BCD436HP questions about Bay County Monitoring

[grampyzz]

I recently purchased this scanner with hopes of monitoring our security at the resort I live in. I'm trying to receive the frequencies for Bay County, Florida - resorts. Here are the specific channels in Radio reference.

456.1875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 6	Laketown Wharf	FMN	Business
456.7375	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 1	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
457.1375	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 7	Laketown Wharf	FMN	Business
457.3125	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 2	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
457.7875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 3	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
462.1875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 4	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
464.100	WQVK377	RM	210.7 PL	Laketown 5	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business

When I do get a transmission, the voice is very garbled. The reception is good, but the voice sounds like it's scrambled. The display doesn't show anything about it being encrypted. I've put on a better antenna, but that didn't help. I feel I'm missing something that would allow understand the audio. Please help.

 

[bravo14]

I recently purchased this scanner with hopes of monitoring our security at the resort I live in. I'm trying to receive the frequencies for Bay County, Florida - resorts. Here are the specific channels in Radio reference.

456.1875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 6	Laketown Wharf	FMN	Business
456.7375	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 1	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
457.1375	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 7	Laketown Wharf	FMN	Business
457.3125	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 2	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
457.7875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 3	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
462.1875	WQVK377	M	210.7 PL	Laketown 4	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business
464.100	WQVK377	RM	210.7 PL	Laketown 5	Laketown Wharf	FM	Business

When I do get a transmission, the voice is very garbled. The reception is good, but the voice sounds like it's scrambled. The display doesn't show anything about it being encrypted. I've put on a better antenna, but that didn't help. I feel I'm missing something that would allow understand the audio. Please help.

I believe they are on DMR Conv. I use to live in Bay County til 2022. The 436 and 100 doesn't like DMR Conv.

 

[grampyzz]

I believe they are on DMR Conv. I use to live in Bay County til 2022. The 436 and 100 doesn't like DMR Conv.

What scanner would be the best to receive the DMR?

 

[Nasby]

What scanner would be the best to receive the DMR?

The scanner you have will receive DMR.

You would just need to purchase the DMR unlock code from Uniden and then put the code into your scanner.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

The 436 and 100 doesn't like DMR Conv.

Care to elaborate? I own both and they handle DMR conventional just fine

 

[Nasby]

Care to elaborate? I own both and they handle DMR conventional just fine

Agree. I have DMR enabled on my 436hp and it’s works great for single channel use. Trunking can be hit or miss.

 

[bravo14]

Care to elaborate? I own both and they handle DMR conventional just fine

I have sat by some places and the 436 didn't hear/pick up conv as good as the dsdplus did. When the 100/200 came out same issue didn't matter what filter it was set at. I know the schools in bay county uses simplex and nothing. Guessing by now with the firmware updates maybe got better but close call won't work cause the pulse/data it puts out.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Try a digital threshold level of 12 or 13 for DMR One Frequency or MotoTRBO trunked. It should make a difference

 

[tvengr]

I believe they are on DMR Conv. I use to live in Bay County til 2022.

Before purchasing the DMR upgrade, make sure they are actually DMR. The FCC database shows that they are licensed for NFM only, but you can't believe everything you read. It seems that quite often the emission of a system is changed without first seeking approval from the FCC.

 

[grampyzz]

Before purchasing the DMR upgrade, make sure they are actually DMR. The FCC database shows that they are licensed for NFM only, but you can't believe everything you read. It seems that quite often the emission of a system is changed without first seeking approval from the FCC.

So, is there a way to tell if they are DMR? I'm getting voice, but it's scrambled somehow so the speech isn't legible. Uniden told me that the 436 doesn't show if the transmission is DMR, or even if it is encrypted. My screen certainly bears this out.

 

[Ubbe]

Try a digital threshold level of 12 or 13 for DMR One Frequency or MotoTRBO trunked. It should make a difference

Push the Fn+Vol+Fn+Vol to get the display to show the data errors. Push Fn and turn the volume controller to adjust the threshold when you have it set to manual for the system and try to get as few errors as possible.

There's a bug that if you use a manual setting of the digital threshold that it will not decode DMR simplex. So always use the auto setting for DMR simplex.

/Ubbe

 

[grampyzz]

Push the Fn+Vol+Fn+Vol to get the display to show the data errors. Push Fn and turn the volume controller to adjust the threshold when you have it set to manual for the system and try to get as few errors as possible.

There's a bug that if you use a manual setting of the digital threshold that it will not decode DMR simplex. So always use the auto setting for DMR simplex.

/Ubbe

I see the errors you spoke of. The threshold won't go lower than 5. I've tried different levels after that, and it didn't change anything. It doesn't show anything right beside the ERR: Below that it has T 1.43 1.65 1.87. I haven't purchased the DMR upgrade yet as I'm not sure the system is DMR. The Uniden guy told me that I shouldn't be getting any voice at all if it's a DMR system. I get voice, but it's unintelligible.

 

[tvengr]

So, is there a way to tell if they are DMR? I'm getting voice, but it's scrambled somehow so the speech isn't legible. Uniden told me that the 436 doesn't show if the transmission is DMR, or even if it is encrypted. My screen certainly bears this out.

That is why you need someone presently local to the area to verify it is DMR. Your scanner cannot decode DMR without the upgrade.

 

[Ubbe]

I shouldn't be getting any voice at all if it's a DMR system. I get voice, but it's unintelligible.

Yes, so it is not a digital system and you will then not see any values after the ERR: in the display as it doesn't see any digital data.
I have some users that use analog voice inversion, it sounds like voice but the words make no sense and sounds almost like a foreign language. There are PC programs that can decode that, if you feed the scanners audio to the PC.

Easiest are if you do Fn+Replay and record some of the audio to the SD card and then copy that and post here and we can quickly determine what you are hearing and how to deal with it.

/Ubbe

 

[grampyzz]

This is what I'm hearing.

 

[bravo14]

This is what I'm hearing.

Some kind of scrambler they are using.

 

[Ubbe]

Yes, a standard voice inversion scrambler. Can be decoded with software but I have not been able to get those stand alone programs to work on my Win7 desktop as there are nowhere to configure what audio source to use and probably use #1 the line in jack.

/Ubbe

 

[grampyzz]

Well, it sounds like I'm out of luck. Having to run it through a computer program defeats the whole reason to use a handheld. Unless you have any other ideas.

 

[Ubbe]

There are other scanners from AOR and Alinco and some other brands that have voice inversion built in, and there are also small IC's, the one that AOR uses, but needs data to be sent to it to set the inversion frequency which is mostly different for different systems. There are also other circuits you can build with a potentiometer to tune to get the correct audio that might fit inside the 436 but would be a lot of hassle to do.

You can record some of those transmissions and then decode them and listen if there are anything worth monitoring.
For the programs you probably need to connect a cable from the 436's earphone jack to line in on your computer and then play the recorded file.

IZ8BLY MT63 terminal for windows and soundcards

/Ubbe

 

[grampyzz]

There are other scanners from AOR and Alinco and some other brands that have voice inversion built in, and there are also small IC's, the one that AOR uses, but needs data to be sent to it to set the inversion frequency which is mostly different for different systems. There are also other circuits you can build with a potentiometer to tune to get the correct audio that might fit inside the 436 but would be a lot of hassle to do.

You can record some of those transmissions and then decode them and listen if there are anything worth monitoring.
For the programs you probably need to connect a cable from the 436's earphone jack to line in on your computer and then play the recorded file.

IZ8BLY MT63 terminal for windows and soundcards

/Ubbe

Do you have any recommendation for what radio would be good?