had no idea where to put this...

[burningman_77]

Does anyone know of a good book that i can read that will explain in depth the functions of scanners, the way that specific radio systems work, etc... Theres only so much info that i can get from this site and experimenting myself... Still much confusion

 

[Viper43]

Beyond what you find here in the forum and wiki pages no. You could do google searches for specific info as there is plenty on the web about different systems and so forth. Short of taking an electronics class and radio theory as well as computer technician class there isn't much that would help. Of course you could always go for the ham radio books that would get through the radio stuff and a bit into the computer side and while your at it get you ham license

 

[burningman_77]

thank you sir. i had a feeling that was going to be the answer cause i've tried looking up books on amazon but to no avail. still a student though so computer tech/ electronics/ radio theory classes may lie in the future...

 

[gmclam]

A book store

While Amazon might be good if you know exactly what you're looking for, you might have better luck just going to your local library or book store. Look in the Amateur radio section, which may be in hobbies. I could see that a book might only mention that a scanner automatically samples many channels, one at a time,.... but the rest of what it does would largely be covered by amateur radio type books.

 

[WisconsinRailfan]

I second the Amateur Radio route, there are plenty of sites and books on the subject.

 

[ka5lqj]

Student?

BurningMan,

The guys are right about "scanners". You mentioned you're still a student, that's good. A thirst for and a burning desire for "knowledge" about "Radio" & "Electronics". At age 12 (in 1958, LOL!) that got me started as well. Then, it was "short-wave" radio and hearing guys talking a "strange language" about "grid leak detectors". bias, plate current, "ohms", etc.

I got into it with a passion (still have it today as well). Learning about how scanners "work" can only be described as "how deep do you want to learn about them? Starting in reading material, from your local library about "Basic Electronics" is a good start, that is, if you want to get into the depth of things. Once you have an "idea" how that works (radio, repeaters, antennas, etc.), you'll need to also get some "computer & programming" knowledge. This will aid you in understanding how the various "systems" work: trunking, APCO-25, etc. With this computer knowledge, you can use it to learn the various "programs" with which to use data bases, spreadsheets, to "chart" your scanner findings or "log" them.

But, basically, a "scanner" is merely a radio that "changes either a programmed frequencies" or "tunes" a wide swath of frequencies in time increments, jumping forward (or backwards, he he) as it attempts to "hear" radio transmissions. It's like taking your TV remote and going "up the channels" and "starting over again" at a very rapid rate. Yeah, it's like a "GUY THANG", LOL! We don't look at the "GUIDE", we "surf". Now, each repeater manufacturer has a differnt way of how their transmitters and recievers work, Motorola is different from Erricson, etc. Then, there is the "programming" of how the transmitters and recievers work in conjuntion with various mobile units.

Sorry guys for taking up so much "bandwidth". When I went to school in the early 50's, the kids made fun of me by calling me "Doctor" or "Professor" because of my want to "share" what I knew. I was too "stoopid" to realize it and took it as a compliment. :-( I still do it, "teach" when asked a question. I believe when you "share" your knowledge, (Elmer), not only do other's LEARN, but you "reteach" yourself and that keeps that knowledge "fresh" in your mind.

Respectfully submitted,
73,

Don/KA5-LQJ

 

[Don_Burke]

If you can track down a copy of Police Call, there is a pretty good primer on radio systems.

 

[SCANdal]

yahoo! search is your friend

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesTitle/productCd-0764595822.html

 

[burningman_77]

Hat's off...

Thanks all for your input. This will definately get me moving into the right direction. Ka5- It seems that my own interest in scanning spawns from the same origins as yours - decoding a "new" type of speech that you hear over the scanner, or as you said, learning about electronics (I have a deep interest in linguistics, ever read the book "Word Play" by Peter Farb? <-- crazy cool stuff). Also, I share your opinion on being a teacher as well as a student, that can carry you well throughout life. As far as my knowledge about elecronics goes, it starts and ends with cars (installing radios, ignition systems, and so on). So I guess you could call it "wiring" and not so much " electronics". I can start some of my work there... Thanks for the good book suggestions as well, I will definately look into them. Then my next step is getting some antennas for my mobile setup, then a CB... then who knows what. Hehehe.

 

[JESSERABBIT]

In addition to the excellent previous suggestions, you may want to check out the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) website. They sell an excellent variety of radio theory books to give an understanding of all aspects of radio communications. Some are not just related to Amateur Radio. If I remember correctly, one of them is "Basic Radio Theory". They give a discount for members however, will sell to the general public. To my knowledge however, there are none available directly related to scanners. I guess it just depends how deep you may want go whether any are of interest you or not.

 

[chrismol1]

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesTitle/productCd-0764595822.html

I just just going to say that I saw this book at my local borders and was going to suggest it

 

[burningman_77]

Interested??? Me??? NAH...

JESSER- I checked out the AARL website and found TONS upon TONS of books that I would like to read... Too bad the ca$h is so low that I can't buy them... yet (I'll try to find 'em at the library, but nothing beats owning a book that you can go back to and study over and over). Telling the honest truth, I bought my BR330T so I could listen to the cops (I can be a bad kid sometimes). But after joining this forum most all radio interests me (at least what I have found). Everyone knows so much more than me on this subject, gotta sharpen up my wits!!!

 

[Zaratsu]

Is it possible that he is talking about all the different types of comms systems such as motorola, provoice, etc? Thats a different area than amature usually.

If it is not that, then pick up a couple issues of Monitoring Times magazene from a large bookstore (Borders/Barnes and Noble). They are written so that anyone capable of learning these systems and ideas on a basic level can pick them right up. I read a lot of publications from very general newsweek type stuff to industry specific tech journals. Monitoring Times amazes me in its ability to write about fairly complex topics in a manner that explains the basic concepts while addressing the advanced technical side. Some people question their objectivity, but what magazine doesnt have those issues, and besides, you are trying to learn, not split electrons.

 

[JerryM1951]

I have the tech license for HAM radio. I was using scanners back when most were still crystal controlled. I have had programable, too. I kind of lost interest since trunking and digital made mine more, or less obsolete.

I just ordered a GRE 600 from Universal. Now, I am at a newbie stage and pose a question that will/might make some "lesser" exposed feel better. Then again, I advise those not to get discouraged, there are some pretty dense HAMs out there.

How similar is scanning with the new trunking and digital radio systems? Setting up for an area used to be simple for analog. What impact does all this digital/talkgroup stuff have on scanning the remaining older tech systems? IOW, can scans be mixed easily? Or, would multi-radio set ups be easier?

To be precise, I want to scan specifc sites and not be bothered by the unwanted. Mixed scanning would be nice in one radio.

Jerry

 

[SCANdal]

Jerry,

What impact does all this digital/talkgroup stuff have on scanning the remaining older tech systems?

The primary impact is that older systems tend to go quiet once an agency or agencies migrate to a newer technology. The other common practice I've seen is that older systems get turned over to different agencies within the same municipality. Say, for example, the local police migrate from a UHF repeater to an 800 MHz trunked system. The local ambulance corps, who previously was operating on low band, might now take over using the old PD repeater and, in turn, abandon their old low band frequency.

can scans be mixed easily?

Yes.

Or, would multi-radio set ups be easier?

If you have the money, yeah, sure. The more scanners, the better. I run my whole show at home off of one Uniden Bearcat BCD396T and use a Bearcat 800XLT as my back-up/spare.

SCANdal

 

[JerryM1951]

Jerry,



The primary impact is that older systems tend to go quiet once an agency or agencies migrate to a newer technology. The other common practice I've seen is that older systems get turned over to different agencies within the same municipality. Say, for example, the local police migrate from a UHF repeater to an 800 MHz trunked system. The local ambulance corps, who previously was operating on low band, might now take over using the old PD repeater and, in turn, abandon their old low band frequency.


SCANdal

My question was directed more toward the programming angle of the newer scanners. Can the new scanners be programed to scan inline for older analog, analog- trunked and digital-trunked? Or, is it too time consuming scanwise? Heck, I never got into banked scanners way back when.

Jerry