Berks County - Proposed 700/800mhz Digital Trunked Radio System

[SOSBaseStation]

I monitored Reading FD on the new system this weekend while passing through on the PA turnpike, so they're active on the new system now, too.

How does one monitor the PD freq?

 

[Subliminal87]

How does one monitor the PD freq?

Someone can tell me I'm wrong, but you cannot. They are fully encrypted.

 

[sibbley]

Someone can tell me I'm wrong, but you cannot. They are fully encrypted.

You are correct. All PD are encrypted as referenced in the database. Last night it sounded like some of the EMS to Hospital were also encrypted. But, since I am so far away, it might have just been that garbled.

 

[n3ouc]

You heard correctly, almost everything is encrypted except for fire call outs. I didn't think it was supposed to be everything, but as it turned out, at least to this point, 90% of everything is encrypted which is very dissapointing.

Mike

 

[SOSBaseStation]

Tactical Channels are unencrypted.

You are correct. All PD are encrypted as referenced in the database. Last night it sounded like some of the EMS to Hospital were also encrypted. But, since I am so far away, it might have just been that garbled.

Thanks all. After digging around I was able to find the below manual from the Berks communication centers website.
http://www.co.berks.pa.us/Dept/DES/..._STANDARD_OPERATING_GUIDE_October_15_2014.pdf


Nothing else should be encrypted other then PD, but according to the docs the Tac frequencies are not encrypted.

The Berks Tactical Channels are listed below, but I did not see them in the RR database for Berks (of course I may have not looked in the correct place for them)

Tx(156.7)/Rx(CSQ)

Berks7TAC1 - 769.05625
Berks7TAC2 - 769.06875
Berks7TAC3 - 774.99375
Berks7TAC4 - 769.00625
Berks7TAC5 - 769.01875
Berks7TAC6 - 769.03125
Berks7TAC7 - 769.04375
Berks7TAC8 - 774.93125
Berks7TAC9 - 774.95625
Berks7TAC10 - 774.96875
Berks7TAC11 - 774.98125
Berks7TAC12 - 774.99375

Encryption - Tactical Channels are unencrypted.

Modulation - These channels are Analog

 

[cypherstream]

I used to monitor analog using SDR# Software defined radio and RTL usb tuner on a PC. Is there a solution to get unencrypted streams in Berks with this setup, perhaps with DSD+ ?

 

[bgottschallberks]

You heard correctly, almost everything is encrypted except for fire call outs. I didn't think it was supposed to be everything, but as it turned out, at least to this point, 90% of everything is encrypted which is very dissapointing.

Mike

Mike:
This is not correct. PD and EMS-Hospital comms are encrypted. If you are not hearing other comms, you may want to consider a technical problem.

 

[n3ouc]

Hi Brian,
Well the first week the system went live it seemed to me that everything but the fire call outs were encrypted, but as of late I do hear the fire and EMS (Except BLS to hospitals) are indeed not encrypted. Maybe it was just that most of the comms were occurring on encrypted channels the first few days. Thank you Brian for the reply.

Take Care,
Mike

 

[cypherstream]

Fire 33.69 and 33.94 are simulcast in analog for the hundreds of volunteer firefighters right?

 

[bgottschallberks]

Hi Brian,
Well the first week the system went live it seemed to me that everything but the fire call outs were encrypted, but as of late I do hear the fire and EMS (Except BLS to hospitals) are indeed not encrypted. Maybe it was just that most of the comms were occurring on encrypted channels the first few days. Thank you Brian for the reply.

Take Care,
Mike

This makes sense as the cutover was done over approx. 1 1/2 weeks and the first agencies to cut over were Rdg PD, Rdg Fire/EMS, and then Countywide PD. Therefore, for the first week plus, except for Rdg fire, everything on the system was encrypted.

 

[SOSBaseStation]

All interoperability talkgroups will be in the clear also, so the traffic that is patched to those groups as needed will also be in the clear, even when the traffic is law enforcement.
.

Is this still the case? What type of issues would require use of the interoperability talkgroups?

Thanks!

 

[bgottschallberks]

Is this still the case? What type of issues would require use of the interoperability talkgroups?

Thanks!

Yes.

Out of county mutual aid by agencies that are not part of our subscriber fleet.

 

[SOSBaseStation]

Yes.

Out of county mutual aid by agencies that are not part of our subscriber fleet.

Thank you...

 

[Septa3371CSX1]

With Reading PD and FD on the new system, is there any traffic left on the legacy Motorola 800 system?

 

[bgottschallberks]

With Reading PD and FD on the new system, is there any traffic left on the legacy Motorola 800 system?

Negative. A few of these channels have been repurposed into the new system (as mobile repeater channels), but the former trunked 800 MHz City of Reading system has undergone its last power down.

 

[HM1529]

I made some updates to the Berks database page yesterday. If the locals could let me know status of the mulitutde of local VHF channels for fire/police/ems, that would be great. I probably won't be over that way much until the spring so direct monitoring for me will be unlikely. For any local fire VHF assignments that remain in use, I will relocate them to the corresponding municipality for the FD. If they serve me than one muni, I use the location of their station to locate the listing.

 

[bgottschallberks]

Ben, I am not much into the scanner/monitoring thing myself so I am not sure how to access the database you referenced. However, if you have this information in a common format like Excel or something and want to email it to me I will give you the clear rundown on what is in/out, up/down.

bgottschall@countyofberks.com

Previously I had provided someone the data on the new system with TG IDs, names, uses and such. I think his page name was Chauffer or something like that. I am not sure if that ever made it into your resources.

 

[Septa3371CSX1]

Previously I had provided someone the data on the new system with TG IDs, names, uses and such. I think his page name was Chauffer or something like that. I am not sure if that ever made it into your resources.

Yes I believe that was the trunked system data added to the database back in the spring.

Are any of the old VHF high and low channels (other than the ones listed as being re-purposed for interop use) being maintained as back up channels in case of trunked system failure?

 

[cavmedic]

Brian, can you plz give your dispatchers some better clarifications as to interops procedures to out of county units providing mutual aid.

They are passing info to Montgomery county , to tell their units what the active talk group is, but doesn't do anyone any good when those units do not have your radios...............................


Sent from my iPhone
using Tapatalk

 

[n3ouc]

Brian, I was going to mention a simular situation as cavmedic just mentioned. Berks came into lehigh county to help with a two alarm fire yesterday and berks and lehigh counties could not converse directly with each other. Comms had to go through the dispatchers and it proviided a fair amount of confusion and wasted time having to do communications that way. Im thinking mutual aid is ok if both counties radios have the same frequencies and analoge channels but I gather the new berks system radios do not have this?