246 scan speed

[bownasterm]

I have 3 systems turned on right now and it scans really slow, is it supposed to be so slow or does the display just react slowly? Its no biggy really im just curious...

Overall i like this scanner and will be getting a 396 next summer or fall some time.

 

[captclint]

I have 3 systems turned on right now and it scans really slow, is it supposed to be so slow or does the display just react slowly?

One thing that may help is to change all of your systems to "0" hold time. Note, this is not the channel delay time. The default to 2 seconds. I have not figured out the exact advantage of the 2 sec, but everything works faster if you change it. I played around with it, thinking that it might "hang around" on a system for a reply that might have exceed the channel delay time, but it did not seem to make any difference. Just for the record, about how many channels do you have total, or per system?

 

[bownasterm]

Between 5-15 channels per group and the 3 systems im listening to have like 3-5 groups each

 

[captclint]

Between 5-15 channels per group and the 3 systems im listening to have like 3-5 groups each

So worse case is 2 seconds to go though all of them, but add 6 sec for the systems hold times. See what I mean. This system hold time may be more applicable to trunked systems, but I don't have any, so perhaps someone can explain this feature.

 

[MullinsBroadcast]

As I understand the manual, the 246T automatically holds trunked systems for two seconds regardless of how you set the hold time. The question seems to be, is there a way to override this automatic setting? Not that I've found but maybe someone who's into modifying scanners could devise one cause I don't much like it either.

 

[n2mdk]

There are 2 settings channel delay time and system hold time. delay doesn't speed up scanning really it's just how long it stays on a channel before resuming scan.
The hold setting does have some effect on scanning speed I keep mine set at 0, then it doesn't linger on a frequency as it scans through it looking for a signal. Never seem to miss anything with it set on 0. The 246 just doesn't scan as fast as my Pro-97 does on trunked systems.

 

[Gooser]

Set Hold Time sets (in seconds):
The amount of time the scanner will scan the system before moving on to the next (unlocked) system. If you select 0, the scanner stays on the system for at least 1 second. For conventional systems, all unlocked channels will be scanned at least once regardless of this setting. The scanner moves to the next system after the hold time expires, any current transmission ends, and the channel delay time expires. The default setting is 2 seconds for each system.
To set the system Hold Time, press Menu. At 'Program System' press E/Yes.
At 'Select System' scroll to the system that you want to set the hold time in and press E/Yes.
Scroll to 'Edit Sys Option' and press E/Yes.
Scroll to 'Set Hold Time' and press E/Yes.
Enter the hold time (in seconds) you desire and press E/Yes.
Press Scan to exit.

From: http://myweb.cableone.net/marksscanners/246/246.html

 

[hunk]

just curious, for conventional system, is there a way to scan so that it pauses on a channel (where there is a signal) for x seconds and continue on scanning the next one?

currently, i have to manually press scan or rotate the dial when there is a signal to continue scanning.

 

[captclint]

just curious, for conventional system, is there a way to scan so that it pauses on a channel (where there is a signal) for x seconds and continue on scanning the next one?

I believe you are describing Channel Delay. The default to 2 sec after the signal stops, and then it begins scanning, You can set this anywhere from "0" Useful in duplex where base and mobile are on different freq, to 6 sec. Usually, 2 seconds is just about right. However, it does not limit the time on the channel to 2 seconds, regardless of how long the transmission lasts. Unfortunately, DMA scanners such as the 396 set channel delay by the system, not the channel or even the group. I find this very annoying, but have learned to program around it.

 

[n2mdk]

just curious, for conventional system, is there a way to scan so that it pauses on a channel (where there is a signal) for x seconds and continue on scanning the next one?

currently, i have to manually press scan or rotate the dial when there is a signal to continue scanning.

I believe your asking if the radio will do what my Yaesu's will do stop on an active frequency for say 5 sec then even if the channel is still active scan on. No there is no setting for that that I know of.

 

[hunk]

I believe your asking if the radio will do what my Yaesu's will do stop on an active frequency for say 5 sec then even if the channel is still active scan on. No there is no setting for that that I know of.

yes, it's the pause function i'm asking. ICOM r5 it as well.

i wish uniden has something like this so i don't have to manually skipping active channels