VSP Extenders

[Ghstwolf62]

Okay I don't know anything about how they are assigning these new 700 extenders. Whether each unit has it's own channel dedicated to the unit or it's for everyone in a geographical area. Assuming one frequency is assigned to one of the above scenarios and it isn't a random generated channel each time the trooper keys up then I have one for Alleghany area

Unit 986 was using 765.715625 this morning when he responded to a fight across the street from my house. It also showed a DCS of 023.

The units out here are still on the old analog system and not STARS.

Someone with more knowledge of the new extender system maybe could explain it a lot better as to what is what.

Hopefully this is helpful though

 

[c5corvette]

Okay I don't know anything about how they are assigning these new 700 extenders. Whether each unit has it's own channel dedicated to the unit or it's for everyone in a geographical area. Assuming one frequency is assigned to one of the above scenarios and it isn't a random generated channel each time the trooper keys up then I have one for Alleghany area

Unit 986 was using 765.715625 this morning when he responded to a fight across the street from my house. It also showed a DCS of 023.

The units out here are still on the old analog system and not STARS.

Someone with more knowledge of the new extender system maybe could explain it a lot better as to what is what.

Hopefully this is helpful though

Each state agency and geographic area has its own channel/freq on the new VR System.
Unlike the old system, its also first on scene smart so that only one VRS is active at any one location.
Whatelse do you want to know? I will post more info later on how the whole system works.
Also, tell me what Division your within, 2 or 6 (Appomattox or Salem) ???

 

[mike_s104]

Okay I don't know anything about how they are assigning these new 700 extenders. Whether each unit has it's own channel dedicated to the unit or it's for everyone in a geographical area. Assuming one frequency is assigned to one of the above scenarios and it isn't a random generated channel each time the trooper keys up then I have one for Alleghany area

Unit 986 was using 765.715625 this morning when he responded to a fight across the street from my house. It also showed a DCS of 023.

The units out here are still on the old analog system and not STARS.

Someone with more knowledge of the new extender system maybe could explain it a lot better as to what is what.

Hopefully this is helpful though

ONLY GUESSING...

They might have new portables ready for STARS and set to analog for their vehicle repeaters. Before STARS was active in Division 2, I caught an analog vehicle repeater in the 700MHz range too. I'll have to look for the RR post.

 

[mike_s104]

Each state agency and geographic area has its own channel/freq on the new VR System.
Unlike the old system, its also first on scene smart so that only one VRS is active at any one location.
Whatelse do you want to know? I will post more info later on how the whole system works.
Also, tell me what Division your within, 2 or 6 (Appomattox or Salem) ???

I must have started a reply before you did and stopped then resumed the msg while you posted before I actually finished.

 

[Ghstwolf62]

Well to give you an example when I lived in California CHP had extenders as well. Statewide the extender freq was 154.905.

Didn't know how VA is setting these things up especially with all the new tech they have now days or anything other than one guy was wishing he knew what the freq was for this area.

As I said Alleghany, Div 6, Ch 12, Zone 38, Unit 986 and monitored in Cliftondale Park area of Clifton Forge. Definitely a state police unit and not anything else. Simulcast on 159.000 146.2 PL

I heard several transmissions over this channel including between this particular unit and dispatch as well as other units from farther away on 81 somewhere.

It also was NOT digital and they do not have active STARS up here and came with DCS not a NAC code.

So basically I didn't know if this meant a new found channel or a new one for this area or exactly what it might mean.

 

[c5corvette]

Well to give you an example when I lived in California CHP had extenders as well. Statewide the extender freq was 154.905.

Didn't know how VA is setting these things up especially with all the new tech they have now days or anything other than one guy was wishing he knew what the freq was for this area.

As I said Alleghany, Div 6, Ch 12, Zone 38, Unit 986 and monitored in Cliftondale Park area of Clifton Forge. Definitely a state police unit and not anything else. Simulcast on 159.000 146.2 PL

I heard several transmissions over this channel including between this particular unit and dispatch as well as other units from farther away on 81 somewhere.

It also was NOT digital and they do not have active STARS up here and came with DCS not a NAC code.

So basically I didn't know if this meant a new found channel or a new one for this area or exactly what it might mean.

Give me a few hours and I will post an explaination. I cant write a long explaination from here at work.

Thanks,

 

[W4UVV]

Invalid frequency

Okay I don't know anything about how they are assigning these new 700 extenders. Whether each unit has it's own channel dedicated to the unit or it's for everyone in a geographical area. Assuming one frequency is assigned to one of the above scenarios and it isn't a random generated channel each time the trooper keys up then I have one for Alleghany area

Unit 986 was using 765.715625 this morning when he responded to a fight across the street from my house. It also showed a DCS of 023.

The units out here are still on the old analog system and not STARS.

Someone with more knowledge of the new extender system maybe could explain it a lot better as to what is what.

Hopefully this is helpful though

That's not a valid STARS mobile repeater frequency. The correct frequency is 765.15625 mhz. Check the FCC frequency assignment scheme for assignment for state licensees @12.5 khz. spacing. The trooper already has a STARS radio installed. STARS radios can operate either in the digital or analog mode.

 

[Ghstwolf62]

That's not a valid STARS mobile repeater frequency. The correct frequency is 765.15625 mhz. Check the FCC frequency assignment scheme for assignment for state licensees @12.5 khz. spacing. The trooper already has a STARS radio installed. STARS radios can operate either in the digital or analog mode.

Don't know. Activated the sweeper and that is the freq it repeatedly stopped on each time there was traffic. Came in loud and clear and always the same numbers. So don't know what to say about your doubts really.

I've stuck your idea into the radio as well so will see what pops up where

 

[Ghstwolf62]

Give me a few hours and I will post an explaination. I cant write a long explaination from here at work.

Thanks,

Thanks C5, I'm from the old bank days of scanners and all this new tech is confusing to put it mildly. I don't really know anything about it but I seriously doubt the extenders these days are the same as in the mid 80s that I'm familiar with even the so called advanced intelligent systems they had back then.

 

[c5corvette]

Thanks C5, I'm from the old bank days of scanners and all this new tech is confusing to put it mildly. I don't really know anything about it but I seriously doubt the extenders these days are the same as in the mid 80s that I'm familiar with even the so called advanced intelligent systems they had back then.

I'm from the old school too - also I have to agree with the other poster that the freq you heard is not the actual freq. (perhaps the bandplan or steps you have set up on your search feature is set wrong it all.)

I will he home in about an hour or so and will post some details on how the VRS system works.

 

[Ghstwolf62]

That's not a valid STARS mobile repeater frequency. The correct frequency is 765.15625 mhz. Check the FCC frequency assignment scheme for assignment for state licensees @12.5 khz. spacing. The trooper already has a STARS radio installed. STARS radios can operate either in the digital or analog mode.

One other thing is that I thought the STARS radios were trunking radios vs individual channels or can they do both regular radio and trunking?

 

[Ghstwolf62]

I'm from the old school too - also I have to agree with the other poster that the freq you heard is not the actual freq. (perhaps the bandplan or steps you have set up on your search feature is set wrong it all.)

I will he home in about an hour or so and will post some details on how the VRS system works.

Okay. I don't know. I didn't have it on search but sweeper so I'll have to look into it. I didn't even know you could set steps for either on it.

See what I mean

 

[c5corvette]

One other thing is that I thought the STARS radios were trunking radios vs individual channels or can they do both regular radio and trunking?

Yes, the stars radio can do trunking and conventional. I will lay it all out for you in writing as soon as I get home ;-)

 

[c5corvette]

Okay. I don't know. I didn't have it on search but sweeper so I'll have to look into it. I didn't even know you could set steps for either on it.

See what I mean

I think on my Uniden I can set the channel spacing for 'close call' modes - you can probably do the same for 'sweeper' mode.

 

[Ghstwolf62]

I think on my Uniden I can set the channel spacing for 'close call' modes - you can probably do the same for 'sweeper' mode.

Okay thanks because I sure can't figure where or how to do it. I'll probably have to dig out the manual and search for it in there.

I can remember when you could select steps for search mode and I can do that on my ham radio but haven't seen anything like that on the GRE I have. I suppose it must be there somewhere.

And okay on your first post. I thought they had to be one or the other. I guess the wonders of modern technology are at work again

All I know is it's confusing as he**

 

[freqhopping]

What sort of step is your sweeper capable of. 765.71875 is one of the conventional VR channels.

Another conventional VR channel is 764.45625.

 

[c5corvette]

765.71875 is one of the conventional VR channels.

Agreed - that is the correct freq for Salem Division in Conventional mode!!!

 

[c5corvette]

DVRS overview

DVRS OVERVIEW:


Each vehicle is equipped with a Digital Vehicle Repeater System (DVRS) – an even more intelligent version of the old mobile/vehicle “pack rat” repeater. The DVRS relays conversations between the VHF trunked mobile radio and the portable 700/800 MHz radio. The XTS 5000 portable radios operate on the 700/800 MHz bands only. The XTS 5000s depend entirely on the DVRS to connect them with the trunked network. Mobile radios are VHF only, and are unable to access the 700/800 MHz channels which are exclusively programmed in the portable radio. The DVRS, however, allows the portable radio to access the VHF channels in the mobile radio, but not vise versa. The portable radio may be used to change talkgroups within a single zone on the mobile radio, but it cannot change between zones. At a incident scene, units share the one DVRS that arrived and when online first. Regardless of what talkgroup the multiple users are on, all portable radios sharing the same DVRS will hear the same radio traffic. Using a discrete 700 MHz frequency, portable radio users can speak directly with each other on a simplex freq or use the DVRS in the “local” mode as a standalone repeater.

This next part can really apply to other systems besides STARS (you need to read between the lines.) So as the other poster said, check the FCC frequency assignment scheme for assignment for state licensees @12.5 khz. Spacing in 700 MHz. You end up with a lot of nice base/mob freq pairs. Then take each pair and assign a number 1 through X. (In the case of STARS its 48 Channels.)

Each numbered channel then gets assigned to each zone in a radio (do this for every agency on the system) the zone can be trunked or conventional (or even mixed) and this acts as the connection to what ever channel your mobile radio is set on – or it can be used as a simplex channel to others using the same zone (in the same division) on the mobile. It can also be in a ‘standalone repeater mode’ if the channel on the portable and the channel on the mobile radio are both set to the same VRS channel. For example if the portable is on VRS 1 and the mobile is on trunk TG 1 the portable will talk through to the TG 1 – whereas if the portable is set on VRS 1 and the mobile is set to VRS 1 as its channel – then it creates a mobile repeater using that VRS channel pair. The standalone mode is selected via the mobile radio control head in the menu by pressing the “VRS” button repeatedly until your channel changes from one in that zone to the VRS channel.

If you're the system planner, you probably save one pair of freqs exclusively as statewide simplex 700MHz talk around type channel using this particular pair not connected to the mobile radio (or trunked system.) For example on the portable radio if you press and hold a certain button for 3 seconds it will take you to that “direct” channel so you can talk to anyone else on the portable simplex to simplex. This is not to be confused with “standalone repeater mode” mentioned above. This "direct" channel mode uses the one half of said channel pair and the other half could be reserved from some other use or not used at all.

The photo attached shows XTL 5000’s control head display showing: VR (Vehicular Repeater) which in this case is OFF but it is set to VR CH-42-A (765.71875). Zone 16 (Z16) is one of the two zones for the current conventional (CV) VSP channels.

The DVRS is turned on and off manually except during a bail out emergency where it is activated by a door pin switch.

(Much of this info can be found in the CHM newsletter from Jan 2010, including this photo by someone named Darrell Rayfield).

 

[Ghstwolf62]

C5 thank you for explaining all that. It sounds complicated but from what you said I guess there are quite a few possible frequencies which may be used for extenders. Either 48 or 96 from the looks of it. It was more simple when there was one statewide frequency. LOL

I wonder is there a list of the 48 2 frequency channels you are speaking of somewhere and which is going to be the primary which transmits both sides of the conversation? Add to that a list of which channels are going to be used where.

What I was hearing last night was definitely both sides of the conversation on one frequency whatever that was just like the old days.

And it looks like I gave the wrong channel anyway so it won't help much.

Again thanks for taking the time to explain it all, it helps technological illiterates like myself immensely.

 

[Ghstwolf62]

What sort of step is your sweeper capable of. 765.71875 is one of the conventional VR channels.

Another conventional VR channel is 764.45625.

I have no idea to tell the truth. It's a GRE 600 scanner and you just enter the sweeper into a bank, sit back and watch.

It works a lot faster than search or tune but I haven't figured out how or if it's possible to set steps into it.

It kept going off last night on that weird frequency and I could hear Salem and other units as well as Salem and the unit across from me like a regular extender. I thought the thing looked weird but double then triple checked it each time it popped up then paused it on that channel and checked again but that is what it stopped on.

Everyone says it can't be so I don't understand what's going on. These new scanners are much different than the old ones and I don't understand the half of what they do or how they do it. I know I select sweeper object then the bands I want it to sweep and select whatever they call the bank now and bingo it works. I haven't been able to find anywhere in the available selections, at least in the software, any place to select steps or anything like that. Closest is what's called Zeromatic which just pinpoints the exact frequency if it's a strong signal and puts the radio on it.

So I have no idea why it kept coming up with 765.715625 but it did and I know of no way to change it's parameters. Looking at the other options such as search and tune I don't find anything to alter the steps either so like I said I'll probably have to dig up the manual and see if there is something in there that the software doesn't have in it.