PRO96 low battery Issues (rebooting)

[jf_123]

Hello everyone,
First post here, I am having an issue with
Not getting any low battery warning-Not even a single beep
I purchased (3-25) a pro96 From RS (date code 08a04)
And I am having strange behavior when the rechargable batteries are low

Instead of the 96 beeping to indicate low battery
My 96 starts to go into a "reboot" loop

Reboot loop=
Scanning normally (mpscs p25 only, no analog freqs)
Screen goes blank then
Shows "DSP loading BOOT :F1.0" for a second
Screen is blank (1 second or less) W/burst of static noise (>.5 sec)
Shows "DSP loading BOOT :F1.0"
This "loop" repeats until turned off.

I have always caught it quickly and so far it
Has not corrupted and settings, that I have been able to find.

Is this normal behavior or a repair candidate?
It performs great in all other ways, no problems at all.


Tried 3 different sets or NI-MH batteries
Tried charging all sets in and out of radio-
All batteries work fine in Pro-83,GPS and others.
Battery info:
2 (8) sets Walmart "Digital" brand 2000mAh
1 (4) set of RS 200mAh

I have used win96 to increase the Battery level LO
To 4.00 volts and it still happens.
And I don't want to use Win96 to cover up a real problem.

My pro-83 has a tiny switch under the batteries for
Alkaline or rechargeable.

Other than the black vs. yellow battery packs is there any thing else
to tell the 96 it is running on rechargeable?

The other 96 power quirkI have is:
When scanner is on, I plug in an AC adapter
(RS 9v 300mA w/ C adaptaplug) --> it reboots, Normal?

Thanks for any/all help,
~Jon

Pro96:
date code 08a04
CPU: F1.3
DSP APP: F1.2
DSP VOC: F1.0

 

[Thayne]

Mine does that all the time if I don't deal with it shortly after the warning beeps start. It doesn't hurt anything.
It's because the voltage from NiMh batteries drops very suddenly when they are almost discharged. If you ever try regular AA's you will notice the warning beeps will last much longer and the radio will finally just fade out rather than re-booting multiple times.

Also it is normal to reboot when plugging into a wall wart

 

[Voyager]

Tried 3 different sets or NI-MH batteries
Tried charging all sets in and out of radio-
All batteries work fine in Pro-83,GPS and others.
Battery info:
2 (8) sets Walmart "Digital" brand 2000mAh
1 (4) set of RS 200mAh

Try some higher quality cells (like Energizers) and see if it still does the same thing. It sounds like your cells are crapping out really fast - not allowing time for the low battery beep. I've used many brands (Energizer, NexCell, PowerEx, generic green label, Gold Peak) and never had any issues, but I've never gone so cheap as WalMart no-name cells. Of all, I highly recommend the Energizer NiMHs. They are up to 2500 mAH now and are $7-$10 for a set of 4.

I wouldn't expect a 200 mAH cell to last long in the '96.

It COULD be a problem with current draw in the scanner. Try locking out MPSCS and see if it still happens. Digital does take more current than analog.

Joe M.

 

[safetyobc]

Seeing how we are talking about batteries in the 96, how long does the 96 usually run on a set of rechargables under normal scanning, digital and all other types of systems?

 

[jf_123]

Batteries

The mAh for the RS batteries were a typo
Should be 2000mAh, not 200 sorry.

The RS batteries were a step up from the Digital brand from
Walmart. The RS brand last about 30% longer in my GPS.
As far as I can tell the same (30% longer) when in the 96

When this rebooting started happening, batteries were the
First thing I checked and replaced.

I am going to pickup some alkaline and let them run down
To see if I get the same results.

What do other Pro96 users have for a Battery level LO setting?

 

[DELCOLHFC]

I rotate through three sets of decent quality NI-MH batteries and I only get one or two lo batt beeps from my 96 before it goes into the reboot loop. Not as much of a warning as the rest of my hand-helds but I keep the next set of batts close by so not a big problem here. Running 2000 to 2500 mah cells I normally see about 8 to 10 hrs of operation monitoring a mix of digital and conventional.

 

[unitcharlie]

i get about 12 hours constant scanning on a set of everyready 2500mah metal hydrides.... they drain weekly and charge overnight.... the low battery warning can be set using win 96... merely set the "low" voltage higher and you will get a little warning before it goes down.... i always carry a set of alkalines with me in a black holder....

 

[LarrySC]

I use Energizer 2400ma Wal*Mart with my 96. A 12 hour charge gives me two 8hr shifts at work. Please dont plug in charger when scanner is on. Makes my flesh crawl.

 

[wesm1957]

I have 2 sets of the energizer 2500mah metals, and 2 sets of the Ic3 batteries. i use the 2500's on a daily basis and have the Ic3's as stand by batteries. When I first started using them I got about 8 hours out of my 96 scanning digital and conventional. They do get better as you cycle them. The same thing happens with the batteries for my radio control cars. I have had good luck charging the 2500's in the radio, but I do charge them with a 1 hour charger I have from RS. I do charge the Ic3's in the 15 minute charger for them. I am getting better than 12 hours scan time now on a charge

 

[Voyager]

Re: Batteries

The mAh for the RS batteries were a typo
Should be 2000mAh, not 200 sorry.

The RS batteries were a step up from the Digital brand from
Walmart. The RS brand last about 30% longer in my GPS.
As far as I can tell the same (30% longer) when in the 96

When this rebooting started happening, batteries were the
First thing I checked and replaced.

I am going to pickup some alkaline and let them run down
To see if I get the same results.

What do other Pro96 users have for a Battery level LO setting?

I usually get 8-12 hours - depending on what I'm listening to (if it's really active or not) and depending on the cell capacity.

My setting is 3.94 and I usually get about 5-8 warnings before they drop to the power cycle.

I always have a spare pack ready to go and I cherge my cells in a MAHA charger. My scanner is always ready for use and never charging. I for one don't mind that the charger wasn't included, as it would have jsut taken up space in a drawer somewhere anyway. I also use AAs for my camera, MP3 player, BC246T, and a dozen other consumer electronics items. In fact, with the exception of 'C' cells, I use rechargable NiMHs in everything now (flashlights, anything that takes a 9V, etc).

It really sounds like your cells are just dying fast when they reach the end of the discharge cycle. If that's the case, the voltage would drop like a rock and your low cell warning may never be good enough. But, try raising it more and see if it solved the problem.

Again, I highly recommend the Energizer 2500 mAH AA NiMH cells.

Joe M.

 

[Dubbin]

I have had great luck with the Digital brand batteries from Walmart. My Hi and Lows are set at: Low 4.10 and High 4.63