Like the title says, who likes their new whistler better than their Uniden?
Who prefers their TRX-2 to their BCD536HP?
- Thread starter blackcloud08
- Start date
- Status
Whistler TRX-2
Me,First off the Uniden bcd-536hp has muddy audio on P25,and is totally hard to hear and understand on Phase 2 and Air band,I think was one of the neatest interfaces Uniden put out,butthe audio and receive was poor!
I think Whistler has Uniden beat on their flagship base/mobile scanner in every way.Better receive on airband,clearer P25 decode and a Better easier to read front display!TRX-1 and Trx-2 for me,hands down.
Uniden blew it on the crappy hard to read display and poor Radio,its all about the radio to me,Whistler Wins this round!
Me,First off the Uniden bcd-536hp has muddy audio on P25,and is totally hard to hear and understand on Phase 2 and Air band,I think was one of the neatest interfaces Uniden put out,butthe audio and receive was poor!
I think Whistler has Uniden beat on their flagship base/mobile scanner in every way.Better receive on airband,clearer P25 decode and a Better easier to read front display!TRX-1 and Trx-2 for me,hands down.
Uniden blew it on the crappy hard to read display and poor Radio,its all about the radio to me,Whistler Wins this round!
For my use the TRX-2 is one step down because the lack of remote control that the BCD536HP has. If I could get remote control clients for my TRX-2 then it would be equal to my BCD536HP. In my area both hear the same I use external commercial 2way speakers or connected to PC's so the internal speaker issue others have does not come into play with me.
Whistler released the protocol so if you have a programmer friend they could put one together for you.
I had rather BUY a working version from DON STARR or PROSCAN. Don would be my 1st choice due to the fact I do not think many know the ins and outs better than Don.
Honestly both the BCD536HP and the TRX-2 have their plus and minus.
To be completely happy you should just buy both of them and use them both at the same time and then you will be completely happy.
If it was a life or death choice that had to be made I would have to choose the 536HP because I like the programming structure and the easy read/write from Sentinel software via the USB cable. Also, VHF lowband works better. Also, love the display better.
But the TRX-2 has the best digital decode on P25 trunking.
But overall for the price and the bullet proof design the best scanner out there right now is the
BCD996P2
To be completely happy you should just buy both of them and use them both at the same time and then you will be completely happy.
If it was a life or death choice that had to be made I would have to choose the 536HP because I like the programming structure and the easy read/write from Sentinel software via the USB cable. Also, VHF lowband works better. Also, love the display better.
But the TRX-2 has the best digital decode on P25 trunking.
But overall for the price and the bullet proof design the best scanner out there right now is the
BCD996P2
I like the TRX-2 for its audio quality but if I can have only one scanner, definitely the 536HP. GPS, instant replay, easier to program multiple trunk sites, W-Fi, and perhaps most important, third-party software like Butel and ProScan make the 536HP my first choice. I agree that the 996P2 is also a good scanner (but doesn't have DMR and hopefully later, NXDN, option).
Agree with Allend in post #6. Both have + and -s. Perhaps I am just more familiar with Uniden programming. But the audio on TRX-2 is great.
Agree with Allend in post #6. Both have + and -s. Perhaps I am just more familiar with Uniden programming. But the audio on TRX-2 is great.
SOFA_KING
Member
Way too early to tell yet. It will take a whole lot more testing on all the different types of modes to make the final judgment. But early observations have the TRX-2 winning in audio quality by a landslide. And I really like the display of ALL info without compromise. Plus it is much easier to see. Weak signal testing on my VHF P25 put the 536 ahead. The 536 picks up clear audio while the TRX-2 Donald Ducks about 50%. This is only on the weakest signal. However, the TRX-2 will pickup weaker signals, displaying NAC, before the 536 does anything. This is actually more valuable to me for searching out new stuff. My TRX-2 was purchased to be my major scan search tool, thus the reason I need to log everything on the audio index in the software. But the TRX-2 sounds so darn good that I would really like to do more listening with it.
One criticism on mode selection. I would prefer channels set to DIGITAL to decode ANY digital mode. And I would prefer channels set to ANALOG to decode everything. Having separate selections for digital modes puts up barriers that limit what the scanner can hear. I want to hear it all, but also want the option to exclude analog when frequencies have noise on them.
Phil
One criticism on mode selection. I would prefer channels set to DIGITAL to decode ANY digital mode. And I would prefer channels set to ANALOG to decode everything. Having separate selections for digital modes puts up barriers that limit what the scanner can hear. I want to hear it all, but also want the option to exclude analog when frequencies have noise on them.
Phil
If your TRX2 Donald Ducks 50 percent,perhaps you need an External attenuator before your antenna input,the WHISTLER is very sensitive,and my PSR-600 needed one and after that it was a great scanner.Only if you are using an external antenna of course.
And if you are not perhaps you should consider a nice base scanner antenna.
SOFA_KING
Member
The last thing I would ever want to do is anttenuate anything. I want to hear the weakest signals, not discard them. And I am using a great outdoor antenna fed with hardline. No messing around here. Noise floor is not the issue. The 536 decodes P25 better on the weakest signals. That is why I was asking about optimal digital settings. I'm trying to tweak every last bit of range I can from my high-end scanners. For the 536, manual 9 is it, as I can hear a mouse fart at 150 miles.
But I still haven't found what the optimal TRX-2 digital settings are yet. It is harder to change the settings during a weak signal transmission. Having a utility to do that while receiving a weak signal would help greatly.Phil
Phil: Regarding mouse fart. Digital or analog? Frequency? Conv or TRS?
What settings? Seriously, it is too early to tell. I too have some Donald Ducking (DD), but far less on TRX-1 and 2 compared to WS1080. Again, the audio is really great. Do find that my 436 stops on more weak P25 than TRX-1 up at 800 MHz, but still very early in the game for meaningful comparisons.
What settings? Seriously, it is too early to tell. I too have some Donald Ducking (DD), but far less on TRX-1 and 2 compared to WS1080. Again, the audio is really great. Do find that my 436 stops on more weak P25 than TRX-1 up at 800 MHz, but still very early in the game for meaningful comparisons.
SOFA_KING
Member
Steve, as I stated above, P25 VHF High Band (upper portion). The TRX-2 opens squelch sooner showing a NAC (that is a very good thing), but the 536 opens with clear audio before the TRX clears up. Mind you, I have dialed in my X36 scanners to optimal decode at a setting of MANUAL 9. I'm finding it difficult to nail down the optimum value for the TRX. Default settings were not as good as what I have it set to now, but further improvement might still be realized when I get a good set of frequent weak test signals to test with.
Phil
I have nothing important to say except: Who can afford both???
I can afford all 4 436 536 trx-2 and might buy a trx-1 but that will only come if we get server and remote client software.
Dad?
Is it safe to that all the comparisons were made with the latest firmware updates from both UPMAN and Whistler Wendy, especially when comparing DMR slot 1 and slot 2 as they affect the X36 and TRX 1 and 2?
Skip
SOFA_KING
Member
I run the latest firmware on all. But I have NOT tested everything on the TRX-2. I did test conventional P25 on VHF, and conventional DMR on UHF. Both did very well. I need to program a whole lot more into the TRX-2 to test "all". But its a great scanner. You can't go wrong.
Phil
Thank you very much. Any more You Tube videos since the TRX1 and 2 firmware updates? Also I see nothing from Don Starr regarding software support for the 1 or 2. I have used his products in the past for Rs scanners.
Skip
No I am 58 years old work 2 jobs and have no children. The truth is I have $3,600.00 in GRE/WHISTLER BUILT P25 scanners $2,100.00 in UNIDEN BUILT P25 scanners all still in use at my location as I type.
Last edited:
GPS, mobile scan convenience
I'm about to pull the trigger on a TRX-2 and have noticed no one is mentioning a key feature that the 536/436s have which both the new whistler models lack - GPS based frequency scanning. This was a big reason for why I left the GRE models and have since bought several 536s for mobile and portable ops. GPS enabled 536s set at zero range in our vehicles and boat make for much less fiddling with zip code look ups and device entry.
I'm wondering why such a great location aware scanning feature was left out and why no one else seems to be commenting on this?. Regardless, I'll buy a TRX-2 and maybe even a TRX-1 to make my own performance comparisons because it is just too tempting <smile> - I'm sure I'll find a use for fixed monitoring for both.
-cognetic
I'm about to pull the trigger on a TRX-2 and have noticed no one is mentioning a key feature that the 536/436s have which both the new whistler models lack - GPS based frequency scanning. This was a big reason for why I left the GRE models and have since bought several 536s for mobile and portable ops. GPS enabled 536s set at zero range in our vehicles and boat make for much less fiddling with zip code look ups and device entry.
I'm wondering why such a great location aware scanning feature was left out and why no one else seems to be commenting on this?. Regardless, I'll buy a TRX-2 and maybe even a TRX-1 to make my own performance comparisons because it is just too tempting <smile> - I'm sure I'll find a use for fixed monitoring for both.
-cognetic
- Status
Similar threads
Sentinel:
Database question
