KSICS Anchor Thread

[KSquelch]

Yep, your pretty much hosed until you get a P25 digital capable trunking scanner to monitor KHP. More or less, the eastern 2/3 of Kansas is digital.

 

[KSquelch]

you're

 

[advancedrfcomm]

KSICS Programming Help Needed

I was looking for some help programming the KSICS System. I am using FreeScan / Radio Reference and have selected the max systems of 20 but it is filling up the scanner memory and programming 6,000 plus channels. What am I doing wrong? Any help would be appreciated or if anyone has a good program load they would like to share that would be great also. Only looking for the Highway Patrol and no county or city agencies. Thanks in advance.

 

[SCPD]

advancedrfcomm,

Which scanner are you using? If you are using a Radio Shack, with the limits they have, it is best to split up the KSICS system into regions or zones and then make those different scan lists.

 

[advancedrfcomm]

The radio is a 396T. That is a good point to break it up by area of Troop. Any other thoughts?

 

[n0lqt]

The radio is a 396T. That is a good point to break it up by area of Troop. Any other thoughts?

With the KSICS system expanding so rapidly, breaking it up into different scanlists is almost a must now. I live dead center between Butler and Reno Counties, both of which are using the KSICS extensively. If I have everything set to scan, the radio never shuts up. I have a scanlist for Butler, another for Reno, a thrid for Law Enforcement only, one with everything else but KDOT (they are the chattiest folk I've every seen... ) and one with EVRYTHING! Depending on what's going on, I can turn the different lists on or off with a couple of keystrokes. I even have Radio IDs programmed in for my local troopers so I can scan them along with the local non-trunked frequencies. Lately, I've been thinking about spliting Reno and Butler into four lists instead of just two, with one list each for Law Enforcement and another set for Fire/EMS/EMA. The hardest part is remembering which scanlist number is which. I'm probably going to have to put a "cheat-sheet" sticker on the back ot the radio. I think the radio has more memory than I do at this point....

 

[factorone]

Made a trip out to Hays this last weekend for a wedding. Did have a few extra minutes here and there to keep an ear out for stuff.

Hays/Ellis County are still using their analog system quite extensively. I had hits on nearly every talkgroup on the system.

The Ellis, Russell, and Osborne KSICS towers had quite a bit of KHP traffic on them, as well as KDOT, Russell County, and a few other agencies.

I thought I caught control channel data coming from what I suspect was the Gove Tower, however I wasn't able to keep it long enough to get a hard look at it and analyze it. Next time I'm out, I'll have a laptop that I can run Pro96com on to make sure.

 

[dgruver911]

Just saw the FCC license grants for last week...they issued licenses for rebanding the remaining 14 conventional towers in western Kansas but it is just for rebanding; no conversions to P25 trunking for those towers.....yet. I do know there is a technician that has been in western Kansas for several weeks reprogramming radios for all agencies on the KSICS system; supposed to move to central Kansas in September when we should start seeing rebanding on KSICS towers in the Wichita area.

 

[KAA951]

Found this update in one of the Homeland Security Regional Councils from their May 2011 meeting:
http://www.kansastag.gov/AdvHTML_doc_upload/SWKR_Minutes_051111.pdf

Jason Moses visited about communications:

• The State has met the match to finish the tower project for the 800 MHz radios. They have currently ordered seven sites to be finished around July 1st: Phillips, Norton, Decatur, Gove, Ness, Hodgeman, and Clark counties
• The balance will be done by next June and will come out of Homeland Security funds
• Gray County and Hutchison came on last week (channel to Site 27 for Gray Co.)
• Three years ago both COWS were installed with a trunk system
• A month ago, a satellite system was installed on the COWS that acts like any other site on your system. However, it costs $750/24 hours to use it.

 

[factorone]

Got bored at work today, so I compiled the data from the KSICS into an Excel file. It's just the tower info (Site IDs, names, and frequencies), but it's printable, and organized. Might expand it later to fit the CSV file data from the talk groups by region.

http://www.brandonworf.com/stuff/KSICS_Tower_Chart.xlsx

 

[SGNL1]

help

anyone know where hutch pd went....? im scanning the ksics system in reno county and pick up everything but hpd.

 

[jasonkw]

I am hearing Hutch PD on TG 2367. They have been using using this TG ever since they switched to digital.

 

[factorone]

I am hearing Hutch PD on TG 2367. They have been using using this TG ever since they switched to digital.

Yep. I was down around Eureka last week, and was hearing them all the way up to about Emporia on certain towers.

 

[KC0NOX]

I run a PSR-600 programmed from RR with PSREdit500, and have normally had good success with trunked systems.

Ran across I-70, KC to Colorado. Heard nothing until Salina, then I'd hear activity for 20-30 miles, then nothing, then activity again for a period. This went back & forth until Colorado. I never heard anything on the Colorado DRTS, but did on Denver's system.

A week ago I drove home to southern KS. Leaving Winfield, I never heard any traffic, even though Butler Co had a large grass fire, with units directed to Event 1. Started picking up some traffic from KHP G once I got on the turnpike.

I added all control & alternate channels for these systems. Do I need to add all transmitters? Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Joe

 

[fmon]

Joe,

Zip and attach your PSREdit file so we can see what you're working with.

 

[KC0NOX]

PSREdit files

Frank & others,

Thanks for you response.

The "Chilli" file has the KCICS with the Butler County TGPs I couldn't hear.

The "I70" file also has the KCICS but focuses on TGPs along Interstate 70.



Joe

 

[n0lqt]

Frank & others,
Thanks for you response.
The "Chilli" file has the KCICS with the Butler County TGPs I couldn't hear.
The "I70" file also has the KCICS but focuses on TGPs along Interstate 70.

Hey Joe,

Just a quick look, I can see you are missing about half the actual control channels for the KSICS system including the Butler County simulcast frequency of 851.73750 MHz. I guessing when you downloaded the system using the web import, you probably let it also load the alternate channels. There are simply too many sites and control channels in the system now to load all of the control channels and the alternates. Try reloading with just the controls, hide alternates option. Plus there are a bunch more talkgroups on the RR now. Of the 1300 coordinated talkgroups, there are about 1250 on here now.

 

[fmon]

In Chilli.bin
311 TGRP objects do not have a scanlist assigned in Statewide Trunk System.
13 CONV freqs also are missing scanlist assignments.

In I70.bin same 311 TG's missing scanlist number.
9 CONV freqs missing scanlist number

EDIT: Double Click on scanlist header to sort by scanlist number.

 

[KC0NOX]

Thanks for the reviews.

The issue with too many channels seems like the culprit; I'll reload both the KCICS & CO DRTS using this.

I know I have many unassigned; that was by design in case I wanted to add them later.

I appreciate the help.

Joe

 

[n0lqt]

Several people have noticed a problem with the Butler County Simul-cast system this week. Apparently there was a lightning storm that knocked the normal Control channel for the Butler County #1 Site off. The Control frequency has moved from 851.73750 to 851.42500, the designated Alternate. It is not known if this is a temporary move or a permanent one. If you don't have this alternate in your control frequency list, you won't be able to hear the majority of the Butler County traffic. Note also, the Cassody Site has also changed to the Alternate frequency of 857.23750.

Here's the new frequency lineup:
00-0051","vi",851.32500,806.32500
00-0067","c",851.42500,806.42500
00-0117","ca",851.73750,806.73750
00-0131","v",851.82500,806.82500
00-0169","v",852.06250,807.06250
00-0221","v",852.38750,807.38750
00-0293","v",852.83750,807.83750
00-0379","v",853.37500,808.37500
00-0427","v",853.67500,808.67500
00-0451","v",853.82500,808.82500