Base vs Portable Scanners - What's better

[SlipNutz15]

Basically what I'm looking for is there a performance advantage over a portable scanner and a base style scanner? I've seen people using portable scanners for a lot of home scanning hooked up to antennas.

I'm also guessing it helps when connected to a good quality coax and antenna. So with apples to apples good coax and antenna would a portable do better than a base or vice versa or would there be any notable difference in coverage at all?

Any input would be appreciated. I guess I still have in my mind that the base style scanners would do better but I'm guess I could always be wrong!

 

[ermin]

Depends on your local radio systems. Here I can receive everything using a paper clip for an antenna. I've only had handhelds. The antenna is the most important part of your system. Doesn't matter too much which one you use.

73 de Ermin

 

[SlipNutz15]

I live in Juniata County PA. We aren't busy frequency wise. We are 46.060 Fire, 39.420 PD, 462.950 EMS and our fire dispatch freq is shared with two other counties and our EMS channel shares the same PL as a one of the semi-neighboring counties so their units always break our repeater. I like to listen to low band freqs from semi-far away. I guess I also need the correct ohm cabling. I'm using quad-shielded 75-ohm cable because it was free. I'm not doing any TX on it just RX but I'm not sure if that would help or not. It can pick up mobile radio units from approximately 46 miles away depending on their location on 46.160 ... but I'm still questioning things.

 

[dannyhusk]

Base vs. Portable

I live in Shia. co. Mich. Our system is the MPSCS P25, I have the GRE, PSR-500 & 600. The 500 being the portable & 600 being the base. I put the R.S. 800MHz rubberduck on both scanners and side by side they preform the same. My handheld is for when I am outside or in the wrecker, the base for when I'm in the house. It's nice to be able to just grab the portable and hit the road when needed. Like the others said a lot has to do with the antenna. So as far as which is better, it really depends on your needs for scanning.

 

[n5ims]

Most companies sell both a base a portable scanner in a series (e.g. the GRE 500 & 600). Internally, both generally use the same design and components and will provide similar results. For a "perminant" (base or mobil) a base scanner is recommended. For a "temporary" install or to carry around, a portable is recommended. This is mostly due to how they are connected and mounted.

With front panel controls and rear panel power and antenna connections, the base scanner is easier and more stable when using external power and antenna connections. A portable scanner will easily fall over with a heavy coax connected to the top mount antenna connector and using the controls is best done while holding a portable scanner.

While both "base" and "portable" scanners are usable for however you want to use them (I've seen base scanner in a backpack used while camping), pick which one will best cover your needs. You can also get one of each, as many of us have, to handle any situation.

 

[poppafred]

Basically what I'm looking for is there a performance advantage over a portable scanner and a base style scanner? I've seen people using portable scanners for a lot of home scanning hooked up to antennas.

I'm also guessing it helps when connected to a good quality coax and antenna. So with apples to apples good coax and antenna would a portable do better than a base or vice versa or would there be any notable difference in coverage at all?

Any input would be appreciated. I guess I still have in my mind that the base style scanners would do better but I'm guess I could always be wrong!

In these times, most portables are electronically the equivalent of a base scanner. Specification wise, there is little difference within each brand but there are differences from one brand to another. However, portables have a tendancy to fall over when used for a base, base scanners are not easy to carry around.

In general, the difference is usually the antenna used. Base station owners will usually have a permanent, decent quality exterior antenna if possible. That is a matter of listening to suggestions and experimenting to find what works for you. My best is, believe it or not, a ham radio wire antenna 102' long. My second best is the telescoping antenna that came with the scanner!

If you had some type of stand to hold a portable upright, or a portable way of powering a base scanner, it would all come down to which you did the most. "Temporary" is a lot easier to tolerate.

I monitor from home most of the time, thus I chose a base style scanner. I also have 2 portables but they are not digital audio capable. My next scanner will probably be a digital audio portable.

 

[SlipNutz15]

I've seen portable scanners attached to the stands and whatnot. So the falling over wouldn't be an issue.

I guess I'm asking if a base scanner is made for more heavy duty scanning (long time being on) compared to portable ones. I know the guy that owns ScanNewEngland, in his video of his shack, the main scanner is a portable. I'm just trying to balance them out because I don't need to worry about taking them with me because I have scanners in my vehicles.

 

[tekshogun]

In theory, the portable versus mobile/base scanners should be the same as far as reception quality, however, the mobile/base units often have the better or more powerful audio output but the electronics are essentially the same when it comes to reception of signals. The same antennas may be used between the portables and mobiles/bases in general.

Really, it all depends on what you want. If you don't really care to carry your scanner around a mobile/base would be fine. Some people buy the DIN (car radio dash size standard) sized scanners and install them nicely in their vehicles where a portable user would sit it in a seat, cup holder, or buy some type of mount for car use.

With the paragraph above, the difference between portable and mobile/base scanners boils down to mobility preferences. You are also less likely to repeatedly drop and break your mobile because it is more likely to stay in one place; however, you can buy a rugged case for your portable scanner. The mobile/bases are generally easier to read and control since there is more room for more buttons (less function calls as with a portable) and more room for a larger display. Even with the Bearcat radios there are remote control head kits available (I think GRE's have this option as well?). Another neat thing about the portables, they tend to have a frequency counter/capturer for near field transmissions and so might the mobile/base but you can get places your car can not get with a portable.

 

[qlajlu]

I've seen portable scanners attached to the stands and whatnot. So the falling over wouldn't be an issue.

I guess I'm asking if a base scanner is made for more heavy duty scanning (long time being on) compared to portable ones. I know the guy that owns ScanNewEngland, in his video of his shack, the main scanner is a portable. I'm just trying to balance them out because I don't need to worry about taking them with me because I have scanners in my vehicles.

I'm from the old school where a base scanner is just that and a portable is just that. I have had base scanners for years. Once set up, they do not get ported all through the house. Nowadays they are calling them Desktop/Base/Mobile and the little ones are Portable/Handheld. My "Base" scanners sometimes stay on all day and night. I know there have been issues with some "Portable/Handheld" models being hooked to DC power for any length of time if the batteries are not taken out of them. I don't have to worry about that. Same with having heavy coax hooked to it on the antenna lead; the base model will not tip over. Guess it boils down to a personal call.

Just sayin...

 

[GTR8000]

I'm surprised no one mentioned one of the more significant differences, which is the case material. Portables are generally encased in plastic, with maybe a little lightweight metal shielding inside. Base/mobile units are made almost entirely of metal, save for the faceplate. Most of the more popular base/mobile models that are DIN compatible actually have a double layer of metal around them when you take into account the base sleeve they come with installed by default. Just look at the weight difference between the internal-twins Pro-160 base/mobile and Pro-162 portable:

Pro-160: 38 oz (without case)
Pro-162: 8.5 oz (without antenna, batteries, or belt clip)

The base/mobile weighs nearly 2 pounds more than the portable equivalent because it's housed in a heavyweight all-metal chassis. This is significant not just for durability, but it also plays a role in keeping out stray RFI/EMI that can cause a very unpleasant listening experience if you're in an area that has a lot of RF/EM noise. Computer, monitors, routers, network wiring, fluorescent lighting, etc. can all introduce noise into the receiver. The better shielding you have around the internal components, the better able to resist them the receiver is. Of course, that's why it's also really important to use good quality coax, connectors and adapters that are installed correctly and tightly, so they don't leak RF or absorb stray, undesirable RF signals.

 

[SlipNutz15]

Well I run an online scanner centralpascanner .com and I have my servers sitting there attached to the scanners. along with that I have my cable modem, wireless router and 24 port switch, plus my 4 port monitor/keyboard/mouse controller for all computers.

The coax and a good multicoupler I guess is where I need to start. I'm currently using RG-6 because it was free but I'm assuming I need RG-8 for ohm correctness. Will I be able to put CATV style connectors on RG-8 or will I need to go solder a PL259 on the antenna side on a BNC on the multicoupler side and use short RG-58 cable from the multicoupler to the scanners?