Looking for a new scanner- which is the best?

[Novice000]

Ok- I'll be honest I own a RS pro-2050 and do not like it. I know, it is partially my fault cuz, I really do not have a great knowledge of scanners. But, I am currently looking at the Ar8200MKIII. Am I looking in the right direction????? Your help is greatly appreciated.

 

[fireant]

What are you wanting to listen to with the scanner?? and in what part of the state are you in?? handheld or base??

fireant

 

[crayon]

How much can you spend?

 

[Novice000]

I want to hear it all!!!! Well, nothing illegal, of course! I will pay what I have to, to get a good scanner~ I am a believer of "you get what you pay for". I recieved my first scanner in about 1997 as payment for helping someone with their bills. I have never really known much about them, I am now wanting to learn. I am in Michigan. I currently have a base, but would be willing to purchase a hand held if it is better.

Thanks for your help!

 

[foster_006]

In my opinion, they seem to make Base or Mobile scanners better these days. I prefer mobile only because I use my scanners in my truck everyday. And on the weekends, i'll take them into the house for a base station! I recommend either the BC780XLT for the BC785D. I haven't ventured too far away from Radio Shack or Uniden. But both make good scanners....especially for starters as I once was.

I actually started with a handheld scanner. It was nice, but now mobiles seem to best fit my need. IMO, the only drawback to a handheld is that I had to replace the batteries just about everyday. That and I always had problems with reception. But if you use it in your vehicle, the rat shack mag mount works wonders for what you need! Like I said, that's just been my experience!

 

[KD5WLX]

You absolutely MUST decide what you need to hear first. What you even CAN hear will vary depending on where you are, though.

And don't be surprised if one scanner just won't do it all, either.

Examples: A Pro-95 will do just fine on the Tulsa trunked system, but won't do MilAir (300-400MHz AM) and won't pick up EMSA once they go digital.

My 10 year old Pro-60 will do MilAir, but won't do trunking of any kind.

My Pro-95 won't track one of the local tow truck companies (UHF LTR trunked) but my Pro-92 will.

And my Icom R-5 won't do any trunking at all, either, but can't be beat when it comes to 10m (28.300MHz) sideband. None of the others do anything but AM or FM, so once you go below 29MHz - where everything goes to sideband - they go "deaf". You can pick up "some" sideband by tuning AM, but the filters are 2 to 3 times wider than the signals, so you tend to hear 3 conversations at once!

And if you really want to hear low HF Dx, you can't beat a good HF radio with DSP filters - but my IC-718 won't tune above 28.999 at all.

 

[Novice000]

Thanks everyone for your answers and opinions.

If anyone else out there has more suggestions or opinions, I look forward to hearing them also.

I guess my biggest problem is, I really don't know everything that can be done with a scanner, other than police freqs. That is all I listen to right now. If I take my RS 2050 to a local dealer what type of upgrades can I use on it. Or am I better off getting a new one w/ higher MHz- this one is 800MHz. :?

 

[K5MAR]

No upgrades are available for most scanners, including the 2050. While we're glad to help you with advice, perhaps you should post this in the Michigan forum. Another person who lives in your area would be better able to advise you on your scanning options. Once you know what types of radio systems are avilable to monitor, you will be in a better position to decide what features you need for listening in your area. For instance, there would be no point in buying a digital audio scanner if there are no APCO-25 digital systems for you to listen to. Find out what you need a new scanner to do, then it will be possible for others to advise you.

Mark S.

 

[jalexand69]

Hello Novice. I helped a friend recently set up his PRO-2050 scanner to hear the Joplin MO trunked system as well as conventional systems on VHF and UHF. The scanner worked great. The audio coming from it was superb. I almost thought I was in a dispatch center!

Unless you want to monitor EDACS, LTR systems, military air, or HF SSB, I think you have a great scanner. The only drawback on trunking, however, is that the talkgroup numbers are your only reference. I'm spoiled to having a alpha-numeric display on my PRO-92 (e.g., FD Dispatch). The newer trunked scanners solve this problem.

Like K5MAR recommended, your Michigan forum might yield better results and place you in touch with someone local who can help you one-on-one. Police Call does a great job of explaining how trunked systems work if you want to learn more about that.

Good luck...j c