Uniden BCD996P2 Digital Mobile TrunkTracker V Scanner, 25,000 Dynamically Allocated Channels, Close Call RF Capture Technology, 4-Line Alpha display, Base/Mobile Design, Phase 2, Location-Based Scanning

Got for 90 yr old dad. Keeps his mind interested.

While the product itself its top notch, it desperately needs to come with an available programming software. While there are free options this scanner will take hours to program even the simplest database without a bulk import. Very good for APCO but if you are looking to receive a simulcast system, buy a directional antenna or look elsewhere because it struggles with it. I am happy with the purchase but wanted to be blown away.

The scanner hobby has been a part of my life since I built a SuperRegen Receiver at age 13. I an now 65. For scanners/receivers I have, and have owned Patrolman PRO-2 & 3, Patrolman 9 &10, PRO-2006, PRO-95, AOR1500, AOR2500, AOR3000A, AOR8200, IC-R1, BC200, BC780XLT, URR35C, and many more I cant recall. I have owned the BCD996P2 for three years now. I purchased it to receive P25 Phase II, which my older BC780XLT would not. Yes, it has wide frequency coverage and lots of cool features. But here in a metropolitan area, it overloads with tons of Mixing Products causing a desensing. This masks the weaker signals from farther away. I could barely receive the local NOAA Weather Broadcast at 162.55 mhz, and could not hear either 162.475 mhz or 162.525 mhz on the BCD996P2. This is with an Outdoor Antenna connected. The Front End in this scanner is very sensitive and overloads if you live in a major metro area and you connect it to an outside antenna. I solved the problem by using a Splitter/Attenuator between the antenna and the scanner. I use a -20db port on the Splitter and it works like magic. As soon as I added the Attenuator I could receive signals from stations up to 70 miles distant! I am delighted with the BCD996P2. KG7M

This scanner is great. Its easy to program once you figure out, without any help from the manufacturer, that you need to use a windows 7 computer and not windows 10 to program it if you want to use pc software to do it. You can program this scanner from the unit itself if you really want to. Its one of the easier scanners Ive programmed for conventional anyways. I havent had a chance to try out the trunking of p25 capabilities yet as my area is building out their p25 p2 network at the moment.

I love all the whistles and bells on this scanner. Simple to program. Like the option of different display colors for different programmed talk groups. Only thing I dont like is its range. Poor in my opinion. I have a older hd956d its range is twice the distance of this scanner. Overall its a nice add to all my equipment.

This scanner is capable of receiving the majority of everything (not encrypted) in the Police/Fire/Public Service/Military Air/Gov/Misc bands in either analog or digital modes. It receives APCO P-25 digital (both Phase I & II) signals great for me with a stock antenna but I am in a good location to receive two actual P-25 trunk radio system site towers with good signal levels. With digital 800 Mhz signals though, you may need less antenna. About 6.5 inches in length is a good 800 Mhz antenna. With an attic mount ST-2 antenna on a tv antenna booster, I can receive analog signals 60 plus miles away cleanly but thats flat terrain to the top of the Willis Tower. If you have marginal (P-25) 800 Mhz signal levels you wont get many signal bars lit up, it wont trunk track right and you may see talkgroups show up on the display but no audio is heard/garbled/breaks up because it cant decode the digital modulation, or it just might be encrypted. When you get trunking lock on a control channel in APCO P-25 mode, the actual frequency will show up (small) on the display, otherwise you just get NFM on the display which means youre not tracking the system and it will not work. But once you get lock on a control channel, if it all works correctly, it grabs talkgroups at will and you will have to label them or sort out what you wish to really listen to as there will be plenty of (channels=talkgroups) at busy times. With digital trunking systems, it depends on the tower near you having the talkgroup channels you want to hear available on that tower. As far as digital trunking signals go with any digital scanner, all bets are off. The signals fade out at times, some of these RF tower signals get more/less power alloted to them on each tower. In order to fully monitor one P-25 system, the scanner may have to listen to 6 or more towers (in one system) that are all directions from you with varying RF power levels on each frequency, in order to properly receive ALL of your chosen channel (talkgroups) in that Police system you want to hear. If this seems too complicated, well it is. There is a Computer Control channel on P25 digital trunking systems that tells the police system computer what frequency to use or hop to (each split second) and you may get that individual frequencys (talkgroup) good/bad/gone off various towers (and all at nearly the same time yet!) This is called simulcasting distortion and makes listening to any APCO P-25 digital Police trunking radio system extremely hard for any new digital scanner. And the nasty winds, rain, leaf foliage too all mess havoc with these signals. No getting around this. You may be in a good/bad location, it all depends. You may have missed details in your programming, yes I did too many times. Could be your location, your antenna, your programming, proximity to too many other site towers, winds, (high winds or hot/humid air seem nasty on narrow P-25 signals), or the big TV/Radio/Cell Towers nearby with mega kw watts etc. It is a huge complicated mess even for an expert radio engineer to deal with. A lot of it is...trial and error with P-25 digital. Does it track control signal? No. Move antenna/radio a few inches, try again. But the BCD996P2 (once setup right) excels at receiving everything great! This scanner works Great for me in my location even on the factory antenna. And the bandscope mode is fabulous too. I love it. It is up to you to sort out the critical-channel-programming first before you use it. Study the Radio Reference website, it might take time. I would advise to use a computer to program this scanner, otherwise youll just pull your hair out. You cant program this scanner by using zip codes like some others. Freescan (sixspotsoftware) is a great Free program to use, I use it, others exist too. You can plug the scanner into your PC via the included USB cable. My Win 7 PCs found it right away (You setup Control Scanner, Set com port to auto find in Freescan and it should find your scanner on a com port. Then you upload your channels/lineups to the scanner) But first you need to find the frequencies in the Radio Reference website. Freescan also has a Cut N Paste frequency import method which works fine as you select from database info. An outside scanner antenna used with at least an RG-6 cable is optimal for the best reception with this extended coverage scanner to hear everything. I also use a cheap (75 ohm) TV antenna signal booster with 18 db gain, on 50ft RG-6 and a 4 port ant splitter. I have a lot of RF signal levels (using bandscope mode) but no overload that I can see or hear. But for local signals (20 miles or less) you probably will do just as well with the back of set stock antenna, for both analog channels and digital systems. For 800 Mhz specific signals, use a 800 Mhz antenna like a Remtronix. The scanner can be used in the car, it comes with 2 DC power cords, one with a lighter plug, it has a nice bracket and includes the AC adapter. This unit is the base model of the portable BCD325P2 hand held scanner. They are the same to operate/use and program. This 996P2 model has a bottom fire speaker with a deep bass audio sound on digital systems and it sounds like a loudness circuit in a stereo, compared to my RS-652 desktop scanner which has a tinnier sound. You can choose one of 7 colors for the display and it has many signal adjustments for each channel/system, which is why you need patience. You can upgrade this scanner now to receive ProVoice, Mototrbo and DMR but Uniden charges an extra fee for each one. I do not have these upgrades and may not get. These new digital scanners are frustration devices to many people. For the expert, yes, this scanner is marvelous, you can hear everything except Encrypted signals. Be sure you have days/weeks of time and patience to spend with this thing first though. The learning curve is very steep. It is not plug it in, put in a few channels and listen like in the old days. Every channel has about a dozen parameters to setup first, a P-25 digital system may have 2 dozen parameters to setup first, then one dozen items per channel on top of this. This scanner does Not use an SD memory card to store channels/data to. These can be problematic and cause odd errors of all kinds. But the BCD996P2 scanner is a techs dream to use (once programmed properly) and a upgraded cousin to my all time favorite pal the Uniden BCD396XT portable scanner. But this scanner is still quite a challenge for anyone to setup/operate/use. Five stars because it is simply a phenomenal scanner (with exceptional abilities) targeted to mostly expert scanner junkies.

Took watching a few videos for my husband to get the channels programmed, but the sound is great, and he enjoys hearing the calls as he works in the shop.

Excellent performance on most systems even with the small, cheap antenna that comes with it. I can receive many transmissions from dozens of miles away and in my basement. Programming with software is a must, a subscription to radioreference and programming software will get you running very quickly. Very satisfied with this radio even though I havent completely mastered using it. Using it is difficult to understand at first so if you want a simple scanner (if such a thing exists) get something else...otherwise its probably the best mobile scanner you can buy.

NOT FOR A NOVICE. RECOMMEND HAVING THE PROS PROGRAM IT. I AM NOT TO THAT POINT YET. I AM FINDING IT IS NOT AS HARD AS SAID, IF YOU MESS UP, GO IN AND RESET TO START AND TRY AGAIN. MINE IS PULLING IN STATE POLICE FROM 150 MILES AWAY WITH A 30.00 OLD RADIO SHACK ANTENNA MADE FOR HIGH FREQUENCY. I RECOMMEND AN ANTENNA DESIGNED FOR DIGITAL SIGNAL. THEY ARE NOT THAT EXPENSIVE.

This radio works great! This was an upgrade for me from a 396T. I still use the 996T, but I got this to prepare for when Michigan switches to APCO 25 phase 2, currently the U.P. is still in Phase 1 as I write this now in 2016. 2017 looks like phase 2 will come here. Do yourself a favor, get freescan. Very easy to program with that free software. Also, subscribe to radio reference premium. With premium you can import the frequencies using the freescan software, its cheep enough, and well worth it. Depending on what system you are monitoring, I suggest getting an 800Mhz yagi antenna. That will only work for your area if you monitor 800 Mhz in simulcast. Otherwise you are only going to pick up whatever comes off of the tower you are aiming at. Use radio reference as a guide to help you, it can tell you in the forums, or in their database, what type of system is in your area. The scanner even comes with a programming cable, house adapter, and a car adapter.