Please help... Nothing to Scan...

[johnsland8]

I just got a BCD536HP and it's driving me crazy. I'm new to this so I know it's user error but I have been through every checklist and search I can find and I can't make it work. I am trying to set up a Favorites List just to cover Portland Police and Multnomah County Sheriff. I am using Sentinel, writing to the SD Card and then putting the SD Card in the scanner. I can get all the surrounding counties, OSP, WSP, just about everything in my area just fine. But when I try to narrow down a Favorites List to just Portland Police and MCS, I get "nothing to scan" message. If I use the full database it scans the locations I have in my FL, but if I try to limit to just those locations, I get nothing. What am I doing wrong?

 

[buddrousa]

Nothing to Scan - The RadioReference Wiki

wiki.radioreference.com

 

[johnsland8]

Nothing to Scan - The RadioReference Wiki

wiki.radioreference.com

Thank you. That was the first checklist I tried. None of those settings seemed to help. I guess I was hoping there was something less generic and maybe some setting more specific to Portland Police that I was missing. I think I'm just going to reset everything and start from the beginning. I must have messed something up along the way.

 

[buddrousa]

Did you assign your favorite list a start up number?

 

[Dreamflight767]

Honestly I find ARC easiest to use.

Software for Uniden Whistler HOME PATROL HP1 HP-1 PRO-700 BCD436HP BCD536HP Radioshack GRE GRECOM MFJ DSE AOR police scanner software BCD996XT BCD396XT BC346T BCT15X PRO-404 PRO-405 PRO-97 PRO-96 PRO-2096 PRO-106 PRO-197 PRO-164 PRO-160 PRO-162 psr500 psr600 psr300 psr400 psr100 psr200 BCD996T BCT15 BC246T UBC800XLT UBC785XLT PRO-433 PRO-528 BCD396T PSR-500 PSR-600 PSR500 PSR600 PSR300 PSR400 PRO160 PRO106 PRO162 PRO164 PRO-197 PRO-2055

Whistler,Uniden Radioshack GRE PRO-96 PRO-2096 PRO-106 PRO-197 scanner scanners software for PRO-135, PRO-136, PRO-137,BCD996T, BCT15, PRO-433, PRO528, BC246T, BCD396T, UBC785XLT, PRO-2051, UBC3500XLT, USC230, PSR-500, PSR-600, PSR500, PSR600, AOR, ALPHA, SR2000, SR2000A, PRO, Starrsoft, Scancat...

www.butel.nl

Also, in case it helps any using these instructions as I programmed helped understand how the scanner worked.

Easier to Read BCD436/536HP Digital Scanner Manual

 

[johnsland8]

Did you assign your favorite list a start up number?

I am not using any start up numbers or quick keys. I have all those options set to off. I am trying to keep the testing part as simplified as possible with only one Favorites List for now and I'm selecting it manually when I turn on the scanner. I will expand later, once I have more time.

Here's what gets me... I create a new Favorites List, I go to "add channels on range", I use my zip code and a radius to download a bunch of agencies and such to scan. I load it to my scanner and it appears to scan everything on the list. I really only want to scan Portland Police Bureau - Central Precinct Dispatch, Portland Police Bureau – Southeast, Portland Police Bureau - North Precinct Dispatch, Portland Police Bureau - East Precinct Dispatch, and Multnomah County Sheriff/East County Law Dispatch. So I watch those come up on the scanner as being scanned and I am receiving audio from most of those specific locations. I go back into my FL and I delete or Avoid (I tried both ways) all those other things that downloaded originally that I don't want and just leave those I mentioned above. I save it and load it back into the scanner and I get nothing. I select the same list I was just using that was scanning these sites and now that I've eliminated everything I don't want and just leave these active, I get "nothing to scan". I'm not changing any settings or doing anything different, just limiting what's available to scan. Why won't it just scan the remaining locations that it was scanning before? It appears I'm deleting or avoiding something that needs to be monitored to make this system work but I cannot figure out what it is.

Thank you!

 

[johnsland8]

OK. I think I figured it out. I was inadvertently setting to avoid the East Simulcast and West Simulcast. Not sure if just one or both of these need to be active but I removed the avoid on both and it's working fine now.

Thanks for the input.

 

[jonwienke]

If you avoid all the sites for a trunked system, that disables the entire system.

 

[KE5MC]

...snip...
I am using Sentinel, writing to the SD Card and then putting the SD Card in the scanner.
...snip...

No need to swap the SD card in and out of the radio to change how radio is programmed. When you plug the radio into the USB port you have a choice of mass storage mode or serial port mode. Select mass storage and it will be like using a SD card reader. Unplug cable when done and radio will restart.
Mike
I now noticed its a 536. I forget how I used to program mine. Likely with the USB cable, but maybe not. :-(

 

[jonwienke]

The 536 programs with a USB cable like the rest of Uniden's more recent models.

 

[johnsland8]

If you avoid all the sites for a trunked system, that disables the entire system.

Yes. I didn't realize I was doing that. Despite the fact that I limited the range in the download I was kind of surprised how much stuff was included. It was a lot so I was doing mass avoids and didn't see it.

Is it common for multiple agencies like County Sheriff, County Fire, State and City Police to all be on one trunked system?

 

[doctordialtone]

Is it common for multiple agencies like County Sheriff, County Fire, State and City Police to all be on one trunked system?

Very common. That's one of the benefits of a trunked system.

Multiple agencies sharing sites and equipment.

Just look through the database.

 

[johnsland8]

No need to swap the SD card in and out of the radio to change how radio is programmed. When you plug the radio into the USB port you have a choice of mass storage mode or serial port mode. Select mass storage and it will be like using a SD card reader. Unplug cable when done and radio will restart.
Mike

The 536 programs with a USB cable like the rest of Uniden's more recent models.

Yes, thank you. The cable is not that long and I did not have the radio in a position I could plug it directly into my PC. But, believe me after about the sixth time of taking the card out, putting it into an adapter, inserting it into the card reader, and back into the scanner, etc., I quickly moved the scanner closer to the PC so I could just plug it in.
I do find it extremely annoying that I have to select USB or Serial EVERY time I plug it in. Especially considering the cable limits access to the E button.
Of course, if you actually set up your favorites list correctly the first time, it doesn't take 10 tries to get it to work right

 

[johnsland8]

Very common. That's one of the benefits of a trunked system.

Thank you. I clearly have a lot to learn. That's why I appreciate you all chiming in and helping me out. I try to research and read as much as I can before I ask a question but sometimes I just don't understand what I'm reading especially when I can't relate it directly to my situation or I get frustrated.

 

[buddrousa]

We were all at one time where you are and members here helped us.

 

[sparklehorse]

Is it common for multiple agencies like County Sheriff, County Fire, State and City Police to all be on one trunked system?

Just an FYI, the Oregon State Police don’t actually operate on the Portland system. They have their own radio system (OSRP, it’s in the database) and actually still use conventional VHF a lot, including in the Portland area. You may hear OSP from time to time on the Portland system, but what you’re hearing is what’s called an InterOp channel. It’s used when a Portland or Multnomah county officer needs to talk directly to an OSP trooper, or they may just activate that channel so they can monitor OSP radio traffic, like during a car chase. So while you may occasionally hear OSP on one of the Portland channels, you will not hear them 24/7/365 on that system.
.

 

[johnsland8]

Just an FYI, the Oregon State Police don’t actually operate on the Portland system. They have their own radio system (OSRP, it’s in the database) and actually still use conventional VHF a lot, including in the Portland area. You may hear OSP from time to time on the Portland system, but what you’re hearing is what’s called an InterOp channel. It’s used when a Portland or Multnomah county officer needs to talk directly to an OSP trooper, or they may just activate that channel so they can monitor OSP radio traffic, like during a car chase. So while you may occasionally hear OSP on one of the Portland channels, you will not hear them 24/7/365 on that system.
.

Awesome. Thank you!