent reception on mine from various ducks to my discone. I can routinely copy West Virginia State Police HT mobile extender feequencies. Ok, back to your radio..Seeing how you are not happy with it, I offer to buy it from you.

Despite all the naysayers Whistler isn't going anywhere.
 

LEH

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Side by side, my 496 outperforms my TRX-1 with identical antennae on my local trunked systems. Neither compares to my G5.

I mainly am using my TRX-1 for a couple of DMR systems and tertiary back up scanner.
 

Wackyracer

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Location is everything with today's scanners, in most locations one brand will out perform the other in certain ways.....you have to own them to figure out which is best for YOUR location.
 

wtp

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i have dropped my uniden 396t twice from my hip, 3 feet.
the first time it bent the top knob, the second drop bent it back a little.
but now it when i use the knob it can jump backward or forward and even a step or two.
i stripped the antenna to the point where it just pulls off.
and it still works. tough little guy.
i don't think whistler would let me try this on one of their's for free.
 

rayvelcoro

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Agree with Wacky Racer. With 40 years of scanning experience, I will say wholeheartedly that LOCATION IS EVERYTHING when it comes to monitoring today's complex, often tightly range-restricted and directional systems ! Just one example: I have great difficulty monitoring my own county's trunked P25 system from my house, but pick up the neighboring system "five-out-of-five." This would have been unheard of in the old days of analog scanning when repeaters were blowtorches.
 

bob550

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I received it second-hand from a responsible scanner owner
Perhaps the original scanner owner wasn't as "responsible" as you think. Anyway, it's unfair to critique the performance of a used scanner as if it were brand new out of the box. Anything could have happened to it during its first life. Then too, your TRX-1 may have a different opinion of the "minor fall" it sustained.
 
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NSfan98

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Perhaps the original scanner owner wasn't as "responsible" as you think. Anyway, it's unfair to critique the performance of a used scanner as if it were brand new out of the box. Anything could have happened to it during its first life. Then too, your TRX-1 may have a different opinion of the "minor fall" it sustained.

I was thinking the same thing about the original owner. Given I only met him once, he was a heavy smoker. So probably didn't care much about what happened to the unit. Either way, from the fall it had, probably 3 to 3 and a half feet from my desk... face down. The thing never actually worked for me, before or after the drop, so I'm thinking the original owner killed it in a sense. Not a total loss since I did get through a trade. Thanks everyone for their answers so far!
 

TailGator911

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From two tin cans and a string, every radio, antenna, and location is different and unique as is the user and their proficiency with their gear. Move your setup from one room to another. Sometimes that is all it takes to dial in a particular frequency. Heck, sometimes just moving the radio to a different spot on your desk. My TRX-1 is the bomb. I am going on a cruise on the 11th and that is the scanner I am going to take with. Great vhf/uhf reception, DMR & NXDN, and the Spectrum Sweeper/Close Call works great in hotels, etc.

I have always been extra careful with my TRX-1 as I am not crazy about the rubberized case and exposed screen. I would have thought someone would have fashioned a good hard leather case for that radio by now. I rubbed a spot on the screen with my thumbnail, and not very hard, and it left a permanent mar. When I walk around playing tourist I usually put it in a purple cloth Crown Royal bag and put it in the front leg cargo pocket of my shorts and run my Rabbit earpiece up under my shirt. That way with my Wallaroo hat and my Margaritaville t-shirt people will see the earphone and think I'm jamming to some Jimmy Buffet. har har

JD
kf4anc
 

n4jri

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My TRX-1 has survived a couple of 3-foot falls, with no results other than the battery door coming off. (but not being broken) Can't speak to screen sensitivity, because I covered mine with a screen protector. Hanging from my dashboard air vent with its original duckie, it receives high band better than my PRO-195 (GRE) or PRO-652 (Whistler) PSR600 clones with external antenna--although that series of radios may have had some problems on high band in general.

But the location issue is definitely something. Sometimes there's outright audible interference, but sometimes there's silent desense. Wish I had the cash to get a second one, and maybe a TRX-2.

If Wendy is listening here, I do hope that Whistler will soldier on.

73/Allen (N4JRI)
 

minasha

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In my experience the GRE / Radio shack / Whistler models clones all have the Worst reception on LSM systems but by far the best on DMR.
 

n8yid

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Weighing in on this...

Emphasizing what n4jri and minasha just brought up...

Location is crucial; but, the TRX-1 is NOT an outstanding performer on the MARCS-IP system, to begin with... I mean, it will work, but, not to the levels that a majority expect it too. If you want to listen to MARCS-IP ; then a Uniden is a step in the right direction... and, if you want top level performance; a Unication is without a doubt the way to go....

With that said, the TRX-1 is an excellent radio; when used correctly. These radios are "tools", after all, that we, as scannists, use to listen to our hobby. I myself have a TRX-1 (...and I also happen to live in the same county as NSfan98); and I wouldn't trade my TRX-1 for anything... It is an amazing performer on DMR and conventional freqs; but, if I want to monitor anything MARCS-IP, I have my Uniden and my Unication to fall back on...

So, as far as the TRX-1 being a "total piece of junk"; I could not disagree more....I think the previous owner may have had some "influence" on it.... and 3 foot falls are NOT really recommended by the manufacturer....

Not a "brandname fanboy", by any means.... just a firm believer in using the correct "tool" for the job ...
 

TailGator911

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Not a "brandname fanboy", by any means.... just a firm believer in using the correct "tool" for the job ...

You said it all right there. Different radios are exactly that - different - and you eventually find which one does the job you need done and you assign that radio to that task. My TRX-1 does not fare well on the Ohio MARCS P25 Phase 1 digital simulcast system so I now assign my SDS's to that. The TRX-1 is a great radio for everything else, and an all in one with DMR/NXDN reception and superb vhf/uhf reception. You go with what you know.

buddrousa - ok, busted lol. Buffet in one ear, TRX-1 in the other :)

JD
kf4anc
 

KR7CQ

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Phoenix
Weighing in on this...

Emphasizing what n4jri and minasha just brought up...

Location is crucial; but, the TRX-1 is NOT an outstanding performer on the MARCS-IP system, to begin with... I mean, it will work, but, not to the levels that a majority expect it too. If you want to listen to MARCS-IP ; then a Uniden is a step in the right direction... and, if you want top level performance; a Unication is without a doubt the way to go....

With that said, the TRX-1 is an excellent radio; when used correctly. These radios are "tools", after all, that we, as scannists, use to listen to our hobby. I myself have a TRX-1 (...and I also happen to live in the same county as NSfan98); and I wouldn't trade my TRX-1 for anything... It is an amazing performer on DMR and conventional freqs; but, if I want to monitor anything MARCS-IP, I have my Uniden and my Unication to fall back on...

So, as far as the TRX-1 being a "total piece of junk"; I could not disagree more....I think the previous owner may have had some "influence" on it.... and 3 foot falls are NOT really recommended by the manufacturer....

Not a "brandname fanboy", by any means.... just a firm believer in using the correct "tool" for the job ...

Wish more people posted honest and unvarnished overviews like this. And yeah, every situation is unique. I have uses for GRE / Whistler scanners, and there are certain things they do well. All scanners are "toys", but I wouldn't say that any of the more expensive ones are "junk" unless you get a bad apple or the scanner gets damaged. Whistler has been left behind in the world of LSM, but that's a separate matter.
 
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