Cambria / Blair County scanner

[Ganuke]

Hello ...... I am in the market for a new scanner. I had posted about this in the general scanning forum of Radio Reference and in a reply was advised to give posting about it in the Pennsylvania forum a try since that is the state I live in. More specifically I live in Cambria county of PA ..... and in it very close to the Blair county line.

I have had a Radio Shack Pro 95 scanner now for about 5 years and it has come to the point of seeing better days. So I as I said I am looking to purchase a new scanner. In reading various threads here at Radio Reference as well as from other sources online ..... I think I have my choices for a new scanner narrowed down to either the Radio shack PRO-164, the GRE PSR-300, or the Uniden BC346XT. And I have been thinking that maybe the Radio Shack Pro 164 could be eliminated as an option since I have read where it is essentially the same as the GRE PSR 300 except for cosmetics. And checkin over the Wiki pages on these scanners ...... it looks to me as though the BC346XT is a bit more feature rich than the GRE PSR 300. But I also have read that the GRE PSR 300 has very good reception ..... maybe even too much. But I am thinking that in the rural / suburban area of where I live ...... that could be a very good thing.

I am ( at least right now ) chosing to purchase a conventional scanner instead of a digital one ..... primarily due to price as well as that it seems in the area I live that there really don't seem to be any digital frequencies that I am aware of ..... though I could be wrong and maybe someone here from PA ...... perhaps near the area of PA I live in ...... could better fill me in.

Looking at the Radio Reference database for Pennsylvania Cambria and Blair counties near the bottom of the page there is the subheading of " All Trunked Radio Systems in Cambria County. " And under that is another subheading of " System Name " with a link " Pennsylvania STARNet. " I click that link and in the page that opens it looks as though all trunking frequencies in PA would be digital if I take that right ..... using the TDMA Digital System Voice. And at the bottom of that page is written :

" RR Admin Notes:

Currently there are no plans to create a detailed tower or talkgroup listing for this system. There is no way for the hobbyist to track or listen to this OpenSky based network. "

So PA trunking frequencies would all be digital ...... but from the bottom of that page ...... there is no way for a person to track of listen to them ? So even if I would purchase a digital scanner it would do me no good at this time ? But also if trunking frequencies in PA are digital then my getting a conventional scanner with trunking abilities would do me no good as well. It seems as though these trunking frequencies are for state wide things such as Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and state police. ( I could swear though that I have still been picking up state police reception using my Radio Shack Pro 95 ...... conventional scanner. ) Yeah ....... has me somewhat confused.

I basically said the same thing in a recent post in the sister of this thread in the general scanning forum. So of those 3 scanners ..... and maybe even just the GRE PSR 300 and Uniden BC34XT ..... which would be the best to purchase ( without really factoring in price since I think they all are around the same price ) ? What would be the pros and cons of each compared to one another ? I think all 3 scanners support rebranding and have firmware updates that are frequent enough ..... correct ?

Really anything you could tell me about these scanners in regard to which is the best one to purchase would be greatly appreciated. I am hoping to make the purchase decision in the next couple days. Thanks in advance to everyone who does post in reply.


Ganuke

 

[druhe]

Hello ...... I am in the market for a new scanner. I had posted about this in the general scanning forum of Radio Reference and in a reply was advised to give posting about it in the Pennsylvania forum a try since that is the state I live in. More specifically I live in Cambria county of PA ..... and in it very close to the Blair county line.

I have had a Radio Shack Pro 95 scanner now for about 5 years and it has come to the point of seeing better days. So I as I said I am looking to purchase a new scanner. In reading various threads here at Radio Reference as well as from other sources online ..... I think I have my choices for a new scanner narrowed down to either the Radio shack PRO-164, the GRE PSR-300, or the Uniden BC346XT. And I have been thinking that maybe the Radio Shack Pro 164 could be eliminated as an option since I have read where it is essentially the same as the GRE PSR 300 except for cosmetics. And checkin over the Wiki pages on these scanners ...... it looks to me as though the BC346XT is a bit more feature rich than the GRE PSR 300. But I also have read that the GRE PSR 300 has very good reception ..... maybe even too much. But I am thinking that in the rural / suburban area of where I live ...... that could be a very good thing.

I am ( at least right now ) chosing to purchase a conventional scanner instead of a digital one ..... primarily due to price as well as that it seems in the area I live that there really don't seem to be any digital frequencies that I am aware of ..... though I could be wrong and maybe someone here from PA ...... perhaps near the area of PA I live in ...... could better fill me in.

Looking at the Radio Reference database for Pennsylvania Cambria and Blair counties near the bottom of the page there is the subheading of " All Trunked Radio Systems in Cambria County. " And under that is another subheading of " System Name " with a link " Pennsylvania STARNet. " I click that link and in the page that opens it looks as though all trunking frequencies in PA would be digital if I take that right ..... using the TDMA Digital System Voice. And at the bottom of that page is written :



So PA trunking frequencies would all be digital ...... but from the bottom of that page ...... there is no way for a person to track of listen to them ? So even if I would purchase a digital scanner it would do me no good at this time ? But also if trunking frequencies in PA are digital then my getting a conventional scanner with trunking abilities would do me no good as well. It seems as though these trunking frequencies are for state wide things such as Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and state police. ( I could swear though that I have still been picking up state police reception using my Radio Shack Pro 95 ...... conventional scanner. ) Yeah ....... has me somewhat confused.

I basically said the same thing in a recent post in the sister of this thread in the general scanning forum. So of those 3 scanners ..... and maybe even just the GRE PSR 300 and Uniden BC34XT ..... which would be the best to purchase ( without really factoring in price since I think they all are around the same price ) ? What would be the pros and cons of each compared to one another ? I think all 3 scanners support rebranding and have firmware updates that are frequent enough ..... correct ?

Really anything you could tell me about these scanners in regard to which is the best one to purchase would be greatly appreciated. I am hoping to make the purchase decision in the next couple days. Thanks in advance to everyone who does post in reply.


Ganuke

Ganuke

I live in Cambria County and my current employment has me working very closely with Emergency Services, so I am somewhat familiar with the radio system here.

The two radios that you have chosen are both excellent choices for this region and both would serve you well. I do not own either so I can not vouch for either ones performance. One of my radios is Uniden 396T and it works very well. I do have a need for digital as I monitor Westmoreland County

You mention the PA StarNet system. This is a statewide system that is being built by Tyco Ma/Com. Also known as Open Sky. This system uses a proprietary format that Tyco will not license to scanner manufactures, thus no scanner can be manufactured to monitor the system. The State Police in Cambria have not switched to the new system yet so yes you can still monitor them on the VHF frequencies. Several agencies have made the switch full time, PEMA and PennDot are two that I know of for sure. Fish, Game, DCNR / Forestry and Corrections are still on there respective low band and vhf and uhf frequencies so you will have no problem monitoring any of them.

Not sure if I answered your questions. As I said above, which ever radio you decide will work well for you. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask

 

[Ganuke]

Thanks for the reply druhe. While you did not recommend a paricular scanner brand / model of the 2-3 I mention being my narrowed down conventional scanner choices ...... you did say of having a Uniden scanner that works well for you. In fact ...... the Uniden scanner I am considering seems to be close in model number to what you say you have.

I have heard many good things of the Uniden brand. I also have been happy with the Radio Shack Pro 95 I have had for the past 5 years ..... but I guess just looking for something new in a different brand. Which is why I said it likely will be either the Uniden BC346XT or GRE PSR 300 scanner I purchase. ( since from what I have read the GRE PSR 300 is essentially the same as the Radio Shack Pro 164. )

I guess at this point ..... what is holding me back from searching for the best price on and purchasing the Uniden BC346XT ..... is having read a number of posts of the GRE PSR 300 being very good in reception ...... maybe even too sensitive in what it brings in reception. But for the more rural / suburban area of Cambria county where I live I am wondering if that may be a good thing.

I'm still reading through the posts after doing a search on the Uniden BC346XT. But so far I have not gotten a feel if it has just as good reception as the GRE PSR 300. I'd still like to hear more from others about either / both scanners in their pros and cons ...... comparing / contrasting the 2 from others ......

That's not to take away from the reply you have provided in this thread. I believe you have cleared up the digital scanning issue for me. From what I have read and from what you say ...... it seems a digital scanner would do me ( somewhat ) little good at this time when factoring in the price compared to any of the 3 conventional scanners I am considering.

You mention scanning the Westmoreland county area. I do remember picking up frequency reception from Westmoreland county on my RS Pro 95 before ..... but come to think of it ...... seems it has been quite some time since I really pulled anything in from there. From what you say of using a digital scanner for that county ...... I guess it largely went digital. But Cambria ( and I assume Blair county which I am nearly on the border of ) have not switched to digital.

In looking over the database for PA here at Radio Reference ..... I did pick up on that what has gone digital in PA right now mostly seems to be state wide related ..... such as various state police as well as Penn DOT. But ok no state police move to digital in the area I / we live. But I guess without a digital scanner I will no longer be able to get reception of Penn DOT ? That will be a negative ..... but not a big enough negative I guess to warrant a $ 300 or so price hike to get a digital scanner.

Maybe some years down the road my next scanner purchase will be a digital one ...... either when the scanner I soon purchase goes bad or Cambria / Blair counties largely go digital. However ..... from what you said it seems as though ( at least right now ) the digital type that is used in PA is not permitted to be built into any scanner ? Do you know of any change to this any time soon. I mean I'm wondering if in some years when ..... possibly ...... the entire state goes digital what will be the option for us if the digital type used is still not permitted for scanner manufacturers to incorporate into new models even then ?

And as I said above ..... if anyone else has any additional info you could share about either / both the Uniden BC34XT and / or the GRE PSR 300 as far as comparison ...... and pros / cons of them please do reply. It probably will be a couple more days before I read through other posts here on those scanners and come to a point of wanting to make a final decision on which to purchase.


Ganuke

 

[HM1529]

In looking over the database for PA here at Radio Reference ..... I did pick up on that what has gone digital in PA right now mostly seems to be state wide related ..... such as various state police as well as Penn DOT. But ok no state police move to digital in the area I / we live. But I guess without a digital scanner I will no longer be able to get reception of Penn DOT ? That will be a negative ..... but not a big enough negative I guess to warrant a $ 300 or so price hike to get a digital scanner.

Maybe some years down the road my next scanner purchase will be a digital one ...... either when the scanner I soon purchase goes bad or Cambria / Blair counties largely go digital. However ..... from what you said it seems as though ( at least right now ) the digital type that is used in PA is not permitted to be built into any scanner ? Do you know of any change to this any time soon. I mean I'm wondering if in some years when ..... possibly ...... the entire state goes digital what will be the option for us if the digital type used is still not permitted for scanner manufacturers to incorporate into new models even then ?

And as I said above ..... if anyone else has any additional info you could share about either / both the Uniden BC34XT and / or the GRE PSR 300 as far as comparison ...... and pros / cons of them please do reply. It probably will be a couple more days before I read through other posts here on those scanners and come to a point of wanting to make a final decision on which to purchase.


Ganuke

Please understand that there are several types of "digital". Just because you buy a digital scanner does not mean you can monitor every entity using digital communications.

Any of the state agencies using the new statewide STARNET system (which uses OpenSky digital technology) cannot be monitored with *ANY* scanner. Scanners on the market that can do digital can only monitor digital systems that use technology based on the P25 standards.

The advent of digital technology has opened the floodgates for a number of different kinds of digital technology, not all of which can be monitored by the hobbyist.

The database page for the STARNET system lists all the participating state agencies. Use may vary in a specific geographic area (i.e. PSP is not yet using the system statewide). Some agencies will take many years to fully transition from their old equipment to the new STARNET system. The only agencies who use this system statewide right now are PennDOT, PEMA, and the Attorney General. Everybody else is piecemeal.

Also, if you go to the database page for PA State Police and follow the link to the wiki page, you will find a list of PSP stations and the channels they use. I updated that list to show stations that are now on the STARNET system. If anyone else from around the state can add to that list, please do. I cannot monitor everywhere, so input on transitioned stations is needed.

 

[druhe]

Thanks for the reply druhe. While you did not recommend a paricular scanner brand / model of the 2-3 I mention being my narrowed down conventional scanner choices ...... you did say of having a Uniden scanner that works well for you. In fact ...... the Uniden scanner I am considering seems to be close in model number to what you say you have.

I have heard many good things of the Uniden brand. I also have been happy with the Radio Shack Pro 95 I have had for the past 5 years ..... but I guess just looking for something new in a different brand. Which is why I said it likely will be either the Uniden BC346XT or GRE PSR 300 scanner I purchase. ( since from what I have read the GRE PSR 300 is essentially the same as the Radio Shack Pro 164. )

I guess at this point ..... what is holding me back from searching for the best price on and purchasing the Uniden BC346XT ..... is having read a number of posts of the GRE PSR 300 being very good in reception ...... maybe even too sensitive in what it brings in reception. But for the more rural / suburban area of Cambria county where I live I am wondering if that may be a good thing.

I'm still reading through the posts after doing a search on the Uniden BC346XT. But so far I have not gotten a feel if it has just as good reception as the GRE PSR 300. I'd still like to hear more from others about either / both scanners in their pros and cons ...... comparing / contrasting the 2 from others ......

That's not to take away from the reply you have provided in this thread. I believe you have cleared up the digital scanning issue for me. From what I have read and from what you say ...... it seems a digital scanner would do me ( somewhat ) little good at this time when factoring in the price compared to any of the 3 conventional scanners I am considering.

You mention scanning the Westmoreland county area. I do remember picking up frequency reception from Westmoreland county on my RS Pro 95 before ..... but come to think of it ...... seems it has been quite some time since I really pulled anything in from there. From what you say of using a digital scanner for that county ...... I guess it largely went digital. But Cambria ( and I assume Blair county which I am nearly on the border of ) have not switched to digital.

In looking over the database for PA here at Radio Reference ..... I did pick up on that what has gone digital in PA right now mostly seems to be state wide related ..... such as various state police as well as Penn DOT. But ok no state police move to digital in the area I / we live. But I guess without a digital scanner I will no longer be able to get reception of Penn DOT ? That will be a negative ..... but not a big enough negative I guess to warrant a $ 300 or so price hike to get a digital scanner.

Maybe some years down the road my next scanner purchase will be a digital one ...... either when the scanner I soon purchase goes bad or Cambria / Blair counties largely go digital. However ..... from what you said it seems as though ( at least right now ) the digital type that is used in PA is not permitted to be built into any scanner ? Do you know of any change to this any time soon. I mean I'm wondering if in some years when ..... possibly ...... the entire state goes digital what will be the option for us if the digital type used is still not permitted for scanner manufacturers to incorporate into new models even then ?

And as I said above ..... if anyone else has any additional info you could share about either / both the Uniden BC34XT and / or the GRE PSR 300 as far as comparison ...... and pros / cons of them please do reply. It probably will be a couple more days before I read through other posts here on those scanners and come to a point of wanting to make a final decision on which to purchase.


Ganuke

Ganuke,

I did not recommend a make or model on purpose. I have never been exposed to one of the newer GRE's ( I do own a Radio Shack 2006 which was made by GRE however) so I can not give an honest assessment. I do know that the 346 is basically the same as my 396 with the difference being that the 396 is capable of P25. It's like comparing Chevy's and Ford's. Both are good and will serve you well.

As for Westmoreland County, they did switch to an 800 P25 trunked system several years ago. However you can still monitor their Fire and EMS dispatches on the old conventional frequencies they should be listed in the database if you're interested.

In another post B.Russell explained the StarNet system better than my attempt. Will there ever be a radio capable to monitor it ? Only time will tell, but as of now it looks very doubtful.

One other thing to keep in mind, you state that you are near the Blair / Cambria line. You may also be in range of Clearfield County, which is also UHF conventional, something else to monitor.

Good Luck with your decision and purchase. I can say you are going about it in the correct manner by asking good questions and doing your homework. Keep us posted on what you decide.

 

[N8IAA]

Ganuke, I will give you some insight on scanners. Have been monitoring and scanning for over 30yrs. I do not profess to be an expert The 346XT is a repackaged 246T with a couple of extra goodies added. It probably is a good scanner, but, it is REALLY NEW! The Pro-164/PSR-300 have been out for a while. They don't offer as many frequency choices--1000 channels to 9000 frequencies. About the same dimensions. 164 uses 4 batteries, the 346XT uses 3. The 246T used 2 batteries.
My favorite way of listening when traveling to that area of PA was my ham radios. I listened on a dualband, dual display mobile while in my car, and a dual band ht when going portable. Now, it has been a long time since going to PA, but, a good conventional scanner will probably suffice for a long time to come. My main area of interest was Cambria, and the counties around Johnstown. Listened to a lot of railroad comms too. My wife's grandparents lived near Johnstown and the trains were less than a mile away. I would recommend the 164/300 because it also receives mil-air frequencies. No doubt I would have purchased the 246 had it had this additional feature. Uniden completely ignores this unless you buy one of their higher priced digitals. Not having a clue what Mot type II VOC is, I told you I wasn't an expert, it seems that is one of the few things different from the 246 and the 164. I have always had a combination of GRE/RS and Uniden scanners. I have switched to RS badged GRE's for my scanning. Digital and P-25 has been the way the counties in my metro area have been going. My choice for mobile and base scanning has been my Pro-106 and my Pro-163. The 106 does mobile/base for digital/conventional, and the 163 (the base version of the 164) is my all purpose conventional scanner. I make will make no comments on sesitivity, as that is based on the area you live in, the antenna being used, the individual scanner and how it was manufactured. Some people are never happy with what equipment they have and what it does. This is why most of use use multiple scanners for monitoring.
Just My Observations,
Larry

 

[Ganuke]

Thanks for the latest replies here. I know now I have decided to hold off on getting any digital scanner ....... with my ( hopefully ) soon to be new purchase of a scanner to replace my button defective RS Pro 95 being another conventional one. Still though not decided on which one to get ...... either the BC346xt or the GRE PSR 300. I like that the BC346xt seems to have a better feature set over the GRE model ...... but there are some concerns I have with the Uniden ...... some of which I just posted in the sister thread to this one in the general scanning section. What still has me most holding off is having read about the very good reception / sensitivity of the GRE PSR 300 ...... while I have not read much yet on how it compares in that department with the BC346xt. I also just finished reading a review on the BC346xt from ScannerMaster.com ....... that did seem to state better sensitivity in the GRE PSR 300 over the BC346xt.

If it were not for that ..... I think I may be ordering up the BC346xt now ...... with what seems to be a better feature set and the memory type system could be interesting to use over the banks / channels I have been use to with my button defective RS Pro 95.

Also good info here on the digital scanning benrussellpa and druhe ....... clearing some things up for me ( I think. ) I'm still wondering / concerned though about the StarNet system that PennDOT I guess now uses state wide as well as various state police departments using it now as well ........ that concern being that it is not licensed to any scanner manufacturer and may not be...... what happens ' X ' years from now if / when all state agencies go to using it. And thanks as well to N8IAA for your rundown on a comparison between the Uniden and GRE models I have it narrowed down to purchasing.


Ganuke