BCD436HP/BCD536HP: BCD436hp vs SDS100
- Thread starter mrred911
- Start date
With out knowing your location... I'm going to guess it's a "Simulcast" system...
The 436 can have problems with simulcast systems...
The 436 can have problems with simulcast systems...
Sorry, Quad Cities, yes they are simulcasted could you explain just for my own knowledge.
I just did a quick search and found the answer thank you for your help
Using a portable presents some issues but you can improve the performance by deliberately using a less efficient antenna and/or adding attenuation. This deafens the 436 and allows it to only capture the stronger control channel signals. Its not an idea solution but it does work. If your mobile and all over the place then you are pretty well stuck at looking to upgrade to a SDS100 as it becomes impossible to find suitable settings over changing locations and signal levels. .
There is only one simulcast system in my area...
I had my HP-2 and 436 within about 1000ft of one of the sites... And they both worked fine...
So being close to one of the sites can also help...
SDS models are much better at decoding simulcast systems, which is their main feature. Other models, (436, 396) are very "hit and miss" on simulcast.
As RandyKuff noted, being close to a site is helpful, or being on the outer fringes of just one transmitter's footprint, is probably the best.
As RandyKuff noted, being close to a site is helpful, or being on the outer fringes of just one transmitter's footprint, is probably the best.
Other differences between the BCD436HP and SDS100 include the obvious difference in required power. The BCD436HP uses 3 AA batteries which will give you a fair amount of runtime before needing to be replaced/recharged, whereas the SDS100 uses a proprietary Li-ion pack to approach the same runtime as the BCD436HP. This is due to the SDS100, a software defined radio (SDR), needing more power which the Li-ion pack can supply. And there is also the improved color display of the SDS100, which is customizable by the user. The reception capabilities of the BCD436HP on the VHF/UHF bands has also been reported as better than the SDS100 but bench testing has shown the difference to be so slight as to not being perceptible with the human ear… it’s just a difference measured by instruments instead of realistic, real world findings. (My experience leans towards the BCD436HP being the better of the two on the VHF High & Low/UHF bands. If I were to monitor the AM CB band at 27MHz my choice would be the BCD436HP. The continuously transmitting weather channels (162MHz) are another band I’ve used for comparisons… again the BCD436HP wins out, but only slightly, the differences being so minor it’s not worth arguing over. But as others have reported a very noticeable difference, the BCD436HP over the SDS100, which I do not doubt, because of the many variables that affect reception. It’s all about “Location, Location Location”.
Ubbe
Member
Specification wise there isn't much difference between a BCD436 and a SDS100 when measured at a test bench or under perfect conditions where no other transmitters can interfere.
But Uniden had to add a preamplifier in the SDS100 to make it as sensitive as a 436. That also makes it much more prone to overload and intermod issues. Those issues where apparent during beta testing and also later and Uniden had to add the filter settings, and later add twice as many, to try and compensate for its worse performance, but are a lottery if it will help or not.
It's SDR receiver are still much worse in performance than any conventional receiver and Unidens project manager UPman recommended to stay away from SDS scanners if you did not suffer from simulcast issues. So it's a mystery why someone thought that it would be a good idea to introduce SDS scanner in Europe, where we do not have simulcast systems. Not many E models are sold and a high percentage are put on auction sites after 6-12 months at half price.
/Ubbe
But Uniden had to add a preamplifier in the SDS100 to make it as sensitive as a 436. That also makes it much more prone to overload and intermod issues. Those issues where apparent during beta testing and also later and Uniden had to add the filter settings, and later add twice as many, to try and compensate for its worse performance, but are a lottery if it will help or not.
It's SDR receiver are still much worse in performance than any conventional receiver and Unidens project manager UPman recommended to stay away from SDS scanners if you did not suffer from simulcast issues. So it's a mystery why someone thought that it would be a good idea to introduce SDS scanner in Europe, where we do not have simulcast systems. Not many E models are sold and a high percentage are put on auction sites after 6-12 months at half price.
/Ubbe
StolenLemur
Another radio?
I notice the same thing. My SDS100 will pick up signals from further away on a P2 system than the 436HP will pick up. Just a more sensitive radio I guess. PS. The system I am referring is not simulcast. I just notice a huge difference in the two radios.
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