BCD436HP/BCD536HP: Yeah, so I'm a new guy... I did search, I promise.

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Hi! Let me say I'm new to scanning and programming, I bought a BCD436HP as it appeared to be a decent all around for getting started. I'm not hating it. I have found that with the sentinel software it was easy to program to my specific desires, with the exception of one thing.

So I've managed to stumble through getting local LEO channels on my favorites list, and can bounce back and forth between that favorites list and the location database just fine. The rub is my primary interest is in a local business, that I may or may not be affiliated with, that runs a DMR system.

So after figuring out I needed to buy the DMR upgrade, and doing so, I went to digital frequency search, got the list of locals and trimmed it down to the specific business I wanted and put it on it's own favorites list and put it on the scanner. Now keep in mind, I can hear the desired channels under the discovery mode, but once I put a list with all the info, the scanner tells me nothing to scan. In the service types in the software I have business on, but on the scanner itself, when I try to turn the business service type on I get the "go pound sand" tone. It refuses to let me change it. I saw something about making sure custom1 is on, and it is.

It will now show it's scanning but there is no audio.

uniden.jpg

I'm beating my head up against a wall here. I've tried finding videos and the like to walk me through it, and I either can't find any, or my ignorance is causing me to do something incorrectly. I found one video that showed how to import the list from the Digital Frequency Search, and the only thing I did different was to remove all the things I didn't want on the list (which was the mass majority, again, I'm targeting one specific company) and again, I can hear them running under discovery, but it also includes some local LEO channels (spider and the like) that appear in my basic understanding as part of the simulcast. (or at least I could, I started it running a discovery while typing all this up, and the scanner seems to be stopping on them but I'm not getting audio now despite it apparently stopping the scan) Please keep in mind, I'm absolutely green. I get there are systems, sites, departments but I don't have a real clear understanding of the specifics of each should be etc.

Sentinel.png
This is what I see for service types in sentinel, however on the scanner itself... Keep in mind the below pic is while I'm on my LEO favorites list, under the one for the DMR channels I'm trying to get programmed, it has only custom1 on, and I can't change it via the scanner on any of them, so I can't change service type on any of my lists.
20230319_123358.jpg

Bear with me as I'm green as green can be. And entirely open to any expertise any could offer. My end goal, is to have 2 lists for it to scan, being local LEO and the other being this particular company. If I could talk one (or more) of y'all into helping me through this process we'll feast in your honor and the children with sing songs of your praises.

I'm fairly certain it's my ignorance that is preventing me from achieving what I'm trying to do. Again, any insight or help would be greatly appreciated!
 
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In your screenshot of the scanner where you show service system types, and even though you have the types selected in Sentinel, they didn't carry over to the scanner itself. In the main menu in the scanner, select service types and scroll to each one you want turned on and press the scroll knob or press the enter button to turn each one on.
I've tried, but it won't allow me to. It has the 3 dashes there and when I click to try to change it, I get the no-no tone from the scanner.
 

dave3825

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Here's what it looks like from what I imported from Digital Frequency Search

While I have not gone over the entire thread yet, (still wearing green, seeing green and peeing green) using Frequency Digital Search is only going to complicate this for you. That site, as nice as it is, it gets its info from the FCC site and that's the same info you would get from the FCC site by running the licenses for the said businesses.

And in this case, you have every licensed freq (both input and output) belonging to Spirit when they only seem to be use 3 freqs off that license for the DMR Tier 3 system .

DMR Tier III Site Frequency Table​

LCNCh IDFrequencyColor Code
55111856.3375c0
55112856.3375c0
215431857.33758
215432857.33758
375751858.33750
375752858.33750

 

jtwalker

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I only put the 3 frequencies listed in RR for this system and it looks like you may have more that might need to be added to the site. There is only one talkgroup listed in RR so I put system in ID search.

If this works at all, you might want to run your discovery session for a while and see what it finds.
 
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Again with my caveat, I'm not real familiar with DMR. With that said, I found one for you to look and and use as a model. Look in Franklin County KS for Evergy VHF. Pull this in as a system into a new favorites list and get familiar with the parts that make it up.
I pulled up the franklin list and it looks the same as what I was pulling for spirit. I'm looking at it through the quick import link, is that the same way you were looking at them?

Screenshot 2023-03-19 173208.png
 

jtwalker

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I only put the 3 frequencies listed in RR for this system and it looks like you may have more that might need to be added to the site. There is only one talkgroup listed in RR so I put system in ID search.

If this works at all, you might want to run your discovery session for a while and see what it fi

And oh, I gotcha, I failed to realize that was a link.

Yeah there are many channels out there, er I say channels, I know having operated the radios I'm trying to listen to, like in transportation we had 1-8 on the radio, then when I was in cranes we had a few, and then there are facilities and all the other areas that ran radios. Which still confuses the heck outta me, but I'm trying to learn.

Thank you again, very much, for all the help!
 

hiegtx

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Good point. I think they are actually using it because when I set up discovery I can hear folks I know to be using their system (like the crane guys and transportation) and it's got the color code and the other things I don't quite understand on the display.

Oh and I'm sorry guys if I put this under the wrong type for the forums. I did put some thought into it and thought this was the best choice.
You are in the correct forum when dealing with a specific scanner programming issue. jt's suggestion to have your thread moved to the Kansas forum might catch the attention of someone in your area, who is successfully receiving that entity.
 

jtwalker

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I'm running discovery like this...
View attachment 138463

Am I anywhere near the ballpark? I'm hearing folks I know.
I've never used discovery but know there is an option for trunking and conventional. Conventional will probably find the frequencies for you but not likely LCN nor color code which I would hope (DMR) trunking discovery would log.
 
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I've never used discovery but know there is an option for trunking and conventional. Conventional will probably find the frequencies for you but not likely LCN nor color code which I would hope (DMR) trunking discovery would log.
Ok I'll give that a go and let it run awhile. If I run it conventional is when I can hear them.

I'm trying to wrap my head around it, I can' thank you enough for your help!
 

dave3825

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hiegtx

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It’s not showing in Sentinel in the HPDB, or not based on my review…
I 'm not seeing it in Sentinel either. I've run into something similar in the past, when a valid system in the database did not appear on the DB page of the county it had operations in. If I recall, the issue is that it was not 'linked' to that county in the database. One of the DB Administrators corrected that.

The other possibility is that because it is a DMR Tier 3, it was not entered since those systems seem to be problematic to successfully monitor.

Either way. it's a database issue that should be queried in that forum.
 

dave3825

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hiegtx

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I've never used discovery but know there is an option for trunking and conventional. Conventional will probably find the frequencies for you but not likely LCN nor color code which I would hope (DMR) trunking discovery would log.
I have seen a color code come up in the results of a Discovery session,but as already mentioned, the LCN would not come up. The only way to determine that (if it is not in the database) is to create the system, with all the licensed frequencies in the site, then run the LCN Finder in the Analyze menu.
 

wbloss

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@dave3825 Sentinal does NOT d/l tier 3 systems unless the LCNs/CHIDs are entered...but it looks like they are entered on the database.
It is correctly showing in Sedgewick county in KS.
It only has a 2-mile footprint but he has not spoken of using GPS scanning.
I not it does NOT show a region nor does it show a sysid...that may be the culprit as far as Sentinal
 
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@dave3825 Sentinal does NOT d/l tier 3 systems unless the LCNs/CHIDs are entered...but it looks like they are entered on the database.
It is correctly showing in Sedgewick county in KS.
It only has a 2-mile footprint but he has not spoken of using GPS scanning.
I not it does NOT show a region nor does it show a sysid...that may be the culprit as far as Sentinal

If it's helpful, I'm within 5 miles of the towers for that system, when I'm not directly under them. I let the discovery run pretty much all day. Unfortunately enough I was too busy to sneak away and see if I could catch the guys at the radio shop.

I tried to pay attention to the TG's but sometimes it didn't seem to show one on the display despite me being able to verify it was one of the transportation guys or crane guys or security.
 
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