Ordered a new scanner

[rayneeny]

Hi there,

I have just ordered a BC346XT scanner and it arrives tomorrow.I am in the Halifax,NS area and perhaps i had researched more in this forum.

Is it a waste of time me getting this scanner for the area i am in?



Ray

 

[Deziel0495]

Is it a waste of time me getting this scanner for the area i am in?

Kinda looks that way. You need a scanner capable of listening to the new digital trunk system. The scanner needs to be able to receive 700 MHz and Project 25 Phase 1 systems.

I'm sure you could still listen to VHF fire departments as RCMP/Police and any agency that broadcasts sensitive material will be encrypted on the new system.

 

[rayneeny]

Thought so my bad.

I do have an interest in the airband though so i am sure it will work fine for that.

I can always return it but the digital receivers seem so expensive.

 

[Deziel0495]

Thought so my bad.

I do have an interest in the airband though so i am sure it will work fine for that.

I can always return it but the digital receivers seem so expensive.

Yes, digital scanners are quite expensive, but you can sometimes catch a deal on eBay. Got my PRO-651 for $249 shipping included.

 

[blacktop]

It should perform quite well for A/C. Unidens base equivalent (BCT15X) does a nice job with VHF Aero. I don't believe the handheld version has MilAir, but if you are around Metro, there should be lots to hear on VHF...

Thought so my bad.

I do have an interest in the airband though so i am sure it will work fine for that.

I can always return it but the digital receivers seem so expensive.

 

[hfxChris]

Might help to know where you are, approximately. Town/region/county.

 

[rayneeny]

I am in Eastern Passage,NS.

Steep learning curve with this scanner methinks.I have a usb-1 cable coming in the mail to me.Serial cable came with box but not tried the adaptor to usb yet.

I have tried scanning the airband and so far can only get Shearwater ground with using either the rubber duck or a skyscan antenna.I would of thought i would be able to hear aircraft in flight around me.I can receive Halifax traffic(marine) really well(not sure where they are based)but usually i can just hear the one side.I guess i need to purchase a dedicated airband antenna which will need to be placed inside the house.

I am going to continue with reading information on this website and the easier to read manual for the bc346xtc and hope that eventually it sinks in properly and i get my scanner working properly.

Ray

 

[hfxChris]

Okay, yep that scanner will work just fine for aero, marine, rail etc. Should get Shearwater very well, marine harbour traffic too if you're interested in that.
Unfortunately as the guys said, just about everything else you won't get on that..

 

[rayneeny]

I am interested in anything i can to be honest with a strong preference for airband.

It shows that you are in Dartmouth hfx chris,are you able to receive the airband well and what antenna do you use if you do not mind me asking?



Ray

 

[blangell]

Ray this might be of interest to you...

This map shows air re-fueling track locations and and primary and secondary freqs NorthEast AAR Tracks - The RadioReference Wiki. I hear re-fueling in AR-631 on a regular basis and AR 212 & 204 sometimes.I have even caught refueling on AR 20 which goes right over NS.

Also are you familiar with this website Special Use Airspace & Air Traffic Control Assigned Airspace it lists times when the re-fueling tracks are scheduled to be open.

This RR thread http://forums.radioreference.com/atlantic-maritime/180201-mid-air-refueling-over-nova-scotia.html has some good reading and recorded air refuelings over Nova Scotia, some of the tankers are from Pease AFB in New Hampshire and some from Bangor Maine as well as other part os the US

 

[rayneeny]

Thanks Brian i will definitely look into that,sounds very exciting.

 

[blangell]

Ray one thing...the first few pages of http://forums.radioreference.com/atlantic-maritime/180201-mid-air-refueling-over-nova-scotia.html has some outdated info but it does get updated within a few pages. But all in all good reading.

 

[rayneeny]

I have a uniden bc346xtc so does not have the military band,darn.

 

[blangell]

According to this it does Uniden Bearcat BC346XTC Police Scanner Radio | ScannerMaster.com

all though you might be right found this that says diiferently Uniden Bearcat BC346XTC TrunkTracker Scanner, BC-346XTC

 

[rayneeny]

I only got the scanner yesterday,there is no mention of mil when looking through services.

This is what the radio covers Frequency coverage 25-225, 400-512, 806-824, 849-869, 894-960, 1240-1300 MHz.As far as i know.

Looks like i am out of luck for mil band?

 

[blangell]

Yeh that sorta sucks don't know why ScannerMaster say it does but the other one says it doesn't.

 

[hfxChris]

Why the heck would Uniden not include milair in that...

It shows that you are in Dartmouth hfx chris,are you able to receive the airband well and what antenna do you use if you do not mind me asking?

I do where I'm at, but I'm also at a relatively high elevation here. One thing that'll always help is having an external antenna if you can, and getting it up above the roof. Of course experiment with the stock antenna first, but if you're finding that you're not pulling much in you may want to consider upgrading to an external antenna.

I'm using the "OmniX" from DPD Productions, but there's a lot of other great performers out there as well. It's a general purpose receive antenna, with wideband coverage. He also sells others specifically for aviation which may be interesting to consider, especially since I would imagine almost everything you'll be receiving will be VHF.

Also check out this website, great resource for aero frequencies:

Nova Scotia Aviation Frequencies
and
New Brunswick Aviation Frequencies <- check out the Moncton Area Control Centre frequencies, Moncton controls the airspace over NS using those frequencies.

 

[rayneeny]

I just ordered 2 antennas from 2 Canadian Companies.

A Antennacraft ST-2 for home use and a Watson w-901L Portable antenna which is tuned for the Civil and Military Airbands.

Once they arrive my radio should be a lot busier i hope ON VHF at least.



Thanks for all your help guys,my last scanner was a Yupiteru vt125 airband only that i owned in England before emmigrating.Now That was a nice radio for its time and i wish i had not sold it.

Ray