RadioShack Pro 90 TrunkTracker Scanner Owners Manual

51
A GENERAL GUIDE TO SCANNING
Reception of the frequencies covered by your scanner is
mainly “line-of-sight.” That means you usually cannot
hear stations that are beyond the horizon.
GUIDE TO FREQUENCIES
National Weather Frequencies
Canadian Weather Frequencies
Note: 
These frequencies are not pre-programmed in the
weather service bank but can be manually programmed
into a channel.
Birdie Frequencies
Every scanner has birdie frequencies. Birdies are sig-
nals created inside the scanner’s receiver. These...

52
GUIDE TO THE ACTION BANDS
Typical Band Usage
Primary Usage
As a general rule, most of the radio activity is concentrat-
ed on the following frequencies:
VHF BandVHF Band
Low Range 29.00–50.00 MHz
6-Meter Amateur 50.00–54.00 MHz
U.S. Government 137.00–144.00 MHz
2-Meter Amateur 144.00–148.00 MHz
High Range 148.00–174.00 MHz
UHF Band
U.S. Government 406.00–420.00 MHz
70-cm Amateur 420.00–450.00 MHz
Low Range 450.00–470.00 MHz
FM-TV Audio Broadcast, Wide 
Band470.00–512.00 MHz
Public Service...

53
UHF Band
Note: Remote control stations and mobile units operate
at 5 MHz higher than their associated base stations and
relay repeater units.
BAND ALLOCATION
To help decide which frequency ranges to scan, use the
following listing of the typical services that use the fre-
quencies your scanner receives. These frequencies are
subject to change, and might vary from area to area. For
a more complete listing, refer to the “Police Call Radio
Guide including Fire and Emergency Services,” available
at your...

54
PTR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Private Trunked
ROAD  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Road & Highway Maintenance
RTV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Radio/TV Remote Broadcast Pickup
TAXI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Taxi Services
TELB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Mobile Telephone
 . . (Aircraft, Radio Common Carrier, Landline Companies)
TELC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....

55
150.995–151.475  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ROAD, POL
151.490–151.955  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, BUS
151.985 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TELM
152.0075 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MED
152.030–152.240  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TELB
152.270–152.480  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, TAXI, BUS...

56
458.025–458.175  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MED
460.0125–460.6375  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FIRE, POL, PUB
460.650–462.175  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BUS
462.1875–462.450  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BUS, IND
462.4625–462.525  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, OIL, TELM, UTIL
462.550–462.925  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GMR, BUS
462.9375–463.1875  . . . . ....

57
FREQUENCY CONVERSION
The tuning location of a station can be expressed in fre-
quency (kHz or MHz) or in wavelength (meters). The fol-
lowing information can help you make the necessary
conversions.
1 MHz (million) = 1,000 kHz (thousand)
To convert MHz to kHz, multiply the number of mega-
hertz by 1,000:
9.62 (MHz) x 1000  = 9620 kHz
To convert from kHz to MHz, divide the number of kilo-
hertz by 1,000:
2780 (kHz) ¸ 1000 = 2.780 MHz
To convert MHz to meters, divide 300 by the number of
megahertz:
300...

58
TROUBLESHOOTING
If you have problems, here are some suggestions that
might help. If they  do  not,  take  your  scanner  to  your
local  RadioShack store for assistance.
PROBLEMPOSSIBLE 
CAUSEREMEDY
Scanner is on 
but will not scan.
SQUELCH is not 
correctly 
adjusted.Adjust SQUELCH 
counterclockwise.
Only one chan-
nel or no chan-
nels are stored.Store frequencies 
into more than one 
channel.
Scanner is totally 
inoperative.No power. Check the battery 
pack or make sure 
the scanner is 
plugged into...

59
PROBLEMPOSSIBLE 
CAUSEREMEDY
Poor or no 
reception (con-
tinued)An antenna is 
not connected or 
connected incor-
rectly.Make sure an 
antenna is con-
nected to the scan-
ner.
Error 
appears.Programming 
error.Reprogram the fre-
quency correctly, 
including the deci-
mal point.
In the scan 
mode, the scan-
ner locks on fre-
quencies that 
have an unclear 
transmission.Programmed fre-
quencies are the 
same as “birdie” 
frequencies.Avoid programming 
frequencies listed 
under “Birdie Fre-
quencies” on...

60
PROBLEMPOSSIBLE 
CAUSEREMEDY
Scanner will not 
acquire a data 
channel.
SQUELCH is not 
correctly 
adjusted for 
trunk tracking.Adjust squelch for 
trunk tracking. See 
“Setting Squelch for 
the Trunk Tracking 
Mode” on Page 33.
The frequency 
used for the data 
channel is miss-
ing.Add the frequency 
used for the data 
channel to the fre-
quency list. (see 
“Programming 
Trunked Frequen-
cies” on Page 34).
Missing replies 
to conversations.The system you 
are trying to 
track is a Type I 
system, and...