Radio Shack PRO-2096 User Manual

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20-496

PRO-2096 Digital Trunking

Mobile/Base Scanner

Please read this user’s guide before installing, setting up and using your new product

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Contents

Thank you for purchasing your Pro-2096 digital trunk scanner from RadioShack. You can mount your scanner in a ﬁ xed position and use it as a base scanner or you can use it as a mobile scanner by mounting it in a vehicle. This scanner is the ﬁ rst of an innovative and exciting new generation, capable of receiving digital voice modulation from the newest and most sophisticated conventional and trunked radio networks. No additional hardware or add-on cards are needed.

user’s guide • quick start guide • preloaded data addendum

DC cable w/fuse

Scanner

DIN sleeve and keys (2)

Antenna

AC adapter

Mounting bracket

Knob (2)

Rubber washer (2)

Lock washer (2)

Screw (2)

Rubber foot (3)

The Basics

contents

your scanner’s keypad 7

your scanner’s rear view 9

your scanner’s display 10

step 1: install your scanner 11

mounting your scanner in your dashboard 11 mobile mounting in your vehicle 11 using your scanner as a base station 12

step 2: power your scanner 13

from a wall outlet 13 through your vehicle’s ignition 13 from your vehicle’s cigarrette lighter 14

step 3: connect your scanner 15

connect the supplied antenna 15 connect an external antenna 15 connect an external speaker or headphones 16

step 4: set up your scanner 17

squelch 17 storing conventional frequencies 17 deleting frequencies from channels 18 searching and tuning 19

basic scanning 20

about channel-storage banks 20 monitoring a single channel 20

using CTCSS and DCS 21

searching a preprogrammed frequency range 21 search bank charts 22

The Basics

searching for active frequencies 27 using Zeromatic 27 using seek search 27 manually tuning to a frequency 28

frequency copy 29

copying a frequency into a speciﬁ ed channel 29 copying a frequency to a vacant channel

into a speciﬁ ed bank 30

copying a frequency to the priority channel 30

listening to the weather band 31

same standby mode 31 testing weather alert 32 using delay 33 locking out channels/frequencies 33 locking out channels 33 locking out frequencies 34 reviewing locked-out search frequency 34 clearing locked-out search frequencies 35 clearing locked-out frequencies in search banks 35 changing the receive mode 35 using attenuator 36 global attenuator 37 turning the key tone on or off 37 using the dimmer 38 changing the display contrast 38

virtual scanner 39

using V-scanner 40 using digital AGC 45 cloning programmed data 45 cloning v-scanner data 46 full cloning 47 selective cloning 47

The Basics

trunking operation 50

setting squelch for trunk scanning 50 talkgroup ID hold 50 turning an ID sub-bank on or off 50 open and closed mode operation 51 toggling open and closed modes 52 manual ID lockout toggle 52 activate ID lockout while scanning 53 reviewing locked-out talkgroup IDs 53 changing from ID text tag display

to ID code display 53 trunked delay function 53 clearing talkgroups IDs 54 clearing all talkgroup IDs in one bank 55

programming trunked systems 56

Motorola analog, digital, and APCO-25 systems 56 EDACS systems 57 Motorola VHF and UHF systems 58 Motorola 800MHz splinter systems 59 ﬂ eet maps 59 programming the priority channel 61 programming a stored channel frequency

in the priority channel 61 programming the priority channel directly 61 programming a weather channel as the priority channel 62 turning priority on or off 62 programming CTCSS/DCS channels 63 storing talkgroup ids 65

text tags 67

assigning a text tag to a channel 67 assigning a text tag to a group ID 68 assigning a text tag to a channel-storage bank 68

The Basics

text input chart 69 using channel receive modes 69 updating the DSP ﬁ rmware 69

truobleshooting 70

resetting/initializing your scanner 71

resetting your scanner 71 initializing your scanner 72

care 73

replacing the fuse 73 service and repair 73

speciﬁ cations 74

The FCC wants you to know 77

scanning legally 77

glossary 78

warranty 84

RadioShack, RadioShack.com. Hypersearch, Hyperscan, V-Scanner, and Adaptaplug are trademarks used by RadioShack Corporation.

Motorola, Smartnet, ASTRO and Privacy Plus are registered trademarks of Motorla Inc.

EDACS is a registered trademark of MA-COM Inc.

The IMBE(TM) Voice Coding Technology embodied in this product is protected by intellectual property rights including patent rights, copyrights and trade secrets of Digital Voice Systems, Inc. This voice coding Technology is licensed solely for use witthin this Communications Equipment. The user of this Technology is explicitly prohibited from attempting to decompile, reverse engineer, or disassemble the Object Code, or in any other way convert the Object Code into a human readable form.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,870,405 and 5,517,511.

This device made under license under one or more of the following U.S. Patents: 4,590,473; 4,636,791; 5,148,482; 5,185,796; 5,271,017; 5,377,229

The Basics

your scanner’s keypad

TRUNK — stores the trunking ID code or

holds the trunking ID while scanning.

L/OUT — locks out selected channels

and ID codes, and skips speciﬁ ed

frequencies during a search.

CLEAR — clears an incorrect entry.

PROG — programs frequencies in

selected channels.

PWR/VOL/SQ — long knob turns OFF/ON,

and controls volume. Short knob controls

squelch.

PC/IF — connect data cable for cloning

or connecting to a PC.

s — attach headphones with

1/8” jack here.

The Basics

FUNC — press in

combination with other keys to

perform various functions.

ATT — Press to activate

attenuation (reduce scanner

sensitivity, block strong signals).

Press again to deactivate

attenuation.

TUNE — Press TUNE, PAUSE

then e or d to tune to a

frequency.

PAUSE — pauses search or

tune operation.

DIM — adjusts the backlight

level (Light, Dark, or OFF).

WX — press to scan

programmed weather channels.

See p. 31

TEXT — press to input text.

SRCH — press to search

through search banks.

MAN — press to manually

enter a channel number.

or d — press to scan or

search in either direction.

PRI — turns the priority

function on or off.

MODE — press to change the

receive mode.

SCAN — press to scan

programmed channels.

The Basics

Press to enter a number or a character (in text mode).

./DELAY — press to enter

a decimal point, space, or

hyphen. Press to program delay

time for a channel/search bank.

ENT — press to conﬁ rm

frequency and text entries.

your scanner’s rear view

ANT — connect the supplied

antenna or an external antenna here.

SCREW HOLE — use to mount

the scanner in a car with some

hardware (screw not supplied).

RESET— press to reset your scanner.

DC 13.8V — connect a

power source here.

EXT SP — connect an

external speaker here.

The Basics

your scanner’s display

Receiving a Signal ( no signal) Channel 00-(49) Bank 0-(9)

(M)anual Mode (P)rogram (S)can

Priority On/Off Indicator

Attenuator On/Off Indicator

Delay On/Off Indecator

Lockout On/Off Indecator (While Scanning, ScanningDirection, or .)

Open/Closed Mode Indecator

Receiving Mode

Receiving Frequency

Stored Text or Bank and Channel Numbe r

Detected ID Display (Trunking & CTCSS/DCS)

Bank Off

Open Mode

Closed Mode

Search Range Number

Zeromatic On/Off Indicator

Sub-Group

Search Range Name

Scan Mode

Frequency

Bank Off

Search Mode

The Basics

Note

step 1: install your scanner

You can mount your digital trunking scanner in your vehicle, install it for mobility, or install it as a base station.

mounting your scanner in your dashboard

If you are unsure about how to install your scanner in your vehicle, consult your automobile manufacturer, dealer, or a qualiﬁ ed installer. Before installing, conﬁ rm your scanner ﬁ ts in the desired mounting area and you have all the necessary materials. Your scanner requires a 2 x 71/8 x 5 5/16 inch (50 x 180 x 135 mm) mounting area.

1. Remove the four rear screws and pull off the black case before installing your scanner.

2. Install the DIN sleeve into the opening in your dashboard, lip facing out.

3. Push out the top and bottom tabs to hold the sleeve ﬁ rmly in place.

4. Slide the scanner into the sleeve until it locks in place.

Note

To remove your scanner from the DIN sleeve, insert the two keys straight into the scanner’s front panel. Then, remove the scanner by pulling front panel.

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Note

When mounting in your dashboard, you will need to connect an external antenna and an external speaker.

mobile mounting in your vehicle

You can mount your scanner under the dashboard, or on top of it, using the mounting bracket.

The Basics

Note

1. Attach the three protective rubber feet to the mounting bracket when you use the scanner on a ﬂ at surface. Do not

use them when you mount the bracket with screws.

2. Use the supplied mounting bracket as a template to mark positions for the two mounting screws.

3. At the marked positions, drill holes slightly smaller than the screws.

4. Remove the paper backing from each washer and stick one inside of each bracket’s ear, aligning the washer’s hole with the bracket’s hole.

5. Attach the mounting bracket to your vehicle’s surface using the supplied screws and lockwashers.

6. Slide the scanner into the bracket, aligning the scanner’s holes with the holes in the bracket, and then screw the mounting knobs into the scanner.

Note

When drilling holes, be sure to avoid obstructions behind the mounting surface. Consult a qualiﬁ ed installer if in doubt.

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using your scanner as a base station

You can place your scanner on a desk, shelf, or table to use it as a base station. Since the speaker is on the bottom of the scanner, you may want to use the mounting bracket to elevate your scanner off the surface for better sound. Follow the mobile vehicle mounting instructions above to afﬁ x your scanner to a desk, shelf, table or other ﬂ at surface (except that the bracket will be below the scanner).

The Basics

Note

Warning!

step 2: power your scanner

You can power your scanner from a wall outlet, through your vehicle’s ignition, or from your vehicle’s cigarette lighter.

from a wall outlet

Note

Warning!



1. Connect the tip of the supplied AC adapter to the DC

13.8V jack at the rear of your scanner.

2. Plug the AC adapter into your wall outlet.

You must use a Class 2 power source that supplies 13.8V DC and delivers at least 600mA. Its center tip must be set to positive and its plug must ﬁ t the scanner’s DC 13.8V jack. Using an adapter that does not meet these speciﬁ cations could damage the scanner or the adapter.

To prevent electric shock, do not use the AC adapter’s polarized plug with an extension cord, receptacle, or other outlet unless you can fully insert the blades to prevent blade exposure.

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through your vehicle’s ignition

1. Disconnect the cable from the negative (-) terminal of your vehicle’s battery.

2. Ground the black wire of the supplied DC power cord to your vehicle’s chassis.

The Basics

Note

Be sure the grounding screw makes complete contact with the metal frame of your vehicle.

3. Connect the red wire of the supplied DC power cord to a voltage source that turns on and off with the ignition switch, such as a spare accessory terminal in your vehicle’s fuse box.

4. Insert the power cord’s barrel plug into the scanner’s DC 13.8V jack.

5. Reconnect the cable to the negative (-) terminal of your

Rear View

vehicle’s battery.

Note

You must use a power source that supplies 12V DC and delivers at least 600 mA. Its center tip must be set to positive and its plug must ﬁ t the scanner’s DC 13.8V jack. The supplied DC power cord meets these speciﬁ cations. Using a power cord that does not meet these speciﬁ cations could damage the scanner or the adapter.

from your vehicle’s cigarrette lighter

To power your scanner from a 12V power source in your vehicle, such as a cigarette-lighter socket, you need a 12V, 600 mA DC cigarette-lighter adapter (not supplied), available at your local RadioShack store.

1. Insert the adapter’s barrel plug into the scanner’s DC 13.8V jack.

2. Plug the adapter’s other end into your vehicle’s cigarette lighter or power socket.

Note

When you use a cigarette-lighter adapter, you might hear electrical noise from your engine while scanning. This is normal.

The Basics

step 3: connect your scanner

connect the supplied antenna

Push the antenna onto your scanner’s antenna connector and rotate until it locks into place.

Your scanner’s sensitivity to various frequencies depends on its location and the antenna’s length. For best reception, adjust the antenna’s length as follows:

Frequency Antenna Length

25-54 MHz Extend fully

108-174 MHz Extend 4 segments

216-225 MHz Extend 3 segments

406-1300 MHz Collapse fully

connect an external antenna

You will need to connect an external antenna when you mount your scanner in the dashboard of your vehicle. You may also want to connect an external antenna if you use your scanner as a base station.

Your local RadioShack store sells a variety of antennas. Always use 50-ohm coaxial cable, such as RG-58 or RG-8, to connect an outdoor antenna. For lengths exceeding 50 feet, use RG-8 low-loss dielectric coaxial cable. If your coaxial cable does not have a BNC connector, you will also need a BNC adapter (not supplied).

The Basics

Warning!

Use extreme caution when installing or removing an outdoor antenna. If the antenna starts to fall, let it go! It could contact overhead power lines. If the antenna touches a power line, touching the antenna, mast, cable, or guy wires can cause electrocution and death. Call the power company to remove the antenna. Do not attempt to do so yourself.

connect an external speaker or headphones

When you mount your scanner in your dashboard, you will need to connect an external speaker or headphones.

Connect

headphones here

listening safely

To protect your hearing, follow these guidelines when you use headphones.

Connect external

speaker here

• Adjust VOL (volume) to its lowest level before putting on headphones. With the headphones on, adjust VOL to a comfortable level.

• Avoid increasing the volume once you set it. Over time, your sensitivity to volume decreases, so volume levels that do not cause discomfort might damage your hearing.

• Avoid listening at high volume levels. Prolonged exposure to high volume levels can cause permanent hearing loss.

trafﬁ c safety

Do not wear headphones while driving. This can create a trafﬁ c hazard and is illegal in some areas. Even though some headphones let you hear outside sounds when you listen at normal levels, they still can present a trafﬁ c hazard.

The Basics

step 4: set up your scanner

squelch

1. Rotate VOL clockwise to turn on your scanner. DSP LOADING and Welcome To Digital Trunking appears. In a few seconds, you might hear a hissing sound.

2. Adjust VOL to a comfortable listening level.

3. Rotate SQ (squelch) fully counterclockwise to OFF. Then, rotate SQ clockwise until the hissing sound stops.

4. To turn off the scanner, turn VOL counterclockwise to OFF.

storing conventional frequencies

1. Turn on your scanner and press PROG.

2. Select the desired channel storage bank and channel, and then press PROG.

3. Use the number keys and ./DELAY (to enter the decimal point) to enter the frequency you want to store.

4. Press ENT to store the frequency.

5. The scanner conﬁ gures the channels you enter after a two second delay. A D appears at the top of the display. If you do not want the scanner to pause before it resumes scanning, press ./DELAY until D no longer appears on the display.

6. To receive conventional frequencies, including AM, FM/Digital, CTCSS and DCS, press MODE. For more information on CTCSS and DCS programming, see “Programming CTCSS/DCS channels”.

7. If desired, program a text tag for the channel. See “Assigning a Text Tag to a Channel”.

8. To program additional channels, press PROG or move to the next channel memory location.

e or d to

The Basics

Notes

If you make a mistake entering the frequency, Invalid Freq brieﬂ y appears.

When you store a frequency by pressing ENT, your scanner beeps.

Press CLEAR to backspace and correct a character, or hold down CLEAR for about two seconds to clear the entire ﬁ eld and start over.

Your scanner automatically rounds the frequency you enter to the nearest valid frequency. For example, if you enter 151.53, your scanner accepts it as 151.5275. Reception of the frequency will not be adversely affected.

If you enter a frequency that is already stored, an error tone sounds. Dupl.f and the duplicated frequency number appear. Press CLEAR and enter another frequency.

You can replace any stored frequency by selecting the desired bank and channel, pressing PROG, and then entering the new frequency.

Press FUNC, and then CLEAR to erase programmed frequency data.

deleting frequencies from channels

In certain circumstances you may wish to completely clear the contents of a channel. One example would be to create empty channels in a selected channel storage bank so the frequency copy function has empty channels available for copied frequencies. See “Copying a Frequency to a Vacant Channel into a Speciﬁ ed Bank”.

1. Press PROG.

2. Use the number keys or

e or d to select the frequency you

want to delete.

3. Press FUNC, and then CLEAR. The frequency is cleared, and

0.00000 appears on the display.

The Basics

Notes

searching and tuning

You can search for transmissions using the scanner’s preprogrammed search banks. The search banks include six preprogrammed search ranges, SR0 to SR5. You can change the search range of Bank SR6 manually by setting the lower and higher ends of the search range.

Notes

You can use the scanner’s delay feature while searching. See “Using Delay”.

You can set CTCSS or DCS mode when searching any range, except for SR0, SR1, and SR4. The scanner will display detected CTCSS or DCS codes depending on the mode setting. See “Using CTCSS and DCS”.

The scanner does not search locked-out frequencies while searching ranges.

You can use PAUSE to temporarily pause searching. The scanner will remain on the frequency that was active when PAUSE was pressed until you press PAUSE again. You can simply listen to the radio trafﬁ c on the paused frequency, or copy the frequency to a channel before resuming your search.

The Basics

basic scanning

Press SCAN to begin scanning channels. The scanner scans through all channels in the active channel storage bank. See “About Channel Storage Banks”.

• You must store frequencies into channels before you can scan them. The scanner does not scan through empty channels.

• To change the scanning direction, press scanning.

e or d while

about channel-storage banks

• To turn on a channel storage bank, press the number key corresponding to the desired bank until the bank’s number appears on the display.

• To turn off a channel storage bank, press the number key corresponding to the desired bank until the bank’s number disappears from the display.

• The scanner does not scan channels within a bank you have turned off; however, you can manually select any channel in a storage bank, even if the bank is turned off.

• You cannot turn off all channel storage banks. There must always be at least one active channel storage bank.

monitoring a single channel

You can monitor a single channel by manually navigating to that channel. The scanner will receive transmissions only on that frequency.

Beyond the Basics

using CTCSS and DCS

Your scanner’s advanced, DSP-based CTCSS and DCS, decoder allows you to listen only to a frequency group that is of interest to you. Simply specify the group’s speciﬁ c CTCSS or DCS code for a certain frequency. CTCSS and DCS can also help reduce interfering signals that cause your scanner to stop on one channel.

When your scanner stops on a conventional frequency that is conﬁ gured for CTCSS or DCS, it checks for a match between the transmitted CTCSS or DCS code and the code stored in channel memory. If the transmitted and stored codes match, the scanner stops on the transmission and allows the audio to pass to the speaker. If the codes do not match, the scanner resumes scanning. If the special “search” code is in use, the scanner instantly displays any detected CTCSS code if programmed for CTCSS mode, or DCS code if programmed for DCS code. You can store the detected code into channel memory by pressing ENT while the code is displayed.

searching a preprogrammed frequency range

The scanner contains these preprogrammed search ranges, stored in the search bank (SR0-SR6).

Bank Band

SR0 Marine

SR1 CB

SR2 FRS/GMRS/MURS

SR3 Police/Fire

SR4 Aircraft

SR5 Ham

SR6 Limit search (User conﬁ gurable)

1. Repeatedly press SRCH to select a search bank.

Beyond the Basics

Note

2. In the marine, CB and FRS bands, you can directly select a channel or search through the band. When M appears on the left on the second line, you can directly select a channel (see “Search Bank Charts”). Use the numeric keypad to select a speciﬁ c two-digit channel number (for example, press 1 6 to select Channel 16, or 0 5 to select channel 5). You can also change the channels by pressing

e or d.

There are several group banks in the SR3 Police/Fire and

SR5 ham bands. You can turn on the groups by pressing the group numbers. For example, to turn on group 0, press 0.

3. Press FUNC, SRCH while M appears in SR0, SR1 or SR2. M changes to S. Then search through the band. To return to the previous mode, press FUNC, SRCH.

4. Rotate SQ clockwise and leave it set to a point just after the hissing sound stops. After two seconds (if the delay feature is on), the received frequency appears and the scanner starts searching.

5. When the scanner ﬁ nds an active frequency, it stops searching, and resumes when the transmission ends. If delay is programmed with the search range the scanner will pause for a reply before search resumes.

search bank charts

Search bank: SR0 Marine band

Note

For some Marine frequencies, two frequencies are assigned to one channel, for example, 157.000 and

161.600 are assigned to Channel 20.

Beyond the Basics

Receive mode: FM/Digital

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

01 156.0500 05 156.2500

06 156.3000 07 156.3500

08 156.4000 09 156.4500

10 156.5000 11 156.5500

12 156.6000 13 156.6500

14 156.7000 15 156.7500

16 156.8000 17 156.8500

18 156.9000 19 156.9500

20 157.0000

161.6000

22 157.1000 23 157.1500

24 157.2000

161.8000

26 157.3000

161.9000

28 157.4000

162.0000

64 156.2250

160.8250

66 156.3250 67 156.3750

68 156.4250 69 156.4750

70 156.5250 71 156.5750

72 156.6250 73 156.6750

74 156.7250 77 156.8750

78 156.9250 79 156.9750

80 157.0250 81 157.0750

82 157.1250 83 157.1750

84 157.2250

161.8250

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

21 157.0500

25 157.2500

161.8500

27 157.3500

161.9500

63 157.1750

65 156.2750

85 157.2750

161.8750

Beyond the Basics

86 157.3250

161.9250

88 157.4250

87 157.3750

161.9750

Search bank: SR1 CB band Receive mode: AM

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

01 26.9650 02 26.9750

03 26.9850 04 27.0050

05 27.0150 06 27.0250

07 27.0350 08 27.0550

09 27.0650 10 27.0750

11 27.0850 12 27.1050

13 27.1150 14 27.1250

15 27.1350 16 27.1550

17 27.1650 18 27.1750

19 27.1850 20 27.2050

21 27.2150 22 27.2250

23 27.2550 24 27.2350

25 27.2450 26 27.2650

27 27.2750 28 27.2850

29 27.2950 30 27.3050

31 27.3150 32 27.3250

33 27.3350 34 27.3450

35 27.3550 36 27.3650

37 27.3750 38 27.3850

39 27.3950 40 27.4050

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

Search bank: SR2 FRS/GMRS/MURS Receive Mode: FM/Digital, CT or DC

Beyond the Basics

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

01 462.5625 02 462.5875

03 462.6125 04 462.6375

05 462.6625 06 462.6875

07 462.7125 08 467.5625

09 467.5875 10 467.6125

11 467.6375 12 467.6625

13 467.6875 14 467.7125

15 462.5500 16 462.5750

17 462.6000 18 462.6250

19 462.6500 20 462.6750

21 462.7000 22 462.7250

23 151.8200 24 151.8800

25 151.9400 26 154.5700

27 154.6000

Ch. Frequency

(MHz)

Search bank: SR3 Police/Fire band Receive Mode: FM/Digital, CT or DC

Group Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

0 33.420 – 33.980 20

37.020 – 37.420 20

39.020 – 39.980 20

42.020 – 42.940 20

44.620 – 45.860 40

45.880

45.900

45.940 – 46.060 40

46.080 – 46.500 20

Beyond the Basics

1 153.770 – 154.130 60

2 453.0375 – 453.9625 12.5

3 851.0125 – 860.9875 25

Search bank: SR4 Aircraft Receive mode: AM

154.145 – 154.445 15

154.650 – 154.950 15

155.010 – 155.370 60

155.415 – 155.700 15

155.730 – 156.210 60

158.730 – 159.210 60

166.250

170.150

458.0375 – 458.9625 12.5

460.0125 – 460.6375 12.5

465.0125 – 465.6375 12.5

866.0125 – 868.9875 12.5

Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

108.000 – 136.9875 12.5

Search bank: SR5 Ham band Receive mode: FM/Digital, CT, DC, AM (depends on group)

Group Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

0 28.0000 – 29.7000 5

1 50.0000 – 54.0000 5

2 144.0000 – 148.0000 5

3 222.0000 – 225.0000 5

4 420.0000 – 450.0000 12.5

5 1240.0000 –

1300.0000

6.25

Beyond the Basics

searching for active frequencies

You can search a speciﬁ c range of frequencies by programming SR6 with lower and upper frequency limits.

1. Press PGM, SRCH. PSR (Program Search) appears in the top line and the cursor blinks L on the second line for the lower limit frequency.

2. Use the number keys and ./DELAY to enter the desired lower limit frequency (including the decimal point).

3. Press ENTER to set the lower limit frequency. The cursor moves to upper frequency ﬁ eld. If the entered frequency is incorrect, Invalid Freq brieﬂ y appears in the scanner’s display.

4. Enter your desired upper frequency and press ENTER.

5. Rotate SQUELCH clockwise and leave it set to a point just after the hissing sound stops.

6. Press SRCH to start searching. When the scanner ﬁ nds an active frequency, it stops searching.

using Zeromatic

Zeromatic sets the scanner to automatically tune to the correct center frequency (or the step increment closest to the correct center frequency) during a search. Turn Zeromatic on or off by pressing FUNC then 0. When this feature is turned on, Zeromatic ON brieﬂ y appears on the display. Then, z appears as the ﬁ rst digit on the second line. If the scanner stops on a signal before it reaches the correct center frequency, skip to the correct frequency using e or d. Zeromatic functions only in search banks 3, 4, 5, and 6.

using seek search

While the scanner is searching, press FUNC, 7 to turn on seek search. Seek ON appears on the bottom line. The scanner

Beyond the Basics

Note

stops on each active frequency for ﬁ ve seconds then automatically resumes searching.

• You can copy and save a frequency into a speciﬁ ed bank,

channel, or priority channel when the scanner ﬁ nds an active frequency. See “Frequency Copy” on Page 29 to save the frequency. Frequency copy works only in search banks 1 - 6.

• In the Air and Limit search bands, press FUNC then

e to

start searching up from the lowest frequency or d to start searching down from the highest frequency.

• You can press

e or d at any time to change the search

direction or resume searching while stopped on an active frequency.

• Use

e or d while paused to increment the frequency one

step at a time.

manually tuning to a frequency

You can manually set the scanner to move through all receivable frequencies, or select a speciﬁ c frequency as a starting point.

1. Press TUNE. TUNE, the current frequency, and ** PAUSED ** appear on the display.

2. Use the number keys to enter the frequency where you want the scanner to start.

3. Press ENT to store the frequency. Press or down from the displayed frequency, or press PAUSE to begin automatic tuning.

e or d to step up

4. Press

Note

e or d to change the automatic tuning direction. The

scanner stops when it ﬁ nds an active frequency.

If you press PAUSE while tuning, the scanner stops tuning and **PAUSED** appears on the display. Press PAUSE again, and the scanner resumes tuning.

Beyond the Basics

frequency copy

You can copy a frequency into a speciﬁ ed channel, a vacant channel in a speciﬁ ed bank, or a priority channel. This feature lets you easily store frequencies of interest you encounter while searching or tuning. You cannot copy a frequency from the Marine search bands.

copying a frequency into a speciﬁ ed channel

You can copy a frequency into a channel you specify when the scanner stops on that frequency during search mode or when you manually tune it. If a CTCSS or DCS code is detected on the transmission, the scanner copies the detected code into the channel memory as well.

If you try to copy a frequency that is already stored, the scanner sounds a tone after you press ENT. Dupl.f Chxxx appears at the bottom line. To copy the duplicate frequency anyway, press ENT. Otherwise, press CLEAR to cancel.

1. Press FUNC, PROG when you ﬁ nd a frequency. Chan Store? appears on the bottom line. After about one second, the frequency to be copied ﬂ ashes on the indicator.

2. Press the desired bank number and channel number where you want to store the frequency. The bank and channel number, then the frequency appear. You can repeat this step as needed until you ﬁ nd an acceptable destination channel. After about one second, the frequency to be copied ﬂ ashes.

3. Press ENT. All the conditions, such as receive mode and delay condition, are copied onto the channel. Chan Store! brieﬂ y appears. The scanner automatically returns to search mode.

Beyond the Basics

copying a frequency to a vacant channel into a speciﬁ ed bank

You can copy a frequency into a vacant channel in a bank you specify when the scanner stops on the frequency during search or tune mode.

1. Press FUNC, ENT when you ﬁ nd a frequency you want to copy. Bank9 Store? appears.

2. To copy the frequency into bank 9, press ENT. The scanner stores the frequency in the ﬁ rst available vacant channel in the bank. Otherwise, enter any bank number then press ENT to store the frequency in the selected bank. Chan Store! appears for two seconds. All the conditions, such as receiving mode and delay condition, are copied on the channel. After about two seconds, the scanner automatically returns to search mode.

copying a frequency to the priority channel

You can copy a frequency into the priority channel (see “Programming the Priority Channel”) when the scanner stops on the frequency during Search, Scan, Manual, Tune, or WX mode. Press FUNC, PRI when the frequency appears. The display ﬂ ashes twice and the frequency is copied to the priority channel.

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listening to the weather band

The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) has allocated channels for use by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Regulatory agencies in other countries have also allocated channels for use by their weather reporting authorities.

NOAA and your local weather reporting authority broadcast your local forecast and regional weather information on one or more of these channels.

1. To hear your local forecast and regional weather information, press WX. Your scanner scans through the weather band, and then stops on the ﬁ rst active weather frequency.

2. Repeatedly press WX to ﬁ nd the strongest weather frequency for your location.

3. If necessary, press ATT to attenuate a weather channel if it is receiving interference.

same standby mode

The National Weather Service precedes each weather alert with a digitally encoded SAME (Speciﬁ c Area Message Encoding) signal. Then, a 1050 Hz tone. The SAME signal includes a FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standard) area code, and an event code that corresponds with the type of alert being sent. You can conﬁ gure your scanner to operate in SAME Standby mode, where it monitors a selected weather radio station for SAME alerts for areas you specify. You can program your scanner with up to 10 FIPS codes for the areas you desire. The National Weather Service maintains a current list of FIPS codes at http://www.nws. noaa.gov/nwr/.

1. Repeatedly press WX until you identify the weather station

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with the strongest signal for your location.

2. Press FUNC, PROG to access the FIPS code entry table.

3. Repeatedly press storage location.

4. Use the numeric keys to enter the desired FIPS code, then press ENT to store the code. Press TEXT to label the code entry, if desired. Repeat this step for each FIPS code you want to store.

5. Press L/OUT to lock out or enable speciﬁ c FIPS entries.

6. Press WX to exit the FIPS code entry table.

• Press WX, then 0-9 to quickly review stored FIPS codes.

Press L/OUT to toggle lockout status.

• Your scanner can also detect the 1050 Hz weather alert

tone when a weather channel is set as the priority channel and weather priority operation is enabled. In this mode all alerts are received. FIPS settings are ignored.

• The scanner sounds an alert or beep when it receives the

SAME code. If you do not stop the alert (or beep) for ﬁ ve minutes, the alert stops and the scanner beeps every ten seconds. If the scanner receives a new message after ﬁ ve minutes, it sounds the alert or beep. To stop the sound and ready the scanner to receive a new alert signal before the ﬁ ve minute time out, press any key except DIM.

e or d to select the desired FIPS code

7. Press FUNC, WX to turn on SAME standby. The scanner monitors the selected weather radio station for alerts with FIPS codes that match the codes you entered in the FIPS entry table. To exit SAME standby, press FUNC, WX.

testing weather alert

To test the SAME weather alert alarm, hold down WX for

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about two seconds while SAME Standby is active. The display indicates the type of message, and the scanner sounds the alarm associated with that type of message. The alarm sound changes automatically every three seconds. Press any key except DIM to end the alarm demonstration mode.

using delay

You can conﬁ gure your conventional, non-trunked channels for a two second delay to avoid missing reply trafﬁ c on the same channel. When delay is set for a conventional channel, the scanner will pause for reply trafﬁ c before resuming the scan operation. To toggle the delay setting for a channel, press ./DELAY.

• Delay is automatically set as the default for each channel

when you turn on the scanner.

• Delay operates differently when monitoring trunked

radio systems. For more information, see “Trunked Delay Function”.

locking out channels/frequencies

You can lock out channels to force the scanner to skip and ignore any trafﬁ c while scanning. While searching, you can lock out up to 50 frequencies to skip undesired transmissions.

locking out channels

To lock out a channel while scanning, press L/OUT when the scanner stops on the channel.

To lock out a channel manually, select the channel then press L/OUT so L appears in the scanner’s display.

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Note

You can still manually select and monitor locked-out channels.

Locking out a channel with an active trunking control channel will disable monitoring of that trunking system.

To remove the lockout from a channel, manually select the channel and press L/OUT so L disappears.

To review all locked out channels, press MAN. Then, repeatedly press FUNC, L/OUT. The scanner advances to the next locked out channel each time you press FUNC, L/OUT.

locking out frequencies

To lock out a frequency during a search, press L/OUT when the scanner stops on that frequency. The scanner locks out the frequency and continues searching.

• You can lock out as many as 50 frequencies in each search

bank. If you try to lock out more, Memory full! appears, and you will be unable to lock out any more frequencies until you clear some. See “Clearing Locked-Out Search Frequencies”.

• If you lock out all frequencies in one search bank and only

this search bank is activated, All ranges Locked out! appears and the scanner will not search.

reviewing locked-out search frequencies

To review the frequencies within a search bank that you locked out:

1. Press SRCH to set search mode, and select the desired search bank to review its locked out frequencies.

2. Press FUNC and then L/OUT. The last locked-out frequency and Lockout list appear. Press

e or d to scroll through the

list. The locked-out number and the total locked-out number also appears as L/O XX of YY. (The tenth of twenty

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ﬁ ve locked out frequency appear as L/O 10 of 25). If the search bank has no locked-out frequencies, Empty. Lockout list appears in the scanner’s display. Press SRCH to cancel reviewing locked-out frequencies.

clearing locked-out search frequencies

To clear a locked-out frequency, select that frequency (see “Reviewing Locked-Out Search Frequencies”), and then press CLEAR. If all locked-out frequencies are cleared in a search bank, Empty. Lockout list appears.

clearing locked-out frequencies in search banks

1. Press SRCH.

2. Select the search bank where you want to clear all lockedout frequencies.

3. Press FUNC, L/OUT. Lockout list appears.

4. Press FUNC, 6. Conﬁ rm list clear? 1=YES Press other key for NO appears. Press 1 to clear all locked-out frequencies. List cleared brieﬂ y appears.

5. To cancel clear, press any key other than 1.

changing the receive mode

The scanner defaults to the commonly used AM or FM/Digital receive mode for each frequency range. The preset mode is correct in most cases; however, some amateur radio transmissions and trunked systems do not operate in the preset mode. If you try to listen to a transmission when the scanner is not set to the correct receive mode, the transmission might sound weak or distorted.

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To change the receive mode, repeatedly press MODE. The receive mode changes as follows:

AM conﬁ gures an AM channel. FM/DIGITAL conﬁ gures an FM/Digital channel. CT conﬁ gures a CTCSS channel. DC conﬁ gures a DCS channel. MO conﬁ gures a MO channel for analog or

digital Motorola trunking system channels, or APCO-25 trunking system channels.

ED conﬁ gures an ED channel for EDACS

trunking system channels.

MO and ED modes are not available when performing service searches, limit searches and the TUNE function.

using attenuator

To reduce interference or noise caused by strong signals, you can reduce the scanner’s sensitivity with the attenuator. There are two attenuator modes in your scanner. Normal attenuator mode allows you to set the attenuator on a per-channel basis. Normal mode is useful when individual channels are found to be prone to interference. Global attenuator mode applies attenuation to every channel in the scanner, and overrides any normal mode attenuator settings that you may have entered.

To assign attenuation to a channel in the scanner, press ATT when the scanner is stopped on a channel, or manually navigate to a channel. A appears on the top of the display. Press ATT again to turn attenuation off.

To assign attenuation to a search bank, press ATT while searching. Attenuation will be applied to the active search bank, or search group within a search bank. Press ATT again to turn attenuation off.

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• The attenuator is very effective at reducing strong signal

overload interference when using the scanner in areas close to cellular telephone transmitting facilities.

• If you turn on the attenuator, the scanner might not receive

weak signals.

• Activating the normal attenuator mode on a Motorola

or APCO Project 25 trunking control channel applies attenuation to all calls received on that trunking system. You can press ATT during a trunking call or while manually tuned to a system control channel to toggle attenuation on or off for the trunking system.

global attenuator

1. Press FUNC, ATT to set the attenuator to global mode. Global ATT appears for two seconds, and then ATT- appears.

2. Press ATT to activate the attenuator. ATTon appears on the bottom of the display. When the scanner stops on a channel, a appears on the top of the display.

3. Press ATT to toggle global attenuation off. ATT- appears on the bottom line of the display while scanning.

4. Press FUNC and then ATT again to turn off the global attenuation mode. Normal ATT appears on the bottom line for about two seconds.

turning the key tone on or off

Each time you press a scanner key, a tone sounds. You can turn the scanner’s key tone off or on.

1. To turn the scanner off, turn VOL OFF/MAX counterclockwise until it clicks.

2. To turn the scanner on, turn VOL OFF/MAX clockwise. Welcome To Digital Trunking appears on the display.

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3. Press 1 to turn on the key tone while the message is still on the display. Press 2 to turn it off.

using the dimmer

Repeatedly press DIM to adjust the brightness of the display backlight to Dark, Light Off, or Light.

changing the display contrast

1. Press MAN.

2. Press FUNC, 9.

3. Press

4. Press ENT to conﬁ rm the display contrast level.

e or d to adjust the contrast.

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virtual scanner

The PRO-2096 V-Scanner (Virtual Scanner) feature allows you to edit, store, recall and use up to eleven full sets of scanner memory proﬁ les. With V-Scanner, it is possible to create separate scanner memory proﬁ les for different areas you visit or for different ways that you use the scanner.

Your scanner contains two types of storage memory. Working memory is the memory that your scanner uses while you are programming, cloning, or using your scanner. V-Scanner memory is the memory that your scanner uses to store saved conﬁ gurations in V-Scanner folders for later recall and use. Your scanner features ten V-Scanner folders (0-9) for conﬁ guration storage. An additional “scratchpad” V-Scanner folder can be accessed with the decimal point (.) key and is indicated in the display with the “#” symbol. The scratchpad folder offers a convenient location to temporarily store the contents of working memory when managing the V-Scanner memory.

Working with V-Scanner folders is much like working with computer application ﬁ les, such as spreadsheets and word processing documents. Any programming changes you make to the scanner’s working memory can be saved to one of the ten V-Scanner folders, or the scratchpad folder. When you save working memory to a V-Scanner folder, all settings contained in working memory are saved, including channels, talkgroups, lockout status, contrast settings, etc. Previously saved V-Scanner folders can be recalled and loaded into working memory. You can also erase the contents of V-Scanner folders, or move the contents of one folder to another using working memory. V-Scanner folder names are stored in Line 4 from the Welcome screen that appears when you ﬁ rst power on the scanner. You can change the contents of line 4 from the current working memory conﬁ guration. This information is saved when you store the V-Scanner.

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Follow these steps to edit the V-Scanner name stored in Line 4 of the Welcome screen:

1. Press PROG.

2. Press FUNC, TEXT. The following text appears on the display:

P708---D-+CT Welcome Ln-4

3. Use standard text entry procedures to enter a V-Scanner name, up to 12 characters long. Press ENT when ﬁ nished. Refer to the “Text Input Chart” on Page 69 for more information on text entry.

You can only change the name of a V-Scanner while it is loaded into working memory. It is not possible to change the V-Scanner folder name from the V-Scanner menus. Always press FUNC, TEXT while in program mode to assign a V-Scanner folder name to the current working memory. This name will be stored with the V-Scanner when it is saved, and will appear while you are performing V-Scanner operations. If you press TEXT while in a V-Scanner operations menu, you will be prompted to use FUNC,TEXT while in program mode to assign or change the name of the V-Scanner folder.

using V-scanner

1. Press PROG

2. Press FUNC, PROG. The following text appears:

V-Scanner 1-SAVE 3-DEL 2-LOAD S-CLN CLR to EXIT

3. Select the option that you wish to execute.

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4. If you want to save the contents of the scanner’s working memory to a V-Scanner folder, press 1.

Save to V-Scanner: ENTER if YES CLR to EXIT

5. Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to save the current conﬁ guration to, or press CLEAR to return to V-Scanner menu. Your selected folder location and the name of any previously stored V-Scanner appears in the display. For example, assume you are saving to V-Scanner folder 1, and have previously stored a V-Scanner conﬁ guration with the name “My V-Scanner” in that location. If you choose VScanner Folder 1, the following appears on the display:

Save to V-Scanner: 1 ENTER if YES My V-Scanner

6. Press ENT to accept the choice, another number key to change your selection, or CLEAR to abort and return to the V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one ﬁ nal opportunity to abort before proceeding:

Save to V-Scanner: 1 ENT= CONFIRM My V-Scanner

7. Press ENT to conﬁ rm your choice and proceed with the V- Scanner save operation. While saving, this text appears:

Saving to V-Scanner: 1 Please Wait

The contents of the selected V-Scanner folder will be replaced with your current working memory data.

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8. To load the contents of a V-Scanner folder to the scanner’s working memory, press 2. This message appears:

Load from V-Scanner: ENTER if YES CLR to EXIT

9. Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to load into the scanner’s working memory, or press CLEAR to return to the V-Scanner menu. If you select a V-Scanner folder, the scanner will prompt you to verify your choice. For example, if you choose V-Scanner Folder 1, the scanner will display:

Load from V-Scanner: 1 ENTER if YES My V-Scanner

10. Press ENT to accept the choice, another number key to change your selection, or CLEAR to abort and return to the V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one ﬁ nal opportunity to abort before proceeding:

Load from V-Scanner: 1 ENT= CONFIRM My V-Scanner

While loading, the scanner will display:

Loading from V-Scanner: 1 Please Wait

11. The contents of the scanner’s current working memory will be replaced with the data from the selected V-Scanner folder.

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12. To delete the contents of a V-Scanner folder, select 3. The scanner will display:

Delete V-Scanner: ENTER if YES CLR to EXIT

13. Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to clear, or press CLEAR to return to the V-Scanner menu. If you select a V-Scanner folder, the scanner will display the name of the V-Scanner currently stored in that folder, and prompt you to verify your choice. For example, if you choose V-Scanner Folder 1, the scanner will display:

Delete V-Scanner: ENTER if YES My V-Scanner

14. Press ENT to accept the choice, another number key to change your selection, or CLEAR to abort and return to the V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one ﬁ nal opportunity to abort before proceeding:

Delete V-Scanner: 1 ENT=CONFIRM My V-Scanner

While the folder is being cleared, the scanner will display:

Clearing V-Scanner: 1 Please Wait

15. This display appears after each V-Scanner operation. Pressing ENT will return to the main V-Scanner menu. Press CLEAR to exit the V-Scanner main menu.

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V-Scanner Operation Complete Press ENTER

16. This display appears if a failure is encountered while performing a V-Scanner operation. Press ENT to try again.

V-Scanner Operation Failure Press ENTER

17. If you wish to create a new conﬁ guration based on your current one, save the current working memory to a V-Scanner folder, then edit the working memory with your changes. When you are ﬁ nished with your edits, save your updated working memory to a new V-Scanner folder, leaving the V-Scanner folder with your original conﬁ guration intact. You may then use either your original conﬁ guration or the modiﬁ ed one.

18. Be sure to assign a name to each V-Scanner before you save it to a V-Scanner folder. You assign a V-Scanner name while using the conﬁ guration in working memory by pressing PROG, and then FUNC, TEXT. The text you enter here is stored in line 4 of the welcome message and saved with the contents of the V-Scanner when you write it to a folder.

You can use the V-Scanner feature to back up your work. Save your conﬁ guration to a V-Scanner folder after you make changes to a working memory conﬁ guration. If for any reason your scanner’s working memory is accidentally altered or lost, you can recall the backup conﬁ guration data from the V-Scanner folder.

There will be an approximately 13 second pause after you select the desired V-Scanner and press ENT to conﬁ rm your

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choice when saving or loading V-Scanner data. During this period the scanner is transferring V-Scanner data to or from working memory.

using digital AGC

You may ﬁ nd that the audio level varies greatly among different users on digital systems that you monitor. Many analog conventional and trunked radio systems include components with automatic gain control to help normalize the audio levels of analog transmissions in the system. Digital radio systems typically do not include any automatic gain control functionality and tend to reproduce a user’s voice audio signal more faithfully with regard to audio levels. This can result in a low level audio signal if a user on the system is not speaking close enough to their radio microphone. Your PRO-2096 features Digital AGC, which can compensate for these low audio levels when they occur. By default, Digital AGC is turned on. If desired, you can toggle the Digital AGC function on or off by pressing FUNC, and then MAN at any time. The display will brieﬂ y show DSP AGC Off or DSP AGC On accordingly. Digital AGC has no effect on analog transmissions. You may notice more background noise with Digital AGC on.

cloning programmed data

You can transfer the contents of the current scanner working memory to and from another PRO-2096 or PRO-96 scanner using an optional connecting cable with 1/8-inch (3.5 mm) phone plugs on both ends (use RadioShack part number 42-2420 available at your local RadioShack store), or to a computer application designed to work with this scanner using a PC interface cable (use RadioShack part number 20289, available at your local RadioShack store).

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Caution

CLONE MODE Incorrect Model appears if the scanner receives data from a scanner other than a PRO-2096 and PRO-96. This scanner can send/receive the data to or from a PRO-96 scanner. Only the Light (PRO-96) and Dimmer (PRO-2096) settings are not transferred, they are set to default.

1. Turn on both scanners.

2. Connect the cable to each scanner’s PC/IF jack. *CLONE MODE* UP to send, Remove Cable to Exit appears on the display.

3. Press appears on the display.

4. Press 1 to send the data to the other unit or press any other key to cancel the operation.

5. The scanner sends the data. Do not disconnect the cable or interrupt power to either scanner while transferring data.

6. To exit clone mode, remove the cable.

e or d. Conﬁ rm send data? 1=YES Press other key for NO.

cloning v-scanner data

Your scanner supports cloning of both working memory and V-Scanner memory to and from other PRO-2096 and PRO-96 scanners or PC application software. This section describes the process of cloning V-Scanner memory between two radios.

Two types of V-Scanner memory clone are supported. Full Clone transfers all V-Scanner folders from one PRO-2096 (the “source” radio) to a second PRO-2096 or PRO-96 (the “destination” radio). Selective Clone transfers selected VScanner folders from a “local” controlling radio to a “remote” slave radio.

Caution

The Full Clone feature should be used with caution – it overwrites all V-Scanner memory in the destination radio with the contents of the V-Scanner memory in the source

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radio. This operation cannot be undone.

full cloning

Do not disturb the source radio, destination radio or cable until the transfer is complete. Interrupting the transfer may result in corrupted data. Transferring all data will take approximately four minutes.

1. Identify the source and destination radios. Turn both radios on.

2. Connect the two radios using a male 1/8” to male 1/8” cloning cable. Both radios will show the clone mode display:

3. Press PROG on the source radio.

4. If you wish to replace the V-Scanner memory contents in the destination radio with the V-Scanner memory contents of the source radio, press ENT now. All eleven VScanner folders will be transferred from the source radio to the destination radio.

5. When the transfer is complete press ENT on the source radio and remove the cloning cable. Both radios restart.

6. Repeat steps 1-3 to clone multiple radios.

selective cloning

Selective cloning allows you to choose the speciﬁ c source and destination folders within a local and remote radio. This feature should be used with caution – it overwrites the selected destination V-Scanner folder with the contents of the selected source V-Scanner folder. This operation cannot be undone.

1. Identify the local and remote radios. Turn both radios on.

2. On the local radio, press PROG FUNC PROG to enter V-Scanner menu, then press SRCH.

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3. Connect the two radios together using a male 1/8” phone plug to male 1/8” phone plug cloning cable. The local radio will handshake with the remote radio to prepare for the cloning session. During V-Scanner selective cloning operations, the local radio controls the session for both sending and receiving folders to and from the remote radio.

4. In addition to the two options indicated on the display, you can browse the V-Scanner contents on both radios simultaneously by pressing SRCH on the source radio. Press CLEAR to exit.

5. To send a V-Scanner folder from the local radio to the remote radio, press V-Scanner folder. The name of the source folder appears on the display. You can browse the V-Scanner contents by pressing 0-9 and . in succession until the desired folder is located. Press e or d to move between the source and destination folder ﬁ elds. Use 0-9 and . to select the destination V-Scanner folder where you wish to store the sent data. Again, you may browse the V-Scanner contents on the remote scanner by pressing 0-9 and . until the desired folder is located. Once you have selected the desired source and destination folders, press ENT to send. You may abort the send operation by pressing CLEAR.

e. Use 0-9 and . to select the source

6. To receive a V-Scanner folder from the remote radio into the local radio, press the select the destination V-Scanner folder where you wish to store the received data. The name of the destination folder appears on the display. You can browse the local V-Scanner contents by pressing 0-9 and . in succession until the desired folder is located. Press e or d to move between the destination and source folder ﬁ elds. Use 0-9 and . to select the source V-Scanner folder where you wish to store the sent data. Again, you may browse the V-Scanner contents on the remote scanner by pressing

d key. Use 0-9 and . to

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0-9 and . until the desired folder is located. Once you have selected the desired source and destination folders, press ENT to receive. You may abort the send operation by pressing CLEAR.

7. After data transfer is complete, you will be prompted to press ENT. This returns you to the main V-Scanner menu. To perform additional V-Scanner selective clone operations, press SRCH again. When ﬁ nished, press CLEAR to exit and unplug the cloning cable from both radios.

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trunking operation

setting squelch for trunk scanning

For optimal receiver performance when scanning both trunked and conventional systems, we recommend that you set the squelch close to threshold. Navigate to a programmed channel in manual mode. While the channel is idle, turn the squelch control fully counterclockwise. You will hear a loud rushing noise from the speaker. Turn the squelch control clockwise until the noise stops. You may ﬁ nd it necessary to set the control a bit further in the clockwise direction to prevent very weak signals or interference from stopping the scan operation.

talkgroup ID hold

You can set your scanner to follow a trunking signal that you want to track during scanning.

1. While the scanner is stopped on a voice channel (VC appears), hold down TRUNK (or press and release PAUSE) until ID hold ON appears on the display.

2. To manually activate ID hold mode on a selected ID, enter the ID list, scroll to the desired ID, then press FUNC TRUNK. The scanner will initiate ID hold operation on the selected talkgroup.

3. When ID hold is activated and the scanner receives a voice channel, the scan indication S at the ﬁ rst digit in the top line changes to H to indicate that the call is being monitored while the scanner is in ID hold.

4. To release ID hold, press SCAN, PAUSE, or TRUNK.

turning an ID sub-bank on or off

1. Press TRUNK repeatedly to select the desired sub-bank.

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2. Press FUNC 1 to toggle the sub-bank on or off. The on/off state of the sub-bank will appear in the scanner’s display.

To turn the ID sub-bank on or off during the scan mode:

1. The channel storage bank must be set to Closed Mode to change the state of a sub-bank while scanning.

2. Press FUNC and then TRUNK while the scanner is stopped on a voice channel transmission. The bank text display is replaced with a sub-bank status display, T IDbk 01234. The ﬂ ashing cursor indicates the current active sub-bank.

3. Press FUNC and the number of the sub-bank you wish to turn on or off (0-4). For example, to toggle sub-bank 4 on or off, press FUNC, then 4.

open and closed mode operation

You can set your scanner to change the way it receives transmissions on Motorola, APCO-25 and EDACS trunked radio systems. These settings, called Open Mode and Closed Mode, control whether the scanner monitors all trafﬁ c from a trunked radio system, or only trafﬁ c from talkgroups you specify. Unlike the channel mode settings described above, Open/Close mode settings apply to a trunking system programmed into a single bank.

In Open Mode, you hear all active talkgroups except those you speciﬁ cally exclude, making it easy to hear everything going on. In Closed Mode, you hear only those talkgroups you specify. This makes it easy to listen only to talkgroups you are interested in and exclude others.

Each scanner bank can be programmed with one trunked system. You can set each of the scanner’s channel storage banks to Open or Closed Mode.

Conventional modes (AM, FM/Digital, CT and DC) are not affected by the Open/Closed Mode setting of a bank.

When you set a channel storage bank to Open Mode, +

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appears under the bank’s number while scanning. When you set a channel storage bank to Closed Mode, - appears under the channel storage bank’s number while scanning.

Tra fﬁ c on locked out talkgroup IDs is ignored when the scanner is operating in Open and Closed Modes.

In Open Mode, the scanner will stop on all talkgroup trafﬁ c, except for trafﬁ c on talkgroups that are entered in the ID list and locked out. In Closed Mode, the scanner will only stop on talkgroup trafﬁ c if the ID is entered in the ID list and not locked out. Open Mode scanning is useful in cases where you wish to monitor all trafﬁ c on the trunked system, except for certain talkgroups which you specify by entering them into the ID list and locking them out. Open Mode scanning allows you to search the trunking system for new or previously unknown talkgroup activity while ignoring trafﬁ c on undesired talkgroups.

Closed Mode scanning is useful when you want to restrict monitoring to only the talkgroups you speciﬁ ed in the ID list.

toggling open and closed modes

To toggle Open or Closed Mode state for a bank, press FUNC, 5 while stopped on a channel in the bank in SCAN, MAN or

PGM modes. The scanner will brieﬂ y display Bank OPEN or Bank CLOSED to indicate the new Open or Closed state for the

bank.

manual ID lockout toggle

1. Press PROG.

2. Press TRUNK.

3. Press FUNC, and then

4. Press

5. Press L/OUT to toggle the lock out status of the selected ID.

e or d to select the ID memory.

e or d to move to the desired bank.

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activate ID lockout while scanning

When scanning a trunked radio system in Open Mode, you can lock out a trunked ID by pressing L/OUT while the scanner is stopped on a voice call. If the ID has not been previously entered into the ID list for that bank, it will be added and locked out automatically. When scanning a trunked radio system in Closed Mode, it is possible to lock out an ID by pressing L/OUT while the ID is active with a voice call.

reviewing locked-out talkgroup IDs

You can easily review and clear locked talkgroup IDs in the ID list. This process is similar to ﬁ nding and clearing locked out conventional channels, except it is performed while in a trunked ID list.

1. Press PROG and then TRUNK.

2. Press FUNC, and then L/OUT. The ﬁ rst locked out ID in the ID list is displayed.

3. Press L/OUT to unlock the selected ID, or press FUNC, and then L/OUT again to continue reviewing locked IDs.

changing from ID text tag display to ID code display

By default, your scanner displays the stored alphanumeric text tag when receiving a trunked voice call. You can toggle the display to show the text tag or the talkgroup ID code by pressing TEXT while the scanner is stopped on a trunked talkgroup call.

trunked delay function

The trunking ID delay is set separately from the channel delay on a per channel storage bank basis. Trunking ID delay speciﬁ es the amount of time the scanner dwells on the control channel looking for reply trafﬁ c on the previous

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talkgroup before resuming scan operation. Customizing the trunked ID delay may be useful if you are missing a lot of reply trafﬁ c on a particular system. We recommend starting with the default value of 2.0 seconds.

1. While in the desired ID list, press FUNC, and then ./DELAY.

2. Press or 4.0 seconds.

3. Press ENT.

• Most Motorola trunking systems include a “hang time”

where the channel remains assigned to a talkgroup for a short period after the user unkeys the microphone. This hang time is typically 1.5 seconds but can vary among different systems. The scanner’s trunked delay function begins after this hang time expires. Therefore, the total amount of delay present after a user unkeys the microphone equals the trunking system hang time, plus any trunked ID delay programmed into the scanner. For example, if you wish to wait a total of two seconds for a reply trunked call, and the system you are monitoring is using 1.5 seconds of hang time, you should set the trunked delay for that system to 0.5 seconds. EDACS systems do not employ hang time.

• Conventional channel delay is ﬁ xed at 2 seconds and is

controlled independently of trunked ID delay. Refer to “Using Delay” on Page 33 for more information.

e or d to select None, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5,

clearing talkgroups IDs

You can clear IDs from the ID list to make room for new IDs.

1. Press PROG and then TRUNK.

2. Press FUNC

3. Press FUNC and then CLEAR to clear the contents of the selected ID.

e or d to select an ID memory.

Beyond the Basics

clearing all talkgroup IDs in one bank

You can clear all talkgroup IDs within a bank. This lets you quickly delete all talkgroup IDs from a bank if you want to use the bank to store different data (such as a new set of talkgroup IDs).

1. Press PROG.

2. Press TRUNK to enter a talk group ID memory mode.

3. Select a talkgroup ID bank using FUNC,

4. Press FUNC, 6. Conﬁ rm list clear? 1=YES Press other key for NO. appears on the display.

5. Press 1 to clear all talkgroup IDs within a bank. List cleared appears in the scanner’s display.

To cancel the delete operation, press any key except 1. The scanner returns to the talkgroup ID memory mode.

e or d.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

programming trunked systems

If you are just getting started with trunked system monitoring or have any questions about how your PRO-2096 scanner operates when tracking trunked radio systems. For best results, program only one trunking system in each channel storage bank of your scanner. Your scanner will lock on to the ﬁ rst active control channel it ﬁ nds in a channel storage bank and follow the activity from that trunking system.

Motorola analog, digital, and APCO-25 systems

1. Press PROG and FUNC then e or d to select the desired channel storage bank to program.

2. Press TRUNK to access the ID list and set the correct trunking bank type. If the bank has never been programmed with a trunking system, the scanner will display Not trunked! Press mode.

3. Press MODE until Motorola appears in the display. This sets the channel storage bank for Motorola operation.

4. Press PROG to return to the channel storage bank.

5. Select a channel to begin programming trunking system frequencies. Use direct channel entry or the

6. Enter the trunking frequency and press ENT. If necessary, press MODE to change the receiving mode to MO (Motorola).

7. Repeat Steps 5 and 6 to enter the other trunking system control channel frequencies for the system you wish to monitor.

Notes

You can also press FUNC, TRUNK to access the ID list from manual mode.

When monitoring Motorola trunked radio systems, it is only necessary to program the trunking control channel.

e or d.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

For APCO-25 trunking systems using the 9600 bps control channel, program the system using the steps outlined above for Motorola systems. Your scanner will automatically detect the proper control channel type.

Some systems rotate the control channel on a daily basis. For best results, program all known control channel frequencies into the trunking channel storage bank.

To program Motorola UHF trunking systems, see “Programming Motorola VHF and UHF Trunking Systems”.

To program Motorola 800 MHz “splinter” systems, see “Programming Motorola 800 MHz Splinter Systems”.

To program Motorola Type I/IIi ﬂ eet maps, see “Fleet Maps”.

EDACS systems

You must program all EDACS system channels into your scanner in Logical Channel Number (LCN) order, beginning with LCN 1 in channel 01 of the channel storage bank. Do not program EDACS system channels in channel 00 of a channel storage bank. Refer to frequency publications or Internet sites to obtain correct LCN frequencies for the EDACS systems you wish to monitor. If the EDACS system you are programming skips channels in the LCN order, leave those channels blank in your scanner.

1. Press PROG and FUNC, and then

e or d to select the desired

channel storage bank to program.

2. Press TRUNK to access the ID list and set the correct trunking bank type. If the bank has never been programmed with a trunking system, Not trunked! Press mode appears.

3. Press MODE until EDACS appears. This sets the channel storage bank for EDACS operation.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

4. Press PROG to return to the channel storage bank.

5. Select a channel to begin programming trunking system frequencies. Use direct channel entry or the

e or d keys.

6. Enter the trunking frequency and press ENT. If necessary, press MODE to change the receiving mode to ED.

7. Repeat Steps 5 and 6 to enter the other EDACS trunking system channels for the system you wish to monitor.

Motorola VHF and UHF systems

To monitor Motorola VHF and UHF systems, you must program the scanner with three additional parameters — the base frequency, step and offset.

1. Press PROG, and then TRUNK to enter the ID program mode.

2. Press FUNC and press (or hold)

e or d to select the bank.

3. Press MODE until Motorola appears in the display.

4. Press FUNC, then 2. The following appears:

Base freq:

406.0000 Offset: 380 Step:25.0KHz

5. While B in Base blinks, if necessary, enter the desired base frequency and press ENT.

6. While O in Offset blinks, if necessary, enter the offset number and press ENT.

7. While S in Step blinks, repeatedly press

e or d to select

the step number, 5, 6.25, 7.5, 12.5, 15, 25.0, or 50.0kHz, and then press ENT.

Notes

Base frequency, step and offset vary for each individual UHF trunking system. You can get information about these frequencies for the trunking system you want to scan using the Internet or locally published guidebooks.

• Systems with multiple channel ranges can be programmed

Beyond the Basics

Note

using PC application software.

Motorola 800MHz splinter systems

Certain 800 MHz Motorola trunked radio systems operate using splinter channels that are in between the channels in the normal 800 MHz band plan. These systems are known as “splinter systems”. Your scanner features an offset mode to allow reception of these systems.

Note

If the radio appears to be trunking to the wrong frequencies when monitoring an 800 MHz system, you should try to conﬁ gure the system for splinter operation.

Splinter systems exist only in the 800 MHz band, and only use the 3600 bps control channel type. Setting splinter conﬁ guration on VHF, UHF, 900 MHz and 800 MHz APCO-25 systems will have no effect.

1. Press PROG, TRUNK to enter ID program mode.

2. If necessary, press FUNC, and then

e or d to select the

desired bank.

3. If necessary, press MODE to select Motorola trunking mode.

4. Press FUNC, 3 to edit 3600 CC Mode.

5. Press

e or d to select Normal, Splinter, Table, or Multi

Table, and then press ENT.

ﬂ eet maps

You must set the ﬂ eet map if you want to receive a Motorola Type I system. Fleet maps are included along with other information about Motorola Type I systems at www.trunkscanner.com. The default setting of the bank is for Motorola Type II.

1. Press PROG, TRUNK.

2. Press FUNC, and then

e or d to select the desired bank.

3. Press FUNC, 8. Block 0 size code. Use 15 for type II. S-00 appears.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

4. Enter the size code supplied with the Type I system information, referring to the prompts that appear in your display. If the information for your Type I system is not available, try the ﬂ eet maps in the following tables.

Notes

If you set to receive Type I and later wish to restore Type II, enter 15 at Step 4.

5. To conﬁ rm your input, repeat Steps 1-4 and press ENT. Each time you press ENT, you conﬁ rm the size code. If you ﬁ nd an error, press CLEAR and start over.

Block Size Code

12345678

0 S11 S4 S4 S12 S4 S3 S10 S1

1 S11 S4 S4 — S4 S10 S10 S1

2 S11 S4 S4 S4 S12 S4 S11 S2

3 S11 S4 S4 S4 — S4 S4 S2

4 S11 S4 S4 S4 S4 S12 S4 S3

5 S11 S4 S4 S4 S4 — S4 S3

6 S11 S4 S12 S4 S4 S12 S4 S4

7 S11 S4 — S4 S4 — S4 S4

Block Size Code

9 10111213141516 0 S4S0S4S0S3S4S4S3 1 S4S0S0S0S3S3S4S10 2 S0S0S0S0S11S10S4S10 3 S0S0S0S0S4S4S11S11 4 S0S0S0S0S4S4S11S0 5 S0S0S0S0S0S4S0S0 6 S0S4S0S0S0S12S12S12 7 S0S4S0S4S0— — —

Beyond the Basics

Notes

programming priority channels

With the priority feature, you can scan through programmed channels and still not miss an important or interesting transmission on the priority channel. When priority is turned on, the scanner checks the priority channel every two seconds, and stays on the priority channel if there is activity until the activity on that channel stops.

Notes

The priority feature does not work when the scanner receives a trunking voice channel or during trunking delay time. Trafﬁ c on the priority channel may be missed if it occurs while the scanner is monitoring a trunking voice call.

If you program a weather channel as the priority channel, and you activate priority mode, the scanner stops on the weather (priority) channel only when the scanner detects the 1050 Hz weather alert tone.

programming a stored channel frequency in the priority channel

1. Press MAN.

2. Use the number keys to enter the channel number that contains the frequency you want to program as the priority channel, and then press MAN again.

3. Press FUNC, and then PRI. Pri Channel blinks to indicate the current frequency is stored in priority channel memory.

programming the priority channel directly

1. Press PROG.

2. Press PRI.

3. Enter the frequency to store as the priority channel, then press ENT.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

4. If desired, set the priority channel mode. You can set a priority channel for CTCSS or DCS operation with a programmed code.

programming a weather channel as the priority channel

1. Press WX.

2. Press WX repeatedly until the desired weather channel you want to store as the priority channel appears.

3. Press FUNC, and then PRI. Pri Channel ﬂ ashes two times.

turning priority on or off

Press PRI while scanning or manually parked on a channel. PRIon (or PRIwx if priority is set to a weather frequency) appears on the bottom of the display, and P appears on the top of the display. If the scanner detects activity on the priority channel, Pri Channel appears. If the scanner detects the 1050 Hz weather alert tone in Priority WX mode, Weather ALERT appears and an alert tone sounds. Press WX to listen to the weather alert message. To turn off priority, press PRI.

Notes

This scanner cannot set a channel as the priority channel if the channel’s receive mode is MO or ED.

In the event of a weather or other hazard warning, a 1050 Hz tone is transmitted prior to the message. The scanner sounds an audible alert and switches to the weather frequency if the alert tone is detected.

Since this scanner does not priority sample the weather channel while monitoring trunked talkgroup calls, it is possible that the 1050 Hz alert tone may be missed between sample intervals when trunked systems are being scanned. We recommend the use of a dedicated

RadioShack Weatheradio

during times when severe

weather notiﬁ cation is critical for your safety.

Beyond the Basics

programming CTCSS/DCS channels

Your scanner features an advanced, DSP based CTCSS and DCS decoder. CTCSS and DCS allow you to program frequencies into your scanner that are used by more than one group in your area and listen only to the group that is of interest to you by specifying the group’s speciﬁ c CTCSS or DCS code. CTCSS and DCS can also help reduce interfering signals that cause your scanner to stop on one channel.

There are two ways you can program your scanner to operate with CTCSS and DCS. If you know the CTCSS or DCS code that is used on a particular frequency, you can manually enter the code when you are programming the scanner, or any time afterwards. You can also set a special search code that instantly decodes the CTCSS or DCS code on a received transmission. Channels programmed with the search code will receive all trafﬁ c on the channel, and will instantly decode and display any CTCSS or DCS code that is found with the transmission. You can then store the code in channel memory. For more information on using CTCSS and DCS while scanning, see “Using CTCSS and DCS”.

1. Enter a conventional frequency.

2. Press MODE until the desired mode (CT for CTCSS, and DC for DCS) appears on the display.

3. By default, the search code is programmed. To program a speciﬁ c code, press FUNC, MODE, and then use the arrow keys to scroll to the desired CTCSS or DCS code. You can also use the keypad to enter the code manually.

4. Once the desired code is selected, press ENT to store it in channel memory.

5. You can program memory channels for CTCSS or DCS operation at any time. Simply place the scanner in program mode, navigate to the channel you wish to

Notes

Beyond the Basics

change, and follow the steps above.

6. When stopped on an active conventional channel while scanning, you can press MODE to cycle through the valid modes for that channel. This resets any stored CT or DC code to the search code, allowing you to easily check for other CT or DC codes that may be present on the frequency.

Notes

CTCSS, DCS, and digital voice all operate independently of each other. If a channel is conﬁ gured for CTCSS or DCS, it will not be able to decode digital transmissions. Use FM mode when mixed analog and digital voice reception is desired.

CTCSS Code Table

67.0 Hz 94.8 Hz 131.8 Hz 171.3 Hz 203.5 Hz

69.3 Hz 97.4 Hz 136.5 Hz 173.8 Hz 206.5 Hz

71.9 Hz 100.0 Hz 141.3 Hz 177.3 Hz 210.7 Hz

74.4 Hz 103.5 Hz 146.2 Hz 179.9 Hz 218.1 Hz

77.0 Hz 107.2 Hz 151.4 Hz 183.5 Hz 225.7 Hz

79.7 Hz 110.9 Hz 156.7 Hz 186.2 Hz 229.1 Hz

82.5 Hz 114.8 Hz 159.8 Hz 189.9 Hz 233.6 Hz

85.4 Hz 118.8 Hz 162.2 Hz 192.8 Hz 241.8 Hz

88.5 Hz 123.0 Hz 165.5 Hz 196.6 Hz 250.3 Hz

91.5 Hz 127.3 Hz 167.9 Hz 199.5 Hz 254.1 Hz

DCS Code Table

6 50 125 174 255 343 445 526 703

7 51 131 205 261 346 446 532 712

15 53 132 212 263 351 452 546 723

17 54 134 214 265 356 454 565 731

21 65 141 223 266 364 455 606 732

23 71 143 225 271 365 462 612 734

25 72 145 226 274 371 464 624 743

Beyond the Basics

26 73 152 243 306 411 465 627 754

31 74 155 244 311 412 466 631

32 114 156 245 315 413 503 632

36 115 162 246 325 423 506 654

43 116 165 251 331 431 516 662

47 122 172 252 332 432 523 664

storing talkgroup IDs

Each talkgroup on a trunked radio system is identiﬁ ed by a talkgroup ID. You can store talkgroup IDs automatically while scanning the trunked system in Open mode, or manually by entering the IDs directly.

To automatically store a talkgroup ID, press TRUNK when the scanner stops on a voice channel transmission or when a talkgroup ID is indicated in the manual mode. The ID of the active talkgroup is automatically stored in the next available ID memory location. Your scanner’s display indicates where the ID was stored as ID save X-YY, and then changes to ID#ZZZZZ, where X is the sub-bank number, YY is the ID number within the sub-bank, and ZZZZZ is the stored talkgroup ID code. If the ID has already been stored when you press TRUNK, ID was saved appears on the scanner’s display.

To manually store talkgroup IDs or to edit a stored ID:

1. Navigate to a channel in the desired trunking bank using

e or d.

MAN,

2. Press PROG.

3. Press TRUNK.

4. Select the ID memory you wish to edit using MAN,

5. Enter the talkgroup ID number and press ENT. If necessary, use the decimal point for a hyphen. If you make a mistake, Invalid ID. appears and the scanner beeps when you press ENT. Start over again.

e or d.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

Use the following keystrokes to navigate through the ID lists:

• Press PROG, TRUNK to enter the ID list for the current channel

storage bank.

• Press and release

e or d to scroll through one at a time.

• Press and hold e or d to rapidly scroll through ID memories.

• Press TRUNK to advance to the next ID sub-bank.

• Press FUNC

e or d to advance to the next or previous ID list.

6. If you want to tag the ID, press TEXT.

7. Enter the desired text tag for the ID.

8. Press ENT. (See “Text Input Chart”).

9. To store the next ID memory in sequence, press

e and

repeat Step 5.

10. Press SCAN to start scanning.

When automatically storing trunked IDs in the ID list by pressing TRUNK during a trunked transmission, the scanner automatically stores the active ID in the next available open ID storage location in the ID list. We suggest leaving ID subbank 0 empty when ﬁ rst setting up an ID list. This provides a location for new auto-store IDs to be placed and organized.

Notes

You can enter either decimal or AFS code for ED (EDACS) ID. The default setting is decimal ID entry. To toggle between AFS or decimal EDACS ID display, press FUNC,

2. AFS format appears on the display for about two seconds. Now you can enter EDACS ID codes in AFS format.

If you entered an ID code that is already stored in another ID channel, Dupl ID appears. If you want to store the ID code anyway, press ENT. To cancel the operation, press CLEAR.

When you try to store more than 150 talkgroup IDs in a bank, Memory full! appears on the display.

Beyond the Basics

text tags

assigning a text tag to a channel

1. Navigate to the channel you want to label using direct channel entry, e,

2. Press PROG. M in the display changes to P to indicate program mode.

3. Press TEXT. A cursor appears.

4. Enter the text using the number keys (see “Text Input Chart” on Page 69). If you make a mistake, press move to the character you want to change, press CLEAR to backspace and delete unwanted characters, or hold down CLEAR to abort the text entry. For example, to identify a channel as FIRE Ch 6 (for Fire Channel 6):

F is the third letter (of DEF) associated with 3 on the keypad. Press 3, 3. I is the third letter (GHI) associated with 4 on the keypad. Press 4, 3. R is the third letter (PQRS) associated with 7 on the keypad. Press 7, 3. E is the second letter (DEF) associated with 3 on the keypad. Press 3, 2. Press ./DELAY for the space. C is the third letter (ABC) associated with 2 on the keypad. Press 2, 3. h is the second letter (GHI) associated with 4 on the keypad. Press 4, and then FUNC (for the lower case set), and then press 2. Press ./DELAY for the space.

or FUNC e or d.

e or d to

Beyond the Basics

6 is the sixth number associated with 1 on the keypad. Press 1, 6.

5. Press ENT to store the text with the channel.

assigning a text tag to a group ID

1. Press PROG.

2. Press TRUNK.

3. Press FUNC then

4. Press TRUNK to select the desired sub-bank.

5. Press or hold down

6. Press TEXT, then enter text using the number keys (see “Text Input Chart” on Page 69). Use your entry, or hold down CLEAR to delete the text entry.

7. Press ENT to store the text with the ID.

e or d to select the desired bank.

e or d to select the desired group ID.

e, d or CLEAR to edit

assigning a text tag to a channel-storage bank

1. Select a channel in the desired channel storage bank by pressing MAN and entering the channel storage bank number (000 for bank 0 or 200 for bank 2). Press MAN again.

2. Press PROG.

3. Press FUNC, 7. A cursor appears on your display.

4. Enter the text using the keypad. (See “Text Input Chart”).

e, d or CLEAR to edit your entry, or hold down CLEAR to

Use delete the text entry.

5. Press ENT to store the text with the bank.

Beyond the Basics

Notes

text input chart

Press Character Press Character

1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0

2 A B C 2 FUNC a b c

3 D E F 3 FUNC d e f

4 G H I 4 FUNC g h i

5 J K L 5 FUNC j k l

6 M N O 6 FUNC m n o

7 P Q R S 7 FUNC p q r s

8 T U V 8 FUNC t u v

9 W X Y Z 9 FUNC w x y z

0 . - # _ @ + * & / , 0 FUNC $ % ! ^ ( ) ? -> ‘ <-

./DELAY Space CLEAR Backspace

Notes

To enter a number, press 1. Then, press the desired number.

To enter a lowercase character or a character from the second set for the key 0, press FUNC after pressing the ﬁ rst number key.

using channel receive modes

You can program each channel with any one of six receive modes (AM, FM/Digital, CTCSS, DCS, Motorola, or EDACS).

Notes

Trunked modes (ED and MOT) can only be selected for frequencies above 137 MHz.

Closed Mode lets you hear transmissions from only those trunking talkgroups you specify. For more information, see “Open and Closed Mode Operation”.

updating the DSP ﬁ rmware

From time to time, improvements may be incorporated into the DSP ﬁ rmware. These improvements are typically designed to address issues that may be present with decoding the digital audio signals, and audio quality

Beyond the Basics

improvements. With updateable DSP ﬁ rmware, you can ensure that your scanner is using the most recent DSP version available. You can update the ﬁ rmware for the DSP module by downloading a ﬁ le from the Internet and transferring it to the scanner. To update your scanner’s DSP ﬁ rmware, you need:

• The supplied PC to scanner interface cable

• A personal computer running Windows 95 or greater

• A ﬁ rmware update ﬁ le from www.radioshack.com

1. Go to http://www.radioshack.com

2. Click on the Product Manuals tab.

3. Select Software Downloads from the drop down menu.

4. Click on Software Updates and Downloads.

5. Click on PRO-2096 XXX.exe. Full download and upgrade instructions are provided on the Firmware Upgrade page.

6. To check the DSP version number, turn on the scanner and press 3 while Welcome to Digital Trunking appears on the display. The version information appears.

troubleshooting

If you have problems with your scanner, please refer to the following for some suggestions that might help you eliminate the problem. If the scanner is still not operating correctly after trying these tips, take your scanner to your local RadioShack store for assistance.

Scanner is totally inoperative:

• Make sure the scanner is plugged into a working AC or DC outlet.

• Be sure the adapter’s barrel plug is fully inserted into the DC 13.8V jack.

Beyond the Basics

Scanner will not scan when SCAN is pressed:

• Ensure that the scanner has more than one channel programmed and enabled for scanning.

• Adjust SQ properly.

• If the scanner is stopped on a frequency, tighten squelch, apply attenuator, or lock out the “birdie” frequency.

• The scanner may need to be reset or initialized. See “Resetting/Initializing the Scanner”.

Scanner does not receive digital transmissions on digital frequencies or trunking systems:

• The digital channel or talkgroup is not using APCO-25 digital modulation. The scanner can only receive APCO-25 C4FM IMBE digital signals.

• The digital channel or talkgroup is encrypted. The scanner will not receive encrypted trafﬁ c.

• The digital channel or talkgroup is being transmitted from a distant location. Reposition the scanner or use an outdoor antenna to improve reception.

resetting/initializing your scanner

If the scanner’s display locks up or does not work properly after you connect a power source, you might need to reset or initialize it. If you have problems with the scanner, ﬁ rst try resetting it, which will retain items stored in memory. If that does not work, initialize the scanner. You may be able to save the information in your scanner’s memory to your computer, a V-Scanner folder, or another scanner before initializing it. See “Cloning Programmed Data” on Page 45 and “Using VScanner”.

resetting your scanner

1. Turn off your scanner, and then turn it on again.

Beyond the Basics

2. Insert a pointed object into the reset hole on the back of the scanner. Then, gently press and release the reset button. Pressing reset does not clear the scanner’s working memory or the V-Scanner folders.

initializing your scanner

Initializing your scanner clears all information stored in your scanner’s working memory. Initialize your scanner only when you are sure it is not working properly. V-Scanner memory is not affected when you initialize the scanner.

1. Turn off the scanner, and turn it on again. First, the DSP boot version, and then Welcome To Digital Trunking appears.

2. Press 0. The following messages appear on the display:

System Tests Select Test Exits if no Key Press

3. Press 1. The following messages appear on the display:

Factory Init Erase Memory ENTER if Yes CL to EXIT

4. Press ENT. The following messages appear on the display:

Initializing Clr Main Mem V-Scan is OK Please Wait

5. Do not turn off your scanner until the initialization is complete. When the initialization is complete, M000 and Bank 0 Ch 00 appear on the display.

Beyond the Basics

care

Keep the scanner dry; if it gets wet, wipe it dry immediately. Use and store the scanner only in normal temperature environments. Handle the scanner carefully; do not drop it. Keep the scanner away from dust and dirt, and wipe it with a damp cloth occasionally to keep it looking new.

replacing the fuse

First, turn off the scanner and your vehicle’s ignition. Make sure you replace the fuse only with another fuse of the same type and rating (2-amp, fast-acting glass fuse).

service and repair

If your scanner is not performing as it should, take it to your local RadioShack store for assistance. To locate your nearest RadioShack, use the store locator feature on RadioShack’s website (www.radioshack.com), or call 1-800-The Shack (800-843-7422) and follow the menu options. Modifying or tampering with the scanner’s internal components can cause a malfunction and might invalidate its warranty and void your FCC authorization to operate it.

Beyond the Basics

speciﬁ cations

Frequency Coverage

Frequency Range (MHz) ................ Programming/Search Step Value

25–54 ............................................................................................5 kHz

108–136.9875 ......................................................................... 12.5 kHz

137–174 ....................................................................5, 6.25 or 7.5 kHz

216.0025–221.9975 ..................................................................... 5 kHz

222.0000 –225.0000 .................................................................... 5 kHz

406–512 .................................................................................. 6.25 kHz

806–823.9875 ......................................................................... 6.25 kHz

849–868.9875 .......................................................................... 6.25 kHz

894–960 ................................................................................... 6.25 kHz

1240–1300 ............................................................................... 6.25 kHz

Memory Organization

V-Scanners ................................. eleven 500 channel virtual scanners

Memory channels .......................................................................... 500

Channel storage banks .....................................................................10

Number of channels per channel storage bank ..............................50

Talkgroup ID memories ................................................................1500

ID memory banks .............................................................................10

Sub-banks per bank ...........................................................................5

Number of memory IDs per sub-bank ............................................30

Sensitivity (20 dB S/N)

FM:

25–54 MHz ................................................................................. 0.3 µV

108–136.9875 MHz ....................................................................0.3 µV

Beyond the Basics

137–174 MHz ............................................................................. 0.5 µV

216–225 MHz ............................................................................. 0.5 µV

406–512 MHz ............................................................................ 0.5 µV

806–960 MHz ............................................................................ 0.7 µV

1240–1300 MHz ........................................................................ 0.7 µV

AM:

25–54 MHz ....................................................................................1 µV

108–136.9875 MHz .......................................................................1 µV

137–174 MHz ............................................................................ 1.5 µV

216–225 MHz ............................................................................ 1.5 µV

406–512 MHz ................................................................................2 µV

806–960 MHz ................................................................................2 µV

1240–1300 MHz ............................................................................3 µV

Selectivity

25 – 27.995 MHz in AM mode

–6 dB .........................................................................................±5 kHz

–50 dB .......................................................................................±6 kHz

All frequencies at AM and FM mode except 25 – 27.995 MHz at AM

–6 dB .........................................................................................±8 kHz

–50 dB .....................................................................................±14 kHz

IF Rejection

380.8 MHz at 174 MHz ................................................................60 dB

21.4 MHz at 174 MHz ................................................................ 100 dB

Spurious Rejection

at 174 MHz FM ............................................................................ 40 dB

Scanning Speed and Delay

Scanning Rate ..................................... Up to 60 channels per second

Beyond the Basics

Search Rate ............................................... Up to 75 steps per second

Conventional Channel Delay Time ..................................... 2 seconds

Priority Sampling ................................................................. 2 seconds

Trunking Talkgroup Delay Time ............................. User conﬁ gurable

Intermediate Frequencies (IF)

1st ............................................................ 380.7275 to 380.86875 MHz

2nd ........................................................................................ 21.4 MHz

3rd ............................................................................................ 455 kHz

Squelch Sensitivity

Threshold (FM and AM) ............................................................ 0.5 µV

Tight (FM) ...................................................................................25 dB

Tight (AM) ................................................................................... 20 dB

Antenna Impedance ..............................................................50 Ohms

Audio Output Power (10% THD) ...............................................1.5 W

Built-in Speaker .............................................................3 in. (77 mm)

8-ohm dynamic type

Power Requirement ................................................................... 13.8 V

Current Drain ...........................................................................600 mA

Physical Dimensions (HWD) ........................... 2

Weight (without cabinet and accessories) ................ 27.7 oz. (790 g)

Operating Temperature ................................–4 to 140°F (–20 to 60°C)

Speciﬁ cations are typical: individual units might vary. Speciﬁ cations are subject to change and improvement without notice.

/4 x 71/4 x 55/16 inches

(55 x 185 x 135 mm)

Beyond the Basics

The FCC wants you to know

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a scanning receiver, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.

However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the

receiver is connected.

scanning legally

Your scanner covers frequencies used by many different groups including

police and ﬁ re departments, ambulance services, government agencies, private companies, amateur radio services, military operations, pager services, and wireline (telephone and telegraph) service providers. It is legal to listen to almost every transmission your scanner can receive. However, there are some transmissions you should never intentionally listen to. These include:

• Telephone conversations (cellular, cordless, or other private means of telephone

signal transmission)

• Pager transmissions

• Any scrambled or encrypted transmissions

According to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), you are subject to ﬁ nes and possible imprisonment for intentionally listening to, using, or divulging the contents of such a transmission unless you have the consent of a party to the communication (unless such activity is otherwise illegal).

This scanner has been designed to prevent reception of illegal transmissions. This is done to comply with the legal requirement that scanners be manufactured so as to not be easily modiﬁ able to pick up those transmissions. Do not open your scanner’s case to make any modiﬁ cations that could allow it to pick up transmissions that are illegal to monitor. Doing so could subject you to legal penalties.

In some areas, mobile use of this scanner is unlawful or requires a permit. Check the laws in your area. It is also illegal in many areas to interfere with the duties of public safety ofﬁ cials by traveling to the scene of an incident without authorization.

We encourage responsible, safe and legal scanner use.

Beyond the Basics

glossary

Channels – programmable memory locations for frequencies you

want to monitor. Each time the scanner ﬁ nds an active frequency, it stops and monitors radio trafﬁ c on that channel until the transmission ends. It then resumes scanning.

Channel-Storage Bank – storage area for a group of channels.

Channels are storage locations for frequencies. You can scan the channel-storage banks to see if there is activity on frequencies stored there. Whereas a channel can only contain one frequency, a channel storage bank can hold up to 50 channels. To make it easier to identify and select the channels you want to listen to, your scanner divides the channels into 10 banks (0 to 9) of 50 (00 to 49) channels each, for a total of 500 channels. You can use each channel-storage bank to group frequencies, such as those used by different public safety agencies and jurisdictions in your area. Channel storage banks can easily be enabled or disabled while scanning by pressing the number key that corresponds to the desired channel storage bank.

Digital Operation – Your scanner is equipped with advanced

Digital Signal Processing circuitry to receive and decode Phase 1 APCO-25 C4FM (four level FM) digital voice transmissions. This section of the manual will help you understand the differences between traditional analog and digital modulation. For ease of use, your scanner is designed to automatically detect digital modulation on any conventional channel programmed for FM/Digital (FM) modulation. It is not necessary to conﬁ gure individual channels for digital operation. Many digital trunked radio systems are actually mixed mode systems that support both analog and digital modulation. Certain user groups on these systems may use analog modulation, while others use digital modulation. Your scanner will automatically detect the type of modulation being used and switch to the correct modulation mode without special programming or user intervention. Your scanner also features Intelligent Adaptive Digital Tracking for optimal reception of digital signals from a variety of digital conventional and trunked radio system types. No special sound quality settings or adjustments are needed for different C4FM sytem types. Digital modulation represents a breakthrough in

Beyond the Basics

public safety communications technology. Digital modulation typically provides a clear distortion free audio signal throughout the service area of the system you are monitoring. However, there are some important differences between analog and digital voice preformance that you should be aware of while scanning. In most cases, digital voice transmissions will be surprisingly crisp and clear, and without noise or distoriton, even when corresponding analog siganls from the same system contain some static. However, if you are in a location with marginal reception, you may ﬁ nd that the voice quality of digital signals deteriorates very rapidly, resulting in missing syllables or entire words. If this happens, try reorienting the scanner or antenna for better reception. You may also try pressing the ATT key and apply attenuation to reduce the overload effects of nearby strong transmitters. Under certain very weak digital signal conditions, the scanner may lose synchronization with the digital signal and brieﬂ y revert to analog FM, resulting in the reception of the raw, undecoded digital signal. This is a normal indication of a digitral signal that is too weak to decode.

Frequency – the receiving signal location (expressed in MHz). To

ﬁ nd active frequencies, you can use frequency guides available from your local RadioShack store, frequency listings posted on the Internet, or the built-in search function.

Search Banks – contain preprogrammed frequencies in the

scanner’s memory. Your scanner has six preprogrammed search banks conﬁ gured to search various radio services, and one limit search bank that you can conﬁ gure. You can set the lower and higher frequency limit in the limit search bank. For example, if you wanted to ﬁ nd active frequencies between a range of 150.1000 and 150.5000, you would put both of those frequencies in the limit search bank. You can even change the frequency range in a search bank (SR6) to customize your search parameters.

Talkgroup IDs – Each channel storage bank has an associated

talkgroup ID list, for a total of 10 talkgroup ID lists. Each ID list has ﬁ ve sub-banks. Each sub-bank has 30 ID locations. You can program up to 150 talkgroup IDs in each bank, so you can program up to 1500 talkgroup IDs in ten banks. When the scanner stops on a transmission in Motorola or EDACS mode, it checks

Beyond the Basics

to see if the ID is stored in the associated ID list. In Closed Mode, the scanner only stops on the transmission and displays it’s text tag if the ID is stored and not locked out. In Open Mode, the scanner stops on all transmissions except those you speciﬁ cally lock out, and the ID’s text tag appears if the ID is stored.

V-Scanner – contains a complete, stored conﬁ guration proﬁ le

of your scanner’s programming. V-scanner lets you store or recall up to 11 scanner conﬁ gurations in folders on your scanner, without using a personal computer. You can use VScanner to build and store conﬁ gurations for different areas or different scanner applications. You can use the cloning feature to exchange scanner conﬁ gurations with your friends without losing your existing data. V-Scanner also lets you back up your programmed data without connecting your scanner to a personal computer. Each V-Scanner folder stores all channel storage banks, channels, trunking IDs, search settings, and other parameters associated with scanner operation.

AM Mode (AM) – sets the scanner to receive amplitude modulation

(AM) transmissions. AM is primarily used for aircraft, military, 27 MHz citizen’s band, some amateur radio, and some government transmissions.

FM/Digital Mode (FM) – sets the scanner to receive

FM/Digital (FM) transmissions using frequency modulation (FM) and APCO-25 digital modulation. FM is used for most public safety transmissions, as well as broadcast, business, and amateur radio transmissions.

CTCSS Mode (CT) – sets the scanner to receive transmissions

using frequency modulation (FM) with Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System (CTCSS) subaudible tone codes. CTCSS allows multiple users to share a single radio frequency without hearing each other’s transmissions.

DCS Mode (DC) – sets the scanner to receive transmissions using

frequency modulation (FM) with Digital Coded Squelch (DCS) subaudible data signaling.

Motorola/APCO-25 Trunking Mode (MO) – You can set your

scanner so it decodes talkgroup IDs used with Motorola and APCO-25 trunking systems, and follows talkgroup calls in the trunking system. This setting is called Motorola mode.

Beyond the Basics

EDACS Trunking Mode (ED) – You can set your scanner so it

decodes talkgroup IDs used with EDACS (GE/Ericsson/M/ACOM) trunking systems. This setting is called the EDACS mode. EDACS systems are used primarily by business or private communications service providers, as well as by some public safety organizations.

Beyond the Basics

This product is warranted by RadioShack against manufacturing defects in material and workmanship under normal use for one (1) year from the date of purchase from RadioShack company-owned stores and authorized RadioShack franchisees and dealers. For complete warranty details and exclusions, check with your local RadioShack store.

RadioShack Customer Relations

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Radio Shack PRO-2096 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual