BCD396XT & Antenna..

[TheDM]

Hello,
First off, great forums.. I have learned a ton just reading the posts. I have a few questions. Any input will be greatly appreciated.
I am fairly new to scanners.
I have the 396xt and Arc-xt pro software. (really nice software.)
I am really looking for a. a book(s) that will clarify and explain basics. b. wanting to know if the federal listings I see are really accurate and worth listening to (Feds, Military, etc) or is it all encrypted or just not worth (not much luck so far and I am near several military bases.) c. antennas. Ok, I know use the type that your are wanting to listen to.. got that. I am spending about 50hours a week in my car and am wanting to know should I carry a variety pack and switch them out? any good magnet mount ones anyone can recommend? How about using the 396xt from home? any recommendations on an antenna. I am due east of a major municipality and was thinking about a directional antenna....
Anyways, I really appreciate the time you pros take to answer questions and if I had one wish it would be a recommendation for a reading list (or videos!!!)
Thanks Again,
Alex

 

[UPMan]

a. There is a lot of info in the wiki area of this site (more and more current than any book I am aware of).
b. Federal and Military still have unencrypted (depending on the agency) but it is hit and miss. Hard to make a blanket statement.
c. If you are just scanning local stuff in your car, having a band-specific antenna isn't necessarily going to provide enough improvement to justify switching them out. Generally, a decent VHF/UHF antenna mounted on the outside of the vehicle is going to perform well enough on 800 MHz, too, that you'll be satisfied with the results across all bands.

 

[ka3jjz]

Alex welcome - it's really important to be able to answer your questions about fed/military stuff to know where you are (county/state will do fine). Our database has a great deal of information on mil bases, but we can always use more...

As to carrying batteries (not a pack - the XT scanners don't use them, thank god) - yes many of us (myself included) carry a spare set of batteries, but if you use it in the car for any length of time, a car adapter would be a good investment. Just make sure not to keep batteries in the radio when using the adapter (if memory serves there is an option to turn the charging off in the menus, and that too is worthwhile in this case). An external battery charger is a must have - and we've had discussions to that end in this forum and other places.

As to antennas - we have another forum for that discussion (just click on the blue text to go there), but you can certainly use a good mobile antenna, and a directional antenna would help from a fixed location - like your home - within certain limitations...

HTH...Mike