Carrier-On-Indicator Light For Uniden Scanners

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N1SQB

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I hate quoting my own message but this was appropriate...

I found a better place to tap the 12VDC from. See the solder pad next to the "V" in "V Jack" in the picture below? It is a lot easier to solder to that than the smaller pad near the volume control.

In addition, I decided to save the trouble of disassembling the front panel by drilling a 3/8 inch hole on the faceplate equidistant from the DIN slot and the curved frame of the scan/hold buttons. I soldered wires to the LED, and used individual pieces of heat shrink on them. I then pulled them thru the hole and carefully routed them into the framework of the radio so that they clear the interior case halves. I wrapped the wires around the interior wire bundle, this keeps the LED tight.

While this works well, the LED does stick out quite a bit, and is not as professional looking as Manny's, but it is a lot quicker and less invasive to the scanner. You must be careful not to pinch the LED wires in the case half by keeping them in the plastic framework. I suppose a spot of model glue would help keep the LED in place if needed.

I have now completed the mods on 8 of my BCT15's. I bought the 15 pack of NPN transistors and just grabbed any one of the three versions included. Each worked just fine.

For the ground I used the ground post at the rear of the display daughter board.

Many thanks to Manny for the ground work on this project!

Thank YOU for the work you have done as well. I never realized that something which started as a curiosity and for-fun project would generate so much interestl. I'm happy with the results!

Manny
 
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KE4RWS

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Nobody is being tight lipped about anything. I did the mod on my 136. I made the mistake of not writing down which IC chip I tapped into. The scanner is no longer in my possesion. I regret not taking the notes. I honestly thought at the time that nobody would care to do it on THAT particular scanner. Sorry but that is the ugly truth.

Manny

Are you saying you don't even remember *where* you got the info to do it, or did you troubleshoot it yourself and then implement the carrier light?

I made the "tight-lipped" remark because I asked for the info here over two months ago and got no reply at all. So I asked *again* in the hopes someone would answer. I know you are not the only one who has done this mod, which is what gave me the distinct impression some people just don't want to be the one to give it out, as I've asked numerous times in other forums as well without so much as a single response - even though there are at least two other people here on RR alone who have done this same model.

It's a moot point now because I figured it out for myself this evening and now have my Pro-136 completed.
 

N1SQB

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Are you saying you don't even remember *where* you got the info to do it, or did you troubleshoot it yourself and then implement the carrier light?

I made the "tight-lipped" remark because I asked for the info here over two months ago and got no reply at all. So I asked *again* in the hopes someone would answer. I know you are not the only one who has done this mod, which is what gave me the distinct impression some people just don't want to be the one to give it out, as I've asked numerous times in other forums as well without so much as a single response - even though there are at least two other people here on RR alone who have done this same model.

It's a moot point now because I figured it out for myself this evening and now have my Pro-136 completed.

Good to hear you figured it out! Yes, I found the IC by "poking" around a little. That was half the fun actually. LOL...I can't speak for others but I left this forum alone and moved on after a while.

Manny
 

peguin78

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I have a RS Pro-160. It would be nice if I could do the carrier-on-indicator mod since it does have signal strength meter nor any indicator on the display that notifies a signal is being received. Anybody done this mod?
 

CoolCat

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I have not opened up my 996 or 996XT yet to see, but what would stop one from using some small acrylic rod as a "light pipe" to light up the Alert indicator or maybe a small piece of fiber optic? Hmmm, now I am curious.....

Without getting into ridiculously long details, it will not work. Behind the front panel is a PC board which has the LED directly attatched to it.

Manny

There is probably not enough space for a rigid acrylic rod, but I think a thin fiber optic line could work. The alert LED is SMT, but it does not sit directly against the front panel. The alert light you see on the front panel is not the LED itself. The "buttons" are not membrane switches, they are raised tactile switches that sit far enough off the PCB to possibly provide enough room to channel a fiber optic line around them.

If I ever get around to doing this C.O.I.N. mod, I plan to use this method instead of a standlone LED sticking out of the front panel.
 

KE4RWS

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780xlt Carrier Light modification

Has anyone done this on the BC780? If so, where is the logic picked off the PCB?

I have looked high and low for this modification but haven't been able to turn up anything for it. Admittedly I don't even have a 780 scanner but I was interested in seeing if I could find this information. Unfortunately, I could not :(

I used to own a 780xlt a year or two after they were introduced. It was one heck of a scanner and I loved it. I hate to say that I sold it after maybe a year or so but I can't remember why to save my life. In late 2005 I bought a used 785 and wanted to buy the optional digital card but never did. but one thing always bugged me about these two models (and actually the 796 too) was why they never incorporated a carrier light into these great scanners. This has never made sense to me.

I purchased a new 996xt last May and was very surprised when I was looking at the features of this model that they *still* had not incorporated a carrier light into this fine scanner. Oh they put a feature that changes the color of the screen for a few seconds when a new signal is received, but not a truly dedicated indicator light that stays on the entire duration the signal lasts. This is a feature GRE models have enjoyed for a while now. I also own a PSR-600 and man I can tell you this is one sweet feature to have in a scanner such as this.

I've done carrier light mods to various scanner models but haven't gotten around to doing it to my 996xt but I think I'm gonna go ahead and do *something* to it before long because it's one of six scanners operating at any given time and this indicator is a rather necessary thing to have in this setting. I just wish the manufacturer would have made this a factory installed feature . . .
 
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