Duke Energy P25 System

scannerboy02

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I've signed up for MONIX. I can tell you that many times during the AEP P25 system turnup in Ohio (also a Harris system), there were many times when a P25 test signal was up. Obviously it wasn't something one could decode, but it sounded very much like a test pattern. And I think that the same company that is deploying the AEP stuff for AEP may be doing so for Duke (somebody on these forums, maybe even you, had pointed out in the past a company who claims to be working simultaneously on the deployment of numerous wide area utility P25 systems.

Although still (to this day), even after the AEP EDACS went away in Ohio, there are a slew of what sound like P25 test patterns (but very widebanded, 25 khz or more) and I have no idea what they are all about -- I just know they have to do with AEP.

I just moved and have no external antennas up. So I can't snatch any of the test pattern / SCADA / whatever stuff that I've heard for AEP, but I'm betting it's very much the same kind of thing you are hearing in your neck of the woods. Basically, it just sounds like somebody turned on a buzzer, and it's much more wideband than any normal signal on 800 mhz. And in an SDR waterfall the waveform doesn't look sensible at all. And these transmissions are 24/7 active.
I would say this is most likely what it is.

I am planning to do some site visits this weekend to see what's active and what isn't. The Erlanger Gas Plant 855.6875 frequency is strong in Edgewood and the Brecon 859.0625 frequency is strong in Montgomery (the two place I stop every night) so I suspect those are coming from the appropriate locations. The others I have heard come and go as I drive so I can't say for sure they are coming from the actual sites until I am able to get closer to them.
 

n8yid

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I work down the road from the Monroe site (Dicks Creek) and there is nothing new "singing".... Pretty much the same with all the northern-most sites anyways....
 

scannerboy02

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I work down the road from the Monroe site (Dicks Creek) and there is nothing new "singing".... Pretty much the same with all the northern-most sites anyways....
Interesting, I was getting intermittent signal on 858.4125 licensed to Dicks Creek while on 275 near 71. I'll see if it's still active tonight. It could be coming from another location using the same frequency.
 

n8yid

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I actually drove by that location today (as well as yesterday) and there is nothing new to report....
Nothing as we talk now, either...
 

n8yid

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Looks like I am getting a TEST signal on 855.7875 this morning (Dicks Creek - Monroe site).....

Will not decode thru UniTrunker... going to check out DSD+....
 

wa8pyr

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DSD+ is not decoding it either....

There's a possibility that it's a P25 test signal. I'm sure Harris has something similar, but Motorola uses a mobile test package called Voyager that measures performance and coverage; it requires that a channel on the site to be measured be placed in test mode, which sends out a specifically-formatted signal used by the mobile test application (which reads Bit Error Rate - BER - and calculates effective coverage).

However, it's usually only used once the site is up and running, so I'm not sure that's what this is or not.
 

n8yid

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Tom,
Yup, I figured that if it did "decode"; then whatever info was on there would be great to have to get a start with this new system... and, if it didn't "decode" then it was most likely a TEST signal..... Thanks for more info on how that works,

keeping an eye on things here....
 

scannerboy02

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I'm still not fully convinced that this is a P25 test signal but that seems to be the only thing that would make sense. They aren't licensed for any other emissions on the frequencies, they aren't even licensed for analog, not that that would necessarily stop them from broadcasting anything.

I am planning to go out and visit each of the sites in greater Cincinnati this weekend to see what I hear off them.
 

n8yid

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Scannerboy,


Not sure if you may have known about the above link.....
If you scroll down, under Section 4, there is a P25 Test Signal (one for 700mhz, one for 800mhz)...
the 800 mhz example is of a Harris system, IIRC...
 

scannerboy02

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Scannerboy,


Not sure if you may have known about the above link.....
If you scroll down, under Section 4, there is a P25 Test Signal (one for 700mhz, one for 800mhz)...
the 800 mhz example is of a Harris system, IIRC...
Yes, I had posted about that earlier. The sound is somewhat close to the 800MHz P25 test signal but not close enough that I would say for sure that's what it is. If I didn't know better I would say it's an EDACS or analog Motorola control channel because that's what it actually sounds like to me but it doesn't decode in EDACS or Motorola mode either.
 

scannerboy02

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I drove over to the Erlanger site on the way in to work and to my surprise the signal did not sound as strong as I had expected. I still think it is coming from the site being that it goes away when I drive away and comes back when I get close but it was not full quieting. I tried several different modulation settings.
 

scannerboy02

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Checked out several sites today.

Harrison Energy Center
Signal heard on 855.4375

Dunlap
Signal heard on 857.5875

Brecon
Signal heard on 859.0625

Valleyview Office
Scanner kept stopping on 859.3125 but nothing audible was heard

Dana
Nothing heard

Cinti 4th and Main
Nothing heard

Erlanger Gas Plant
Signal heard on 855.6875
 

scannerboy02

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As of today application 0009079961 (5/17/2020) and 0009150857 (7/16/2020) are the only P25 system YJ applications still pending.

Yesterday I started picking up a "test" signal on a second frequency from most of the Cincinnati area sites that have been transmitting.

Is no one else hearing anything from any other sites? Indiana??, Florida??? Being that they put in the Florida applications first I had thought they would have started in Florida.
 

mtindor

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As of today application 0009079961 (5/17/2020) and 0009150857 (7/16/2020) are the only P25 system YJ applications still pending.

Yesterday I started picking up a "test" signal on a second frequency from most of the Cincinnati area sites that have been transmitting.

Is no one else hearing anything from any other sites? Indiana??, Florida??? Being that they put in the Florida applications first I had thought they would have started in Florida.

That would require people to actually make an effort, no? :) I agree with you that somewhere in its coverage area there is probably some Duke P25 active by now. It's a matter of people actually scanning the band to detect new / unknown P25 control channels in those areas. Let's face it though, with these Utility systems, most people don't care at all about them (unless they have an outage and want to know the status). So it's pretty hard to entice folks to scan around for the existence of such systems if they aren't already documented in the DB.

As far as FLA goes, I'm pretty sure @batdude adn @bravo14 are actively on the lookout for P25 sites to come online.
 

n8yid

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Looks like application 0009150857 (7/16/2020), which is yet to be APPROVED, has an Amendment.....

Not sure if all the "ADDS" are what changed from the previous license submission, but, if so, there are quite a few....

This application is for the areas of:
Mt. Orab
Batavia
Cincinnati
Moscow
Latonia, Ky
 

mtindor

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Looks like application 0009150857 (7/16/2020), which is yet to be APPROVED, has an Amendment.....

Not sure if all the "ADDS" are what changed from the previous license submission, but, if so, there are quite a few....

This application is for the areas of:
Mt. Orab
Batavia
Cincinnati
Moscow
Latonia, Ky

Dave,

Check out the documents attached to that update under the Admin tab. They provide someuseful information for you guys who will be planning on sleuthing out the system as time goes on. I believe the adds are the same as the previous appication - it's just that the previous application went Inactive (probably FCC awaiting more info from Duke).

Duke Energy Midwest (Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky)

29 3-channel sites
37 4-channel sites
1 5-channel site
3 6-channel sites

For the whole Duke system (not just Northwest but down south). They are under an extended implmentation plan, expected to be fully completed by Dec 31 2024.

Y1 (by Dec 31, 2020) : Primary / Secondary LMR Enterprise and Regional Cores
Y2 (by Dec 31, 2021) : First 42 repeaters
Y3 (by Dec 31, 2022) : Additional 170 repeater
Y4 (by Dec 31, 2023) : Additional 127 repeaters
Y5 (by Dec 31, 2024) : Additional 84 repeaters

Total repeaters in the multi-state wide-area system: 423


Mike
 

scannerboy02

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It appears all of the pending applications have now been granted.


ZoneFile NumberCall Sign/Lease IDApplicant NameFRNPurposeRadio ServiceReceipt DateStatus
FL9274833WRFP217Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/26/2020Granted
FL9079961WRFP639Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(Modification)
YJ05/18/2020Granted
FL8981529WRHT913Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ04/01/2020Granted
FL9030220WRHY215Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ05/28/2020Granted
FL9274839WRHY976Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/26/2020Granted
FL9030137WRHZ715Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ07/20/2020Granted
MW9284334WRJC458Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ11/02/2020A Granted
MW9281452WRJD601Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/30/2020Granted
FL9276949WRJH815Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/27/2020Granted
FL9274840WRJI373Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/26/2020Granted
FL9283744WRJI625Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ11/02/2020Granted
MW9134430WRJK468Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ07/16/2020Granted
MW9116851WRJK471Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ06/29/2020Granted
FL9080389WRJK472Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ05/27/2020Granted
MW9150953WRJK869Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ09/16/2020Granted
MW9281451WRJK884Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360ModificationYJ10/30/2020Granted
MW9141170WRJK903Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360NewYJ07/08/2020Granted
MW9145363WRJL868Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ09/16/2020Granted
MW9143381WRJM302Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360NewYJ07/10/2020Granted
MW9144401WRJM686Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360NewYJ07/10/2020Granted
MW9150213WRJM688Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360NewYJ07/15/2020Granted
MW9149492WRJM735Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ07/16/2020Granted
MW9134736WRJP309Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ09/30/2020Granted
MW9150857WRKI239Duke Energy Business Services, LLC20991360Amendment
(New)
YJ12/16/2020Granted
 
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