Newbie question about Philly

[N215]

Hi, as the title says, I‘m new to the ins and outs of scanners. Looking for some recommendations for scanners that will work to monitor Philly PD primarily and related Philly emergency services. From my research, I need one that can capture trunked systems but don’t know much beyond that. Can anyone suggest a good scanner for listening to PPD District level traffic and citywide stuff? Thanks in advance.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Welcome to the forums. Coverage of the Philly system is rather limited anywhere outside of the city limits. From within the coverage area you may experience a phenominon known as simulcast distortion. Plenty of discussion about that here on the forums so I'm not going to get into detail about it here (just click the link to learn what it is). With that said & monitoring the system occasionally while I'm within range, my recommendation goes to the Uniden SDS100 (handheld) or SDS200 (base). I occasionally miss transmissions via my BCD436HP

 

[N215]

Thank you. I’m in city limits, trying to learn this stuff. Is what I need a trunked digital scanner? The goal is listening to PPD district level chatter and citywide channels. Maybe get PFD, news helicopters as well if possible. Thanks again.

 

[PhillyPewPew]

I agree with Whiskey3JMC, I'm also in Philly and I've used 396xt, 436, and 536 to listen to Philly's simulcast system and thought I was golden until recently when I bought the SDS100. I was so used to listening to garbled & missing transmissions, I just accepted it as how it was until I came home with my new SDS100. Instantly it started pulling in the signals better and the transmissions are crystal clear now. Yes pricy and has a steep learning curve but well worth it.

 

[Jl942264]

SDS or Unication G series will eliminate the simulcast distortion. I’m pretty local to you if you would like a hand PM me…

 

[buddrousa]

@trentbob this user would know but I thought they turned encryption on.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

but I thought they turned encryption on.

Nope. Talkgroups ID'ed as clear are still clear.

Maybe get PFD, news helicopters as well if possible. Thanks again.

See frequencies here & thread here regarding news choppers

 

[trentbob]

As has been said District police dispatch and Fire, medic dispatch are in the clear but Philadelphia does have encrypted channels that they use, even on the fire department.

Also as has been mentioned and listed, it is a phase one simulcast system that is very vulnerable to simulcast distortion. Your best radio is the SDS 100 or 200 which work very well, I agree that reception outside of the city can be poor but in my case reception does work up the Route 13 corridor into Bucks County and with a Motorola radio I can easily pick it up in Trenton, however in Montgomery County and Northern bucks and other areas it does die off as soon as you get out of the city.

This is all been covered very well in this thread. Just reinforcing what's been said.

The Citywide frequencies are in the clear such as J-band which is Administration, and certain city-wide Police Services. You will hear Citywide Flash information no matter what district it is in. The T band is your Highway Patrol and traffic units.

 

[N215]

What I have is a portable Uniden Bearcat TrunkTracker IV, but from researching so far it seems that is basically useless for PPD. The goal being to get my local district, nearby districts, JBand citywide alerts. The news helicopters would be an added bonus. Thanks again everyone. Appreciate all your responses.

 

[N215]

Someone recently told me I could purchase a $30 item that connects via USB to a computer and acts as a trunked scanner using software. Has anyone done this?

 

[buddrousa]

Yes it can be done.
What is your computer skill level.
This is no plug and play option.

 

[w2xq]

For grins, you might like to track the flights of the news helicopters. On my Android tablet and phone I use the https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...8oQBegQIDBAB&usg=AOvVaw0n4Foqo91a0EcHP3m2_5jO that works very well.
It appears that the news helicopters calls have two digits within the call letters. Last week i saw channels 3. 6, 10 and 29 maneuvering over a shooting location with live coverage during the 6 o'clock news. The helicopters flew off in different directions afterwards.

 

[captaincab]

In the meantime until you save up enough there are groups you can subscribe to that host feeds on Zello and there’s the broadcastify app they have all the district talk groups and city wide j band as well as north and south Fire dispatch you can pm me if you wish for more information

 

[trentbob]

In the meantime until you save up enough there are groups you can subscribe to that host feeds on Zello and there’s the broadcastify app they have all the district talk groups and city wide j band as well as north and south Fire dispatch you can pm me if you wish for more information

You can go to radio reference or any one of the many police apps using the same information.. a little bit of a delay but .. enjoy it why you can.

 

[N215]

I’ve been using Broadcastify App but recently I’ve noticed a major drop in sound quality for some districts. Not complaining because I know these are volunteers providing the service but I’d like to have my own feed if possible for local incidents. I am not familiar with Zello. As for news helicopters, I thought it might be interesting to hear their radio traffic. I’ve used the flight tracker apps but curious sometimes why the stations are over a specific place. I’d be willing to try the software/USB device for a computer. Also, am assuming my Uniden Bearcat TrunkTracker IV is fairly useless for PPD Scanning?

 

[captaincab]

You can go to radio reference or any one of the many police apps using the same information.. a little bit of a delay but .. enjoy it why you can.

Yeah I hear the big E is coming well that’s the rumor again anyway

 

[trentbob]

Yeah I hear the big E is coming well that’s the rumor again anyway

Oh yes, that rumor is very active for many many years lol, they're going Phase 2, that rumor is many many years old. The system was even listed incorrectly as Phase 2 in the database for years and years lol. It finally got corrected.. years ago LOL.

Maybe it's a case of, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Who knows, probably don't want to spend the money.

 

[captaincab]

Oh yes, that rumor is very active for many many years lol, they're going Phase 2, that rumor is many many years old. The system was even listed incorrectly as Phase 2 in the database for years and years lol. It finally got corrected.. years ago LOL.

Maybe it's a case of, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Who knows, probably don't want to spend the money.

I think they actually have a few phase 2 groups but there still very much phase 1 currently lol

 

[trentbob]

I think they actually have a few phase 2 groups but there still very much phase 1 currently lol

With many encrypted talk groups including fire.

 

[radio3353]

The system was even listed incorrectly as Phase 2 in the database for years and years lol. It finally got corrected.. years ago LOL.

Yes indeed. That always bothered me so I mentioned it to the moderation staff and I was promptly blown off for some reason . But, as you say, it was fixed not long after.

Maybe it's a case of, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Who knows, probably don't want to spend the money.

I think Philly has bigger fish to fry right now like illegal immigrants now showing up in buses and people dying in the streets almost every day from gunshot wounds. Sadly, Philly is a cesspool right now and I stay far away.