Official BCD996T Post Release Thread

[scannerfreak]

Thanks for the explanation Paul. I had a feeling cost might be part of the issue. Well I certanly enjoy it in the 396T anyway. I'm surprised that more people don't like it.

Mod time already, huh, scanner_freak? At least no one has asked if there are any cell mods for it....yet.

I wish Blue to..Ya, I'm going to try and tap it. I know, Void waranty..BUt hey..Prob gonna try an RCA on the back..If I do I'll snap some photos..Need to know the Pin though if anyone has a clue..

 

[dlively]

996T is great

Got mine late fri evening. Put in air band for starters, picks up much more than my 2096. Then tried railroads same thing much better than my 2096. Finally got P25 Louisiana Latie 700mhz working on two sites and find the voice to be quite nice and clear unless the sig strength drops to 1 bar or less. Other than being a little harder to understand the programming, I think this radio kicks butt over the 2096 and am very happy with it. The UASD is very nice for a freebee, much better than I expected.

 

[jpm]

Well, no one has asked publicly. And to the private query, the answer was "no."

I myself like the blue smurf light on the BCD396T.

 

[EricCottrell]

Hello,

I ended up going to HRO in NH for an antenna and mount and ended up with a BCD996T as well. Time to dig out the GPS. I also discovered they now make a double DIN adapter for my 2006 Ford Fusion! So time to figure out how to install the new radios.

Like Scott I am not a big fan of the clicky volume and squelch controls. This unit is solid and heavy like a car radio should be. It looks like the volume and squelch contols are read by the processor and not directly connected to the audio and squelch. The manual mentions you can override the volume and squelch settings via the serial port.

I am interested in the Discriminator tap point as well although this unit may end up being a voice radio. The traditional Uniden tap point is the Data Skip test point as most of the past Uniden Base/Mobiles had it marked on the board, usually as "LND8 Data Skip".

BTW, I am the one who discovered how to "unlock" the Delorme Tripmate and wrote the now dusty and cobwebbed FAQ. I am pretty sure the newer Delorme Earthmate will not work because it uses the Rockwell protocol and not NEMA.

73 Eric

 

[DaveIN]

I like the cool blue also. I think there were only one or two people that lothed the blue on this forum, but as much as I would have liked to have it, I would rather have great APCO-25 digital audio and trunk tracking.

 

[STiMULi]

BTW, I am the one who discovered how to "unlock" the Delorme Tripmate and wrote the now dusty and cobwebbed FAQ.

Do you have a link to a "How to"?

I posted one in the WIKI but since you are the creator...

 

[ZR1LT5]

Bingo! What was messing me up was that the scroll knob and volume knobs are not one and the same on the 996T. I should have figured that one out....oh well, I never claimed to be the fullest beer in the six pack.

Here is the procedure for tweaking AGC for P25 Reference Gain and P25 Res Time for the BCD996T.

1. Power on the 996T while pressing the HOLD/RESUME button. The display will rapidly flash between red and green. The display will then appear as normal.
2. Press in the function knob. WHILE THE F IS FLASHING IN THE UPPER LEFT OF THE DISPLAY, press the volume knob ONCE.
3. The text "P25 RES TIME" appears in the bottom line of the display, with +0 next to it.
4. Rotate the scroll knob to adjust the setting. -7 was the recommended setting for the 396T.
5. Once set to the desired level, press the scroll knob.
6. Press the scroll knob again, and while the F is flashing, rotate the knob. P25 REF GAIN now appears, also with a +0 to the right of it.
7. Rotate the scroll knob to adjust the setting. +3 was the recommended setting for the 396T.
8. Once set to the desired level, press the scroll knob.

I can already tell you I like the sound better after doing this. If it matters, all of the P25 I listen to is conventional, not trunked.

P25 RES TIME and P25 REF GAIN appeared to be the only two accessible settings using this hidden feature. It appeared that these settings would remain on the display until the scanner was restarted, so I did so and went back in again to ensure that the settings held, which they did.

Thanks, Kikito and UPMan. I knew someone would give me the boot in the behind that would make it work. I just overlooked something simple.

Has anyone been successful doing this? After following the exact instructions through step 2, I do not see "P25 RES TIME". Scanning continues and the text at the bottom of the display reads:

ERR:--- 13 AUTO
T 1.33 1.65 1.97

 

[scannerfreak]

when you Press and HOLD the HOLD/RESUME Button while powering up, does the scanner flash amber and green rapidly? This is how you know you accesed the hidden menu. It does not stay in there. If you power off the unit, you need to power it back up with the HOLD/RESUME in order to get to it again.

 

[whooey]

Has anyone been successful doing this? After following the exact instructions through step 2, I do not see "P25 RES TIME". Scanning continues and the text at the bottom of the display reads:

ERR:--- 13 AUTO
T 1.33 1.65 1.97

same here....

 

[nbcsquire]

Display Mode

it works perfectly here...I'm looking at it right now as I type this...I'm in ID search mode and seeing all of the tags I programmed.

In the scanner configuration editor under "misc" look at the option for display mode. Select option 2 and you should be all set.

 

[whooey]

Has anyone been successful doing this? After following the exact instructions through step 2, I do not see "P25 RES TIME". Scanning continues and the text at the bottom of the display reads:

ERR:--- 13 AUTO
T 1.33 1.65 1.97

OK got it, just make sure your Digital AGC is ON, before you do this....

 

[kikito]

OK got it, just make sure your Digital AGC is ON, before you do this....

And to adjust the Analog, make sure that only the Analog AGC is on.

 

[jwb8734]

Well I love the 996T so far. The GPS seems to be the kool feature.

My few dislikes.
1. Add a discrim tap
2. Make the USAD easier to use. I found it hard to navigate. I know it might be a sore subject but partner up with Butel and make a killer Software
3. Where did the little stand go?

Likes
1. Color Change But add more colors
2. Nice Heavy Duty Housing
3. GPS
4. Front Ports (Headphone and Programming)
5. DIN mount

Scott from SCANCAPECOD had gave a good review and was well put.

Good Job UNIDEN

 

[JGP]

Dislikes #3

Well I love the 996T so far. The GPS seems to be the kool feature.

My few dislikes.
1. Add a discrim tap
2. Make the USAD easier to use. I found it hard to navigate. I know it might be a sore subject but partner up with Butel and make a killer Software
3. Where did the little stand go?

Likes
1. Color Change But add more colors
2. Nice Heavy Duty Housing
3. GPS
4. Front Ports (Headphone and Programming)
5. DIN mount

Scott from SCANCAPECOD had gave a good review and was well put.

Good Job UNIDEN

jwb8734,

I recevied my BCD996T June 2, and I have been really excited with it. The last time I was this happy with a scanner was when I got my PRO-2004 for the first time .

My BC780XLT has the littlel stand. I like the 996 bracket with the rubber feet attached better. It holds the scanner solid and gives me the best viewing angle. With the little drop down stand, you only get the one viewing angle. With the bracket, the scanner can be moved up or down to where the angle is best.

I have the BCD396T. So programing the 996 was easy. This scanner is worth the money IMHO.

Joel:wink:

 

[whooey]

My only fuss is the "treble", the audio is good, but sort of muffled sounding. I wish there was a "treble" knob to turn up to make the sound a little more crispy. But that is nitpicking, it sounds fine.

Other than that, I love this radio, looks great and is solid. I like the green light over red.

 

[jwb8734]

Other than that, I love this radio, looks great and is solid. I like the green light over red.

Yes. I think the Green shows better during the day but at night I do like the red.

But yet again I am happy with the product. I does have a learing curve.

 

[ZR1LT5]

Has anyone been successful doing this? After following the exact instructions through step 2, I do not see "P25 RES TIME". Scanning continues and the text at the bottom of the display reads:

ERR:--- 13 AUTO
T 1.33 1.65 1.97

OK... finally got this done.....thanks for the suggestions!

I programmed this site: http://www.radioreference.com/modules.php?name=TRSDB&sid=3448 and occasionally, I get a transmission that doesn't come through and that is "garbled" or "chirpy". I don't know if this is a reception or setting issue.

Any ideas?

Just to clarify, my last scanner was a PRO-2006 so I admit I'm a Noob .

 

[jehm1212]

OK... finally got this done.....thanks for the suggestions!

I programmed this site: http://www.radioreference.com/modules.php?name=TRSDB&sid=3448 and occasionally, I get a transmission that doesn't come through and that is "garbled" or "chirpy". I don't know if this is a reception or setting issue.

Any ideas?

Just to clarify, my last scanner was a PRO-2006 so I admit I'm a Noob .

There is much encryption used along with "clear" P25 voice on this system. Even the bus drivers have been known to use it! Most, if not all, of the "garbled and chirpy" noise you hear is ecryption being used. Look at the scanner's display while you receive these garbled transmissions and see if there is a ENC icon. If so, then it's encryption.

Search the Virginia forum and you will see many posts about this system.

 

[DaveIN]

Also, if the talkgroup is always encrypted, lock it out. Then your radio will not try to track it.

 

[ofd8001]

GPS stuff-

I found a little easier way than having to convert coordinates from the decimal format to the DMS format, than using the converter program. I went to Google Earth, entered the location, then read the coordinates at the bottom of the screen, which are in DMS format.

Has anyone figured out how to do multiple sites on a conventional system? I can only find that capability for trunked systems.