Ubbe
Member
It's not a mechanical hum, I've never experianced that in a radio, or mains hum. It's improper grounding that causes ground loops. The humming kind of noise must be the datasignal between the main circuit board and the front.
/Ubbe
- Status
/Ubbe
I asked because someone awhile back claimed the hum stopped when he put pressure on the metal case, and in their words, 'like it was vibrating'. I couldn't imagine what would make it do that, considering there's no big transformer inside.
Agree 100%, have a 100 and have the funds, and an HRO 15 minutes away..... I'm waiting till the hum issue is no longer in the supply chain.
Didn't Paul state that there is no production change and the only change is/will be the addition of the noise remediation part?
You may be waiting forever
TailGator911
Silent Key/KF4ANC
It's the most likely and cost-effective remedy for them. Why redesign and replace the entire chassis (my quick assumption) when a shim will do? They needed it thicker at a certain point to reduce the noise, so a fix was incorporated into the manufacturing process. So, yeah, there was a change, but it was only changed where it needed to be changed, with a simple addition that would repair the issue. The bottom line is that the noise issue was fixed and any of the SDS200 scanners now sold (current stock) should be without the hum. What would be nice for future buyers is a serial number cutoff so you would know if the SDS200 you are buying is before or after the noise reduction addition.
JD
kf4anc
JD
kf4anc
Didn't Paul state that there is no production change and the only change is/will be the addition of the noise remediation part?
You may be waiting forever
I don't recall ever reading that from anyone let alone Paul saying it. Obviously Uniden plans of selling off existing inventories as they're already doing that. But I don't think they'd continue to manufacture what could be considered a defective scanner now that the problem has been discovered and they have a fix. In the past there have been several scanners that underwent various internal hardware modifications or changes of some kind. I would hope the SDS series would not be the exception.
The shim fix did not fix the issue completely. The radio still hums during conversation with the firmware upgrade. I am going to do a video to where the shim is installed and a video with the hum noise on the internal and external speaker tonight. When people do videos it puts this issue to rest. Can't hide the truth with audio and video.
If that is in fact the case, I may take the chance but I had read a couple posts of people who had done the change and it made no difference so fingers crossed... if it's fixed, great, I'll grab one provided the supply chain now has the mod done. I'm not paying $700.00 to have to do it myself.
StaticDischarge
Member
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2019
- Messages
- 295
Jen,
I purchased my SDS200 on 03/16/2019 from BearCat Warehouse. I have all of the firmware updates but other than changing a couple of filters to suit the system I listen to I have absolutely no "issues" with this scanner. Sure, once in a while I experience simulcast digitizing but believe it or not that only happens when the wind is blowing above about 30MPH. This is mainly due to the fact that I have my discone on the floor, inside my house next to the sliding glass door... I do believe that problem would be solved if I were to get off my rump and install the dang thing like I should, you think???..
Now for the conventional and AM side of things.. I hear everything exceptionally well given the fact that I have antennas for those bands I built and tuned back when I still had my decked out with every Bill Cheek mod Pro-2006 with somewhere near 65,000 memory channels (just wish that old computer could've kept up because I really struggled with the LED binary bank counter and notebooks! - those were the days!!).
Only one thing in life is an absolute guarantee, everything else is left up to chance and if you never take that chance you will never know for sure!
Normal scanning may now resume......
Didn't Paul state that there is no production change and the only change is/will be the addition of the noise remediation part?
You may be waiting forever
Here is UPman's exact quote regarding the hum issue and the mitigation solution Uniden implemented.
"I should add to this that there is no guarantee that we will ever find anything else to change in production. I would not predicate a current purchase on a vague possibility. "
https://forums.radioreference.com/threads/newest-sds200s.384991/page-5#post-3098964
At the very least I would think Uniden would install their current fix for the hum on newly manufactured units ASAP. If Paul were to disclose plans to correct the problem going forward, Uniden and their dealers would likely get stuck with a lot of inventory or they would have to pay someone to perform the modification prior to shipping them. I can wait. I have four other scanners to keep me entertained until I feel confident I can buy a SDS200 that works properly out of the box.
TailGator911
Silent Key/KF4ANC
There will always be the few lemons out there where the part would not adhere or something. There are difficulties with all companies and all products - no manufacturer is ever perfect - except Maytag, of course - Maytag is perfect. Be sure to buy from a reputable dealer with a decent return policy (like no restocking fee if something does occur) and take the plunge. If you cover your bases and shop smart you will never get stuck with defective merchandise.
JD
kf4anc
Sadly it sounds like the "fix" was to have the audio amp only come on when carrier was detected, so yes, I guess that would cut off any audio from the speaker during scan but it does not mitigate or reduce the hum once that amp is turned back on so if you had a unit with particularly bad hum, that bad hum is now overlayed onto the transmission audio, that's not a fix, that's a bondo kluge so I'll wait like you to see how the ones coming out of manufacture currently are sounding.
Yes, you are exactly right. This is exactly the words I was always trying to articulate about the hum noise. Once the firmware fix came out the hum noise is now overlayed into the tranmsission audio which is still annoying and it is not a fix.
I think the lack of transparency by Uniden is making this issue worse. Many potential SDS200 purchases are on hold!
If I was in charge of Uniden I would recall all defective units in the supply chain, fix them, and then publicly announce that the problem is resolved.
N8TXX
Scanner Enthusiast
I ordered an SDS200 from The Ham Station on Sunday April 14th. Jeff and Dan answered all my questions, even on a Sunday! They assured me their warehouse had late stock. I received it very fast, UPS Tuesday April 16th. It did have the factory fix installed. I cannot detect any hum, with or without external speaker. I bought my 536 from them also. I highly recommend them.
I ordered one from Bearcat Warehouse. It has the 'fix' and I have no problems at all. I love it!
I received my SDS200 a couple of days ago and it was the old stock. Meaning it was the first radios to be shipped. My particular Radio has absolutely no hum at all. If you’re put your ear right next to the speaker you here in a little. But if you are even 1 foot away you can’t hear anything. In my opinion the quality of the sound on 800 trunking and analog conventional sounds amazing. I will not even be calling Uniden for the part. I don’t believe it’s necessary at all for me.
Roger
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Roger
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Xbullworker
Member
Yeah and somewhere in the future you will want to sell your SDS200. The very first thing the buyers will ask is: "Does your your radio have the HUM Fix".
N8TXX
Scanner Enthusiast
It actually may have the fix, mine has a serial number in the 400's, and came with the fix. Open it up and take a look, the only way to know.
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