Tucson area assistance needed

[JPSan]

I need help to program a SDS 200 for a retired disabled gentleman in a assisted care facility.
Need necessary info for Pima County Sheriff and Northwest Fire Protection District that covers area around the Orange Grove Rd and LaCanada area.
Would appreciate any assistance so I can get him up and running and happy.
Thanks.

 

[doctordialtone]

Would appreciate any assistance so I can get him up and running and happy.

All you need to do is update the database via Sentinel, program in the Zip Code and enable the service types he wants to monitor.

Takes about 10 minutes. Try it out first!


Here's an "Easier to Read Manual"

 

[JPSan]

Yeah, I know that. WAS ASKING for help with SPECIFIC TG's for this area, NOT the broad Tucson area, thank you.

 

[DanRollman]

Yeah, I know that. WAS ASKING for help with SPECIFIC TG's for this area, NOT the broad Tucson area, thank you.

Since you used the term TGs I assume you are generally familiar with how P25 trunked systems work, so I will speak as though speaking to someone who has a baseline familiarity. (Just let me know if the below doesn't make sense to you and I am happy to explain further, but wanted to avoid talking down to you if you're pretty familiar.)

For Northwest Fire and Pima County Sheriff, you will want to monitor the Pima County Wireless Integrated Network (PCWIN) TRS. You can read more about it at Pima County Wireless Integrated Network (PCWIN) Trunking System, Tucson, Arizona - Scanner Frequencies. I recommend you lock on to the North Simulcast site, which will allow you to hear Pima County Sheriff North channels just fine, since those TGs are always active on that Site.

North-1 covers everything west of Campbell Ave and North of the City Limits, including the Orange Grove and LaCanada area. Basically, everything on the NW side outside the City of Tucson, Oro Valley, and Marana.

Northwest Fire is dispatched by the City of Tucson, along with Tucson Fire and about a dozen other area departments, on a common radio channel plan. Take a look at Tucson Regional Fire Dispatch talkgroups on the page linked above. Everyone is dispatched on A2. Routine calls like EMS go on A3 North or A6 West, depending on the exact area. North is basically east of I-10, South of Ina Road, and north of Speedway. West covers everything West of I-10 AND everything North of Ina Road (all the way up into Catalina for Golder Ranch Fire and beyond). So ironically, a call on the south side of Oracle & Ina is on A3 North, but a call on the NORTH side of Oracle & Ina is on A6 West. Full alarm responses (like structure fires) for all departments on this system use A7, and if that's in use by another fire they get A10, and if that's in use they get A13.

So all that said - for what you've described you want to sit on PCWIN system, North Simulcast site, and Departments Tucson Regional Fire and Pima County Sheriff, with a special focus on channels PCSO North-1 and North-2, and Tucson Regional Fire channels A2, A3, A6, A7, A10 and A13.

Hope I haven't confused you too much with the detail. Let us know if you have questions, and let us know how it works!

 

[DanRollman]

All you need to do is update the database via Sentinel, program in the Zip Code and enable the service types he wants to monitor.

Takes about 10 minutes. Try it out first!


Here's an "Easier to Read Manual"

That would be a good way to get the scanner to "start talking and never stop" in a large metro area, and even a good way to just "get started" out of the box, but is insufficient to zero in on activity in a particular area of a broad metro area like Tucson, where a couple of simulcast sites on a single P25 TRS collectively cover dozens of public safety agencies and a million people.

If you simply use the zip code/service type method in Tucson without more, you'll hear activity nonstop and 95%+ of it will not relate to the police district and fire district the OP asked about.

 

[JPSan]

Okay. Heres the deal, I AIN"t new to the SDS 200. I know HOW to program it. I don't need to learn the radio. All I was looking for IF someone had specific TG groups or what ever to set this guy up as a courtesy so I don't have to hunt and peck.
I guess I'll have take time and babysit PCWIN to figure out what he is specifically looking for as he doesn't care to listen to the whole.

 

[DanRollman]

Okay. Heres the deal, I AIN"t new to the SDS 200. I know HOW to program it. I don't need to learn the radio. All I was looking for IF someone had specific TG groups or what ever to set this guy up as a courtesy so I don't have to hunt and peck.
I guess I'll have take time and babysit PCWIN to figure out what he is specifically looking for as he doesn't care to listen to the whole.

Pretty sure that's exactly what I explained two posts up - the "specific talk groups so you don't have to hunt and peck." I even told you specifically what site he'd want to be listening to. Maybe we're misunderstanding what you're asking here. We're trying to help.

 

[KB7MIB]

The first reply by Dan Rollman has the exact info you need.

Use the North Simulcast site and focus on the talkgroups for:
PCSO North 1 & 2
Tucson FD A2, A3, A6, A7, A10, A13

John
Peoria

 

[JPSan]

Thank you all. This gentleman is a very "cantankerous" person. He wants answer from me ASAP. He has NO computer so I'M his resource
for programming. His listening needs are specific as I've so stated, nothing more.......

 

[DanRollman]

Thank you all. This gentleman is a very "cantankerous" person. He wants answer from me ASAP. He has NO computer so I'M his resource
for programming. His listening needs are specific as I've so stated, nothing more.......

If he is not in to learning how to operate a complicated device like an SDS scanner, and only wants to listen to a few things (that are all on the same site anyway), a Unication might be the way to go for him if it is still possible to change product selection. Much easier to operate for basic monitoring, sounds a bit better, and about the same price.

 

[JPSan]

He wanted an SDS, he brought and SDS. A friend referred my services. So , I become stuck as his go to, cause I'm an old Motorola tech ,.
Rest is history. I'm really trying to satisfying him. Very demanding AND not wanting to he the facts.......... Patience is a virtual, LOL.

Thanks again to all. Now back to my bottle/