InterceptRadio.com Forums

I own a number of trunking scanners including a 780XLT and 785XLT and am not happy with my mobile reception of the local public safety trunking systems. As I'm driving down the road, the signal is scratchy and broken at least a third of the time. I understand that this is primarily due to the Sprint/Nextel interference issue. I have tried various types of external antennas which improved the signal slightly, but I am still not getting the type of quality I would like.

From what I understand, the actual radio equipment used by the various public safety agencies provides much better quaility reception than that provided by a scanner. I am wondering if some type of commercial grade trunking radio exists that can be purchased legally by the average citizen. This would obviously be configured for "receive only" operation. I would like something that would work on all of the local systems (Seattle, King County, Eastside, Snohomish County).

Does anyone know of any such equipment, and if so, where I might purchase it?

Money is no object (within reason :lol: )

Which systems are you monitoring? King County? What exactly type of system are they using? I might be able to suggest a Kenwood or another brand of radio that would work much better than a scanner.

Only advantage of a scanner would be tone and talkgroup decode capability.

Brian

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Spectrum Communications, Inc.
526 S Locust Lane
Moses Lake, WA 98837

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Kenwood/Relm-BK/Vertex-Standard/David Clark/USAlert/Swissphone. Serving You Since 1978!
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I monitor the Snohomish County (SERS), Eastside (EPSCA), Seattle, and King County/Valleycom trunking systems. I believe that these are all Motorola Type II systems.

Whatever receiver or system I use must be capable of tracking talkgroups - these systems are too busy to make any sense of what you might hear just listening to the raw 800 MHz frequencies in conventional mode.

I use a ham rig (ICOM) to receive conventional VHF/UHF systems such as WSP. The quality of the signal received using the ICOM is vastly superior to the signal received using the scanner and is one of the things that is making me want a better trunking receiver.

I can tell you right now that the reception issues you are having are pretty much common. I have the same issues while driving around. Mostly due to the fact that 800 Mhz does not travel very far and or well. I would imagine the hills locally really add in to the mix. I'm sure you would have the same issue with most scanners. How is your reception on other systems with the same scanner? and what scanner is it? The BC780? I doubt that getting a new scanner would improve your reception. I take my Pro-97 with me many places and i have some areas on the same TRS that are dead! then I move the car 100 yards and it comes in again.( all the while being a lil scratchy.) I bet its an 800 Mhz issue.

You need to look the specs for your rx. Not only is the 12dB sinad or 20dB quieting important, but also the adjacent channel selectivity, intermod and spurious rejection specs. My XTS 5000 works in plenty of places my scanner doesn't. Take a look at the specs on your scanner versus that of a 5000 or even some of the high grade commercial rx's like Collins, Drake, Grundig or AOR's. That's why you pay less than $500.00 for a scanner.

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I generate Board Warnings

I've been waiting for a HT rig (like a quad band) that feature trunk receive capabilities.
I bet they might sell a few.
I know, quit dreaming...

Make sure the control channels you are listening to are simulcast frequencies and monitor which sites you receiver is listening to. If you see it pick from Norway Hill in Bothell and you're in Newcastle, it's not gonna sound too good.

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I taste copper.
Comments, views, opinions - and trails of destruction - are my own.

I'm not familiar with the 780 and 785 but I set up my BC-T15 with a Quick Key for one site with the frequencies of 851.8125, 868.775 and 868.175, along with the Alternate CC's, for each system and have it set to Control Channel Only mode. I set it up with a "0" second delay and as I travel from the eastside of the county into Seattle everyday, I pretty much monitor everything without any problems! As I move out of one site and lose the CC, it jumps to the next one in the bank that it can recieve/decode. The only discrepancy I find from time to time is things like Seattle PD going to say West Tac while I happen to only be able to pick up the EPSCA or KC/VC system, then it may or may not follow them. And SPD North does not always associate with a secondary system. But for the most part, it follows along just fine. One other possibility; what kind of antenna/s are you using and have you checked it/them lately? Especially with all the wet weather we have here.