PSR 500/600 post CPU 1.3 - What other enhancements would you like to see?

[mtindor]

Currently, if you go in Tune mode - no matter what you do, the scanner seems to try to decode a control channel or P25 signal if found. This is logical - a nice feature and very useful. But sometimes I would like to simply use Tune to plug in a frequency to start scanning up and down from and would like to hear the nondecoded signal instead of having it start decoding.

For instance, many times I'll be searching the 800 band using Tune and it'll stop on a signal that it can't decide if its plain old noise (or a noisy signal) or if its an M36, LTR, or P25 system. It'll often display M36 and some information, or LTR and some information when in fact there is no such data channel active on that frequency.

It would be handy to have an option (which can be toggled by the user) which will attempt to decode the data or will just let you hear the unadulterated signal (as if you had programmed it in as a simple FM conventional frequency).

What prompted this? Today when I was scanning I found at least 15 instances where it kept stopping on a signal and claiming that it was an M36 data channel, an LTR databurst, etc. and would mute the sound and cause the display to show erroneous information such as TGIDs or LTR talkgroups when in fact it wasn't even sitting on a data channel (or at least not one that was compatible for it to decode). My ears are better at detecting what is on that frequency if its very weak - and if I can hear the signal I could move the scanner around to attempt to improve the signal and then toggle the decode setting on so that it would attempt to decode it after I found the best audible signal for it to decode.

Mike

 

[ibagli]

Mine thinks a local TV station is an M36 system.

 

[mtindor]

Yeah the more I play around, the more I note how frequently it falsely detects signals. I'd be leery about pressing them to 'fix' it somehow because I certainly wouldn't want it to suddenly stop decoding valid systems correctly (and in that respect it works flawlessly right now).

Mike

 

[DaveNF2G]

Why not just press the Mode button?

Tune defaults to AU (automatic mode). Pressing Mode enough times will cycle it to plain FM, where it shouldn't give you so many problems.

 

[DonS]

The [possilbly erroneous] display of some trunking system type should have no impact on audio. Even if the radio thinks, for some reason, that it's receiving a P25 control channel, the only effect should be some information on the LCD.

In my experience, the "falsing" of a Mot 3600 voice channel is the most common. I can see why this would happen - such a VC has low-speed data on it, with no reliable error detection. "Noise" will, quite often, look like good low-speed data as if it was a Mot 3600 VC.

 

[mtindor]

Why not just press the Mode button?

Tune defaults to AU (automatic mode). Pressing Mode enough times will cycle it to plain FM, where it shouldn't give you so many problems.

I know all about the mode button, but thanks. Pressing the mode button and taking it out of auto makes no difference. Auto is only going to force it to stay on FM. It won't stop it from displaying erroneous things and attempting to decode CC data that doesn't exist.

Mike

 

[mtindor]

The [possilbly erroneous] display of some trunking system type should have no impact on audio. Even if the radio thinks, for some reason, that it's receiving a P25 control channel, the only effect should be some information on the LCD.

In my experience, the "falsing" of a Mot 3600 voice channel is the most common. I can see why this would happen - such a VC has low-speed data on it, with no reliable error detection. "Noise" will, quite often, look like good low-speed data as if it was a Mot 3600 VC.

With regard to your second comment, that makes sense to me now. I should have thought about that.

As for your first comment, my experience is that it mutes a lot of things. For instance, if it comes up on a signal that it is detecting M36, I can't even hear if if I unsquelch it. I have to keep cycling through the mode or go up or down a channel, and then once it doesn't detect it as M36 I'll hear the audio - whether that be plain old FM analog or some distant control channel that it can't decode.

So for me I'd still like the ability to disable the detection if at all possible. I don't use this scanner for searching every day, but I use it enough that it would be convenient. Of course it isn't a must-have and I realize that. Just throwing it out there.

Mike

 

[ibagli]

I don't have that issue at all. I can hear the audio on anything it says is an M36 system, from real control channels to the TV station.

 

[S-man]

mtindor you are correct about the muting audio. My area uses a mixed mode Moto 3600 baud P25 system (both analog and digital transmissions). In the TUNE mode, if it detects a digital transmission and then an analog transmission follows after - it WILL mute the analog audio. Only digital transmissions will be heard until you cycle the mode back to AU or AUTO.

I sent this bug to GRE and they confirmed back to me it is an issue. They are looking into a fix possibly to be released in the next 2-3 months.

 

[mtindor]

mtindor you are correct about the muting audio. My area uses a mixed mode Moto 3600 baud P25 system (both analog and digital transmissions). In the TUNE mode, if it detects a digital transmission and then an analog transmission follows after - it WILL mute the analog audio. Only digital transmissions will be heard until you cycle the mode back to AU or AUTO.

I sent this bug to GRE and they confirmed back to me it is an issue. They are looking into a fix possibly to be released in the next 2-3 months.

Awesome, thanks for the heads up and for submitting it to GRE as a bug. I woudl have never thought of that!

Mike