Dear Mr. Crocker:
Thank you for your useful and helpful communication. I had hoped that I
would hear from you since I knew from other communications on this list that
you were in Michigan and had useful experience.
I have consulted radioreference.com and noted their extensive frequency
information. The reviews I did not see. I shall make a donation.
The first complex radio that one programs will inevitably seem
overwhelming at first. Once one has mastered that radio's programming, the
next radio will seem strange.
Problems with inconsistent volume with digital modulation are endemic.
The cure is probably to be implemented post detection. Thank you for the
observation that you have found the RS 2096 better at combating the problem
than the BCD396T. If the BCD396T is dealing with inconsistent volume after
detection, it is unlikely that a future change to the radio's "firmware"
will help the problem.
The good news may be that the huge investment made in the present
Michigan system tends to inhibit changes to another system. One may expect
one of the present, high-end radios to be useful for a number of years for
unscrambled, governmental radio communications.
Thank you again for your assistance.
Regards, Mac

--
J. Mc Laughlin; Michigan U.S.A.
Home:
"Bill Crocker" wrote in message
news

"J. Mc Laughlin" wrote in message
...
I have some questions about the digital, trunking system being used in
Michigan by governmental agencies. I have read several messages on this
site that are relevant. It appears that one needs a RS 96 or 2096 (I
have
studied its manual), or a BCD396T (I have also studied its manual). The
prices of these radios are similar.

It is obvious that the VHF system used by the Genesee County Sheriff is
no
longer in use. It is reasonable to conclude that all police services
(except the Flint VHF system) have migrated to the 800 MHz system
operated
out of Post 35 of the Michigan State Police. I am about 7 miles from
Post
35.

Questions:
1. Do all of the aforementioned radios work to receive the Michigan
system?
2. While the BCD396T appears to have a few more features than the RS
radios, reservations about the BCD396T have been expressed by members of
this group. Please note your experience with these radios and express
your
opinions about the desirability (or undesirability) of specific models.
3. Should you know, where might one find the best mail-order delivered
price on a BCD396T from a reputable company?

Thank you for such advice as you may be able to provide to assist in
the
goal of receiving the Michigan digital system. 73 Mac N8TT

--
J. Mc Laughlin; Michigan U.S.A.
Home:



Hello!

First I suggest you drop in at Radio Reference (
http://www.radioreference.com ). It has to be one of the worlds largest
resources for the hobby! In addition to that, they have extensive
reviews,
and user opinions on the subjects you're interested in. They also have a
frequency database like no other! It's totally free, but they do ask for
donations. With a donation as little as $5.00, you will have access to
programming features you'll soon realize you can't live without.

That being said, I live in Macomb County, Michigan. I have owned the
Uniden
BC296D, BC796D, and borrowed the BCD396T digital scanners, as well as the
Radio Shack PRO-96. I currently own the Radio Shack PRO-2096 digital
scanner. All of them work very well. I found the BCD396T a little
overwhelming to program, as it uses a totally different memory management,
and programming scheme. The reason I settled on the Radio Shack (GRE) is
because of their AGC (automatic gain control). When scanning digital,
often
a few channels will come in much louder than others. The AGC takes care
of
this, so the volume level is more uniform. The newer BCD396T has AGC, but
I
didn't find that it worked as well as the Radio Shack offerings.

Uniden has a press release, regarding a new base/mobile GPS enabled
scanner,
due out early next year:
http://www.uniden.com/press/BCD996T_Release_FNL.pdf

Hope this helps!

Bill Crocker