PSR 500 scanning issues

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runhot

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Apr 26, 2005
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Omaha, NE
Quite a bit of the time when I scan everything (not just Favorites) my scanner has a problem picking things up, as if it's taking too long going through the channel list to lock in on something when there's activity on a channel. I just did the firmware update a couple of weeks ago, but this was sometimes a problem before that as well. I only have 82 total channels to scan (37 conventional, 45 talkgroups) and quite a few of them are on permanent lockout so I don't understand why this would be an issue. I scan fire/police/ems in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area & have other systems/channels programmed to different scan lists for when I travel.
I'm pretty new to the digital scanning world, so I don't understand what some of the settings mean. My understanding is that the attenuator is used to filter out excess signals in certain areas and I don't know that I need it where I am. I also don't understand the difference is between AttenMode Global & Global Attenuator.
I guess there's actually quite a bit I could use help with now that I think about it, and the scanner's instructions aren't particularly helpful for a guy like me who's not really tech savvy. Can anyone throw some help my way?
 

jloriginal

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Jan 26, 2011
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calgary alberta canada
talkgroups

Ive had a psr500 for a little over a year. I was finally convinced to pay the 35 dollars and download win500. Whats an amazing difference. You can select a state, then a city, and download conventional or trunked groups. then you can easily upload it to your scanner. I see 51 sites and 12 talkgroups for douglas county on win500
 

W6KRU

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Oceanside, CA
Hi runhot. Make sure your squelch is set properly. If you have a list of conventional frequencies with tone squelch and your squelch isn't set properly, the scanner will stop on each frequency, wait for the tone decode delay to expire, go to the next frequency and start the process all over.

I use weather scan to set my squelch. Start weather scan, turn the squelch, full CCW. If you hear a weather station, press the up arrow on the cursor pad until you hear the white noise. Then turn squelch up until the scanner advances back to a weather broadcast.
 

runhot

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Apr 26, 2005
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Omaha, NE
I routinely check the squelch, since with the 500 it's so easy to move the knob when you adjust the volume (or if you have a curious 1 year old)...unless you guys are talking about an internal setting?
 

runhot

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Apr 26, 2005
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Omaha, NE
Also, the only thing that I have problems with is the digital channels. The conventional ones work just fine usually. And I guess I forgot to mention that I use Arc500 software.
 

dizwiz

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Dec 9, 2003
Messages
366
Quite a bit of the time when I scan everything (not just Favorites) my scanner has a problem picking things up, as if it's taking too long going through the channel list to lock in on something when there's activity on a channel. I just did the firmware update a couple of weeks ago, but this was sometimes a problem before that as well. I only have 82 total channels to scan (37 conventional, 45 talkgroups) and quite a few of them are on permanent lockout so I don't understand why this would be an issue. I scan fire/police/ems in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area & have other systems/channels programmed to different scan lists for when I travel.
I'm pretty new to the digital scanning world, so I don't understand what some of the settings mean. My understanding is that the attenuator is used to filter out excess signals in certain areas and I don't know that I need it where I am. I also don't understand the difference is between AttenMode Global & Global Attenuator.
I guess there's actually quite a bit I could use help with now that I think about it, and the scanner's instructions aren't particularly helpful for a guy like me who's not really tech savvy. Can anyone throw some help my way?

Do you have all the channels or just control channels programmed in for the system you are mintoring?

I would think that if you had just control channels programmed in, it wld scan faster.

If you are worried about the system switching cc to a voice channel then I guess you cld program it in as a second system (tsys id) with all the channels so you could still get it if that ever happened
 

witkowskipe

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rochester, ny
I am about to buy one of these, but I am concerned that the learning curve will be too much. I already know that if I do buy this I need at least the win500 program or comparable and a subscription to radio reference right? Is there a PSR500 for dummies guide that anyone has written? Or maybe if someone could maybe write up a little analogy for some of us to understand digital trunking in a really simplified manner. The fact that you can program just control channels and all channels and essentially get the same results but with slower scanning worrys me that I will not be doing it right.
 

detroit780

Silent Key
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Dec 19, 2002
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589
Location
Michigan
Programming for PSR 500

It isn't that difficult to learn hut this is the closest thing to the PSR programming guide for dummies. Mark does a nice job and has a lot of scanners manual son his web site and even makes printed manuals available too.The Radio Shack Pro 106 is the same internals as the PSR 500 and the Radio Shack 197 and PSR 600 are the same so click on this link and have fun

Easier to Read Pro-106/197/PSR500/600 Digital Scanner Manual

Les








I am about to buy one of these, but I am concerned that the learning curve will be too much. I already know that if I do buy this I need at least the win500 program or comparable and a subscription to radio reference right? Is there a PSR500 for dummies guide that anyone has written? Or maybe if someone could maybe write up a little analogy for some of us to understand digital trunking in a really simplified manner. The fact that you can program just control channels and all channels and essentially get the same results but with slower scanning worrys me that I will not be doing it right.
 

hightime

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Joined
Apr 7, 2007
Messages
173
Location
Menominee County Michigan
If you have your sites on stationary and have it set to (check every control channel on each pass), it will take longer for the scanner to make a pass through the talkgroups and move on.
 

RKG

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May 23, 2005
Messages
1,096
Location
Boston, MA
1) A trunked radio scanning receiver does not "pass through the talkgroups" they way a conventional radio scanning receiver steps through conventional channels, one by one, checking first for valid RF and, if found, then for valid tone. Rather, it parks on the control channel for a period of time, first syncing to the data stream, and then watching the OSWs to see if any channel grant is issued on any talkgroup it is looking for. The receiver will hold on the control channel as long as there is OSW activity, and then for a timer period even if there is none.

2) Even with Motorola radios, putting both trunked talkgroups and conventional channels in the same scan list is known to cause "audio holes" and even if the radio appears to be silent for lack of activity.

3) As implicitly noted by someone above, this problem is compounded if you set a PSR-500 for other than "stationary," in an attempt to emulate SmartZone function (something the PSR-500 cannot do well without violating Motorola patents).
 

dizwiz

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Dec 9, 2003
Messages
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3) As implicitly noted by someone above, this problem is compounded if you set a PSR-500 for other than "stationary," in an attempt to emulate SmartZone function (something the PSR-500 cannot do well without violating Motorola patents).[/QUOTE]

then how would you scan (when traveling mobile) a statewide trunked multi-site system such as OH MARCS?
 

jloriginal

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Jan 26, 2011
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Location
calgary alberta canada
grecom psr500 calgary police

as of 2 days ago, my scanner is recognizing Calgary police service. I get fire & ems but not police. Anyone experiencing the same thing?
 

SCPD

QRT
Joined
Feb 24, 2001
Messages
0
Location
Virginia
as of 2 days ago, my scanner is recognizing Calgary police service. I get fire & ems but not police. Anyone experiencing the same thing?

Why not ask in the Prairie - Pacific - Coast (under Canada) section and not a 3 year old thread. You may actually get a response that way. :wink:
 
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