Radio Shack PRO-96 User Manual

www.radioshack.com

PRO-96 Digital

Trunking Scanner

OWNER’S MANUAL — Please read before using this equipment.

Thank you for purchasing the RadioShack PRO-96 Digital Handheld Scanner. This product is the first of an innovative and exciting new generation of RadioShack scanning receivers capable of receiving Phase 1 APCO-25 C4FM/IMBE digital voice modulation from the newest and most sophisticated conventional and trunked radio networks.

Catalog # 20-526

Your Radio Shack Digital Handheld Scanner is ready to receive digital conventional and trunked radio transmissions. No additional hardware or add-on cards are needed.

IMPORTANT

If an icon appears at the end of a paragraph, go to the box on that page with the corresponding icon for pertinent information.

— Warning

Ó —Hint Ô —Note

—Important  —Caution

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Features ................................................................................... 4

The FCC Wants You to Know ................................................. 10

Scanning Legally ............................................................... 11

Getting Familiar With Your Scanner ....................................... 12

About the Keypad .............................................................. 14

Understanding Your Scanner’s Memory Organization ...... 16

Channel Storage Banks ..................................................... 17

Channels ........................................................................... 18

Search Banks .................................................................... 18

Understanding Your Scanner’s Channel Receive Modes .. 19

Preparation ............................................................................. 24

Listening Safely ................................................................. 24

Traffic Safety ...................................................................... 25

Power Sources .................................................................. 25

Using Batteries .................................................................. 26

Using AC Power ................................................................ 27

Using Vehicle Battery Power ............................................. 28

Antenna ............................................................................. 28

Programming Your Scanner ................................................... 30

Programming Conventional Channels ............................... 30

Programming Trunked Systems ........................................ 32

Programming Motorola Analog, Digital,

and APCO-25 Trunking Systems ....................................... 33

Programming EDACS Trunking Systems .......................... 34

Programming Motorola VHF and UHF Trunking Systems . 34

Programming Motorola 800 MHz Splinter Systems ........... 36

General Programming Notes ............................................. 45

Operating Your Scanner ......................................................... 48

Initial Preparation ............................................................... 48

Searching and Tuning ....................................................... 52

Searching a Preprogrammed Frequency Range ............... 52

Using Zeromatic ................................................................ 59

Using Seek Search ............................................................ 60

Manually Tuning a Frequency ........................................... 61

Using Frequency Copy ........................................................... 61

Copying a Frequency into a Specified Channel ................. 62

Copying a Frequency into a Vacant Channel in a Specified

Bank .................................................................................. 63

Coping a Frequency into the Priority Channel ................... 63

Special Features ..................................................................... 64

Listening to the Weather Band .......................................... 64

Listening to a Weather Channel ........................................ 64

Using the Delay Function .................................................. 66

Locking Out Channels or Frequencies .............................. 67

Changing the Receive mode ............................................. 69

Using the Attenuator .......................................................... 70

Turning the Key Tone On and Off ...................................... 71

Using the Display Backlight ................................................ 72

Using the Keylock .............................................................. 74

Changing the Display Contrast ......................................... 74

Working with V-Scanners ...................................................81

Cloning the Programmed Data .......................................... 82

Trunking Special Features ..................................................... 83

Trunking Operation ........................................................... 83

Activating ID Lockout While Scanning .............................. 89

Trunked Delay Function .................................................... 90

Clearing Talkgroup IDs ...................................................... 91

Digital Operation.......................................................................92

Updating the DSP Firmware ............................................. 94

A General Guide To Frequencies .......................................... 96

Guide To The Action Bands ................................................... 98

Typical Band Usage (in MHz) ........................................... 98

Primary Usage .................................................................. 99

Band Allocation ................................................................. 99

Frequency Conversion ......................................................... 106

Troubleshooting ................................................................... 106

Troubleshooting Chart .................................................... 107

Resetting / Initializing the Scanner .................................. 108

Care ..................................................................................... 109

Service and Repair .............................................................. 109

Specifications ....................................................................... 110

Command Quick Reference Guide ...................................... 113

RadioShack, RadioShack.com, Hypersearch, Hyperscan, VScanner, and Adaptaplug are trademarks used by RadioShack Corporation.

Motorola, Smartnet, ASTRO and Privacy Plus are registered trademarksof MotorolaInc.

EDACS is a registered trademark of MA-COM Inc.

The IMBE™ 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 within 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

FEATURES

Your Radio S hack Digital Handheld Scanner featur es 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 the different digital systems that you monitor.

APCO-25 digital voice modulation provides public safety radio users with clear digital voice signals and other features not available in traditional analog systems. Your scanner uses advanced Digital Signal Processing (DSP) technology to receive and decode APCO-25 digital signals from both conventional and trunked radio networks. Additionally, your scanner features automatic detection of digital signals. No special scanner programming is required to receiveconventional or trunked digital traffic.

The DSP module in your scanner features updateable firmware. If DSP improvements become available,you can easily download an update file from the Internet and apply the file to your scanner to obtain the latest DSP firmware version.

Your scanner is designed to track Motorola analog andAstro® digital trunking systems using 3600 bps control channel operation, APCO 25 digital trunking systems using 9600 bps control channel

operation, and M/A-C O M EDACS® trunking systems.

The scanner lets you scan conventional transmissions, and is preprogrammed with s ervice search banks for your convenience. By pressing a single button, you can quickly search those frequencies most commonly used by public safety and other agencies.

Your RadioShack Digital Handheld Scanner features RadioShack’s exciting new 11-in-1 V-Scanner technology. V-Scanner stands for Virtual Scanner. VScanner allows you to build and store eleven separate configuration profiles inV-Scanner folder memory. Stored VScanners can be recalled, edited and activated at any time, giving you a powerful tool that allows you to quickly reconfigure your scanner for use in different areas or applications.

This scanner gives you direct access to over 59,000 frequencies including those used by police and fire departments, ambulance services, government agencies, air, and amateur radio services.

Your scanner includes the following features:

500 Channels – 10 channel storage banks with 50 channels each.

V-Scanner Folders – eleven 500 channel virtual scanner folders at your fingertips.

Phase1APCO-25Digital Reception – automatic detection

and reception of digital voice modulation from conventional, trunked and mixed-mode networks.

Intelligent Adaptive Digital Tracking – ensures optimal

reception of digital signals from a variety of digital conventional and trunked radio system types.

Digital AGC – automatically compensates for audio level variances in digital transmissions.

Simultaneous Multi-System Trunking Operation – quickly

tracks up to ten Motorola, APCO25 or EDACS trunking systems at the same time. Mix conventional channels and trunking systems in the same channel storage banks. Scan conventional frequencies and trunked systems simultaneously. Automatically detects Motorola 3600 bps or APCO-25 9600 bps control channel operation.

Automatic Channel Tracking – automatically determines the trunking system frequencies for Motorola and APCO -25 trunking systems, using only the active system control channel.

CTCSS and DCS Subaudible Encoded Squelch Modes –

restricts conventional channel reception to transmissions using specified subaudible CTCSS tone or DCS data code when scanning or parked on a single channel. Code Search feature instantly

displays the tone or code in use. Takes advantage o f subaudible squelch tail elimination turn off codes when they are present.

10 ID List Banks –letyoustore 1500 IDs in 10 ID banks, ea ch with 5 ID sub-banks. 30 IDs are available in each ID sub-bank. ID text tags let you easily identify the user of a particular talkgroup ID code.

Weather Priority Alert –while scanning, automatically sounds an alarm tone to advise of hazardous weather conditions when it detects the alert signal on the local National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather channel during WX priority operation.

SAME/FIPS Weather Alert – displays the weather event text for the specific cities or counties you choose so you can see and hear the reason for the alert.

Data Cloning – lets you transfer the programmed data to another PRO-96 scanner. You can also upload or download the programmed data to or from a PC using an optional PC interface kit and application software.

12-Character, 4-Line, Alphanumeric Display – shows

you detailed operating information clearly.

Triple Conversion Superheterodyne Receiver –

virtually eliminates any interference from intermediate frequency (IF) images, so you

hear only the frequency you select.

Preprogrammed Frequency Ranges – lets you search for

transmissions within preset frequency ranges or within ranges you set, to reduce search time and select interesting frequencies more quickly.

Hyperscan™ and Hypersearch™ – the scanner

scans at up to 60 channels per second and searches up to 75 frequencies per second, to help you quickly find transmissions.

Scan Delay – delays scanning for about 2 seconds before moving to another channel in conventional mode, so you can hear more replies that are made on the same channel.

Adjustable Trunking Delay – waits for reply activity on a trunking call for the amount of time you specify.

Priority Channel — allows you to configure the scanner to check one channel every 2 seconds so you do not miss important transmissions.

Attenuator — allows you to set, by channel or globally, a 20 dB attenuator to reduce receiver overload and interference from nearby strong signals.

Text Input — lets you input a text label for each channel, talkgroup ID, channel storage bank, or other memory location so you can easily identify the transmission.

Lock Out Function — lets you set your scanner to skip overspecified channels or frequencies when scanning or searching, and skip over IDs when tracking trunked systems.

Key Lock — lets you lock the scanner's keys to prevent accidentally changing the scanner's programming.

Battery Save Circuit — When monitoring a single frequency, allows the receiver to sleep in between receiver activity.

Flexible Antenna with BNC Connector — provides excellent

reception and is designed to help prevent antenna breakage.

Memory Backup — keeps the frequencies stored in memory for an extended time even without internal batteries.

Three Power Options —letyou power the scanner with internal batteries (non-rechargeable batteries or rechargeable batteries, not supplied). You can also use an AC adapter (not supplied) or power the scanner in a vehicle using a DC adapter (not supplied).

Your scanner can receive these frequencies:

• 25–54MHz

• 108 – 136.9875 MHz

• 137 – 174 MHz

• 216.0025 – 225 MHz

• 406 – 512 MHz

• 806 – 823.9875 MHz

• 849 – 868.9875 MHz

• 894 – 960 MHz

• 1240 – 1300 MHz

Use “A General Guide To Frequencies” on Page 96 to help you target frequency ranges in your service area so you can search for a wide variety of transmissions.

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 fr om that to which the receiver is connected.

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Opera tion is subject to the following two conditions:

This device may not cause harmful interference.

This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.

SCANNING LEGALLY

Your scanner covers frequencies used by many different groups including police and fire departments,ambulance s ervices, 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 fines 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 modifiable to pick up those transmissions. Do not open your scanner's case to make any modifications 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 officials by traveling to the scene of an incident without authorization.

We encourage responsible, safe and legal scanner use.

GETTING FAMILIAR WITH YOUR SCANNER

Though you may be anxious to begin using your new scanner right away, we recommend that you take the time to read this

manual thoroughly so that you may fully understand the advanced features and capabilities of your PRO-96 scanning receiver.

Once you understand a fewsimple terms used in this manual and familiarize yourself with your scanner's features, you can put the scanner to work for you. You simply determine which frequencies and trunking systems you want to receive, and then program the scanner to scan them.

A frequency is the receiving signal location (expressed in M Hz). To find 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.

Your scanner’s SEARCH banks contained preprogrammed frequencies in the scanner’s memory (see “Searching a Preprogrammed Frequency Range” on Page 52 for the frequency list). You can even change the frequency range on one of the SEARCH banks (SR6) to customize your own search parameters.

Once you identify the frequencies youwishtomonitor,youcanstore them into programmable memory locations called channels, w hich are grouped in channel storage banks. You can then scan the channel-storage banks to see if there is activity on the frequencies

stored there. Each time the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops and monitors the radio traffic on that channel until the transmission ends, then resumes scanning. For detailed programming instructions, see “Programming Your Scanner” on Page 30.

ABOUT THE KEYPAD

Here is a brief overview of your scanner's keys and their functions.

SCAN — scans through the programmed channels.

FUNC — lets you use various functions by pressing this key in combination with other keys. When using the

FUNC key first, then release it,

the then quickly press the next key in the function key sequence.

FUNC key, press

MAN — s tops scanning and lets

you directly enter a channel number.

WX — scans through the seven preprogrammed weather channels.

TRUNK — stores the trunking ID code or holds the trunking ID while scanning.

PRI — sets and turns the priority function on or off.

TEXT — lets you input text. PAUSE — pauses search or tune

operation. MODE — changes the receive

mode (AM, FM, CT, DC, MO, ED).

å/ 7 — turnson/off the display's backlight, or when used with

FUNC

locks/unlocks the keypad to prevent accidental entries.

TUNE — allows you input a frequency and tunes up or down automatically or manually with the S or T keys.

ATT — turns attenuation on to reduce the scanner's sensitivity and block extremely strong signals, or turns it off to increase sensitivity.

S or T — selects the scan or search direction.

SRCH — lets you search the seven search banks.

L/OUT — lets you lock out a selected channel, skip a specified frequency during search, or lock out a selected ID code.

PGM—programs frequencies into channels.

ENTER — completes the entry of frequencies and te xt.

1 — enters a 1, or inputs characters 0 through 9 in text mode.

2/ABC — enters a 2, or inputs characters A, B, or C.

3/DEF — enters a 3, or inputs characters D, E, or F.

4/GHI — enters a 4, or inputs characters G, H, or I.

5/JKL — enters a 5, or inputs characters J, K, or L.

6/MNO — enters a 6, or inputs characters M, N, or O.

7/PQRS — enters a 7, or inputs characters P, Q, R, or S .

8/TUV — enters an 8, or inputs characters T, U, or V.

9/WXYZ — enters a 9, or inputs characters W, X, Y, or Z.

0 — enters a zero, or inputs characters . - # _ @ + * & / , $ % ! ^ ()? ’.

./DELAY — enters a decimal point (necessary when programming frequencies), space, or programs delay time for the selected channel/search bank, or hyphen (in trunking ID setting).

CLR — clears an incorrect entry.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR S

CANNER’S MEMORY

RGANIZATION

V-Scanners

A V-Scanner folder contains a complete, stored configuration profile of your scanner’s programming. Certain current scanner models allow the user to load, save and edit different scanner configurations using an interface cable, software and a personal computer. The PRO-96 V-Scanner feature extends this functionality by allowing you to store or recall up to eleven scanner configurations in VScanner folders on your scanner, without using a personal computer. You can use the V-

Scanner feature to build and store configurations for different areas or different scanner applications. Using the cloning feature it is possible to exchange scanner configurations with your friends without losing your existing data. V-Scanners also provide a way for you to easily 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 the operation of the scanner.

CHANNEL STORAGE B

ANKS

A channel storage bank is a storage area for a group of channels. Channels are storage locations for frequencies. Whereas a channel can only contain one frequency, a channel storage bank can hold 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, a total of 500 channels. Y ou 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 be easily enabled or disabled while scanning by pressing the number key that corresponds with the desired channel storage bank.

For example, a particular city might use four frequencies for police communications, and four frequencies for fire communications. You could program the police frequencies starting with 000 (the first channel in bank 0) and program the fire department frequencies starting with 100 (the first channel in bank

1). This gives you the ability to quickly select what you wish to monitor by activating or deactivating the appropriate channel storage bank. When looking at channel numbers, the first digit identifies the bank (0 to

9). The second and third digits identify the channel within the bank (00 to 49).

CHANNELS

Channels are storage locations for the actual frequencies you wish to monitor. Each channel can be configured with a radio frequency, the desired mode for that frequency, and settings to allow a short delay after a transmission or lock the channel out from scanning operation. A channel can contain a conventional, nontrunked frequency, or a frequency used in a trunking system.

SEARCH BANKS

Your scanner has six preprogrammed search banks configured to search various radio services, and one limit search bank that you can configure. Y ou can set the lower and higher frequency limit in the limit search

bank.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR S

CANNER’S CHANNEL

ECEIVE MODES

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

Each receive mode affects how your scanner operates when scanning and receiving transmissions.

Ó HINT Ó

For example, if you wanted to find active frequencies between a range of 150.1000 and

150.5000,you wouldput both of those frequencies in the limit search bank.

AM Mode (AM)

The AM mode sets the scanner to receive transmissions using amplitude modulation (AM), primarily used for aircraft, military, 27 MHz citizen’s band, some amateur radio, and some government transmissions. (Refer to “Specifications” on Page 110 for a list of the frequencies covered.) When the scanner receives a transmission on a channel set to the AM mode, it always stops on the transmission.

FM/Digital Mode (FM)

The FM/Digital (FM) mode sets the scanner to receive 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. APCO-25 digital modulation is used in many newer conventional and trunked public safety radio systems. When the scanner receives a transmission on a channel set to the FM/Digital

Ô NOTES Ô

• Trunked modes (EDandMOT)can only be selected for frequencies above 137 MHz.

• Your scanner’s Closed Mode lets you hear transmissions from only those trunking talkgroups you specify. For more information,see “Open and Closed Mode Operation” on Page 87.

mode, it always stops on the transmission.

CTCSS Mode (CT)

CTCSS mode 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. In your PRO-96 scanner, the CTCSS feature can be used to block the reception of transmissions on shared channel to only those that use the CTCSS tone that you have specified. CTCSS mode also features a Code Search setting that allows you to instantly display and store unknown codes into the channel memory. CTCSS tones can sometimes be heard as a low “hum” in the ba ckground of a voice transmission. Many systems that use CTCSS transmit a special “turn off code” at the end of each transmission. The turn off code causes a properly equipped receiver to mute before the transmission ends, eliminating the “squelch tail” burst of noise the commonly occurs when the signal is lost. CTCSS turn off code performance can be affected by weak signals.

DCS Mode (DC)

DCS mode sets the scanner to receive transmissions using frequency modulation (FM) with Digital Coded Squelch (DCS) subaudible data signaling. DCS is very similar to CTCSS, except that

a digital code is transmitted instead of an audio tone. Like CTCSS, DCS allows multiple users to share a single radio frequency without hearing each other’s transmissions. In your PRO-96 scanner, the DCS feature canbeusedtoblockthereception of transmissions on a shared channel to only those that use the DCS tone that you have specified. DCS mode also features a Code Search setting that allows you to instantly display and store unknown codes into the channel memory. DCS data can sometimes be heard as a low “purring” sound in the background of a voice transmission. Some DCS systems transmit a special “turn off code” at the end of each transmission. The turn off code causes a properly equipped receiver to mute before the transmission ends, eliminating the “squelch tail” burst of noise the commonly occurs when the signal is lost. DCS turn off code performance is typically mor e immune to weak signals than CTCSS.

Motorola/APCO-25 Trunking Mode (MO)

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

Motorola systems are trunking systems used primarily by business and public safety

agencies to efficiently allocate a small number of frequencies (as few as three) to many groups of users (as many as several thousand). To do this, each gr oup of users in the system is assigned to a specific talkgroup. For example, a city’s east side patrol officers might all be assigned to talkgroup 2160. One channel in the system is continuously transmitting data that identifies which talkgroups are active on which channel. In addition, this talkgroup information is also transmitted as subaudible data on each active channel.

When the scanner receives a transmission on a channel set to the Motorola mode, it first decodes the talkgroup ID data included with the transmission. In the Open Mode, the scanner stops on the transmission and displays the talkgroup ID on the bottom line of the display. In the Closed Mode, the scanner only stops on the transmission if the talkgroup ID matches a talkgroup ID that you have stored in the bank's talkgroup ID list and have not locked out.

Trunking systems covered by the Motorola mode come in four categories: Type I, Type II, Type I/ II Hybrid and APCO-25. Each category displays and uses talkgroup IDs in slightly different ways.

Motorola Type I ID s are in the form FFF-SS, where;

FFF=Fleet ID

SS=Subfleet ID Type I systems are usually

organized with different user groups assigned to different fleets.

To properly map the raw Type I data to the correct fleet-subfleet format, you must program the correct fleet map into the scanner. Fleet map information is widely available on the Internet for most Type I systems in use.

Type II and APCO-25 system talkgroups are identified by a 5digit number. Valid Type II talkgroup IDs are divisible by 16, whileAPCO-25 talkgroups arenot. Use care to ensure that you enter the correct Type II IDs into your scanner. Type I/II hybrid systems use both fleet-subfleet and 5-digit formats for talkgroup IDs.

Ô NOTES Ô

• For example, a valid fleet-subfleet ID identifying all detectives withina police department might be 000-12, where 000 identifies all police users and 12 identifies the Detectivedivision.

• Tuning the scanner to an active control channel while in Motorola mode will display the Motorola System ID and the approximate control channel message decode success rate. This information can help you identify the Motorola trunking system that you are monitoring and the quality of the control channel signal.

EDACS Trunking Mode (ED)

You can set your scanner so it decodes the 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 communicationsserviceproviders, as well as by some public safety organizations. EDACS systems transmit active talkgroup information only on a dedicated control channel.

EDACS frequencies are organized in a specific order.Each frequency is assigned a Logical Channel

Number (LCN). For the scanner to correctly switch to an active frequency, you must program the frequencies in LCN order, starting with Memory 01. EDACS talkgroup IDs are entered as a 4digit decimal number from 0001 to 2047 or AFS (Agency Fleet Subfleet) number from 00-001 to 15-157.

When there is activity on an EDACS system, that information is sent out on the control channel. The scanner decodes the ID for the active talkgroup. In the Open Mode, the scanner then goes to the transmission and displays the talkgroup ID on the bottom line of the display. In the Closed Mode, the scanner only goes to transmissions with IDs that match talkgroup IDs you have stored in the bank's talkgroup ID list that are not locked out

PREPARATION

LISTENING SAFELY

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

• Set the volume to zero b efore putting on headphones. With the headphones on, adjust the volume to a comfortable level.

• Avoid increasing the volume once you set it. Over time, your sensitivity to a volume level decreases, so volume levels that do not cause

discomfort might damage your hearing.

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

TRAFFIC SAFETY

Wearing headphones while operating a motor vehicle or riding a bicycle can crea te a traffic hazard and is illegal in most areas.

Even though some headphones let you hear some outside sounds when listening at normal volume levels, they still can present a traffic hazard. Exercise extreme caution!

POWER SOURCES

You can pow er your scanner from any of these sources:

• Internal non-rechargeable batteries or rechargeable batteries (not supplied – see “Using Batteries” on Page 25).

• Standard AC power (with an optional AC adapter – see “Using AC Power” on Page 27).

• Vehicle power (with an optional DC adapter – see “Using VehicleBattery P ower” on Page 28).

USING BATTERIES

You can pow er the scanner with four AA batteries (not supplied).

Ô NOTES Ô

• Connecting an AC or DC adapter to the scanner disconnects internal batteries when you use the supplied nonrechargeable battery holder,but itdoesnot disconnect internal batterieswhen you use the supplied yellow rechargeable battery holder.

• If you install the yellow rechargeable battery holder, you can operate the scanner and recharge the rechargeable batteries at the same time. See “Using Batteries” on Page 25, and “Charging Rechargeable Batteries” on Page 27.

• If the scanner stops working properly after connectingit to power, try resetting it. See “Resetting / Initializing the Scanner” on Page 108.

• You must charge rechargeable batteries before you use them the first time.

WARNING o

Never install nonrechargeable batteries in the rechargeable yellow battery holder. NonRechargeable batteries can get hot or explode if you try to recharge them.

Ô NOTES Ô

• Dispose of old batteries promptly and properly.

• Do not burn or bury batteries.

• Use only fresh batteries of the requiredsize and recommended type.

• Do not mix old and new batteries, differenttypesof batteries(standard, alkaline,or rechargeable), or rechargeable batteries of different capacities.

• If you do not plan to use the scanner for a month or longer, remove the batteries. Batteries can leak chemicals that can damage electronic parts.

You can use either the supplied non-rechargeable battery holder (black), or the supplied rechargeable battery holder (yellow).

Follow these steps to install the batteries.

1. Press in on the top center of the battery compartment cover on the back of the scanner and slide the cover downtoremoveit.

2. Pull the battery holder out of the battery compartment.

3. If you are using nonrechargeable batteries, place them into th e black holder as indicated by the polarity symbols (+ and -) marked on the holder.



If you are using rechargeable batteries, place them into the yellow holder as indicated by the polarity symbols (+ and -) marked on the holder.

4. Place the battery holder into the battery compartment.

 CAUTION 

The battery holder fits only one way. Do not force it.

5. Replace the cover.

When battery power is low,

Low Battery! is displayed and the

scanner beeps once every 30 seconds. When battery power is depleted, the scanner turns itself off. Replace all four nonrechargeable batteries, or recharge the rechargeable batteries. See “Char ging Rechargeable Batteries” on Page 27.

Charging Rechargeable

Batteries

Your scanner has a built-in charging circuit that lets you charge nickel-metal hydride (NiMH)ornickelcadmium(Ni-CD) rechargeable batteries (not supplied) while they are in the scanner. To charge rechargeable batteries, connect an appropriate AC or DC adapter to the PWR DC 9V jack. For best results we recommend RadioShack rechargeable nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) 1800 mAh batteries.

ITo charge batteries with a DC adapter from a DC power source, youmustusea9V,300mADC adapter such as RadioShack Cat. No. 273-1810 and a size C Adaptaplug™ (neither supplied). Both are available at your local RadioShack store. Make sure the adapter’s voltage is set to 9V.

It takes about 16 hours to recharge fully discharged 1800 mAhNiMH rechargeable batteries. You can operate the scannerwhile recharging the rechargeable batteries, but charging takes longer.

USING AC POWER

You can power the scanner using a 9V, 300 mA AC adapter and a size C Adaptaplug™ (neither supplied). Both are available at your local RadioShack store.

IMPORTANT

The EPA certifiedRBRC Battery Recycling Seal on the nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) battery indicates RadioShack is voluntarily participating in an industry program to collect and recycle these batteries at the end of their useful life, when taken out of service in the United States or Canada. The RBRC program provides a convenient alternative to placing used N i-C d batteries into the trash or the municipal waste stream, which may be illegal in yourarea.Please call 1-800-THE-SHACK (1-800-843-7422) for information on Ni-Cd battery recycling and disposal bans/restrictions in your area. RadioShack’sinvolvemen in this program is part of the company’s commitment to preserving our environment and conserving our natural resources.

Ô NOTES Ô

• The scanner can also chargeNi-Cd batteries. 600 mAh batteries require 6 hours and 850 mAh batteries require 8 hours to charge.

• When you charge NiCd batteries, do not overcharge them. Overchargingshortens battery life.

• Rechargeable

batteries last longer and deliver more power if you let them fully discharge once a month. To do this, use the scanner until Low Battery! appears in the scanner’s display. Then fully charge the rechargeable batteries.

1. Connect the Adaptaplug™ to the adapter’s cord with the tip set to positive.



 CAUTIONS 

•Youmustusea Class 2 power source that supplies 9V DC and delivers at least 300 mA. Its center tip must be set topositive and its plug must fit the scanner’s PWR DC 9V jack. Using an adapter that does not meet these specifications could damage the scanner or the adapter.

2. Plug the adapter’s barrel plug into the scanner’s

PWRDC9V

jack.

3. Plug the adapter’s two-prong plug into an AC outlet.

USING VEHICLE BATTERY P

OWER

You can power the scanner from a vehicle’s 12V power source (such as cigarette-lighter socket) using a 9V, 300 mA DC adapter and a size C Adaptaplug™ adapter (neither supplied). Both are available at your local RadioShack store.

1. Connect the Adaptaplug™ to the adapter’s cord with the tip set to positive.

2. Plug the adapter’s barrel plug into the scanner’s jack.



PWR DC 9V

3. Plug the adapter’s cigarettelighter plug into your 12V power source.

If the scanner does not operate properly when you connect a DC adapter, unplug the DC adapter from the power source and clean the socket, or check the adapter’s internal fuse.

ANTENNA

Connecting the Supplied Antenna

To attach the supplied flexible antenna to the antenna jack on the

top of your scanner, align the slots around the antenna’s connector with the studs on the antenna jack. Press the antenna down over the jack and turn the antenna’s base clockwise until it locks into place.

Connecting an Optional External Antenna

The antenna connector on your scanner makes it easy to use the scanner with a variety of antennas, such as an external mobile antenna or outdoor base station antenna. 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 length over 50 feet, use RG-8 lowloss dielectric coaxialcable. If your antenna’s cable does not have a BNC connector, you will also need a BNC adapter (not supplied, available at your local RadioShack store).

Follow the installation instructions supplied with the antenna, route the antenna cable to the scanner, then connect it to the antenna jack.

WARNING o

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 touchesa 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.

Connecting an Earphone/ Headphones

For private listening, you can plug

/8-inch (3.5 mm) mini-plug

an earphone or headpho nes (not supplied), available at your local RadioShack store, into the

HEADPHONE jack on top of y our

scanner. This automatically disconnects the internal speaker.

Ô NOTES Ô

Connecting an External Speaker

You must use an amplified speaker with this scanner. Nonamplified speakers do not provide sufficient volume for comfortable listening

Storing Conventional Frequencies

• When the scanner is inManualorProgram mode, indicatedwith

M or P in the top left

hand corner of the display,you can select your desired bank and channel number using direct channel entry, the S or T arrowkeys,and with FUNC and the S or T arrow keys.

• For direct channel entry, press MAN or PGM, enter the channel storage bank (0-9) and channel number (00-49) where you want to store a frequency, then press MAN or PGM again. For example, Bank 3, Channel 23 is enteredas “323”.The scanner advances to the selected channel storage bank and channel, and the channel storage bank and channel number appear at the upper left corner of the display (for example:

M323 or P323).

•PressFUNC,thenS or T to jump to the next or previous channel storage bank.

•PressFUNC,then hold S or T to scroll through the channel storage banks.

Connecting an External Speaker

In a noisy area, an amplified speaker (not supplied), available at your local RadioShack store, might provide more comfortable listening. Plug the speaker cable’s

/8-inch (3.5 mm) mini-plug into

your scanner’s

HEADPHONE

jack.Ô

Using the Belt Clip

You can use the belt clip attached to the back of the scanner for hands-free carrying when you are on the go. Slide the belt clip over your belt or waistband.

PROGRAMMING YOUR SCANNER

PROGRAMMING CONVENTIONAL C

HANNELS

Good references for active frequencies are RadioShack’s Police Call, Aeronautical FrequencyDirectory, and Maritime Frequency Directory. We update these directories every year, so be sure to get a current copy.

Storing Conventional Frequencies

Follow these steps to store conventional frequencies in to channels.

1. To begin programming your

scanner, press changes to P. Select the desired channel storage bank and channel, and press to advance to that channel.

PGM. M

PGM

2. Use the number keys and

./DELAY to enter thefrequency

(including the decimal point) you want to store.

3. If you make a mistake, press

CLR to backspace and correct

the incorrect digit, or press and hold

CLR for about 2

seconds to clear the entire field and start over.

4. Press

ENTER to store the

frequency into the channel.

5. By default, the scanner will configure the channels you enter for a two second delay after a transmission is received. This is indicated by the D character that appears in the top row of the display. If you do not want the scanner to pause for reply traffic before resuming scanning operation, press

./DELAY until

D is not visible in the top line of the display.

6. If necessary, press

MODE to

change the receiving mode. Valid modes for conventional frequencies include AM, FM/ Digital, CTCSS and DCS. To program a specific code for CTCSS or DCS mode, press FUNC MODE, then enter the desired code followed by

ENTER,orusetheS or T

keys to scroll to the desired code and press

ENTER to

store the code with the channel memory. For more information on CTCS S and DCS programming, see “Programming channels for

Ô NOTES Ô

• Ifyoumadeamistake in entering the frequency, briefly appears and the scanner beeps when you press ENTER. Enter the frequency again.

• Your scanner automatically rounds theentered frequency

to the nearest valid frequency. For example, if you enter a frequency of

151.53, your scanner accepts it as

151.5275. Reception of the frequency will not be adversely affected.

• If you enter a frequency t hat has already been entered elsewhereinthe same bank, the scanner sounds an error tone and displays channel number that has been duplicated. If the dual entry is an error press CLR and enter the correct frequency. If the dual entry is intentional press ENTER to accept.

• You may replace any frequency by selecting the bank and channel,pressing PGM and entering the new frequency.

•Youcanclear programmed frequency data by pressing FUNC,then CLR.

• If you make an error in the entry process, press CLRasoften as needed to erase the incorrectdata, or press and hold CLR for one second to clear the entire field.

Invalid Freq

Dupl.f and the

Ó HINT Ó

Certain multi-zone Motorola systems use thesametalkgroupIDs at multiple radio sites to cover a large geographical area. In these types of systems it may be possible to programmultiple control channelfrequenciesinto the same channel storage bank and allow thescannerto lock on to the different control channels as you move from zone to zone. This

approach only works in networked systems where the same talkgroup IDs are used at multiple sites. It is

notpossibletoprogram Motorola/APCO-25 and EDACSsystemsintothe same channel storage bank.

CTCSS and DCS operation” on Page 42.

7. If desired, program a text tag for the channel (see “Assigning a Text Tag to a Channel” on Page 45).

When you are ready to program additional channels, press

PGM or

S to move up to the next c hannel memory location, or T to move down.

PROGRAMMING T RUNKED S

YSTEMS

This section of the manual provides instructions to program your scanner to receive trunked radio systems. If you are just getting started with trunked system monitoring or have any questions about how yourPRO-96 scanner operates when tracking trunked radio systems. See “Trunking Special Features” on Page 83.

For best results, program only one trunking system in each channel storage bank of your scanner. Your scanner will lock on to the first active control channel it finds in a channel storage bank and follow the activity from that trunking system.

Channel storage banks may contain both conventional, nontrunked channels, and control or system channels for a trunked system. The scanner will ch eck for activity on the conventional channels after processing the trunking system.

PROGRAMMING M

OTOROLA ANALOG,

IGITAL, AND APCO-25

RUNKING SYSTEMS

1. Press PGM and FUNC then S or T 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

trunked! Press mode

3. Press appears in the display. This setsthe channel storage bank for Motorola operation.

4. Press channel storage bank.

5. Select a c hannel to begin programming trunking system frequencies. Use direct channel entry or the S or T keys.

6. Enter the trunking frequency and press necessary, press change the receiving mode to

MO (Motorola).

7. Repeat Steps5 and 6 to enter the other trunking system control channel frequencies for the system you wish to monitor.

Not

MODE until Motorola

PGM to return to the

ENTER.If

MODE to

Ô NOTES Ô

•Youcanalsopress FUNC,thenTRUNK to access the ID list from manual mode.

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

•ForAPCO-25 trunking systems using the 9600 bps control channel, program the system using the steps outlinedabove 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” on Page 34.

• To program Motorola 800 MHz “splinter” systems, see “Programming Motorola 800 MHz Splinter Systems” on Page 36.

• To program Motorola

Type I/IIi fleet maps, see “Programming Fleet Maps” on Page 36.

Ô NOTE Ô

It is necessary to 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 frequenciesfor the EDACS systems you wish to monitor. If the EDACS system you are programming skips channelsin the LCN order, leave those channelsblankin your scanner.

PROGRAMMING EDACS T

RUNKING SYSTEMS

1. Press PGM and FUNC, and then S or T 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 thebank has never been programmed with a trunking system, the scanner will display

trunked! Press mode

3. Press appears in the display. This setsthe channel storage bank for EDACS operation.

4. Press channel storage bank.

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

Not

MODE until EDACS

PGM to return to the

6. Enter the trunking frequency and press necessary, press

ENTER.If

MODE to

change the receiving mode to

ED.

7. Repeat Steps5 and 6 to enter the other EDACS trunking system channels for the system you wish to monitor.

PROGRAMMING M

OTOROLA VHF AND

UHF T

Your scanner is capable of receiving Motorola trunked radio

RUNKING SYSTEMS

systems operating in the VHF and UHF bands. To monitor these systems it isnecessary to program the scanner with three additional parameters, the base frequency, step and offset.

Follow these steps to program Motorola trunking frequencies in the VHF or UHF bands:

1. Press

PGM, and then TRUNK

to enter the ID program mode.

2. Press

FUNC and p ress (or

hold) S or T to select the bank.

3. Press

MODE until Motorola

appears in the display.

4. Press

FUNC then 2.The

display indicates

Ó HINTS Ó

• Base frequency, step and offset vary for each individual UHF trunking system. You can get information about thesefrequencies for the trunking system you want to scan using trunkscanner.com other Internet sources, or locally published guidebooks.

• Systems with multiple channel ranges can be programmedusing PC application software.

Base Freq:

406.0000 Offset: 380 Step:25.0kHz

5. While B in Base blinks, if necessary, enter the desired Base frequency with the number keys and press

ENTER.Ifitisincorrect,press

the number keys again to set the base frequency.

6. While necessary, enter the offset number and press is incorrect, then press the number keys again to set the frequency.

7. While repeatedly press S or T to select the step number, 5,

O in Offset blinks, if

ENTER.Ifit

S in Step blinks,

Ô NOTES Ô

• If the radio appears to be trunking to the wrong frequencies when monitoringan 800MHzsystem,you should try to configure 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 configuration on VHF, UHF, 900 MHz and 800 MHz APCO25 systems will have no effect.

6.25, 7.5, 12.5, 15, 25.0, or

50.0kHz, and then press

ENTER.

PROGRAMMING M

OTOROLA 800 MHZ

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.

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

2. If necessary,press S or T to select the desired bank.

FUNC then

3. If necessary, press

MODE to

select Motorola trunking mode.

4. Press

FUNC , and then 3 to

edit the 3600 CC Mode.

5. Press S or T to select

Normal, Splinter, Table,or Multi Table, and then press

ENTER.

Programming Fleet Maps

You must set the fleet 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

Follow these steps to program a fleet map.

1. Press

2. Press to select the desired bank.

3. Press

8. Block 0 size code. Use 15 for

type II. S-00

4. Enter the size code supplied with the Type I system information, referring to the prompts that appear in the display. If the information for your Type I system is not

PGM, and then TRUNK.

FUNC, and then S orT

FUNC, and then press

is displayed.

NOTES Ô

• The default setting of thebankisfor Motorola Type II. However, if you set Type I and wish to restoreTypeII,enter 15 at Step 4.

• Toconfirmtheinput, repeat Steps 1-4 and press ENTER.Each time you press ENTER,youconfirm thesizecode.Ifyou find an error, press CLR and begin again at Step 1.

available, try the following common fleet maps:

Block Size Code

123 4 5 678 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

91011 12 13141516 0 S4 S0 S4 S0 S3 S4 S4 S3 1 S4S0S0S0S3S3S4S10 2 S0 S0 S0 S0 S11 S10 S4 S10 3 S0S0S0S0S4S4S11S11 4 S0 S0 S0 S0 S4 S4 S11 S0 5 S0S0S0S0S0S4S0S0

Block Size Code

6 S0 S4 S0 S0 S0 S12 S12 S12 7 S0S4S0S4S0———

Press makeamistake,press

ENTER for each entry. If you

CLR and

enter the correct size code.

Talkgroup IDs

Each channel storage bank hasan associated talkgroup ID list, for a total of 10 talkgroup ID lists. Each ID list has 5 sub-banks. Each subbank 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 10 banks. When the scanner stops on a transmission in the Motorola or EDACS mode, it checks to see if the ID has been stored in the associated ID list. In the Closed Mode, the scanner only stops on the transmission and displays its text tag if you have stored and not locked out the ID. In the Open Mode, the scanner always stops on all transmissions except those you specifically exclude, and displays the ID’s te xt tag if you have stored the ID. For a detailed description of Open and Closed Mode operation, see “Open and Closed Mode Operation” on Page 87.

Ô NOTE Ô

When you try to store more than 150 talkgroup IDs in a bank,

Memory Full! appears in

the scanner’s display. Clear some talkgroup IDs in order to store new ones (see “Clearing TalkgroupIDs” on Page 91).

Storing Talkgroup IDs

Each talkgroup on a trunked radio system is identified 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 in the ID list.

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 will be automatically stored in the next available ID memory location. The bottom line of the scanner display indicates where the ID was stored as ID save X-YY and then changes to ID#ZZZZZ, where X is the subbank 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

appears in the scanner’s

saved

TRUNK, ID was

display. Follow these steps to manually

store talkgroup IDs or to edit a stored ID.

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

MAN or the S or T keys

2. Press

3. Press

PGM. TRUNK.

4. Select the ID memory you wish to edit using any of the methods described above.

5. Enter the talkgroup ID and press

ENTER. If necessary,

use the decimal point for a hyphen.

6. If you want to tag the ID, press

TEXT, enter the desired

text tag for the ID. Then press

Ó HINTS Ó

Use the following keystrokes to navigate through the ID lists:

•PressPGM, TRUNK to enter the ID list for the current channel storage bank.

• Press and release the S or T keys to scroll through the ID memories one at a time.

• PressandholdtheS or T keys to scroll through the ID memories rapidly.

•PressTRUNK to advance to the next ID sub-bank.

•PressFUNC S or T toadvancetothe next or previous ID list.

Ô NOTES Ô

•Ifyoumadea mistakeinStep5,

Invalid ID. appears

and the scanner beeps when you press ENTER.Start againatStep3.

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

AFS Format

then 2. will appear in the display for about 2 seconds. Now you can enter EDACS ID codes in AFS format.

• IfyouenteredanID code that is already stored in another ID channel, appears in the scanner’s display. If you want to store the ID code anyway, press ENTER.To cancel the operation, press CLR.

Dupl ID

ENTER (see “Text Input Chart”

on Page 48).

7. To store the next ID memory in sequence, press S and repeat Step 5.

8. Press

SCAN to start sca nnin g.

When automatically storing trunked IDs in the ID list by pressing

TRUNK during a trunked

transmission, the scanner will automatically store the active ID in the next available open ID storage location in the ID list. We suggest leaving ID sub-bank 0 empty when first setting up an ID list. This provides a location for new a utostore IDs to be placed and organized.

Programming the Priority Channel

In addition to the 500 programmable memory channels, the scanner has one priority channel.

Ô NOTES Ô

• The priority feature does not operate while the scanner receives a trunking voice channel or during trunking delay time. Traffic on the prioritychannel 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, then activate priority mode, the scanner stops on the weather channel only when the scanner detects the 1050 Hz weather alert tone.

With the priority feature, you can scan through programmed channels and still not miss an important or interesting transmissiononthepriority channel. When priority is turned on, the scanner checks the priority channel every 2 seconds, and stays on the channel if there is activity until the activity stops.

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 on the

bottom line toindicate storage of the current frequency into priority channel memory.

Programming the Priority Channel Directly

1. Press PGM.

2. Press

3. Enter the frequency you want to enter into the priority channel, then press

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

PRI.

ENTER.

Programming a Weather Channel as Priority

1. Press WX.

2. Select the weather channel you want to program as the priority channel by pressing

WX repeatedly until the

desired weather channel is displayed.

3. Press

Pri Channel flashes on the

bottom line two times.

FUNC, and then PRI.

Ô NOTES Ô

• 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 weatherorother hazard warning, a 1050 Hz tone is transmitted prior to the message. The scanner detects the presence of this tone during the sampling process. The scanner sounds an audible alert and switchesto the weather frequencyif the alert tone is detected.

• Because the scanner does not priority sample the weather channel while monitoring trunked talkgroupcalls, 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 notification is critical for your safety, such as when boating or when you know that the potential for severe weather exists in your area.

• Toturnoffthepriority feature, press PRI.

Activating the Priority Feature

Press PRI w hile scanning or manually parked on a channel.

PRIon (or PRIwx if you set the

priority to a weather frequency) appears on the bottom line of the display, and

P will appear in the

top line while scanning or parked on a channel in manual mode. If the scanner detects activity on the priority channel,

Pri Channel

appears in the scanner’s display.If the scanner detects the 1050 Hz weather alert tone in Priority WX mode, the display will show

Weather ALERT and the scanner

sounds an alert tone (see “ SAME Standby Mode” on Page 64). Press alert message.

WX to listen to the weather

Programming channels for CTCSS and DCS operation

Your PRO-96 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 specific CTCSS or D CS code. CTCSS and DCS can a lso help reduce instanceswhere interfering signals cause your scanner to stop on one channel.

There are two ways you can program your scanner to operate withCTCSS and DCS.If you know the CTCSS or DCS c ode 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 up that will instantly decode the CTCSS or DCS code on a received transmission. Channels programmed with the search code will receive all traffic 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 found code in the channel memory with one keystroke.

This section of the manual describes the process for configuring a memory channel for CTCSS or DC S operation and manually programming a known code. For more information on using the CTCSS and DCS feature while scanning, see “Using CTCSS and DCS” on Page 50.

To program channel memories for CTCSS or DC S operation, follow these steps:

1. First, enter a conventional frequency. See “Storing ConventionalFrequencies”on Page 30.

2. Once you have entered the frequency, press

MODE until

the desired mode appears in the upper left hand corner of the display. U se CT for CTCSS, and DC for DCS.

3. By default, the search code (indicated with

SEARCH in the

bottom of the display) is programmed. To program a specific 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. Note that the scanner will automatically fill the code field as you enter the code.

4. Once the desired code is selected, press

ENTER to

store the code in the channel memory.

5. It is possible to 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 change, and follow the steps above.

6. When stopped on an active

Ô NOTE Ô

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

conventional channel while scanning, you can press MODE to cycle through the valid modes for that channel, including CTCSS and DCS. This will reset 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.

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 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

GENERAL P ROGRAMMING N

OTES

Storing Text Tags

You can customize your scanner by storing text tags (up to 12 characters) for easy identification of channel transmissions, trunk IDs, or banks.

Assigning a Text Tag to a Channel

1. Navigate to the channel that you wish to label using direct channel entry, S or T or

FUNC S or T

2. Press changes to program mode.

PGM. M in the display

P to indicate

Ô NOTE Ô

Ifyoumakeamistake, press S or T to move to the character you want to change, or CLR to backspace and delete unwanted characters, or press and hold CLR to abort the text entry.

3. Press

TEXT. A cursor will

appear at the third line.

4. Enter the text using the numeral keys (see “Text Input Chart” on Page 48).

For example, to identify a channel as “FIRE Ch 6”(for “Fire Channel 6”):

“F” is the third letter associated with keypad. Press

3 on the

3, and then 3.

“I” is thethird letterassociated with 4 on the keypad. Press and then

“R” is the third letter associated with keypad. Press

7 on the

7, and then 3.

“E” is the second letter associated with keypad. Press

3 on the

3, and then 2.

Space is entered by pressing

./DELAY.

“C” is the third letter associated with keypad. Press

2 on the

2, and then 3.

“h” is the second letter associated with keypad. Press

FUNC (for the lower case

set),and then press

4 on the

4, and then

Space is entered by pressing

./DELAY.

“6” is the sixth number associated with keypad. Press

1 on the

1, and then 6.

5. Press

ENTER to store the text

with the channe l.

Assigning a Text Tag to a Group ID

1. Press PGM.

2. Press

3. Press

TRUNK. FUNC then S or T to

select the desired bank.

4. Press

TRUNK to select the

desired sub-bank.

5. Press or hold down S or T to select the desired group ID.

6. Press

TEXT then enter the

text using the numeral keys (see “Text Input Chart” on Page 48). Use S, T,or

CLR

to edit your entry, or press and hold

CLR to abort the text

entry.

7. Press

ENTER to store the text

with the ID.

Assigning a Text Tag to a Channel Storage Bank

Select a channel within the desired channel storage bank by pressing channel storage bank number (000 for bank 0 or 200 for bank 2, for example). Press

MAN and entering th e

MAN again.

1. Press

2. Press

PGM. FUNC, and then 7.The

cursor appears at the third line of the display. Enter the text using the keypad. (See “Text Input Chart”). Use S, T,or

CLR to edit your entry,

Ô NOTES Ô

• To enter a number, press 1,thenpress the desired number youwanttoenter.

• To enter a lowercase characterora characterfrom the second set for the key 0, press FUNC after pressing thefirs numeral key.

or press and hold abort the text entry.

3. Press

ENTER to store the text

with the bank.

CLR to

Text Input Chart

Press Character Press Character

1 1234567890 2 ABC 2FUNC abc 3DEF3FUNCdef 4 GHI 4FUNC ghi 5JKL5FUNCjkl 6 MNO 6FUNC mno 7PQRS7FUNCpqrs 8 TUV 8FUNC tuv 9WXYZ9FUNCwxyz 0 .-#_@+*&/, 0FUNC $%!^()?->‘<-

./DELAY Space CL Backspace

OPERATING YOUR SCANNER

INITIAL PREPARATION

Turning on the Scanner and Setting Squelch

1. To turn on the scanner, turn

VOLUME clockwise. DSP

loading message To Digital Trunking

the display. After a bout 5 seconds, you might hear a rushing sound. Then adjust

and Welcome

appears in

VOLUME to a comfortable

level.

2. Turn

SQUELCH fully

counterclockwise until the indicator points to

SQUELCH clockwise until

turn

MIN, then

the rushing sound stops.

3. To turn off t he scanner, turn

VOLUME counterclockwise to OFF.Ô

Scanning

To begin scanning channels or to start scanning again after monitoring a specific channel,

SCAN.Ô

press The scanner scans through all

channels (except those you have locked out) in the active channel storage banks (see “Turning Channel Storage Banks Off and On” on Page 49 and “Locking Out Channels or Frequencies” on Page 67).

Turning Channel Storage Banks Off and On

To turn off channel storage banks while scanning, press the bank's number key so the bank's number disappears. For example, to turn off bank 1, press does not scan any of the channels within the banks you turned off.

To turn on channel storage banks while scanning, press the number key until the bank’s number appears. For example to turn bank 1 on again, press

You cannot turn off all channel storage banks. There must be at

1. The scanner

Ô NOTES Ô

• The scanner will not enter scan mode if there are no frequencies stored in channels, or if all channels are locked out in the channel storage bank(s) that you are attempting to scan. In either of these cases, the scanner will display

All channels Locked

See

out!

“Programming Your Scanner” on Page 30.

•IfSQUELCH is adjusted so you always hear a rushing sound, the scanner will not scan properly. Rotate the squelch control until the rushing sound stops.

•IfSQUELCH is adjusted precisely at the threshold where the rushing sound stops, the radio will be most sensitive to very weak signals. The radio may also receive unwanted noise or signals that are too weak to understand. Most users prefer to position the squelch control a little bit past the point of threshold to avoid receiving noise or signals that are too weak to understand.

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

• To change the scanning direction, press S or T while scanning.

Ô NOTES Ô

• You can use the scanner’s delay featurewhile searching the search bank. See “Using the Delay Function” on Page 66.

• You can set CTCSS or DCS mode when searchinganysearch 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” on Page 50.

• The scanner does not search locked-out frequencies while searching ranges. See “Locking Out Channels or Frequencies” on Page 67.

• You can use the PAUSE key to temporarily pausethe searchoperation.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 traffic on the paused frequency, or perform copy operations to save the frequency to a channel beforeyou resume your search (see “Using FrequencyCopy”on Page 61).

least one active channel storage bank.

You can manually select any channel in a channel storage bank, even if the bank is turned off.

Monitoring a Single Channel/Battery Save Circuit

You can monitor a single channel with your scanner by navigating to that channel while in manual mode. The scanner will receive traffic on the selected frequency.

Your scanner features a battery save circuit that is automatically activated any time you manually select a channel. The battery save mode works by allowing the receiver to “sleep” briefly while waiting for a call on the selected channel. The battery save circuitis disabled when the scanner is tuned to a channel in program mode.

Using CTCSS and DCS

Your scanner’s advanced, DSP based CTCSS and DCS decoder allows you to listen only to the group that is of interest to you by specifying the group’s specific CTCSS or DCS code for a certain frequency. CTCSS and DCS c an also help reduce instances where interfering signals cause your scanner to stop on one channel.

When your scanner stops on a conventional frequency that is configured for CTCSS or DCS, it checks for a match between the

transmitted CTCSS or DCS code and the co de that is stored with the 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 scan operation. If the special “search” code is in use, the scanner will instantly display any detected CTCSS code if programmed for CTCSS mode, or DCS code if programmed for DCS code. You can store the detected code into the channel memory by pressing displayed.

For more information about your scanner’s receive modes, including CTCSS and DCS, see “Understanding Your Scanner’s Channel Receive Modes” on Page 19. For information on programming memory channels for CTCSS or DCS operation, see “Programming channels for CTCSS and DCS operation” on Page 42.

ENTER while the code is

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 into a Vacant Channel in a Specified Bank” on Page 63.)

1. Press

PGM.

2. Use the number keys and press channel with the frequency you want to delete, or use the S or T keys to navigate to the desired chan nel.

PGM to select the

3. Press The frequency is cleared,

FUNC, and then CLR.

0.0000 appears in the display.

SEARCHING AND TUNING

Finding and Storing Active Frequencies

You can search for transmissions using the scanner’s preprogrammed search banks. The search banks include six preprogrammed search ranges, SR0 to S R5. You can change the search range of Bank SR6 manually by setting the lower and higher ends of the search r ange.

SEARCHING A P

REPROGRAMMED

REQUENCY RANGE

The scanner contains these preprogrammed search ranges, stored in the search bank (SR0SR6).

Bank_________Band

SR0________Marine SR1________CB SR2________FRS/GMRS/MURS SR3________Police/Fire SR4________Aircraft SR5________Ham

SR6________Limit search (User configurable)

Follow these steps to select preprogrammed search bands and search them for active frequencies:

1. Repeatedly press

SRCH to

select your desired search bank (SR0, SR1, SR2, SR3, SR4, SR5, or SR6).

2. In the marine and CB bands, you can directly select a channel or search through the band. When

M appears at the

left most position of the second line, you can directly select a channel (refer to “Search Band Charts” on Page 54). Use the numeric keypad to select a specific two digit channel number (for example, press

16to select Channel 16, or 05to select channel 5). You

can also change the channels by pressing S or T.

There are se vera l group banks in SR2 Police/Fire and SR4 h am bands. You can turn on the groups by pressing the group numbers. For example, to turn off group 0, press

3. Press

FUNC, and then SRCH

while M is displayed. M changes to S and now you can search through the band. Press

FUNC, and then SRCH

again to return to the previous mode.

4. Rotate

SQUELCH clockwise

and leave it set to a point just

after the ru shing sound stops.

After 2 seconds (if the delay feature is on), the received frequency appears and the scanner starts searching.

5. When the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops searching,and resumes when thetransmissionends.If delay is programmed with the search range the scanner will

Ô NOTE Ô

Two frequenciesare assignedin one channe in some Marine frequencies. For example, 157.000 and

161.600 are assigned in Channel 20.

pause for a reply before search resumes.

Search Band Charts

Search bank: SR0Marineband

Receive mode: FM/Digital

Channel Frequency (MHz) Channel 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 22 157.1000 23 157.1500 24

64 66 156.3250 67 156.3750

68 156.4250 69 156.4750

157.0000

161.6000

157.2000

161.8000

157.3000

161.9000

157.4000

162.0000

156.2250

160.8250

21 157.0500

63 156.1750

65 156.2750

157.2500

161.8500

157.3500

161.9500

Channel Frequency (MHz) Channel Frequency (MHz)

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

86 88 157.4250

157.2250

161.8250

157.3250

161.9250

157.2750

161.8750

157.3750

161.9750

Search bank: SR1 CB band

Receive mode: AM

Channel 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

Channel

Frequency (MHz)

Channel Frequency (MHz)

37 27.3750 38 27.3850 39 27.3950 40 27.4050

Channel

Frequency (MHz)

Search bank: SR2 FRS/GMRS/MURS

Receive Mode: FM/Digital, CT or DC

Channel Frequency (MHz) Channel 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

Search bank: SR3 Police/Fire band

Receive Mode: FM/Digital, CT or DC

Group Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

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

153.770 – 154.130 60

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

453.0375 – 453.9625 12.5

458.0375 – 458.9625 12.5

460.0125 – 460.6375 12.5

465.0125 – 465.6375 12.5

856.2125 – 860.9875 25

866.0125 – 868.9875 12.5

Search bank: SR4 Aircraft Receive mode: AM

Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

108.000 – 136.9875 12.5

Search bank: SR5 Ham band Receive mode:

FM/Digital, CT, DC or AM (depending on group)

Group Frequency (MHz) Step (kHz)

0 28.0000 – 2937000 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

Search bank: SR6 Programmable limit search

Receive mode: FM/Digital, AM, CT or DC

Searching Active Frequencies in Your Desired Fr equency Range

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

1. Press

PGM then 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 limit frequency. The cursor moves to upper frequency field. If the entered frequency is incorrect, appears in the scanner’s display.

4. Enter your desired upper frequency and press

ENTER to set the lower

Invalid Freq briefly

ENTER.

5. Rotate and leave it set to a point just after the rushing sound stops.

6. Press searching. When the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops searching.

SQUELCH clockwise

SRCH to start

USING ZEROMATIC

You can set Zeromatic on or off by pressing ,and then 0 again to toggle the Zeromatic setting. When this feature is turned on, briefly appears in the display, then

z appears at the first digit of the

second line. When searching with Zeromatic on, the scanner will automatically tune to the correct center frequency (or the step increment closest to the correct center frequency). When searching with Zeromatic off, the scanner will unmute faster on a detected signal but the frequency may not be exact. If the scanner stops on a s ignal before it reaches the correct center frequency, you canstepupordowntothecorrect frequency using the S or T keys. Zeromatic functions only in search banks 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.

FUNC then 0.PressFUNC

Zeromatic ON

USING SEEK SEARCH

While the scanner is searching, you can activate seek search by pressing appears on the bottom line. The scanner stops on each active frequency for five seconds and resumes searching automatically. Seek functions only in search banks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

• You can copy and save a

FUNC then 7. Seek ON

frequency into a specified bank, channel, or priority channel when the scanner finds an active frequency.See “Using Frequency Copy” on Page 61 to save the frequency. The frequency copy works only in search banks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

• There are several group banks in SR2 Police/Fire and SR4 ham bands. You can turn off or on the groups by pressing the group numbers. For example, to toggle group bank 0, press

• In the Air and Limit search bands,press S to start searching up from the lowest frequency or press T to start searching down from the highest frequency.

•YoucanpressS or T at any time to change the search direction, or force a search resume while stopped on an active frequency.

•UseS or T while paused to increment the frequency one step at a time.

FUNC then press

MANUALLY TUNING A F

REQUENCY

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

1. Press

TUNE. TUNE and the

current frequency appe ar in the display. The scanner automatically begins tuning up or down.

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

3. Press

ENTER.Aftertwo

seconds the scanner will automatically tune from the entered frequency.

4. Press S or T to change the direction of the tune. When the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops on the frequency.

USING FREQUENCY COPY

You can easily copy a frequency into a specified channel, a vacant channel in a specified bank, or a priority channel. This feature provides and easy method of storing frequencies of interest you encounter while searching or tuning.

NOTES Ô

Manually Tuning a Frequency

If you press PAUSE while tuning, the scanner stops tuning and

**PAUSED** appears in

the display. Press PAUSE again, and the scanner resumes tuning. Whiletunemodeis paused, you can step up or down one frequency atatimebyusingtheS or T keys.

Using Frequency Copy

You cannot copy a frequency from the Marine search bands.

Ô NOTE Ô

If you try to copy a frequencythatisalready stored, the scanner sounds the notice tone 3 times after you press ENTER. appears at the bottom line.Ifyouwanttocopy the duplicate frequency anyway, press ENTER, or if not, press CLR to cancel.

Dupl.f Chxxx

COPYING A FREQUENCY

INTO A SPECIFIED

HANNEL

You can copy a frequency i nto a specified channel when the scanner stops on that frequency during search mode or manual tuning. If a CTCSS or DCS code is detected on the transmission, the detected code will be copied into the channel memory as well.

1. Press FUNC, and then PGM when you find a frequency.

Chan Store? appears on the

bottom line. After about 1 second, the frequency to be copied flashes on the indicator.

2. Press the desired bank and the channel nu mber where you want to store the frequency. The display indicates the bank and channel number, and briefly displays the frequency that is currentlyprogrammed into the selected channel. You can repeat this step as needed until you find an acceptable destination channel. After about 1 second, the frequency to be copied flashes.

3. Press

ENTER.Allthe

conditions such as receive mode and delay condition are copied onto the channel.

Chan Store! briefly appears in

the scanner’s display. The scanner automatically returns to search mode.

COPYING A FREQUENCY

INTO A VACANT

HANNEL IN A SPECIFIED

ANK

You can copy a frequency into a vacant channel in a specified bank when the scanner stops on the frequency during sea rch or tune mode.

1. Press FUNC, and then ENTER when you find a frequency you w ant to copy. appears in the scanner’s display.

2. If you want to copy the frequency into bank 9, press

ENTER.Itisstoredinthefirst

available vacant channel in the bank. Or, press your desired bank number to store, then press

ENTER to store the

frequency in the selected bank.

Chan Store! appearsfor 2

seconds. All the conditions such as receiving mode and delay condition are copied on the channel. After abo ut 2 seconds, the scanner automatically returns to search mode.

Bank9 Store?

Ô NOTE Ô

If you try to copy a frequency that is already stored in the same baqnk, the scanner sounds the notice tone 3 times after you press ENTER. appears at the bottom line. If you want to copy theduplicatefrequency anyway, press ENTER, or if not, press CLR to cancel.

Dupl.f Chxxx

COPING A FREQUENCY

INTO THE PRIORITY

HANNEL

You can copy a frequency into the priority channel (see “Programming the P riority Channel” on Page 40) when the scanner stops on the frequency during Search, Scan, Manual, Tune, or WX mode.

Press the frequency is on the display. The display flashes twice and the frequency is copied to the priority channel.

FUNC, and then PRI when

SPECIAL FEATURES

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.

LISTENING TO A W

EATHER CHANNEL

To hear your local forecast and regional weather information, press through the weather band then stops on the first active weather frequency. Press find the strongest weather frequency for your location. If necessary, use attenuation to weather channels with interference.

SAME Standby Mode

The National Weather Service precedes each weather alert with

WX. Your scanner scans

WX repeatedly to

ATT to apply

a digitally encoded SAME (SpecificArea 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 configure your scanner to operate in SAM E 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/ .

To configure your scanner for SAME Standby mode, follow these steps:

1. Press

WX until you identify the

weather station with the strongest signal for your location.

2. Press

FUNC, and then PROG

to access the FIPS code entry table.

3. Use the S or T keys toselect the desired FIPS code storage location.

4. Use the numeric keys to enter the desired FIPS code, and then press code. Press

ENTER to store the

TEXT to label the

code entry with an alphanumeric text table if desired. Repeat this process for all the FIP S codes that you wish to store.

Ô NOTES Ô

•PressWX, then the numeric keys 0-9 to quickly review stored FIPS codes. Press L/OUT to toggle lockout status.

• Your scanner can also detect the 1050 Hzweatheralert tone when a weather channel is set as the priority channel and weather priority operation is enabled. (see “Programming a Weather Channel as Priority” on Page 41). In this mode all alerts are received. FIPS settings are ignored.

• The scanner sounds an alert or beep when it receives the SAMEcode.Ifyou do not stop the alert (or beep) for five minutes,the alert stops and the scanner beeps every ten seconds. If the scanner receives a new message after five minutes, it sounds the alert or beep. To stop the sound and ready the scanner to receive a new alert signal before thefiveminute time out, press any key except LIGHT.

5. Press

L/OUT to lock out or

enable specific FIPS entries.

6. Press code entry table.

WX to exit the FIPS

7. Press FUNC, and then WX to initiate SAME standby. The scanner will monitor 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 and then

WX.

FUNC,

Weather Alert Alarm Demonstration

To hear the SAME weather alert alarms, press seconds while active.

The display indicates the type of message, and the scanner sounds the alarm associated with thattype of message. The alarm sound changes automatically every 3 seconds.

Press any key except end the alarm demonstration mode.

WX for more than 2

SAME Standby is

LIGHT to

USING THE DELAY F

UNCTION

You can configure your conventional, non-trunked channels for a 2 second delay to avoid missing reply traffic on the same channel. When delay is set for a conventional channel, the scanner will pause for reply traffic before resuming the scan operation.

To toggle the delay setting for a channel, press

./DELAY.Ô

LOCKING OUT C

HANNELS OR

REQUENCIES

You can lock out channels to force the scanner to skip and ignore any traffic while scanning. You can also lock out up to 50 frequencies while searching to skip undesired transmissions.

Locking Out Channels

To lock out a channel w hile scanning, press 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. To remove the lockout from a

channel, manually select the channel and press disappears.

Reviewing the Lock-Out Channels

To review all locked out channels,

MAN, and then repeatedly

press

FUNC and then L/OUT.The

press scanner will advance to the next locked out channel each time you

FUNC, and then L/OUT.

press

Locking Out Search Frequencies

To lock out a frequency during a search, press scanner stops on that frequency. The scanner will lock out the frequency and con tinues searching.

L/OUT when the

L/OUT so L

L/OUT when the

NOTES Ô

Using the Delay Function

•Delayis automatically set as the default for each channel when you turn on the scanner.

• The delay function operates differently when monitoring trunked radio systems. For more information, see “Trunked Delay Function” on Page 90.

Locking Out Channels

• 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.

Locking Out Search Frequencies

• You can lock out as many as 50 frequencies in each search bank. If you try to lock out more, Memory full! willappear in the display, and you will be unable to lock out any more frequencies until some have been cleared. See ““Clearing a LockedOut Search Frequency”on Page 68”.

• If you lock out all frequencies in one searchbank and only this search bank is activated, All ranges Locked out! appears in the display 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 mode, and select the desired search bank to review its locked out frequencies.

2. Press The last locked-out frequency and S or T to scroll through the list. The locked-out number and the total locked-out number also appears as

SRCH to set search

FUNC and then L/OUT.

Lockout list appear. Press

L/O XX of YY.(Thetenthof

twenty five locked out frequencies would appear as

L/O 10 of 25). If the search bank

has no locked-out frequencies,

appears in the scanner’s

list

display. Press reviewing locked-out frequencies.

Empty. Lockout

SRCH to cancel

Clearing a Locked-Out Search Frequency

To clear a locked-out frequency, select that frequency (see ““Reviewing the Lock-Out Channels”), and then press

If all locked-out frequencies are cleared within a channel storage bank, the scanner’s display.

Empty. Lockout list appears in

CLR.

Clearing All Locked-Out Frequencies in a Search Bank

1. Press SEARCH.

2. Select the s earch bank in which you want to clear all locked-out frequencies.

3. Press

L/OUT. Lockout list appears in

the scanner’s display.

4. Press scanner will display

FUNC and then press

FUNC and then 6.The

Confirm

list clear? 1=YES Press other key

.Press1 to clear all

for NO

locked-out frequencies.

List cleared appears for about

2 seconds. Press any key other than

1 to cancel clear.

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.

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

AM – configures the channel for AM mode.

FM/DIGITAL– configures the channel for the FM/DIGITAL mode.

CT – configures the channel for CTCSS mode.

MODE.The

Ô NOTE Ô

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

DC – configures the channel for DCS mode.

MO – configures the channel for the MO mode for analog or digital Motorola trunking system channels, or APCO-25 trunking system channels.

ED – configures the channel for the ED mode for EDACS trunking system channels.

USING THE 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- cha nnel 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 anynormal 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 by manually navigating to a channel by using direct channel entry or pressing the S or T arrow keys. will appear in the top line of the display. Press

ATT again to toggle

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. To use the global attenuator:

1. Press

FUNC and then ATT to

set the attenuator to global mode.

Global ATT will appear

for 2 seconds at the bottom line, and then

ATT- appears in

the scanner’s display while scanning.

2. Press attenuator.

ATT to activate the

ATTon appears in

the bottom line of the display. When the scanner is stopped on a channel or searching,

will appear in the top line of the display. Press

ATT to

toggle global attenuation off.

ATT- appears on the bottom

line of the display while scanning.

3. Press again to turn off the global attenuation mode. appears on the bottom line for about 2 seconds.

FUNC and then ATT

Normal ATT

Ô NOTES Ô

• The attenuator is very effective at reducingstrong signal overload interference when using the scanner in areas close to cellulartelephone 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 Project25 trunking control channel will apply attenuation to all calls received on that trunking system. You can press ATT during a trunking call or while manually tunedtoasystem control channel to toggleattenuation on or off for the trunking system.

TURNING THE KEY TONE O

N AND OFF

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

1. If the scanner is on, turn

VOLUME OFF/MAX

counterclockwise until it clicks to turn the scanner off.

2. Turn

3. While

VOLUME OFF/MAX

clockwise to turn the scanner

Welcome To Digital Trunking

on. appears in the scanner’s display.

Welcome To Digital

Trunking

turn on the key tone or turn it off.

appears, press 1 to

2 to

USING THE DISPLAY B

ACKLIGHT

Your PRO-96 features a backlit keypad and display for easy viewing and use in dark environments. There are three backlight modes you can choose fromto control backlightactivation, Normal mode, Keypress mode, and first keypress Ignore mode.

In Normal mode, press activate the backlight. The backlight will activate and remain on for the factory default setting of 5 seconds. The backlight continues to remain on while you are operating the keypad. To turn off the backlight before it automatically turns off, press again.

In Keypress mode, the backlight will light automatically when you press any key on the keypad, and function as described above in Normal mode. This mode is useful if you want the backlight to come on automatically when you

7 to

perform an operation using the keypad.

In Ignore mode, the backlight functions as described in Keypress mode, except that the scanner ignores the first keypress. This mode is useful when you wish to quickly illuminate the display and keypad without having to search for the keypress is ignored, and the scanner sounds the low pitched error beep to remind you that the first key pressed to activate the backlight is ignored by the scanner.

In any backlight mode, you can press and hold second to force the backlight on full time. Press backlight is on to turn it off.

7 key. The first

7 for about 1 7 while the

You can also change the backlight mode and duration.

1. If the scanner is on, turn it off and back on again.

To Digital Trunking

the scanner’s display.

2. While

Trunking

LIGHT.

3. Press S or T to select the desired backlight mode a nd duration. Selecting 3, 5, 10 or 20 sets the backlight mode for normal operation for the selected duration. Selecting K3, K5, K10 or K20 sets the backlight mode for Keypress operation for the selected duration. Selecting I3, I5, I10 or I20 sets the backlight mode

Welcome To Digital

appears, press

Welcome

appears in

for Ignore operation for the selected duration.

4. Press selection.

ENTER to store your

USING THE KEYLOCK

Once you program your scanner, you can protect it from accidental program changes by turning on the key lock feature. When the keypad is locked, the only controls that operate are

SQUELCH, and VOLUME.

You cannot activate the key lock while you are entering a frequency into a channel.

1. To turn on the key lock, press

FUNC and then å/ 7

Key locked appears for about 1

second. when you press any key after locking the keypad, and the scanner sounds the low pitched Invalid tone.

FUNC, å/ 7

Key locked. appears

2. To turn off the key lock, press

FUNC and then å/ 7.The

scanner beeps three times

Key unlocked appears in

and the scanner’s display.

CHANGING THE DISPLAY C

ONTRAST

1. Press MANUAL.

2. Press

Up/Down keys to set contrast.

appears in the scanner’s display.

3. Press S or T to adjust the contrast.

FUNC and then 9. Use

4. Press display contrast.

ENTER to set the

WORKING WITH V-SCANNERS

The PRO-96 V-Scanner (Virtual Scanner) feature allows you to edit, store, recall and use up to eleven full sets of scanner memory profiles. With V-Scanners it is possible to create separate scanner memory profiles for different areas you visit or 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 configurations in V-Scanner folders for later recall and use. Your scanner features ten V-Scanner folders (0-9) for configuration storage. An additional “scratchpad” V -S cann er 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 th e contents of working memory w hen managing the V-Scanner memory.

Working with V -Scanner folders is much like working with computer application files, 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 VScanner 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 VScanner folders, or move the contents of one folder to ano ther using working memory.V-Scanner folder names are stored in Line 4 from the Welcome screen that appears when you first power on the scanner. You can change the contents of line 4 from the current working memory configuration . This information is saved when you store the V-Scanner.

P708•••D•+CT Welcome Ln-4

Follow these steps to edit the VScanner name stored in Line 4 of the Welcome screen:

1. Press

2. Press FUNC, TEXT.The scanner will display the Line 4 edit screen with a flashing cursor:

3. Use standard text entry procedures to enter a VScanner name, up to 12 characters long. Press when finished. Refer to the “Text Input Chart” on Page 48 for more information on text entry.

You can only change the name of a V-Scanner while it is loaded into

PGM

ENTER

working memory. It is not possible to change the V-Scanner folder name from the V-Scanner menus. Always use program mode to assign a VScanner folder name to the current working memory. This name will be stored with the VScanner when it is saved, and will appear while you are performing V-Scanner operations. If youpress

TEXT while in a V-Scanner

operations menu, you will be prompted to use in program mode to assign or change the name of the VScanner folder.

Follow these steps to perform VScanner operations:

FUNC, TEXT while in

FUNC,TEXT while

1. Press

2. Press FUNC, PGM.The scanner will display the VScanner menu:

Select the option that corresponds with the function thatyouwishtoexecute.

3. If you want to save the contents of the scanner’s working memory to a VScanner folder, press scanner will display:

Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to save the current configuration to, or press the V-Scanner menu. Your selected folder location and the name of any previously stored V-Scanner will appear in the display. For example,

PGM

1.The

CLR to return to

V-Scanner 1-SAVE 2-LOAD 3-DEL CL to EXIT

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

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

assume you are saving to VScanner folder 1, and have previouslystored a V-Scanner configuration with the name “My V-Scanner” in that location. If you choose VScanner Folder 1, the scanner will display:

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

Saving to V-Scanner: 1 Please Wait

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

Press choice, another number key to change your selection, or CLR to abort and return to the V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one final opportunity to abort before proceeding:

Press choice and proceed with the V-Scanner save operation.

While saving, the scanner will display:

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

4. To load the contents of a VScanner folder to the scanner’s working memory, press display:

ENTER to accept the

ENTER to confirm your

2. The scanner will

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

Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to load into the scanner’s working memory, or press

CLR to return to the V-

Scanner menu. If you select a V-Scannerfolder,the scanner will prompt you to verify your choice. For example, if you

choose V-Scanner Folder 1, the scanner will display:

Press choice, another number key to change your selection, or

CLR to abort and return to the

V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one final opportunity to abort before proceeding:

ENTER to accept the

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

While loading, the scanner

will display: The contents of the scanner’s

current working memory will bereplaced withthe data from the selected V-Scanner folder.

5. To delete the contents of a VScanner folder, select scanner will display:

Press the number key that corresponds with the VScanner folder you wish to clear, or press 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:

CLR to return

3.The

Loading from V-Scanner: 1 Please Wait

Delete V-Scanner: ENTER if YES CL to EXIT

Delete V-Scanner: 1 ENTER if YES My V-Scanner

Press choice, another number key to change your selection, or CLR to abort and return to the V-Scanner menu. The scanner gives you one final opportunity to abort before proceeding:

ENTER to accept the

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

learing

-Scanner: 1

lease Wait

V-Scanner Operation Complete Press ENTER

V-Scanner Operation Failure Press ENTER

While the folder is being cleared, the scanner will display

This display appears after each VScanner operation. Pr essing

ENTER will return to the main V-

Scanner menu. Press the V-Scanner main menu.

This display appears if a failure is encountered while performing a VScanner operation. Pr ess to try again.

Ifyouwishtocreateanew configuration 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 finished with your ed its, save your updated working memory to a new V-Scanner folder, leaving the V-Scanner folder with your original configuration intact. You may then use either your original configuration or the modified one.

CLR to exit

ENTER

Be sure to assign a name to each V-Scanner before you save it to a V-Scanner folder. You assign a VScanner name while using the configuration in working memory by pressing

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 youwriteittoafolder.

You can use the V-Scanner feature to back up your work. Save your configuration to a V-Scanner folder after you make changes to a

PGM, and then FUNC,

working memory c onfiguration. If for any reason your scanner’s working memory is accidentally altered or lost, you can recall the backupconfiguration data fromthe V-Scanner folder.

There will be an approximately 13 second pause after you select the desired V-Scanner and press the ENTER key to confirm your choice when saving or loading V-Scanner data. During this period the scanner is transferring V-Scanner data to or from w orking memory. It is important not to interrupt pow er to the scanner while this is taking place. Loss of power while performing V-Scanner operations may result in lost data. The scanner will not allow you to perform a V- Scanner operation when a low battery condition exists. If you attempt to perform a V-Scanner operation with low battery power, the scanner will display:

V-Scanner Battery Low Aborted CL-EXIT

USING THE DIGITAL AGC F

UNCTION

You may find 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 automaticgain 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-96 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

MAN at any time. The display will

briefly show

FUNC, and then

DSP AGC Off or

DSP AGC On accordingly.Ô

NOTES Ô

Using the Digital AGC Function

• Digital AGC has no effect on analog transmissions.

• You may notice more background noise with Digital AGC on.

Cloning the Programmed Data

CLONE MODE Incorrect

appears if the

Model

scanner receives data from another scanner other than a PRO-96.

CLONING THE PROGRAMMED DATA

You can transfer the contents of the current scanner working memory to and from another PRO-96 scanner using an optional

connecting cable with mm) phone plugs on both e nds (use Radio Shack 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 Radio Shack part number 20-289, available at your local RadioShack store).

Follow these steps to clone the data.

1. Turn on both scanners.

/8-inch (3.5

2. Connect the connecting cable to each scanner’s PC/IF jack.

CLONE MODE UP to send, remove cable to exit

scanner’s display.

3. Press S.

appears in the

Confirm send data?

1=YES Press other key for NO.

appears in the scanner’s display.

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

5. The scanner sends the data. Do not disconnect the PC/IF cable or interrupt power to either scanner while the transfer is taking place.

6. To exit the clone mode, remove the cable.

1 to send the data to

TRUNKING SPECIAL FEATURES

TRUNKING OPERATION

Your scanner trackstransmissions from Motorola Type I, II and IIi analog trunked systems, Motorola digital trunked systems, a nd APCO 25 digital trunked systems. Your scanner also follows transmissions on GE/Ericsson/M/ A-COM (EDACS) type systems.

Trunking systems allocate a few frequencies to many different users, and use a control chann el to send system activity data to all of the mobile units operating on the system. When a mobile unit wishes to place a call, it sends a call request signal to the trunking system. The system chooses one frequency from allocated system channels in that trunking system and announces the start of the call on the control channel. Your scanner uses the control channel

Ô NOTES Ô

To receive trunking signals from a trunked radio system, you must:

• Store all the trunking controlfrequencies for Motorola or APCO-25 systems in one channel storage bank, or

• Store all the trunking system frequencies for EDACS in one channel storage bank, and

• Configure the channelstoragebank ID list for the type of trunking system being monitored,and

• Enter ID codes into the ID memory for the bank

• For detailed trunked system programming instructions, see “Programming Trunked Systems” on Page 32 and “Storing Talkgroup IDs” on Page 38.

data to follow activity on the talkgroups you wish to monitor.

Traditional conventional radio systems operate using a single radio frequency for each group of radio users, and in some cases, multiple groups sharing the same radio channel in the same geographical area. This frequently results in heavy traffic and often requires that radio users wait long periods for the frequency to clear before they can place their calls. Trunked systems allow large groups of radio users to use radio frequencies more efficiently. Instead of selecting a specific frequency to transmit on, a trunked system chooses one of several frequencies when the 2way radio user transmits. The systemautomatically transmitsthe call on that frequency, and also sends a code that identifies that 2way radio user’s transmission on a control channel.

Your scanner lets you easily hear both the call and response transmissions for that 2-way radio user and therefore follow the entire conversation. For Motorola, APCO-25 and EDACS trunking systems, the scanner monitors the control channel betwe en each transmission to determine active talkgroups.

Your PRO-96 automatically calculates Motorola and APCO-25 trunking system voice channel frequencies while decoding the control channel. This eliminates the need to enter all the Motorola system frequencies.

The control cha nnels for some Motorola trunked radio systems may change on a day-to-day basis. To ensure that you will not miss traffic when the control channel changes, enter all the known control channel frequencies into the channel storage bank. If the control channel changes, your scanner will automatically lock on to the new control channel. If you do not know which system channels are used for the control channel operation, we recomme nd thatyou enter all the system frequencies into the same bank.

When the scanner decodes the Motorola control channel and finds talkgroup activation on a voice channel, the scanner displays the control channel memory location on the top line, the received frequency with VC (voice chan nel) on the second line, the bank and control channel memory location number on the third line and the Motorola talkgroup ID number on the bottom line.

Setting Squelch for Trunking

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

Ô NOTEÔ

Frequency fleet map and talkgroup information are also widely available on the Internet. For example, at www.trunkscanner.com.

IMPORTANT

To listen to the transmission, the mode setting of the trunking control or system channels must match the mode setting of the associated ID list (MOT for Motorola and APCO25, or ED for EDACS).

When an ID code is received, the ID list for the bank is searched, and if found, the text name stored for the ID appears in the scanner’s display.If not found, scanning resumes immediately unless the bank is in open trunking mode.

clockwise until the noise stops. You may find 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.

While the scanner is stopped on a voice channel ( the frequency in the display), hold down appears in the scanner’s display.

To manually activateID holdmode 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.

TRUNK until ID hold ON

VC appears next to

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

To release ID hold, press

TRUNK.

SCAN or

Turning an ID Sub-Bank On or Off

Follow these steps to turn the ID sub-bank on or off during the program mode:

1. Press select the desired sub-bank.

2. Press the sub-bank on or off. The

TRUNK repeatedly to

FUNC then 1 to toggle

on/off state of the s ub-bank will appear in the scanner’s display.

Follow these steps 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 subbank 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 subbank status display,

. The flashing cursor will

01234

T IDbk

indicate 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-bank4 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 s ettings, called Open Mode and Closed Mode, control whether thescanner monitors all traffic from a trunked radio system, or only traffic 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.

NOTE Ô

In Open Mode, you hear all active talkgroups except those you specifically 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, + 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.

Traffic 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 traffic, except for traffic on talkgroups that ar e entered in the ID list and locked out. In Closed Mode, the scanner will only stop on talkgroup traffic 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 traffic on the trunked system, exceptfor certain talkgroupswhich 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 traffic on undesired talkgroups.

Closed Mode scanning is useful in cases where you wish to restrict the traffic you monitor to a certain set of talkgroups only these talkgroups are specified in the ID list and not locked out.

Toggling Open and Closed Modes

To toggle Op en or Closed M ode state for a bank, press while stopped on a channel in the bank in SCAN, MAN or PGM modes. The scanner will briefly display

Bank OPEN or

FUNC, 5

Bank CLOSED to indicate the new

Open or Closed state for the bank.

Manual ID Lockout Toggle

1. Press PGM.

2. Press T

3. Press to move to the desired bank.

4. Press S or T to select the ID memory.

5. Press out status of the selected ID.

RUNK.

FUNC, and then S orT

L/OUT to toggle the lock

ACTIVATING ID L

OCKOUT WHILE

CANNING

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 active with a voice call.

L/OUT while the ID is

Reviewing Locked-Out Talkgroup IDs

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

1. Press

2. Press The first locked out ID in the ID list is displayed.

3. Press selected ID, or press and then continue reviewing locked IDs.

PGM and then TRUNK. FUNC, and then L/OUT.

L/OUT to unlock the

FUNC,

L/OUT again to

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 t o show the text tag or the talkgroup ID code by pressing the scanner is stopped on a trunked talkgroup call.

TEXT while

TRUNKED DELAY F

UNCTION

The trunking ID delay is set separately from the channel delay on a per channel storage bank

basis. Trunking ID delay specifies the amount of time the sca nner dwells on the control channel looking for reply traffic on the previous talkgroup before resuming scan operation. Customizing the trunked ID delay may be useful if you are missing a lot of reply traffic on a particular system. We recommend starting with the default value of 2.0 seconds.

1. While in the desired ID list, press

./DELAY.

FUNC, and then

2. Press S or T to select None,

0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, or 4.0 seconds.

3. Press

LEARING TALKGROUP

ENTER.Ó

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

1. Press

2. Press

PGM and then TRUNK.

FUNC, S or T to select

an ID memory.

3. Press

FUNC and then CLR to

clear the contents of the selected ID.

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).

Ó HINTS Ó

• Most Motorola trunking systems include a “hang time” where the channel remains assigned to a talkgroup for a short period after the user unkeys their 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 their microphoneequals the trunking system hang time, plus any trunked ID delay that you have programmedinto 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 fixed at 2 seconds and is controlled independently of trunked ID delay. Refer to “Using the Delay Function” on Page 66 for more information.

1. Press

PGM.

2. Press group ID memory mode.

3. Select a talkgroup ID bank using

4. Press

TRUNK to enter a talk

FUNC, S or T.

FUNC and then 6.

Confirm list clear? 1=YES Press other key for NO.

scanner’s display.

5. Press IDs within a bank. List cleared appears in the scanner’s display.

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

1 to clear all talkgroup

appears in the

1.The

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 conventionalchannelprogrammed for FM/Digital (FM) modulation. It is not necessary to configure individual channels for digital operation.

Manydigital trunked radiosystems 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 system types.

Digital modulation represents a breakthrough in 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 performance that you should be aware of while scanning.

In most cases, digital voice transmissions will be surprisingly crisp and clear, and without noise or distortion, even when corresponding analog signals from the same system contain some static. However, if you are in a location with marginal reception, you may find th at 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 attenuation to reduce the overload effects of nearby strong transmitters.

Under certain very weak digital signalconditions, the scanner may lose synchronization with the digital signal and briefly revert to analog FM, resulting in the reception of the raw, undecoded digital signal. This is a normal indication of a digital signal that is too weak to decode.

ATT key and apply

UPDATING THE DSP F

IRMWARE

If necessary, the firmware for the DSP module can be updated by theuserinthefieldby downloading a file from the Internet and transferring it to the scanner.

From time to time, improvements may be incorporated into the DSP firmware. These improvements will typically be designed to address issues that may be present with decoding the digital audio signals, and audio quality improvements. With updateable DSP firmware, you can ensure that your scanner is using the most recent DSP version available.

To update your scanner’s DSP firmware, you will need the following items:

• The PC to scanner interface cable

• A personal computer running Windows 95 or greater

• A firmware update file from www.radioshack.com

Follow these steps to update your scanner’s DSP firmware:

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

2. Click on the Support button.

3. Click on Scanner Firmware Downloads.

4. ClickonPRO-96DSP Firmware

5. 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

Digital Trunking

scanner display. The scanner will display version information as follows:

The “CPU” and “DSP-Voc” firmwareversions are permanently installed at time of manufacture and cannot be updated in the field. The“DSP-App”versionisfield upgradeable. The original factory version is indicated by “F” preceding the version number. The DSP-App version number will be preceded by “U” after the DSP version is updated via Internet download.

3 while Welcome to

appears in the

Version CPU: F1.0 DSP-App: F1.0

DSP-Voc: F1.0

A GENERAL GUIDE TO FREQUENCIES

Reception of the frequencies covered by your scanner is mainly “line-of-sight.” That means you usually cannot hear stations that are beyond the horizon.

US Weather Frequencies (in MHz)

162.400 162.425 162.450

162.475 162.500 162.525

162.550

Ham Radio Frequencies

Wavelength Frequencies (MHz)

10-Meter 28.000 — 29.700

6-Meter 50.000 — 54.000 2-Meter 144.000 — 148.000

70-cm 420.000 — 450.000 33-cm 902.000 — 928.000 23-cm 1240.000 — 1300.000

Ham radio operators often transmit emergency information when other means of communication break down. The chart below shows the frequencies the scanner receives that ham radio operators normally use.

Birdie Frequencies

Every scanner has birdie frequencies. Birdies are signals created inside the scanner’s receiver. On rare occasions, birdies can cause interference to channels you want to listen to.

Birdies typically occur with approximately equal strength with and without the scanner’s antenna attached. If you receive an interfering signal and suspect that it is a birdie, try removing the scanner’s antenna. If the interference disappears, the interference may be the result of other electronic equipment in the vicinity of the scanner. If the interference remains, it is likely a birdie signal.

It may be possible to adjust the squelch control and/or attenuator to minimize the effects of a birdie signal on scanningoperation. B oth of these methods will likely have some effect on the signal you are trying to monitor as well.

The scanner’s birdie frequencies (in MHz) a re:

30.7200 38.25000 41.89000 43.00500

51.00000 110.80000 125.95000 127.50000

129.01250 132.08750 134.20000 134.27500

135.16250 138.23000 140.25000 141.30500

146.0050 147.45000 148.95000 149.02500

152.99750 153.59000 154.10000 157.22000

159.93000 165.75000 216.85250 216.85750

219.99750 220.07250 221.18750 414.71875

414.72500 420.84375 431.47500 431.55000

440.81250 442.36875 451.00000 451.07500

451.15000 451.22500 459.52500 459.60000

470.01875 477.26250 484.37500 484.45000

489.52500 489.60000 489.67500 497.66250

812.70000 813.50000 816.08750 816.15000

820.2250 820.23125 852.96875 857.09375

867.20625 867.21875 867.22500 895.92500

912.38750 921.65000 921.72500 940.03125

940.9437 950.07500 950.15000 1244.16250

1251.30000 1251.37500 1262.59375 1268.77500

1271.80000 1282.10000 1282.17500 1282.25000

1282.32500 1299.46250

Though your scanner’s receiver is an advanced, triple conversion design engineered to minimize birdie interference, some birdie signals cannot be avoided and may impair your ability to monitor certain frequencies.

GUIDE TO THE ACTION BANDS

TYPICAL BAND USAGE (IN MHZ)

HF Band

HF Range 25.000–26.960

Citizen’s Band 26.965–27.405

10-Meter Amateur 28.000–29.700

VHF Band

Low Range 29.700–50.000 6-Meter Amateur 50.000–54.000 2-Meter Amateur 144.000–148.000

High Range 148.000–174.000

220 MHz Band

Narrow Band 220.000–222.000

11/4 – Meter Amateur 222.000–225.000

UHF Band

U.S. Government 406.000–420.000

70-cm Amateur 420.000–450.000 UHF-Low Band 450.000–470.000

UHF-T Band 470.000–512.000

800MHz Band

System Inputs 806.000–824.000

System Outputs 851.000–869.000

Trunked Private / General 894.000–960.000

25-cm Amateur 1240.000–1300.000

PRIMARY USAGE

As a general rule, most radio activity is concentrated on the following frequencies:

VHF Band

Activities Frequencies (MHz)

Government, Police and Fire 153.785–155.980

Emergency Services 158.730–159.460

Railroad 160.000–161.900

Land-Mobile “Paired” Frequencies 220.000–222.000

UHF Band

Activities Frequencies (MHz)

Land-Mobile “Paired” Frequencies 450.000–470.000

Base Stations 451.025–454.950

Mobile Units 456.025–459.950

Repeater Units 460.025–464.975

Control Stations 465.025–469.975

Remote control stations and mobile/portable units operate at 5 MHz higher than their associated base stations and relay repeater units in the UHF band.

BAND ALLOCATION

To help decide which frequency ranges to scan, use the following listing of the typical services that use the frequencies your scanner receives. These frequencies are

subject to change, and might vary from area to area. For a more complete listing, refer to Police Call Radio Guide including Fire and Emergency Services, available at your local RadioShack store.

Abbreviation Service

AIR Aircraft

BIFC Boise (ID) Interagency Fire Cache

BUS Business CAP Civil Air Patrol CCA Common Carrier CSB Conventional Systems

CTSB Conventional/ Trunked Systems

FIRE Fire Department HAM Amateur (Ham) Radio

GOVT Federal Government

GMR General Mobile Radio

GTR General Trunked

IND Industrial Services

(Manufacturing, Construction,

Farming, Forest Products)

MAR Military Amateur Radio

MARI

Maritime Limited Coast

(Coast Guard, Marine Telephone,

Shipboard Radio, Private Stations)

MARS MilitaryAffiliateRadio System

MED Emergency/Medical Services

MIL U.S. Military MOV Motion Picture/Video Industry NEW New Mobile Narrow

NEWS Relay Press (Newspaper Reporters)

OIL Oil/Petroleum Industry

POL Police Department

PUB Public Services

(Public Safety, Local Government,

Forestry Conservation)

PSB Public Safety

100

Radio Shack PRO-96 User Manual

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Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual