Related Manuals for Radio Shack PRO-29
Summary of Contents for Radio Shack PRO-29
- Page 1 20-509.fm Page 1 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM 20-509 Cat. No. OWNER’S MANUAL PRO-29 60-Channel Direct Entry Programmable Scanner Please read before using this equipment.
- Page 2 20-509.fm Page 2 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM FEATURES Your new Radio Shack PRO-29 60-Channel Direct Entry Programma- ble Scanner lets you in on all the action! This scanner gives you direct access to 30,000 exciting frequencies that include police department, fire department, ambulance, amateur radio, and transportation services.
- Page 3 You can then store any of these frequencies into memory for easy scanning. For your records, we recommend you record your scanner’s serial num- ber in the space provided. The serial number is on the scanner’s back panel. Serial Number __________________...
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Page 4: Fcc Notice
Contact your local Radio Shack store for help If you cannot eliminate the interference, the FCC requires that you stop using your scanner. Note: Mobile use of this scanner is unlawful or requires a permit in some areas. Check the laws in your area. SCANNING LEGALLY... -
Page 5: Table Of Contents
Troubleshooting ........37 Resetting the Scanner ....... 37 Care and Maintenance . -
Page 6: Preparation
Vehicle battery power (using an optional DC adapter) USING INTERNAL BATTERIES You can power your scanner with four AA batteries. For the longest op- eration and best performance, we recommend alkaline batteries (Radio Shack Cat. No. 23-552). Or, you can use rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries (Cat. -
Page 7: Important Information About The External Power Jacks
Never mix fresh and old batteries or different types of batteries. 4. Replace the cover. BATT.Lo flashes on the display and the scanner beeps every 15 seconds, immediately replace or recharge all four batteries. IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE EXTERNAL POWER JACKS The scanner has two external power jacks —... -
Page 8: Using Standard Ac Power
USING STANDARD AC POWER To power the scanner from AC power, you need an AC adapter such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 20-188. Plug the adapter’s barrel plug into the scanner’s jack. Then plug the adapter’s power module DC 9V POWER into a standard AC outlet. -
Page 9: Using Vehicle Battery Power
USING VEHICLE BATTERY POWER You can power the scanner from your vehicle’s battery power, if the ve- hicle has a 12-volt, negative ground electrical system. To do so, you need a Radio Shack DC Universal Adapter, Cat. No. 270-1560. Cautions: •... -
Page 10: Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries
20-509.fm Page 10 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM • If the scanner does not operate properly when you use a DC adapter, unplug the adapter from the cigarette-lighter socket and clean the socket to remove ashes and other debris. -
Page 11: Connecting The Antenna
Instead of the supplied antenna, you can attach a different one, such as an external mobile antenna or outdoor base antenna. Your local Radio Shack store sells a variety of antennas. Always use 50-ohm coaxial cable, such as RG-58 or RG-8, to connect an outdoor antenna. -
Page 12: Connecting An Earphone/Headphones
CONNECTING AN EARPHONE/ HEADPHONES For private listening, you can plug an earphone or mono headphones (such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 33-175 or 20-210) into the of your scanner. This automatically disconnects the internal speaker. Listening Safely To protect your hearing, follow these guidelines when you use an ear- phone or headphones: •... -
Page 13: Connecting An Extension Speaker
CONNECTING AN EXTENSION SPEAKER In a noisy area, an extension speaker (such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 21-549) or an amplified speaker (such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 21- 541), positioned in the right place, might provide more comfortable lis- tening. -
Page 14: Understanding Your Scanner
20-509.fm Page 14 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM UNDERSTANDING YOUR SCANNER A LOOK AT THE KEYPAD Your scanner’s keys might seem confusing at first, but this information should help you understand each key’s function. HI LO AIR — scans through the programmed channels. -
Page 15: A Look At The Display
See “Banks and Memories.” A LOOK AT THE DISPLAY The display has several indicators that show the scanner’s current op- erating mode. A quick look at the display will help you understand how to operate your scanner. - Page 16 20-509.fm Page 16 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM — appears when you manually select a channel. — appears while you program frequencies into the scanner’s chan- nels. — appears when you select the priority feature. — appears when you manually select a locked-out channel, or dur- ing a search hold when the frequency is stored in search skip memory.
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Page 17: Banks And Memories
20-509.fm Page 17 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM BANKS AND MEMORIES Your scanner can store up to 66 frequencies. You store each frequency in either a memory called a channel, or a temporary memory called a monitor. This scanner has 60 channels and six monitor memories. -
Page 18: Operation
20-509.fm Page 18 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM OPERATION TURNING ON THE SCANNER AND SETTING SQUELCH 1. Make sure that is turned fully counterclockwise before SQUELCH you turn on the scanner. 2. Turn clockwise until you hear a hissing sound. -
Page 19: Searching For And Temporarily Storing Active Frequencies
MANUAL SEARCHING FOR AND TEMPORARILY STORING ACTIVE FREQUENCIES Good references for active frequencies are Radio Shack’s “Police Call Radio Guide Including Fire and Emergency Services,” “Aeronautical Frequency Directory,” and “Maritime Frequency Directory.” We update these directories every year, so be sure to get a current copy. - Page 20 The current monitor memory number starts flashing at the top of the display. 7. When the scanner stops on a transmission you want to save, press to store the frequency in the current monitor mem- MONITOR ory.
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Page 21: Direct Search
HI LO AIR 2. Press to search up or down from the selected frequency. 3. When the scanner stops on a transmission, press store that frequency in the current monitor memory. Or, press to continue the search. 4. To hold the frequency, press To exit the hold mode and resume the direct search, press again. -
Page 22: Listening To Monitor Memories
MONITOR that has the frequency you want to store. The channel number starts flashing. 5. Press . The scanner stores the frequency in the selected WX/E channel, and the channel number stops flashing. MAN-... -
Page 23: Manually Selecting A Channel
MANUAL 2. Enter the channel number. 3. Press again. MANUAL Or, if your scanner is scanning and stops at the desired channel, press one time. (Pressing MANUAL MANUAL scanner to step through the channels.) To resume automatic scanning after manually selecting a channel, press . -
Page 24: Special Features
20-509.fm Page 24 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM SPECIAL FEATURES USING THE KEYLOCK Once you program your scanner, you can protect it from accidental pro- gram changes by turning on the keylock feature. In this mode, the only controls that operate are... -
Page 25: Turning Channel-Storage Banks On And Off
AND OFF You can turn each channel-storage bank on and off. When you turn off a bank, the scanner does not scan any of the 10 channels in that bank. While scanning, press the number key corresponding to the bank you want to turn on or off. -
Page 26: Priority
If you program more than 30 skip frequencies, each new fre- quency replaces ones you stored earlier, starting from the first stored frequency. • You can select the skipped frequency when the scanner is in the hold mode. The scanner displays frequency. PRIORITY You can scan through channels and still not miss an important or inter- esting call on a specific channel. -
Page 27: Using The Display Backlight
. Your scanner begins scanning through the weather band, WX/E appears on the display. Your scanner should stop within a few seconds, and then you hear the local weather broadcast. If the broadcast is weak, you can press WX/E again to scan through the rest of the weather band. -
Page 28: A General Guide To Scanning
20-509.fm Page 28 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM 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 161.650*... -
Page 29: Birdie Frequencies
20-509.fm Page 29 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM Birdie Frequencies Every scanner has birdie frequencies. Birdies are signals created inside the scanner’s receiver. These operating frequencies might interfere with broadcasts on the same frequencies. If you program one of these fre- quencies, you hear only noise on that frequency. -
Page 30: Guide To The Action Bands
20-509.fm Page 30 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM GUIDE TO THE ACTION BANDS Typical Band Usage HF Band (3.00–30.0 MHz) 10-Meter Amateur High Range VHF Band (30.00–300.0 MHz) Low Range 6-Meter Amateur Aircraft U.S. Government 2-Meter Amateur High Range UHF Band (300.00 MHz–3.0 GHz) U. -
Page 31: Primary Usage
Band Type VHF, HAM, and Government All Others Aircraft Note: Your scanner rounds the entered frequency to the nearest valid frequency. For example, if you try to enter 151.473, the scanner accepts this as 151.475. Frequencies 153.785–155.980 MHz 158.730–159.460 MHz 160.000–161.900 MHz... -
Page 32: Band Allocation
BAND ALLOCATION To help decide which frequency ranges to scan, use the following listing of the typical services that use the frequencies 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,”... - Page 33 20-509.fm Page 33 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM USXX........Government Classified UTIL.
- Page 34 20-509.fm Page 34 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM 150.995–151.130 ......... . . ROAD 151.145–151.475 .
- Page 35 20-509.fm Page 35 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM U. S. Government Band (406–450 MHz) 406.125–419.975 ........GOVT, USXX 70-cm Amateur Band (420–450 MHz) 420.000–450.000 .
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Page 36: Avoiding Image Frequencies
20-509.fm Page 36 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM AVOIDING IMAGE FREQUENCIES You might discover one of your regular stations on another frequency that is not listed. It might be what is known as an image frequency. For example, you might find a service that regularly uses a frequency of 453.075 also on 474.675. -
Page 37: Troubleshooting
Shack store for assistance. RESETTING THE SCANNER If the scanner’s display locks up or does not work properly after you con- nect a power source, you might have to reset the scanner. Caution: This procedure clears all the information you have pro- grammed into the scanner. -
Page 38: Care And Maintenance
Your Radio Shack PRO-29 60-Channel Direct Entry Programmable Scanner is an example of superior design and craftsmanship. The fol- lowing suggestions will help you care for the PRO-29 so you can enjoy it for years. Keep the scanner dry. If it gets wet, wipe it dry immediately. -
Page 39: Specifications
20-509.fm Page 39 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 1:58 PM SPECIFICATIONS Frequency Coverage: VHF Lo ..... . 29–54 MHz (in 5.0 kHz steps) Aircraft . - Page 40 Within this period, we will repair it without charge for parts and labor. Simply bring your Radio Shack sales slip as proof of purchase date to any Radio Shack store. Warranty does not cover transportation costs. Nor does it cover a product subjected to misuse or accidental damage.