Trunking/Conventional in Same System?

[Rofocowboy84]

Unfortunately, I don't have my 996 yet, but I figured I'd go ahead and get the UASD and have it all ready so the second I get my scanner I can load the data and start listening. As I was going through it, I noticed that the county that I live in (Montgomery Co, PA) has a mixed trunking/conventional system. Basically, most of the talking is done via trunking, but the fireground channels are conventional 800 channels. I'd like to keep the county in one system, but I can't figure out how to do it. Is there a way?

Edit: Here's a link to the website in case I didn't explain it well enough: www.montcopa.org/eoc/EDS/. Just click on "Scanner Info" and then "Trunk Tracker Information".

 

[hiegtx]

Unfortunately, I don't have my 996 yet, but I figured I'd go ahead and get the UASD and have it all ready so the second I get my scanner I can load the data and start listening. As I was going through it, I noticed that the county that I live in (Montgomery Co, PA) has a mixed trunking/conventional system. Basically, most of the talking is done via trunking, but the fireground channels are conventional 800 channels. I'd like to keep the county in one system, but I can't figure out how to do it. Is there a way?

Edit: Here's a link to the website in case I didn't explain it well enough: www.montcopa.org/eoc/EDS/. Just click on "Scanner Info" and then "Trunk Tracker Information".

With dynamic memory, you cannot mix conventional frequency channels in a trunked radio system file. The scanner would ignore them anyway.

What you can do, however, is create two systems for the county. One for the trunked system, and one for the conventional usage. Then assign both to the same quick-key code. They'll then scan consecutively, and can be turned on/off via quick key in tandem.

Remember that you also can set the alerts for certain talk groups, or conventional channels, that will sound a specific tone when there is a transmission on that group or channel.

 

[Rofocowboy84]

Dang, I was hoping I wouldn't have to do that. I actually started to and then decided to ask. Thanks for the help.

Another quick question. I'm doing everything in all caps, just in case the scanner displays lower case if that's how you have it programmed. The first system I did, before I decided to do that was Montco. Now, no matter what I do, it stays as Montco and not MONTCO. Does it even matter? With my luck it doesn't and I've just been stressing about it. If the scanner does display all caps, is there a way to change that without having to just start over?

 

[hiegtx]

Well, I don't have a 996, just it's handheld sibling the 396. However, the 396 (as well as the 246 & 330, both of which are non-digital, dynamic memory scanners) does display in upper or lower case.

 

[hiegtx]

You can edit the names that display while scanning in UASD. No need to start over, if that's what you are talking about. Just open the file & change them, then save your changes.

 

[ResQguy]

You could make the trunked and conventional channels two different systems, assigned to the same SQK though, and they would probably act similar to what your looking for.

 

[Rofocowboy84]

You can edit the names that display while scanning in UASD. No need to start over, if that's what you are talking about. Just open the file & change them, then save your changes.

I tried that. While in that system is has it upper case like I changed it to, but then when I'm on the main screen that lists the systems I have, it still shows the upper/lower case way that I originally put it...

 

[hiegtx]

I tried that. While in that system is has it upper case like I changed it to, but then when I'm on the main screen that lists the systems I have, it still shows the upper/lower case way that I originally put it...

If you mean the screen, in UASD, that shows a list of all your various systems, that's driven by the file name you gave it when you first created it. That name is what shows, in the scanner as it scans systems, but has not stopped on one. What will be displayed when it stops on the system is the one you edited.

But, you can still change it, using Windows (I've done this on my 396, 330, & 246). Go to the folder containing the *.usd system files. Unless you changed the default install location, the system files will be in a "UASD_system files" sub-folders, under UASD_Database\BCD996T, which should be a sub-folder in "My Documents.
C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\UASD_DataBase\BCD996T\UASD_systems

Once you edit the name in Windows (right click on the file & select 'rename'), then go out of the system editor screen then back to it. You should see the corrected name. Note that if you did a major name change, like correcting a misspelling, or adding a number (like a site number) in this manner, the scanner would not recognize the corrected name as being the same name as before. You'd need to go back and add the corrected name to the configuration file or else it would not be loaded & scanned.

 

[ampulman]

Speaking of Quick Keys

With dynamic memory, you cannot mix conventional frequency channels in a trunked radio system file. The scanner would ignore them anyway.

What you can do, however, is create two systems for the county. One for the trunked system, and one for the conventional usage. Then assign both to the same quick-key code. They'll then scan consecutively, and can be turned on/off via quick key in tandem.

Remember that you also can set the alerts for certain talk groups, or conventional channels, that will sound a specific tone when there is a transmission on that group or channel.

While you're on the subject of Quick Keys, can a system be assigned to different keys at the same time? As I am expecting delivery of my 396 tomorrow, I can only deal with the theoretical aspects now.

On thinking about how I would like to set up my scanner, I considered that there would be times when I would be monitoring a single (conventional) system, e.g., the county fire/ems dispatches (key 1). Upon hearing of a report of a major accident/fire in my town, a quick press of key 2 followed by a press of key 1 would enable my town's specific police/fire/ems traffic as well as selected county frequencies, while disabling the whole county system. Would this give a faster response (no hold times)?

I could also envision where I might like to mix and match a trunked system with conventional frequencies in different combinations (as explained in a previous post). The net result, I would hope, would enable greater flexibility and speed in accessing the desired channels/frequencies.

Let's go one step further. Could one scan a single conventional system, composed of several groups in which a given frequency was assigned to more than one group, e.g., in my example above, my local police frequency assigned to an'all police' group, and an 'all town' group, etc.? Using group quick keys would seem to be the way to go for handling a bunch of conventional channel groups.

Ampulman