Philadelphia FD from Bucks Co.

[Rich250]

To answer your question, Rich250, on my 396 reception was slightly improved. I listened the other day from the Deptford area and slightly less motorboating, though I did hear a few of them. Thats not too great considering I noticed a huge improvement on Burlington County digital (even the West system which was just horrible), Bucks, and Montgomery Co. Fire. All of these systems I hardly hear any machinegunning. So how did you make out with the firmware upgrade?

Thank you policefreak for giving me some feedback. I'm still on V1 firmware. I'm getting 2-3 bars on Philly system out here in (Southampton) lower Bucks County, good enough for me for now. I have been reluctant to go to V2 since I read a post (somewhere in a V2 thread) stating that UHF freqs have been degraded by the new firmware. Bucks uses UHF and I don't want to take a chance on making my primary monitoring system less than what it is now. Thanks again for your input.

 

[policefreak]

After doing the V2 firmware upgrade, I only noticed a slight degradation in the reception of Burlington County TRS which is 500 MHz. Other than that A-OK. But it really depends on the scanner. Each 396 has its own little quirks. But I'm thinking if you live in Bucks and receive it well, and you mostly listen from Bucks, then you shouldn't have a problem. Most places I go in Bucks, I receive the system full power, so I don't think there are many coverage gaps. The upgrade really improves P-25 performance, which I'm guessing is mostly what you listen to in your location. It also helps cut down on the long hold time the scanner takes while scanning TRS's. Well, good luck!