Pro2096/Pro197 differences

[Tramagod]

I'm sure this question has been asked and answered before so I apologize for trodding old ground. I'm looking at picing up a second scanner and I was wondering what the big differences are between the pro 2096 and pro 197. Are they major diffrences or not enough to worry about versus the price differences? Thanks in advance for help in this matter.
N5PMK, Randy

 

[KI5FKE]

I'm sure this question has been asked and answered before so I apologize for trodding old ground. I'm looking at picing up a second scanner and I was wondering what the big differences are between the pro 2096 and pro 197. Are they major diffrences or not enough to worry about versus the price differences? Thanks in advance for help in this matter.
N5PMK, Randy

I own a Pro-2096 and the Pro-106 (portable version of the Pro-197); not many differences except on the Pro-106:
1. NAC decoding,
2. Manually monitor conventional frequencies (Analog & P25) and talkgroups as if they were channels on a radio,
3. The ability to monitor systems using the 700Mhz trunk frequencies,
4. 16-character alpha tags, instead of 12, and
5. Set alert tones and LED light for incoming radio traffic.

There may be other differences, but I can't think of them at this time.

 

[Tramagod]

Thank you very much, I appreciate your quick response. So the biggest difference I see is the 2096 does not get the 700mhz trunking, is that correct?

 

[aps_ak]

I think for certain P25 systems pro-2096 requires you to manually put in tables/band plans, whereas the 106/197 pulls that info from the control channel directly.

 

[fxdscon]

Thank you very much, I appreciate your quick response. So the biggest difference I see is the 2096 does not get the 700mhz trunking, is that correct?

Check this chart here, the PSR-600 is the same as the Pro-197,

Digital Scanner Comparison Chart - The RadioReference Wiki


.

 

[KI5FKE]

Thank you very much, I appreciate your quick response. So the biggest difference I see is the 2096 does not get the 700mhz trunking, is that correct?

To me that's the biggest difference.

 

[NYRHKY94]

I own both, and to me the differences noted above are quite significant. NAC decoding alone is a huge step-up in listening enjoyment for P25 areas. It's the digital version of PL codes, so that you can hear only what you want to hear. I get annoying crossover on some P25 channels with my Pro-2096. The extra alpha tagging and the addition of the LED light & tones on the newer model are also big feature enhancements over the older Pro-2096. The choice is easy IMO.

 

[fredva]

How does the digital decoding on the two compare? Just curious. I've not owned a 2096 or 96.

 

[KI5FKE]

How does the digital decoding on the two compare? Just curious. I've not owned a 2096 or 96.

I would say the decoding of digital signals are better on the Pro-106. But the Pro-2096 decodes digital signals quite well.

 

[Ronaldski]

Unable to set individual priority TG's in the 2096/96 models. Only able to set one analog priority frequency.

 

[patin]

i have a Pro 96 & 2096 and they both work on the 700 P25 trunking i listen to SAN BERNADINO 700 P25 works well

 

[KI5FKE]

i have a Pro 96 & 2096 and they both work on the 700 P25 trunking i listen to SAN BERNADINO 700 P25 works well

No way!!! How did you get that to work?!

 

[ka3jjz]

Probably used the expansion trick - but it shouldn't be able to trunk on 700 Mhz. Listen conventionally, maybe, but I believe neither radio has the necessary table information for it to trunk properly...these radios came out well before 700 Mhz trunking became a reality...Mike

 

[Tramagod]

Thanks for the input, I did decide on the Pro-106, bought one online, should have it by the end of the week. Again, thanks for the input and info.

 

[SquierStrat]

cant believe no one has mentioned this yet, but i think the biggest difference between the 2 is the object oriented scanning vs the traditional 10 banks storage method. The way the channels are stored in the memory on these 2 scanners is completely different. (with the pro 197 being far superior)

 

[cherubim]

The Pro-197 is more sensitive than the Pro-2096 and handles P25 decoding a lot better. You won't get the digital "motorboating" sounds with a Pro-197 since it's now muted.

As someone else rightly pointed out, the biggest difference between a Pro-197 and a Pro-2096 is the object oriented memory management system (OOUI). This is a big departure from the banks/channels system and offers great flexibility in programming.

 

[b1efvr42]

A 'pro-197'...I wouldn't run out to buy it too quick. I did a side to side comparison with both the 2096 and 197 connected to the same antenna source (and even separate antennas) and the 197 does not have the sensitivity of the 2096 particularly with respect to digital Trunking. There is an OPP tower with a footprint that comes no closer than 10 miles north of my location. The 2096 continued to receive all of the digital Trunking transmissions from that tower that the 197 was missing about a third of the time. I sold the 197 and stayed with the always reliable and easier to program 2096 since I didn't need the extra channel availability anyway. The 197 does have additional text tagging but who can't adequately tag a frequency with 12 available characters? The 197 does have the nifty flashing LED feature but what's the point if you're missing some of the digital Trunking traffic?

 

[zzdiesel]

The 106/197 also does LTR.

 

[cherubim]

A 'pro-197'...I wouldn't run out to buy it too quick. I did a side to side comparison with both the 2096 and 197 connected to the same antenna source (and even separate antennas) and the 197 does not have the sensitivity of the 2096 particularly with respect to digital Trunking. There is an OPP tower with a footprint that comes no closer than 10 miles north of my location. The 2096 continued to receive all of the digital Trunking transmissions from that tower that the 197 was missing about a third of the time. I sold the 197 and stayed with the always reliable and easier to program 2096 since I didn't need the extra channel availability anyway. The 197 does have additional text tagging but who can't adequately tag a frequency with 12 available characters? The 197 does have the nifty flashing LED feature but what's the point if you're missing some of the digital Trunking traffic?

One really can't make blanket statements about either scanners performance as there are too many variables to consider. The general consensus though is that the Pro-197/PSR-600 is indeed more sensitive than the Pro-2096 as evidenced by its signal overload/desense issues. I can attest to this as I use both scanners regularly in a variety of modes.