Bowling Green Warren County KY Radio Shack Pro-2096 Programming

[ticeedwards]

I'm having a lot of troubling programming a Radio Shack Pro-2096 for Bowling Green / Warren County which is a P25 Phase 1 system. I have cable and have downloaded both Win96 and ARC96. I mainly don't know what frequencies to put where and what all the settings should be. I have tried countless combinations. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[VASCAR2]

You need at a minimum of the Control Channel (c behind the frequency) frequency and the alternate control channel frequencies (a behind the frequencies). I usually program all the frequencies for each site but it is not required because P25 CC data stream tells the scanner which frequency to use.

854.6375	855.9875	856.2375	856.9625	857.1375	857.2375	857.9625	858.2375a
			858.9625a	859.2375a	859.9625c

Since this is a simulcast LSM system reception will be very dependent on the scanners location. Basically the scanner has trouble locking into one signal from one site since there are four or five sites in close proximity transmitting on the same frequencies at the same time. The new Uniden SDS100/200 scanners are designed to scan simulcast LSM systems. Older scanners struggle to decode simulcast LSM systems.

If the scanner is showing a strong signal but no audio it could be a simulcast reception issue. Another issue is whether you have programmed in any Talk Groups. On Radio Shack scanners you can scan for only known Talk Groups or Scan for any known or unknown Talk Group referred to as Wild Card. I suggest you scan for Wild Card Talk Groups.

Many times if your having simulcast distortion issues you can try to move the scanner to a different part of the house, reduce the height or location of the antenna. Normally there is more than enough signal from multiple sites/towers and not inadequate signal.

It is now common for agencies to use encrypted radio transmissions which no scanner can monitor. If there is a DE after the Talk Group in the Warren County data base the TG is encrypted all or part of the time.

 

[ticeedwards]

I appreciate the info and that all makes sense, but I still can't get anything. I have attached a screenshot of what I have if you don't mind looking at it. I feel like there is one button or setting i'm missing. I'm also curious if I have to do the MOT Custom Trunking Table?

 

[VASCAR2]

You don’t have to do the custom trunking band plan on Uniden scanners with P25 systems. I don’t think you need a custom band plan on the GRE Radio Shack Pro 2096. The data stream with P25 directs the receiver as to which frequency the Talk Group will disseminate. Make sure you have the system type as P25 and not Motorola. The system has to be programmed as P25 or it will not track.

With P25 systems you don’t hear the digital noise from the control channel if you stop on the control channel. On Motorola Type I or Motorola Type II systems you hear the digital noise. Don’t confuse P25 Phase 1 with Motorola Type I or II trunking formats.

P25 Phase 1 is CDMA and P25 Phase 2 is TDMA which permits more voice paths per frequency than CDMA. In a TDMA trunked system more radio traffic can be handled by the system with fewer frequencies which is desirable. Instead of needing eleven frequencies a user might be able to get the same number of pathways using seven frequencies. This is desirable in metro areas where there might be a shortage of available frequencies.

In the top right corner it shows Mot Custom trunking table. I think your system type is wrong as it should be P25. The Pro 2096 was manufactured prior to the acceptance of the P25 Type 2 systems. On Uniden scanners capable of P25 phase 2 there is no difference when programming, you just select P25 for the system.

Warren County is listed as P25 Phase 1 so your Pro 2096 should be capable of working with Warren county barring issues with simulcast distortion.

 

[chipl57]

In your screenshot, at the top where it says "type", it says conv for conventional. Change that to MOT for Motorola. I had this happen and that solved the problem. Also you might want to consider removing attenuation from the control channel and alternates. That could be cutting down on signal strength received.