Ive been out of radio scanning for quite some time, and recently got my SDS 200 in my ham shack again and was curious on a way to scan for new TGIDs that are NOT listed on my local TRS (SEGARRN, Savannah, GA). I want to try finding new TGIDS compared to ones that are already listed. On my old 996XT, I believe I imported the whole system and left it on TGID search with every known agency/TGID locked out. WOuld this work on the SDS 200? Or is there another way to do it? brushing up on the manual, but I figured id ask here too. Thanks guys!
Trunking Discovery is the feature you want on the SDS200. It is designed to find unknown or unlisted talkgroup IDs without requiring you to preload every possible TGID first, making it a cleaner upgrade from the older “import everything and lock out” workflow used on the 996XT.
How Trunking Discovery Works on the SDS200
In Trunking Discovery mode, the SDS200 actively logs every Talk Group ID (TGID) that appears on the system while it scans. This includes brand-new, unlisted, or rarely used TGIDs. Unlike older workflows, you do not need to program every possible TGID in advance.
Recommended Setup for SEGARRN
1. Create a separate Discovery system.
Create a new system for Discovery so you do not disrupt your regular SEGARRN scan lists: Menu → Manage Systems → New System → Trunked → Motorola.
Enter the SEGARRN control channel frequencies for the site or sites you want to monitor.
2. Enable Trunking Discovery.
Open the system settings, go to Trunking Discovery, and turn Discovery on.
For a permanent record, enable logging to the SD card so you can review hits later.
3. Run Discovery and review the results.
Scan the dedicated Discovery system or site and let it run for an extended period.
Longer sessions are more useful, especially during commute periods, shift changes, major events, or other high-activity windows.
Review the Discovery Log to see new TGIDs, hit counts, timestamps, and related activity details.
Why This Is Better Than the 996XT Method
With the 996XT, you generally had to preload possible TGIDs and lock out the known ones manually.
The SDS200 simplifies that process because Trunking Discovery is built specifically to capture unknown or unprogrammed TGIDs automatically.
It also offers stronger decoding performance and handles multiple control channels more smoothly.
Pro Tips for SEGARRN
Because SEGARRN is an active regional system, focus your Discovery sessions on high-traffic periods such as shift changes, commute windows, special events, and port-related activity.
If you want to narrow the search, run Discovery on specific sites instead of the entire system.
After identifying new TGIDs, document them and add confirmed entries to your main scan lists with clear alpha tags.
Overall, Trunking Discovery is the modern SDS200/SDS100 workflow for hunting unknown TGIDs. It is more efficient than the older 996XT approach and is well suited for finding activity that has not yet been published.
Let the system run long enough to collect meaningful results, then review and organize the discoveries before adding them to your permanent scan setup.
