I just installed a Uniden BCT 8 in my truck. I have figured out most of the local frequencies, but I cannot get the main dispatch to pick up. I can get it on the iPhone apps, I don't see the frequency in the lists, but I see something about trunking. I am in Memphis/Shelby County TN.
Uniden BCT8
- Thread starter mbrooks85
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N8IAA
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Well, first the bad news, your BCT8 is an analog trunktracker. Majority of Shelby county is digital. If you go to the database, click on your state, then click on Shelby county, you'll see the trunk system. Where ever you see an 'A', you will be able to hear. A 'D' or an 'E' is digital, or encrypted. You'll be able to monitor the 'D' with a dgital P-25 scanner, and not be able to hear the 'E' encrypted TGID.
HTH,
Larry
Hi mbrooks
Welcome to RadioReference.
For Memphis PD, and Shelby County S.O., it appears that you'd need to monitor this trunked system: Memphis/Shelby County Public Safety Trunking System, Memphis, Tennessee - Scanner Frequencies
(edit to add- Larry typed a little quicker than I did
)However, looking at the system in the database, it appears that most all of the PD and S.O. talkgroups, as well as many of the fire talkgroups, are digital. You can tell that by the letter "D" in the mode column. Those labeled with an "E" are encrypted (scrambled). Your BCT-8 is an analog scanner. It cannot monitor any of the digital talkgroups. You could monitor the digital ones with a scanner such as the BCD996XT, PSR-600, Pro-197, among others, but no scanner can monitor any of the ones labeled as "E" (encrypted). You would, however, be able to monitor any talkgroup labeled as "A", or "analog", if you program your BCT-8 to track this system. The digital talkgroups would simply sound like static or noise, not voice.
While most of what you originally asked about are digital talkgroups on the trunked system, there are still some analog, conventional, frequencies in Shelby County. Take a look at the database page. Granted, some of them, for the county itself, & Memphis, are backups for the trunked system, so they may not have much activity. But there are others listed. Your neighboring counties in Tennessee, Fayette and Tipton, both appears to be mostly conventional, not trunked. To your south, in Mississippi, DeSoto County looks to be conventional, with an analog trunked system that you might be able to hear, depending on location and antenna.
You would get better, more specific information, on your area down in the Tennessee forum on what else you might be able to monitor. To receive the digital talkgroups, though, your options are to continue to use the live audio feeds, or see about selling your BCT-8, then acquiring a digital scanner. Some used digital trunk trackers can be found, at times, in the $250 range, occasionally less than that.
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