Newbie and first post ... I'm looking to purchase a handheld scanner to listen to police/fire/EMS, weather, aircraft, and military transmissions in Collin County (Plano), Texas. I'd like to pick up Dallas Police/Fire/EMS and DFW Airport transmissions from Plano too. Will a handheld scanner have this type of range and will I need a digital scanner or will an analog scanner work? If this forum allows specific makes/model recomendations, I'd be interested in some good entry-level to mid-level recomendations ($200-$300) that might match what I need. Thanks.
Scanner Recommendation for Plano (Collin Co) TX
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Plano is about to swap to Digital soon, they have been saying this forever, thank goodness as I live in Allen and they share the same system so I have gotten by with my Pro 97 all this time. When the swap happens you will have to get a digital scanner, so I would say get one of the basic 3(Radio Shack 106, GRE PSR-500 and Uniden BC396xt) so you dont have a paper weight 1 month after you buy it. They all have their pros and cons, but really for a new guy and basic needs, they are the same for what you need. For what your wanting to spend, Radio Shack is going to be your best bet, digital scanners are still $$$. On sale you can get the Pro 106 for close to $300 regular price $400, otherwise your paying $400 for the GRE and $450to500 for the Uniden.
You will not be able to get Dallas reliably from Plano, sure you may hear a peep now and then, but for the most part, you will only hear Plano and the immediate area unless you go to an external antenna then you "might" hear a tad more.
You will not be able to get Dallas reliably from Plano, sure you may hear a peep now and then, but for the most part, you will only hear Plano and the immediate area unless you go to an external antenna then you "might" hear a tad more.
n5ims
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I agree with wiz4769 that you should go for the digital model. Frisco is now digital and Plano will soon be. Dallas PD & FD are now analog, but are going to a new 700 MHz system soon as well. One of these towers will be in Collin County so you should have some coverage in Plano.
My current recommendation is the RS Pro-106/Pro-197 since they'll be under $300 shortly (see this thread for more on this topic http://forums.radioreference.com/radio-shack-scanners/195326-radio-shack-black-friday-sales.html). They work well and it's hard to find digital scanners this low while new.
My current recommendation is the RS Pro-106/Pro-197 since they'll be under $300 shortly (see this thread for more on this topic http://forums.radioreference.com/radio-shack-scanners/195326-radio-shack-black-friday-sales.html). They work well and it's hard to find digital scanners this low while new.
I hear Dallas very well in Allen with a hand held, especially North Central and Northeast. With the outdoor antenna, the only thing I can't hear is Northwest Patrol. Plano's digital system is up on their rebanded frequencies with no traffic, yet. I'm not sure when they're supposed to move over but the data channel is up. Dallas' new digital 700 MHz system is supposed to have a tower on Frankford Rd so we should hear them quite well when that goes live. With the outdoor antenna my range is greatly increased. At times I can hear some VHF counties almost a hundred miles away and 800 MHz from about 50 miles away. You will need a digital scanner.
Thanks. I appreciate the advice. I'm planning to get the Pro-106 or Pro-197 on Black Friday and have been reading the manual online to see if I will be able to program it. The manual goes into painful minutia, but I think I'm going to be ok. Does anyone know if I can easily set everything back to default settings in the event I mess something up or will I have to save the default settings to a computer first?
texasemt13
CenTex DBA
Yes, a factory restore is quite simple.
I recommend getting win500 to help program your scanner. It has a free 30 day trial, but the software is worth the $$$. It will help you "visualize" how the scanner (ie: object oriented memory) works.
If you ask nicely I'm sure one of the DFW members will share their memory files with you (though most of the Yanks up in N. Texas like them Uny-dens
).
Remember that operationally, the Pro-106 is identical to the PSR-500, and the Pro-197 is the same as the PSR-600. The only differences are that the front panel layout on the Pro-106 is different than the PSR-500. The other differences are that Radio Shack does not include the ac adapter and pc programming cable with the 106 (GRE does with the PSR-500). For the Pro-197, Radio Shack does not include the pc cable that GRE furnishes for the PSR-600. Radio Shack does include the DIN sleeve (for in-dash mounting the Pro-197 if your vehicle has an open slot); GRE offers that as an extra cost accessory. Radio Shack gives you a printed manual with the Pro-106 and -197. GRE's manual is on the cd with some basic backup software, and the drivers for the pc cable that they provide.
Any comments that you see here in the forums regarding operating or programming the PSR-500 or PSR-600 would also apply to the Pro-106 and Pro-197 respectively. They are identical except for the minor differences noted above. The one exception to this is in the firmware. Firmware updates for the PSR series (500/600) will not work in the Pro-106/-197, nor the other way around.
You might also check out the "easier to read" manual here. While it's to your advantage to be able to program the scanner by hand, you'll find that, long term, using software has many advantage. First off, it's much quicker to enter the text tags, identifying the users of each frequency or talkgroup id, via the computer keyboard, than it is cycling one letter at a time on the scanner. You'll also find that on the pc, you can "see" the system on screen, rather than just a small piece of it. Makes it quicker & easier to find & fix errors. There are three popular software programs- Win500, PSREdit500, and ARC500. All three allow you a thirty day free trial period to decide if you like the program before you buy. See this Wiki article for more information. Note- To program, via software, you would also have to purchase a pc programming cable. That's not included with the Pro-106 (neither is the ac adapter), so be sure an look for any last minute deals on the PSR series scanners on "Black Friday". Expect the cable & ac adapter to each cost about $30.00 (ac adapter is included with the Pro-197, if you get that model instead, but no pc cable).
Now, now, be nice! I'm definitely not a Yank. Born & raised in Dallas. While I have my share of Uniden's, I also have a PSR-500, and on multiple occasions have provided a Win500 file when asked. (I also have PSREdit 500 installed.)texasemt13 said:If you ask nicely I'm sure one of the DFW members will share their memory files with you (though most of the Yanks up in N. Texas like them Uny-dens
Wow - That is the best comparison of the Pro-106/PSR-500 and the Pro-197/PSR-600 I have read yet! I'll have to do a cost comparison for the Pro-106 plus the AC adapter and PC progamming cable to the PSR 500 to see what turns out to be the better deal on Black Friday. I'm leaning toward the handheld model because I think it will get more use since I can carry wherever I go.
The handheld can go anywhere you are, whether that's from room to room in the house, out in the yard or on the deck, patio, or in your car. As long as you have a charged set of batteries (I have multiples), the handheld will work during a power failure. The desktop (base/mobile) won't, except when mounted in your vehicle.
The advantages the base/mobile (PSR-600 or Pro-197) has over the handhelds (PSR-500/Pro-106) are: Audio is generally somewhat better. This is because you have a larger speaker, inside a large 'cabinet', which improves the quality of the sound. But you can always use an external speaker with the handheld, when using it in one fairly fixed location at home, or in your vehicle. Also, the base/mobiles often have a metal case, versus plastic for the handhelds. This gives them a slight advantage in resisting interference from other electrical & electronic devices, such as your pc, monitor, and wireless routers. Printers, as well, are known sources of "noise". Doesn't make the base/mobiles immune, just maybe a little more resistant.
Personally, I prefer the handhelds, due to the portability. I have a couple of base/mobiles (the BC780 & BCD996T), but any future scanner I buy will be handheld (if there is a choice between the two).
a Little side note on Plano (or PAWM) TexTAC. I have both the 197 and 106 and they both experience front-end overload when mobile. I have to have the whole system Attenuated fulltime to be able to hear it well. Now it might also be that I run a true 800MHz antenna on my truck. So when you get your radio keep this as a possible thought.
The overload issue pretty much mirrors my experience with my PSR500. In my case, it came when trying to use the R/S 800mhz antenna on it at home & around the city. Way too many cell towers, overloading the 800 band. I was hearing less on it than my older 396T. I've got eight towers within a third to half mile of my house, all of them multi-site installations. Widen that out to a mile, and I'm well over twenty. Plus, I'm not all that far from two other centers of radio activity- downtown Dallas, where most of the taller buildings lease repeater space on the top floor area, and the mother of them all in this area, Cedar Hill.
Rather than use attenuation, I found that the sensitivity of the 500 was such that I could get good reception by simply using the stock antenna instead of a gain type, in town. (GRE's stock is much better than Uniden's.) I can get all the major 800 TRS systems, plus good Vhf-high & Uhf coverage, without overload. Outside of the metro area, I switch over to a gain antenna for the Vhf-high that predominate in the more rural areas.
I have a neighbor that literally has a 130' tall radio tower in his backyard. It is probably less than 1000' feet away from my house. I think he uses it for shortwave and leases it out for paging, cellular, business radio, and wireless internet as part of his business. Will that interfere with my scanner? If so, will it affect all frequencies or just the ones close to the frequency he broadcasts on?
Generally, you can recognize a cell tower by the antenna pattern. Three of them, evenly spaced, more or less rectangular. Some of the sites are directional, so you'll have "sets" of these facing two or three directions.
If there are other transmitters, you'd see small "platforms' at various heights, with boxes, which would be the transmitters/repeaters. However, if he's actually using it for shortwave, I'd seriously doubt he'd lease it for other transmitters. Too much interference.
You may be able to check on this site, to see if there are other users on the tower:
AntennaSearch - Search for Cell Towers, Cell Reception, Hidden Antennas and more.
There's also a "plug in' of sorts for Google maps that does much the same. I'll find that one this evening after I get back home. Right now, time to hit the traffic.
I agree that a stock antenna would probably cure it for me, but I generally only see FEO in plano, and having the Cushcraft NMO 800MHz mobile antenna on my truck REALLY helps pull in Distant VHF repeaters. So for me Attenuation works. But for TAC here, depending on what your wanting to hear, heigtx, your suggestion will probably work better. Not to mention very few folks want to drill a new truck.
Who drives a black pickup truck in Plano with a Shack mag mount scanner antenna on the roof and a Black fire stick on a L mount in the bed behind the driver? Whoever you are, your Exhaust SMELLS!
I couldn't wait until Black Friday, so I bought a Pro-106 last night. The salesperson assured me they have a 30 day price guarentee and that i would be able to get a refund for the difference in sales price next week. I even got the PC cable for 50% off.
So far I love the Pro-106. I didn't know squat about radio signals last week, but did some research and was able to program a variety of different radio signals (trunked systems and talk groups, conventional signals, and limit searches, etc.) into it directly without much diffuculty. I agree the instructions are difficult because they go into mundane detail, but they are complete and contain everything you need to know if you can wade through the pages. I even did the DSD and CPU upgrades without a problem.
The tower near my house doesn't seem to affect my reception at all. In fact, from Plano, I am getting clear reception of Plano, Allen, Wylie, and Murphy police and fire as well as clear reception of alot of the Dallas police and fire. In some cases, the Dallas signals are clearer than the Plano signals. Can't wait to try out the PC software tonight to add more signals and tweak the LED!
So far I love the Pro-106. I didn't know squat about radio signals last week, but did some research and was able to program a variety of different radio signals (trunked systems and talk groups, conventional signals, and limit searches, etc.) into it directly without much diffuculty. I agree the instructions are difficult because they go into mundane detail, but they are complete and contain everything you need to know if you can wade through the pages. I even did the DSD and CPU upgrades without a problem.
The tower near my house doesn't seem to affect my reception at all. In fact, from Plano, I am getting clear reception of Plano, Allen, Wylie, and Murphy police and fire as well as clear reception of alot of the Dallas police and fire. In some cases, the Dallas signals are clearer than the Plano signals. Can't wait to try out the PC software tonight to add more signals and tweak the LED!
Hi, that sounds like the exact external antenna I need. Which external antenna are you using for this area?
Thanks!
I would not recommend the PRO 197. I purchased on e few weeks ago and the Plano system with Wylie, Allen and Murphy onthe P25 side the audio is choppy and is mostly un-intellagable.
Does anyone have other than the PRO 197 that is not having this problem with the Plano P25 system? I have read on other threads that others are experiencing the same with the 197.
David
Does anyone have other than the PRO 197 that is not having this problem with the Plano P25 system? I have read on other threads that others are experiencing the same with the 197.
David
We have been talking about it as well, The Pro 106 is the same way, its not the radios I think its the system itself. It seems you have to be pretty close now to get a good signal.Some have claimed they swapped to the original antenna away from the 800mhz ones and it improved, at least for Wylie I think they said. Im in Allen and swapping antenna did not do much for me, it sounds fine most the time when Im close or actually in Allen, but still seems just a bit weird now. Im hoping there is still some tweaking to be done on their side.
I recommend the GRE PRS-800 scanner for Collin County area use. GRE software updates scan list every Saturday morning from infor. here in Radio Ref. It is a good radio for the Plano, Allen, Wylie, Murphy P25 PAWN system, McKinney P25, Frisco P25, Collin County SO 800 analog system, and other stuff like TX DPS P25, PHI. I use a Diamond D130J discone at 30 ft. at the house. I live 3 miles north of Princeton, TX. My set up hears pretty good. I have heard the PAWN system sounds bad like skipping in and out digital sound. It sounds like the repeater in going up and down in power on repeater on a transmittions. Frisco P25 system sounds great..I love this system...there set up is great..very clear all the time. I wish all other P25 systems need to look at the Frisco P25 system setup. Now, McKinney P25 system sucks only have FD and no public works...plus McKinney PD is encypted. I do not understand why McKinney spent over 8 million dollars on new system. Old analog system had a lot of use...McKinney PD, McKinney FD, McKinney ISD, McKinney Public Works, and McKinney roads and traffic. I do not hear that now on new P25 that sucks McKinney. Collin County Analog system is same old normal system with a lot of traffic and users it works great hate to see them go P25 in the future...if they do I hope Collin County will use same system set up like Frisco has on it's P25 system.
73's Danny U N5VKM
Princeton, TX
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