Programming Help Needed, Please.

[Perk2535]

I am VERY new to using a scanner, so patience is greatly appreciated. I just purchased a BCD325p2 and have absolutely no idea where to begin with programming. I have searched and searched online but cannot find any type of beginner friendly instructions and I am so stuck. Is there anyone who can recommend instructions that will walk me through this or can anyone get me started, please? I do have an SDS100 and was able to create favorite lists using Sentinel software, but this is so much more confusing. I am basically looking to monitor Allegheny County, PA and the more specific areas of North and East within the County. Thank you!

ETA: I have downloaded ProScan and cannot figure it out at all and I cannot figure out if I can program two different radios on the Sentinel
Software.

 

[nd5y]

This might help if you didn't already find it.
Easier to Read BCD325P2 Digital Scanner Manual

 

[hiegtx]

I am VERY new to using a scanner, so patience is greatly appreciated. I just purchased a BCD325p2 and have absolutely no idea where to begin with programming. I have searched and searched online but cannot find any type of beginner friendly instructions and I am so stuck. Is there anyone who can recommend instructions that will walk me through this or can anyone get me started, please? I do have an SDS100 and was able to create favorite lists using Sentinel software, but this is so much more confusing. I am basically looking to monitor Allegheny County, PA and the more specific areas of North and East within the County. Thank you!

ETA: I have downloaded ProScan and cannot figure it out at all and I cannot figure out if I can program two different radios on the Sentinel
Software.

The easier to read manual link that Tom provided is a good place to start.

While Sentinel can be used to program two or more scanners, the units must be the radios that the version of Sentinel supports. The Sentinel program used for your SDS100 can be used to program any of these four scanners: SDS100, SDS200, BCD436HP, and BCD536HP. It will not program your 325P2.

ProScan can program your 325P2, among a number of other scanners. Have you looked at ProScan's manual? It's accessible under the Tools dropdown menu. I use ProScan for several different Uniden scanners, including my 325P2.

However, for your first programming, see if you find FreeSCAN more intuitive. The software can be found here. A User Guide for FreeSCAN is hosted in the Wiki, here on RadioReference. As you show to be a Premium Subscriber, you can use either ProScan or FreeSCAN to import frequencies and systems from the RadioReference database in the software, then load that into your scanner. Try creating a file in FreeSCAN, for your county, then loading that into your 325P2. Once you've loaded it and verified that it works, then "read" the scanner into ProScan so that you can see how it looks in that software. Long term, you're better off using ProScan. It has a larger number of features, and the author is active on the forums here, answering questions. While FreeSCAN is a good program, the author is no longer actively supporting it.

If you feel that you'd like to get help and suggestions from someone in your area, then you can ask that your thread be moved to the Pennsylvania State Forum. To do that, do not create a new thread. Instead, click on the Report in the lower left corner of one of your posts, and request that a moderator move your thread to the state forum. Someone in the area would be more likely to see it there.

 

[Perk2535]

This might help if you didn't already find it.
Easier to Read BCD325P2 Digital Scanner Manual

Thank you!

 

[Perk2535]

The easier to read manual link that Tom provided is a good place to start.

While Sentinel can be used to program two or more scanners, the units must be the radios that the version of Sentinel supports. The Sentinel program used for your SDS100 can be used to program any of these four scanners: SDS100, SDS200, BCD436HP, and BCD536HP. It will not program your 325P2.

ProScan can program your 325P2, among a number of other scanners. Have you looked at ProScan's manual? It's accessible under the Tools dropdown menu. I use ProScan for several different Uniden scanners, including my 325P2.

However, for your first programming, see if you find FreeSCAN more intuitive. The software can be found here. A User Guide for FreeSCAN is hosted in the Wiki, here on RadioReference. As you show to be a Premium Subscriber, you can use either ProScan or FreeSCAN to import frequencies and systems from the RadioReference database in the software, then load that into your scanner. Try creating a file in FreeSCAN, for your county, then loading that into your 325P2. Once you've loaded it and verified that it works, then "read" the scanner into ProScan so that you can see how it looks in that software. Long term, you're better off using ProScan. It has a larger number of features, and the author is active on the forums here, answering questions. While FreeSCAN is a good program, the author is no longer actively supporting it.

If you feel that you'd like to get help and suggestions from someone in your area, then you can ask that your thread be moved to the Pennsylvania State Forum. To do that, do not create a new thread. Instead, click on the Report in the lower left corner of one of your posts, and request that a moderator move your thread to the state forum. Someone in the area would be more likely to see it there.

Thank you so much!

 

[ladn]

+1 on FreeScan. It works quite well on conventional and P25 systems, but I haven't tried it for DMR since I haven't upgraded the scanner for DMR.

 

[Perk2535]

Geez, I cannot even get this thing to communicate with my laptop. I try downloading the USB driver and when I upzip it, there is nothing extracted but document type files... "security catalog" and "setup information". Any ideas, please?

 

[hiegtx]

+1 on FreeScan. It works quite well on conventional and P25 systems, but I haven't tried it for DMR since I haven't upgraded the scanner for DMR.

While FreeSCAN works well for programming conventional channels as well as P25 systems, it's performance on DMR is not even close to acceptable. The last version released, 2.19b1 (a beta version) does allow you to program a DMR trunked system, but only partly.

When you do a web import of a DMR trunked system, FreeSCAN does not actually recognize it correctly, instead importing it as a Motorola Uhf system at the site level, yet Mot II, P25 at the system level. You also see a warning that the system may not be scannable. You can change the system type in FreeSCAN to MotoTRBO (or DMR One Frequency trunk), with a warning about changing system type. The deal breaker is that while the system type can be changed to DMR, you cannot enter the color code. In my area, many of the frequencies with non-public safety DMR users, are used for multiple licensees in my county and the surrounding ones. Sometimes, that means six or more users in range, so the color code is a necessity to help separate the transmissions. That same handicap, lack of color code, affects conventional channels as well. As there are several DMR systems of interest to me, including one used by a local air medical service, I use ProScan so that I can fully program DMR systems on my 325P2.

 

[hiegtx]

Geez, I cannot even get this thing to communicate with my laptop. I try downloading the USB driver and when I upzip it, there is nothing extracted but document type files... "security catalog" and "setup information". Any ideas, please?

Have you installed the serial driver?

 

[Perk2535]

Have you installed the serial driver?

I have tried to at least ten times. When I unzip the folder, I am only seeing two items named “security catalog” and “setup information”. There is no actual install option.

 

[ProScan]

I have tried to at least ten times. When I unzip the folder, I am only seeing two items named “security catalog” and “setup information”. There is no actual install option.

Here's the page with the Serial Driver link and instructions. Follow the instructions exactly.
BCD325P2 < UnidenMan4 < TWiki

 

[Perk2535]

Here's the page with the Serial Driver link and instructions. Follow the instructions exactly.
BCD325P2 < UnidenMan4 < TWiki

Thank you, but that is what I have been doing with no luck. When I go into Device Manager, however, the device does not show up with a yellow triangle. I honestly have no idea what I am missing here. Must the scanner itself be in any particular mode or just turned on (screen showing scan mode nothing to scan)? Thank you!

 

[ProScan]

Thank you, but that is what I have been doing with no luck. When I go into Device Manager, however, the device does not show up with a yellow triangle. I honestly have no idea what I am missing here. Must the scanner itself be in any particular mode or just turned on (screen showing scan mode nothing to scan)? Thank you!

The scanner doesn't need to be in any particular mode, just turned on. Are you using the supplied cable? Is the cable plugged into the scanner and computer?

 

[Perk2535]

The scanner doesn't need to be in any particular mode, just turned on. Are you using the supplied cable? Is the cable plugged into the scanner and computer?

Yes on both.

 

[ProScan]

Other then power cycle the scanner, I can't think of anything other then a defective cable or scanner.