Category Archives: Whistler

When bad things happen to good scanners: SD Card Corruption

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All of the various “Zip Code” type scanners such as the Uniden HomePatrol, BCD436HP or BCD536HP, Whistler WS 1080/1088/1095/1098 or the GRE and RadioShack versions use a Micro-SD Card to store the database and recordings. This SD Card is much like a disk drive without moving parts, it can be written to and read by a computer or a device; in this case your scanner.

Occasionally these cards can get corrupted which causes them to stop functioning. The scanner will display an error message and will not operate until you repair or replace the SD Card. Thankfully this is not usually a serious issue and rarely results in anything other than some annoyance. The worst that can happen is that you lose your Favorites Lists and any recordings you may have on the card.

First let’s talk about WHY this happens. Most of the time it is due to the power being removed from the radio abruptly. These scanners are basically small computers and, like all computers, they need to be shut down properly. By doing so the radio has a chance to finish writing information to the SD Card. If the power is removed before this is done then an incomplete or corrupted file may be left. When you turn on the radio the next time it doesn’t know what to do with the file and displays the error message. While this does not occur every time the radio is improperly shut down, it only has to happen once to ruin your day.

Now there is always the possibility that the card or even the radio itself is defective but that is very rare.

What can you do to prevent this from happening to you? The best thing you can do is to make sure you turn the radio off before removing power to it. If you have it mounted in a vehicle be sure to turn off the radio by use if the volume/power knob before starting the car or turning off the ignition. If the radio loses power while still turned on then the card can get corrupted. Same goes for portable radios. do not pull the batteries unless the radio is turned off.

OK, my card got corrupted, is my scanner dead? Usually no. These cards can usually be reformatted and the database rebuilt. Even if the card is shot it can be replaced and the new card set up for your radio. You can get replacement (or spare) Micro SD Cards almost anywhere.

What can you do if this occurs to you? First make sure the card is really corrupt, some times they are just loose. Remove the card and reseat it, making sure that it clicks into place. When you turn on the radio, if it works then you are back in business. If you still get the error then you will likely have to reformat the card.

Of course the easiest way to get past this is to let us fix it for you! Just download, print and fill out the form at https://www.scannermaster.com/v/vspfiles/files/pdf/homepatrol-servies-order-form.pdf. Send it to us with the radio and we will do the rest!

To reformat the card it is best to use an application specifically for this. You can use a free program available from https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/. Download the one for your version of Windows and install it. You can use an SD Card reader if you want or leave the card in the radio and connected to the computer in Mass Storage Mode. If you reformat it using Windows directly it may not be done in the proper format. Sorry Mac guys; you need Windows for this!

Once reformatted you need to reinstall the database. On Uniden scanners this is done as follows:

1: In Sentinel under the Home Patrol menu select Clear User Data, click on the Display All Drives box.

2: Be sure to select the correct drive letter then click OK. (You do not want to erase your C Drive!)

3: Run Sentinel on the computer and select the Update Master HPDB option in the Update Menu.

4: In Sentinel under the HomePatrol menu select Write to HomePatrol .You may need to select that drive again, but it will not show the serial number of the radio this time.

5: Eject the card and put it back into your scanner (if not already there). When you turn on the scanner you should be all set. You many need to reset your location, Service Types etc.

Of course this requires that you have Sentinel running in a Windows computer. If you don’t have Sentinel installed (it comes on the SD Card…) you can download it from Uniden’s website.

Whistler, GRE and RS scanners use slightly different procedures, check the manual for your radio for these.

 

When bad things happen to good scanners: Heap Errors

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On certain Radio Shack, GRE and Whistler scanners, specifically the ones using Object Oriented programming, one can be beset with an error message that reads “Heap Error” along with some seemingly random text.

These are caused when the radio doesn’t know how to deal with an Object programmed into the memory, usually a Talkgroup (TGRP) not assigned to a  Trunked System (TSYS).

If you can get into the radio programming you should make sure ALL talkgroups entered as Objects are assigned to a Trunked System. This is pretty easy to do in ARC500 or other programs but a lot more difficult without software. These radios are hard enough to program manually let alone find orphaned TGRP objects.

When programming by hand be sure to associate every TGRP with a TSYS BEFORE saving it. When programming with software sort the TGRP list by TSYS and make sure all are assigned to a TSYS. If it says “New” for the TSYS then you need to change or delete the TGRP. Also check for duplicates in your list of TGRP’s. These can also cause errors.

If you don’t have software to program the radio and can’t get into the radio to edit the objects you may well have to reinitialize it and start all over. (Press 0, then 1, then enter during the startup screen.) While this will erase the radio it will get rid of the dreaded Heap Error. If you have software you can usually read the radio even if a Heap Error is present.

Object Oriented programming is used for the following scanners:

GRE: PSR310, PSR410, PSR500, PSR600

RadioShack: PRO-106, PRO-197, PRO-651, PRO-652

Whistler: WS-1040, WS-1065

Scanner Tip: Everything you need to know about trunking but were afraid to ask

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In the old days of scanning things were pretty simple, you put in the local police frequency to listen to the police. In many parts of the country however, this no longer works. Most cities, many counties and even entire states use Trunking Systems. What are trunking systems and how do they work?

The best way to explain how a trunking system works is the analogy of a set of bank teller lines. The bank has 5 tellers, you can line up at any of the 5 lines and hope your line goes faster than the others. Then you get stuck behind the lady that wants to have her penny jar counted by hand…

These days however, banks have a single queue and you go to the next available teller when you reach the head of the line. This is exactly how a trunked radio system works: All users are in one queue and get assigned the next available channel. Instead of having a separate frequency for the FD, one for the PD and another for the ambulance, they just go to the next channel that isn’t being used.

All this is controlled by a computer system called, appropriately enough, a “Controller”. The Controller watches the system and when a radio requests to talk it assigns that radio and any other radio in its group to a channel. All this happens in a fraction of a second.

Radios have all the frequencies used by the system programmed into them and the system is broken down into various virtual channels, called “Talkgroups”. Talkgroups are assigned to various uses like channels would have been before. For example, Mayberry PD might be assigned Talkgroup 101 for Dispatch, 102 for Car-Car and 103 for Detectives. Mayberry FD might be assigned Talkgroup 123 for Dispatch, 124 for Fireground and 125 for Tactical. If Mt. Pilot is sharing the system they might be assigned Talkgroup 287 for Police Dispatch and so on.

There are several types of trunking systems but they all work in much the same way. There are differences in the way they get programmed into scanners as well. The main types of trunked systems in use by Public Safety agencies in the USA include Motorola, EDACS, LTR, APCO25 Phase 1 and APCO25 Phase 2.

For scanner listeners these trunked systems add a layer of complexity to the programming. Depending on the type of scanner and the type of trunked system the method used to program differs. For newer Unidens you program in a “System” to identify the type of trunking, then “Sites” to put in the frequencies used and lastly “Groups” for the talkgroup listing. Whistler, GRE and Radio Shack scanners with Object Oriented programming work differently. On LTR and EDACS systems you have to identify the proper “LCN” channel numbers, these are usually well documented at www.radioreference.com. Motorola and APCO25 systems do not need the frequencies in any particular order.

HomePatrol and other scanners with the Database feature will have these Trunked System parameters already programmed so you can just select the Service and location to listen to them. They do all the heavy lifting for you.

Keep an eye on the ScannerMaster Blog for our explanation of Digital operations!

Drivers? What are they and why do I need them?

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If you have a scanner and a computer you will most likely want to use one with the other. Computer programs (like ARC products) are great for programming and controlling scanners.

Windows however tries to make life difficult for us and requires almost everything we connect to a computer to have “drivers”. Drivers are basically small programs that allow the computer and device to talk to each other, kind of like an interpreter.

If the stars are all aligned and all is well with the world the device driver will load automatically when you plug in the device. If not then you will have to install a driver to make it work.

We have a link here that helps scanner users get drivers and load them. This page also links to download pages for the drivers needed by many scanners.

Depending on the scanner you have the driver might be connected to the radio or to a separate cable. If your scanner has a standard USB port on it (such as a HomePatrol, a BCD996P2, BCD325P2 or some of the other newer model Uniden and Whistler scanners) then the driver goes to the radio itself.

If you have an older radio with a USB-serial adaptor cable, such as a BCD996XT, BCD396XT, PRO106, a PSR 500/600 etc. then the driver is matched to the cable (like the Uniden USB-1, or the blue, orange or black RadioShack/GRE/Whistler cables). Once the cable has the proper driver installed and a serial port (Comm-X) number assigned it can be used for any compatible radio with no further issues.

Some radios use an old fashioned serial port with a DB-9 connection, either on the radio or it’s programming cable. These require a serial port on the computer itself or the use of an USB-Serial adaptor. If you use a USB-Serial adaptor then the drivers connect to the adaptor.

The common denominator for all this is that the radio gets a “Com Port” number assigned. This will show up as “COM1” , “COM36” etc. Once this number is displayed in the Device Manager use that number in your programming software so the radio and program can communicate. This is kind of like a channel number, if the radio and computer are both set to the same Com Port number they can talk.

Com Port and communication issues are the biggest problem faced with users of software and scanners. Once you get the drivers loaded and the program set to the right com port then you can read and write to the radio all you want.

Some older USB-Serial adapters and cables will not work with some newer versions of Windows, or with 64-bit versions of Windows. Others require newer drivers to be downloaded and installed. Once installed the drivers should automatically be loaded each time you plug in the cable but sometimes Windows may change the com port number so if you have problems check the Device Manager to make sure.

Scanner Tip: Care and feeding of scanner batteries

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If you use handheld scanners then you have to manage batteries. Most scanners come with or use rechargeable Nickel Metal Hydride cells, often abbreviated to Ni-MH. There are still some older Nickel Cadmium (“Ni-Cad”) cells still around. There is also a newer technology called Lithium Ion (“LI”). If you still use one of the older scanners with composite battery packs (like the BC250D or BC296D) these likely use or NiMH battery packs.

Current scanners almost always use “AA” sized batteries. AA Ni-MH batteries are very common these days and can be found almost anywhere and are also used in a wide variety of different applications. LI batteries are more expensive but are lighter in weight and provide longer life in many instances.

If you charge your batteries in the radio then remember that it is likely set up for Ni-MH. If you use Ni-Cad or LI cells then the charge times will be different. If your radio supports altering charge times then you could change it to match.

Whatever you do make sure that ALL the cells in the radio are the same! Do not mix different types of cells. Also make sure that you do not try to charge alkaline cells like Duracell or Ray-O-Vac’s! This is an easy way to blow things up and make nasty things happen. If you do this warranty will not cover you and the repairs are on you.

If you want to use rechargeable batteries that are different than the ones that came with the radio then consider a separate charger. This would allow you to manage 2 or 3 sets, one for current use and another for standby when the current ones are depleted and a third set in the charger. Make sure the charger you use is appropriate for the batteries you use.

What about Alkalines? Alkaline batteries, such as Duracell’s, Energizer or Ray-O-Vac brands, are great for scanners. You do need to make sure that you do not try to charge them. On many Uniden scanners there is a tiny switch inside the battery compartment that you can select Alkaline or Ni-MH. If you select Alkaline the radio will not attempt to charge batteries in the radio. If you have a RadioShack, GRE or Whistler handheld scanner then the yellow battery holder will charge your batteries when the radio is plugged into an outside power source, so do not use the yellow holder for alkalines. The black battery holder is used for alkaline batteries.

One other thing to consider is that rechargeable batteries produce a slightly lower voltage than alkaline ones do. Typically rechargeable cells produce 1.2 to 1.25 volts compared to 1.5 volts for alkalines at full charge. Usually this is not a problem; the extra quarter-volt per cell is not going to burn up your radio. Using higher voltage alkaline cells will allow the radio to run a bit longer before the battery warning starts.

Here is a little hint for users of later Uniden scanners: You can see how many volts your battery has at any time by pressing the rotary knob down while scanning. Make note of the voltage with fresh cells and the voltage when the battery warning starts. This will give you a good idea of when to expect the need to change or charge the batteries.

I always try to keep an extra set of batteries handy when I am out and about. Save those little battery boxes or use something to keep the batteries from shorting and bouncing around. I use a prescription bottle; larger ones are perfect for 3 or 4 AA’s! I can then toss that in the glove box. Just remember to take off the label so the world doesn’t find out what meds you take. Do they make a pill that will cure a scanner addiction?