New to scanners

[mhayes93]

Hello everyone, I am new to scanners and I am looking to be able to pick up the Modesto dispatch frequencies. My price range is around $100. What would you recommend?

 

[teufler]

It appears the county you are in has no 800mhz trunking systems, just vhf and uhf conventional. Now $100 is a limiting factor as Most new scanners are above that in price. Now thinking outside the box, there are radios that scan that can cover the frequencies you want. Radios, they are two way radios so DON'T TALK, they care okay to listen with and their prices are well within your budget. Baofeng , they are Chinese radios that are being imported, UV3, UV5 models, $39.00 and up, you can research on ebay. Depends on the stuff you get with it, but the radio, battery, straps for hand carry cost about $45.00 and shipping is less than $10.00 They are dual band, so vhf/uhf is fine. They are small but they work..Had one for going on 3 years and they operate fine. no problems. They scan slower than a normal scanner but for what you need in modesto, they would work. They are portable, rechargeable, and you can attach a larger antenna if you need it . Once again, the radios WILL TRANSMIT so watch this function.

 

[pinballwiz86]

I recommend you get a Uniden BC125AT. Check it out..I think you'll like it!

 

[2k1typeSH]

I would recommend looking into the Radio Shack Pro-107. They don't make them anymore, but you can be find them on eBay.

There are two cities in the Modesto area which are currently on trunked systems, Ceres and Turlock. If you were interested in listening to those areas, the Bearcat would not be able to pick up the trunked systems. Since this is a scanner and not a radio, you would not have to worry about accidentally transmitting on a public safety frequency like you would with the Chinese radios available on eBay. Another good factor about the Pro-107 are that it is easily programmable, as it contains an SD card with all known radio frequencies on it listed by area and agency. You can organize channels into 20 separate playlists, which is plenty for the area you are interested in.

Ultimately, the choice is yours, but I think that the Pro-107 would fit your needs well.

 

[DeadMike]

I recommend you get a Uniden BC125AT. Check it out..I think you'll like it!

To hit that $100 requirement look at the Uniden BC355N scanner. Can be had new for your price point. Pretty user friendly and scans right out of the box. This was my first model and was very pleased with it for it's cost!

Spend a little more (I just got a BC125AT for $112) and step up to alpha tagging and such. If you are only looking to pick up a few dispatch channels you may not need, or even want, the alpha tags.

 

[GrumpyGuard]

If you wish to listen to Turlock you will need a trunk tracking scanner. You might be able to find a used scanner on ebay, but I don't think you will find one at your price point.

 

[DeadMike]

I can appreciate everyone's concern over trunking capabilities HOWEVER the op specifically stated monitoring modesto dispatch.

The op can meet his goal UNDER his price point. Sure he can go get a digital trunking scanner. If he needed one. According to him, he doesn't.

 

[DeadMike]

Just a quick FYI the Uniden BC125AT can be had for $103.94 as of today. Pretty great price IMO.

When I got mine on 7-10-14 it was $109.88 although I stated $112 earlier.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00772MR0K/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[pinballwiz86]

Just a quick FYI the Uniden BC125AT can be had for $103.94 as of today. Pretty great price IMO.

When I got mine on 7-10-14 it was $109.88 although I stated $112 earlier.

Amazon.com: Uniden Bearcat 500 Channel Alpha Numeric Hand Held Radio Scanner with CTCSS and DCS (BC125AT): Electronics

I might get another at that price. The BC125AT is definitely worth the money IMO.

 

[DeadMike]

I might get another at that price. The BC125AT is definitely worth the money IMO.

I totally agree. Great radio for the cost!