how good is this scanner for pima county?

[DanRollman]

sweet

After you receive that scanner and use it for a while, please report back and let us know how it works for you. It is always nice to have more data points on how particular scanners are working for listening to the PCWIN system. Of course, location is important too. Thanks!

 

[kaitlin4599]

After you receive that scanner and use it for a while, please report back and let us know how it works for you. It is always nice to have more data points on how particular scanners are working for listening to the PCWIN system. Of course, location is important too. Thanks!

as soon as i save up enough money to buy it i will report back in a new thread

 

[milcom_chaser]

325P2 works ok on PCWIN, sometimes you may have some LSM simulcast issues. A used SDS-100 would work better, as it's designed for LSM.

 

[cfsimmont]

The OP was looking for a less expensive option for monitoring the PCWIN system. A Unication G5 would also suffice but like the SDS100 cost prohibitive to their budget.

 

[milcom_chaser]

The OP was looking for a less expensive option for monitoring the PCWIN system. A Unication G5 would also suffice but like the SDS100 cost prohibitive to their budget.

Yes, true, and we were contributing actual experience on that specific system...

 

[radiochuck]

The BCD325P2 is an awesome radio. I've had one for several years and I love it. Great reception with the RS 800MHz antenna.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

 

[N9JIG]

Duplicate thread, please go there to continue: https://forums.radioreference.com/t...-scanner-for-pima-county.385756/#post-3097226

 

[kaitlin4599]

The BCD325P2 is an awesome radio. I've had one for several years and I love it. Great reception with the RS 800MHz antenna.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

thanks ill keep that in mind

 

[kaitlin4599]

ok so i live in tucson arizona and havent used a scanner since the old analog days back in 2007 what scanner would be best heres a link to the wiki page on here for my county Pima County Wireless Integrated Network (PCWIN) Trunking System, Tucson, Arizona - Scanner Frequencies i dont have a budget as ill be saving up for what ever scanner you recommend right now i have 260$ saved up im open to either a hand held or desktop depending on what you think is best will mostly be using it at home i want to monitor tucson PD the airport railways hospitals id possible and maybe fire department what do you recommend

 

[kd7eir]

The Uniden SDS100 is the best for PCWIN. Other scanners suffer from simulcast issues with PCWIN.

 

[kaitlin4599]

The Uniden SDS100 is the best for PCWIN. Other scanners suffer from simulcast issues with PCWIN.

is this scanner any good asking because its a lot cheaper then the one you mentioned BCD996P2 - The RadioReference Wiki

 

[kd7eir]

is this scanner any good asking because its a lot cheaper then the one you mentioned BCD996P2 - The RadioReference Wiki

It's not that it's bad, it's a great scanner. The problem is that virtually all scanners other then the SDS100 or SDS200 have issues with simucast distortion.

I personally use the BCD436HP and have very, very few issues with simulcast (maybe a couple times a day at most.) If you can tolerate the occasional garbled transmission, any Phase II capable scanner will work on PCWIN:

GRE PSR-800 2
Radio Shack Pro-18 3, Pro-668
Uniden BCD325P2, BCD436HP, BCD536HP, BCD996P2, HomePatrol-2, SDS100, SDS200
Whistler WS1080, WS1088, WS1095, WS1098, TRX-1, TRX-2

 

[rpgaun]

When I travel to Tucson I use the BCD325P2. Works fine in the vehicle even without a mobile antenna.

 

[kaitlin4599]

so im looking to purchase my firs scanner from the info i gathered tucson az is using the phase 2 pcwin located here Pima County Wireless Integrated Network (PCWIN) Trunking System, Tucson, Arizona - Scanner Frequencies

what scanner would you recommend that isnt to expensive dont wanna spend 800+ on a scanner

 

[KB7MIB]

If you can find them, the Uniden SDS-100 handheld can be had for $649.99, and the SDS-200 base/mobile can be had for $699.99. They are the most expensive models on the market.

A few online retailers offer them with free standard shipping, and no sales tax.

Yes, the optional DMR and NXDN modes cost extra. ProVoice is also extra, but not used in Arizona, and it's being phased out nationwide. But if you're primarily only interested in PCWIN, you don't need them right now.

They may be difficult to find right now, however, due to shipping issues from Asia. Many retailers are currently out of stock.

John
Peoria

 

[tvengr]

The only scanners designed to receive simulcast systems are the Uniden SDS100 and SDS200. You would be taking a chance expecting any other scanner to work.

 

[Falcon4]

If your goal is to just monitor that one system OP25 is the way to go. If you are a little tech savvy and like a challenge OP25 runs on linux and my build on a Raspberry PI 4 cost me appx $150 which is way less than $649. I used to monitor my local public safety with a BCD436HP and OP25 is lightyears ahead of that. Additionally,there are a group of people that are willing to help you if you come across any problems in the software defined radio section of these forums.

 

[awasser1]

If your goal is to just monitor that one system OP25 is the way to go. If you are a little tech savvy and like a challenge OP25 runs on linux and my build on a Raspberry PI 4 cost me appx $150 which is way less than $649. I used to monitor my local public safety with a BCD436HP and OP25 is lightyears ahead of that. Additionally,there are a group of people that are willing to help you if you come across any problems in the software defined radio section of these forums.

And its fun and sometimes a little challenging to make it work. But it does work great on a system I monitor in Connecticut. Alec N1AJW

 

[mesocyclone]

If your goal is to just monitor that one system OP25 is the way to go. If you are a little tech savvy and like a challenge OP25 runs on linux and my build on a Raspberry PI 4 cost me appx $150 which is way less than $649. I used to monitor my local public safety with a BCD436HP and OP25 is lightyears ahead of that. Additionally,there are a group of people that are willing to help you if you come across any problems in the software defined radio section of these forums.

What radio hardware are you using for that? RTL-SDR, or something better? Some of the cheap SDR's have very, very poor dynamic range, which means strong off-channel signals will block your reception on-channel.

 

[mesocyclone]

BTW... where are the forums or whatever for OP25 discussion? I might want to fiddle - I've got a few RasPi's, some RTL-SDR sticks, and an SDRPlay/