Which new scanner

[camelcacher]

I have a Pro 95 now I know I need a new one but which one?
I mainly listen to fire and medical since I have two son's in those fields
I am not that Savoy about programing scanners
I have read about the gre 500 seem like alot of people going to this one but is is really the way to go for some one that is not scanner savoy? I have also considered the Pro 162 The price difference is not a factor.Will I need to replace the 162 soon if I go with that since it is not digital?

 

[qlajlu]

I have a Pro 95 now I know I need a new one but which one?
I mainly listen to fire and medical since I have two son's in those fields
I am not that Savoy about programing scanners
I have read about the gre 500 seem like alot of people going to this one but is is really the way to go for some one that is not scanner savoy? I have also considered the Pro 162 The price difference is not a factor.Will I need to replace the 162 soon if I go with that since it is not digital?

First let me apologize to you, camelcacher, because in your other thread I a$$-u-med that you were in the Tooele area. Thanks for filling in your location. It does make things simpler.

The question about digital cannot be answered with any degree of surety because whether an agency goes digital or not is the agency's decision. There are a couple of agencies in the SL valley that run primarily analog but have a couple of TGs that are digital based. Also, Life Flight runs digital all the time, but they are also encrypted which means they cannot be monitored anyway. So deciding whether or not to purchase a digital-capable scanner is strictly a personal call. Most of us have opted to have that capability, for whatever that is worth to you. Everything else in Salt Lake and Tooele are analog except for some federal systems.

I don't know how you do your scanning, whether on the move or only from a stationary location, since you mention the PSR-500. The 500 is handheld and there is the PSR-600 which is a larger unit good for using at a desk. Both the 500 and 600 are easily programmed using your computer and cost close to the same. GRE has also been very quick to respond to our changing monitoring needs and requirements which is another reason that so many of us on the Utah board have gone to their products.

Uniden has very good products on the market at this time, also, but I cannot advise you which ones to look at since I changed over to GRE.

Ultimately, it will be your decision, but if you will throw out different models you are considering in this thread, someone here will likely be able to give you more specific answers.

If you do decide to go with the GRE, let us know because we are aware of some good deals from dealers that will save you some money.

 

[camelcacher]

I would like to go With the 500 but I not sure I could program it and use it the way it was intended
I am onl considering a Handheld because I like the fredom of moving about
How difficult is it to program a 500?

 

[qlajlu]

I would like to go With the 500 but I not sure I could program it and use it the way it was intended
I am onl considering a Handheld because I like the fredom of moving about
How difficult is it to program a 500?

I will not candy coat this for you, but even for those of us who have been using scanners for a long time, the learning curve was steep, but not not impossible. The reason it was difficult was that this GRE used a different way of programming, however, once learned it was far superior. The greatest thing is that when a system is rebanded (which you have already experienced) it is much easier and faster to recover so you are not down for any length of time. We now have experience with the new GRE platform so we are ready to provide assistance where needed.

If you are seriously considering a PSR-500, I strongly advise you to read this thread in its entirety. It is four pages, but you will understand more about the PSR-500/600 once you have read it. Technically, they both are the same scanner so what you read about the PSR-600 also applies to the PSR-500. The only difference is one is handheld.

You can save money on your purchase by using the instructions and code in this post. The money you save on the scanner by using this promotion will almost pay for the software so you can use your computer to program it. Most of us on the Utah board are using WIN500 by Starrsoft. The author is Don Starr, a member of RR.com. The software is free for use for the first 30 days, then if you decide to keep it there is a one-time fee which also gets you any updates. There are other programs also available and the people who use them seem to be satisfied. Although these scanners can be programmed manually, I strongly recommend using a computer.

I would also recommend that you download the PSR-500 User Manual (PDF format) as soon as possible and begin to read it. The manual is very large and does not come with the unit so you will have to download it sooner or later anyway.

Please ask more questions when you have them.

 

[kf7yn]

I have both the Pro-96 and the PSR-500. When I'm out and about, the 500 gets clobbered with cell tower interference, considerably more than the Pro-96. Larry Van Horn's review in Monitoring Times warned the 500 may be a little too sensitive, which is my opinion as well so I usually leave the 500 at home and use the Pro-96 for my "walkin' around scanner".

Both are reband capable but the 500 does have some advantages such as I-call and easy to mix and match memories in ways the 96 can't. I use Win96 and Win500 for programming, doing it manually is a futile effort.

Also, I haven't totally figured out how to easily navigate through the menus on the 500, but that's a geezer thing I reckon. I've been scanning for 30 some odd years and 'object oriented scanning' concept takes some getting used to.

That's my 2¢ worth.

 

[qlajlu]

Oh, good. I've been hoping you would drop by, Jon. I'm not familiar with that many different scanners and I kinda was at a loss to suggest anything other than what I am using. You are right; the PSR-500 might be a bit much for what he is looking for.

 

[camelcacher]

Well I just pulled the trigger on a GRE 500 Hope I can make it work when I get it. It is al little hard to teach a old dog new tricks. But with al lot of help from everyone here if you don't mind I sure I wil get it up and running ONCE I FIGURE OUT WHERE TO START!!
THANKS IN ADVANCE!!