Choosing the Right Scanner

New to scanning or picking one up as a gift?  You are not alone, this is one of the most common questions we get and it is a good one to ask before buying.

The honest truth is that choosing the right scanner is more complicated than it used to be. The wrong purchase can mean a perfectly good radio that picks up nothing useful in your area. Here is what you need to know and what we look at when someone reaches out to us for a recommendation.

The single most important thing to do first is contact us before you buy. Give us your county and state or zip code and we will look up exactly what systems are running in your area and tell you which scanner will actually work there and which ones will not. Reach us at 508-419-4028 or dan@coastalrfcomms.com.

Encryption is the first thing we check. Some agencies have moved to encrypted radio and there is no scanner at any price that can receive encrypted transmissions. Knowing this upfront saves a lot of frustration.

P25 Simulcast systems are the next big consideration. Many areas including much of New England run P25 trunked systems with simulcast meaning multiple towers transmit the same signal simultaneously across a coverage area. Most P25 capable scanners struggle badly with simulcast distortion. Currently the Uniden SDS series including the SDS100, SDS150 and SDS200 are the only models that handle simulcast reliably. If your area is simulcast and you buy the wrong radio the audio will be garbled or unusable.

Standard P25 systems that are not simulcast are less demanding. Any current Uniden P25 capable scanner will receive unencrypted P25 traffic whether the system is trunked or conventional.

The BCD160DN and BCD260DN cause more buyer confusion than any other model. Both say digital on the box which leads people to assume they will work on digital public safety systems. They will not. These scanners support DMR and NXDN which are commercial and business band digital modes but they do not support P25 and they do not follow trunked radio systems. In some areas they are exactly the right tool. In most public safety monitoring situations they are the wrong choice entirely. This is exactly why a quick call or email before buying matters.

Analog systems are still in use throughout rural New England and for many municipal and utility operations. Every scanner handles analog so if your area is purely analog you do not need to spend a lot. We will tell you when that is the case.

Other things worth monitoring include aircraft both civilian and military, marine traffic, railroad operations and weather. These are available on most scanners depending on your location and the specific model.

Antennas make a bigger difference than most people realize. A modest outdoor antenna on a base scanner will outperform the stock rubber duck antenna significantly. We can talk through options there as well.

Bottom line it is not as complicated as it sounds once someone walks you through it. We would rather spend five minutes with you before the purchase than have you end up with the wrong radio. Reach out anytime at 508-419-4028 or dan@coastalrfcomms.com.