I was in town yesterday and monitoring fire (154.325, PL 118.8) and noticed I was receving a transmission that wasn't getting past the CTCSS setting. I turned off the PL and started hearing traffic for a medical aid call. I wondered if I had the wrong CTCSS programmed in. I later heard a fire callout and during the transmission reenabled the PL. This time the transmission was getting though using 118.8. I'm now wondering if certain calls are broadcast without the tone. Anyone know?
Santa Cruz Fire Red CTCSS tone
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Do you know if it was for sure a Santa Cruz Co medical call you were hearing? Maybe it was another agency on the same frequency?
mmckenna
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162.2hz is the correct output PL tone for Fire Red.
Thanks for the replies!
silagi: I'm not completely sure it was a Santa Cruz Co med call. Looking at the RR database I don't see any other nearby users of the frequency so I assumed it was.
mmckenna: Are you saying 118.8 is the input tone to the repeater and 162.2 is the output tone? If so the RR database probably needs to be updated. Where did you see it listed as 162.2?
silagi: I'm not completely sure it was a Santa Cruz Co med call. Looking at the RR database I don't see any other nearby users of the frequency so I assumed it was.
mmckenna: Are you saying 118.8 is the input tone to the repeater and 162.2 is the output tone? If so the RR database probably needs to be updated. Where did you see it listed as 162.2?
Netcomm streams a CAD page from the fire/ems side on FireDispatch.com. Red is also live streamed. I'd pull up the CAD page, the live stream and do a side-by-side w/the scanner to see what is what.
Thanks
mmckenna
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Try 162.2hz as the PL tone when listening in on 154.325MHz.
None of my documentation shows any PL listed for the Fire Red output frequency, at least none of our radios use one. Fire Red is set to carrier squelch on that frequency. The input tone to the fire red system is 162.2hz, so give that a try. I don't show 118.8 listed anywhere for fire red.
None of my documentation shows any PL listed for the Fire Red output frequency, at least none of our radios use one. Fire Red is set to carrier squelch on that frequency. The input tone to the fire red system is 162.2hz, so give that a try. I don't show 118.8 listed anywhere for fire red.
118.8 is how it's listed here on Radio Reference: Santa Cruz County, California (CA) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference
I will take your advice and change it to 162.2, although it might be awhile before I drive over the hill again and give it a test.
mmckenna
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I'll see if I can give it a try tomorrow. All my stuff is set to carrier squelch on fire red, but I'll check and see if they are TX'ing with a PL tone. Short of that, I'll call down to the county radio shop and ask them.
mmckenna
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All the other info for SCC Fire is correct, however.
mmckenna
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Also, looking at the SO's listings, there appears to be errors,
TAC Orange uses CSQ
TAC Green uses CSQ
The listing for SO black is incorrect. 154.055 simplex is Fire Black, tactical south, not SO, however the SO radios do have the fire frequencies in them.
The listing for SO brown is also incorrect. I don't show anyone using 154.555 in the county. SO brown is actually 155.475 simplex, which is also NLEMARS.
155.265 is the SO explorers only, not SO SWAT. SO SWAT uses SO Black, which is 155.010 simplex, CSQ.
155.235 is SO search and rescue, however it is more commonly called "Jeep Posse" or just "Jeep" on the radios with smaller displays. The SO radios do have the standard 155.160 SAR frequency in them, labeled as NASAR (National Search and Rescue). Some radios have it labeled as "Med. Rescue".
155.310 in simplex is used by probations.
155.310 with a different input and PL is the jail repeater.
The 155.16 entry is just SAR, not swat as it's shown.
155.220 simplex is listed as the Life Guards on my list, and shown as City of Santa Cruz "gold".
The 155.010 listing is SO Black, as I mentioned above, not "extenders" as listed. I've never seen any mobile extenders used by SO, but I could be wrong. Portable coverage is pretty good in most parts of the county.
TAC Orange uses CSQ
TAC Green uses CSQ
The listing for SO black is incorrect. 154.055 simplex is Fire Black, tactical south, not SO, however the SO radios do have the fire frequencies in them.
The listing for SO brown is also incorrect. I don't show anyone using 154.555 in the county. SO brown is actually 155.475 simplex, which is also NLEMARS.
155.265 is the SO explorers only, not SO SWAT. SO SWAT uses SO Black, which is 155.010 simplex, CSQ.
155.235 is SO search and rescue, however it is more commonly called "Jeep Posse" or just "Jeep" on the radios with smaller displays. The SO radios do have the standard 155.160 SAR frequency in them, labeled as NASAR (National Search and Rescue). Some radios have it labeled as "Med. Rescue".
155.310 in simplex is used by probations.
155.310 with a different input and PL is the jail repeater.
The 155.16 entry is just SAR, not swat as it's shown.
155.220 simplex is listed as the Life Guards on my list, and shown as City of Santa Cruz "gold".
The 155.010 listing is SO Black, as I mentioned above, not "extenders" as listed. I've never seen any mobile extenders used by SO, but I could be wrong. Portable coverage is pretty good in most parts of the county.
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Thanks mmckenna.
Does this look right? Please let me know what PL information needs fixing.
Santa Cruz Fire
154.3250 162.2 Red
150.7750 192.8 Silver
151,7750 151.4 Orange
154.0550 192.8 Black
154.1900 103.5 Yellow
154.4150 151.4 Blue
154.4450 162.2 Green
155.3850 118.8 Medic to Hospital
Santa Cruz Sheriff
155.5650 CSQ Blue - Primary
154.9500 CSQ Red - Mutual Aid
156.0300 CSQ Orange - Car to Car
155.0700 CSQ Green - Tac
155.0100 CSQ Black - SWAT
155.4750 162.2 Brown - Detectives
155.2650 162.2 Explorers
155.2350 162.2 County SAR
155.1600 CSQ NASAR
155.2200 CSQ Gold - Life Guards
Does this look right? Please let me know what PL information needs fixing.
Santa Cruz Fire
154.3250 162.2 Red
150.7750 192.8 Silver
151,7750 151.4 Orange
154.0550 192.8 Black
154.1900 103.5 Yellow
154.4150 151.4 Blue
154.4450 162.2 Green
155.3850 118.8 Medic to Hospital
Santa Cruz Sheriff
155.5650 CSQ Blue - Primary
154.9500 CSQ Red - Mutual Aid
156.0300 CSQ Orange - Car to Car
155.0700 CSQ Green - Tac
155.0100 CSQ Black - SWAT
155.4750 162.2 Brown - Detectives
155.2650 162.2 Explorers
155.2350 162.2 County SAR
155.1600 CSQ NASAR
155.2200 CSQ Gold - Life Guards
mmckenna
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OK, I updated your list and added a few things I had handy. I should probably work with someone to go through and update the city PD's in the county.
Santa Cruz County Fire (All Agencies except CalFire)
154.3250 CSQ Red (Main dispatch)
150.7750 192.8 Silver TAC
151.0400 151.4 Orange TAC
154.0550 192.8 Black TAC
154.1900 103.5 Yellow TAC
154.4150 151.4 Blue TAC
154.4450 CSQ Green TAC
155.3850 118.8 HEAR Net (Communications between hospitals)
156.0750 CSQ CALCORD (Statewide)
Medical:
Ambulance to Hospital:
463.0500 173.8 Med 3 "Medical Net"
463.1750 173.8 Med 8 Dominican Hospital and Watsonville Hospital
154.1300 141.3 UCSC Fire TAC. UCSC Fire Department system. UCSC FIre is now dispatched by Netcom via Fire RED (154.325 CSQ) Since county fire frequencies don't cover inside the UCSC buildings very well, often calls on campus will have responding units switch to UCSC Fire Tac, which does cover UCSC. UCSC Dispatch monitors and can dispatch UCSC Fire if necessary. UCSC Fire also uses this frequency for their fire alarm system testing. UCSC fire apparatus are numbered as 27xx units. 2710 is type 1 engine, 2730 is type 3 engine, 2760 is utility truck, 2790 is pickup truck. 2700 is Fire Chief, 2701 is assistant chief.
Santa Cruz Sheriff
155.5650 CSQ Blue - Primary
154.9500 CSQ Red - Mutual Aid
156.0300 CSQ Orange - Admin
155.0700 CSQ Green - Investigations
155.0100 CSQ Black - SWAT (simplex), also output of Court Security repeater
155.4750 CSQ Brown - NELMARS
155.2650 CSQ Explorers
155.2350 CSQ County SAR
155.1600 CSQ NASAR
154.9200 CSQ White (CLEMARS, Calif. Law Enforcement Mutual Aid Radio System)
155.3100 CSQ Jail/Probations
154.9350 CSQ Gold (CLEMARS)
156.0900 91.5 Cabrillo College Security (Sheriff)
855.2375 CSQ County Sheriff mobile data system.
155.0550 CSQ County Local Government (Santa Cruz County)
151.1000 CSQ County Public Works
156.1950 CSQ County Public Works simplex channel
155.1450 CSQ Harbor Maintenance
156.1350 CSQ Landfill
152.3150 CSQ Boardwalk security (Seaside Company)
155.2200 CSQ Gold - Life Guards (Santa Cruz CITY)
155.5050 156.7 UCSC Police primary. UCSC PD also has talk groups on UCSC 800MHz Trunked NexEdge digital system
Santa Cruz County Fire (All Agencies except CalFire)
154.3250 CSQ Red (Main dispatch)
150.7750 192.8 Silver TAC
151.0400 151.4 Orange TAC
154.0550 192.8 Black TAC
154.1900 103.5 Yellow TAC
154.4150 151.4 Blue TAC
154.4450 CSQ Green TAC
155.3850 118.8 HEAR Net (Communications between hospitals)
156.0750 CSQ CALCORD (Statewide)
Medical:
Ambulance to Hospital:
463.0500 173.8 Med 3 "Medical Net"
463.1750 173.8 Med 8 Dominican Hospital and Watsonville Hospital
154.1300 141.3 UCSC Fire TAC. UCSC Fire Department system. UCSC FIre is now dispatched by Netcom via Fire RED (154.325 CSQ) Since county fire frequencies don't cover inside the UCSC buildings very well, often calls on campus will have responding units switch to UCSC Fire Tac, which does cover UCSC. UCSC Dispatch monitors and can dispatch UCSC Fire if necessary. UCSC Fire also uses this frequency for their fire alarm system testing. UCSC fire apparatus are numbered as 27xx units. 2710 is type 1 engine, 2730 is type 3 engine, 2760 is utility truck, 2790 is pickup truck. 2700 is Fire Chief, 2701 is assistant chief.
Santa Cruz Sheriff
155.5650 CSQ Blue - Primary
154.9500 CSQ Red - Mutual Aid
156.0300 CSQ Orange - Admin
155.0700 CSQ Green - Investigations
155.0100 CSQ Black - SWAT (simplex), also output of Court Security repeater
155.4750 CSQ Brown - NELMARS
155.2650 CSQ Explorers
155.2350 CSQ County SAR
155.1600 CSQ NASAR
154.9200 CSQ White (CLEMARS, Calif. Law Enforcement Mutual Aid Radio System)
155.3100 CSQ Jail/Probations
154.9350 CSQ Gold (CLEMARS)
156.0900 91.5 Cabrillo College Security (Sheriff)
855.2375 CSQ County Sheriff mobile data system.
155.0550 CSQ County Local Government (Santa Cruz County)
151.1000 CSQ County Public Works
156.1950 CSQ County Public Works simplex channel
155.1450 CSQ Harbor Maintenance
156.1350 CSQ Landfill
152.3150 CSQ Boardwalk security (Seaside Company)
155.2200 CSQ Gold - Life Guards (Santa Cruz CITY)
155.5050 156.7 UCSC Police primary. UCSC PD also has talk groups on UCSC 800MHz Trunked NexEdge digital system
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ScannerDude244
Member
I submitted that pl tone awhile back they were using that pl tone and went back carrier squelch and I told one of the admins I cant remember who and thought they changed it back till I saw this thread sorry about that. I have Monterey county's fire load out that has all Santa Cruz CO frequencies. Also does anyone know if they are going to build out a new system of just narrowband? I see they have two new frequencies I wonder what they are going to use them for.
Great info. I will update the database accordingly within the next day or so. If you'd like faster service please create a database submission for Santa Cruz county and one of the other state DB admins may take care of it first.
mmckenna
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Not sure exactly what you are asking here.
Can you elaborate on that question?
ScannerDude244
Member
Is Santa Cruz county going to build a new radio system? Or just going to narrowband their current frequencies? I remember awhile back they were talking about building a new radio system.
http://forums.radioreference.com/ca...nother-p-25-article-santa-cruz-newspaper.html
Edit: After reading the user meetings all fire frequencies went narrowband back in 2011. SCSO and county agencies went NBmid-October or early November.
http://www.scr911.org/
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mmckenna
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No, no plans to build a new radio system. Fire was narrow banded back in the spring of 2012, same time CalFire went, and the Sheriff went in October, I think.
EBRICS and a few others were trying to suck as many agencies into their system as they could a few years back, but 700 MHz won't work well here. Every now and then someone brings it up and it gets shot back down.
Due to the topology of Santa Cruz county, VHF works pretty well. Even with that, channels like the Sheriff Blue and Fire Red have somewhere close to 22 sites (most RX only) to cover the county. Trying to do that on 700MHz would need a lot more sites, not to mention all the infrastructure to support it. There are a few hundred radios alone that would have needed replacing, not to mention hand packs, repeaters, and remote receivers. The prices quoted in the Sentinel were optimistic at best. Considering that I have a hard time covering the UCSC campus with the single site 800MHz system, and that's only around 2000 acres. Multiplying that across the county, then multiply the cost times 4 because it would be P25, and you get the idea. Even when the cell carriers want to put up a new site the tin foil hat crowd comes out of the woodwork to protest, the County trying to do that would turn into a big court battle.
I've talked with the guy who runs the county radio shop about the future of the radio systems for the county, and there just isn't any funding to do much more than keep the existing systems running. Narrow banding was strain enough on the budget. What he has been looking at is maybe switching some of the cities to basic 800MHz conventional systems and freeing up VHF frequencies for the rural areas. I even gave them some of my old MSF5000's from the old SmartNet system we had to try out.
EBRICS and a few others were trying to suck as many agencies into their system as they could a few years back, but 700 MHz won't work well here. Every now and then someone brings it up and it gets shot back down.
Due to the topology of Santa Cruz county, VHF works pretty well. Even with that, channels like the Sheriff Blue and Fire Red have somewhere close to 22 sites (most RX only) to cover the county. Trying to do that on 700MHz would need a lot more sites, not to mention all the infrastructure to support it. There are a few hundred radios alone that would have needed replacing, not to mention hand packs, repeaters, and remote receivers. The prices quoted in the Sentinel were optimistic at best. Considering that I have a hard time covering the UCSC campus with the single site 800MHz system, and that's only around 2000 acres. Multiplying that across the county, then multiply the cost times 4 because it would be P25, and you get the idea. Even when the cell carriers want to put up a new site the tin foil hat crowd comes out of the woodwork to protest, the County trying to do that would turn into a big court battle.
I've talked with the guy who runs the county radio shop about the future of the radio systems for the county, and there just isn't any funding to do much more than keep the existing systems running. Narrow banding was strain enough on the budget. What he has been looking at is maybe switching some of the cities to basic 800MHz conventional systems and freeing up VHF frequencies for the rural areas. I even gave them some of my old MSF5000's from the old SmartNet system we had to try out.
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Thanks mmckenna for all the good updates. I do know that Boardwalk security (152.3150) uses a CTCSS (D565N). I sometimes listen to them while aboard the Roaring Camp beach train on it's one hour Boardwalk layover.
BTW, is NASAR exempt from narrowbanding (like marine frequencies) or has it been made to comply?
BTW, is NASAR exempt from narrowbanding (like marine frequencies) or has it been made to comply?
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mmckenna
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It's part 90, so it had to narrow band.
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