I'm very interested in buying the Uniden SDS 100!! And is it worth it in my Area?

[maus92]

They are great products for monitoring a small number of talkgroups. The audio and RF filters are better than any scanner, commercial grade.

However they can only scan 64 talkgroups at a time, that is their biggest limitation (huge limitation for a lot of people). Also there is no mobile version, that's the other big limitation.

64 talkgroups AND only of a single system / site.

 

[natedawg1604]

64 talkgroups AND only of a single system / site.

I thought Unication stuff had some type of ability to auto-roam between sites (obviously same system), is that not correct?

 

[Echo4Thirty]

I thought Unication stuff had some type of ability to auto-roam between sites (obviously same system), is that not correct?

Correct, you can specify sites for it to search. I do this in the houston area and it works quite well.

 

[maus92]

I thought Unication stuff had some type of ability to auto-roam between sites (obviously same system), is that not correct?

Not with the standard firmware thread which I use: 1.31. Maybe with 1.40, but that version is no longer developed or available, and is reportedly buggy. The G4/G5 will roam to another site if it loses the current control channel.

 

[maus92]

Correct, you can specify sites for it to search. I do this in the houston area and it works quite well.

Interesting - where / what is the setting in the PPS that allows this?

 

[Echo4Thirty]

Interesting - where / what is the setting in the PPS that allows this?

I build a "system" and populate it with the RFSS+SITE Number and control channels for those sites. When I create a knob position, i assign that 'system' to it. Houston uses roamer sites that do not carry the main traffic, but transient traffic from other areas. I do not put these sites in the "system" but only the sites known to carry the traffic i am interested in. I am not sure what its roaming criteria is, but It did indeed switch sites as i drove from place to place.

 

[maus92]

I build a "system" and populate it with the RFSS+SITE Number and control channels for those sites. When I create a knob position, i assign that 'system' to it. Houston uses roamer sites that do not carry the main traffic, but transient traffic from other areas. I do not put these sites in the "system" but only the sites known to carry the traffic i am interested in. I am not sure what its roaming criteria is, but It did indeed switch sites as i drove from place to place.

When you move, you enter areas potentially covered by different sites of the system. The G4/G4 will "roam" to a new site when the signal threshold of the current site control channel deteriorates. The radio then searches for the control channel of the system site that covers the area you have entered. If you are stationary, the radio will not "roam" between sites because the control channel does not degrade. A SDS scanner can be programmed to "roam" between sites when a user is in a stationary position or can be controlled by GPS when moving (or a combination of both techniques.)

 

[ptr1959w]

Hi guys, I have really been thinking about the Unication pagers...I think I'm going to purchase the G5 instead of the SDS100...

 

[blackbelter]

Hi guys, I have really been thinking about the Unication pagers...I think I'm going to purchase the G5 instead of the SDS100...

Great choice .

 

[pandel]

I think you will be much happier in the long run. I got mine from Ray's Pagers. Great guy, VERY helpful after the sale!
I had a problem with my programming and Ray spent almost an hour on the phone and even logged into my computer to help me find the issue. Turned out to be one switch on a sub, sub, menu that we both kept missing. Thanks, Ray!!

 

[belvdr]

For me, I have an SDS200 and a G4. The G4 is nice, but it has limitations. For example, at home, I like to listen to various systems across different emissions (i.e. some DMR, NXDN, and P25). I can't do that on a Unication, unfortunately.

My motto is think not only twice, but several times, and purchase once.

 

[Echo4Thirty]

Hi guys, I have really been thinking about the Unication pagers...I think I'm going to purchase the G5 instead of the SDS100...

Just be EXTREMELY careful with the microUSB port on the side. It is a known failure point. while you can get a charging cradle should it break, it is the only programming port.

 

[maus92]

I strongly recommend a drop-in charger. And don't "play" with the programming. This device was designed as a professional tool, thus wasn't intended to be constantly reprogrammed (probably only a few times in its service life) - and since the USB port is so wimpy, I bet it was designed to be charged primarily with a drop-in charger.

 

[blackbelter]

Could not agree more with the above post. I have purchased an amp charger with my G5 and never looked back. I seldom play around with the programming . My purchase also came from Ray and the interaction with him has been awesome . Ray provides personal advice and supports the programming.

 

[ptr1959w]

Hi guys, Well I went ahead and purchased the G5 and the charger...I bought it at east coast pagers I believe that's the one..

 

[blackbelter]

Congratulations. Welcome to the world of scanning less and hearing more. I also use my G5 in the amp charger as a base unit to gain more signal strength ( back of the amp charger antenna) and full /rich sound.

 

[pandel]

Good for you!