BCT15X vs 796D

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btlacer

KI4SJU/ Fire Captain/ EMTFR
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Nov 10, 2007
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Henderson, Ky
I am trying to decide which one to buy. I already have a BCT15X and was looking to add another scanner. I also have a SDS200. But this opportunity to buy a 796D has come up. Which one do you think is better? Mostly listen to vhf aircraft and railroad and marine traffic.
 

a417

U+0000
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Mar 14, 2004
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If you have the opportunity to buy a 796d for an excellent price, go for it. It's not quite as good as it's little cousin the 780XLT for VHF/AM but it is certainly capable.
 

JimD56

KO9JAD/Fire Lieutenant/Paramedic
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Go with the BC15x The 796D's WILL lose their screen pixels over time and there is no parts or repair support for them anymore.
I have a 15x and use it for all my Air, Mil Air, Govt, and Misc VH/UHF. I program it with FreeScan or ProScan.
 

tvengr

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Baltimore County, MD
It all depends on what you want to monitor. The 796D can do P25 conventional and P25 Phase 1 trunked systems that do not use 700 MHz frequencies. The 15X is analog only. The 15X is excellent for aircraft, railroad, and marine frequencies. A few railroads are beginning to use NXDN which your SDS200 can do with the NXDN paid upgrade.
 

CanesFan95

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I once had a 796 and sometimes the screen pixels would all fade out until you tap it or press on it. Kept having to do that every so often. Otherwise, it would have been an OK scanner.
 

StoliRaz

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Masshole
Go with the BC15x The 796D's WILL lose their screen pixels over time and there is no parts or repair support for them anymore.
I have a 15x and use it for all my Air, Mil Air, Govt, and Misc VH/UHF. I program it with FreeScan or ProScan.
I don't believe it's common but some BC15x had an issue with the ribbon cable coming loose, making none of the buttons work. I've had to fix mine twice. Wasn't hard but certainly a pain to take apart. Mine has been babied and hardly used and still had the issue
 

Ubbe

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Sep 8, 2006
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Stockholm, Sweden
I had ribbon problem with my UBC780 but only had to reseat it once 10 years ago and have worked since then. I bought three BCT15's and one of them had ribbon problem almost from the start. I reseated the ribbon cable three times but the problem always returned after a few weeks. I now have it at another location across the other side of town using RemoteRig.

/Ubbe
 
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