Is there a good P-25 phase 2 scanner?

[goldmyne99]

I am trying to get some good ideas on a good P-25 scanner

As noted above, checkout the Blue Tail Tech forum here on RR as a possible future choice in your next radio. That forum documents the P25RX development from day one. A great resource for anyone looking to research a new device. The P25RX developer posts daily providing support and updates.

Do your own research on what radio meets your needs. There are pros and cons to any of the radios mentioned in this thread. Good luck in your search.

 

[firefighter30054]

The unit that i am looking at right now is a Uniden BCD325p2 portable. it looks like it is easy to program. The only thing that i am concerned about is the county in Ohio that we run mutual aid with sometimes is going to phase 2. The fire is straight P25 however the police is encrypted. Is there any way to separate the 2? and just block out the police.?. Also some thoughts on the radio please.

 

[hiegtx]

The unit that i am looking at right now is a Uniden BCD325p2 portable. it looks like it is easy to program. The only thing that i am concerned about is the county in Ohio that we run mutual aid with sometimes is going to phase 2. The fire is straight P25 however the police is encrypted. Is there any way to separate the 2? and just block out the police.?. Also some thoughts on the radio please.

The county in Ohio that you refer to, I believe, may be Belmont. If so, their county system is simulcast.

The 325P2 is a decent hand-held scanner, though with only two batteries, battery life is much shorter than some of the other scanners. I get maybe two or three hours at most on mine, though I am in a busy metro area, so more transmissions cut down run time.

The 325P2 can handle P25 Phase I or Phase II. For encrypted transmissions, just don't program them. However, if you do program them, the scanner will skip over the channel once it detects it's encrypted.

However, simulcast is not one of the 325P2's strong points. It will suffer with missed calls or garbled audio except for when you are very near one of the transmit towers. More on Simulcast can be found in the Wiki.
Simulcast digital distortion - The RadioReference Wiki

 

[fredva]

Your area has simulcast. The WV radio trunking system has a site at Glendale as well as sites north of there which are P25 simulcast, and if I'm not mistaken, Phase II is starting to be used as well. You need to get a scanner built for simulcast or else there is a good chance you will miss transmissions or the transmissions will be garbled. I'm happy with my Uniden SDS-100's performance on Phase I and Phase II simulcast systems.

Somebody might mention a Unication receiver. The Unications do well on simulcast, but there is a caveat: They can currently only monitor one trunking system at a time. In your case, that means you could listen to the WV system or the Ohio system, but not both at the same time. In certain areas and situations, the Unications are great receivers.