RadioBanter - View Single Post - Can you recommend a scanner where squelch works?

Jesse · May 12th 08, 10:47 PM posted to rec.radio.scanner

wrote in
:

On Apr 28, 4:56 am, "Rob Cullen" wrote:
I suspect you've hit the nail on the head Sarah. Operator error springs
to mind.

"Sarah Czepiel" wrote in message

...

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 19:55:00 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

:Hi - I've gone through five scanners and was wondering if someone
:can recommendone before I run out of money. On all of these
:scanners, I try and set thesquelchso that it skips unused
:frequencies. However, when a used frequency is found,
:thesquelchchops out most of the audio. If I turn thesquelchall the
:way down, I can hear all of the audio. I try and use the least
:amount ofsquelchpossible, but it still chops the audio so you can't
:understand anything. Needles to say, I'm ticked off that devices
:could be designed so poorly.
:
:Thanks in advance.

Can you tell us what scanners you've used? I use the Pro 96, Pro97,
and PSR 500. Also have used several different Bearcat, Uniden, and
Radio Shack
models and haven't found thesquelchtoo difficult to regulate.

I assume you've turned thesquelchall the way up and then backed it
slowly
down until it just allows the radio to scan thru the frequencies?
That's how I fine tune mine. If I have an additional freq. or two
that overloads and stops on that setting I back off thesquelchjust
slightly to get those
freqs/channels to scan. So far I don't feel I'm missing anything and
everything seems to come in loud and clear.

Am I missing anything? Is this what you've done so far without
success?

You assume correctly. As I mentioned... I try to use as little
squelch as possible.
I did have one scanner that worked not too bad (a Pro 92) that died.
I'm looking for another one with no success.
I've since bought several on Ebay that are total crap. A pro 2051, a
pro 2055, and a few others that I don't recall.
I suppose that it could be just bad luck that I got duds.

I've designed a lot of digital and microprocessor electronics in my
day, and what kills me is that it would be so simple and inexpensive
to digitally process the audio signal to see if there is a signal
present. The computer could then just cut-out the squelch at that
point. Rather it seems that they just use some old crappy analogue
squelch circuit that chops out the audio (especially on weak
signals). I'm seriously considering making my own scanner unless
somebody knows of a good one that doesn't use WWII technology.

Lol good one. Don't even know how to use squelch, yet you are going to
design your own scanner.
Please post back with the results.