Ithaca/Tompkins County TRS

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policefreak

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Does anyone have any information on the Tompkins County/Ithaca TRS? I looked in the database and did not find anything.
 

policefreak

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??Nobody has anything?? I'm surprised. Is the system at least listenable, or is it digitally encrypted?
 

abbinam

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As far as I understand, it will be digitally encrypted. From a lay persons perspective, they basically told us that any type of scanner below a digitally trunked scanner will not work, and all PD communications will be encrypted. But I'm working on the fire side.
 

policefreak

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So, the system is not yet online? I guess some fire and EMS is in the clear, but all PD is encrypted? shhooot!
 

abbinam

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System is not yet online, they're installing the mobiles on apparatus as we speak, I don't have a hard date on when they're throwing the switch (mid-Aug?). As for PD, I don't know when they're going online, but I am certain all their communications, with the exception of a coordination channel shared with Fire/EMS, will be encrypted.
 

studgeman

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nothing is encrypted on the system. While the system itself is capable of encryption, none of the subscribers are.
 

policefreak

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Most of the times in that case, each talkgroup is in mixed mode, so each unit has a switch on their radio for encryption.
 

mshumeyk

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I live down in Vestal and while searching actually came upon a control channel signal on 859.8875, licensned to Tompkins County. My 996 reads SID 01EEh-0101. Reception down here is spotty, but I have been hearing digital Tompkins County EMS traffic. Most active talkgroup seems to be 55253.
 

policefreak

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I live down in Vestal and while searching actually came upon a control channel signal on 859.8875, licensned to Tompkins County. My 996 reads SID 01EEh-0101. Reception down here is spotty, but I have been hearing digital Tompkins County EMS traffic. Most active talkgroup seems to be 55253.

Do you receive any police traffic or are they encrypted? Also if someone could submit some information to the database on this that would be great!!
 
D

DaveNF2G

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It would be nice if definitive statements would be posted only by those who actually know the facts.

"System is not yet online" contradicted by "I'm hearing digital EMS traffic" for example.

"I am certain that police communications will be encrypted" contradicted by "nothing is encrypted on the system" is another example.

Somebody is wrong, but everybody is talking as though they know for sure.
 

boatman5987

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The traffic you are hearing is radio testing by the installers. The system is NOT yet being used. It will be phased in as operators are trained and accostomed to using the system. UHF system still in use in the meantime.
 

boatman5987

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PS to last- Fire/EMS dispatch is also being simulcast on this system.(without alert tones- Iam told tones are illegal on 800 meg.) (?)
 

mshumeyk

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The digital EMS transmissions did sound like they might be simulcasts, but living two counties away I am not familiar enough with the existing Tompkins radio system to readily identify them as such. I have attached a text version of a ARC 996 log from the system during a recent weekday to show frequency and talkgroup usage.
 

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boatman5987

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-Oh yeah, I also forgot that Bangs ambulance in Ithaca is now using the system as their private "channel". This is likely the transmissions you are hearing.
 

abbinam

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System is not yet online. I should say that I can only speak definitively on the fire/ems side. I was told by our police chief that they would be using encryption, if I was misinformed, I apologize.
As the poster above me said, Bangs ambulance is using their own channel (I apologize, im not the best with lingo) for intradepartmental comms., like assigning rigs to calls. The county has not officially switched, although I would think youll start hearing more and more as departments continue to get mobiles and portable chargers installed in the trucks. Our dept. will start using our ops channel within the next couple of days. As for when they actually throw the switch, that was suggested to be in mid-August... but who knows. Paging is simulcast, but no tones, analog vs. digital laws????.

Sorry if I come off as not knowing the facts... I didnt start posting here to spread misinformation, I came to answer a question posed that I could answer. But I am just a lowly enduser.
 

studgeman

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The system is "online." each department in the county has their own deployment plans. Not everyone is comming on the system at the same time. Last I heard expect Ithaca FD to be the last on the system. Cornell should be on shortly, in time for the influx of students.

I think we all understand this takes time, and we should continue to monitor the system becasue communications will be moving onto the new system as time goes on. I do not have the current time table, but that time table is also somewhat of a moving target. Go figure right?

I have confirmed that some of the police departments decided to pony up for ADP (Advanded Digital Privacy) in their radios. ADP is a low level non-standard software encryption. I highly doubt it will be used full time. Based on the conversations I have had, there would be too much of an expected backlash from the public and media for full time encryption.

Concerning the lack of fire tones over the trunk. Its not a digital/analog issue. Actually the tones sound like sh*t through the P25 vocoder, but thats besides the point. Its a system issue. The paging encoders are after the system patch. There is no physical audio path from the paging encoders to the trunked radio system.
 

abbinam

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Ah Ha! Thanks for the info on the tones studgeman. I should clear up what i've been meaning for online. I considered online to be when PD/Fire/EMS switch to using the 800 MHz radios and stop using our UHF system.
 

jlm5561

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Tompkins Talk Groups

I have Excel file of all Tompkins talk Groups. But have not been able to attached
to reply thread. E-Mail me with your addres will send it along

jmiller10@twcny.rr.com
 

w2txb

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jlm5561... you have mail.

I threw in the listed frequencies for Tompkins County and have been hearing some chatter (nice signal with good audio!); maybe I am "over-engineering" the programming process, but I still wonder if I am missing something. I may create a new Win96 file by downloading from the RR database and see if that is any different (better, worse, or otherwise).
 
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bnchester

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If there are no tones through P25...

...then how will pagers be activated?

jlm5561, thanks for the TGs -- so far they are proving to be accurate.
 
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