BCT15X: Fire Tone Out Question

[mocofeed]

I'm currently using a Uniden BCT15X for fire tone outs in my area.

The problem I am encountering is that after the tones are set over the frequency, the dispatcher often unkeys the mic or waits too long to talk, and then the scanner resumes scanning tone outs and misses the dispatch radio traffic.

Is there a setting that will make the scanner listen longer after a fire tone out is received?

 

[txemt88]

Yes, I’d try to change the delay to 4 seconds. I believe default is 1 second then it starts scanning again but 4 is usually enough.

 

[a417]

That's one of the biggest fallbacks of using a scanner for tone signalling operation. The scanner wants to scan, the tones want you to sit there. I've personally heard delays of 15 to 30 seconds by our local RCC, when toning out departments.

My suggestion is to use a dedicated device for anything you want tone signalling on, and scan the non-toned stuff on your -15X

 

[mocofeed]

That's one of the biggest fallbacks of using a scanner for tone signalling operation. The scanner wants to scan, the tones want you to sit there. I've personally heard delays of 15 to 30 seconds by our local RCC, when toning out departments.

My suggestion is to use a dedicated device for anything you want tone signalling on, and scan the non-toned stuff on your -15X

This is a good suggestion. I like this idea, and I've done this before as well. It's nice sometimes to have some quiet and only be alerted when tones drop. I've largely solved this with TTD, but BCT15X is going...in a clunky way.

 

[n3obl]

This is the worse feature ever implemented by Uniden. Basically waste a scanner sitting on a single channel muted.

 

[khvfdff]

Im not familiar with your type of scanner but if it has a delay of infinite on the tone outs, like the 396 series, 436/536 and the sds 100, use that. You can then always tell the scanner to resume scanning manually the FTO. That's what i did. That's how most pagers by motorola operate anyway. It worked perfect.

 

[ofd8001]

I don't think there is a downside to using a longer Delay Time (as in 10/30 seconds). That's the amount of time the radio waits before effectively going "back to sleep" following a tone-out.

Using Infinite might not be so good as you have to "reset" the radio for it to go back to sleep. (The functioning of Motorola pagers with respect to auto-reset after a delay versus manually required re-set depends how they are programmed. That tends to be agency specific.

The Uniden manual says: "Infinite - you must press Hold after a page to resume standby mode."

 

[JoeBearcat]

This is the worse feature ever implemented by Uniden. Basically waste a scanner sitting on a single channel muted.

Many users find it useful when they don't want the scanner talking 24/7 but want to keep tabs on things.

There will always be features some users will not use (hence like) but the scanners are made for a very wide user base.

I have no doubt some users think P25 is a useless feature because it is not used in their area, but they want the large color display of the SDS200 (just one example). That does not make P25 a useless feature. Yes, it is useless for them, but not for the market as a whole.

The exact same can be said for the Weather Alert feature.

And keep in mind I have some models I use for FTO and other models that are scanning 24/7/365.

 

[mocofeed]

Many users find it useful when they don't want the scanner talking 24/7 but want to keep tabs on things.

There will always be features some users will not use (hence like) but the scanners are made for a very wide user base.

I have no doubt some users think P25 is a useless feature because it is not used in their area, but they want the large color display of the SDS200 (just one example). That does not make P25 a useless feature. Yes, it is useless for them, but not for the market as a whole.

The exact same can be said for the Weather Alert feature.

And keep in mind I have some models I use for FTO and other models that are scanning 24/7/365.

I love fire tone out. It allows me to take a break and focus on the most important incidents.