MN State Patrol

[semiwrecker1]

I just picked up a BCD325p2, I am in the process of programming it. I mainly listen to carver county, Mcleod county , Scott county and State Patrol from both the metro and Mankato. I forget if the State TG are on the controls channels for say the main counties or do they have their own? if so where can I find those?, I have them in my old BC796d but not sure which ones they are

 

[JethrowJohnson]

It should be whatever site(s) cover the area you're in.

 

[tvengr]

From what I see in the database, you only need 2 sites for the ARMER system. MN State Patrol uses the same sites. Here is a map to show which State Patrol talkgroups you will need: Contact - District Map and Contacts (mn.gov) I have several BC796D's. Surprisingly, they work better with simulcast systems than many of the newer scanners. Attached is a PDF file which will help you to understand how to use quick keys with the BCD325P2. What programming software do you use with your scanners?

1 (1) 004 (4) Carver - Scott Co. Simulcast Carver, MN 851.125 851.375 851.4375 851.700 851.8875c 852.075c 852.4375c 852.700 852.800 852.9375 853.225 853.375 853.4625 853.7875c 854.5875 855.9875 3 (3) 045 (2D) McLeod Co. - Simulcast McLeod, MN 851.075 851.400 852.100 852.4625 852.750c 853.125c 853.400

 

[semiwrecker1]

I am using Proscan

 

[ofd8001]

You would program the control channels from those sites that cover your area. (Control Channels are common to all users. They are like the "traffic cops" directing users to available voice channels so they can converse. This is what is happening behind the scenes.)

The talkgroups pertain to users. So if you want to hear MSP, then program all the MSP talkgroups. (If you want to hear your local fire, then you'd program their talkgroups, and so on for other agencies). Don't forget to include the Mutual Aid talkgroups like L-Tacs. Interesting stuff there, like pursuits. When something like that happens, they patch the applicable talkgroup with an L-Tac channel, so that additional responding agencies can coordinate.

If you live in Carver County, you only need to program the Carver County site to hear MSP Metro West. The "magic" of the ARMER system is such that all of the MSP Metro West troopers can be heard on that site. So, even though Isanti County is a far piece away, you will hear Isanti county troopers on that Carver site.

Because McCleod County is in a different district (Mankato 2200), then you have to program the site you can hear from where you are.

The key to a robust system like ARMER is to program all of the talkgroups that you are interested in monitoring. Then program the fewest number of sites you can get by with. Makes things more efficient.

This system is about as complicated as it gets for a statewide system.

 

[CcSkyEye]

Scott County LE is all encrypted so you won't hear anything there. Mcleod and Carver County LE is still open, for now.

The Mcleod County fire dispatch TG 33208 comes over the Carver/Scott system most of the time, so depending on your location you may be able to just program your scanner to that system and hear both.

State Patrol metro TG 54 is mostly radio traffic within the metro loop, from what I have heard in the past. Sometimes you'll hear of a crash out western suburbs, if you're monitoring the local fire and law groups you will most likely hear there first anyway. But to be completely honest, I haven't spent much time monitoring State patrol so I could be wrong.

Hope this helps!

 

[KA0XR]

Robust and Complicated usually do not describe the same thing...In the State Patrol's case, having to add hundreds of towers to just to equal the coverage during their VHF days, not to mention all the computers and other trunking hardware, doesn't really conjure up the word 'robust', at least to me.

 

[ofd8001]

To me in the radio system sense, "Robust" would mean something that most all users would find functional wherever they happen to be, whenever they have a need to communicate.

"Complicated" means you could NOT explain how it works in 100 words or less.

Minnesota's system meets both tests. It is very complicated, particularly around the metro area when it comes to what sub-systems work where, how they link in certain scenarios, etc.

 

[mmtstc]

state patrol forces their main talkgroup onto all state owned towers appropriate to the coverage districts. they do not force onto 1-009. 2-001 and 2-002 since they are not state owned towers and are owned by Hennepin county and the city of Minneapolis, but they do force onto 1-001 as well as the other suburban simulcasts.
wright/sherburne 4-040 is on the border, so you will get 2500 and 2600 mains all the time, just like lonsdale is on the border so you will get probably 2400, 2500, and 2100? forced on.