Digital Scanner?

[chesterwarez]

How long before I will need a digital scanner for my enjoyment?

Was looking at the PRO-106, is it necessary? I currently own the PRO-162, and live in Orangeburg County. I listen to ODPS, Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office, SCHP, EMS I am so a rookie at this stuff but it seems as though I am missing so much. I can see sirens go blaring by and can't even pick up whats going on.

I know its kind of sad, but most of this is still greek to me. I have been reading for months and trying different settings but nothing seems to work. Could it be that I am trying to listen to too many things at once(greedy) and missing other stuff.

Another issue I am having is when I am listening to Orangeburg County on talk group ID 9648, when I first pause it I can hear both sides of the conversation...but after a while it goes silent while on pause for about 10 minutes....and that is a longggggggggggggg time for Orangeburg County Sheriff Dept to be silent. Its not just that talk ID but all of them. Oh another thing, when there are transmissions from dispatch, I can sometimes hear other dispatchers in background talking to other deputies, and I know I am missing all of that action. I am using all the talk group IDs listed in the RR dbase.

Also a discovery today......I listened to some Orangeburg County transmissions coming through a bank setup just for lexington county. The talkgroup was totally different and not listed in RR dbase for Orangeburg County.

I am hoping someone in Orangeburg with this scanner and has a setup that can better explain what I do not know and guide me in the right direction. I swear I have read that manual at least 13 times. I also have read the wikis but I dont seem to be able to grasp it.

I hope I am not bothering you guys by having a long winded question or short story, and yes i am whining a little. Only because I am considering spending about $500 to increase my luck of reception and getting it right.


Any help would be greatly appreciated. And I have gotten to the point of paying someone local to me in Orangeburg to program my PRO-162.

Thanking all of you in advance
Michael

 

[brian]

I don't think you're missing a whole lot in Orangeburg County by not having a digital scanner. I'm not familiar with a PRO-162, but it's the "current" Uniden-made analog trunktracking model sold by RS, so it should do fine for most of what you want to listen to.

I don't live in Orangeburg County but pass through there multiple times each year on I-26. Other than talkgroup 37616, which I suspect is a security force for one of the local colleges, no other identified Orangeburg Co talkgroup is digital at this time. There haven't been a lot of updates for Orangeburg County in recent years, so that could have changed and just no one has submitted the changes.

You should have no trouble monitoring Orangeburg Co. Fire departments (which use multiple conventional repeaters on VHF), Orangeburg Co. SD and EMS (analog Palmetto 800), Community Ambulance (analog Palmetto 800), SCHP, etc. I'm not sure how you're listening to ODPS since they''re operating on a UHF LTR Multinet system. If you've programmed those systems (there are 2 of them) as conventional frequencies, likely you're being driven crazy by the constant status transmissions every few seconds.

I recommend you make detailed lists of all the frequencies and talkgroups you want to monitor and organize them by banks/systems/whatever the PRO-162 supports and confirm your programming. And use a scanner programming software package also, that will help you organize the scanner better.

As far as hearing other radio traffic in the background behind the dispatcher, he or she could be talking on the phone or to another dispatcher in the room. It should be fairly obvious which channels are primary dispatch channels for each agency - those are the ones that are most active. Listen for them to mention switching to another channel (like "Go to 3" or something like that) and then try to find that channel.

Good luck.

 

[w8jjr]

As long as you can still receive your services hold off on buying one. Say you area goes P25 in two years you can buy the lastest and greatest with newer features and possible more protocol decodes

 

[LarrySC]

You are programming by hand. Since this is the bottom end trunking scanner on the market I would suggest buying software. This would help a lot. You need to see what you are doing with the data being entered. Usually with good software you dont have to read the manual. HaHa. ARC 433 may work. If you cant manage the unit you have you really would be in trouble with a 106. SC has a lot of digital being dispatched out of Columbia for statewide emergency systems. Lots of this is interesting. I would keep up the work of programming and learning the unit you have. If you ever get it right then find a buyer and put the $ toward a 164. Then repeat the same idea and work toward a 106 or whatever is out there. Good Luck, Larry

 

[chesterwarez]

Thanks for all of your comments. Just so you know, I am using the the butel Arc160 to program my scanner... I have the ODPS conventional freq in scanner and yes that noise is annoying but I do get the transmissions. Since you said that Brian, I was wondering why I could no longer listen to or pickup South Carolina State University campus police. Maybe my expectations are too high, because I do hear alot. Hell I even listen to the entire bust by SLED on the mexican drug dealers in orangeburg last week. I listen to the chemical spill/ dumping that brought out hazmat today....so i guess I am hearing alot....I think i expect to hear it all. LOL

I want to further my knowledge and get into communications!

 

[Caesar]

Thanks for all of your comments. Just so you know, I am using the the butel Arc160 to program my scanner... I have the ODPS conventional freq in scanner and yes that noise is annoying but I do get the transmissions. Since you said that Brian, I was wondering why I could no longer listen to or pickup South Carolina State University campus police. Maybe my expectations are too high, because I do hear alot. Hell I even listen to the entire bust by SLED on the mexican drug dealers in orangeburg last week. I listen to the chemical spill/ dumping that brought out hazmat today....so i guess I am hearing alot....I think i expect to hear it all. LOL

I want to further my knowledge and get into communications!

well you have most definitely come to the right place! I am in Lexington so i can pick up some orangeburg traffic on my base antenna but normally don't listen but I am sure we have a couple people on here that are also in orangeburg that can offer even more specific help...