Scanner needs repair - worth the $$ ??

[N2DFire]

Greetings folks - after a very brief bout with some not-so-technical support I turn to you the experts for advice and guidance.

A while back I was in need of a basic "no frills" scanner to pull in some Fire/EMS stuff in my area. I tuned to e-bay for help.

I ended up getting a nice RS Pro 2044 (for which I am also looking for a manual but I digress)

This particular auction also included an RCA RP-6150 hand held scanner w/ no antenna. It was clearly represented by the seller as "works intermittently".

Now me in my naiveté thought "well that's because there's no antenna - silly guy"

After receiving my new goodies I went out an slapped a nice RS scanner antenna on the RCA, poked in some fresh batteries, and programmed in a couple of frequencies. Lo & behold it scanned and received like a champ . . . . for about 2 minutes.

At this point it still appears to be scanning but it never locks in on anything. I even "forced" it to the weather frequency and nothing - I have adjusted the external squelch and that's also not the problem.

Here is where the fun starts - I called the 888 number on the scanner and was greeted by a very nice lady w/ Thomson Consumer Electronics. After a quick conversation she informed me that this product had been discontinued some 8-10 years ago and that no source of support / repair was available. Her only suggestion was to take it to a CB / Radio repair shop.

Here is where you come in - is it really worth what they would charge to repair this unit (provided it CAN be repaired) or should I just toss it on e-bay for parts and look for a new hand held ?

Aside from missing the antenna & A/C power adapter - the unit look fresh out of the box. No wear, no scratches, nothing.

BTW - if one of you here happen to be the guy who sold me these scanners - I'm still satisfied w/ the deal. The Pro 2044 was still a heckuva deal even w/o the RCA Unit.

 

[amusement]

Greetings N2Dfire and welcome to Radio Reference.

I do not believe it's worth getting the RCA RP-6150 repaired.

RP-6150: 1997 vintage. No frills, good performing portable.
200 channels in 10 banks. No military aircraft frequency
coverage. Triple conversion and a flexible battery
arrangement. Lacks duplicate channel detection, search
skip, and empty channel lockout features of newer designs.
Our sample isn't super sensitive at 470 - 512 MHz and has
some intermod around the VHF railroad channels but is
generally more resistant to image problems than the
BC230XLT. For technical test results and a review, see "The
RCA RP-6150 Portable," by Bob Parnass, AJ9S, in Monitoring
Times, April 1998.

This decision is based on $50 hour labor with $50 minimum and what ever parts. Which may include a single diode or transistor failure all the way to put to a integrated chip.

Here's Radio Shack's web page for Pro-2044.
http://support.radioshack.com/support_electronics/36546.htm

 

[hotdjdave]

I would buy a new HT scanner.

 

[Grog]

My 2044 had really great VHF-hi RX, so it's one to keep if you ever upgrade to a newer scanner.

 

[cristisphoto]

Do it your self...

Just do it on yur own I replaced the Front case assembly on my 97...
Radoshacks scanners are the easiest to repair....
Get you a good /cheap electronics screwdiver/tool set from Walmart...
And go too work!!
But as you go along take photgraphs step by step so if you get confused puttin er back together the pics wiill guide you back ....


And the 2044 is older hence easier to repair..
SOoooo..
ANYWAYS LOL

Crista

 

[N2DFire]

Thanks for the info folks. It pretty much reinforced what I already suspected.
I just figured I'd ask on the outside chance that someone would say "Oh yea - mine did that once and a so-n-so had gone bad. Quick fix with short trip to Radio Shack for components and some quality time w/ the soldering iron"

I have the "skill" to do simple repair work, I just don't have the "knowledge" to troubleshoot what's broken.

Thanks again for the advice - I guess the Handheld will just have to wait - too many bills to pay first. Always seems to be too much month left over at the end of the money

 

[Halfpint]

Thanks for the info folks. It pretty much reinforced what I already suspected.
I just figured I'd ask on the outside chance that someone would say "Oh yea - mine did that once and a so-n-so had gone bad. Quick fix with short trip to Radio Shack for components and some quality time w/ the soldering iron"

I have the "skill" to do simple repair work, I just don't have the "knowledge" to troubleshoot what's broken.

Thanks again for the advice - I guess the Handheld will just have to wait - too many bills to pay first. Always seems to be too much month left over at the end of the money

Given what shops are asking these days, which BTW out here are a lot more that $50/hr, that seems like a good decision. However... {GRIN!} Iffn we were neighbors I'd say bring on over and let's put it on the slab in the lab and see if we kin gits it runnin. agin. Sounds like something interesting to while away a little time on and a decent change of pace from what I've been doing lately. Maybe you'll be lucky and stumble upon a neighbor who feels the same way I do and it'll `live' again.

 

[Al42]

I have the "skill" to do simple repair work, I just don't have the "knowledge" to troubleshoot what's broken.

So let's do some really basic troubleshooting. Let it scan. Open the squelch. Do you hear the noise you usually hear on a scanner when the squelch is open? If not, there's probably a problem in the squelch or detector circuits. If yes, there's probably a problem in the circuit going from the squelch to the scanning section. Neither one - with the possible exception of the IF-detector IC - will cost much in part(s) to repair. One or more resistors, diodes and/or small capacitors.

Remember, the squelch is a noise amplifier - it takes the discriminator output, filters it so only the noise remains and amplifies it. The "volume control" for this amplifier is the squelch control. Then it uses this output - now a DC level - to turn off the audio and keep the scanner scanning, as long as there's enough noise. When a signal quiets the noise, the DC level drops, the scanner stops scanning and the audio opens up.

Of course, the whole receiver, from the antenna to the detector, could be shot. But take it one step at a time.