Palmetto 800 P25 Conversion Discussion

[rescue161]

I just accessed both systems with my browser, so I think the link is still there


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I was trying to look at the Spartanburg County link.

I see what the admin did. He removed the Palmetto 800 from the sites that have been updated so that you only see Palmetto P25 for those sites. On sites that have not been upgraded yet, the Palmetto P25 link is not there and it only shows the Palmetto 800 system. It is strange that the Palmetto 800 is lit up in green on the Spartanburg link. Or at least it looks that way on the Spartanburg link.

 

[garys]

Thanks, I missed it.

York county is the “Newport” site I referenced in my previous post. They have switched.


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[brian]

Some comments on the database updating process -

I removed the "Statewide County" entry on the Palmetto 800 page, which removes the link from the SC state database page. I'll add that entry to the Palmetto P25 system once the conversion is complete. You can still find links to both systems on the SC Trunked Systems tab at the top of the state page, or on the county pages.

Not immediately after a site's transition, but soon after, I replace the trunked system links on the conventional agency subcategories on the county pages from Palmetto 800 to Palmetto P25. Parts of the Catawba area of the state have changed in the last 24 hours, so I haven't replaced those links just yet. Palmetto 800 links are still in place for counties in the upstate that have not yet transitioned to P25.

As I "move" sites and talkgroup categories from Palmetto 800 to Palmetto P25, I delete them from the Palmetto 800 page. I deleted quite a few categories yesterday. Hence, Palmetto 800 shows a change and is colored green.

I move sites to Palmetto P25 as we have listeners submit site numbers. This allows me to keep sites properly organized without using made-up site number values. We still lack site numbers for sites such as Chesterfield, Marion, Effingham and Stephens Crossroads, and that's why they're still on the Palmetto 800 page instead of P25.

Once the transition is fully completed, the Palmetto 800 database page will be deprecated, and I will rename Palmetto P25 to Palmetto 800. It will show up on the SC State page at that time.

Thanks for everyone's patience as we work through this process. There is a method and reasoning to the process. I'll be away for most of the week next week, so my updates may be less frequent. Thanks to all that have contributed and will contribute, and I encourage everyone to submit any information they have.

Brian

 

[rescue161]

Thanks Brian for all that you do. I figured that it was something like that once the other poster said that he could see the links. Once I tried a few other pages, it started making sense. A whole lot of data being shifted around makes for a lot of confusion. You are handling it very well.

 

[KingslyPhoto]

P25 Scanner Suggestion Request

Good day all! With the move to P25, I’m now faced with the choice of upgrading my old Pro-97. As I understand it, Palmetto 800 has moved to P25 Phase 1 and I haven’t seen documentation of a future move to Phase 2. Do we know if there is a plan for that move?

A little background on what my needs will be; I will mostly monitor Lexington County Law, Fire, EMS and Richland County Fire. I’m a Photo Journalist with a long history in Public Safety, 10 year as a Paramedic in Pittsburgh PA, Pittsburgh 911 Center, Lexington County 911 Center, and SCHP Communications Blythewood. (And a solid background in IT so programming shouldn’t be an issue)

With the 97 I had banks set up by county then by agency type. Example; banks 1 2 3 were all Lexington county with Harbison and Lexington control towers, where bank was 1 law, 2 fire, 3 EMS and their associated talk groups.

I’ve looked over the BCD436HP, TRX-1, and HomePatrol-2 from what I see each has their own pros and cons, so I’ve come to the expert/owners to help me make my final decision. Below are some of the things that will or could be a factor for me.

I’d like to be able to group things for quick access like I did with the 97, being able to turn agencies and locations on and off without going through several menus. Most of my scanning will be done on the move so a good screen view in a car or truck is a must. Information on the screen I’d like to see would be tower, TGID, and unit/radio ID all with my own custom alpha tags, i.e. Harbison TWR - LCFS Dispatch – ST09 or LEX TWR - LCFS FG 02 - ENG09. And lastly, YES money is a factor! (I also like the idea of the Fire Tone to monitor select stations at night when sleeping)

Thank you in advance for your suggestions!

 

[k3sls]

You should seriously consider throwing the Unication G4 or G5 into the mix for consideration!

https://forums.radioreference.com/unication-forum/

Unication USA

 

[rwages]

I agree I just got a hp 1 worked for a few weeks on sc hp and Richland county then nothing. Thanks to rr I got that sc was up grading thanks.

 

[brian]

Any of the three scanners you listed will give you much more flexibility in programming compared to your PRO-97.

The HP-2 is quite menu driven, and is not exactly portable, so based on your use case, I'd probably drop it from consideration.

The Unication models aren't scanners per se, and will be somewhat more limited in their flexibility, but they'll give you the best performance in terms of reception reliability. Lexington County uses a simulcast arrangement, which can be problematic for consumer scanners.

I don't have any reason to think that another upgrade to Phase II is planned anytime soon. However, I don't have any first or second-hand knowledge to back that up, so it could happen next week or next month. I think that's pretty unlikely.

You might consider downloading and working with the programming software applications for each radio and let that be a determining factor. I'm a GRE/Whistler guy myself, but I don't find the programming app to be all that great. It leaves a lot to be desired. But I've gotten used to it and learned its various idiosyncrasies.

Good luck on your selection.

 

[INDY72]

Phase II is a little ways off for the palmetto. So your fine with an TRX-1 BCD436HP etc

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[gpsblake]

Will the Whistler 1040 be able to pick up the P25? Seems to be the cheapest option on Amazon

My Poor PRO-95 down to just a few freqs by my town of Batesburg-Leesvillle is still on 460.4625 the only Lexington county town not the statewide system.

 

[sthreatt]

Will the Whistler 1040 be able to pick up the P25? Seems to be the cheapest option on Amazon

My Poor PRO-95 down to just a few freqs by my town of Batesburg-Leesvillle is still on 460.4625 the only Lexington county town not the statewide system.

Yes, the Whistler 1040 is digital and P-25 phase 1 capable.

 

[brian]

Troop 2 sites are scheduled to be migrated to P25 this evening. Some of them already have. But listen for Plum Branch, Due West, Greenwood, Laurens, Joanna, and maybe a few others to change tonight.

 

[AB4BF]

All ready have a bank programmed into my 996 with Johnston's frequencies and switched to P25. Keeping my fingers crossed...

 

[troy201]

Troop 3

Seems Troop 3 has gone over, my 898t has been dead a few weeks now. I usyally listen of the Pickens site on Glassy Mountain.

 

[Phillipsc84]

I was hoping for better signal strength on the Newport site in York county but sadly it appears it’s still just as low power as before. I can barely get signal if at all on DSDPlus or any scanner from Tega Cay area.


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[Jaxco]

So that I'm up to date and clear on the swap over , what group of 800 meg frequencies is Troop 7 on ? Do they ever swap from one set to the other ? I need to understand this a bit better. We have Aiken and Orangeburg. Before the change, I thought troop 7 was called "Orangeburg ". I need to be on the same page. Thanks.

You have to ask that question using KN4AV's accent! :-D

 

[jimmyhjones]

Troop 3 isn't scheduled to switch to P-25 until later in October, the 23rd and 24th if I remember correctly! Troop 2 switches on October 2nd & 3rd...

 

[lakeside121]

in greenwood sc 13008TGID there testing the radios of conversion 12345 54321 etc they sound real good

 

[kg4wbb]

Does SLED have any operation out of the Aiken area and what set of 800's are they on ? Thanks

 

[brian]

Troop 3 isn't scheduled to switch to P-25 until later in October, the 23rd and 24th if I remember correctly! Troop 2 switches on October 2nd & 3rd...

Thanks for this information. I'm sorry that I previously posted inaccurate information about switchover dates.