Roanoke TRS

[kd8x]

Sure was quiet up in Roanoke today. Anybody have another control channel frequency besides the database??? Thanks in advance.

Kd8X NC

 

[Jim41]

Sure was quiet up in Roanoke today. Anybody have another control channel frequency besides the database??? Thanks in advance.

Kd8X NC

The RR database indicates that the system has been rebanded and directs users to a Wiki article.

The FCC database notes the following frequences that are not shown in the RR database:
860.2125
860.2625
860.4375
860.4625
860.9625

You might try them to see whether any are being used as a control channel.

Jim41

 

[trainman111]

The database is saying that all TRS may have been rebanded. I think it might just be a "heads-up" incase you do stop hearing a TRS. If you can't find a CC on the above frequencies, try searching the whole 800MHz range to see if you can find one that has a matching system ID to the one that the Roanoke TRS uses.

 

[alticefamily]

try these

Sure was quiet up in Roanoke today. Anybody have another control channel frequency besides the database??? Thanks in advance.

Kd8X NC

run all of 800.000 there should be 23. listen roanoke on line! running live audio of roanoke

 

[kd8x]

another CC found

Well I was mobile in Roanoke again today like everyday and searching for the missing link to the Roanoke TRS and finally found it... The control channel for the past couple of days is 856.1625

I plugged that in and everything if FB again. I am really surprised that this info didn't get out there earlier with all the scanners that are operational in the Roanoke Valley. I will submit this info the the database just incase nobody else cares to...73

 

[kd8x]

Even another new CC on Roanoke system heard today 8/4/09 ..859.4625 was used as CC today...
info has been submitted to DB...

 

[W4UVV]

October Switchover

Per a phone conversation I just had with a person who is a member of a Roanoke County EMS co.(Bent Creek area) she has been told that the Roanoke TRS will go totally digital in October and her HT must be reprogramed for digital mode operation.

 

[fmon]

Per a phone conversation I just had with a person who is a member of a Roanoke County EMS co.(Bent Creek area) she has been told that the Roanoke TRS will go totally digital in October and her HT must be reprogramed for digital mode operation.

Thanks, lets us know of any frequency changes and if the type will change to P25 from Motorola.

 

[W4UVV]

Per a phone conversation I just had with a person who is a member of a Roanoke County EMS co.(Bent Creek area) she has been told that the Roanoke TRS will go totally digital in October and her HT must be reprogramed for digital mode operation.

Update.....apparantly on the county will go totally digital beginning in October. The city may remain analog possibly to the end of the year or longer. Question....why didn't Roanoke have one 800 mhz. trs with the county and city users having unique and common talkgroups? Why all this Rube Goldberg method of operation?

 

[K4APR]

Question....why didn't Roanoke have one 800 mhz. trs with the county and city users having unique and common talkgroups? Why all this Rube Goldberg method of operation?

The reasons date all the way back to the beginning of the Roanoke TRS. The county wanted to go trunking, but the city could not afford their end. The county made the switch over with a Type I SmartNet system and then the city tacked on a couple of years later. When that happend, they added two more sites to accomodate the city, as well as improve coverage for the county.

When the city came on, Type I systems were no longer shipping, so the city had to go Type II. This was a problem since the county was already Type I. They merged the two to become a Type I/II hybrid system. Those who were scanning back then remember the old custom fleet map that we had to program our scanners with...block size codes. When the city upgraded several years ago, they made a switch over to the Type II and essentially removed the need for the I/II hybrid infrastructure. At the same time, every site was upgraded to ALL Quantar stations and other upgrades were made to the controllers.

The city and county dispatch centers are still "linked" together with an ambasador interface. Basically a giant audio switch.

Looks like the P25 upgrade is going to go kind of the same way things did all of those years ago with the switch to trunking. Each area had to make their move when it was financially feasable.

Salem was offered a chance to get into the Roanoke TRS a while back, but their arrogance kept them from doing it. That is why they are still running conventional Motorola repeaters on Ft. Lewis mountain and the water tower in the middle of town. I know, because I helped put those repeaters into service. Salem was the WORST and most DIFFICULT city I had ever worked with in the two-way industry.

 

[kd8x]

p25 swithover now???

Per a phone conversation I just had with a person who is a member of a Roanoke County EMS co.(Bent Creek area) she has been told that the Roanoke TRS will go totally digital in October and her HT must be reprogramed for digital mode operation.

Evidentally, The Roanoke system is now P25. I noticed that I was missing the normal amount of chatter from the system. When I investigated it, I found that the CC of 857.1625 which is in the database was not in a moto 800/900 mode anymore but instead it is P25 format today....Even with that, I couldn't decode it with my GRE 600 for some reason...I could scan the channels and hear analog voice on them but no digital at all. I was just manually flipping through the channels because I couldn't get the scanner to decode it through the P25 system. I was hoping that there was going to be an update for the ROA TRS on the database when I got home this afternoon but I'm not seeing anything on the swithover to P25 trunking in the last day or two...Anyone out there know what is the scoop? I must have something set wrong somewhere but I tried P25 auto and manual and Edacs and LTR ha ha ....NOTHING!!!!

 

[musicman]

Working fine for me tonight with the same old equipment.
-Peter in Roanoke

 

[kd8x]

Working fine for me tonight with the same old equipment.
-Peter in Roanoke

They may have just been testing the P25 out today...But I wasn't getting it....I will try to get it tomorrow when I drive back up there....Thanks.

 

[K4APR]

The actual switch is close. I'll give my friend at the County radio shop a call tomorrow and see what is up.

 

[kd8x]

They may have just been testing the P25 out today...But I wasn't getting it....I will try to get it tomorrow when I drive back up there....Thanks.

They were back on moto 800/900 system today....

 

[kd8x]

a new CC of 858.0375 which is not listed was being used by ROA trs today. Data submitted...

 

[N4FTN]

Another new CC today... 857.0875.

 

[blueangel4]

Roanoke System and Web Import -Pro 96

Anybody have any idea what I am doing wrong,
everytime I try to import Roanoke system into a Pro-96 using the WIn-96 software it imports freqs shown in database fine, however all talkgroups are listed in the old moto type-2 format with mostly the same number over and over, it does not show what is listed in database with the decimal information listed in database.

What am I doing wrong?????

 

[fmon]

Actually it imports as Type 1 and Win96 indicates Fleetmap 4,4,4,4,2,2,2,2 prior to selecting 'Import this System' button.

This is likely a database problem rather then software.

 

[fmon]

Anybody have any idea what I am doing wrong,
everytime I try to import Roanoke system into a Pro-96 using the WIn-96 software it imports freqs shown in database fine, however all talkgroups are listed in the old moto type-2 format with mostly the same number over and over, it does not show what is listed in database with the decimal information listed in database.

What am I doing wrong?????

I think the database import problem is due to a bunch of talkgroups listed as dec 0. This supports my previous, database error so software assumes Type I.