Uniden Bc780xlt Trunk Tracker Scanner Owners Manual

							13
Understanding the Menu System
It is very important for you to understand the Menu screen. To navigate through the Menu
screen is really quite simple. Many of the features of this scanner, can only be accessed by
the menu screens. There are several ways to get through the screens. First of all, press
MENUto get started. Any time you want to exit this mode or simply quit from where you are,
repeatedly press 
MENUuntil the scanner returns to the original state. Anytime you are in the
Menu Mode, the audio will be muted.
To assist you in understanding the Menu screen, flow charts are provided towards the back
of the manual so you can follow along. Two things to remember are 
scrollthrough the menu
and 
executethe command. For simplicity, we have chosen to use the up and down arrow
keys (s and t) in order to 
scrollthrough the menu and the Ekey for enteringor executinga
command. Once you have pressed the 
E key and executed the final choice (for instance, ON
or OFF), the display backs up to the previous level of options.
Other methods for 
scrollingthrough the menu screen include rotating the VFOcontrol or
press and hold the up and down arrow keys (s and t) in order to 
scrollmore quickly. Also
direct entry of the numbers in the flow chart will get you through the screens, but the other
screen options are not visible. This method should be used only after you have gone through
the manual at least once. A tearout shortcut card is provided in the front of the manual to
assist you in the direct entry method for commonly used features.
Another method for 
entering or executingthe command, press the SELECT/MUTEkey or press
the VFO/SELECTcontrol.
Below is the first level of the Menu screen. These levels are then expanded on the foldout
towards the back of the manual. You will find a description section to explain the meanings of
these functions on the next few pages. Then, you will be walked through all the steps of
programming, scanning, searching, and trunktracking.
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Menu Description and Numeric Keypad Equivalents
Below are the menu screens and a brief description or purpose of the feature.
1:SYSTEM DATA
1:DIMMER 
Allows you to change the brightness of the display.
2:SCREEN MASK Screen Mask allows you to limit what appears on the display to the alpha tags that
you have set for a channel along with a few function icons. Screen Mask removes
the frequency, receiving mode, tone data, signal strength bars, and the trunking
repeater activity indicators. This mode is particularly useful in public safety vehicles
where “information overload” is already a problem. Screen Mask does not work in
Search mode.
3:KEY BEEPUse this function to turn off the keypad acknowledgement beep. The default setting
is on.
4:ENTER LOCKUse Enter Lock to prevent accidental re-programming of channels and talkgroups
entered into memory. The default setting is off.
5:PC CONTROLUse this function to set the transfer speed (baud rate) at which your personal
computer (PC) communicates with the scanner when downloading information into
your scanner using the Uniden national database or third party software. See 
page 65 for details.
6:CLONEYou can clone all the programming, including frequencies, talkgroups and alpha
tags as well as bank settings and other parameters from one BC780XLT to another.
7:SMARTSCANDownload frequencies, talkgroups and alpha tags for any area of the 50 states from
the Uniden national database using the modem in your PC or a stand alone
modem. Refer to page 59 for details.
8:DATA SKIPA scanner will normally stop on any transmission it receives. This means the
BC780XLT will occasionally stop on data signals and unmodulated transmissions.
You can automatically skip many of these types of transmissions during search.
9:SQUELCH MODEThe Squelch Mode allows you to set, at your option, whether the scanner will stop
on all active transmissions on a particular frequency or it will only respond to
transmissions with a pre-set sub-audible tone. This applies to both conventional
search and scan modes.The options are as follows:
1. CSQ - The default setting is CSQ (carrier squelch). In this mode the scanner will
stop on any transmission on a programmed frequency (Squelch mode does not
apply to trunking).
2. Tone SQ - In Tone Squelch mode, if you have set a subaudible tone (CTCSS or
DCS) for a frequency, the scanner will only stop on that frequency if the
transmission includes the prescribed tone.
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							15 3. Tone Search - In this mode, as soon as the scanner stops on any (non-trunked)
channel, the scanner will begin to search for any subaudible tone that is being
used on a transmitted frequency. The scanner will check each CTCSS tone
sequentially and it will find DCS tones instantly.
10:BANK TAGAllows you to set an alphanumeric text tag for individual banks in the scanner 
(1-10).(The “0” key represents Bank number 10.) For example, you may wish to set
the Bank One text tag as Law Enforcement, the second bank as Fire, etc.
2:CHANNEL DATAChoose the channel number. The following options are available for the selected
channel only. Repeat using a different channel number, if necessary.
1:ALPHA TAG Allows you to set an alphanumeric text tag for individual frequencies that you have
programmed. For example, you can set DAVIS PD CH #3.
2:DELAYThe default delay for all programmed channels and talkgroups is two seconds. At
the end of any transmission the scanner will remain on the frequency for two
seconds before resuming scanning. This will allow you to catch most replies. You
can change the delay to 1, or 4 seconds as well as set no delay (the scanner will
immediately resume scanning after the end of a transmission). With the BC780XLT
you can also set negative or inverse delays, also known as Pause. With a 5 second
pause, for example, the scanner will resume scanning after five seconds even if the
transmission you are currently listening to has not ended. Finally, you can set an
Infinite Delay. If a transmission is received on a frequency with Infinite delay set, the
scanner will stop on the channel and remain on it until you have hit scan, 
search, etc.
3:TONE DATA You can set a CTCSS (analog) or DCS (digital) sub-audible tone for a frequency. To
do so you must have the Squelch Mode in the System Menu set to Tone Squelch.
You can also program a subaudible tone easily by pressing the 
E(enter) key after
programming a frequency. This will bring up the Tone Data menu without your
having to navigate the Menu. You can also lock a tone assigned to a frequency. By
doing this you will receive all transmissions on the frequency, regardless of the
subaudible tone, except the one which you have locked. Any transmissions with that
tone will not be received.
4:BEEP ALERTYou can set a Beep Alert on a per-channel basis to alert you when specific
frequencies are active. For example, you may wish to be alerted anytime a mutual
aid fire frequency is active. With beep alert, you will hear a rapid three-beep tone at
the start of each transmission that you have flagged as such. You will also notice
that as you scroll pass the flagged channel(s), you will hear the tones.
5:ATTENUATORThe BC780XLT comes with an RF Attenuation feature. If you are near an unusually
strong signal source, the signal may overload the scanner. The scanner may stop
repeatedly on that signal and miss other transmissions.
The RF Attenuation feature works in all modes and attenuates (reduces) the
incoming signal strength to prevent stronger signals from overloading the scanner.
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6:STEPSYour BC780XLT is programmed with default step sizes for each frequency range
(see inside front cover). Steps are important if you are interested in using the VFO
to tune off-frequency from a frequency programmed into memory or if you wish to
program a frequency that the default step size will not accept. For example, in VHF
Hi-band mode, the default step size between 148 and 162 MHz is 5 KHz. However,
the FCC has recently instituted 7.5 KHz channel intervals. If you wish to enter
155.4075 into the scanner without changing the default step, the scanner will
change the programmed frequency to 155.4100. Use the menu to change the
default step size to 7.5 KHz and then you will be able to enter 155.4075.
7:MODEDefault receive modes are also programmed into memory. AM for the aircraft and
CB bands, for example. All frequencies (other than TV broadcast audio) above 400
MHz are received in NFM mode which helps prevent adjacent channel interference.
You can change the default settings on a per-channel basis with this Menu item.
8:RECORDYou can flag any channel for recording using this menu function. The LINEicon will
become active for any such flagged channel. Use your own recording device
plugged into the jack on the back of the scanner.
3:TRUNK DATAChoose the Trunk bank. The following options are available for the selected trunk
bank only. Repeat using a different trunk bank, if necessary.
1:TRUNK TYPEYou will need to assign the correct trunking type for the bank you are about to
program. If you want to listen to a Motorola Type 1 system, you will need to use this
menu option to assign the same. If you do not know the type of trunking system
you are about to monitor, refer to the guide included with the radio or check out
www.trunktracker.com.
Note: Some trunking systems require that you know the channel order. In these 
cases you will also need to start programming the trunked system at the 
start of the bank. The scanner defaults to the most common type of 
trunking system, Motorola Type II.
2:DELAY You can set delay for a trunk system on a bank by bank basis. If you’ve set delay
for 1 second, then there will be a one second delay in Trunk Search for that bank
and a one second delay for all the talkgroups you have programmed into Scan List
memory. You cannot set delay individually by talkgroup. The default delay is 
two seconds.
3:RECORDThis Record option applies to Trunk Search. If you have set Record on, the LINE
icon will be lit. All talkgroups received during Trunk Search will be recordable
through theTAPE OUTjack on the back of the scanner. To record individual
talkgroups during Scan, see Item 5 on the next page. The default is off.
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4:L/O ID REVIEWUse this menu item to review the IDs that you have locked out during Search and
Scan. Use the Up/Down arrow keys or turn the VFOto the left or right to view the
IDs that have been locked out. To leave the lockout IDs unchanged, press 
MENUto
back out of the menu. To unlock an ID, press the 
L/Okey. To unlock all the IDs that
have been locked out, press the 
E(Enter) key.
5:PROGRAM IDYou can program IDs into Scan List memory either during Trunk Scan or Search
without going into the Menu. However, you can also use the Menu to program IDs.
This is particularly helpful when you are not near the trunked system you wish to
later monitor. You can set it up and have it ready to go at some later time.
After you have selected the Scan List location (1-10) and the memory location
(1-10), you can then do the following:
1 Program the talkgroup or I-CALL ID number
2 Set an alpha tag for same
3 Assign the Record option for same. Whenever a transmission is active on 
the ID the signal can be recorded to a tape recorder using theTAPE OUT
jack on the back of the radio.
4. Assign a Beep Alert to the ID. Whenever that ID is active, you will hear a 
rapid three beep tone at the start of the transmission.
6:ID LIST TAGAssign an alphanumeric tag to any or all of the 10 Scan Lists for the system. During
Scan Mode, you will see the List Tag (on the bottom text line) along with any alpha
tag you may have set for an ID. In Search mode, you will see any Bank Tag you
have set.
7:I-CALL (MOTOROLA AND EDCS)Most communications within a trunked system are group calls where one unit (such
as a dispatcher) communicates with all the units within his/her group (all the patrol
vehicles on the east side of town, for example). The units within this group comprise
what is typically known as a talkgroup. There are some communications which are
direct unit-to-unit conversations where one individual converses with another
individual. The call is initiated by a radio and is directed to another single radio.
Within the system, no one outside of these two users hears the conversation.
Your BC780XLT defaults to I-CALL OFFmode. You can hear these conversations
by using this Menu item to turn the I-CALL function to ON. In Search mode, with 
I-CALL on, you will hear both talkgroup calls and I-CALLs. You can also set I-CALLs
to I-CALL ONLY during which you will monitor only I-CALLs in Search mode. You
can also program I-CALL IDs into Scan List memory.
7:ID SCAN LIST (LT)When scanning an LT system you can only turn Scan Lists off and on when an LT
talkgroup that you have entered into memory is active. To provide you with another
method to turn Scan Lists on and off, you can use this Menu item which only
appears when you have selected LT in Trunk Type.
OR
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8:STATUS BIT (MOTOROLA)On Type II trunking systems there is a method by which specialized types of
communications utilize unique talkgroup numbers. An emergency call will occur on
a unique talkgroup from its primary assignment, for example. Because the
BC780XLT defaults to Status-Bit On mode, you never need to worry about missing
these transmissions. If youve programmed talkgroup 33264 into Scan List memory,
for example, and there is an emergency call within the group, you will hear it on
33264.
8:EDACS ID FORM (EDCS)You can change to display the talkgroups in decimal mode, but this mode does not
provide you with nearly the flexibility that you get with AFS. The BC780XLT defaults
to show the talkgroup number in AFS mode (Agency-Fleet-Subfleet). For details on
AFS see pages 50-51.
9:END CODE (MOTOROLA)When this function is disabled, the radio looks for squelch before returning to the
control channel instead of waiting for the disconnect tone. Only in rare instances
will you need to adjust the default settings.
The condition to return to control channels depends on whether signal is present 
or not.
0:CONTROL CH ONLY (MOTOROLA 800 & 900 SYSTEMS)With this mode you will be able to track Motorola Type I and II 800 and 900 MHz
trunked systems by simply entering the control channel which manages the trunked
system. You will not have to program the voice channels. There are 4 channel plans
which you can select from.
4:SEARCH EVENTYou can program up to 10 search ranges (one per bank). The first time you
program a range for a bank you will need to do so through the Menu. After the first
time you can program a range as you do on most any other scanner, using the
numeric keypad and the s/
HOLD or t/LIMITkeys.
1:SEARCH BANKUse this Menu item to select the search bank that you want to program. You can
program banks 1 through 10, one at a time. For each of the banks, the following
options can be modified.
1:EDIT RANGEEnter the upper and lower frequency limits of the search range.
2:STEPSYou can assign a variety of step sizes to the search range.Note:The 
default step is usually acceptable and is listed in the front of the manual.
(See inside front cover)
3:MODEYou can change the default receive mode with this menu item.
4:ALPHA TAGYou can alpha tag any or all of the search banks.
OR
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2:DELAYSet a delay for the search ranges. This applies to all ranges (See CHANNEL DATA-
STEPS for details).
3:ATTENUATORSet attenuation for all search ranges. (See CHANNEL DATA-ATTENUATOR 
for details).
4:TONE DATAThe default mode is off. This means that you will receive all transmissions on any
frequencies that are active within your search range(s). By selecting CTCSS or
DCS you can set the radio to receive only a particular subaudible tone to be
received during your search. You can also lockout a particular CTCSS or DCS tone.
You may wish to do this if you want to search a range but not hear transmissions
on any frequency that have particular subaudible tone.
Note:Through the System Menu you can set the radio to operate in Tone Search
mode during Search as well. In this mode, the radio will automatically determine the
active subaudible tone on any frequency received during the Search.
5:RECORDWith Record set to on, any frequency that is active, during the search, can be
recorded to an external tape recorder.
6:AUTO STOREYou can automatically store active frequencies found during a search into memory.
You can select which bank you want to program the found frequencies. Note that
the audio will be muted during Auto Store.
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							20 Before the BC780XLT can begin conventional scanning, you must program a frequency into
at least one channel. Repeat this procedure for each channel you want to program.
Storing Frequencies into Channels
1. Select frequencies from your dealer, from
various sources on the internet, or from one of
the guides listed on page 5.
Here is a list of sample frequencies you should try:
156.800 Marine Calling channel
155.340 Ambulance operations
155.280 Ambulance operations
155.160 Ambulance operations
462.950 Ambulance operations
462.5625 Family Radio Services (channel one)
2. Press 
MAN.
3. Select a channel.
a. Enter the channel number.
b. Then press 
MAN.
4. Enter the frequency.
a. Enter the frequency number.
b. Then press 
E.
Note: • To clear a mistake while entering the frequency, press  (decimal key) repeatedly
until the display is cleared.
• If you enter a channel or frequency which is out
of the scanner’s range, a distinctive beep will
sound and 
ERRORappears in the display.
• You can use sor twhen selecting a channel.
Press and hold sor tfor 1 second to move up/down more quickly.
Programming
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Duplicate Frequency Alert
If you enter a frequency which has been stored in
another channel, you will hear a beep and the other 
channel displays 
WARNING.
Press  to clear and start again.
––– OR –––
Press 
Eagain to store the frequency in both channels.
Storing Text Tags
You can customize your scanner by storing text tags for easy identification of banks, channel
transmissions, trunking talkgroup IDs, etc. The text tags can be set at the menu mode. (Refer
to Understanding Menu System on page 13.)
Assigning a Bank Tag to a Bank
1. Press 
MENU.
2. Press 
E to select SYSTEM DATA.
3. Press s or t to select BANK TAGand then press 
E.
4. Select the bank number to be tagged using sor t
and then press 
E.
5. The cursor appears on the display. Rotate VFOto change
letters, and then press sor tto shift right or left. Both
capital and lower case letters are available, as well as
numbers and punctuation marks.
6. After entering the desired text, press 
E or SELECT.
+ Remember!You can also use the VFOcontrol for scrolling. To clear a mistake while
entering the frequency, press  (decimal key) repeatedly until the display is cleared.
Assigning a Text Tag to a Channel
1. Press 
MENU.
2. Press s or t to select C H DATAand then press 
E.
3. Select the channel number to be tagged using sor tand pressing 
E. You can also
enter the channel number in using the keypad and then press 
E.
4. Press s or tto select ALPHA TAGand then pressing E.
Note: • If you have not stored a frequency in the channel,
UNREGISTEREDwill appear in the display.
5. The cursor appears on the display. Rotate VFOto
change letters, and press sor tto shift right or left.
Both capital and lower case letters are available, as
well as numbers and punctuation marks.
6. After entering the desired text, press 
E,SELECTor VFO.
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Beep Alert
The scanner can alert you with three rapid beeps at the beginning of a transmission on an
assigned frequency.
Assigning the beep alert to a channel
This alert can be set on/off to every channel (or to every ID memory for Trunking mode).
1. Press 
MENU.
2. Press s or t to select C H DATAand then press 
E.
3. Select the channel number to be tagged using sor tand then press 
E. (You can also
enter the channel number in using the keypad or VFOcontrol and then press 
E.)
4. Press s or tto select BEEP ALERTand then press E.
5. Press s or tto select ON orOFFand then pressing 
E.
Note: If NOT REGISTERappears, make sure a frequency is stored in the channel.
Programming Tips
• Do not program a weather frequency into one of the channels, since weather channels
transmit continuously. Use the Weather Search feature to select the weather information band.
• Group similar services into a bank. For example, program police frequencies in channels 1
through 10 and fire/emergency into channels 51 through 60, and so on.
• Put the frequency that you listen to the most or the most important frequency into a
Priority channel.
• To quickly program a series of channels, start with the lowest number channel.
For example, when you are programming five new frequencies into Channels 4 through
8, start with Channel 4. After you finish programming a channel, press 
MANor HOLD/s
to go to the next higher channel.
• Write down your programmed channels and frequencies and put in a convenient place in
case of accidental reprogramming.
• If you want to download frequencies using the SmartScan feature, go to page 59 
in this manual.
• Frequencies are rounded off according to the step of each channel.
• When you are overwriting a tagged channel with a new frequency, the previous alpha tag
will be deleted. You must re-enter the alpha tag.
• When programming frequencies, a 2 second delay is set automatically but can be changed
in the Channel Data menu.
Deleting a Stored Frequency
To delete a stored frequency:
a. Select a channel.
b. Press 
0.
c. Then press 
E.
Note: Channels with no frequencies are automatically locked out.
  SERVICE SEARCH
  PUBLIC SAFETY
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