Poll: What company makes (has made) the highest quality radio scanner?

[zzdiesel]

I choose Whistler because they don't charge for Moto & NXDN.

 

[Drkatzjr45]

Thanks for voting and offering your opinion

 

[eorange]

Quality also means manufacturing quality and reliability. In that regard Uniden has earned a solid D with their last 2 model lines.

 

[Drkatzjr45]

Thanks for voting and for your opinion

 

[Drkatzjr45]

Currently 72 people have voted. The poll ends Feb 6 at 7:42PM

Thank you for all who participated

 

[prcguy]

I've been inside a lot of scanners since the 1970s and have seen various build qualitys as well as performance. The earlier Bearcat and Uniden scanners were amazing. Amazing that they worked at all considering their juvenile and sparse design and cheap phenolic circuit boards. Regency had some really good models for their time and also some lemons. Later GRE and RS scanners were well built and worked great and so were most of the AOR and Yupiteru line. I've only seen the insides of later Icom receivers and they are also very good quality construction and performance.

I think its hard to pin down one company because if a particular scanner is top of the heap, it doesn't mean everything from that company is top notch. I think a few models from different mfrs will rise above on the list but not one specific mfr.

 

[trentbob]

I agree with prcguy.

Whistler has never made their own scanner they are all GRE scanners. All of their different models are just rebranded GREs with keyboards added and some tweaks.

RadioShack never made their own scanner it was always made by another manufacturer, primarily GRE.

I personally started monitoring in the late sixties and there were many high quality companies independently making monitors and scanners. The Electra Company who made many Bearcat radios was bought by Uniden in the 80s. So I guess the Electra company which made excellent Bearcat radios of high-quality would just simply be "other brand"?

And of course it does depend on particular models of each company's radios. I'm going to have to think about this one.

 

[Drkatzjr45]

I've been inside a lot of scanners since the 1970s and have seen various build qualitys as well as performance. The earlier Bearcat and Uniden scanners were amazing. Amazing that they worked at all considering their juvenile and sparse design and cheap phenolic circuit boards. Regency had some really good models for their time and also some lemons. Later GRE and RS scanners were well built and worked great and so were most of the AOR and Yupiteru line. I've only seen the insides of later Icom receivers and they are also very good quality construction and performance.

I think its hard to pin down one company because if a particular scanner is top of the heap, it doesn't mean everything from that company is top notch. I think a few models from different mfrs will rise above on the list but not one specific mfr.

I agree completely. That is why there is the option: “it depends on the radio”

But, as I spoke about this, I have purchased a Whistler scanner that I felt was a very high quality radio.
Yet, I voted for Uniden, because, I have purchased so many of them.

Thus, this poll, while not for everyone, might be more for the person who has tried a “broad array” of radios
from these companies.

There is a bias in the Poll and it relates to this “continuity” topic.

Uniden has been around for a significant amount of time while
(for example,) Whistler (as its own company) does not have an extensive portfolio...
Same for GRE



Thanks so much for voting!

 

[radio3353]

The real value of the poll is that it allows people to validate their choices. Nothing more.

 

[Randyk4661]

I was always impressed by the AOR3000 25+ years ago.
100Khz to 2036Mhz No gaps. AM,NFM,WFM,upper and lower sideband.
It didn't have trunking or do digital.

 

[slicerwizard]

In the 90's, AOR and GRE were the real deal. Uniden was junk - deaf and full of air.

 

[danesgs]

RS PRO-2006, had 2 of them. Radio Shack gets some bad rap for things but they (through GRE) made a incredible radio in the 2006 for its time. s things got into trunking I would say GRE then Uniden but for the best Scanning receiver its ICOM

 

[pennastogey]

Got my vote in...Thanks.

 

[RRR]

I say Uniden, -since the SDS 1 & 2 came out. They were designed to evolve, with software and firmware updates, unfortunately, we are now going on a year since anything has been released to us. Hopefully Uniden will brush themselves off, and get someone in up there again who knows what they are doing!

That being said, Whistler TRX series follows up strong, as they are awesome on DMR and NXDN.

 

[trentbob]

In the 90's, AOR and GRE were the real deal. Uniden was junk - deaf and full of air.

I couldn't agree with that more. Uniden bought Electra company in the middle of the bc210 series. The Bearcat 210 and the 101 both programmable scanners were made in Cumberland Indiana by Electra. When Uniden took over it all went overseas.

GRE made fantastic radios for RadioShack, I remember having a RS pro2004 and a pro2006 made by GRE in the late 80s early 90s they just don't make them like that anymore. GRE made many great radios for RadioShack.

The pro 96 made by GRE for Radio Shack was a great digital scanner and it's the same technology that Whistler uses today in their rebranded GRE radios. Although an attractive little radio it's too bad the TRX series does not handle simulcast distortion well. Unfortunately in my area the nxdn doesn't work well either even though it's free.

Those who know AOR radios... know that they were in a league of their own.

 

[RRR]

Should this have been titled "Scanner" instead of "Radio"? Then Motorola V/S Kenwood / G.E., etc....

 

[KevinC]

The poll starter/OP for some reason left Radio Reference, so don't be expecting any response from him.

 

[trentbob]

Should this have been titled "Scanner" instead of "Radio"? Then Motorola V/S Kenwood / G.E., etc....

The poll starter/OP for some reason left Radio Reference, so don't be expecting any response from him.

Well in all fairness the poster did say scanner in the title of his Poll so it probably wouldn't be legitimate to compare professional radios to consumer radios but since so many of us use Pro radios to scan it's a good point.

It's too bad the poster left. It's an interesting poll and does give people an opportunity to support their vote and offer their learned opinion. Everyone here has made a valid point.

Interesting results so far, sorry to see him go.

 

[eorange]

The poll starter/OP for some reason left Radio Reference, so don't be expecting any response from him.

What does "left" mean? Don't accounts stay around forever?

 

[ten13]

The best radio I ever had was WAY before Uniden got into the market. Uniden was just stepping into the CB market when these radios, below, came out.

The Sonar radios, made in Brooklyn, were outstanding radios. The best one wasn't even a "scanner," but a six-channel crystal-controlled radio. And because of their limited channel capacity (which, at the time, we didn't think it was "limited") it wasn't unusual for someone to have two or three of these mounted in their cars:

They later came out with a 10-channel crystal-controlled scanner, which was also outstanding:

Motorola also made a consumer scanner way-back-when. It was very good, but very expensive. When everyone was trying to save up enough money to buy one of the above for the enormous amount of $125, Motorola was selling theirs for close to $300.

Needless to say that, at that price, Motorola failed in selling enough of them to make it worthwhile.

What made the Sonar radios even better for those of us in the NYC area was that if you had a problem with the radio, you could take a ride out to Brooklyn (Stanley Ave) and they would take a look at it right there. You could even wait for your repairs to be done(antenna connection, knobs, speakers)!