I've owned analog scanners 20+ years (RS Pro 25, 26, 51) and just scored my first digital (new Pro 651 @ $229).
I've successfully programmed my local analog freqs but am not sure I can handle programming the digital for Missouri Highway Patrol at Lake of the Ozarks. Their old analog freq was 155.595 and then they went digital - Phase I.
These are the freqs I found at RR for the area. I assume they are the new digitals.
769.16875 -- 769.91875c -- 770.66875a -- 774.04375
Could someone give me a short course on how to program these frequencies into my pro 651?
Do I need to do talk groups as well???
Thanks for any help you can give.
Freqs. are neither Analog or Digital. Analog & Digital is somewhat like the difference between AM & FM. It's just a different type of modulation.
Your problem is understanding Trunking. That is further complicated by the newer type of programming where there are no Banks as in your old scanners.
Here is a simple explanation of how Motorola Trunking works:
MOTOROLA TRUNKING
The object of trunking is to allow many users to share a relatively few frequencies.
A trunking system is controlled by a computer. Information (data) is exchanged between the system radios and the computer on a control channel, sometimes called a data channel. It sounds like a strong buzz.
A large system can have up to 28 freqs., 4 of which may be used as control channels. The control channel may be changed once a day or as often as the programmer decides. Some scanners need only the control channels to track an entire system. Just put in the 4 Control Channels.
Each group of users (Fire, Police, etc.) is assigned TALK GROUPS. In a Motorola Type II system, the most common type, TGs are usually in 32 number steps starting with 16 and going up to 65536; 16, 48, 80 --- 4656, 4688, 4720 --- 28944, 28976, etc. System radios can have more than 100 TGs programmed into them.
After all the freqs. have been entered and it is "trunking", the Banks become SCAN LISTS where you enter the Talk Groups you want to hear. Use the Talk Group numbers in the DEC column.
When a user pushes the talk button on his radio, data is sent to the computer. The computer chooses an unused freq. and sends that data to all the radios using the TG of the originating unit. This all happens in a fraction of a second and it happens EVERY TIME a radio is used.
EXAMPLE:
Fire Dispatch calling Engine 4 (TG 4528 on 856.7125)
Engine 4 answering Dispatch (TG 4528 on 852.2625)
Respond to 73 Elm Street (TG 4528 on 855.9625)
Engine 4 responding (TG 4528 on 851.6375)
If you have entered TG 4528 into your scanner, it will decode the control channel data and change your scanner freqs. to follow the conversation on TG 4528.