mlh1448 said:
Hi all from Fayette co Ohio. Washington Court House Wooohoooo
Fayette co SD
I would like to know what the city police use. I seem to recall something in the 800 mhz range. And I also seem to recall something about trunking? But being a noob. I have no clue how to check it or to listen to them.
What scanner do I need to do this? Mind you I work for a living. Gotta love E-Bay.
Check this link:
http://radioreference.com/modules.php?name=RR&ctid=2063
There is information for Fayette County. You can use just about any scanner to monitor the conventional VHF frequencies listed on that page. However, all the 'good stuff' is going to be on the trunked systems. You'll see four trunked systems there - AEP, Dayton Power & Light, and Fayette County, for which you'll need a scanner capable of monitoring EDACS trunked systems since all three of those are EDACS systems.
Then you'll see the MARCS system - This is a statewide system - Ohio Highway Patrol among other things use MARCS. If you want to monitor MARCS, your scanner must also be capable of monitoring Digital P25 data.
Check these links in the Wiki:
-
http://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Uniden_Scanners
-
http://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Radio_Shack_Scanners
Any scanner in any of those lists that shows as having
EDACS capabilities will allow you to monitor Fayette County and the two power companies.
Any scanner in those lists that shows
P25 will allow you to also monitor the State of Ohio MARCS system
and the EDACS systems.
Also make note of which scanners show to be capable of
rebanding. Depending on what other places you might like to monitor in the future, you may need to have a scanner that will work after rebanding occurs. Read the following link to learn about rebanding and how it may affect your listening -
http://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Rebanding#Which_Systems_will_be_Rebanded.3F .
I personally would suggest that you get a digital scanner from the onset - one that includes digital P25 support - i.e., A Uniden BCD396T or BCD996T (newest Unidens - about $500), and the BC296D, BC796D (older Unidens - can be gotten cheaper - make sure you get one with the digital board in it though), or a Radio Shack PRO-2096 or PRO-96. These all support P25 (as well as EDACS and Motorola stuff) and all are supposedly capable of being updated to support the rebanding.
If you absolutely positively know that you will not (nor want to) monitor P25 systems like Ohio MARCS and some others, then you can go for a scanner that doesn't have P25 support. Additionally, if you also know that the only trunked systems you monitor will be the local power company EDACS system as well as the Fayette County EDACs system, then you don't necessarily need a scanner that will work after rebanding.
There are people on these forums often selling all of the above mentioned scanners and more.
It's going to be a rough choice for you - so many options, so many things to think about. But in the end, if you can afford $500 for a scanner, I would recommend one of the newest scanners that supports P25 and rebanding.
Hope that helps.
Mike
