Has anyone in CO gotten a PSR800?

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Halfpint

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If so how does it compare to whatever you have been previously using?

Also, how much of a PITA is it, or not, to program with the software for `optimal?' reception? (`Optimal' reception... Quickly picking up and then keeping up with a `thread'/`conversation' without bogging down on having to slog through a big bunch of sites every time.) Have you been able to come up with any `tricks' to limit the number of CCs used with each Scanlist?

I've been playing with the software and even after attempting a lot of CC site `pruning' it appears that there may be a bit of a problem with it searching for sites that are not anywhere near for what TGs I might be interested in at a particular situation. With my PSR500/600s I try to limit the number of sites to the bare minimum and even then I have to suffer with "The wait for the `tune' to come around again" `effect' when I want to listen to see if I should pause on whatever to listen more. (And I have my TGs setup very `finely' so that I can usually zoom in on an agency or operation.)
 

fmon

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If so how does it compare to whatever you have been previously using?

Also, how much of a PITA is it, or not, to program with the software for `optimal?' reception? (`Optimal' reception... Quickly picking up and then keeping up with a `thread'/`conversation' without bogging down on having to slog through a big bunch of sites every time.) Have you been able to come up with any `tricks' to limit the number of CCs used with each Scanlist?

I've been playing with the software and even after attempting a lot of CC site `pruning' it appears that there may be a bit of a problem with it searching for sites that are not anywhere near for what TGs I might be interested in at a particular situation. With my PSR500/600s I try to limit the number of sites to the bare minimum and even then I have to suffer with "The wait for the `tune' to come around again" `effect' when I want to listen to see if I should pause on whatever to listen more. (And I have my TGs setup very `finely' so that I can usually zoom in on an agency or operation.)
I'm not from Colorado but you can very easily delete (or lockout) sites in Trunking Radio Systems tab. However, the scanner doesn't scan sites it can't pickup. The default Multi-Site Threshold settings for our system is Low 88/High 95 and these work outstanding here.

Setting here, the scanner can pickup two sites and that is all it will scan. If traveling, the Threshold values control site selection.

BTW, we have only 63 sites thus far.
 

fmon

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Additional info

A better method may be to Alpha Tag a scanlist with associated TG's based on agencies of site(s) (Towers). However, I use agency TG's (the whole state) and title scanlist accordingly. Reason: as in first post, the tower won't acquire the radio until in range of threshold values. This is about the same method used for the 500 family.

The 500 family would require three TSYS plus all TGRP objects 3 times to the same thing. DTRS will likely require multi v-folders to accomplish the same thing.
 

Halfpint

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With my 500/600s I have a TSYS for each county or area and then break the TG list down into however many assorted agencies, or whatever, I am interested in listening to. The TSYS for, lessay, Weld County has only 3 CCs that it has to deal with and the scanlists can have as little as maybe 2 TGs or as many as a dozen or so TGs. 'Course what this ends up happening is that I can maybe get a couple counties and whatever applicable State agency TGs into one V-Scanner folder and if I end up going out of that area I have to load up a different V-Scanner folder.

I was kinda hoping that with the number of Scanlists the 800 has I would be able to get, lessay again, the equivelant of 3 - 4 V-Scanner folders worth of TGs per V-Scanner folder whilst also being able to keep the number of CC sites down to just what was basically needed for each area that each `group' of Scanlists covered.

As I currently have my 500/600s setup I loose very few conversation `threads' and I'd like it be similar with the 800. But, from what I can see so far from the software, it appears that it may not be so. *THAT* is the reason I am asking if anyone from Colorado has gotten an 800 to play with.

BTW, take a look at the info for the State of Colorado DTRS. We have around 300 or so sites and it may just keep on growing as they keep attempting to fill in the reception holes. YIKES! The vast majority are along the Central to North Central Front Range area which is the area I am dealing with. UGGH!
 

rickak

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If so how does it compare to whatever you have been previously using?

Also, how much of a PITA is it, or not, to program with the software for `optimal?' reception? (`Optimal' reception... Quickly picking up and then keeping up with a `thread'/`conversation' without bogging down on having to slog through a big bunch of sites every time.) Have you been able to come up with any `tricks' to limit the number of CCs used with each Scanlist?

I've been playing with the software and even after attempting a lot of CC site `pruning' it appears that there may be a bit of a problem with it searching for sites that are not anywhere near for what TGs I might be interested in at a particular situation. With my PSR500/600s I try to limit the number of sites to the bare minimum and even then I have to suffer with "The wait for the `tune' to come around again" `effect' when I want to listen to see if I should pause on whatever to listen more. (And I have my TGs setup very `finely' so that I can usually zoom in on an agency or operation.)

I have one I have been playing with a few days now. The flexibility and amount of memory is pretty amazing.

You can always use multiple systems assigned to the same scanlist to scan multiple sites. There is a duplicate system button on the latest software rev to copy systems.

On my weekly Denver commute the other day I put a bunch of sites in, and set the site roaming thresholds up as far as they would go, and that kind of scans multiple sites. Why they left the STAT option off is beyond me, hope they bring it back. It seemed to work really well on the adams simulcast site, which I don't remember my older scanners doing.

I really like the onboard recording option. I set the local fire alert talkgroup to record whenever it comes up, so its easy to go back and listen to missed calls.

It also picks up radio IDs 100%. It gets the radio ID off the voice stream I am thinking.

Rick
 

soundchaser

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BTW, take a look at the info for the State of Colorado DTRS. We have around 300 or so sites and it may just keep on growing as they keep attempting to fill in the reception holes. YIKES! The vast majority are along the Central to North Central Front Range area which is the area I am dealing with. UGGH!

FWIW, Freescan import counts 198 sites, not including simulcast towers. I personally only know of Adams with 2 extra towers, so that makes an even 200. :)
 

ecanderson

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The problem I run into with the equiv of the PSR500 isn't setting up lists, etc. It's when mobile, the unit doesn't have the intelligence to pull a TG from the *best* of the available sites. Often, in mobile use, I wind up catching just enough of a CC decode on a weaker site to get thrown over onto a voice channel that is marginal (or is about to be) -- when all the while, there's another site that would do it far better that just happened to get missed due to the *sequence* of the scan. That's the gotcha of setting up scan lists with objects that touch multiple TSYS sites. It's the only rational way to do it in mobile applications, but doesn't always produce the desired result.

In looking at the PSR800, I don't see that there's anything that will improve this situation.
 

nathancarlson

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I changed my setting back to OFF instead of using the roaming features, and even though I sometimes get pretty choppy transmissions since its not picking the strongest CC (just what ever it happens upon) and if its so bad I cant stand it I hit scan and it will usually get a better CC for me. I have noticed that when I use roam the pro 106 seems to miss a lot of traffic (when I have done side by side comparisons of my 106 and 96). I may nix the default values and try the roam settings fmon says are the default in the psr800 if I turn roaming back on (since I use it mobile a lot).
 

Halfpint

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FWIW, Freescan import counts 198 sites, not including simulcast towers. I personally only know of Adams with 2 extra towers, so that makes an even 200. :)

Even with `just?' 200/240 that is one heck of `load' to have the scanner run through when there may only be somewhere between 3 - 12 sites that are actually both useable and used. Where I live, and generally mainly travel, I've found that, at a maximum, I can easily get by very well with around 3-5 sites/CCs per TSYS and `system'. (For some, like my CSP/State TSYS I have around a dozen or so but, even there [*Thanks* soundchaser and ecanderson for your recent work, `in progress?', with the coverage patterning.] I've been getting rid of all the `dross'.)
 

mshowman

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From Colorado - Just bought a PSR-800 last night since my PSR-500 is tied up with my feed.

From what I see initially, the PSR-800 seems to be a little more sensitive. I set up the PSR-800 with the same sites and talkgroups on a scanlist and let them run. The PSR-800 was picking up conversations while the PSR-500 was still scanning away. Sound quality of the built-in speaker is better too.
 

ecanderson

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I have noticed that when I use roam the pro 106 seems to miss a lot of traffic (when I have done side by side comparisons of my 106 and 96).
I noted the reference to some "roaming" mode on your 106. I have the desktop version (197) and am not familiar with a feature of that name. Do you mean that you are setting up a scan list that touches more than one site just to be certain that you're hearing a given TG, and allowing the unit to scan the multiple sites to do so? Apart from that, I'm having a problem determining what "roam" might mean in this context.
 

Halfpint

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From Colorado - Just bought a PSR-800 last night since my PSR-500 is tied up with my feed.

Bought it just last night!? Where did you find one `locally' and how much did it cost you!?

From what I see initially, the PSR-800 seems to be a little more sensitive. I set up the PSR-800 with the same sites and talkgroups on a scanlist and let them run. The PSR-800 was picking up conversations while the PSR-500 was still scanning away. Sound quality of the built-in speaker is better too.
What antenna/antennas are you using on them?
 

mshowman

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Ham Radio Outlet - Off Iliff in Denver. Was about $450.


Just using the stock antenna on the 800. May switch to the same GRE 800MHZ one I'm using on my 500 since I only listen to the 800MHZ DTRS sites.
 
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nathancarlson

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I use the win500 software to program my 106. In each talk system, it gives you the option of "off, stationary, or roam" and in roam you can set the thresholds. I just left them at the default. This would enable the scanner to pick from the strongest CC but when its off it will just stop on any CC from what I understand. I don't know if its possible to change the thresholds in the 800 or 500 radios or not. I also don't know how to get to the roaming feature from the radio itself since I use the software to program it. It can be set different for each talk system so if you are looking for it its probably along the way of programming a talksystem if you know how to do that by hand.
 

ecanderson

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I use the win500 software to program my 106. In each talk system, it gives you the option of "off, stationary, or roam" and in roam you can set the thresholds.
Geez - another boneheaded miss. I had paid no attention to that drop-down, thinking it might be related to trunking tables that didn't need tweaked to begin with. Thanks for pointing that one out. I assume the values to be inserted are decode %? One would think it would work on these radios, but I've never seen the option available from the front panel of the radio (yet - I probably missed something there, too). I'm using a 197, desktop version of your 106.
 

Halfpint

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Ham Radio Outlet - Off Iliff in Denver. Was about $450.

Hmmmmmm... I may drop by there.

Just using the stock antenna on the 800. May switch to the same GRE 800MHZ one I'm using on my 500 since I only listen to the 800MHZ DTRS sites.
If you have a second one of those RS/GRE 800MHz antennas it might be interesting to re-compare the 2 radios side by side again to see if the 800 has any overloading problems.
 

mshowman

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I've mainly been using it in my car and have been using a Maxrad 800mhz NMO antenna (BMLPV800) on the car which gets pretty good reception. Since the 500 is providing my feed I've been avoiding playing with it too much.

I did compare the 800 to the Motorola XTS3000's we use on patrol and it definitely lacks in comparison with audio quality and reception, which would probably be expected with any scanner.
 
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