PRO-43 (200-0300) Guide to Scanning Faxback Doc. # 16689 BIRDIES Birdies are the products of internally generated signals that make some frequencies difficult or impossible to receive. If you program one of these frequencies, you might hear only noise on the channel. If the interference is not severe, you might be able to turn SQUELCH clockwise to cut out the interference. The most common birdies to watch for are listed below. Birdies Frequencies: 33.675 MHz 48.045 MHz 139.120 MHz 274.425 MHz 33.775 49.430 139.325 290.475 34.075 50.480 143.550 291.325 37.655 122.575 144.135 463.250 37.860 126.475 147.770 464.850 37.945 129.825 154.825 488.175 38.000 130.400 156.210 489.775 38.910 130.500 248.725 885.600 43.120 134.900 257.550 901.5625 45.220 135.100 265.9875 903.5625 RECEPTION NOTES Reception on the frequencies covered on the scanner is mainly line-of- sight. That means you usually cannot hear stations that are located beyond the horizon. During the summer months, you might be able to hear stations in the 30-50 MHz range located several hundreds or even thousands of miles away. This type of reception is unpredictable, but often very interesting. One very useful service is the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Weather Radio's continuous weather broadcasts. These broadcasts contain weather forecasts and data for the area around the station, plus bulletins on any threatening weather conditions. These stations use three frequencies - 162.40, 162.475, and 162.55 MHz. In most areas of the country, you can receive one or more of these frequencies. GUIDE TO THE ACTION BANDS With the right frequencies programmed into the scanner, you can monitor exciting events. With a little investigation, you can find active frequencies in your community. We can give you some general pointers, and you can take it from there. Please use caution and common sense when you hear an emergency call. Never go to the scene of an emergency. It is the most dangerous thing you could do. Find out if there is a local club that monitors your community's frequencies. Perhaps a local electronics repair shop that works on equipment similar to the scanner can give you channel frequencies used by local radio services. A volunteer police or fire employee can also be a good source for this information. As a general rule on VHF, most activity is concentrated between 153.785 and 155.98 MHz and then again from 158.73 to 159.46 MHz. Here you find local government, police, fire, and most emergency services. If you are near a railroad or major railroad tracks, look around 160.0 to 161.9 for signals. You can hear commercial aircraft transmissions between 118 and 136.975 MHz. Military aircraft operate between 225 and 400 MHz. In some large cities, the UHF bands are used for emergency services. Here, most of the activity is between 453.025 and 467.925 MHz. In the UHF band, frequencies between 456.025 and 459.95 MHz and between 465.025 and 469.975 MHz are used by mobile units and control stations associated with base and repeater units that operate 5 MHz lower (that is, between 451.025 and 454.95 MHz and between 460.025 and 464.975 MHz). This means if you find an active frequency inside one of these spreads, you can look 5 MHz lower (or higher) to find the base station/repeater for that service. A newer technology is now available that uses the 800 MHz band for many services. Trunked radio, introduced to business systems in 1975, is now used by public safety agencies. With up to twenty channels available, the transmitter automatically selects an unused frequency each time it is activated. Several agencies can share such a system without interfering with each other. This system can provide secure communications for selected units, with unselected units unable to hear the message. Frequencies in different bands are accessible only at specific intervals. In the VHF-Lo, HAM, Government, and VHF-Hi bands, frequencies are available in 5 kHz steps. In the aircraft band, frequencies are available in 25 kHz steps. In all other bands, frequencies are available in 12.5 kHz steps. The scanner rounds the entered frequency down to the nearest valid frequency. For example, if you try to enter the 151.473, the scanner accepts this as 151.470 MHz. Typical Band Usage The following is a brief list of typical services that use the bands your scanner can receive. This listing can help you decide which ranges you would like to scan. These frequencies are subject to change, and might vary from area to area. For a more complete list, refer to the "Police Call Radio Guide Including Fire and Emergency Service," "Official Aeronautical Frequency Directory," and "Official Marine Frequency Directory" available at your local Radio Shack store. Band Usage: 30-50 MHz: 30.00-30.55 .......................... USA, UAR, USN, UCG, UAF 60.00-31.98 ............................... IS, IP, IB, LU, PO 32.00-32.99 ................ USA, UAR, USN, UCG, UGX, UAF, UIR 33.02-33.98 ........................... PS, PH, IS, IB, IP, PF 34.01-34.99 ...... UCG, UER, USA, UAR, UAF, USN, UGX, UIP, UIF 35.02-35.98 ........................... IB, IT, RC, RT, IS, PS 36.01-36.99 ............................... UIX, UER, USA, UAR 37.02-37.98 ............................... PP, PL, IW, PH, PS 38.27-38.99 ...... USA, USN, UGX, UGF, UAR, UAF, UIX, UTV, UVA 39.02-39.98 ........................................... PP, PL 40.01-41.99 ..... UIA, UAR, UIP, USA, UVA, UER, USN, UIF, UIR, UTV, UIM, IP, UIX, UAE, UEP, UCG, UIL, BIFC, UHW, UTX 42.02-42.94 ............................................... PP 42.96-43.68 ........................... IB, IS, IT, RC, RT, PS 43.70-44.60 ........................................... LU, LJ 44.62-46.58 ........................... PP, PO, PL, PH, PF, PS 46.61-46.99 ............... USA, UIL, BIFC, UAF, UAR, UGX, UGF 47.02-49.58 ........................... PH, PS, IS, IW, IF, IP 49.61-49.99 ........... UIL, UAR, UGC, UAF, UAR, UGX, UGF, USA 150-173 MHz: 150.775-151.985 ................. PM, LA, IF, PH, PO, IS, IB 152.0075-152.84 ..................... PM, RC, LX, IF, IB, RT 152.87-153.725 ...................... IM, IS, IP, IX, IF, IW 153.74-156.24 ................... PL, PF, IS, IB, PP, PM, PH 156.255-157.45 ...................... IP, MC, MS, MG, MP, PM 157.47-158.70 ... LA, LX, IF, IS, IB, RT, IW, IP, IX, IT, RC 158.73-159.48 ........................... PP, PL, PH, PO, IP 159.495-161.565 ..................................... LR, LJ 161.58-162.00 ............................... IP, MC, BA, MP 162.025-173.9675 ...................... Misc. Govt. Agencies 406-512 MHz: 406.125-419.975 ....................... Misc. Govt. Agencies 450.05-450.925 .......................................... BA 451.725-452.175 ............................. IW, IF, IT, IX 451.725-452.175 ............................. IS, IF, IP, LX 452.2-452.95 ................................ LX, LF, LR, LA 452.975-453.975 ..................... IY, PL, PH, PF, PO, PP 454.00-457.6 ........................ IP, RC, RT, RA, BA, IB 458.025-467.925 .............. PM, PP, IB, IF IP, IT, IW, GM 482.00-508.9875 ........................ Mixed Public Safety Abbreviations BA ......................................... Remote Broadcast (Radio & TV) CA ................................................ General Mobile (Radio) CAP ..................................................... Civil Air Patrol IB .............................................................. Business IF ....................................................... Forest Products IM ............................................... Motion Picture Industry IP .................................................... Petroleum Industry IS ...................... Special Industrial (Construction, farming, etc.) IT ................................................. Telephone Maintenance IW ............................................. Power and Water Utilities IX ......................................................... Manufacturers IY ..................................... Relay Press (newspaper reporters) LA ..................................... Automotive Emergency (tow trucks) LJ ................................................. Motor Carrier, Trucks LR .............................................................. Railroad LU .................................................. Motor Carrier, Buses LX .................................................................. Taxi MC ............................. Maritime Limited Coast (private stations) MG ..................................... Maritime Government (Coast Guard) MP .............................. Maritime Public Coast (marine telephone) MS .................................................... Maritime Shipboard PF .................................................................. Fire PH ................................................... Highway Maintenance PL ...................................................... Local Government PM ...................................................... Medical Services PO ................................................. Forestry Conservation PP ................................................................ Police PS ..................................................... Special Emergency RA ........................................... Mobile Telephone (aircraft) RC ............................... Mobile Telephone (radio common carrier) RT ................................. Mobile Telephone (landline companies) BIFC ........................................ Boise Interagency Fire Cache Government Agencies UAF ............................................................ Air Force UAR ................................................................. Army UBW ............................ International Boundary & Water Commission UCE .................................. Environmental Research Laboratories UCF ........................................... Maritime Fisheries Service UCG .......................................................... Coast Guard UCM .............................................. Maritime Administration UCO ......................................................... Ocean Survey UCP .............................................. National Capital Police UCW ............................................. National Weather Service UCX ............................................... Department of Commerce UEP ...................................... Environmental Protection Agency IER ................................................. Department of Energy IFA ...................................... Federal Aviation Administration IFC .................................... Federal Communications Commission UGC ............................................ Soil Conservation Service UGF ....................................................... Forest Service UGS ....................................... General Service Administration UGX ............................................ Department of Agriculture UHW .............................. Department of Health and Human Services UIB ...................................... Bonnoville Power Administration UIF ............................... Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife UIG .................................................... Geological Survey UII ............................................. Bureau of Indian Affairs LIL ............................................ Bureau of Land Management UIM ...................................................... Bureau of Mines UIP ................................................ National Park Service UIR ................................................ Bureau of Reclamation UIS .................................... Southwestern Power Administration UIX ........................................... Department of the Interior UNO ....................................................... United Nations UNS ................................................................. NASA UPO ....................................................... Postal Service USA ............................................. Federal Government Misc. USD ..................................................... State Department USN ................................................................. Navy UTC .................................................... Bureau of Customs UTM ................................................... Bureau of the Mint UTR ......................................... Department of Transportation UTV ........................................... Tennessee Valley Authority UTX .................................................. Treasury Department UVA .............................................. Veterans Administration UXX ........................................................... Classified Abbreviations used by permission of the publishers of "Police Call Radio Guide", Copyright Hollins Radio Date. Unlike the lower bands, frequencies in the 800 MHz band are not allocated by the FCC to specific services. In each area, the channels are licensed on a first-come, first-served basis. There are two categories for licensing: Public Safety and Industrial. Systems using one to five channels are conventional. Five-channel systems might use trunked service, but all systems with more than five channels must use trunked service. 851.0125-855.9875 ................................... Conventional Systems 856.0125-860.9875 ................................ Conventional or Trunked 861.0125-865.9875 ........................................ Trunked Systems 866.000-869.9999 .................................... Reserved - Satellite USING EXTERNAL POWER Using an AC Power Source To power the scanner from AC power, you need Radio Shack's 9-volt, 300 mA AC adapter (Cat. No. 20-188). Using an adapter with different ratings could damage the scanner or the adapter. 1. Insert the adapter's barrel plug in the scanner's PWR jack. NOTE: If you install rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries in the scanner, you can connect the AC adapter to the CHG jack. This powers the scanner and recharges the batteries at the same time. See "Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries." 2. Plug the adapter's power module into a standard AC outlet. 3. When you finish using the AC adapter, disconnect it from the AC outlet. Then disconnect it from the PWR jack. Using a DC Adapter You can power the PRO-43 from your vehicle's cigarette-lighter socket, provided the vehicle has a 12-volt, negative-ground electrical system. To do so, you need Radio Shack's Universal DC Adapter (Cat. No. 270-1560A). NOTES: If you install rechargeable batteries in the PRO-43, you can connect the adapter to CHG jack. This powers the scanner and recharges the batteries. See "Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries." If the scanner does not operate properly when you use an adapter, unplug the adapter from the cigarette-lighter socket and remove ashes and other debris. 1. Connect the adapter's orange barrel plug to the adapter's power cable with the tip set to - (negative). 2. Set the adapter's voltage switch to 9 volts. 3. Insert the adapter's barrel plug into the scanner's PWR jack. 4. Plug the other end of the adapter into your vehicle's cigarette-lighter socket. 5. When you finish using the adapter, first disconnect it from the cigarette-lighter socket. Then disconnect it from the scanner. Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries You can charge nickel-cadmium batteries without removing them from the scanner. To charge the batteries, connect an AC or DC adapter to the CHG jack as explained in "Power Sources." WARNING: Do not try to recharge non-rechargeable batteries. They can become hot and even explode. It takes 10 to 18 hours to recharge fully discharged batteries. You can operate the scanner while you charge the batteries, but the charging time is longer. Do not use any adapter other than those specified in "Power Sources" to charge the batteries in the scanner. While adapters of the same voltage rating and at least the minimum current rating could power the scanner, other adapters might not work properly with the charging circuit in the scanner, and could permanently damage the batteries or the scanner. CHARGING HINTS To ensure a full charge, do not charge the batteries in an area where the temperature is below 40 degrees F. Doing so does not damage the batteries, but they are unable to accept a full charge in that situation. To prevent permanent nickel-cadmium battery power loss, never charge your batteries in an area where the temperature is above 80 degrees F. Also, if you use an external charger, do not overcharge the batteries. (llg/all-08/24/95)