If You Can No Longer Receive VIPER, Please Click Here!

[trumpetman]

I'm seeing several of the same posts recently one after the other, and receiving several PMs & emails all about the same problem: "Where did VIPER go?".

VIPER is going through the rebanding process right now. The short of it is, due to Nextel interference in the adjacent band, all public safety systems in the 866-868 spectrum are being reallocated 15 MHz lower.

Service teams are moving very quickly over the western half of the state and hopefully in the coming weeks, all 100 sites will be completed.

If you can no longer receive a control channel for the VIPER site you are monitoring, subtract 15 MHz from the original frequency and that should be the new control channel frequency (and the rest of the frequencies in use at a site). Example: If the control channel was 868.6875 then it now becomes 853.6875. Simple as that. Same holds true for the alternate control channel and all voice channels. Occasionally there will be some interference and frequencies will have to be altered. If that is the case, search from 851 MHz up to 854 MHz and you should be able to find the new control channel. Once this is located, report it to the database via the SUBMIT button and we can update it for the rest of the users to see. A Trunk88 report would be a tremendous help from anyone that can run it. Make sure you add in the new custom plan there AND apply the custom plan as well. Just shoot it in an email to me. As usual, it's my username (at) radioreference (dot) com.

Now that you have found the new frequency for the control channel, you must also enter in a rebanded/custom band plan.

All you have to do is plug in 2 lines that are as follows:

Lo Freq | Hi Freq | Step | Offset
851.0250 | 854.0000 | 25.0 | 440
851.0125 | 868.9875 | 25.0 | 0

Nothing more, nothing less.

Make sure, especially with RadioShack/GRE scanners, you tell the scanner to use a custom bandplan once you set it. With Unidens, I believe it assumes to using a custom plan once it's entered.

If there are any questions, ask away, but please try these instructions first before panicking and plastering the forums with the same questions over and over.

For anyone that PM'd me or emailed me over the past few days, these instructions will help; I would normally respond to all of you, but I've been super busy lately and it would've taken forever to answer all of you. Let's keep it to the forums so everyone can learn from this new experience this time. If you've tried all of these steps and exhausted any testing/troubleshooting, THEN post here to see if we can determine what you're doing wrong.

TL;DR: Rebanding, patience, & custom bandplan.

Also to make it easier to help you out please state which model scanner you are using and which software package you are using to program it.

 

[kd8x]

If you are using FREESCAN software

Here is the info for using FREESCAN software to update the new Viper rebanded frequencies and band plans.

Click on the site that you suspect has rebanded (ex. Huntersville in Meck Co) and then click on the trunk frequencies tab and mark the new frequencies. In this case you would change the frequency from 868.2125 to 853.2125..You should also change the alternate control frequency also if you have them entered. Now that the frequency has been changed hit the "site setup" tab. Now look lower on the screen and you will see the "site type" banner. It reads (Mot 800Mhz Standard (type II))..Click on the down arrow at far right side of this bar and scroll down to (Mot Custom/Reband Type II) and click on that label...Once you click on that you will see the band plan box pop up on the bottom of your page..This is where you will enter your Lower/Upper/step/offset entries that Chris gave you in the post above....Until each and every site is rebanded you will have to update individual sites this way or you could just wait and upload them them straight from the DB whenever they all become rebanded which could take some time....Using software to make these band plan and frequency changes are the fastest way to do it...Programming your radio without this software is very time consuming and could make a mess of things if you know what I mean. Hope this helps

 

[KE4ZNR]

Thanks for the write up Chris.
Please note that future posts about this specific topic in the NC forum will be locked
with a note to check this specific thread. Please don't make me do that
too many times...that makes me grumpy
Please post any non-rebanding VIPER related questions in the original
legacy VIPER sticky thread located HERE:
http://forums.radioreference.com/north-carolina-radio-discussion-forum/229363-viper-legacy-3600-baud-analog-digital-discussion.html
Marshall KE4ZNR

 

[KE4ZNR]

And many thanks to KD8X for his excellent write up for Freescan configuration as well.
Marshall KE4ZNR

 

[W2PMX]

Marshall,

How about making a sticky of Chris' and KD8X's posts (and maybe someone can post instructions for RS/GRE)? This thread will get lost in months to come, and newbies will ask.

 

[KE4ZNR]

Marshall,

How about making a sticky of Chris' and KD8X's posts (and maybe someone can post instructions for RS/GRE)? This thread will get lost in months to come, and newbies will ask.

Uh this already is a sticky thread.

Marshall KE4ZNR

 

[billkoerner]

Chris, I have reprogramed all the frequencies on the Burke High Peak Mountain by reducing the MHZ by 15 as directed and still no luck, you mention to plug in two lines verbatum but I do not know how to do that. Please advise Thanks

 

[kd8x]

Chris, I have reprogramed all the frequencies on the Burke High Peak Mountain by reducing the MHZ by 15 as directed and still no luck, you mention to plug in two lines verbatum but I do not know how to do that. Please advise Thanks

What kind of scanner???

 

[kd8x]

Here is the info for using FREESCAN software to update the new Viper rebanded frequencies and band plans.

Click on the site that you suspect has rebanded (ex. Huntersville in Meck Co) and then click on the trunk frequencies tab and mark the new frequencies. In this case you would change the frequency from 868.2125 to 853.2125..You should also change the alternate control frequency also if you have them entered. Now that the frequency has been changed hit the "site setup" tab. Now look lower on the screen and you will see the "site type" banner. It reads (Mot 800Mhz Standard (type II))..Click on the down arrow at far right side of this bar and scroll down to (Mot Custom/Reband Type II) and click on that label...Once you click on that you will see the band plan box pop up on the bottom of your page..This is where you will enter your Lower/Upper/step/offset entries that Chris gave you in the post above....Until each and every site is rebanded you will have to update individual sites this way or you could just wait and upload them them straight from the DB whenever they all become rebanded which could take some time....Using software to make these band plan and frequency changes are the fastest way to do it...Programming your radio without this software is very time consuming and could make a mess of things if you know what I mean. Hope this helps

Even with the latest edition of Freescan software and the latest updated software to your Uniden XT series scanner, it is not enough to just download the new rebanded sites from the database...Although downloading the latest rebanded frequencies for Viper will change the frequencies for you, you will still need to make a change in Freescan to the "site type" box to show (Mot Custom/Reband Type II). Freescan doesn't do this for you automatically for whatever reason. As soon as you enter the Custom/Reband bar it will however automatically enter the low/high/step/offset for you automatically...All you need to do is save this newly reloaded info to keep the new info in your diskfile. Remember, this only has to be done with Moto type II systems. Pure P25 standard Phase I systems do not need rebanded tables. This is all done automatically in the CC frequency to give it all the info the system needs. Just thought I'd add this info because some of you are still having trouble with the new rebanded sites even though you have downloaded them directly from the website. It has something to do with Freescan. I do not know if other software out there is failing to enter the "site type" automatically or not. Just a heads up...Scan on!!!!!

 

[kc4wsd]

My question is similar to billkoerner . . . I have a PSR 500, and my neighbor has a Radio Shack (I THINK it's a '197). We are 1.9 miles from our site which has been re-banded. We are picking up MOST of the traffic, but think part of our problem is the two lines referenced by trumpetman in the original post. I have ARC 500 software, but would rather have instructions for doing this manually. I'm able to edit the system and go into "T Tables," and select "Custom." Once there, I see "Table 01:", "Table 02:" and so on. When one of those options are selected, I get "Lo Chan:" "Hi Chan:" "Offset:" "Base:" and "Step:" The Lo Chan and Hi Chan options are looking for Decimal or Hex entries. I'm not the dumbest rock in the box, but this is kicking my butt. Thanks in advance for the help.

David C.

 

[kd8x]

My question is similar to billkoerner . . . I have a PSR 500, and my neighbor has a Radio Shack (I THINK it's a '197). We are 1.9 miles from our site which has been re-banded. We are picking up MOST of the traffic, but think part of our problem is the two lines referenced by trumpetman in the original post. I have ARC 500 software, but would rather have instructions for doing this manually. I'm able to edit the system and go into "T Tables," and select "Custom." Once there, I see "Table 01:", "Table 02:" and so on. When one of those options are selected, I get "Lo Chan:" "Hi Chan:" "Offset:" "Base:" and "Step:" The Lo Chan and Hi Chan options are looking for Decimal or Hex entries. I'm not the dumbest rock in the box, but this is kicking my butt. Thanks in advance for the help.

David C.

try this:
To simplify programming, if your system has rebanded and does NOT use any frequencies above 862MHz you only need to program the two ranges below.


Code:

ChLO ChHI Step Offset Base
440 559 25.000 440 851.025000
000 719 25.000 0 851.012500

YOU MUST PUT THE 440 ROW FIRST OR IT WILL NOT WORK PROPERLY. A higher row takes priority over a lower row.

This information will only work with specific GRE and RadioShack models.

I copied the above information from WayneH a forums manager here on RR from an article he authored back in 2008...

Program those figures as shown into your GRE 500 in the tables you said you can go to and it will open up a whole new world for ya.....

 

[kc4wsd]

Thanks for the reply. I'll put your advice to the test tomorrow. The shower and bed are competing for my attention at the moment. By the way, the system in question is VIPER, and I see that someone updated the Reidsville site, but the Eden and Mayodan sites have also been re-banded as well. I'm not active on here enough to know how to get word to the right person(s) to update the database. The Wentworth site had not changed frequencies as of about thirty minutes ago. Thanks again for the info.

David C.

 

[billkoerner]

PRO-106

What kind of scanner???

Radio Shack PRO-106

 

[billkoerner]

I am new at this hope I am doing it right PRO - 106

 

[gr8rcall]

What do I need to do to the tables in trunk88, to correctly interpret the new rebanded channels?
I've tried manually entering the rebanding tables for the whole system, and even going to the individual zone (Reidsville) and entering them!
However, I still see 862mhz-868mhz channels. I only see 2 channels in the 853mhz range!

Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[trumpetman]

Make sure to apply the bandplan once you enter it.

System menu -> tables? -> apply bandplan

 

[gr8rcall]

Make sure to apply the bandplan once you enter it.

System menu -> tables? -> apply bandplan

Thanks! Will do!

(Don't know how that slipped my mind.....I've had to do it before!)

 

[setuphelper]

Thank you for your help - while I am not new to scanning, I am very new to Viper. I just with much patience re- downloaded all my Caldwell County frequencies with Radio Reference & purchased software. Apparently I got back at least 'some' of Caldwell County law enforcement. My concern is that Radio Reference might not be completely up to date after the rebanding. I appreciate any advice .

 

[trumpetman]

Thank you for your help - while I am not new to scanning, I am very new to Viper. I just with much patience re- downloaded all my Caldwell County frequencies with Radio Reference & purchased software. Apparently I got back at least 'some' of Caldwell County law enforcement. My concern is that Radio Reference might not be completely up to date after the rebanding. I appreciate any advice .

No need to worry, both sites in Caldwell are rebanded in the database and all talkgroups are up to date and accurate. Make sure your rebanding tables are entered correctly in the software and the site is setup as a custom bandplan.

 

[Drafin]

No need to worry, both sites in Caldwell are rebanded in the database and all talkgroups are up to date and accurate. Make sure your rebanding tables are entered correctly in the software and the site is setup as a custom bandplan.

And I can verify that the info is correct and complete.

For more assistance I think we would need to know which scanner you are missing transmissions with setuphelper.

Draf