Do you think the scanning hobby will die out (for most people) by the next decade?

[Omega-TI]

With more and more systems going digital, and encrypting, and the main draw FOR MOST PEOPLE being police, fire and ambulance, do you think the scanning hobby will start to die off this decade? For first-time scanner buyers, $500.00 and up for a scanner that can pick up digital signals might be a little steep just to try it and get their feet wet.

Now I'm not sure if fewer "new" scanners are being brought into the marketplace or not, but if sales start to decline, will manufacturers even bother with designing and marketing a new scanner? Also, "what if" a new format is released that renders all our current equipment deaf, will you be willing to drop $650.00-$700.00 for yet another scanner that "might" pick up the traffic... until they too encrypt?

Eight to ten years sounds like a long time, but it goes by really fast. I'm not sure how old most of you are, but many of us are getting old and dying off and the younger generations, for the most part, do not seem to be all that interested in any form of radio anymore. If it's not on their cell phone, it seems most of them are oblivious.

 

[trentbob]

I love being the 1st response within minutes. There have been so many threads identical to this. It's a good topic though to rehash.

Encryption has been as expected but has become far more advanced than I predicted five years ago when phase ll systems became active before scanners could pick them up well.

I predicted that the two scanner companies would have to have a simulcast capable radio post haste. Got nothing but bitter rejection and arguments. Hahaha.

I had the advantage of my own County going to tdma Phase ll in 2015. Had complete assurances from the stooges in government, they were committed to transparency. Encryption was never a concern. Yea.

I'll wait till further down in this thread to further comment. Police are totally encrypted by the same stooges who touted transparency. They will be gone soon enough.

Do I think that sales of police scanners have been affected, yes I do. But there's still so much to listen to. I'll chime in later in the discussion.

 

[doctordialtone]

There have been so many threads identical to this

Yeah, Rinse and Repeat.

 

[hamstang]

$500-$700 for a scanner is no more expensive than scanners were 30 years ago when agencies started going to 800mhz analog trunking systems. I bought a Bearcat 800XLT in the late 1980's when my locals went to 800mhz. My memory may not be great but I think the 800XLT was around $300 then. Today's high end Uniden and Whistler scanners have way more features. With that said, yes I know $700 is a lot of money for many folks.

 

[K7MFC]

Ham radio & scanners: the hobby that's been dying for 30 years™

 

[GTR8000]

People have been sounding the death knell for the scanning hobby for decades. There's always something that is perceived to be a sure end to scanning, and yet here we are in 2022 with still plenty to listen to. I often find that people are quite myopic, and don't always see the bigger picture. Just because there may be a push for encryption in some places doesn't mean that it's widespread.

The vast majority of public safety comms in the largest metro area of the U.S. (NYC) are still clear. 98% of the trunked systems are easily monitored with run of the mill scanners or cheap/free software. There is no big push to encrypt, just small pockets here and there, despite what a few doomsdayers around here would lead you to believe. No big push to LTE instead of LMR either. Just business as usual.

So no, the hobby is not going to die within the next decade, just like it didn't die in the 80s when trunking came around, or in the 90s when digital modulation became a thing, or when P25 TDMA popped up a decade ago, and so on.

 

[TrainsOfThought]

Heck no...still an entire universe to monitor in the Analog Underground

 

[trentbob]

I saw 4 squad cars speeding down the road with Sirens screaming today/ went right past me. All my radio equipment installed in the car of course.. nothing on fire or EMS.

After listening to those same police 55 + years... I can't tell you how pissed off I was. Especially being a retired newspaper man. Nuff said.

 

[mattl3320]

Well here are my thoughts on this from my area ect. I have been a heavy scanner listener since 1997 my first scanner was a bc60xlt 30 channel handheld scanner. That i used along with my fire pager for the local fire company it was with me to listen at home and on big fires along with my county fire radios at that time. Then came along the trunking scanners and everything was a little bit harder to listen to for my county but was still able to hear everything. Then p-25 phase 2 came along and i paid for some of these scanners then around $300 to $500 for them. Then the state police went full ecncryption and soon lancaster co berks co, all did the same. So for me my local police and fire ems i can still listen to but other countys now i cant so i havent bought a new scanner since the bcd436hp and i dont plan on buying anything newer for 2 reason one they are way out of my price range at $699 and for what i used to listen to i cant anymore so i just listen to my county police fire ems , and moved over to civilan air and milair again which all my older scanners can listen to and every once in a while i will listen to the new state system and railroads ect . So the fact you say here scanning is dieing depends on how much you are willing to spend on a new scanner. And your area. But for me the cost of the newer scanners just made it so i cant afford a new scanner but i am still here scanning just had to change what i listen to .

 

[K7MFC]

All my radio equipment installed in the car of course.. nothing on fire or EMS... I can't tell you how pissed off I was. Especially being a retired newspaper man.

Can't tell if serious or..

 

[David628]

From what I have watched happen over the years since the BC296D was introduced, in Colorado it seems that no one (joe public) really cares except for us old school monitoring holdouts and the media. In CO many media outlets got access with old used hand-me-down radios with the E-keys to monitor just dispatch channels.

Historically, I've seen a few small cities encrypt such as Cannon City in 2004/2005, then a large city (pueblo), then a few more Western slope counties and a few more small cities. Then a major capital city (Denver), then an influential larger county near Denver (Douglas county) encrypt. Then after Douglas county encrypted a storm local citys encrypted near the Denver metro areas. Then I lost my city PD Colorado Springs to encryption.

Did I stop monitoring because of it? No. I just adapted to monitor what was left which was still a lot for me here in the Springs.

What's lost is lost, but for new enthusiasts what's still available will be the key. They didn't experience what us old monitoring folks lost. So to them it may be new and exciting to still monitor what's currently available.

 

[mmckenna]

Ham radio & scanners: the hobby that's been dying for 30 years™

Ah yes, "EnD oF tHe HoBbY!!!!!!1!!!!!"® "OMG, $€lLing aLl my r@ydI°z!!!!"™ This seems to be the mating call of the radio hobbyist, usually heard emanating from some poor mom's basement, followed by a request for said mom to make him up some of dem pizza rolls.

Encryption is here, and it's not going away. Yet there's still plenty of stuff to listen to. Technology will always be changing, but there still plenty of analog FM out there. P25 was an expensive undertaking, and most agencies can't afford to rip-n-replace just because something new came along. It's going to be around for a long time. Same with DMR, NXDN, etc.
-There -will- be new technology, that's just the way technology works.
-Things -will- change, that's the way the universe works.
-Scanners won't immediately keep up with technology, thats the way manufacturers work.
-A lot of traditional non-public safety users are going LTE, that's the way budgets work.
-Migration to LTE is going to continue (3.5GHz LTE/CBRS anyone?), because it will.
-Encryption is going to happen, because some of us are required to do it because of our jobs.

What will make the difference is how the hobby adapts to these changes. Anyone who's been on this site for more than an hour will know there are those that are not capable of adapting to any change and will sob about it (and hopefully sell all their radios at a nice low price in protest).
And then there are those few left that will find new things to listen to, new corners of the hobby that they can explore, new technology to play with.

I agree with Matt, hams have been saying this the first spark jumped a gap. Scanner listeners have been saying this since the first time they had trouble finding the crystal they needed at the local Radio Shack and had to wait "6-8 weeks" for shipping.

 

[vagrant]

My city FD & PD have P25 capability, but use analog. They even gave our club a UHF Quantar, rack space and antenna. Regardless of my PD & FD, there is plenty I monitor on analog with P25 catching a bit of Fed traffic from time to time.

For me, it will die out when I am dead.

 

[David628]

Ah yes, "EnD oF tHe HoBbY!!!!!!1!!!!!"® "OMG, $€lLing aLl my r@ydI°z!!!!"™ This seems to be the mating call of the radio hobbyist, usually heard emanating from some poor mom's basement, followed by a request for said mom to make him up some of dem pizza rolls.

Encryption is here, and it's not going away. Yet there's still plenty of stuff to listen to. Technology will always be changing, but there still plenty of analog FM out there. P25 was an expensive undertaking, and most agencies can't afford to rip-n-replace just because something new came along. It's going to be around for a long time. Same with DMR, NXDN, etc.
-There -will- be new technology, that's just the way technology works.
-Things -will- change, that's the way the universe works.
-Scanners won't immediately keep up with technology, thats the way manufacturers work.
-A lot of traditional non-public safety users are going LTE, that's the way budgets work.
-Migration to LTE is going to continue (3.5GHz LTE/CBRS anyone?), because it will.
-Encryption is going to happen, because some of us are required to do it because of our jobs.

What will make the difference is how the hobby adapts to these changes. Anyone who's been on this site for more than an hour will know there are those that are not capable of adapting to any change and will sob about it (and hopefully sell all their radios at a nice low price in protest).
And then there are those few left that will find new things to listen to, new corners of the hobby that they can explore, new technology to play with.

I agree with Matt, hams have been saying this the first spark jumped a gap. Scanner listeners have been saying this since the first time they had trouble finding the crystal they needed at the local Radio Shack and had to wait "6-8 weeks" for shipping.

Anchors in da house! What are ya drinking...the rounds on me.

 

[mmckenna]

Anchors in da house! What are ya drinking...the rounds on me.

If it's free, I'm drinking!

 

[6079smithw]

Can't tell if serious or..

I think what he was trying to say was even with all the radio gear he has in his car,
he was unable to copy the PD units running Code 3 because of encryption...

 

[AB5ID]

If radio is in your blood, you will always find something to tinker with.

 

[David628]

@mmckenna
The bars covered on my tab sir! Let me know if your ever in Colorado Springs CO.

 

[chrismol1]

For a physical piece of equipment scanning banks of frequencies? Yea. But for monitoring specific agencies or ATC, I've seen a great deal of involvement with the introduction of online streaming

 

[RFI-EMI-GUY]

Post encryption, I think we will see citizen initiatives to monitor police activity using new technologies. One idea, networked receivers that detect public safety radio emissions (LO and TX) and display on the map where police are congregating. Similar detectors in vehicles to show police radio activity within vicinity.