Uniden programming service
- Thread starter Pcamp1227
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In my opinion, by learning how to program the scanner you end up with a better monitoring experience.
Programming a scanner seems to be something that continues to be necessary. So, you pay someone to program for you, be it Uniden or Scanner Master. All set? Nope! What happens when the system(s) you listen to have a change... they add a channel or example... Are you going to pay for a new programming? It’s an ongoing process. What are you going to do when you decide later you just realized you have an interest in another agency and want to listen to them? It is better to learn how to use the database download with the Sentenel software. If you aren’t interested in doing that there are others (hopefully close to you) that are willing to show you how to program. Check on RadioReference Forums and post a note on your state board.
It is NOT worth it IMO.
Sentinel is really not that hard - and you have people here that will gladly help you out - for FREE.
Remember, things change, so if you pay someone to program, then when things change, you gonna pay again?
Vs learning how to use Sentinel, so you can quickly/easily make those changes yourself.
Sentinel is really not that hard - and you have people here that will gladly help you out - for FREE.
Remember, things change, so if you pay someone to program, then when things change, you gonna pay again?
Vs learning how to use Sentinel, so you can quickly/easily make those changes yourself.
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
Totally agree...and since the OP didn't say which radio he has, we'll start with the Easier to Read manuals viz.
Mike
Mike
The title indicates SDS200, so I'm going with that.
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
Yep, long day and just came back from water aerobics, but that's no excuse...anywho, we have a FAQ page on the SDS200 with lots of good info including the links to the Easier to Read manuals (anything in blue is a link)...
SDS100 and SDS200 FAQ Page - The RadioReference Wiki
Mike
Was he trying to program a fish? Boy, I'm confused again. Greg'Give a man a fish or teach a man to fish' comes to mind
Seriously, learn to do it yourself. The price to have SD cards programmed for you are outrageous. As others have said, once you get your SD card programmed, and you want to make a change, then you either send it back again or do it yourself. Sentinel really is not hard to learn, and is so much cheaper. Understanding Sentinel will also allow you to scan others you might find interesting, such as hospitals, schools, snow plows, etc. Greg
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It is true that you're going to want to program your own radio so you can customize it to have just what you want where you want it, all they are going to do is transfer what's on the database to your radio and in big systems that could be a lot of stuff you don't need and they could leave out conventional and mislabeled objects that are used for a certain purpose in your area but the database doesn't know it.
Having said all that I have seen people new to the Hobby here ask for help with the SDS radios and by the questions that they ask they unfortunately have absolutely no experience whatsoever and show absolutely no understanding of any of the concepts that we are all so familiar with...
That doesn't happen too often but there have been people here I've seen that you know are going to have a long hard haul before they enjoy the radio. Normally I would never recommend paying a radio vendor to pre program a radio but for that small minority it'll be great for them just to receive their radio or a SD card all set to go so they can start right from the box. It will work better than the ZIP code method does to have things on favorites list that they can learn to customize and apply filters excetera excetera.
And they can learn programming from that point on like making a favorites list by hand picking and plucking what they want off of what was programmed into their radio.
I of course like everybody else would recommend that you learn Sentinel and learn how to program the radio to yourself customizing it the way you want but for those few that couldn't ever possibly do that and don't have the cognitive ability... Pre-programming is the answer.
Having said all that I have seen people new to the Hobby here ask for help with the SDS radios and by the questions that they ask they unfortunately have absolutely no experience whatsoever and show absolutely no understanding of any of the concepts that we are all so familiar with...
That doesn't happen too often but there have been people here I've seen that you know are going to have a long hard haul before they enjoy the radio. Normally I would never recommend paying a radio vendor to pre program a radio but for that small minority it'll be great for them just to receive their radio or a SD card all set to go so they can start right from the box. It will work better than the ZIP code method does to have things on favorites list that they can learn to customize and apply filters excetera excetera.
And they can learn programming from that point on like making a favorites list by hand picking and plucking what they want off of what was programmed into their radio.
I of course like everybody else would recommend that you learn Sentinel and learn how to program the radio to yourself customizing it the way you want but for those few that couldn't ever possibly do that and don't have the cognitive ability... Pre-programming is the answer.
I agree with the above. Having someone else program your scanner is like sending someone else to get a pair of shoes for you. They might fit his feet fine, but its a different story for you. Each person's tastes and preferences are different.
There are many YouTube videos and enough help here to get most folks through programming.
There are many YouTube videos and enough help here to get most folks through programming.
TailGator911
Silent Key/KF4ANC
Yes, do it yourself and take the time to get to know your scanner and Uniden Sentinel. You'll be glad you did.
the only to learn how to use and operate your scanner is by doing it yourself.
I programmed the SDS200 but I'm not sure if the scanner is optimized to scan and receive in the best way. I guess I was looking for some settings or tweaks that would make reception better. I thought Uniden might do this with their programming but I will leave the scanner as it is.
A better antenna will make reception better. Anyway, just take the learning process in small steps. You can't screw anything up permanently, so chill out and have a good time.
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You make a very good point and the answer is no, no one is going to tweak your scanner. I imagine they should put in the latest firmware update which is almost a year old. I'm not familiar with Uniden programming a card for you but there are a few vendors that will charge you a certain amount of money for each County that you want in the radio and the radio will be delivered programmed with the counties you asked for.
There are certainly tweaks that you can make to get better reception on both simulcast and VHF and UHF. You can adjust the filters on each site of the simulcast systems you listen to and on Department settings of the conventional objects you listen to.
Those adjustments have to be made by you because it depends on your radio environment where you live to optimize the performance of the radio.
All the programming service is going to do is program the radio from the RR database and the person doing it doesn't know anything more about your system than whatever is in the database.
They are doing what you can do except they are charging you for it. If you do it it's completely free.
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OK. Let me unconfuse you
There is a popular saying that goes something like this..."Give a man a fish and he will eat for today. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime."
So, applying that to this thread..."Program the man's radio for him and he can listen to it today. Teach the man to program it himself and he can listen to it for a lifetime."
Hope this clears that up for you.
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