A while back, I purchased an ICOM R6 handheld receiver (scanner). I’d been on the fence about it because even though it was rather affordable at only about $200, it was still a chunk of money for a tightwad like me.
I wanted it because too often I would be somewhere and either come across some sort of accident or other police/rescue activity, or I’d hear sirens (alot of them) in the distance and wonder what was going on. Now, it isn’t necessarily that Im nosy (although I am) but rather if there is some Big Hairy Deal going on somewhere that requires the efforts of a large amount of overcompensated city employees…well…I should probably be aware of it. Chlorine tanker derails? I wanna now…now. Shooting at the Walmart and that side of town is locked down? I need to know. Car fire on the bridge downtown? Need to know. So..I picked up the R6. The R6 is tiny, which has some problems, but fits in my Bag O’ Tricks and runs on AA batts. I did a bit of research and programmed it to cover all the local police/fire channels, FRS, GRMS, and a few other useful frequencies. Sometimes it is very useful to know what other people are doing. Sure, many agencies use encrypted communications these days or some other method of defeating casual listeners like me, but…lets be honest….most cops and firemen will take the easy way out and that means just keying the mic and talking rather than remembering tactical frequencies, protocols, encryption keys, and which button on the Motorola turns off that horrible noise.
Biggest drawback is that because of the thing’s tiny size, alot of buttons do double or triple duty. Programming and navigating through different functions can be challenging with constant references back to the user manual. (Tip: keep the .pdf of the manual in your phone)
Since my bag is expected to get bounced and banged around, I keep the R6 in a little Pelican 1010 Micro case.. keeps everything safe and uncrushed.
One item I splurged on, a year or so after I bought the radio, was a programming cable and software package. Rather than go through the button pushing process, I just hooked the scanner up to my computer and loaded up the frequencies that way. Highly recommend.
Since the R6 runs on AA batts, it fits into my logistics plans nicely. The Pelican case keeps it dry and in one piece. And, when everyone is looking out the windows at all the flashing lights whizzing by on the highway I can get a handle on whats going on around me and adjust my pans accordingly. Forewarned is forearmed and all that jazz.
Sounds like a good unit. You being you, however, I am surprised that you haven’t considered getting a redundant unit, same specs since you already have the programming setup and .pdf and are becoming familiar daily with listening as you travel – or you should do so when traveling. By the time you hear the sirens you have already missed out on 50% of the important information broadcast. Not sure what digital systems they have in your AO, but from 30+years of scanner listening for work and now personal interest esp. when traveling, programming in even the older local legacy VHF/UHF frequencies lets you ‘listen around the edges’ of any event that might interest you and yours. Also any big event will cascade calling in mutual aid from other areas filling in your gaps in information. A much more learned radiohead than I has intoned that listening is 2X or 3X as important as transmitting. And I agree with that statement. best, redclay7
Do you also have to carry a cheat sheet to remind you what the different police and first-responder codes mean?
Having a real time resource of information about events involving emergency services is a great idea. One thing, don’t be surprised when you come across encrypted transmissions. More and more police/fire/ambulance services are using radios that are encrypted. Hell, a year before I retired the boss traded our radios in for Motorola radios that were not only encrypted, but had an emergency “I’ve fallen down and can’t get up” button. The boss was worried about guys getting hurt at night.
I’ve got my scanner on all the time while sitting at my desk. I listen to the school busses in the morning, because they are out and about, and I’ve got kids in school.
Most days and some nights, I will lock onto the interop freqs that our local agencies use for surveillance work. TONS of useful info for someone who wants to know what capabilities they have, and what sort of major crime is happening in your ao, and what they’re doing about it. LOTS of drug trafficking in the areas around me.
A lot of what seemed like the more fanciful elements of Matt Bracken’s novels have been revealed to be in use by magazine articles in the trade press, and by what I’ve heard on the air. They talked about the GPS tracker they’re using and often talk about its limitations. The cameras they have (networked IP cams) pointed at suspect houses (and the problems they have with them). The wiretaps and limits on their intercept ability. The fact that they have a camera and wiretap monitoring room. The tradecraft they are using to follow suspects (classic loose box) along with the air unit and its loiter time and imaging capability. Truly shocking discussions naming the software apps they use to access the cams. All in clear speech. The only encrypted traffic is the District Attorney’s office and SWAT tactical.
I have the uniden home patrol and it’s built in library is great.
nick
I work for the Sheriff’s office in the valley to your immediate south. I know we don’t use any encryption and neither does your jurisdiction. Even with the various David Codes and 10 Codes, it’s usually pretty easy to piece together what’s going on. If you ever feel like swapping lies and driving fast, contact me about a ride along.
I seem to be headed in the opposite direction. The more unplugged I get the happier I am.
I suppose thats a choice, but I feel the need to have a high level of awareness of my environment.
Most of the nation is moving to digital systems like P-25. Although not encrypted, it is digital and requires a receiver capable of reception. There are a number of small handheld units that will demodulate the digital signals as well as the traditional analog radio traffic as well. The Home Patrol II runs on AA, and is probably twice the size of the R6. I guess it all depends on your AO, but if the local PD is using P-25, the R6 isn’t worth the small size.