Is it Just Me, Or Is This Hobby Getting Very Boring ?

Sorry to sound like a Debbie Downer, but lately my scanners (even digital one) has been collecting dust now. Just about all the police departments in my area have gone encrypted including the town where I live. I can still pick up FD and EMS on digital, but even they do a lot of communicating via their vehicle CADS and don't say a lot over the air anymore.

I used to love taking my scanner every time I travel to my favorite get away spot (Atlantic City), but aside from PD, even the hotel casinos there have mainly gone encrpyted. When I first bought my digital scanner, I even paid an extra $75 just to have DMR unlocked to hear casino hotel security, which is now totally useless. I have never been a big rail fan or marine boating enthusiast and only really enjoyed hearing PD. I am now on the verge of just selling my BDC436 and leaving the hobby, but afraid I may regret it. I can easily monitor most FD/EMS comms on phone apps in my area. This post is not intended to rag on encryption, but just looking for advice on if I am doing the right thing to sell my BCD436 before no one wants it due to same reasons I mentioned above.

 

[ecps92]

Sorry to sound like a Debbie Downer, but lately my scanners (even digital one) has been collecting dust now. Just about all the police departments in my area have gone encrypted including the town where I live. I can still pick up FD and EMS on digital, but even they do a lot of communicating via their vehicle CADS and don't say a lot over the air anymore.

I used to love taking my scanner every time I travel to my favorite get away spot (Atlantic City), but aside from PD, even the hotel casinos there have mainly gone encrpyted. When I first bought my digital scanner, I even paid an extra $75 just to have DMR unlocked to hear casino hotel security, which is now totally useless. I have never been a big rail fan or marine boating enthusiast and only really enjoyed hearing PD. I am now on the verge of just selling my BDC436 and leaving the hobby, but afraid I may regret it. I can easily monitor most FD/EMS comms on phone apps in my area. This post is not intended to rag on encryption, but just looking for advice on if I am doing the right thing to sell my BCD436 before no one wants it due to same reasons I mentioned above.

The hobby is what we make of it, there is still plenty out there not Public Safety and Not ENC

 

[mtindor]

Sorry to sound like a Debbie Downer, but lately my scanners (even digital one) has been collecting dust now. Just about all the police departments in my area have gone encrypted including the town where I live. I can still pick up FD and EMS on digital, but even they do a lot of communicating via their vehicle CADS and don't say a lot over the air anymore.

I used to love taking my scanner every time I travel to my favorite get away spot (Atlantic City), but aside from PD, even the hotel casinos there have mainly gone encrpyted. When I first bought my digital scanner, I even paid an extra $75 just to have DMR unlocked to hear casino hotel security, which is now totally useless. I have never been a big rail fan or marine boating enthusiast and only really enjoyed hearing PD. I am now on the verge of just selling my BDC436 and leaving the hobby, but afraid I may regret it. I can easily monitor most FD/EMS comms on phone apps in my area. This post is not intended to rag on encryption, but just looking for advice on if I am doing the right thing to sell my BCD436 before no one wants it due to same reasons I mentioned above.

Assuming you've got a computer, buy an RTL dongle and learn to use some of the available softwares out there for sleuthing. I listen 1% of the time. I sleuth 99% of the time. Lots of fun. And in NYC I'm betting there is always something new to find that isn't in the DB.

 

[MTS2000des]

The fun of scanning is finding new things. Sure thing as time has marched on, so has technology. Not just "E" but people are communicating differently these days as most take place over cellphones, and PTToC has eaten away alot of the SMR business. But there is still much to be discovered: railroads, aircraft, ham, GMRS/FRS, itinerant business bands, and everything else. You never know what you might find but it does take old fashioned band scans and patience. The cool part about SDRs and modern scanners is they do all the work for you even if you're not there and can review the findings at your leisure.

 

[ecps92]

Assuming you've got a computer, buy an RTL dongle and learn to use some of the available softwares out there for sleuthing. I listen 1% of the time. I sleuth 99% of the time. Lots of fun. And in NYC I'm betting there is always something new to find that isn't in the DB.

Scanners can do SEARCH (some of us the button is worn out), no need to push the need for a traveling computer and dongle... when someone already has the needed tools

 

[mtindor]

Scanners can do SEARCH (some of us the button is worn out), no need to push the need for a traveling computer and dongle... when someone already has the needed tools

Yep, but there is a lot more that software can tell you that a scanner can't when it comes to any trunked system. To each his own. I'm not pushing anything. If somebody goes out and buys a dongle and regrets it, that's not on me !

 

[trentbob]

It waxes and wanes.. always had my ears on to my local towns PD since I was a kid in the mid-60s and never went a day without until January 2001.

As a retired newspaper man I'm not a fire buff, you've seen one house fire or door pop you've seen them all.

I listen to a lot of different things, a wide range of offerings, always feel like.. something's missing.

In the media, listening was an intrical part of my job, now it's just a hobby.

 

[trentbob]

Correction, I meant January 2021

 

[tevedidat]

Totally get where you’re coming from, a lot of us are feeling that shift.
Before selling, maybe hold onto your BCD436 a bit longer, agencies sometimes open new non encrypted talkgroups for public events or mutual aid, so you might still find some activity worth keeping it for.

 

[wrockjm]

I get where you are coming from. I go through periods of strong interest then periods where I barely touch the scanner. I am in one of those "barely touch" modes right now. I started looking into listening to aircraft, railroads and the street crews around me which keeps me busy and sometimes can be funny to listen to. As for your question on selling your radio: My humble two cents would be unless you are needing quick cash or planning on buying a replacement radio, hold onto it. Doesn't hurt anything to collect dust for a while and if you suddenly decided to get back into the hobby, you already have a radio instead of having to buy a new one (and re-buy the DMR upgrade). Just my thoughts though.

 

[K9KLC]

I'd probably hang onto the BCD 436. While it's not the best in a simulcast environment, they honestly work pretty well depending on your location. It's a pretty capable little HH scanner, and there are days I regret selling mine. (I have other devices however I still use). Franky if PS ever goes dark around here, I'll have several unications for sale but I'd still hang on to one just because. I have the BCD 536 and still use it for other stuff besides our trunking system there and like it a lot. I also have a 30 year old Relm scanner I've hung onto and glad I did, on some VHF analog stuff it works better than anything else I have.

IF you don't need the $$$, I'd keep it, you never know what might happen in the future.

 

[StoliRaz]

Yup I hear that. I live in an area that still has a lot of analog law enforcement but the writing is on the wall. Boston PD has gone dark, a few other suburban municipalities have too. Once our state police move to their new P2 digital system I'm sure a large swath of that will be encrypted (a good chunk is already is E where it has gone online already). I've already begun selling off some of my analog-only scanners. Not getting much for them, but I have too many. I'm only keeping my BCT15Xs and 346XTs for aviation listening. Uber and Lyft have all but eliminated cab companies, even my own work still has DMR radios but they are no longer used, all of their batteries are dead and won't be replaced. Why? We went to cellular.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Nowhere near boring for me. Being I'm in a large metropolitan area & most counties' LE including mine is fully encrypted there's still plenty out there to listen to. One needs to learn to broaden their listening horizons and just tune around to hear what you can hear. Plenty of fun left in the hobby for me trying to document businesses, hospitals, attractions, transportation & the like not listed in the RRDB. And of course let's not forget about amateur radio, aviation, rail, etc.

OP you're in NYC??? There's definitely no shortage of things to listen to over there, cmon!!!!

 

[K9KLC]

Nowhere near boring for me. Being I'm in a large metropolitan area & most counties' LE including mine is fully encrypted there's still plenty out there to listen to. One needs to learn to broaden their listening horizons and just tune around to hear what you can hear. Plenty of fun left in the hobby for me trying to document businesses, hospitals, attractions, transportation & the like not listed in the RRDB. And of course let's not forget about amateur radio, aviation, rail, etc.

OP you're in NYC??? There's definitely no shortage of things to listen to over there, cmon!!!!

This is all true but varies from individual to individual. Just like ham radio and many other hobbies, there's many, many facets to the monitoring hobby. Some are in it mainly for PS, and others for other stuff. While I do monitor a few other things on my "scanning type devices", public service is my main interest. It's all in what you want to listen to. You're correct in that there is a lot to listen to out there and honestly a lot to even be discovered yet.

 

[sonm10]

I would read through this thread. Requires login to QRZ.

https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/im-bored-i-feel-as-if-ive-done-all-i-want-in-this-hobby-service.677975/

 

[prcguy]

Tune into some amateur repeaters, the things people say or come up with are endlessly amusing.

 

[pb_lonny]

Here are some examples, that don't involve the emergency services...

Extreme Scanning - Why Would You Do It?

I am an amateur radio operator (HAM) from Launceston Tasmania - VK7AAL. I am also a keen software developer, in both JustBasic and Python.

vk7aal.blogspot.com

Hunting out new and exciting frequencies

I am an amateur radio operator (HAM) from Launceston Tasmania - VK7AAL. I am also a keen software developer, in both JustBasic and Python.

vk7aal.blogspot.com

 

[lamarrsy]

Here are some examples, that don't involve the emergency services...

Extreme Scanning - Why Would You Do It?

I am an amateur radio operator (HAM) from Launceston Tasmania - VK7AAL. I am also a keen software developer, in both JustBasic and Python.

vk7aal.blogspot.com

Hunting out new and exciting frequencies

I am an amateur radio operator (HAM) from Launceston Tasmania - VK7AAL. I am also a keen software developer, in both JustBasic and Python.

vk7aal.blogspot.com

I think your “Extreme Scanning” text explains very well the two sides of the scanning hobby :

casual listening, with “the scanner doing its things” (I like that phrase!) VS what I would call “active” and “pro-active” scanning/tuning/listening.

That’s what I progressed toward when our EMS/LE went encrypted. And boy what did I discover in terms of what I was missing !

 

[pb_lonny]

Thank you. I find my scanners spend most of their time in search or CloseCall modes.

 

[RFI-EMI-GUY]

Tune in those VHF Intercity and mutual aid channels. Many dispatch centers include those as BOLO's are sent out and even use to intercom with other dispatch centers.

My bucket list includes making an "aperiodic receiver" to detect encrypted mobile traffic (repeater input) in the 700/800 and Federal 167 MHz bands. Parts I am contemplating using:

Multiband mobile antenna
700/800 and Federal 167 MHz band preselectors
Low Noise preamplifier 15-20 dB gain
Analog Devices AD83xx RF Log Amplifier-Detector (Chinese demo board)
LM39xx VU meter chip as "squelch" logic . Dectected signal level drives VU meter LEDs.
Multiposition switch to select signal threshold from appropriate LED driver pin.
Sonalert type buzzer

This will be sort of a Radar Detector for public safety transmission in vicinity. So as I am out an about, if it buzzes, I know there are Fuzzes.

This is exactly how they found spies in WW2:

SSR-201

www.cryptomuseum.com