Which Scanner?

[w3hog]

Good morning all! I have been away from the hobby for a bit. I am looking for a new scanner but don't know which ones are best. I live in AZ and am looking for a handheld, must work with all the new technologies, digital, trunking, Apco25 and whatever else is new.
Just looking for recommendations, and of course best price! Thank you all and 73's
Dan

 

[doctordialtone]

must work with all the new technologies, digital, trunking, Apco25 and whatever else is new.
Just looking for recommendations, and of course best price!

I recommend the Uniden 325P2.

I have one and love it. It fits your description.

The only downside is that it only uses 2 batteries, so runtime is limited to 6 to 8 hours on a full charge.

Good luck!

 

[mitbr]

You will get many suggestions for which scanner to buy and there are allot of good choices out there.
If you are in an area where simulcast systems are the primary listening goal I would recommend considering the Unication pagers. These radios are NOT scanners but rather a pager.They have many limitations that a scanner may not have. The one thing they do well is decode p25 trunking systems extremely
well.They are small and light in size fits in your shirt pocket and the battery wil last more than 12 hours. They are also a comercial build quality. I do not have a Uniden Sds 100 scanner however many will suggest this radio as well.
Tim

 

[hiegtx]

Good morning all! I have been away from the hobby for a bit. I am looking for a new scanner but don't know which ones are best. I live in AZ and am looking for a handheld, must work with all the new technologies, digital, trunking, Apco25 and whatever else is new.
Just looking for recommendations, and of course best price! Thank you all and 73's
Dan

You've indicated that you are in Arizona. In a previous thread where you asked this question in the Arizona forum, you indicated you were in the Phoenix metro area.The biggest issues I see posted from members in Arizona are problems monitoring Simulcast systems. The complaints range from garbled transmissions, to missing some, if not all, calls. Simulcast distortion is a problem in many metro areas. See this article in the Wiki: Simulcast digital distortion - The RadioReference Wiki

I recommend the Uniden 325P2.

I have one and love it. It fits your description.

The only downside is that it only uses 2 batteries, so runtime is limited to 6 to 8 hours on a full charge.

Good luck!

The 325P2 is a good scanner, but Simulcast is it's Achilles heel. While it works well in some areas, if simulcast is an issue, then this would not be a good choice,

You will get many suggestions for which scanner to buy and there are allot of good choices out there.
If you are in an area where simulcast systems are the primary listening goal I would recommend considering the Unication pagers. These radios are NOT scanners but rather a pager.They have many limitations that a scanner may not have. The one thing they do well is decode p25 trunking systems extremely
well.They are small and light in size fits in your shirt pocket and the battery wil last more than 12 hours. They are also a comercial build quality. I do not have a Uniden Sds 100 scanner however many will suggest this radio as well.
Tim

The Unication pagers handle simulcast well. However,their limitations include that you can monitor only one site, with up to 64 talkgroups at a time. You can, of course, have other sites & talkgroups programmed, but still can monitor only a single site at a time. As there are several simulcast systems in use in your county (Maricopa), limiting your self to only one site would limit what you might be able to hear. From what I understand, you can program the Unications with your PC, but you cannot directly edit or add to your programming directly on the pager.

Another possibility would be the Blue Tail receiver.
BlueTail Technlogies – BlueTail Technologies

This also handles simulcast well, but, like the Unication pager as well, it is not a full featured scanner, You program it with your PC. It does not have a display, and has to be powered by an external USB connection. There is a forum for both the Blue Tail receiver and Unication pagers with more details & discussions,

As was recommended in your previous thread, I would think that your best unit to consider would be the SDS100. It is a full featured scanner, programmable directly from the key or with software. While you may need to tweak the included filters for a specific site or system, the SDS scanners can hanle simulcast, and whatever other systems & frequencies are of interest to you, Paid upgrades to add DMR and/or NXDN are available, if you find those formats interesting for specific agencies.

 

[doctordialtone]

That's why I recommend buying from a reputable dealer with a return policy like ScannerMaster.com

Here is why to buy from us and not a faceless online Mega-Store

Hassle-free, guaranteed satisfaction that your scanner purchase will meet your needs for your location.

www.scannermaster.com

Then if you do experience problems, you can exchange it for the much more expensive options.

I live in a Simulcast area and don't have any issues with my 325P2.

 

[cfsimmont]

Good morning all! I have been away from the hobby for a bit. I am looking for a new scanner but don't know which ones are best. I live in AZ and am looking for a handheld, must work with all the new technologies, digital, trunking, Apco25 and whatever else is new.
Just looking for recommendations, and of course best price! Thank you all and 73's
Dan

Specifically what do you want to monitor? Fire/EMS, Police, Military, Aircraft, Trains, etc? Depending on your listening preferences, a scanner with all of the "bells and whistles" may not be necessary. So we know you live in Arizona, and possibly the Phoenix area so depending on what you want to hear will depend on what scanner(s) would work.

 

[es93546]

You've indicated that you are in Arizona. In a previous thread where you asked this question in the Arizona forum, you indicated you were in the Phoenix metro area.The biggest issues I see posted from members in Arizona are problems monitoring Simulcast systems. The complaints range from garbled transmissions, to missing some, if not all, calls. Simulcast distortion is a problem in many metro areas. See this article in the Wiki: Simulcast digital distortion - The RadioReference Wiki


The 325P2 is a good scanner, but Simulcast is it's Achilles heel. While it works well in some areas, if simulcast is an issue, then this would not be a good choice,


The Unication pagers handle simulcast well. However,their limitations include that you can monitor only one site, with up to 64 talkgroups at a time. You can, of course, have other sites & talkgroups programmed, but still can monitor only a single site at a time. As there are several simulcast systems in use in your county (Maricopa), limiting your self to only one site would limit what you might be able to hear. From what I understand, you can program the Unications with your PC, but you cannot directly edit or add to your programming directly on the pager.

Another possibility would be the Blue Tail receiver.
BlueTail Technlogies – BlueTail Technologies

This also handles simulcast well, but, like the Unication pager as well, it is not a full featured scanner, You program it with your PC. It does not have a display, and has to be powered by an external USB connection. There is a forum for both the Blue Tail receiver and Unication pagers with more details & discussions,

As was recommended in your previous thread, I would think that your best unit to consider would be the SDS100. It is a full featured scanner, programmable directly from the key or with software. While you may need to tweak the included filters for a specific site or system, the SDS scanners can hanle simulcast, and whatever other systems & frequencies are of interest to you, Paid upgrades to add DMR and/or NXDN are available, if you find those formats interesting for specific agencies.

Listening to a low amount of traffic when I monitor the Southern California Edison radio system here in California I have found battery life to be about 4-6 hours. Uniden really blew it when they designed this radio to only hold two batteries. If you are mobile or on foot take about 6 batteries with you (4 spare) if you expect to get 8-10 hours on this radio. It is a battery eater. When I'm at home I keep mine plugged into the computer with fresh batteries and the radio in the non-charge mode. That way if you have to go mobile or on foot the radio will be ready for you and you aren't overcharging the batteries.

 

[etihparg]

Combination. Unication G4 pager and a Uniden SDS200 will do everything you want.

 

[jpm]

APX

 

[GlobalNorth]

If you are in the Phoenix or Tucson areas, go with a SDS100 or SDS200 due to simulcast for local government operations. Elsewhere, you can get by with a 436 / 536.

 

[rvenneman48]

I live in Yuma and I heard there is not much to listen to. I’m interested in a new scanner but how can I tell what is in my area?

 

[KB7MIB]

I live in Yuma and I heard there is not much to listen to. I’m interested in a new scanner but how can I tell what is in my area?

You can go here:

RRDB | Arizona Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference

Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference for Arizona (AZ)

www.radioreference.com

Click on Yuma County on the map, and it'll take you to the county page. Or scroll down and you can see the statewide pages, and a little further down are the areawide trunked system pages.

There is unfortunately a lot of encryption in Yuma County on the AZWINS trunked system, to include FD and EMS. Anything labeled "DE" in the "Mode" column is fully encrypted, anything labeled "De" has partial encryption. (Usually mobile and portable radios in the field will be encrypted, and the dispatcher will be in the clear.)

John
Peoria