Newbie with Q's

[gov-t_mule]

Hello.

Newbie to scanners and radio. In the small amount of research I have done, I believe I want a hand-held scanner like a BC346XT. My question relates to analog vs. digital. Is there any need for a digital scanner in King County? I would like to listen to SPD, SFD, KCS, DOT and weather.

It appears that most if not all the talkgroups in the area are analog. Is this correct? Is there any reason I would be better off with a 996XT?

I didn't know if this was the correct subforum. Thanks.

 

[SCPD]

King County is generally Analog Motorola 800mhz trunking. Some Federal/Military agencies are using digital P25 in the area but it's about 99% encrypted. So a digital scanner won't unlock much in the way of added listening. (I believe Pierce Co transit is on P25 now, but I'm not sure how much they encrypt.)

The only real benefit is when traveling to other cities that use P25 digital. Even then, a lot of agencies encrypt the 'action' channels. For example, in Boise, ID, the main dispatch channels are public and in the clear however the TAC channels are all encrypted.