Upgrade From Radio Shack PRO-2096 to PRO-106

[JASII]

A co-worker bought his wife a Radio Shack PRO-2096 last year and I programmed it for them. This year I found out that a different co-worker was looking for a scanner, but was a little turned off by the price on a new digital trunk tracker. Anyway, I told those guys to talk and one sold the other the used 2096 and now bought his wife the $300 PRO-106. It sounded like a Win-Win since he bought the 2096 on sale last year sold it this year for $200 and bought a new one for $300. Anyway, I have tried wading through all the posts here and I was able to program it for him and her very quickly using my Butel ARC500 software. My questions are:

-since the PRO-106 has only been out a short time, should I assume that there are no firmware upgrades yet (or are there?)

-will the PRO-106 have any "motorboating" issues on a digital trunked simulcast like the PRO-2096 does/did?

By the way, I have a GRE PSR-500 and from what I have read here so far they are almost identical to one another. Anyway, other than the programming that I have done for them, is there anything else I Should do to make it trouble free for them? They are only using the stock rubber duck antenna right now. I am using a commercial gain 800 mHz rubber duck on mine and it seems to work pretty well.

The only differences that I could see in the box were:

-No programming cable

-No AC adapter


Are there any other known differences? (I would say a heck of a bargain at $300, by the way.)

 

[KT4HX]

You are correct, there have been no firmware updates. The PRO-106 and PSR-500 are exactly the same build internally - but different on the front layout as you have noticed. One thing to bear in mind is that when a firmware update is released for the PRO-106 it should be downloaded from the RS website - do not try to download any firmware updates for the PSR-500 from the GRE website for use with the PRO-106. I have read that while the scanners are the same, the firmware updates may not be cross-compatible. Perhaps someone else can weigh in on that.

To my knowledge, there have not been any motor-boating issues with the PRO-106. Again, maybe someone else's mileage may vary on that subject.

As for an antenna, if the main target(s) are 800 MHz systems in your area, then I would recommend the RS-800 duck. If there are more VHF/UHF listening targets, then they might want to consider the Diamond RH77CA - an excellent antenna for those two ranges, and would do a decent job on local 800 systems. Though it is a bit long for some people's taste.

Hope this helps some. I'm sure others will toss in more info. Merry Christmas!

A co-worker bought his wife a Radio Shack PRO-2096 last year and I programmed it for them. This year I found out that a different co-worker was looking for a scanner, but was a little turned off by the price on a new digital trunk tracker. Anyway, I told those guys to talk and one sold the other the used 2096 and now bought his wife the $300 PRO-106. It sounded like a Win-Win since he bought the 2096 on sale last year sold it this year for $200 and bought a new one for $300. Anyway, I have tried wading through all the posts here and I was able to program it for him and her very quickly using my Butel ARC500 software. My questions are:

-since the PRO-106 has only been out a short time, should I assume that there are no firmware upgrades yet (or are there?)

-will the PRO-106 have any "motorboating" issues on a digital trunked simulcast like the PRO-2096 does/did?

By the way, I have a GRE PSR-500 and from what I have read here so far they are almost identical to one another. Anyway, other than the programming that I have done for them, is there anything else I Should do to make it trouble free for them? They are only using the stock rubber duck antenna right now. I am using a commercial gain 800 mHz rubber duck on mine and it seems to work pretty well.

The only differences that I could see in the box were:

-No programming cable

-No AC adapter


Are there any other known differences? (I would say a heck of a bargain at $300, by the way.)

 

[PHOENIX_SCANNER]

The 106 rocks, and it has mostly replaced my PSR-500 at this point due to (my opinion) superior layout with the display at the top and keys in the middle where I find them easier to access.

No downside, hell, it even looks better than the 500. It shames the 96/2096, no contest, and outperforms the 396. Of course, these are just my observations based on my testing.