Ill need to upgrade my scanner soon but not sure what to get

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venom6733

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My area is soon to go to p2 (in a couple years or so). Right now i have a BCD996T and havent had any problems with it but it wont work for my local police/safety system after they upgrade. Im kinda torn between the 996P2 and the 536HP cause i also have some Mototrbo systems in my area. From what ive read on scannermasters, you have to pay extra to have the mototrbo ($85 ) and provoice ($75) upgrade. The 536HP also have the mototrbo and provoice (same price) but also NXDN ($85). I use SDR a lot and DSDPlus and have noticed a lot of NXDN system coming across the screen but not sure who's they are or where unless its still testing so im not sure how popular it is or is going to be. Do most of the people get their stuff through channel master or get them cheaper and send them in for the upgrades? Any other website i should look into?

Sorry for the noobie question but ive never given it much thought since my 966T ive had for 12 years has always served it purpose ...thanks again guys
 

scan-pa

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My area is soon to go to p2 (in a couple years or so). Right now i have a BCD996T and havent had any problems with it but it wont work for my local police/safety system after they upgrade. Im kinda torn between the 996P2 and the 536HP cause i also have some Mototrbo systems in my area. From what ive read on scannermasters, you have to pay extra to have the mototrbo ($85 ) and provoice ($75) upgrade. The 536HP also have the mototrbo and provoice (same price) but also NXDN ($85). I use SDR a lot and DSDPlus and have noticed a lot of NXDN system coming across the screen but not sure who's they are or where unless its still testing so im not sure how popular it is or is going to be. Do most of the people get their stuff through channel master or get them cheaper and send them in for the upgrades? Any other website i should look into?

Sorry for the noobie question but ive never given it much thought since my 966T ive had for 12 years has always served it purpose ...thanks again guys
It is cheaper to just purchase the add on upgrades yourself via the my.uniden website. All you have to do is enter the key into the scanner for these upgrades..... take less then 1min of your time.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 

venom6733

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oh ok...i thought it was something they physically did to the scanner... i can order the 536 from walmart for almost $100 less than scanner master and since my wife works there i can get another 10% off so i may go that route. I also read about a lot of issues with the 536 such as the wifi having problems and people having to send their radio back (im assuming this is when it first came out). did they get most of this stuff ironed out???
 

ka3jjz

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There are no upgrades you could do to the 996T that would make it Phase 2 compatible. There is extra hardware, not just firmware, involved. Unfortunately going the SDR route or getting a new scanner are your options. Getting an used 996P2 is a possibility - much less of a learning curve, since you already have a 996T. They are very close in programming...Mike
 

venom6733

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i have like 4 SDR's here but i use them for other things. I really got use to using Freescan and it doesnt support 536HP. I might just look around for a used 996P2 and get the mototrbo for it also...thanks guys
 

hiegtx

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oh ok...i thought it was something they physically did to the scanner... i can order the 536 from walmart for almost $100 less than scanner master and since my wife works there i can get another 10% off so i may go that route. I also read about a lot of issues with the 536 such as the wifi having problems and people having to send their radio back (im assuming this is when it first came out). did they get most of this stuff ironed out???
The majority of the problems were with the initial units. While there were issues with the RTC losing the time and date settings, as well as dim displays, those were units built before mid to late 2016. Uniden made a change that corrected those issues, and initiated a repair campaign that rectified those issues with the earlier scanners. The wifi problems, initially, boiled down firmware problems with the wifi dongle, that did not play well with the scanner, The Siren app never really met everyone's expectation, but some users are using ProScan to control their scanner.

While there have been a small number of scattered issues with the units sold now, none are whar I'd call chronic (the same thing showing up in multiple scanners). I have one of the early units, that went in for the display/RTC repair, No issues since that was done. If I needed another one, I would not be afraid to get a second 536HP. The only "problem" I see very much is simulcast distortion, which affects a most all scanners, of any model, The newer SDS100 & SDS200 have solved that for many people, with others using the Unication devices instead of a true scanner. Simulcast is very location, and system, dependent. I don't have that issue in my location, though others do.

While Mike's suggestion of the 996P2 is an option, at a lower cost than a 536HP, you cannot get a NXDN upgrade for it. Only DMR & ProVoice. (ProVoice systems are being replaced in most areas with upgraded P25 systems, since the manufacturer no longer supports EDACS/ProVoice.) If you have NXDN systems of interest in your area, then the 536HP is a better choice than the 996P2.
 

venom6733

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Thanks Steve..im not sure if i have an active NXDN in my area yet (mostly mototrbo, DMR conventional, LTR standard)but i have seen it run across my dsdplus here and there, im not very good at understanding dsdplus but i do see NXDN scroll across the window when i land on an active channel. I counted 4 NXDN sites in Marion county Indiana on the RR database, i'm in Delaware Co and theres not any here YET but i may try the 536 if the NXDN is getting more popular and more widely used.
 

hiegtx

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Thanks Steve..im not sure if i have an active NXDN in my area yet (mostly mototrbo, DMR conventional, LTR standard)but i have seen it run across my dsdplus here and there, im not very good at understanding dsdplus but i do see NXDN scroll across the window when i land on an active channel. I counted 4 NXDN sites in Marion county Indiana on the RR database, i'm in Delaware Co and theres not any here YET but i may try the 536 if the NXDN is getting more popular and more widely used.
In my area, Dallas/Fort Worth metro, there were not that many DMR or NXDN systems listed in the database when we started seeing upgrades for those formats become available for certain scanners. Since then, it's become obvious that there is a lot more usage, especially DMR, that was not in the RRDB, While there are a few NXDN listings in DFW, it appears that there are more that have not been mapped out and entered. There are two public safety NXDN systems near me, and a growing number of school districts appear to have converted to DMR or NXDN.

One thing you can do is take a look at this site: Digital Frequency Search
Search your county, as well as neighboring ones, to see what comes up. Bear in mind that if a company or public agency comes up in a search, that's not a guarantee that they are using DMR or NXDN. It only shows you who is licensed for one or both of those formats. But if you see a frequency that appears to be NXDN showing up in dsdplus fairly often, your search results might give a clue as to the user, as well as other frequencies licensed to them. Of course, even if you got the 536HP, there's no requirement that you must buy the DMR or NXDN upgrades immediately. You can always wait until there's more usage in your area, either by entries being submitted to the database, or by more DMR or NXDN hits showing up on your searches.
 

ansky

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My area is soon to go to p2 (in a couple years or so). Right now i have a BCD996T and havent had any problems with it but it wont work for my local police/safety system after they upgrade.

A couple years is not "soon". If you have a scanner that's working for you right now I would not bother upgrading until you actually need to do so. There will likely be new scanners released over the next couple years and improvements made to existing models. There is also the chance that the new radio system you think is coming in a couple years could change and end up being something that you did not plan for today. So I would just wait.
 
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