A request for savvy MARCS listeners

[mtindor]

This request currently applies to those people who:

• 1. Have a digital scanner and monitor MARCS
• 2. Live in HOCKING, VINTON, PERRY, ROSS, PICKAWAY or FAIRFIELD counties
• 3. Understand enough about their scanners to obtain System ID and Site ID information by parking on a control channel
  
  and optionally:
  
• 4. Have a trunking program configured to work with their current scanner and are able to monitor the control channel of various MARCS sites to obtain System ID, Site ID, frequency, and Neighbor information

Unfortunately, this cannot be a How-To. So I'm counting on only those people who meet the minimum requirements to reply.

My request is this... I suspect one or more sites in Southern Ohio have changed to a new zone. As such, I'd like to get updated information regarding the System ID and Site ID of the following sites:

SUGAR GROVE (HOCKING)
NELSONVILLE (HOCKING)
SOUTH BLOOMINGVILLE (HOCKING) - especially this site
UNION FURNACE (VINTON)
MACARTHUR (VINTON)
JUNCTION CITY (PERRY)
LANCASTER (FAIRFIELD)
CIRCLEVILLE (PICKAWAY)
LONDONDERRY (ROSS)
CHILLICOTHE (ROSS)

If you are simply going to plug in the primary control channel for a site and then let us know what the System ID and Site ID are, then that should be simple enough.

If you are going to run a trunking program (some variant of Trunker, Trunk88, TrePort, Unitrunker), then please only do this with a pristine copy (not your normal one that you use that is already populated with old information). You should only provide information for sites that you can reliably monitor. If the site's control channel is on the fringe and you aren'et able to get 100% decode, please do not post any info for that site.

For those that may be able to run a trunking program, it would be handy to know:
a. System ID
b. Site ID
c. any frequencies that show up active including primary / alternate CCs
d. Site Neighbors (it'll list the site ID of the Site Neighbors)

If you are not familiar with performing these tasks, please do not respond. Instead, if you are interested in learning how to determine this information but do not currently know how, you should do some reading on the RadioReference Wiki with regard to using trunking programs.

NOTE: If a site's System ID or Site ID do not match up with what is listed in RR, don't get confused. Look at the Site Alias and match that up to what is listed in RR. If a site has been changed to a different zone, it's site ID won't be the same as the one listed in the RRDB either. An example is South Bloomingville (Hocking), whichc I believe no longer has the System ID of 6F10 and likely no longer has the Site ID of 62. But you'd still know it was South Bloomingville based upon the Site Alias that is reported on the scanner or in the trunking program.

Thanks for any help that you can provide. Feel free to post here [I guess]. Feel free to PM me or email me if you have a lot of information. Acctually, it's probably best to submit any findings that you feel are 100% correct via the Submit button on the DB page for MARCS -- Ohio MARCS - Multi-Agency Radio Communications Trunking System, Statewide, Multi-State - Scanner Frequencies

Thanks for your help, folks!

Mike

 

[radioscan]

As a side note to Mike's post. If you are using a GRE digital scanner, a quick and easy way to
check a control channel is pressing the "Tune" button and enter the frequency directly,
a good decode % rate will give you the information on the display in no time.

 

[ibagli]

Lancaster is still 712D 26, with control channels 704 (primary) and 673, and voice channel 967 (there was only one call for the 20 minutes I was watching, so that's not exhaustive).
It has a neighbor not in the database, though: 712D 20, control channel 828. Other neighbors are:
*712D 1 699
*6F10 18 988
*712D 19 819
*712D 25 1005
*712D 27 958
*712D 31 666

It also shows a separate site 31 with control channel 666 in a zone called C7B5 for some reason. I tried a couple different versions of Unitrunker, all clean, and it comes up in all of them.

 

[mtindor]

Interesting. I don't know what to think about C7B5.

However, I know that in the past one of Lancaster's site neighbors was Sugar Grove (6F10-17). That is conspicuously absent from your list. And Sugar Grove is in Hocking Co as well (a target area where I suspected other changes), so maybe 712D-20 is Sugar Grove.

Do you have the ability to monitor the control channel of Sugar Grove to see what if anything has changed on it?

Mike

 

[mtindor]

Lancaster is still 712D 26, with control channels 704 (primary) and 673, and voice channel 967 (there was only one call for the 20 minutes I was watching, so that's not exhaustive).
It has a neighbor not in the database, though: 712D 20, control channel 828. Other neighbors are:
*712D 1 699
*6F10 18 988
*712D 19 819
*712D 25 1005
*712D 27 958
*712D 31 666

It also shows a separate site 31 with control channel 666 in a zone called C7B5 for some reason. I tried a couple different versions of Unitrunker, all clean, and it comes up in all of them.

Sugar Grove is going to be 712D-20.

1. LCN 828 = 867.325 (same freq as primary control channel for Sugar Grove)
2. Sugar Grove was previously a neighbor of Lancaster as 6F10-017
3. 6F10-017 is now missing from the list of Lancaster's neighbors and 712D-20 is in its place

I think it is logical enough to assume that Sugar Grove is now in 712D and is Site 20.

This also leads me to believe that more [if not all] Hocking Co sites have changed. I only say this based upon the fact that in counties where I live, when MARCS was moving sites into different zones they tended to do it by county. Of course that isn't etched in stone.

But I also know that South Bloomingville (Hocking) also has changed -- although we don't know yet what the new zone or site ID is.

I'm going to update the RRDB and change Sugar Grove from 6F10-17 to 712D-20.

Thanks for the trunker sleuthing!

Mike

 

[mtindor]

It also makes sense that MARCS is moving some sites into different zones, making room in a zone for a new site or two. There are five new proposed sites on a pending application, spread throughout the state.

Russellville (Brown)
Bradner (Wood)
Alexandria (Licking)
Newcomerstown (Tuscarawas)
Fremont (Sandusky)

On the pending application there is also mention of a proposed second site in Brown Co as well (Mt Orab) for which MARCS hasn't submitted an application yet.

Mike

 

[mtindor]

The only mention of the Mt Orab site I've seen in FCC records thus far is a reference to Mt Orab being built out some day when funds are available. And this document was from 2010.

ULS Application - Public Safety Ntl Plan, 821-824/866-869 MHz, Trunked - 0004440125 - OHIO, STATE OF - Attachments
- click on RETURN NOTICE RESPONSE

Mike

 

[mtindor]

As of today's date, there are no current FCC licenses for MARCS in Mt Orab, nor are there any pending applications on file. Additionally, there are no State of Ohio owned towers near Mt Orab in the FCC Antenna Registration database at this time. I chose some relevant lat/long of Mt Orab police transmitter reportedly in Mt Orab and then did an Antenna Registration search for any towers within 16 km radius. There were towers, but they were all constructed 3+ years ago.

If you're seeing a new tower constructed, I don't know whose it is -- and it isn't listed in FCC records yet.

Mike