hi a newb a really new newb

[maxed22]

im looking to buy a scanner i live in burlington county nj and have been twisted around on what to buy whats a good mid priced scanner that will pick up police in my area i dont know what freq they use ... i listen to them on line right now but all i get is the 1chanell centrail commucations and im looking for my local police and surrounding areas any help would be greatly appreciated as i dont want to plunk down cash for some thing that isnt going to work and will get me the 1 channell i listen to for free again thank you for any input

 

[wtp]

think up

looking at burlington county it is digital. so think a bit more money
radio shack has bc396xt for 399 right now.
its not really a get your feet wet radio for that price but
you are thinking local cops right now. but have you listened to the thunderbirds or blue angels?
you can with this radio also when in range the international space station (with just the little antenna) and knowing when they are overhead(AMSAT-NA | The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation)
the radio also has to have trunking and digital (county anyway)
my girlfriend has one and used freescan for a little help programming.
once you realize how many folks use radio you will be amazed
one guy here just wanted to hear fm radio at startup
also if you have a question this is the place someone always helps.
i see an airbase. yes you can hear the military
sorry for the long response, but there can be more than just one thing to hear.
enjoy!

 

[lynxrufus]

You are right to ask questions before buying. You need to do your homework. You'll want to know what frequencies you want to monitor and you'll need to know what type of system. Then be sure the scanner you buy can monitor that type of system.

You can start with the radioreference database for Burlington County:
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?ctid=1773

Also look at the trunked system:
Burlington County Motorola Type II SmartZone
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=1320
System Voice: Analog and APCO-25 Common Air Interface

You'll need a trunking scanner that can receive that type of system.

 

[Cuzzolini]

not sure if this is right>

i live on Long Island, Ny, and still fairly new to using scanners and radios. Being in the local volunteer fire dept im able to see what others have and am able to use different radios such as HT1000's and Ht1250 and also some mobiles like cdm1550. as far as scanners go i use the BCT15X and i was able to pick it up cheap on amazon (175$) picks up everything from NYPD, FDNY, local police dept and almost everything else. hope this helps.