Upgrading a bc75xlt to sds200

[Mausreaper]

So I mostly listen to police/fire/ems and I have a bc75xlt that for the most part covers that pretty well for where I live until I hit the next town over or drive more than 25minutes from my house. Ems in the next town over uses nxdn, so I need to make the jump to a more capable scanner overall. I’ve definitely settled on the new sds200, but I’ve seen some of the more experienced folk here complaining about slow scanning, issues with filters, and weird noises during some uses. As a user of an inferior scanner that’s mostly novice to this, am I going to really notice these issues by comparison to where I’m coming from?
A secondary question is I use my scanner almost exclusively in the car and I’d need to invest in a new antenna to go with it and I’d like some recommendations on good ones for my use, I’d like it to be magnetic or trunk lip mounted, and preferably under three feet in length or my wife’ll have my head on a platter for putting an obnoxious antenna on my car again (I’ve got an amazon special that’s about a foot long that she puts up with currently).
And lastly I do do a fair bit of travel on the daily for my job covering roughly Columbus-Cleveland(Ohio) multiple times a day, would I benefit from getting the gps dongle at this time or can I get by by using favorites lists to activate the areas I travel through? Is the simplicity worth the cost?
Thanks for any help you can provide.

 

[sparklehorse]

There's a lot to unpack here, I think that's why no one has waded in here yet. I'll just say you might consider the SDS100 instead of the 200 since you seem to want to use it at home as well as while mobile. You might not need to worry about a mag-mount antenna if the stock SDS100 antenna works for you, and if not you could always try a Remtronix SDS100 antenna:

SMA SDS100 800MHz REMTRONIX Portable Antenna | ScannerMaster.com

The SDS100 doesn't have the hum issues that some of the 200's have had. I don't own a 100 (yet) but I do own a 200. I think you'd be quite pleased with its capabilities coming from a BC75XLT.
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[noaim]

For mobile I also use the sds100 and love it I do have the 200 for a base at home but the 100 is great going mobile


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[UnidenSupport]

The Ohio MARCS system has some of the worst simulcast problems in the country, so the SDS scanners are likely a good idea. both other commenters make great points about the SDS100, as it might be easier to get around, but its certainly not impossible with the SDS200.

If you're traveling more than 30 miles or so often, then the GPS device can be quite useful, as you would not need to re-enter your zip code as you move between areas. I don't think you will have much issue with scan speed over the BC75xlt, aside from having a lot more frequencies to scan.

 

[Mausreaper]

Thanks for the input folks. I’ll probbaly roll with the 200 still because the screen space is a big seller on this for me, I can’t tell too much about who’s communicating other then by voice recognition and unit ID’s. I think you guys have covered everything except for antennas, and I can clarify what areas of coverage I would need in that the frequency ranges I listen to mostly span the 100-200, 400-500, and as uniden states the Ohio Marcs system spanning the 700-900. I never really dealt with the digital frequencies before so my real challenge here is weeding out the good antennas from the weak for my use which will be in my car where I’ve got plans for an in the dash mount so an external antenna is really going to be a must with my plans at the moment. Thanks for the advice and then reference to the 100. Might be a nice additional purchase to take with me in the wife a car.

 

[OFFT4P]

For an antenna, I'd recommend a Larsen NMO150/450/800 antenna