OKWIN MOT
State is Oklahoma.
Reside in Mayes county with Craig and Rogers counties just down the road.
I have no idea what systems the departments I've mentioned in my OP uses nor what type of scanner is required or even if I need a base or hand held although a hand held sound like I could take it to other rooms in the house or out to the barn.
I'm retired and right now I have about 250 bucks to work with. My car needs tires bad and a SS check doesn't stretch far especially now with 4-5 dollar a gallon propane.
My concern is will all products receive at the distances I mentioned above.
I know many folks live in and around cities and towns/major highways and can listen to fire/police issues in their area or down the street but I don't have a close by city to listen to. Its over 10 miles to the closet small town
There is a chance that you might be able to find a used digital scanner for your area in the price range you mentioned, but you are going to have a very lucky day.
Here is a comparison chart of some of the digital scanners available. Based on this chart, I would certainly avoid the Pro-96 since it has frequency limitations when compared with the other models. I might add that there are two new Uniden digital scanners on the market, but these would certainly be out of your price range. Also, these two new radios are not listed here.
Digital Scanner Comparison Chart - The RadioReference Wiki
Also, Whistler recently bought GRE, the company that made some of the Radio Shack models. They will be coming out with their own line in 2014. Again, these will likely be over $250.
It is not uncommon to find a Pro-106 or Pro-197 Radio Shack models in a pawn store or on Ebay. You might even find a Uniden digital for a decent price.
When I looked at the talk groups (channels) for Mayes county, I can see several things: a) it will be impossible for you to monitor the patient reports to hospital talk group since it is encrypted as evidenced by the "E" under the "Mode" column for the Mayes county talk groups (look under system talk groups); b) you will need a digital scanner since there are "D" or digital talk groups in your county and the other counties you mentioned; c) at present, OHP is not digital.
Oklahoma Wireless Interoperability Network (OKWIN) Motorola Trunking System, Various, Oklahoma - Scanner Frequencies
Since you are outside of a major city, you might be able to install an outside antenna in the future, but I would certainly check with the locals.
If you cannot find a decent scanner for your price range, you can still monitor the Live Audio portion of Radio Reference which is now called Broadcastify. If you have two browsers loaded, you can activate both of the online feeds specific to your area.
I have successfully monitored the areas you mentioned with my GRE PSR 500 portable scanner (Pro-106 Radio Shack branded radio).
Pro 106 Radio Shack Handheld Scanner | eBay
