Bloomingdale FD digital

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Hey guys! Just wanted to see if anyone on here has an more info on a Bloomingdale digital channel. A few weeks back a close buddy of mine heard "60's going to digital" during a BFD response to an activated fire alarm on the frequency BFD usually uses, 46.42. After this "switch" there were a few lowband transmissions related to the activated fire alarm but no more talk of the switch to digital.

I'm trying to find this mystery channel. More likely that not, it's a DMR repeater or simplex frequency, since Bloomingdale is licensed to several. KNEX234 (BLOOMINGDALE, BOROUGH OF) FCC Callsign Details

Does anybody know anything more about this?
 
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Last night Bloomingdale had a working fire in the basement of a structure.
We were able to find a UHF frequency running FMN which appears to be either temporarily or permanently linked to lowband 46.42. Info is 453.9375 DCS 054
It will be submitted to the DB.

In the background of the chief's audio on analog we were able to hear digital audio followed by the MotoTRBO transmission end tone multiple times throughout the incident. Therefore, it seems safe to conclude that Bloomingdale is using DMR for fireground operations...not a very safe choice for sure...
 

snapple4th

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Not to hijack but... Who is advising this agency? I will never understand why agencies go it alone and go DMR or MotoTRBO. This is a business radio meant for security or utilities. Here you have a fire agency and I believe their police department using a business platform system. So many options out there now. Morris County TRS, NJ ICS etc... Stick with P25 or stay analog. Fire should not be digital for fire operations anyways.

An attorneys dream...
 

Alarmguy

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Not to hijack but... Who is advising this agency? I will never understand why agencies go it alone and go DMR or MotoTRBO. This is a business radio meant for security or utilities. Here you have a fire agency and I believe their police department using a business platform system. So many options out there now. Morris County TRS, NJ ICS etc... Stick with P25 or stay analog. Fire should not be digital for fire operations anyways.

An attorneys dream...
Same people who used HT1250s for Fire/Police/EMS.
 

Alarmguy

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Last night Bloomingdale had a working fire in the basement of a structure.
We were able to find a UHF frequency running FMN which appears to be either temporarily or permanently linked to lowband 46.42. Info is 453.9375 DCS 054
It will be submitted to the DB.

In the background of the chief's audio on analog we were able to hear digital audio followed by the MotoTRBO transmission end tone multiple times throughout the incident. Therefore, it seems safe to conclude that Bloomingdale is using DMR for fireground operations...not a very safe choice for sure...
I think you mean 453.8375 DCS054, this is listed as FB2 in the license which indicates Repeater. 460.4375 and 453.2000 are also listed as FB2 so I would check those also for possibly being the fireground.
 
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No sir, BFD has another license allocated specifically to the FD. WPEY525 (BLOOMINGDALE, BOROUGH OF) FCC Callsign Details

It was definitely 453.9375, and my belief is that it's used as an onscene crossband UHF vehicular repeater to lowband 46.42, since none of the evening pager tests on 46.42 were heard on 453.9375 last night. Additionally all traffic, during the incident I referenced in my post several days ago, which took place on 46.42 was also heard on 453.9375 with the sole exception of transmissions from BFD command. It would make sense that command would be the only one using crossband to communicate with responding mutual aid agencies as well as dispatch. His portable wouldn't be making it as far as the crossbanding mobile, which is why we were unable to hear him.
 

Alarmguy

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No sir, BFD has another license allocated specifically to the FD. WPEY525 (BLOOMINGDALE, BOROUGH OF) FCC Callsign Details

It was definitely 453.9375, and my belief is that it's used as an onscene crossband UHF vehicular repeater to lowband 46.42, since none of the evening pager tests on 46.42 were heard on 453.9375 last night. Additionally all traffic, during the incident I referenced in my post several days ago, which took place on 46.42 was also heard on 453.9375 with the sole exception of transmissions from BFD command. It would make sense that command would be the only one using crossband to communicate with responding mutual aid agencies as well as dispatch. His portable wouldn't be making it as far as the crossbanding mobile, which is why we were unable to hear him.
Ok makes sense, Its only an MO license. But check those other freqs since they are for a Repeater, as possibly the DMR stuff.
 

NParkNJ

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Not to hijack but... Who is advising this agency? I will never understand why agencies go it alone and go DMR or MotoTRBO. This is a business radio meant for security or utilities. Here you have a fire agency and I believe their police department using a business platform system. So many options out there now. Morris County TRS, NJ ICS etc... Stick with P25 or stay analog. Fire should not be digital for fire operations anyways.

An attorneys dream...


Not the PD. The PD share with Riverdale and Pompton on 471.8000. They also have their own “channel 3” lowband 37.96.

They can’t go county because Bloomingdale is in Passaic, not Morris County.

Sorry to hi-jack AJ.
 

K2NEC

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Not to hijack but... Who is advising this agency? I will never understand why agencies go it alone and go DMR or MotoTRBO. This is a business radio meant for security or utilities. Here you have a fire agency and I believe their police department using a business platform system. So many options out there now. Morris County TRS, NJ ICS etc... Stick with P25 or stay analog. Fire should not be digital for fire operations anyways.
Why? Simply because there is nothing that says they can't use it. And more times than not TRBO radios are cheaper than P25. An APX is probably double the cost of something like an XPR7550e and for a town that can't afford new APX radios they go for the cheaper alternative. Depending on the radio shop they might even refuse to repair/replace the older radios so they just get new ones. Maybe the old low band are starting to crap out and they needed a replacement. In came the TRBO radios. And I 100% agree that digital for fireground is a mistake.
 
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So to update everyone 460.4375 has been confirmed as having DMR simplex emissions during an active fire call in Bloomingdale today. Hopefully I'll be able to put a scanner on that frequency during one of the next few calls to get the info...
 

NParkNJ

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So to update everyone 460.4375 has been confirmed as having DMR simplex emissions during an active fire call in Bloomingdale today. Hopefully I'll be able to put a scanner on that frequency during one of the next few calls to get the info...

Good catch dude! Thanks. Looking forward to figuring out the rest of the DMR usage up here.
 

EncryptedTech

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Why? Simply because there is nothing that says they can't use it. And more times than not TRBO radios are cheaper than P25. An APX is probably double the cost of something like an XPR7550e and for a town that can't afford new APX radios they go for the cheaper alternative. Depending on the radio shop they might even refuse to repair/replace the older radios so they just get new ones. Maybe the old low band are starting to crap out and they needed a replacement. In came the TRBO radios. And I 100% agree that digital for fireground is a mistake.
Its not that its the best choise but any low tier shop can sell Trbo, Motorola dealers make more money per radio when you sell trbo, Vs APX, and all APX customers are registered to a specific shop if you want to sell to a customer thats not registered to you, and moto wont switch it, its all you can sell.
 

K2NEC

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Either the shop that sold them doesn't have APX or they didn't want to sell them APX. OR better yet they didn't want APX.

Anyway we are getting sidetracked and should probably keep it related to the topic at hand.

K2AJB If they have another call I will try to monitor that frequency and will try to update if I can.
 
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460.4375 CC 8 TG 2 SL 1 (simplex) has been confirmed as being currently used by the bloomingdale fire department.
It is suspected that Bloomingdale will go DMR repeated, so I'll hold off on submitting till we can gather more info.
 
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Here's the updated info:

460.4375 CC 8 TG 1 SL 1 offset +5 is Bloomingdale's OEM Channel 1
So far this channel has only been heard being used once by Bloomingdale dispatch to talk to the their schools. Thankfully, no RAS is being used on this repeater.
460.4375 CC 8 TG 2 SL 1 (simplex) is Bloomingdale's OEM Channel 2
This channel is being used by the fire department to test out digital.

It should be noted that all firefighter's carry a Motorola XPR 7550e (for DMR) as well as a lowband portable, as they're still testing digital at this time and haven't switched over fulltime.
 
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