BC796D CC Only Oddness....

[AZScanner]

Someone help me figure this one out.

I'm using it to monitor the Mesa/Phoenix TRS. I have all the control channels programmed and had originally set it to Plan 2. I noticed it was missing some comm's so I switched it to Plan 4. Or so I thought...

Now, I don't know if I set it and the scanner lost the setting or if I turned it off, but today I noticed that it was off, yet CC Only mode is still working. I just confirmed this by setting it to Plan 4, scanning for a while, then setting it to OFF and scanning. It's tracking the system just great with no plan at all right now. :? Weiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrddddd.......

Can someone tell me why this is happening?

-AZ

 

[markle]

You have probably programmed in all the frequencies in the system. When you do that you don't have to use a CC plan. Nice thing about the RS Pro 96 is that when you program in the CC frequencies it figures out the rest. No guessing what plan to use and no need to program in all the frequencies in a system. I have the 250 and 96 and think they are both great radios, but with the 250 I program in all the frequencies in the system and don't worry about what plan to use. Takes more time, but that way everything is covered and no chance of using the wrong plan.

 

[luke-1]

AZ-

That is how mine started to go. It didn't happen all the time at first, maybe a couple of times a week. It got to the point where it stopped Scanning. It would pick-up the control channel just fine. Everything on the display looked normal. But nothing as far as talkgroups. I would call Uniden if it gets worse. I sent mine to Ft. Worth for repairs. FYI-one year warrantee.

 

[AZScanner]

No, no, no...

Guys...

It's CC trunking fine WITHOUT CC only mode on. I only have control channels programmed in the scanner. Here they are:

867.2125
867.9625
867.1125
867.9375
867.2000
867.9750
868.2750
868.3500
867.1375
867.1625

It's stopping on:
868.2000
867.7500
867.6000
867.1250

and so on. I did NOT program these in! :shock:

CC plan is OFF.

This is really weird! It works better this way then WITH a cc plan set! Can anyone else's 796 do this? Is it a bug or a feature?! :lol:

-AZ

 

[markle]

Most system, even big ones like Columbus, Ohio with 28 frequencies have only four CC's. These are the freqs in red or blue in the RadioReference databases. The other freqs (in black) are NOT CC's. They are just freqs in the system. Each system has freqs that are dedicated as CC's and it will always be one of these freqs used as a CC at any given time.

Say your system has four CC's like most. It only uses one as a CC at a time and the others are then just more freqs in the system until a computer decides it is time to change CC's. When it does, it will come from one of the four dedicated as CC's.

You list more than four.

 

[AZScanner]

Most system, even big ones like Columbus, Ohio with 28 frequencies have only four CC's. These are the freqs in red or blue in the RadioReference databases. The other freqs (in black) are NOT CC's. They are just freqs in the system. Each system has freqs that are dedicated as CC's and it will always be one of these freqs used as a CC at any given time.

Say your system has four CC's like most. It only uses one as a CC at a time and the others are then just more freqs in the system until a computer decides it is time to change CC's. When it does, it will come from one of the four dedicated as CC's.

You list more than four.

Right.

What I've listed (and programmed into the scanner) are the CC's for each of the simulcast sites. There are 5 main sites. Each one has a primary and a back up CC. You are correct in that when the backup CC is not in use, it can and does carry voice traffic. I did not program in the intellirepeaters or any of the regular voice channels.

Take a look here: http://www.radioreference.com/modules.php?name=TRSDB&sid=2508

As you can see, there's alot more than what I listed. And, referencing my earlier post, it is stopping on frequencies I have NOT programmed in. Yet control channel only mode is OFF for that bank. Odd, no?

I will try an experiment tonight, and if anyone is interested, please try this on your scanner as well: I will program only ONE active control channel in a bank, turn off CC trunking for that bank, and see what happens. I'm betting it will still trunktrack it. Anyone else wanna give this a try?

-AZ

 

[kikito]

CC plan is OFF.

This is really weird! It works better this way then WITH a cc plan set! Can anyone else's 796 do this? Is it a bug or a feature?! :lol:

-AZ

My BC296D started tracking properly our VHF 9k6 system after that last firmware upgrade from Uniden and yes without any plan selected even.

 

[AZScanner]

My BC296D started tracking properly our VHF 9k6 system after that last firmware upgrade from Uniden and yes without any plan selected even.

YES!! God bless you Kikito for understanding what I was trying to say! I was beginning to think I must be posting in Mandarin Chinese or something... :lol:

Just for fun I'll still try that experiment. I'll be glad to no longer have to worry about those CC plan settings - I never could get those figured out right anyway.

-AZ

 

[kikito]

My BC296D started tracking properly our VHF 9k6 system after that last firmware upgrade from Uniden and yes without any plan selected even.

Let me clarify something about my statement before someone thinks I'm trying to pull a "fast one"

Before the upgrade, my BC296D couldn't track what-so-ever our P25 VHF system. When you setup a VHF system normally, you don't get a "Control Channel Only" option. So I started to experiment with the Search feature which you can set to automatically track any CC's it might encounter. There I could set up different plans for the VHF range I was searching and I could finally get it to track partially that way. After the update everything worked fine like it's supposed to.

Just to clarify another thing, this only works that way (No CC Plan needed) for 9600 bps digital systems

 

[UPMan]

If you are talking P25, the BC296/796 only use CC trunking on P25 systems. VC's aren't necessary...on P25, all necessary parameters are in the data stream or defined by the standard.

 

[AZScanner]

If you are talking P25, the BC296/796 only use CC trunking on P25 systems. VC's aren't necessary...on P25, all necessary parameters are in the data stream or defined by the standard.

Yes, this is a P25 system. That explains it.

What about 3600 ASTRO systems? Do you still need to set a CC plan on them or no?

-AZ

 

[kikito]

If you are talking P25, the BC296/796 only use CC trunking on P25 systems. VC's aren't necessary...on P25, all necessary parameters are in the data stream or defined by the standard.

We were kind of talking about that, but more directly about trunked bandplans. The VC's aren't necessary on any trunked system anymore, but on analog ones, it seems, you still have to select a bandplan, i.e. what Uniden likes to call: Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 3 or Plan 4. Which I'm guessing is nothing more than telling the radio is a Splinter system, etc.

Like you said, P25 doesn't need voice channels entered and we add that bandplans aren't needed either, all the info the scanner needs is in the data stream like you also said. Hence my final comment on my last post....


P.S. When I first got my BC296D, it didn't track my system period. That's when I started "playing" with bandplans on this P25 VHF system (even though I knew they're not used or needed) because it actually made the scanner "wake up" and sort of work.

After sending it in for repairs and the firmware got upgraded, now it works properly.

 

[UPMan]

What about 3600 ASTRO systems? Do you still need to set a CC plan on them or no?

3600 Astro systems don't use P25 control channels, so a CC plan is still required.