Am curious if anyone has a new Uniden SDS100 and to hear how it is performing in our NC environment.
NC SDS100 Experience
- Thread starter BCasto
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wt
Member
Have one but haven’t had opportunity to use it outside Rowan County area much...so far simulcast reception of Rowan’s system is much better.
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GamecockSJ
Member
Some reason why you don’t want to share experience on the forum? I’m thinking about getting one too and would like to know others experiences.
GamecockSJ
Member
Anytime I get near a cell tower of an 800MHz carrier it wipes out anything else on 800MHz on my BCD436HP. Does the SDS100 still have this problem?
troymail
Silent Key
Not a specific answer to your question but.... while the SDS seems like an improvement for many folks, others are still reporting various problems. I've seen lots of reports/suggestions (if I recall, even from the Uniden rep himself) that users should move the SDS away from electrical/noise (like PCs, cellphones, etc.). In other cases, users get little to no reception of their local system (even after trying a better antenna which most seem to do) unless they move 1/2 mile away from their house. These things say alot.
Regardless of what anyone tells you, it clearly won't be absolute. Every situation is different - location, systems, environment. You won't know til you try - hopefully it will work for you (we all want solutions - and options). On the other hand, if you decide to try it, hopefully you can return it for a full refund if it doesn't.
I myself am holding off for lots of reasons (but not because I can't afford one) -- it's first time I've done that in a very, very long time.
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A lot of the reception issues are being addressed via firmware updates. The open beta firmware made a big difference in weak signal performance. There are still some trunking issues, but they are being worked by Uniden.
Maybe because I was trying to have a one on one conversation with Brian?
Anyway, I helped bring the SDS100 to market so it has been tested extensively
on many different systems here in NC including VIPER. But as Troy correctly indicates every monitoring situation is unique so I will not guarantee it will work 100% for everyone on every system. I am very happy with how the SDS100 works here in NC and I carry it to work daily alongside my APX8000XE and APX6000.
Marshall KE4ZNR
wt
Member
I bought the SDS100 specifically for Rowan simulcast system. The fact that I can use it for everything else I need made it the preferred choice over Unication units. It is performing wonderfully for Rowan and I am experiencing no simulcast issues. I live about a mile from one of the towers. I am getting good performance on Charlotte system as well.
When someone makes the GPS cable available I’ll use it in my travels across the state and see how it performs on VIPER and other local systems. I’ve tried to order cables from two vendors and both responded mid-July at least before back in stock [emoji849]
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When someone makes the GPS cable available I’ll use it in my travels across the state and see how it performs on VIPER and other local systems. I’ve tried to order cables from two vendors and both responded mid-July at least before back in stock [emoji849]
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https://www.radioreference.com/apps/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=8927&cat=13
The SDS100 cable is an additional $20. My turnaround is less than a week.
wt
Member
John that’s great. I knew you specializes in GPS goodies but didn’t think to check. I’ll PM you...Bill
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CFP387
Member
Bill the signal should be very strong for you from the tower over at Station 82. I'm not close enough to that tower to receive the signal strong enough to avoid distortion from the Al's Knob site. My 436 would garble on about 30% of the time. When I purchased the Unication G5, I've had no trouble. The Unication's reception is just as good as my XTS5000 radio with a stubby antenna. If I lived as close to one of the towers as you do, I wouldn't have had the LSM problem on my 436 that I do. I understand that the SDS models are capable of limiting LSM like the Unication G5's but I like the size and portability of the G5.
Rowan's system is really good but I have to give credit to Al Linker on the performance of the Iredell leg of UASI too. While I receive full signal all the time on the Rowan system, I'm only one bar away from full signal on the Mooresville tower. From where you are, you may be receiving it a full signal as well.
wt
Member
Traveling a lot kinda ruled out the Unication.
I’m getting good performance on Mooresville tower of CLT system.
Look forward to hearing more SDS100 reports.
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Now if I could only find a good market for my older systems to help me fund acquisition of the SDS100 
wt
Member
Now if I could only find a good market for my older systems to help me fund acquisition of the SDS100
I hear ya! Gonna move a couple myself as soon as I assess what I need to keep or not. [emoji16]
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KM4WLV
Member
I've been watching all the reports as far as the SDS100 goes as well. Just like Shannon & Bill (CFP387 & wt) I'm a day to day user of the Rowan-Salisbury P25 system as well. I tried many different settings on my 396XT for monitoring around here but eventually relegated it to a VIPER only unit.
My Unication G5 works amazingly on the Rowan-Salisbury system, and it has no problem keeping up with both my department issued portable (XTS5000) and my personal owned portable (XTS2500). I've been a beta tester for Unication for a while now, and was one of the ones who took part of the QC2 over P25 testing before it was released. My G5 is my day to day pager.
I love my G5 but I'm keeping a close eye on the 100 and if it continues to perform well or improves I may pull the trigger on one. The biggest thing is its a lot easier if you need to access something on the fly which you can't do on the G5. I've already decided what equipment I'll part ways with to help offset the cost lol
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My Unication G5 works amazingly on the Rowan-Salisbury system, and it has no problem keeping up with both my department issued portable (XTS5000) and my personal owned portable (XTS2500). I've been a beta tester for Unication for a while now, and was one of the ones who took part of the QC2 over P25 testing before it was released. My G5 is my day to day pager.
I love my G5 but I'm keeping a close eye on the 100 and if it continues to perform well or improves I may pull the trigger on one. The biggest thing is its a lot easier if you need to access something on the fly which you can't do on the G5. I've already decided what equipment I'll part ways with to help offset the cost lol
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troymail
Silent Key
Got a loaner to test drive - want to run it through various tests with the different firmware (release, beta-A, beta-B) and that will take some time...
Although simulcast reception was supposed to be the big thing with this radio (haven't tested that out yet), there was the report from Uniden early on that th SDS-100 received distant (weak) systems better than other scanners. Initially, with the release firmware, the SDS-100 is struggling just as much or more as my other scanners to receive two nearby VIPER sites - each of which are only about 7-9 miles away from me. A RS 800 antenna and specific placement still seems to be required here at home to receive anything (if it receives).
One difference I see with the extra data being displayed over and above what you see on a 436 is that you can now see the radio stepping through the list of site frequencies one after the other and not finding a control channel most of the time.
In my case, an improvement on this home non-simulcast scenario would be my number 1 priority (since that's where I do most of my monitoring) with improved simulcast coming in a close second - scenario 1 not looking good but it's early.
Although simulcast reception was supposed to be the big thing with this radio (haven't tested that out yet), there was the report from Uniden early on that th SDS-100 received distant (weak) systems better than other scanners. Initially, with the release firmware, the SDS-100 is struggling just as much or more as my other scanners to receive two nearby VIPER sites - each of which are only about 7-9 miles away from me. A RS 800 antenna and specific placement still seems to be required here at home to receive anything (if it receives).
One difference I see with the extra data being displayed over and above what you see on a 436 is that you can now see the radio stepping through the list of site frequencies one after the other and not finding a control channel most of the time.
In my case, an improvement on this home non-simulcast scenario would be my number 1 priority (since that's where I do most of my monitoring) with improved simulcast coming in a close second - scenario 1 not looking good but it's early.
Then install the beta firmware. It specifically addresses weak-signal reception issues in the initial release firmware.
troymail
Silent Key
Interesting similarities to my earlier experiences with DMR in the 450 Mhz range on the 436 (requiring copper tape on the battery door to this day...).
I turned on the noise display option and with an external antenna attached, the numbers are in the 3 digit ranges pretty much all the time.
If I then switch to a RS 800 antenna, the numbers are always 5 digits and the radio can't find a control channel...
I also noticed that when I put the SDS-100 next to my G5, the G5 starts reporting out of range ALOT.
More self-generating noise issues in this radio (again)?
Even with the external antenna attached (using the "release" firmware still), I see alot of times where the G5 is talking but when I look at the SDS, if it is stopped on the talkgroup, there is no audio.
I turned on the noise display option and with an external antenna attached, the numbers are in the 3 digit ranges pretty much all the time.
If I then switch to a RS 800 antenna, the numbers are always 5 digits and the radio can't find a control channel...
I also noticed that when I put the SDS-100 next to my G5, the G5 starts reporting out of range ALOT.
More self-generating noise issues in this radio (again)?
Even with the external antenna attached (using the "release" firmware still), I see alot of times where the G5 is talking but when I look at the SDS, if it is stopped on the talkgroup, there is no audio.
And that is a known issue with the initial release firmware. Update and retest.
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