Replacement for BCD996P2

[FireHorseRita]

Hello. I want to upgrade my BCD996P2. The auto programming via zip code on the other scanners is a feature I would love to have. I no longer get all the transmissions that I hear online. Also, I have had constant problems with static noise and I have to keep moving the scanner to get it to stop. To say it nicely, I am not very fond of my scanner. Should I get the SDS100/200 for the Anderson, Indiana (Madison Co) area? If so, I wonder where I could find a used one? I am open to scanner suggestions that are applicable to my simulcast system area. I like to listen to Anderson City and Madison Co Police, Fire, and EMS. I also listen to ISP for I-69 traffic incidents.

 

[doctordialtone]

If so, I wonder where I could find a used one? I am open to scanner suggestions that are applicable to my simulcast system area.

Keep an eye on the Classifieds here on RR.



As you've no doubt read, the only scanner designed to properly handle Simulcast is the SDS series.

 

[GTO_04]

You need either an SDS100/200 or Unication G4/5 for Madison County simulcast.

GTO_04

 

[FireHorseRita]

You need either an SDS100/200 or Unication G4/5 for Madison County simulcast.

GTO_04

Are the Unication G4/5 easy to auto-program? Since they are called Pagers, are they still like a Scanner?

 

[IndyScan]

Hello from your neighbor in Hamilton County. I started with an SDS100 & added a SDS200 a little while later. I listen to the Hamilton County System as well as Dist 51 & 52 and both radios work perfectly. I can't recommend them enough. Programming is pretty simple once you understand the Sentenial software. Happy to help if you get one & get stuck setting things up.

 

[ka3aaa]

a pager is a pager not a scanner even though the pager may scan what is programmed into it. They are two different animals all together.

 

[FireHorseRita]

Keep an eye on the Classifieds here on RR.

View attachment 98160

As you've no doubt read, the only scanner designed to properly handle Simulcast is the SDS series.

Thank you.

 

[FireHorseRita]

Hello from your neighbor in Hamilton County. I started with an SDS100 & added a SDS200 a little while later. I listen to the Hamilton County System as well as Dist 51 & 52 and both radios work perfectly. I can't recommend them enough. Programming is pretty simple once you understand the Sentenial software. Happy to help if you get one & get stuck setting things up.

Thank you.

 

[FireHorseRita]

a pager is a pager not a scanner even though the pager may scan what is programmed into it. They are two different animals all together.

That’s what I was wondering. I had a voice pager and digital pager back in the 80s when I was a Salesperson/Converter box installer for Insight Cablevision. But I don’t know if that’s the same kind of pager.

 

[doctordialtone]

I had a voice pager and digital pager back in the 80s

Pagers have come a longgg way since the 80's, but you're still better off with a real scanner.

G-Series P25 Voice Pager | Unication

Unication's G-Series Voice Pager is the industry’s first and only P25 Voice Pager. P25 Digital paging allows migration from a legacy 2-tone network to a P25 Network; which provides improved coverage, excellent voice clarity and superior reliability.

www.unicationusa.com

 

[FireHorseRita]

Pagers have come a longgg way since the 80's, but you're still better off with a real scanner.

G-Series P25 Voice Pager | Unication

Unication's G-Series Voice Pager is the industry’s first and only P25 Voice Pager. P25 Digital paging allows migration from a legacy 2-tone network to a P25 Network; which provides improved coverage, excellent voice clarity and superior reliability.

www.unicationusa.com

Oh yes, I see they have come a long ways since the 80s. Well, I guess I’ll be looking for a SDS100 or 200. The best way I can hear my BCD996P2 is to lay it sideways. When it acts up and sounds garbled, I gently push on the top of the scanner to make the transmission understandable.

 

[FireHorseRita]

Thank you everyone for your input. I am very appreciative of your time and research that you put in this forum and your patience in answering my questions I have from time to time.

 

[cmdrwill]

" RLR VA Medical Center. I'm Honored & Proud to serve America's Veterans."

Thank you for your Service.

 

[fxdscon]

Are the Unication G4/5 easy to auto-program? Since they are called Pagers, are they still like a Scanner?

Good comparison of scanners VS Unication pagers at this link:

SDS100 Successor?

I'm looking to upgrade from a PRO-106 to something that handles simulcasts better. The SDS100 has been out for a while. Is a successor being released in the near future? I'd hate to buy a SDS100 only to have a new model released a few months later. Thanks.

forums.radioreference.com

 

[west-pac]

Oh yes, I see they have come a long ways since the 80s. Well, I guess I’ll be looking for a SDS100 or 200. The best way I can hear my BCD996P2 is to lay it sideways. When it acts up and sounds garbled, I gently push on the top of the scanner to make the transmission understandable.

Most likely you're not doing anything by pressing on the scanner. That shouldn't fix anything; BUT(!)... by standing in front of the scanner, or placing your hand near the top of the scanner, you may be blocking some signal from getting to the antenna, making it easier for the scanner to decode the simulcast system. Turning the scanner on the side, making the antenna horizontal, will reduce the signal as well.

Try putting your antenna all the way down, and turning it horizontal, so that it's hidden behind the scanner, and see how that does. That should reduce the signal as well.

The simulcast issue happens because your scanner is receiving more than one signal on the same frequency at nearly the same time (milliseconds apart, creating confusion (unintelligible audio) within your scanner).

To fix that issue, you need to try to receive only 1 of those 5 signals in Madison county. To do that you need to reduce your antenna so you receive less signal. You could try making the antenna as small as possible and folding it behind the scanner; you could try taking the antenna off entirely; or try taking the antenna off and putting a paperclip or a small piece of wire into the center of the scanner's antenna connector. The purpose is to make the antenna so small that it only receives the closest radio tower to your house. At that point, everything you hear from the P25 system should be intelligible.

 

[FireHorseRita]

" RLR VA Medical Center. I'm Honored & Proud to serve America's Veterans."

Thank you for your Service.

Thank you. It's the best job ever. I believe that I've made a difference by being there.

 

[FireHorseRita]

Good comparison of scanners VS Unication pagers at this link:

SDS100 Successor?

I'm looking to upgrade from a PRO-106 to something that handles simulcasts better. The SDS100 has been out for a while. Is a successor being released in the near future? I'd hate to buy a SDS100 only to have a new model released a few months later. Thanks.

forums.radioreference.com

Thanks. I will check that out.

 

[FireHorseRita]

Most likely you're not doing anything by pressing on the scanner. That shouldn't fix anything; BUT(!)... by standing in front of the scanner, or placing your hand near the top of the scanner, you may be blocking some signal from getting to the antenna, making it easier for the scanner to decode the simulcast system. Turning the scanner on the side, making the antenna horizontal, will reduce the signal as well.

Try putting your antenna all the way down, and turning it horizontal, so that it's hidden behind the scanner, and see how that does. That should reduce the signal as well.

The simulcast issue happens because your scanner is receiving more than one signal on the same frequency at nearly the same time (milliseconds apart, creating confusion (unintelligible audio) within your scanner).

To fix that issue, you need to try to receive only 1 of those 5 signals in Madison county. To do that you need to reduce your antenna so you receive less signal. You could try making the antenna as small as possible and folding it behind the scanner; you could try taking the antenna off entirely; or try taking the antenna off and putting a paperclip or a small piece of wire into the center of the scanner's antenna connector. The purpose is to make the antenna so small that it only receives the closest radio tower to your house. At that point, everything you hear from the P25 system should be intelligible.

I will try those methods. I thought my antenna wasn’t strong enough so I placed my scanner up high on a top shelf and I have the antenna pointing towards town. I also wonder if living in a double-wide trailer might affect the signals. I assume there is a lot of metal around me inside the walls and ceiling.

 

[jonwienke]

Metal walls will block the signal.