BCD436HP/BCD536HP: UHF Reception Issues due to Noise from Battery Compartment

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jeffm77

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I know myself, I have emailed them about the UHF issue several times, and I get no response. So, I bought a whistler to use on UHF, much much better than the 436.
 

bearcat

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You would think that if enough people complained to Uniden about the problem, they would fix it. I mean, this radio is not cheap and it deserves to be fixed and should be fixed.
Let's move forward with what we find with our own testing. Maybe someone will find the exact source. At this point if I can fix it myself I will be more than happy. I really improved mine.
 

mule1075

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I know myself, I have emailed them about the UHF issue several times, and I get no response. So, I bought a whistler to use on UHF, much much better than the 436.
Mine works just fine on UHF Jeff and I am in Washington County not sure why you guys are having trouble. Stock antenna regularly picks up most of agh county and beyond.

Sent from my Z750C using Tapatalk
 

Jay911

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You would think that if enough people complained to Uniden about the problem, they would fix it. I mean, this radio is not cheap and it deserves to be fixed and should be fixed.

I know myself, I have emailed them about the UHF issue several times, and I get no response. So, I bought a whistler to use on UHF, much much better than the 436.

Not sure why you felt the need to put this in two posts.

Here's the thing: "Complaining about the problem" is only a very minimal part of the issue. It's like walking up to your tech support at work, handing them your laptop, and saying "It's broken, fix it. Why haven't you fixed it already?! I've already complained about the problem! IT SHOULD BE FIXED BY NOW!".

I'm not saying "we" should do all the legwork for Uniden's engineers, but as has been mentioned in many threads already, not everybody has this problem. The odds are somewhere between good and excellent that if you "complain about" "the UHF problem", you will get the equivalent of a blank stare in response. Those who took the time to explain what they were experiencing vs what they expected to experience, said they got a radio back from service with the note that "tuning" was done. I don't recall if there was any improvement noticed.

Edit: One of my HP1s "went deaf" as in complete loss of signal. It was sent to service with that description, and came back in the same condition that it left my possession in. I paid for service to tell me the radio was working OK, because I didn't do any due diligence of my own. What was wrong with it? The stock plastic antenna that comes with the HP1 had crapped out. In time, all three of my HP1s "had that problem". Except it wasn't the radio itself, and I could have shipped them all to Uniden and claimed they were not working, and gotten cranky and fed up and decided to "go to Whistler" like you, but instead I investigated a little and figured out what was wrong, and rectified it by buying new antennas.

Thrusting your radio at Uniden and saying "Unh, it broken" like a caveman does nobody any good. It powers up, it scans, it receives signals - to them, it's functioning. If you tell them what is not working properly, maybe they can help you.
 
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jeffm77

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I have noticed since the day I got my 436, on UHF analog mostly, the signals come in with static and a hissing noise. Just using the stock antennas. I can monitor the same frequencies with another scanner, such as my 396XT or even anyone of yaesu portables, with no issues.
 

KevinC

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Interesting results...

This noise floor is higher with batteries installed.

I didn't have any copper tape so I stuck on some aluminum tape just to see what happens. I tried a semi-weak DMR IFB frequency (constant audio). Without the battery cover all I get is digital noise, as soon as I put on the aluminum lined cover I get recovered audio. I can repeat it over and over.

Hmm...
 
D

darunimal

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Yeah any shielding a going to be better than nothing, I figure if you put it to close to the emitter (probably sd signaling/power lines/ 5v regulator) then your actually creating a antenna. So my penny solution or taped SD card maybe out, but definitely worth a try if you have a sniffer.
 

KevinC

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So, the battery compartment is not shielded against RF leakage?

No and I wouldn't really expect it be...unless they suspected RF to be generated and leaking from this area. Which it seems to be.

Now to decide on whether copper tape or conductive coating is the better choice.
 

jeffm77

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Very interesting. So, the radio works well hooked up to a external antenna, but as soon as I go back to the stock antenna, the hissing and static start again.
 

wx5uif

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Has any of the testing been done with aftermarket batteries compared to stock batteries?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

pro92b

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Interesting results...

This noise floor is higher with batteries installed.

I didn't have any copper tape so I stuck on some aluminum tape just to see what happens. I tried a semi-weak DMR IFB frequency (constant audio). Without the battery cover all I get is digital noise, as soon as I put on the aluminum lined cover I get recovered audio. I can repeat it over and over.

Hmm...

Was the aluminum tape on top of the foam block or under it? Maybe the metal tape needs to press against the battery for maximum benefit.
 

KevinC

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Was the aluminum tape on top of the foam block or under it? Maybe the metal tape needs to press against the battery for maximum benefit.

It was on top. This was just a quick and dirty test to see if it made any difference at all, and it did.
 

N9PBD

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Interesting results...

This noise floor is higher with batteries installed.

I didn't have any copper tape so I stuck on some aluminum tape just to see what happens. I tried a semi-weak DMR IFB frequency (constant audio). Without the battery cover all I get is digital noise, as soon as I put on the aluminum lined cover I get recovered audio. I can repeat it over and over.

Hmm...

Kevin,

Can you post some pictures of your quick tape job, for curiosity sake?

Greg
 

KevinC

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Kevin,

Can you post some pictures of your quick tape job, for curiosity sake?

Greg

It's ugly, so I'd rather not. :p

But all I did was put some aluminum foil tape on the inside of the battery door, over the foam.
 

bearcat

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I have noticed since the day I got my 436, on UHF analog mostly, the signals come in with static and a hissing noise. Just using the stock antennas. I can monitor the same frequencies with another scanner, such as my 396XT or even anyone of yaesu portables, with no issues.
Please stay on the topic of shielding the battery case. I intended this thread for solving the problem. Even if we need to do it ourselves.
 

bearcat

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Kevin C, did you do the whole battery door or just over the foam? I tried a piece of aluminum foil with no better results.
I mentioned in the original post that aluminum foil will not help. Go back to the first message and read the m all and then you will be up to date on these questions.
 
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