City of Houston Project 25 TRS

[dupree617]

I'm happy for Houston's switch over to P-25 digital. I fully understand why the police would want there TG's encrypted. I can understand why the fire department wants there med channels encrypted. I can understand why they want the phone patches encrypted as well. Someone is going to have to explain to me one of these days why the fire department want's there tac TG's encrypted. I can understand one of the tac TG's being encrypted. But I not understand why TG's used primary for fireground communications needs to be encrypted. Thanks for reading this anywhy.

Mike Dupree

 

[mfn002]

The more I think about this, the more I think someone somewhere misunderstood what P25 was. I suspect what they mean as to HFD is that the dispatch channel will remain simulcasted on the analog UHF channel, and that everything else will be on the new digital channels. I've seen this before. Some people confuse straight P25 as an encrypted voice method. Therefore, under this theory, it's highly likely that the only ENC for HFD will be the MED channels. This'll be the same for HPD. HPD will probably only have their narcotics, tactical, and SWAT channels encrypted. HPD is being referred to as being encrypted on the new system because, once again, they will be using digital voice. I'm not saying that this is what's going on, but it is a somewhat likely scenario. After all, if HFD just moved to 800, why aren't they already using full encryption on their new channels?

 

[dupree617]

You do make a good point, I have heard one person say that digital was encrypted. So it stands to resign that this just could be a misunderstanding. I can't wait to see how this fully works itself out.

 

[mfn002]

Yeah. It just doesn't make sense. Why would HFD go on a trunked system unencrypted only to then jump on another and go encrypted?

KevinC just emailed me and is pretty insistant that HFD will be ENC with only dispatch and MED-1 being in the clear. All HPD dispatch channels will remain unencrypted, though.

 

[loumaag]

Okay, I started monitoring this morning and noticed a few things about this switch. First, they are serious about not using the UHF channels, each time a unit came up on a UHF channel OEC directed them to the 800 MHz channels. Next all of the MED Tac channels are encrypted (or at least the radios are set to encrypt) but MED1 is not at this time. None of the other HFD channels on the digital side are encrypted yet. And finally I noticed that the PSR800 does not recognize the TDMA channel as encrypted when it is. I have mine set to give a "busy signal" audio sound when encountering an encrypted channel and it does quite well on all the P25 (FDMA), Moto, and conventional channels, but when it encountered this on the TDMA stuff this morning, I get garbled audio.

I suspected this might be the case as one of the radio techs is running around with his radio on encrypted mode, makes for interesting listening to half conversations. :roll:

 

[mfn002]

Okay, I started monitoring this morning and noticed a few things about this switch. First, they are serious about not using the UHF channels, each time a unit came up on a UHF channel OEC directed them to the 800 MHz channels. Next all of the MED Tac channels are encrypted (or at least the radios are set to encrypt) but MED1 is not at this time. None of the other HFD channels on the digital side are encrypted yet. And finally I noticed that the PSR800 does not recognize the TDMA channel as encrypted when it is. I have mine set to give a "busy signal" audio sound when encountering an encrypted channel and it does quite well on all the P25 (FDMA), Moto, and conventional channels, but when it encountered this on the TDMA stuff this morning, I get garbled audio.

I suspected this might be the case as one of the radio techs is running around with his radio on encrypted mode, makes for interesting listening to half conversations. :roll:

Apparently, all HFD channels (with the exception of A1 and MED 1) will be ENC once they switch to TxWARN next year. I still have my doubts about the ENC plans, though.

 

[FlashSWT]

That really will be a bummer if they encrypt all the Fire TAC channels. I'm not sure I understand the reasoning for that.

But my big question is: now that they're on a trunked system why the heck do they still only have seven TAC channels (2-8) for a department this large?

 

[dupree617]

That is what I have been thinking as well. You would think that they would have a dispatch TG, then a few Operations TG's and then there fireground TG's. Then special groups of the HFD, like fire Marshal and Hazmat. To me that would make the most amount of sense.

 

[mfn002]

Once HFD moves to TxWARN, the channel lineup is going to get a lot more complicated. According to what KevinC told me, each district will have its own set of tactical channels, or something to that nature.

 

[motorola_otaku]

That really will be a bummer if they encrypt all the Fire TAC channels. I'm not sure I understand the reasoning for that.

http://forums.radioreference.com/ra...ive-audio-feeds-scanners-wait-encryption.html

As for the channel lineup, that didn't change because this is the "interim" system - they wanted to switch as quickly as possible with minimal user training. I think I remember seeing a proposed channel lineup in one of the early RFP documents that had 40+ channels.

 

[KevinC]

The more I think about this, the more I think someone somewhere misunderstood what P25 was. I suspect what they mean as to HFD is that the dispatch channel will remain simulcasted on the analog UHF channel, and that everything else will be on the new digital channels. I've seen this before. Some people confuse straight P25 as an encrypted voice method. Therefore, under this theory, it's highly likely that the only ENC for HFD will be the MED channels. This'll be the same for HPD. HPD will probably only have their narcotics, tactical, and SWAT channels encrypted. HPD is being referred to as being encrypted on the new system because, once again, they will be using digital voice. I'm not saying that this is what's going on, but it is a somewhat likely scenario. After all, if HFD just moved to 800, why aren't they already using full encryption on their new channels?

That's probably it, I confused "digital" with encrypted. Wish I knew more about this Motorola terminology.

 

[dupree617]

I'm going to watch this very closely as well.

Mike Dupree

 

[mfn002]

That's probably it, I confused "digital" with encrypted. Wish I knew more about this Motorola terminology.

I thought so. It didn't seem to make much sense to ENC fire operations channels. Med consult channels, I can understand. But preventing people from listening in on a major incident? That didn't seem right.

 

[crw91383]

I was at HFD radio shop yesterday getting the mobile unti in back of ambulance fixed and all the radio techs said after final phase only channel not encrypted will be A1.

 

[megnd1]

It appears that HFD has gone to the Project 25 Motorola X2-TDMA format and the only channels are active are Ch. A1 Dispatch and some traffic on TAC 8 everything else is silent.

 

[N5AMS]

It appears that HFD has gone to the Project 25 Motorola X2-TDMA format and the only channels are active are Ch. A1 Dispatch and some traffic on TAC 8 everything else is silent.

HFD made the switch on the 29th of August, the only channel that you will be able to hear is A1 all others are on the new system. The reason that you hear A8 is because of the mutual aid that is being done at the 3 alarm warehose fire in cloverleaf.

 

[KevinC]

I was at HFD radio shop yesterday getting the mobile unti in back of ambulance fixed and all the radio techs said after final phase only channel not encrypted will be A1.

Wow! I was correct...imagine that.

Maybe I do understand all that Motorola talk.

 

[mfn002]

I was at HFD radio shop yesterday getting the mobile unti in back of ambulance fixed and all the radio techs said after final phase only channel not encrypted will be A1.

crw91383, next time you go visit those guys ask them what their justification for that crazy idea is. Also point out to them that there are plenty of firefighters out there that use scanners.

Just FYI, I am VERY angry about this. I might move down there next year to get a job at one of the TV stations, and 100% encrypted fire channels are the last thing that I (and most of the media) need.

 

[loumaag]

crw91383, next time you go visit those guys ask them what their justification for that crazy idea is. Also point out to them that there are plenty of firefighters out there that use scanners.

Just FYI, I am VERY angry about this. I might move down there next year to get a job at one of the TV stations, and 100% encrypted fire channels are the last thing that I (and most of the media) need.

Asking the radio tech guys about this is useless, they don't make any decision in this regard, except for the one radio tech guy running around town right now with encryption set on his (maybe her) radio.

 

[mfn002]

Asking the radio tech guys about this is useless, they don't make any decision in this regard, except for the one radio tech guy running around town right now with encryption set on his (maybe her) radio.

So, who does?