Cleveland ohio needs advice on the right scanner

[glimerman]

i had scanners when i was a kid im 44 years old now and live by the zoo . i now see we can get Cleveland police . i have a few questions if anyone can help me out i got about 400 to spend i am looking at these models .Uniden Bearcat BCD325P2 , Uniden Bearcat BCD436HP and also a Whistler WS1040 used for 225.programed , or is the Whistler TRX-1 the best option . user friendly and easy to program is what im looking for,id rather buy a new onw then one of ebay i plan on useing this for many years

To be honest im getting nervous about programing and the more i read the more nervous i am . if i buy the bcd436hp and enter my zip code will i have all the channels out the box and be up and running or do i still have to program it too get all the Cleveland channels.

Or should i get the bcd325 and program it myself? i know computers very well and i have a windows 10 home pc .how hard is this stuff to program some reviews say it is a night,mare some say it is easy .after about 10 hours of research im lost. so any scanners you guys recommend me to get in the 425 and under price range? does anyone in Cleveland do programing for a fee>? right now id be happy to start with getting districts 1-5 to start out i love electronics and computers so im sure if i take my time i will get this down ,just afraid to spend 400 bucks and i wont get anything when i can get it free on the net.
Is the software free .or do i want to join this site ?
thank you very much in advance if u can shed some light on this for me it would be great.

 

[davidzimmerman]

i live in Parma use a TRX-2 for a base the TRX-1 or BCD396XT would work for cleveland guess your wanting a pocket scanner also i do scanner programming for a small fee

 

[davidzimmerman]

i had scanners when i was a kid im 44 years old now and live by the zoo . i now see we can get Cleveland police . i have a few questions if anyone can help me out i got about 400 to spend i am looking at these models .Uniden Bearcat BCD325P2 , Uniden Bearcat BCD436HP and also a Whistler WS1040 used for 225.programed , or is the Whistler TRX-1 the best option . user friendly and easy to program is what im looking for,id rather buy a new onw then one of ebay i plan on useing this for many years

To be honest im getting nervous about programing and the more i read the more nervous i am . if i buy the bcd436hp and enter my zip code will i have all the channels out the box and be up and running or do i still have to program it too get all the Cleveland channels.

Or should i get the bcd325 and program it myself? i know computers very well and i have a windows 10 home pc .how hard is this stuff to program some reviews say it is a night,mare some say it is easy .after about 10 hours of research im lost. so any scanners you guys recommend me to get in the 425 and under price range? does anyone in Cleveland do programing for a fee>? right now id be happy to start with getting districts 1-5 to start out i love electronics and computers so im sure if i take my time i will get this down ,just afraid to spend 400 bucks and i wont get anything when i can get it free on the net.
Is the software free .or do i want to join this site ?
thank you very much in advance if u can shed some light on this for me it would be great.

Amazon has a NEW Whistler 1040 that's selling for $228 Free Shipping THIS would be your BEST BUY and i can do programming i'm in Parma...

 

[glimerman]

hey david you are 100 percent what i am looking for i know another guy who will help but hes 45 minutes away .and i got a big family so its tuff for me to go out that far. how do i private msg you or can u private msg me please i can give you my number or get yours i have no problem paying a small fee for you to make this work and give me a few basic starting tips .let me know how to reach you and a good time to do that i want to order this as soon as i talk to you .thank you very much for your reply

 

[davidzimmerman]

i had scanners when i was a kid im 44 years old now and live by the zoo . i now see we can get Cleveland police . i have a few questions if anyone can help me out i got about 400 to spend i am looking at these models .Uniden Bearcat BCD325P2 , Uniden Bearcat BCD436HP and also a Whistler WS1040 used for 225.programed , or is the Whistler TRX-1 the best option . user friendly and easy to program is what im looking for,id rather buy a new onw then one of ebay i plan on useing this for many years

To be honest im getting nervous about programing and the more i read the more nervous i am . if i buy the bcd436hp and enter my zip code will i have all the channels out the box and be up and running or do i still have to program it too get all the Cleveland channels.

Or should i get the bcd325 and program it myself? i know computers very well and i have a windows 10 home pc .how hard is this stuff to program some reviews say it is a night,mare some say it is easy .after about 10 hours of research im lost. so any scanners you guys recommend me to get in the 425 and under price range? does anyone in Cleveland do programing for a fee>? right now id be happy to start with getting districts 1-5 to start out i love electronics and computers so im sure if i take my time i will get this down ,just afraid to spend 400 bucks and i wont get anything when i can get it free on the net.
Is the software free .or do i want to join this site ?
thank you very much in advance if u can shed some light on this for me it would be great.

you sent me a friend request i did ok it

 

[an39511]

i had scanners when i was a kid im 44 years old now and live by the zoo . i now see we can get Cleveland police . i have a few questions if anyone can help me out i got about 400 to spend i am looking at these models .Uniden Bearcat BCD325P2 , Uniden Bearcat BCD436HP and also a Whistler WS1040 used for 225.programed , or is the Whistler TRX-1 the best option . user friendly and easy to program is what im looking for,id rather buy a new onw then one of ebay i plan on useing this for many years

To be honest im getting nervous about programing and the more i read the more nervous i am . if i buy the bcd436hp and enter my zip code will i have all the channels out the box and be up and running or do i still have to program it too get all the Cleveland channels.

Or should i get the bcd325 and program it myself? i know computers very well and i have a windows 10 home pc .how hard is this stuff to program some reviews say it is a night,mare some say it is easy .after about 10 hours of research im lost. so any scanners you guys recommend me to get in the 425 and under price range? does anyone in Cleveland do programing for a fee>? right now id be happy to start with getting districts 1-5 to start out i love electronics and computers so im sure if i take my time i will get this down ,just afraid to spend 400 bucks and i wont get anything when i can get it free on the net.
Is the software free .or do i want to join this site ?
thank you very much in advance if u can shed some light on this for me it would be great.

Keep in mind that Cleveland is a simulcast system and your ability to have reliable reception is dependent on location I am in the middle of four towers running Uniden BCD536s and they are terrible at my location. The same goes for whistler and the Radio Shack brand scanners. In order to receive I must use a highly directional (14 element) yagi precisely aimed. If I relocate the scanner just a block away it comes in solid with the stock antenna. I'm not trying to scare you off but you need to keep that in mind. You may find it works perfect in one room and terrible in another room. Supposedly the new Uniden scanner works well but I haven't had the desire to spend the money to find out.

 

[davidzimmerman]

his limit is $400 i would save more and get the G4 Pager

 

[glimerman]

his limit is $400 i would save more and get the G4 Pager

i took the limit up too 500 i been thinking i want a base unit

Keep in mind that Cleveland is a simulcast system and your ability to have reliable reception is dependent on location I am in the middle of four towers running Uniden BCD536s and they are terrible at my location. The same goes for whistler and the Radio Shack brand scanners. In order to receive I must use a highly directional (14 element) yagi precisely aimed. If I relocate the scanner just a block away it comes in solid with the stock antenna. I'm not trying to scare you off but you need to keep that in mind. You may find it works perfect in one room and terrible in another room. Supposedly the new Uniden scanner works well but I haven't had the desire to spend the money to find out.

an39511 where do you live by im looking at the base unit now and that is the one i like the best so far im off denison by west60th

sorry im new here and i have to pass the trial i cant msg anyone yet and my posts take 24 hours to post the trial should be done in a day or too but after watching videos all day i diffidently want a home base unit the 2 i like are Uniden BCD536HP and the whistler trx-2 and david soon as i can private msg you i want to talk to you before i buy this and i will have you doing my first program too .. thank both you guys for responding so fast to this .the one thing i like abou tthe uniden is the wifi and the app so i can listen anywhere . but after reading and watching videos both look good .would one be better for cleveland vs the other ? i live by west 60th and denison if that makes any differnece and cleveland will be what i want to listen too . 90 percent of the time will be second district , and as i get more into this hobby i will want to try other stuff also .

 

[davidzimmerman]

i use the TRX-2 at home in Parma the only PROBLEM i can't pick up Ohio Marc's i'm like in a dead zone i use my G5 Pager to monitor Macr's.Send me a PM when your able to and we can go from their glimerman

 

[glimerman]

i use the TRX-2 at home in Parma the only PROBLEM i can't pick up Ohio Marc's i'm like in a dead zone i use my G5 Pager to monitor Macr's.Send me a PM when your able to and we can go from their glimerman

hey david i still cant do private messages this site on lock down lol can u try to pm me with your email or number if that is allowed and a good time to contact you

 

[an39511]

an39511 where do you live by im looking at the base unit now and that is the one i like the best so far im off denison by west60th
.

I am on the south east end of Brook Park by w130 and Holland. There are transmission towers north, west and east. There is one further south but probably isn't much of a factor. Its impossible to know if you will have simulcast issues until you try it at your location. All I know if I didn't have a directional antenna I couldn't receive anything. Running Uniden BCD536

 

[davidzimmerman]

i'm at State and Brookpark i get Cleveland about 90% of the time not to many problems

 

[glimerman]

thanks to david for being such a great guy and talking to me and offering to help me and also ray from rays pagers for taking the time to explain to me what i need i ordered the g4 pager cant wait to get it i will let you guys know how it works after david gives me a hand programing and setting it up for me .thanks again to daivd for being so helpful to me hes a really awesome guy and member

 

[davidzimmerman]

thanks to david for being such a great guy and talking to me and offering to help me and also ray from rays pagers for taking the time to explain to me what i need i ordered the g4 pager cant wait to get it i will let you guys know how it works after david gives me a hand programing and setting it up for me .thanks again to daivd for being so helpful to me hes a really awesome guy and member

Your Welcome Don

 

[MJF219]

I guess it's my turn....

....I have been reading this thread. I'm in the same situation...attempting to determine the best bang for my buck.
My budget is in the 200-400 range and I can get either a handheld or mobile.
I prefer location based scanning.
I want to receive Parma, Lakewood, Cleveland and other west & southwest side suburbs. Would the Whistler 1040 work for me?

Marc

 

[davidzimmerman]

....I have been reading this thread. I'm in the same situation...attempting to determine the best bang for my buck.
My budget is in the 200-400 range and I can get either a handheld or mobile.
I prefer location based scanning.
I want to receive Parma, Lakewood, Cleveland and other west & southwest side suburbs. Would the Whistler 1040 work for me?

Marc

should but you know its a crap shoot on your location if the scanner will work right.Don is buying the G4 Pager he called Ray's Pagers talked to them and made up his mind to order the G4 i also talked to him many times on the phone told him the GOOD and BAD points on the Pager i got the G5 and very HAPPY

 

[MJF219]

should but you know its a crap shoot on your location if the scanner will work right.Don is buying the G4 Pager he called Ray's Pagers talked to them and made up his mind to order the G4 i also talked to him many times on the phone told him the GOOD and BAD points on the Pager i got the G5 and very HAPPY

David: Thanks for the fast reply. Unfortunately, the cost of the G4 or G5 are out of my present range. I live near Kamm's Corners and make daily trips to Parma. I will be using the rig mostly in my car so I am considering an external antenna.

You can program whatever I end up with??

 

[N8IAA]

David: Thanks for the fast reply. Unfortunately, the cost of the G4 or G5 are out of my present range. I live near Kamm's Corners and make daily trips to Parma. I will be using the rig mostly in my car so I am considering an external antenna.

You can program whatever I end up with??

I grew up as a Westsider in Cleveland. My last residence was in West Park until we moved to Georgia.That was when Cleveland used VSELP and no one could monitor. Used to use my ham radio to hear the PD when they were on UHF.

We make trips at least once a year to visit family. This last few years, I've used my WS1088. It worked quite well on the Cleveland system and well enough on the Parma system. Would not recommend the 1040. It is very similar to my 10 year old Pro-106. The 106 never did well on the Cleveland system. Have a PSR800, and it didn't work well on either system.

If you choose a mobile antenna, make sure it is a small one. Until I got my present mobile antenna, I was using a BNC antenna that had come with one of my scanners. Good enough for trunk systems and VHF/UHF conventional frequencies. It works for me, but it might not work for everyone. Too much antenna usually leads to to much signal going to the scanner creating overload that the radio can't handle. My motto is less is more

Larry

 

[davidzimmerman]

David: Thanks for the fast reply. Unfortunately, the cost of the G4 or G5 are out of my present range. I live near Kamm's Corners and make daily trips to Parma. I will be using the rig mostly in my car so I am considering an external antenna.

You can program whatever I end up with??

i can program 75% of the scanners i done many of them for a lot of people who buys them through a local Two-Way Radio shop because people call him and the radio shop does not do scanners so he sends them to me lol some are EASY some are HARD i use my Computer to do the programming....JUST let me know what your going to buy

 

[MJF219]

Larry and David: Thank you, both, for the information. I'll save a couple more dollars and do it right the first time!

Marc