Hello, I am new to the world of scanners. I recently bought a Uniden Bearcat 536HP. I used the Sentinel software to program it. I am using the antenna that came with it and it is located in the second story of my house. I am at a fairly high elevation compared to the rest of the county and I get good reception of AM/FM radio and TV here. The only thing I have been able to pick up on my scanner so far is FM radio. I have let it scan the local channels for hours and never hear anything. There is a broadcastify stream of the local scanner traffic that I listen to it, so I know there is a lot of talking going on, but I am not able to pick up any of it on my scanner. It just constantly scans through the list of about 5 channels that I put on my favorites list. I know my area uses P25 phase II, but I am not sure if it is simulcast or not. My zip code is 44691 (Wooster, Ohio). I am trying to listen to the sheriff, local police, and fire. I saw on youtube a guy said if your area is simulcast, set the "digital threshold level" to "manual", which I did and set it at "8". This did not make any difference. Would someone please be able to tell me if my area is simulcast? Is the stock antenna sufficient? What else can I do to try to pick something up?
Uniden 536HP receiving nothing
- Thread starter bigbobo
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Update the database using Sentinel, set your zip code, set scanner to monitor full database, set on the service types that you are interested in. That way we can take out your programming as an issue.
Ok, I have done that and still not picking anything up.
doctordialtone
Member
Make sure you have the correct Service Types enabled or you won't receive those types of transmissions.
Welcome to the forums. Examining the licenses of the closest group of sites you're likely monitoring on Ohio MARCS, each site looks to broadcast a different set of frequencies so I wouldn't suspect simulcast distortion here. As the other knowledgeable members suggested before me, ensure the service types corresponding to the frequencies and / or talkgroups you intend on monitoring (reference "tag" column in database) are turned on. If all else fails you can post your Sentinel export as an attachment here on this thread & someone can check it for errors. See directions in post #8 here
Stock antenna is crap - start there.
How far you are (line of sight) to what you want to listen to determines what antenna to use.
Remember, TV/FM/AM broadcasts are magnitudes more powerful than public service site's ERP (effective radiated power).
Not a good comparison.
How far you are (line of sight) to what you want to listen to determines what antenna to use.
Remember, TV/FM/AM broadcasts are magnitudes more powerful than public service site's ERP (effective radiated power).
Not a good comparison.
Ubbe
Member
Check how many NOAA stations you can pick up. If you can hear 2-3 of them then it should probably be a good location for scanner use.
Is it full strength on the signal bars, 5, when receiving FM broadcast? And it dies when pulling out the antenna?
/Ubbe
Is it full strength on the signal bars, 5, when receiving FM broadcast? And it dies when pulling out the antenna?
/Ubbe
engine183
Member
Looks like the Wooster site should work for you, based on the Zip Code you provided for the Ohio MARCS system. You might also try moving the scanner around in the house. Sometimes a few feet can make a big difference. Also be sure that you have all Wyane Co the talk groups enabled (at lease for testing). Also have you tried the US Weather service? That’s always something good to try!
Ohio MARCS-IP: Multi-Agency Radio Communications Site: Wooster
Ohio MARCS-IP: Multi-Agency Radio Communications Site: Wooster
Thank you all for your help! I am able to pick up quite a bit now if I set my zip code on the scanner and enable the service types. I am not sure why it is working now and not before...but anyways, I would like to use my favorites list because it is picking up a lot of helicopter traffic and things I don't want to hear. I made my favorites list on Sentinel, included all the local channels and enabled the service types. When I put the card back in my scanner and turn it on, it will say "nothing to scan". For some reason my favorites list will never work. Any ideas on why that would be?
Press Menu > Set Scan Selection > Select Lists to Monitor. Ensure favorites list is set to "on" here.
If that fails to resolve the issue, there's a wiki of other things to check...
Nothing to Scan - The RadioReference Wiki
tvengr
Well Known Member
If favorites list is Off, most likely Monitor was Off for the favorites list in the profile when you wrote to the scanner. Download sends the favorites list to the scanner. Monitor enables it to scan.
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