Radio Scanner

[Awesome!]

I am trying to buy a radio scanner but there's alot out there. What you guy's recommend for the $$ and efficient.

[chad thomas]

Basic Radio Shack. I recommend at least 100 ch capacity so you can program the whole AAR band. An upgrade to a 160 MHz external antennae would be adviseable too (magnet mount for the rooftop).

[al-in-chgo]

I'm very unhappy about the performance of my Uniden XT92 scanner, which I bought from Radio Shack about three years ago.

I'm sure it's a quality instrument and all, and probably works like a dream in the right hands, but I simply am not able to scan for the AAR range of train-to-ground frequencies (which offhand I think are around 160-161 Mhz).  In fact, I can't even tell if the unit is capable of a full frequency search--it has a depressing habit of skipping from the mid 150's to the early 160's of Megahertz--exactly the area I do not want to have skipped over. 

I know there are lots of you rail-and-tech fans in Chicagoland, so let me make an offer:  If we can agree to a time and place, I'll take you to a nice lunch or dinner if you can make the bleeping thing work.  One situation would be to have it scan and freeze on active channels in the AAR range.  A better one might be to give a preference to the UP and BNSF channels received by the Rochelle train park.   I'm probably overlooking something minor in the instruction manual, or Betty Bearcat & Co. made a slight error in terminology (possible), or they're assuming most people can make a leap of logic because they have the background (not me). 

I am not a techno-dummy.  I'm pretty good on the computer.  I programmed my portable weather radios, and can balance and hook up home theater. I am getting much better at my digital camera.  Years ago I even owned a small console scanner.  Yet this Bearcat has flummoxed me.  I don't liked being flummoxed.  So it isn't just the money, it's the principle of the thing, but even though I got it at something of a bargain it's also the money!

Perhaps the young man who started this thread could buy a model of almost any sophistication and learn (or have someone close show him) how to set the frequency banks.  Let's face it, Radio Shack store employees can be very helpful, but Hams or Scanner fans they are usually not. 

I even bought the "For Dummies" book aimed at amateur radio and scanner but it has very little about scanner, giving a sketchy idea of what I couldn't figure out in greater detail for a specific model. 

PM me at your convenience, guys. 

Mr. Wizard, Help!!    -  a.s.

PS:  I can open this up as a new thread if you think it's more appropriate. 

 

 

 

[Semper Vaporo]

I have Radio Shack PRO-92 and PRO-94 scanners and they both "work" but they are both "STUPID" in operation.

Buttons have labels that are meaningless (e.g.: PRO-94 has a button labeled "HOLD"... what do you think that means?  I would have guessed that while it was scanning and it stopped on an active channel I could push that button to make it stay on that frequency until "I" pressed another button to make it continue, instead of it automatically continuing scanning when the channel was quiet for a second or two... but Nope! It does NOTHING at all unless you hold it for 10 seconds, then it switches from the "A" bank to the "B" bank or vice versa.)

When it detects activity on a frequency, it stops scanning to let the audio play and it turns on the display "Backlight"... that is nice, but the light goes off after 5 seconds no matter what.  If it pauses on a channel and then proceeds scanning before that 5 seconds is up, and then stops on another channel the light still goes out 5 seconds after the FIRST time it stopped... which is just about the time I am trying to read the display to see what frequency it stopped on the SECOND time.

The PRO-92 can hold 500 frequencies and the PRO-94 can hold 1000.  The frequencies can be grouped such that you can select different groups to scan and ignore the others.  There are 10 groups of 50 frequencies in the PRO-92 and two banks of 10 groups of 50 frequencies in the PRO-94.  You can select to scan any number of the groups at a time (i.e.: only group 1 or 2 or 3 etc., or any combination of groups; like 1, 2, 5 and 7 or 1, 3, 5, 7 and 8, etc.) , but if you have more than 10 groups you want to be able to scan; tough patookies, even if it is only 11 frequencies.  Even the PRO-94 with its 20 groups, you can only include groups from whichever of the two banks is active... if you happen to program two groups of frequencies of interest in different banks you cannot select to scan those two groups at the same time. Also, although either "can" scan 500 frequencies at once, if you put only 10 frequencies in one group then the remaining 40 channels of that group are lost and unusable by any other groups.

Suppose you want to devote 100 channels to the RR frequencies en-masse, that would take two groups.  Now suppose you have 5 railroads in your area and you want to be able to scan just the frequencies that each of those 5 use, separately from the others, that would take another 5 groups, even though they each only use a few frequencies (3 or 4). Thus you waste all the channels in those groups that don't get programmed with a frequency.  Suppose you also want to scan the aircraft frequencies used in your area (maybe only 10 frequencies) and the county Sheriff's frequencies (maybe only 4 or 5 frequencies) and the Taxi services (just 3 or 4 frequencies) and the ambulance dispatcher (2 frequencies) and the Fire dispatcher (4 frequencies); each of those would take another group so you can disable them when you don't want the scanner stopping on them while you are railfanning... well that is another 5 groups and that adds up to 13 groups, but the scanner has only 10... even though you really are only wanting to scan maybe 150 frequencies total.

And "programming" them is a pain and a half... knowing which button to push to select which channel of which group is confusing, sometimes pressing a number key selects the channel to program and sometimes it starts entering the frequency into whatever channel you happen to have it on at the moment, which then changes what you have already put into that channel.  (The only way out of that situation that I know of is the turn it off before you press any other keys! Then turn it back on and try again!) You also have to remember that the channels are numbered consecutively such that group 1 is channels 1 to 50 and group 2 is 51 to 100 and group 3 is 101 to 150... QUICK... What is the channel number that starts group 7?

To make matters worse for me, the PRO-92 numbers the channels as 0 to 9. Whereas the PRO-94 numbers them 1 to 10 (button "0" selects Group 10).  I set up the two scanners the same, but Group 0 on the PRO-92 is Group 1 on the PRO-94. I often have both of them turned on, the PRO-92 is scanning groups 6 (Sheriff/ambulance/state police) and 8 (Aircraft) and the PRO-94 is scanning groups 1 and 2 (all RR frequencies).

They both have the ability to connect to a computer to program them but the data format is just a memory dump stream of bits with no other transmission control... an all memory dump to the computer... make changes... then an all memory dump back to the scanner  Any glitch in the transmission and "bye-bye data, try it again, dork!" (The method is actually designed to make one scanner dump its setup data to an identical unit, not to send it to a computer, but programmers have figured out how to intercept the bit stream with a serial port (something the many new computers no longer have built-in so you will have to buy a USB to Serial adapter!), but any hiccup in the computer (momentary slowdown due to some process interrupting the processor like an Internet action or a screen-saver starting or just Windows deciding it is time to clean house) will loose a bit or two and that means the rest of the data is skewed and bits are in the wrong place and control bits (like "Lock-out" and "Delay") become part of a frequency and frequency bits become control bits, etc. Havoc with the data!

The software I have found for doing this is buggy and somewhat confusing but it is BETTER than using the scanner's keyboard in that you can SEE what you are doing a bit better and a mistake doesn't hurt as bad.  You click on the channel number and type the frequency and click check-boxes for the control bits... lots easier, once you figure out the upload and download process and understand the obscure terminology the programs uses.

BTW, off topic, but when I bought the USP to Serial adapter it worked fine for both my DeLorme GPS receiver and a modem, but when I plugged in the scanner and turned it on, my mouse arrow took off diagonally across the screen in a loop, clicking both the left and right mouse buttons on the way.  It drug most of the icons to the upper right corner, opened the context menu on some of them, ran some of the programs and deleted some of the icons.  The programs that it ran received some of the "clicks" and opened files and edited them! (It ran a photo editor and scribbled all over a photo and SAVED it!) ALL before I could get the scanner turned off.  After spending a couple of hours rebuilding my desktop structure, recovering icons and fixing damaged files, I turned the scanner on again and spent another hour doing it again! I had to use an old computer (that had a serial port built-in) to program the scanner via computer. A few years later I bought a new computer and tried the USB/Serial adapter again and have no problems with any of the devices. I have no idea what it was about that computer and that USB/Serial adapter and the scanner.

In addition to the STUPIDITY of the keyboard and programming process, the PRO-94 that I have may not have very good selectivity, when scanning the RR frequencies in sequence it quite often stops on the adjacent frequency to the one they are transmitting on and I just hear an unintelligible voice sounds. My hand is often too slow to get to the scanner and find the Scan button before the transmission ends. I have to Lock-Out the frequency just before the ones I know are used locally. If I go traveling, I have to remember to remove all the Lock-Outs or I will miss some transmissions.  Unfortunately, lately two of the local RRs have started to use some adjacent channels and if I Lock Out one I won't hear their transmissions.

It will also pick up just about any transmitter if I am very close... if I am within 1 or 2 miles of the NOAA weather station transmitter (162.4750MHz) and am scanning the RR frequencies 159.8100MHz to 161.5950MHz) it will pick up the weather broadcasts on several of the RR channels.

I probably didn't help anybody with my long-winded blathering and I really don't feel any better for having unloaded, but... oh well.

Sorry, al-in-chgo, I don't go to the Chicago environs or I would be glad to take a look at your scanner.  If you ever get to eastern Iowa, maybe you could bring your XT92 (and the MANUAL!) and I could meet you someplace and try my hand at programming it.

[Modelcar]

....This forum has touched on "scanners" many times.  Get additional info by "search" of the forum.

Personally, have used a 200 ch. {several of them}, Radio Shack unit over many years and find it seems ok for me.  Believe a better antenna would do great improvement....Never have tried one.

Pay attention to state laws if scanners are still "ok"....I'm not even sure of our Indiana laws on it anymore.  So I don't flash it around...etc....Must check on that.

[eolafan]

....This forum has touched on "scanners" many times.  Get additional info by "search" of the forum.

Personally, have used a 200 ch. {several of them}, Radio Shack unit over many years and find it seems ok for me.  Believe a better antenna would do great improvement....Never have tried one.

Pay attention to state laws if scanners are still "ok"....I'm not even sure of our Indiana laws on it anymore.  So I don't flash it around...etc....Must check on that.

I recently purchased a Radio Shack "expandable" metal antenna (extends in sections like car radio antennas of olden days) and it works much better than either the "rubber ducky" my Radio Shack Pro-94 came with or the car roof top antenna I tried for a while (until it broke in the middle).  I set the new antenna to use only the four uppermost sections and it works quite well.  I recommend it.

[tree68]

My problem isn't programming the scanner (although I still have to get the book out for trunking systems), it's keeping track of what I programmed where.   When I travel somewhere I'll load up a bank with the appropriate frequencies.  My 1000 channel scanner is pretty much full, but I can't tell you what it's full of....

Getting the book out isn't a bad idea - I like to think I have a pretty good grasp of things radio, but they stump me from time to time (sorry, I can't explain the "hold" button, although I think it works together with the 'search' function).

Al - sounds like you're trying to use a "service search" type of function to scan the RR band.  Google "AAR Channels" for a list and simply program in the bunch of them, as suggested. 

If I dedicated a scanner to railfanning, I probably would set up banks by areas.  I might suggest putting more than one railroad in a given bank, where possible putting railroads that are geographically separated in the same bank, so you can keep track of who you should be hearing in a given area.

Cross-talk is a problem all over.  When I'm passing through bigger cities commercial paging drives me nuts, particularly for the fire channels, which are around 154 Mhz.  It takes a pretty sophisticated (read: expensive) radio to defeat that.

[Mr_Ash]

I had a handheld scanner a while back, I had 2 antenna's for it the craptastical rubber ducky antenna for when i was out of my car and for when I was in my car I had a properly grounded permanent mount antenna from Antenex on my car's trunk lid (required drilling a 1 inch hole in your car)

as far as reception went it was like night and day :)

[Modelcar]

....Thanks Jim, that sounds like worth a try if I ever get around to it.

[MP173]

I have a RS Pro 433 which is pretty good but the reception range isnt what I thought it would be.

I even bought a book on Ham Radio's (Ham Radio for Dummies) to try and figure out a better antenna system.  Good luck unless you are an electrical engineer.

Still, the scanners give me a lot of listening pleasure.  It would be great to extend the range from about 7 miles to more. 

 

any tips (in English)

ed

[Awesome!]

http://radioshack.com/family/index.jsp?cp=2032052&categoryId=2032072&pg=1

I really appreciate you guy's taking the time and giving me the information. I'm just trying to get the right item for the least price.

I link the Radioshack website can you see and let me know. There's alot of models.. I was told the Pro-98 but I don't see one. Do we have another recommandation?

[CShaveRR]

Are there any "Pro" series scanners left at all?  Mine is a Pro-79, and I could program 200 channels into it, if I chose to.  But I just have the 90-some-odd AAR channels in mine, programmed so that the channel numbers on the handset are the same as the numbers assigned to the AAR channels.  For example, the UP road channel for trains through here, is AAR 52, so that's what Channel 52 on my Pro-79 is programmed for.  The frequencies are all the same distance apart, so just add that amount for each channel you program.  (Sorry to sound so vague--I don't have those numbers handy, but they show up on the readout of my scanner). 

After you program all of these channels in, you'll probably find one or two that will stop your scan every time around--should be no problem to bypass those.  I let my scanner run through all of the railroad channels I can, figuring that anything I hear will be useful.  If it gets too cluttered in a busy spot, I can bypass some of the irrelevant ones.

Just now, listening to my scanner from here at home, I got transmissions on our UP line (52), the CN Freeport Division (43), and the BRC (26)!  Can't explain that last one, but, thanks to my system, I know that that's what it was.

[Semper Vaporo]

Two questions you need to answer.

Do you want a handheld scanner or a base station type? This will cut your selection list about in half.

How much do you want to spend?  Well, that's silly, you don't WANT to spend any amount... better word it, How much are you willing to spend?

 

[Awesome!]

Two questions you need to answer.

Do you want a handheld scanner or a base station type? This will cut your selection list about in half.

How much do you want to spend?  Well, that's silly, you don't WANT to spend any amount... better word it, How much are you willing to spend?

 

Hand Held Radio & Price $200 or less... but if I need to add little more than let's do it. I don't want 6 months down the road asking why?

[Awesome!]

http://zippy.ci.uiuc.edu/~roma/rr-freqs/index-old.html

I got the link ready for the channels!

[Semper Vaporo]

Unfortunately, that is a REALLY old list.  Hasn't been updated in 11 years. Still, it is about the only list available.

[al-in-chgo]

This is the "burnt child who dreads the fire" speaking, but I've noticed that the literature for some handheld scanners mention that they have full frequency coverage all the way from low to high MHz, and some don't.  So why worry? 

Mine was a highly respected model two years ago (Bearcat XL92) and was on sale at Radio Shack for about $100.00.  (There are some models down to about $75 - 80 but these are rather entry-level.)  Bearcat (or better said, Uniden) apparently makes all or most of Radio Shack's handheld scanners.  There seems to be a tendency to brand most of them Radio Shack rather than Bearcat or Uniden these days. You may already know that Radio Shack has a very user-friendly online catalog.

This is not an area where you want to economize too much, but along with the crucial question of how difficult it's gonna be to tune, you might want to make sure your model has the ability to accept a whip (long) antenna in the future if it doesn't entail too much extra cost.  Done well, that can actually get you into harmonics theory and from what I've read on these sites, boost your reception enormously.  That's something several posters on prior scanner sites here have said they wish they'd done.

I see no reason why you can't get a very good model that won't lack what you want for less than $200.  I would not under any circumstances advise someone to buy a used or "reconditioned" item, not even from the Uniden people, nor from eBay unless it's brand new-sealed.  Just too many issues.

I wasn't able to find any models for sale online thru Newegg or Amazon (except their going thru Radio Shack).  We face here in Chicago a ten-and-a-quarter percent sales tax, so shipping fees for a hundred-dollars-or more item are going to be a good deal cheaper than ten dollars-plus for the sales tax. 

Save all your receipts, etc.  Learn what you can.  People here are generally very helpful.  If you can't find railfans to vouch for current models, you might consider first responders like firemen.  They will probably have very expensive models but can give you an idea of what handhelds are like.   Any scanner, even a modest table model, is quite a sophisticated bit of electronics, so if you treat it like a consumer item (as I did, to my chagrin) and have no prior experience you won't get as far as if you are fairly well informed. Feel free to PM me if you want a link to reviews of them on Amazon. 

Good luck, and why don't you let us know how your learning curve is going!  - al

[TheS.P.caboose]

I use a PRO 76 from Radio Shack. It's pretty good. I can hear both sides of the conversation for about 10 miles. Not bad for the mountain areas of California! It cost about $100.00.