BCD436HP/BCD536HP: ZIP Code vs. Geographic Coordinates?

[dallascowboys]

I have the 436 and only use it as a base scanner, what is the best way to set this up by zip code or range ?

 

[RFSnoop]

I have the 436 and only use it as a base scanner, what is the best way to set this up by zip code or range ?

First set your location, by whichever method you choose, then set your range. Two different functions. See page 23 in the manual.

 

[RFSnoop]

Okay, for the very reason I suspected when I started this topic, setting the location by geographic coordinates makes far more sense than entering the ZIP Code. That is because using the ZIP Code is going to use a position near the geographic center of the ZIP Code, which may be a long way from the actual position.

 

[iMONITOR]

The zip code method works well for where my home is. My zip code is only 22.72 square miles. Keep in mind even if you set the range to 1 or 2 miles you're not limiting your monitoring to systems that are only a mile away. You're going to receive radios from a much greater distance due to the radio signals will all travel far outside your zip code by many miles. This is the downside of depending on this method of programming. If you have your service type set to PD and FD, you will likely be hearing PD & FD's that are not are not desired. You could be missing a lot of what's going on around your home neighborhood if the PD in the next city is very busy.

There's no substitute for custom programing so you only hear what you want to hear and nothing else.

 

[ofd8001]

As with many other thing, there are several paths to arrive at the same result. While I prefer using the "Enter your zip code" method, there is another that may be helpful, particularly if you go to a given location regularly.

In Sentinel, you can Edit the Profile and go to the Location Settings tab. In the lower pane, you can populate a list of locations (append) with an alpha tag, latitude, longitude along with a specific range value for the given location.

After doing a Write to Scanner, you can press Menu>Set Your Location>Edit Location then use the scroll knob to go through the list of locations and select the desired. You can also add a New Location.