Questions regarding the BC346XT

[8baal]

Hey all, I am fairly new to scanning and I am planning on buying a handheld scanner for a road trip I am doing. Essentially I am looking for a scanner that will keep me posted with local law enforcement as I move through each state. The BC346XT looks like a great deal because of the GPS support and Close Call etc. etc., though when it states: 9,000 programmable channels, does this mean I can only listen to the ones I program? Would Digital be the way to go? I thank and am open to any suggestions.

 

[N_Jay]

Hey all, I am fairly new to scanning and I am planning on buying a handheld scanner for a road trip I am doing. Essentially I am looking for a scanner that will keep me posted with local law enforcement as I move through each state. The BC346XT looks like a great deal because of the GPS support and Close Call etc. etc., though when it states: 9,000 programmable channels, does this mean I can only listen to the ones I program? Would Digital be the way to go? I thank and am open to any suggestions.

As pointed out in the other thread, using a scanner this way is very hit or miss, and would probably be all misses.

You are much better off with a good radar/laser detector and a CB radio.

If you are on major highways you will "usually" hear about a speed trap before you get there.

 

[K7CAR]

Yes, you will have to program all the frequencies you want to listen too. Actually I think there are some pre programmed frequencies, but I wiped them clean when I first fired up my 346xt. FreeScan works well as do several other software programs. ProScan is the best pay program. It's a bugger of a radio to program, but once you learn the basics it's not that difficult.

The Radio Reference database is a start as are the other data bases online. FreeScan (free btw) allows you a EZ grab function to cut and paste any database data and easily transfer that to your scanner. Really it's not that difficult to hand program the radio once you know your way around the Program System menu. I did up 40-50 Olympic frequencies today while sitting at the hospital waiting for my gf to get out of knee surgery. I'm new to all this fancy "new way" of radio scanning in the past 2-3 months, so if I can do it anyone can!........

 

[SCPD]

Hey all, I am fairly new to scanning and I am planning on buying a handheld scanner for a road trip I am doing. Essentially I am looking for a scanner that will keep me posted with local law enforcement as I move through each state. The BC346XT looks like a great deal because of the GPS support and Close Call etc. etc., though when it states: 9,000 programmable channels, does this mean I can only listen to the ones I program? Would Digital be the way to go? I thank and am open to any suggestions.

You might want to check the BCT15X, You can have it mounted in the cars dash with the optional DIN-0001 and listen FM Broadcast radio stations. The BCT15X is preprogrammed for State Police, Highway Patrol and local police. You simply tap the Func knob & tap the Volume knob and select your state. Press the POL & HP keys to activate Police, DOT, HP and the close call Beartracker feature.

 

[K7CAR]

I have a BCT15X also, and if hind sight is 20-20 I would have bought the 346xt and not the 15X. The 15X is an excellent radio, but the 346 does everything the 15 does except for military air. If military air is no interest then get the hand held. You'll have a much smaller scanner that will do exactly what the 15X will do and you'll be able to grab it and go. I've been running them side by side for weeks and don't see any compromise with the 346 over the 15X in reception or features.

 

[8baal]

I have a BCT15X also, and if hind sight is 20-20 I would have bought the 346xt and not the 15X. The 15X is an excellent radio, but the 346 does everything the 15 does except for military air. If military air is no interest then get the hand held. You'll have a much smaller scanner that will do exactly what the 15X will do and you'll be able to grab it and go. I've been running them side by side for weeks and don't see any compromise with the 346 over the 15X in reception or features.

Interesting, but from what I read the 346xt does not have those easy buttons to get highway patrol and police, unless, is there a software program downloadable for the 346xt? Because you're right a handheld is so much easier to have and use I feel.

 

[kayi4cle]

The BC346XT has Public Safety included as one of the Service Searches. I just got my 346 from ScannerMaster and I love it! I bought the nylon case and an extra antenna for it and got a good deal. Here is the Radio Reference Wiki which might help you in your research:
BC346XT - The RadioReference Wiki
And this page that ScannerMaster has compiled has some additional great info:
Uniden Bearcat BC346XT Police Scanner Radio
Good luck!

 

[K7CAR]

Interesting, but from what I read the 346xt does not have those easy buttons to get highway patrol and police, unless, is there a software program downloadable for the 346xt? Because you're right a handheld is so much easier to have and use I feel.

No the 346xt doesn't have the pre programming like the 15x, so you'll be giving up that option. I wanted to know what I was listening too and have full control, so the pre programming was only used the first few days I had the radio. I wouldn't recommend either radio if what you are looking for is plug and play. They both take a serious amount of time and effort to learn. There's plenty of help on here and other areas online, so the pain and suffering is short lived!.....

There are a number of software programs that work with the 15x and are interchangeable with the other Uniden DMA scanners, so there's no lack of support. FreeScan is the most often used and Free. ProScan ($50)is the most powerful and feature packed that I ended up buying after trying out 4-5 other programs.

To get the most out of your scanner it's almost mandatory you install and program it via software. You can certainly do it by hand, but so much easier via the computer. Both scanners have a huge amount of frequency space, so it's easy to drop in areas of interest if you travel quite a bit. I haven't had a chance to play with the GPS support yet, so that's next on my list.

 

[8baal]

The BC346XT has Public Safety included as one of the Service Searches. I just got my 346 from ScannerMaster and I love it! I bought the nylon case and an extra antenna for it and got a good deal.

Ah nice, yeah the handheld 346xt seems so much easier to handle and all. Thank you for the information too, let me know if you give it GPS support.

To get the most out of your scanner it's almost mandatory you install and program it via software. You can certainly do it by hand, but so much easier via the computer. Both scanners have a huge amount of frequency space, so it's easy to drop in areas of interest if you travel quite a bit. I haven't had a chance to play with the GPS support yet, so that's next on my list.

So the software essentially would grab a bunch of frequencies and throw them in or would it be more like a copy and paste or deal lol

 

[kayi4cle]

I haven't done GPS, but have heard from others who love that feature. When I take a radio on the highway, I choose a mobile because of the larger speaker. The road noise can be quite loud, and if it's raining it's even harder to hear your radio (but more important because of the conditions and possible accidents ahead). So, for safety's sake, give that some thought. However, some states have laws prohibiting scanners (with a few exceptions such as amateur radio license). So, my advice is to get your license and have a safe and enjoyable trip!

 

[AJAT]

I have 15X and the 346 XT. My BC15 is in my vehicle with the GPS attached. I have it programed with what I want to listen to, but have taken a few road trips out of state and did not feel like custom programing it. The 15X worked great by just picking the state and listening. I was able to hear all the state and highway patrol with ease. If you want to go on long trips across a few states with no programing the BC15X would be good.
As far as the GPS it works great, but takes a long time to program even with the software to get everyting just right. I programed the GPS for local driving and it took a lot of fine tuning to get it right. When it is all set up it worked great.
I have the 346XT I use at home. Works great, small and I can carry it anywhere I go. The only disadvantage for you would be not having the states preprogramed. If you plan on only using your scanner in your vehicle every once in while the portable would be the way to go. I would recomend an external anntenna on your vehicle for the handheld, the rubber duckies do not work well in a vehicle. If you want to invest the money I found proscan to be the best software, with proscan and RR subscribtion programing is easy and does not take to long to program at all. You chose what you want programed and the proscan and RR basically does the rest. I have not used any of teh freeware programs.
As N_Jay said just randomly scanning the Public safety bands will not get you a lot of results.

 

[8baal]

I have 15X and the 346 XT. My BC15 is in my vehicle with the GPS attached. I have it programed with what I want to listen to, but have taken a few road trips out of state and did not feel like custom programing it. The 15X worked great by just picking the state and listening. I was able to hear all the state and highway patrol with ease. If you want to go on long trips across a few states with no programing the BC15X would be good.
As far as the GPS it works great, but takes a long time to program even with the software to get everyting just right. I programed the GPS for local driving and it took a lot of fine tuning to get it right. When it is all set up it worked great.
I have the 346XT I use at home. Works great, small and I can carry it anywhere I go. The only disadvantage for you would be not having the states preprogramed. If you plan on only using your scanner in your vehicle every once in while the portable would be the way to go. I would recomend an external anntenna on your vehicle for the handheld, the rubber duckies do not work well in a vehicle. If you want to invest the money I found proscan to be the best software, with proscan and RR subscribtion programing is easy and does not take to long to program at all. You chose what you want programed and the proscan and RR basically does the rest. I have not used any of teh freeware programs.
As N_Jay said just randomly scanning the Public safety bands will not get you a lot of results.

Nice this is what I was looking for, where in your vehicle do you have the 15X mounted? I take it you have it in one of the dins?

 

[AJAT]

where in your vehicle do you have the 15X mounted? I take it you have it in one of the dins?

I made my own center console mount, I have 2 other radios mounted in my vehicle: http://forums.radioreference.com/pictures-your-shack-mobile-setup/172798-2003-toyota-tacoma.html

Originally I had a remote head mounted above the air vents on the dash, with the actual scanner under the rear seat out of the way. The remote head works great for mounting but will cost you a few hundred extra.

Chris