BCD536HP Post-Release Thread

[wb3anq]

Problem with SD card in Uniden BCD536HP

I have just received my BCD536HP! Thats the good news!
When I powered it up I was greeted with the following message:

City data read error
Please check
City Table VI.00.00 dat
InSD Card

The scanner then says USB Mass Storage and won't go any further.
I have tried to clear the user data, formatted the SD card as described on page 80 of the used manual
but nothing seems to work

Does anyone have any ideas how to correct this problem?

Thanks
Larry Putman WB3ANQ

 

[trunker]

I have just received my BCD536HP! Thats the good news!
When I powered it up I was greeted with the following message:

City data read error
Please check
City Table VI.00.00 dat
InSD Card

The scanner then says USB Mass Storage and won't go any further.
I have tried to clear the user data, formatted the SD card as described on page 80 of the used manual
but nothing seems to work

Does anyone have any ideas how to correct this problem?

Thanks
Larry Putman WB3ANQ

Sounds like the location files on the card got corrupt. Try updating the database from Sentinel. You may also have to update the firmware to get everything back on the card.

 

[y84media]

WARNING FOR MAC USERS!

Anyone using VirtualBox, please install Bootcamp instead. I've corrupted my database on my scanner by plugging it into my Mac.

VirtualBox would not release either the Scanner or the Wifi adapter and pass them to VirtualBox, both were in use by the host computer.

As soon as I unplugged the scanner from my Mac it gave me the error in this photo.

Going to reboot into Bootcamp and try to put the $h1t back into the horse.



Sent from my iPhone, because it rules!

 

[JohnBreen]

It will be interesting to see how long it takes for someone to post the procedure for finding and using the discriminator tap.

 

[KN4QHZ]

MAC Users -Boot Camp

Yes need to run Boot Camp. I have been using Windows 7 Professional along with Sentinal/BCD53HP with no issues. The BCD53HP is a winner in my book.

 

[mrkelso]

Ham Station is Great

Got the Big boy in today with the little boy coming tomorrow

 

[an39511]

Okay, I am stumped on setting Priority Scan and need some help.
In my Favorite List I have three systems. One is P25 and the other two are conventional.
In my P25 system I have Priority ID Scan enabled.
Then in my Department I have three talk groups with P-Ch enabled.
When I select Priority Scan from the setup menu and and enable Priority Scan and then exit it will scan for a few seconds and then pop a message of "Priority Scan, No Channel"

Can anyone tell me what I am missing?

 

[UPMan]

That message means that you do not have any conventional channels assigned as priority. For trunked, you don't need to turn on that setting (enabling Priority ID Scan for a system takes care of it).

 

[an39511]

That message means that you do not have any conventional channels assigned as priority. For trunked, you don't need to turn on that setting (enabling Priority ID Scan for a system takes care of it).

Easy enough. Thanks much.

 

[an39511]

I have a question in the efficiency of favorites while scanning. I am new to Uniden scanners so I am not sure of the best methods.

Scenario: I have one P25 simulcast system with many surrounding cities. Because Favorites can have Alpha names (and quick keys don't), it seems easier for me to setup multiple favorites even though those cities use the same P25 system. When I set it up that way it seems like the scan speed is reduced significantly. Does anyone know if this is true or does it just look that way?

I suspect that if I setup two Favorites using the same P25 system the scanner must scan the control channel twice instead of once if I had everything contained in one favorite list?

 

[OFDM]

I have a question in the efficiency of favorites while scanning. I am new to Uniden scanners so I am not sure of the best methods.

Scenario: I have one P25 simulcast system with many surrounding cities. Because Favorites can have Alpha names (and quick keys don't), it seems easier for me to setup multiple favorites even though those cities use the same P25 system. When I set it up that way it seems like the scan speed is reduced significantly. Does anyone know if this is true or does it just look that way?

I suspect that if I setup two Favorites using the same P25 system the scanner must scan the control channel twice instead of once if I had everything contained in one favorite list?

EXACTLY!! Last night I was comparing the scanning speed with the PSR-800 and the 436 is slow! I noticed the same thing you are mentioning (at least I think we are talking about the same topic).

The city has a trunked system with several sites. I created FL1 "Police" which has only the police TG, then FL2 "Fire" which is the same system/sites as FL1 but with the TG's related to fire. I start scanning and the displays the FL "Police" then a few seconds later "Fire". My other scanner was on HOLD on the Police FL and had all sorts of activity but while the 436 was on Fire, I didn't hear any police activity. I thought to myself that for sure the search was smart enough to figure out what FL's I had active and figure out they have common sites and it would just lookup to see if a TG from FL1 or FL2 came active but no, it seems to actually search one FL at a time, even with common sites.

Seems easy enough to implement a smarter search, but then it would loose the old school user experience of searching each FL and displaying that FL. On the other hand, it would be MUCH faster.

ME

 

[mrkelso]

The Ham Station is Terrific!!

From Box to setup less then 30 minutes, now to read the manual in the can. Works great on the MAC using Parellels and Windows.

 

[UPMan]

OFDM: Make one FL. In that FL, make one system. In that system make a POLICE department and a FIRE department. Then it will do what you want.

 

[trunker]

EXACTLY!! Last night I was comparing the scanning speed with the PSR-800 and the 436 is slow! I noticed the same thing you are mentioning (at least I think we are talking about the same topic).

The city has a trunked system with several sites. I created FL1 "Police" which has only the police TG, then FL2 "Fire" which is the same system/sites as FL1 but with the TG's related to fire. I start scanning and the displays the FL "Police" then a few seconds later "Fire". My other scanner was on HOLD on the Police FL and had all sorts of activity but while the 436 was on Fire, I didn't hear any police activity. I thought to myself that for sure the search was smart enough to figure out what FL's I had active and figure out they have common sites and it would just lookup to see if a TG from FL1 or FL2 came active but no, it seems to actually search one FL at a time, even with common sites.

Seems easy enough to implement a smarter search, but then it would loose the old school user experience of searching each FL and displaying that FL. On the other hand, it would be MUCH faster.

ME

How many sites are you scanning with each scanner?
Just asking because if you scan a multi-site system without location control enabled in the X36 it will scan all the sites in the system and that will slow your scanning down.

 

[OFDM]

OFDM: Make on FL. In that FL, make one system. In that system make a POLICE department and a FIRE department. Then it will do what you want.

I kind of thought that was the answer.

I appreciate the flexibility and complexity the xx.yy.zz scheme offers but frankly I don't have the memory (brain power) to remember 99x99x99 combinations. As the other gentleman pointed out, on the 436 UI it only shows the FL name when selecting Menu->Manage Favorites, although if you drill down even further you can get the departments, it's just many more steps. Although it fly's in the face of the xx.yy.zz flexibility and cool'ness, it's just plain simpler for the user to remember that punching 1E or 2E toggles between police and fire.

I'd also suspect a large % of users would do it this way as well.

Anywho, something to consider in future firmware releases to optimize searching, to innovate, and get a leg up on the non-existent competition, assuming development is not over for the x36 line.

ME

 

[an39511]

Did I find a bug with the quick keys?

I have a favorite with one P25 and three conventional channels. In that Favorite I have quick key ..00 disabled (see photo top). If I press the ".no" button during the time the scanner is receiving a conventional channel, .ie "..0" look how the display changes (See photo bottom). What happend to quick keys 0,3 & 4? If I wanted to re-enable .00, I can't because it looks as if there is no "0" quick key assigned. If I back out and do it again without a conventional channel broadcasting that quick key is back and able to be changed.

 

[OFDM]

How many sites are you scanning with each scanner?
Just asking because if you scan a multi-site system without location control enabled in the X36 it will scan all the sites in the system and that will slow your scanning down.

The system is defined in RR dB as a single site, although in implementation is may not be. Anyways, that isn't the issue. But now that you brought multi-site scanning slowing down things....

How about improving the algorithm vs. living with it?

Why not grade each control channel based on some criteria (perhaps SINR or SNR) and come up with a probability of decoding. Sites with a less than 70% chance black list for x amount of time (say 3 minutes) so the scan isn't slowed down, then check after 3 minutes and check to see if the probability of decoding has increased.

 

[UPMan]

AN39511: Are you sure it was on the same system both times? I cannot tell from the static pictures what FL (0 or 3) or SS (0, 1, or 2) is the "current" FL/SS.

 

[an39511]

AN39511: Are you sure it was on the same system both times? I cannot tell from the static pictures what FL (0 or 3) or SS (0, 1, or 2) is the "current" FL/SS.

It was FL0 - S01 both times. To reduce the complexity I disabled FL3 and it still does as the photo shows.

FL0 quick key assignments.
S00 = P25 containing D0, 1, 2, 3, & 4
S01 = Conventional containing D1
S02 = Conventional containing D1 & 2

It should be an easy thing to duplicate because most people would have a mixture of Trunked and Conventional in one favorite list

 

[PaintedSkull12]

Analyze mode question

How do you use Analyze mode on the BCD536HP? Didn't see anything in the manual and when I select it on the menu it says "not available press any key". I want to map out some unkown edacs systems and could really use some detailed instructions. Thanks for any help in advance.