PRO-2050 VHF/UHF/Air/800 MHz 300-Channel Trunk Tracker Home Scanner
(200-0430A)                Understanding Scanners     Faxback Doc. # 61191

Once you understand a few simple terms we use in this manual and 
familiarize yourself with your scanner's features, you can put the scanner 
to work for you.  You simply determine the type of communications you want 
to receive, then set the scanner to scan them.

A frequency is the tuning location of a station (expressed in kHz or MHz).
To find active frequencies, you can use the search function.

You can also search the service-search banks, which are preset groups of
frequencies categorized by type of service.

When you find a frequency, you can store it into a programmable memory
location called a channel, which is grouped with your other channels in a
channel-storage bank.  You can scan the channel-storage banks to see if
there is activity on the frequencies stored there.  Each time the scanner
finds an active frequency, it stays on that channel until the transmission
ends.

A Look At The Front Panel

Your scanner's keys might seem confusing at first, but this information
should help you understand each key's function.

Note:  Some of the scanner's keys perform more than one function and are
       marked with more than one label.  The steps in this Owner's Manual
       show only the label on the key appropriate to the action being
       performed.

VOLUME ---------- Turns the scanner on or off and adjusts the volume.

SQUELCH --------- Adjusts the scanner's squelch.

SCAN ------------ Scans through the stored channels.

MANUAL ---------- Stops scanning and lets you directly enter a channel
                  number or frequency.

TRUNK ----------- Switches between conventional and trunk tracking modes.

SVC (service)---- Selects a service bank.

PRIORITY/SPEED -- Sets and turns on and off the priority feature; turns
                  the HyperSearch mode on and off.

Number Keys ----- Each key has a single-digit label and range of numbers.
                  The single digits are used to enter a channel, frequency
                  or ID number. The range of numbers (31-60, for example)
                  indicates the channels that make up a memory bank.

(decimal [.]) --- Enters a decimal point.

CLEAR ----------- Clears an entry.

E (enter) ------- Enters frequencies into channels or enters IDs into a
                  scan list.

LIMIT/ \/ ------- Sets the frequency range; sets the search direction and
                  holds a frequency search.

DELAY ----------- Programs a 2-second delay for the selected channel, a
                  limit search, or each service scan.  Also programs a 5
                  second delay in the trunk tracking mode.

SEARCH ---------- Searches a specified frequency range to find frequencies
                  searches for another active ID in the trunk tracking
                  mode.

L/O/SKIP -------- Lets you lock out selected channels or frequencies; lets
(lock out/skip)   you lock out a selected ID in the trunk tracking mode.

HOLD/ /\ -------- Holds on the current ID in the trunk tracking mode; sets
                  the search direction and holds the frequency search.
____
DATA ------------ Turns the data signal skip feature on and off or checks
                  the current trunking bank in the trunk tracking mode.

A Look At The Display

The display has indicators that show the scanner's current operating 
status.  A good look at the display will help you understand how your 
scanner operates.

LIST ------------ Appears with a number (1-5) to indicate the list number.

BANK ------------ Appears with numbers (1-10) to indicate the scan bank.

PUB ------------- Appears when you search the public safety service bank.

POLICE ---------- Appears when you search the police bank.

FIRE/EMG -------- Appears when you search the fire/emergency service bank.

AIR ------------- Appears when you search the air service bank.

WX -------------- Appears when you search the weather service bank.

TRUNK ----------- Appears when the scanner is in trunk tracking mode.

( - ) ----------- Shows which control/voice channels are currently active.
(channel activity 
 indicator)

[P] ------------- Appears when a priority channel is selected.

SCAN ------------ Appears when you scan channels.

MANUAL ---------- Appears when you set the scanner to its manual mode.

PRI ------------- Appears when the priority feature is turned on.

HOLD ------------ Appears when the scanner is in the hold mode during a
                  search.

DELAY ----------- Appears when you program a delay.
____
DATA ------------ Appears when the data skip function is active; appears
                  in the trunk tracking mode when the disconnect tone
                  detect function is off.

L/O (lockout) --- Appears when you manually select a channel, frequency,
                  or ID you locked out.

\/ SEARCH /\ ---- Lights steadily during a limit search, service search
                  and ID search and blinks while HyperSearch is active and
                  when you monitor IDs.  The arrow indicates the search
                  direction.

Error ----------- Appears when you make an entry error.

Understanding Banks

Channel Storage Banks

To make it easier to identify and select the channels you want to listen 
to, channels are divided into 10 banks of 30 channels each.  Use each 
channel storage bank to group frequencies, such as those used by the 
police department, fire department, ambulance services, or aircraft (see 
"Guide to the Action Bands" on Faxback Doc. # 61196).  For example, the 
police department might use four frequencies, one for each side of town. 
You could program the police frequencies starting with Channel 1 (the 
first channel in bank 1) and program the fire department frequencies 
starting with Channel 31 (the first channel in bank 2).

Service Banks

The scanner is preprogrammed with the frequencies allocated by public
safety, police, fire/emergency, aircraft, and weather services.  This is
handy for quickly finding active frequencies instead of searching through
an entire band (see "Searching Service Banks" on Faxback Doc. # 61192). 

Understanding Trunking

In the past, groups that broadcast frequently, such as police departments,
were restricted to transmitting on just a few frequencies.  This resulted
in heavy traffic and often required 2-way radio users to wait for a 
specific frequency to clear before transmitting.

Trunked systems allow more groups of 2-way radio users to use fewer
frequencies. Instead of selecting a specific frequency to transmit on, a
trunked system chooses one of several frequencies when the 2-way radio 
user presses PTT (push to talk).  The system automatically transmits the 
call on that frequency, and also sends a code that identifies that 2-way 
radio user's transmission on a data channel.

You can set this scanner to monitor the data channel frequency, so you can
hear the call and response transmissions for that 2-way radio user and
therefore follow the conversation.  (You cannot listen to the data channel
itself in the trunk mode.)

(GLW EB 8/21/00)

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