InterceptRadio.com Forums

Just looked at the RS site and they have the PRO-96 and the base unit
on sale until 11/21 for $379.99 each incase anyone is interested.

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" SILENCE IS CONSENT "

Made to Government Specs:
1) Measured with a micrometer.
2) Marked with a chalk.
3) Cut with an axe.

Jim N7UAP - Bellingham, WA / InterceptRadio.com

If what i saw was correct the after thanksgiving "black friday" sale at radioshack will be on the Pro-97 for $129 unless some others will be on sale as well.. Thought maybe the 97 would go lower than that..

Why would someone buy a PRO-96 -- even if at $ 380.00 Plus Tax -- when you can buy a new GRE PS-500 for around $ 500 ??? The new GRE PS-500 is 6 times the radio -- .

Don't bother buying one until the whole P25 Phase 2 whirlwind is settled. You'll be wasting your money

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I generate Board Warnings

P25 Blah blah blah, rebanding smeeebanding, lol there has been talk of this for years now. there is no proof that anything will happen to a certain area or not as of yet.Who's to say it won't be so wrapped up in redtape and BS for another 4 years or so??? any proof? there is so much armchair quarterbacking on this issue its not even funny. I'm sure at some point it will happen to some areas maybe all, who knows but sitting around worrying weather or not to buy a new scanner is ridiculous. One would think someone new who is wanting to get into this hobby andis trying to decide on a scanner to buy will be getting all type of negetive feedback from people about rebanding and all. it could have a negative effect on the hobby as a whole. I have seen it over and over played out on many message boards.

It's happening. My company is rebanding the Dallas/Ft. Worth area right now.

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

The new 700 MHz band plan is out. There are three 700 licensees in Region 43 (Washington State) plus the State license. All will have to change frequencies. Two (and the State) before they go on the air, and the third will probably get a waiver to complete construction before changing frequencies. So, if you buy a scanner, and expect to use it for 700, be sure it will follow the new bandplan- or can be upgraded to do so.

Phase 2 of P25 is in the works and will probably become real in the next 3-5 years. To oversimplify, P25 Phase 2 will have different modulation than phase 1. Same caution as above if you are buying a new scanner, unless you consider the life of the scanner to be three years or so. Your money, your choice.

We are presently planning for rebanding. Region 43 is, mostly, in Wave 4 and awaiting a bandplan. A proposed bandplan is now out for comment and I expect it to be a done deal by early next year. Of course, I am not the FCC and so cannot say for sure. So, if you are planning to buy a new scanner, and expect to use it for 800 MHz, make sure it will follow the new bandplan or can be upgraded to do so.

Sean was just trying to say do your homework so you will not be surprised later. Listen to him, do the research, and only then make your decision. He is only trying to help.

These new large and complex systems take a lot of time to design, fund, and implement. Rebanding a large system is also very complex and time consuming. I can tell you there is much work going on behind the scene in preparation for the actual frequency changes.

Wiz

I don't for one minute doubt that the re-banding and bandplan changes will take place. Its just a matter of when. Its not going to be tomorrow, so why discourage some new person wanting to get involved in the hobby. To just tell someone they shouldn't buy a scanner because some changes that are 3-5yrs out will take place is not so cool. Yes be informed, yes be aware, yes know whats out there, but don't be so discouraging about our hobby, its got enough riding against it as it is these days. Most new scanners coming out recently are upgradable and supposedly will be capable of being "fixed" once the plan goes into effect. We should be more guiding to newcomers than to just tell them don;t buy a scanner it won't work..

I refuse to buy anymore scanners. After being burned on my BC250d a year after the purchase Im a little wary( This was a few years back). It seems scanning nowadays is like buying a computer or that new HDTV, as soon as you buy its outdated and the technology changed or will change in the near future.

I miss the days of someone figuring out a mod or some way to bypass a block to listen to whatever or firing up my modded pro-2022 and mdtmon and hearing over the radio "Woman ill" then seeing on my computer "vaginal hemmorige". Now thats entertainment!! Those days are gone. That is what the hobby was for me.


So I guess I'm SOL!!

I hope the future holds something better, a new wave of techno nerds able to crack encryption and mod all these new scanners.

To hell with the fcc. :lol:

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I was depressed last night so I called Lifeline. I was transferred to a call center in Pakistan. I told them I was suicidal, They got all excited and asked if I could drive a truck...

P25 phase1 might be around for a while.
so anyone thats bought one of those fancy P25 digital scanner might still be able to listen to phase1 digital for afew more years until no one has any P25 phase1 two way equipment left???
as for rebanding... well thats another story.



The Motorola proposal would use a vocoder that should work both with legacy P25 radios built to the Phase 1 specifications and next-generation TDMA radios. A changeover to TDMA essentially doubles the number of available channels with few hardware changes. “We like the approach using the same modulation,â€

Has anybody heard anything new on the Motorola "Shuffled Band Plan" that can be implemented after rebanding? Didn't I see a post from Mark at SERS that said they were doing it, to increase system integrity from possible hackers.. But it's my understanding no scanner exists that will be able to scan a motorola trunked system using shuffled band plan? I'm assuming King County may go this route as well, if SERS is going to do it?

I agree, this is all a little crazy and I don't think I want to buy a new scanner until it's all sorted out. I just hope once it is, scanners will exist that will be able to work with these new systems???

So when this Digital TV goes into effect, it will be interesting, after the 700 begins being used for something else, to see what is received on an old analog TV.
Probably nothing.

I have recently seen lots of reports on other sites and other forumns of smaller town areas that were vhf or uhf and had recently switched to digital or an "upgraded" system only to abandon and go back to the old system or apply for new "conventional" freqs. Maybe this will catch on once most PD'FD's realize they got a good snowjob from these big "talkers" at these comapnies. Some things are better left alone.. but most of our soceity is into "bigger and supposedly better" I'm wishing scanning was what it was 20 years ago... Fun!

"I'm wishing scanning was what it was 20 years ago... Fun!"

MEGA dittos on that :lol:

It seems like computers are getting easier to operate and scanners
are getting more difficult to operate. :oops:

_________________
" SILENCE IS CONSENT "

Made to Government Specs:
1) Measured with a micrometer.
2) Marked with a chalk.
3) Cut with an axe.

Jim N7UAP - Bellingham, WA / InterceptRadio.com

My hometown of Eugene, OR has been running P25 conventional for several years now without any problems. The County Sheriff has been using an outdated Conventional UHF system from the 60's / 70's. They're upgrading to a county-wide UHF 9600baud Smarzone system.

EPD has decided to jump on board, which baffles me. Why pay the county $$$/ month when your own P25 conventional system performs perfectly?

It's the Motorola Salesmen selling this interoperability/ communications wetdream system that serves no real purpose. When EPD had a chase into County territory, they changed zones and talked to the Sheriff on their analog UHF frequencies.

All local Public Safety agencies (EPD,SPD,LCSO,CGPD,UofO PD, LCC PD) are ALL on UHF conventional. All systems are only a channel click away for a neighboring dept.

-Confused in Seattle.

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