VA STARS programming

[srahn]

I've got a BC996T that I take on business trips through Virginia. I have the various STARS towers programmed in the scanner. It worked fine until I recently reprogrammed the scanner to get a few new sites and talk groups in it.
I use the Butel scanner program. It suggests placing the BC996T scanner in P25 mode for the STARS netwrok. I did that and didn't hear anything for the week I was in Virginia.
Is that the correct setting or should it be Type II VHF?
Thanks.

 

[W4UVV]

The system level is "Motorola Type 2/P25". The site(s) level is "Motorola APCO 25". I also use Butel ARC996T software to program the 996T. Private email me and I will send you the latest STARS site(s) and appropriate group file(s) to date.

John
W4UVV

 

[kjtittle84]

Could I possibly get some of those stars sites as well? Thanks.

 

[W4UVV]

The STARS sites and frequencies are listed in the RR database for Virginia. A problem sometimes occurs when an individual posts a STARS site on RR there is no additional data field information to associate that site with its appropriate Division. For example, the reader is left to guess and make assumptions to what Division "Site 5" or "Site 10" belong to. A best guess that may be correct or incorrect may have been posted previously on the subject but that requires the reader search many past RR posts in the appropriate forum. Is Mt. Weather a Division 2 or Division 7 site? Those living in NOVA may know but those of us who don't live in NOVA may not know and have to depend on those within monitoring range to provide the correct information. In the past I have advocated adding another data field in the STARS site section listing the appropriate STARS site/division best guess or hopefully correct relationship. Also a "Comments" field also would be helpful, i.e., Fork Mountain, Thornburg and EdgeHill are Division 2 sites but have been and currently still are used by Division 1 possibly for various signal coverage issues. Whenever affiliations are implemented this may or may not change.

Monitoring STARS is work in progress but if the future is any indication of the past "Site 5" and "Site 10" will remain listed "as is" and never updated leaving the reader to guess if programing each VSP Division as as a separate system what division to program them to in their scanner. With two Division 2 talkgroups now being heard via Division 1, Culpeper finally may be operational. Time will tell whether or not additional clarifying information will be posted on the STARS RR database by NOVA monitors for Division 2 and Division 7. In my opinion the reader should be able to obtain the appropriate necessary STARS site programing information which includes the appropriate site/division relationships from the RR STARS Va. data section .

 

[FFEMTCURRENCE]

i heard the culpeper talkgroup this morning for a little bit and nothing from it now of off the Thornburg tower site...is division 7 up and running yet and if so what tower site besides the fairfax.....i live in stafford, va basically on 17 & 95

 

[Nitsud]

Division 7 will go on the 24th. There are only three towers "assigned" to div 7 but those towers are also used by div 2 so they are really not any one divisions per say. Sometime next week I will have a definite master control channel list as well as a list of exactly which towers will be associated with each division one the isolation is set in place. The isolation at this point could come as soon as the beginning of next year due to the fact that the state is right now, planning to be up and running on all 7 divisions by the end of the year. Of course as we found out this morning EVERYTHING is subject to change at a moments notice lol

 

[FFEMTCURRENCE]

lol wow....well cant wait to see that list with what towers are with what area i still hear both richmond and culpeper on the thornburg tower...nifty

 

[Stick0413]

lol wow....well cant wait to see that list with what towers are with what area i still hear both richmond and culpeper on the thornburg tower...nifty

In all reality you can hear any division on any tower. All it takes is for one radio to be affiliated to that tower and that talkgroup. Example if someone even accidentally switches to the Chesapeake 1 (Division 5) and the radio is in the area and affiliates with the Thornburg site then you will hear all Chesapeake 1 comms until that radio is either switched off of that talkgroup or loses affiliation with that site. In fact the radio that is set to that talkgroup doesn't even have to key up for it to affiliate with the tower. The radios automatically affiliate with the site that currently has the strongest signal.

Another similar example to yours is hearing both division 1 and division 5 comms on the Petersburg site. Even though Petersburg is technically a division 1 site division 5 units are, during normal operations, close enough that some of the radios affiliate with the site so I can hear division 5 comms through what is technically a division 1 site.

 

[FFEMTCURRENCE]

any updates on the STARS system...like you said a MASTER control channel or anything this week

 

[W4UVV]

158.7825 mhz.

Tuning a R7000 analog receiver because it is more sensitive I am receiving a periodic decent P25 signal on 158.7825 mhz. that I suspect is a STARS voice repeater. The signal is not strong enough for my PSR600 to diagnose or Uniden scanners to decode. Checking the FCC database this is a STARS frequency licensed for various STARS sites. However checking the RR database I do not see it listed in the STARS section. My best reception is from the north towards NOVA. Maybe somebody in NOVA can check it out and if valid associate it with its appropriate site and add it to the RR STARS database.