996 Problems & Faults

[k9gunner]

Hopefully k9gunner is happily listening to his newly programmed scanner...or maybe he fell asleep?

Yup, fell asleep after hour 12 of trying. Your screenshot of what it is supposed to look like helped. When I get to the PD today, I am going to try some more. I also have got a few PM's from very nice people who are willing to help me.

I do have to say there are some great people on this board. People who are willing to take time out of their day to help a stranger. About the time I was going to take a sledge-hammer to this 996, someone offered to help.

 

[iMONITOR]

Yup, fell asleep after hour 12 of trying. Your screenshot of what it is supposed to look like helped. When I get to the PD today, I am going to try some more. I also have got a few PM's from very nice people who are willing to help me.

I do have to say there are some great people on this board. People who are willing to take time out of their day to help a stranger. About the time I was going to take a sledge-hammer to this 996, someone offered to help.

It's called "giving back"! In my lifetime I was fortunate enough to have some very nice people help me get started in many things, including computers, which advanced to a very rewarding and well paying career. Same with radio! People helped, and it turned into a very enjoyable hobby. So I try to help when and where I can.

Speaking of giving back, your scanner will give back, once you accomplish it's programming. After that, programming your other units will be as simple as uploading what you've already created!

Good luck!

 

[bReed11091]

The back-light problem is real, and Uniden is aware of it. I bought a 996 when they first became available. Mine developed the problem two days after I had it. My local dealer replaced it, and Uniden told him they were aware of the problem and to send the defective unit back. Around that same time, there were a few other instances being discussed.

So are you saying that in order to fix this, I have to send the scanner back in?

 

[brandon]

I have the backlight problem. It's happened like 3 times now.... very random and sporadic. I too would like to know if this means I have a bad unit?

Another problem I have on the 996 is with EDACS. I'll be monitoring a talkgroup and when the unit stops transmitting, the scanner doesn't resume tracking right away. I hear 5 beeps, the squelch tail, and then it goes back to normal tracking. It's almost like it doesn't receive the signal telling the scanner to go back to the control channel after a talkgroup is done transmitting. It doesn't happen very often but it's very annoying since my other Uniden radios don't have any EDACS problems. I don't think it's a weak signal since the scanner shows full bars on the control channel.

 

[iMONITOR]

So are you saying that in order to fix this, I have to send the scanner back in?

I would talk to Uniden, but I don't see any other way. That's what Uniden had my dealer do. Because I had mine for such a short time, my dealer just gave me a new one, and he handled the issue with Uniden. I never did hear what the outcome was.

 

[bReed11091]

So how does your unit work now, specifically the backlight?

 

[iMONITOR]

So how does your unit work now, specifically the backlight?

The second one worked perfectly, never had the same problem as the first, and I had done nothing different. Now I've purchased another one about two weeks ago, and it is also working perfect. So the first one definitely had a problem.

 

[bReed11091]

Well, the thing I am worried about is this: I send it back to Beach Audio, and I get another one with the same problem. I recieved my scanner on 10/13/2006, and I ordered it the Saturday before. If they don't have any of the scanners that are refurbished to get rid of the problem, then I don't want to send it to them.

I guess that I could just live with the problem, as it doesn't kill me, and it doesn't really affect the scanners ability to do it's job. Just the thought of sending it away and not having it for possibly 2 weeks is devistating to me because I love it so much. It would be like me not being able to celebrate a holiday because of a disease.

 

[garys]

This is the biggest one I have noticed so far, and I believe it should be given the most attention. Over the weekend, I was travelling in my car for about 3.5 hours with my scanner on. When I arrived at my destination, I took my scanner out of the car, and put it in the house. After I unpacked my car, I went inside, turned on the scanner, and it wouldn't scan. The first screen came on, then the copyright screen.

This isn't normal behavior for the scanner. I don't know if there was a voltage spike or your PARTICULAR scanner has a problem. I'd keep an eye on the situation and if it happens again, I'd think about sending the unit, along with the power supply you were using back to Uniden for evaluation/repair.

Another thing I noticed is that sometimes the backlight has a mind of its own. For instance, I would set it to be dim green, and then sometime later on it would be bright green. It does this totally on it's own, and how it does it, I have no idea.

This is well known and has been covered in at least one thread on RR. I expect that Uniden will fix it at some point, although they probably won't offer an update just for this.

I have also noticed that in the systems list Logic Trunked Radio is read as LT instead of LTR. This should be fixed.

Is this a major problem or are you just that OCD about it?

Gary

 

[N4DXX]

I sure woulda liked that pretty blue display on my 996 that the 396 has..

 

[Dewey]

I sure woulda liked that pretty blue display on my 996 that the 396 has..

What, are you trying to start a flame war!!! <- PUN FULLY intended .

You may want to research all the posts about 396 owners complaining about the blue backlight, and wishing for the selections that the 996 had.

Dewey

 

[N4DXX]

AHHH 996 is red and i wish it were blue if i had one i would buy ummmm at least 2..

 

[datainmotion]

On a somewhat related topic, I'm getting ready to purchase a 996 and install it in my truck where my 780 now resides. It will be powered via a Lind timer, which keeps voltage flowing to select devices for 30 mins after the ignition is switched off.

My question is this - can I expect problems to arise if I don't shut the 996 off by it's own switch, but yet let the timer cut the power? I don't have any issues with the 780 with this setup.

 

[datainmotion]

Disregard - found enough info on this here -http://radioreference.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51369

 

[bravada]

BCD996T Freezing Up

A friend of mine and I each have one of these units and within the past couple of days, both of these units have frozen up. Situation exactly like described in a previous thread -
" turned on the scanner, and it wouldn't scan. The first screen came on, then the copyright screen. It would just hang on the copyright screen, and do nothing else. When I turned off the scanner, the backlight would go off, however the LCD display would still display the copyright screen until I unplugged the scanner. The only available way to fix this problem at the time was to initialize the scanner's memory by holding the 2, 9, and the Hold/Resume key".
My friend uses his mobile, mine is strictly a base at home. This occurred with mine a few days ago and just today for his. I reset mine when this happened and it's been fine since.
I'll reset and reload his tomorrow - thank goodness for my ARC996 Pro. I'll be watching this thread for any other info or comments.
Al