Radio Shack Pro-197 Programming Question

[jrpellegrin]

Hello,

My son and I received a Radio Shack Pro-197 scanner from Santa last year and we are not able to figure out how to program it. We live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana/70810 and I was wondering if there was anyone in my area that programs these types of scanners for people that are too stupid to do it for themselves.

At this point I am willing to pay someone to update it with the latest firmware/software updates as well as all of the frequencies for our area and me pay them for doing so. I am hoping there is a local company in my area that I could bring it to but I have no idea.

Any suggestions, comments or useful information would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks for reading.....

JRP

 

[shadcall]

Your best bet is to get the programming cable from Radio Shack along with one of the software programs. I recommend ARC 500 by Butel. I think it is better than any other program out there. Since you are already a premium member you will be able to download the frequencies for whatever you want to listen too. The programming cable will also let you update the firmware which is on the Radio Shack support site. Since your scanner is capable of receiving digital signals you will have no trouble listening to what you want including your local police and fire as well as the LWIN state system.

 

[MOTOROLANUT]

Your best bet is to get the programming cable from Radio Shack along with one of the software programs. I recommend ARC 500 by Butel. I think it is better than any other program out there. Since you are already a premium member you will be able to download the frequencies for whatever you want to listen too. The programming cable will also let you update the firmware which is on the Radio Shack support site. Since your scanner is capable of receiving digital signals you will have no trouble listening to what you want including your local police and fire as well as the LWIN state system.

Buy the cable for sure and....

 

[MOTOROLANUT]

Your best bet is to get the programming cable from Radio Shack along with one of the software programs. I recommend ARC 500 by Butel. I think it is better than any other program out there. Since you are already a premium member you will be able to download the frequencies for whatever you want to listen too. The programming cable will also let you update the firmware which is on the Radio Shack support site. Since your scanner is capable of receiving digital signals you will have no trouble listening to what you want including your local police and fire as well as the LWIN state system.

I agree but I would try WIN500 software, you can download a free trial copy. Plus the RR downloads work on WIN500 as well. WIN and ARC are like Ford vs Chevy you will find many members that favor either.

 

[AC9BX]

You may want to look at this: Easier to Read Pro-106/197/PSR500/600 Digital Scanner Manual

The radio is not at all difficult to program. It is however tedious and getting accustomed to how object oriented programming works versus the previously more common "banks and channels" can take time. With objects and scan lists your scannable items can belong to multiple lists so you can customize it to your listening preferences. It's tedious because there's so much information to enter and using the little keypad for the text labels for each item and other parameters is a slow process. Using software and the programming cable will certainly improve the user experience. As far as I know all the software for this radio are available with a free trial period.

If you aren't familiar with trunked radio systems you will want to read a bit about them. Once you get a grip on what they are programming the radio will make much more sense.

I would begin by entering in a few conventional frequencies. Just follow the guide and you'll have it going in no time. Put something in, leave things at defaults, assign a scan list, press scan and press the button for that list, presto. From there you can learn more about the CTCSS and display names for each object.

Once you're ready to fully set it up plan out your objects in advance. You may wish to order them. I put in trunk systems first, then talk groups, then conventional objects, then custom searches. I use Win500 which permits renumbering of the objects. I group these object types into ranges of object numbers.

 

[jrpellegrin]

Thank You Very Much.....

SHADCALL & MOTOROLANUT.....

Thank you both for the information you passed along and for taking the time to reply to my post.
Hopefully I will be able to help you one day and repay the favor. I purchased the programming cable today from Radio Shack so I will download one of the two flavors of software (maybe both) and see which one I prefer.
I will post an update once I get things figured out.....

Take care of yourselves and thanks again for all your help.


John R. Pellegrin
jrpellegrin@gmail.com

 

[jrpellegrin]

WJYSTV62

My previous message was intended for you as well WJYSTV62. No disrespect intended my friend.....


Thanks,

John R. Pellegrin

 

[hiegtx]

SHADCALL & MOTOROLANUT.....

Thank you both for the information you passed along and for taking the time to reply to my post.
Hopefully I will be able to help you one day and repay the favor. I purchased the programming cable today from Radio Shack so I will download one of the two flavors of software (maybe both) and see which one I prefer.
I will post an update once I get things figured out.....

Take care of yourselves and thanks again for all your help.


John R. Pellegrin
jrpellegrin@gmail.com

John,
A programming file, for any of the GRE Object Oriented digital scanners, would work for you, as long as it's from the same software as one that you've downloaded. There are three main programs, each of which have a thirty day trial period, before you have to either purchase, or quit using the program. See this Wiki page for more. Besides the Pro-197, the other models would include the Pro-106, as well as the PSR-500 & PSR-600.

 

[Ensnared]

Win500 For 197

Although some people prefer the ACR 500 software for the radio you own, it is definitely not my preference.

I prefer using Win500 since it allows me to see radio systems & the associated talk groups (channels) within one visual field.

Here is an example of this software: WIN500 - UtahRadio