Radio Shack PRO-79 Owner'S Manual Download Page 1

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Owner’s Manual

Cat. No. 20-314

PRO-79

200-Channel VHF/Air/UHF

Handheld Scanner

Please read before using this equipment.

(illus - show front of product)

20-314.fm Page 1 Monday, December 13, 1999 12:55 PM

Summary of Contents for PRO-79

Page 1: ...Owner s Manual Cat No 20 314 PRO 79 200 Channel VHF Air UHF Handheld Scanner Please read before using this equipment illus show front of product ...

Page 2: ...Display Backlight makes the scanner easy to read in low light situations Duplicate Channel Alert warns you when the frequency you are storing already exists in memory Lockout Function lets you set your scanner to skip over specified channels or frequencies when scanning or searching Memory Backup keeps the channel frequencies stored in memory for about an hour in the event of a power loss Ten Chan...

Page 3: ... replies that are transmitted on the same channel Priority Channel lets you program a channel as the priority channel As the scanner scans it checks the priority channel ev ery 2 seconds so you do not miss transmissions on that chan nel HyperSearch and HyperScan let you set the scanner to search at up to 50 steps per second in frequency bands with 5 kHz steps and scan at up to 25 channels per seco...

Page 4: ...canner If the interfer ence goes away your scanner is causing it Try the following methods to eliminate the interference Move your scanner away from the receiver Connect your scanner to an outlet that is on a different elec trical circuit from the receiver Contact your local RadioShack store for help This equipment complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules Opera tion is subject to the following condi...

Page 5: ...lephone signal transmission pager transmissions any scrambled or encrypted transmissions According to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act EC PA you are subject to fines and possible imprisonment for in tentionally listening to using or divulging the contents of such a transmission unless you have the consent of a party to the com munication unless such activity is otherwise illegal This scan...

Page 6: ... Service Banks 20 Monitor Memories 24 Operation 25 Turning On the Scanner Setting Volume and Squelch 25 Resetting Initializing the Scanner 25 Resetting the Scanner 26 Initializing the Scanner 26 Storing Known Frequencies into Channels 27 Finding and Storing Active Frequencies 28 Searching the Service Banks 28 Using Direct Search 29 Using Monitor Memory 31 Listening to a Monitor Memory 31 Moving a ...

Page 7: ... All Service Banks 38 Using Priority 38 Using the Display Backlight 39 Turning the Key Tone On and Off 39 Using the Key Lock 39 Avoiding Image Frequencies 40 A General Guide to Scanning 41 Guide to Frequencies 41 National Weather Frequencies 41 Birdie Frequencies 41 Guide to the Action Bands 42 Typical Band Usage MHz 42 Primary Usage 42 Band Allocation 43 Frequency Conversion 46 Troubleshooting 47...

Page 8: ...charge them either inside or outside the scanner Both types of batteries are avail able at your local RadioShack store Cautions Use only fresh batteries of the required size and recom mended type Do not mix old and new batteries different types of batteries standard alkaline or rechargeable or rechargeable bat teries of different capacities Follow these steps to install batteries 1 Slide the batte...

Page 9: ...at least 300 mA Its center tip must be set to positive and its plug must fit the scanner s PWR jack Using an adapter that does not meet these specifications could damage the scanner or the adapter Always connect the AC adapter to the scanner before you connect it to AC power When you finish disconnect the adapter from AC power before you disconnect it from the scanner To power the scanner using an...

Page 10: ...tte lighter power cable and your vehi cle s engine is running you might hear electrical noise from the engine while scanning This is normal CHARGING RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES Your scanner has a built in charging circuit that lets you charge Ni Cd rechargeable batteries while they are in the scanner To charge rechargeable batteries simply connect an AC adapter to the scanner s PWR jack Notes You must ...

Page 11: ...Some options that might be avail able are municipal curbside collection drop off boxes at retail ers such as your local RadioShack store recycling collection centers and mail back programs CONNECTING AN ANTENNA You must install an antenna before you can operate the scan ner You can use the supplied antenna or you can connect an external one not supplied Connecting the Supplied Antenna The supplied...

Page 12: ... for the best performance Always use 50 Ohm coaxial cable such as RG 58 or RG 8 to connect the base station or mobile antenna For lengths over 50 feet use RG 8 low loss dielectric coaxial cable If the antenna cable s connector does not fit in the scanner s antenna jack you might also need a PL 259 to BNC antenna plug adapter Your local RadioShack store carries a wide variety of coaxial antenna cab...

Page 13: ...op of the scanner Your local RadioShack store carries a wide selec tion of earphones and headphones Connecting an earphone or headphones automatically disconnects the internal speaker Listening Safely To protect your hearing follow these guidelines when you use an earphone or headphones Set the volume to the lowest setting before you begin listen ing After you begin listening adjust the volume to ...

Page 14: ... a continu ous transmission Even though some earphones head phones let you hear some outside sounds when listening at normal volume levels they still can present a traffic hazard CONNECTING AN EXTENSION SPEAKER In a noisy area an amplified extension speaker available at your local RadioShack store positioned in the right place might provide more comfortable listening Plug the speaker cable s 1 8 i...

Page 15: ...service When you find a frequency you can store it into a programma ble memory location called a channel which is grouped with your other channels in a channel storage bank You can then 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 KEYPAD Y...

Page 16: ...xample to select the channel in a channel storage bank See Understanding Banks on Page 19 Searches up or down for active frequencies or selects the direction when scanning channels L O RVW L O Reviews locked out frequencies lets you lock out selected channels or frequencies MON CL Lets you store a frequency in one of the 20 moni tor memories clears an incorrect entry LIGHT Locks and unlocks the ke...

Page 17: ...cy search B Appears when the batteries are low BANK Appears with numbers 1 10 to indicate the scan bank Bank numbers with a bar under them show which banks are turned on for scanning see Understanding Banks on Page 19 C Err Appears when the scanner receives a checksum error during wired programming CH Appears with digits 1 200 or P to show which channel the scanner is tuned to Ch FULL Appears when...

Page 18: ...ULL Appears when you try to lock out a frequency during a search while 50 frequencies are already locked out F L out Appears when you start a direct search from a locked out frequency HAM Indicates that the scanner is searching the ama teur radio service bank L O lockout Appears when you manually select a channel that was previously locked out during scanning or when you review a locked out freque...

Page 19: ...X Indicates that the scanner is searching the weather channels 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 20 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 Actio...

Page 20: ...e Service Banks on Page 28 Note The frequencies in the scanner s service banks are pre set You cannot change them Fire Police Group Frequency Range MHz Step kHz 1 33 420 33 980 20 37 020 37 420 20 39 020 39 980 20 42 020 42 940 20 44 620 45 860 40 45 880 45 900 45 940 46 060 40 46 080 46 500 20 2 153 770 154 130 60 154 145 154 445 15 154 650 154 950 15 155 010 155 370 60 155 415 155 700 15 155 730...

Page 21: ... 5 Frequency Range MHz Step kHz 108 000 136 9875 12 5 Group Frequency Range MHz Step kHz 1 29 000 29 700 5 2 50 000 54 000 5 3 144 000 148 000 5 4 420 000 450 000 12 5 Channel Frequency MHz 06 156 3000 07 156 3500 08 156 4000 09 156 4500 10 156 5000 11 156 5500 12 156 6000 13 156 6500 Group Frequency Range MHz Step kHz ...

Page 22: ...57 0500 22 157 1000 23 157 1500 24 157 2000 161 8000 25 157 2500 161 8500 26 157 3000 161 9000 27 157 3500 161 9500 28 157 4000 162 0000 64 156 2250 65 156 2750 66 156 3250 67 156 3750 68 156 4250 69 156 4750 70 156 5250 71 156 5750 72 156 6250 73 156 6750 74 156 7250 77 156 8750 Channel Frequency MHz ...

Page 23: ...23 78 156 9250 79 156 9750 80 157 0250 81 157 0750 82 157 1250 83 157 1750 84 157 2250 161 8250 85 157 2750 161 8750 86 157 3250 161 9250 87 157 3750 161 9750 88 157 4250 Channel Frequency MHz ...

Page 24: ...els This is handy for quickly storing an active frequency when you are searching through an entire band You can store a frequency into a monitor memory during a service bank or direct search See Finding and Storing Active Fre quencies on Page 28 You can select monitor memories manually but you cannot scan them See Listening to a Monitor Memory on Page 31 ...

Page 25: ...weak transmissions If SQUELCH is adjusted so you always hear a hissing sound the scanner will not scan or search properly 4 To turn off the scanner when you finish turn VOLUME coun terclockwise to OFF RESETTING INITIALIZING THE SCANNER If the scanner s display locks up or does not work properly after you connect a power source you might need to reset or initialize the scanner Important If you have...

Page 26: ...zing the Scanner Important This procedure clears all information you stored in the scanner s memory Initialize the scanner only when you are sure the scanner is not working properly 1 Turn off the scanner then turn it on again 2 Hold down MON CL 3 While holding down MON CL insert a pointed object such as a straightened paper clip into the reset opening on the side of the scanner then gently press ...

Page 27: ...the frequency including the decimal point you want to store 3 Press ENT to store the frequency into the channel Notes If you made a mistake in Step 2 Error appears and the scanner beeps when you press ENT Simply start again from Step 2 Your scanner automatically rounds the entered frequency down to the closest valid frequency For example if you enter a frequency of 151 473 your scanner accepts it ...

Page 28: ...ific frequencies that are used in your area Then you can store the frequencies you found into the scanner s channels or monitor memories Notes You can use the scanner s delay feature while searching the service banks see Delay on Page 36 To listen to the marine bank see Listening to the Marine Bank on Page 34 1 Press BAND The last selected band name such as HAM SRCH b frequency and the group numbe...

Page 29: ...ou must clear some channels See Clearing a Stored Channel on Page 34 To continue searching after Ch FULL appears hold down or If you entered a frequency that is already stored in another channel dUPL duplicate and the lowest numbered channel containing the duplicate frequency flash for about 3 seconds If you want to store the fre quency anyway press ENT again You can then delete the frequency late...

Page 30: ...12 5 or 25 kHz steps repeatedly press or To pause the search press or To resume search ing hold down or To quickly move up or down through the frequencies hold down or The scanner tunes through the frequencies until you release or 3 When the scanner finds an active frequency it stops searching and displays the frequency s number To store the displayed frequency in the lowest available channel pres...

Page 31: ... for about 1 second USING MONITOR MEMORY Listening to a Monitor Memory To recall a frequency stored in a monitor memory press MAN then MON CL M the monitor memory number and CH flash and the stored frequency appears Note See Step 4 under Searching the Service Banks on Page 28 for more information about storing a frequency in a monitor memory To select other monitor memories enter the desired monit...

Page 32: ...er begins to rapidly scan until it finds an ac tive frequency When the scanner finds an active frequency it stops and dis plays that channel and frequency number then it automatically begins scanning again when the transmission on that frequency ends Notes To reverse the scanning direction press or To set the scanner to remain on the current channel for 2 seconds after the transmission ends see De...

Page 33: ...ar appears under the bank s number Notes You cannot turn off all banks There must be at least one active bank You can manually select any channel in a bank even if the bank is turned off When you turn on the bank during scanning the scanner moves to the selected bank s channel and continues scan ning MONITORING A STORED CHANNEL You can continuously monitor a specific channel without scan ning This...

Page 34: ... PGM again Or repeat edly press PGM until the desired channel number appears Then repeat Step 4 LISTENING TO THE MARINE BANK To listen to the marine bank repeatedly press BAND until MRN appears To change the channel manually press or To scan through the marine bank hold down or for about 2 seconds MAN disappears and SCAN appears To change the scanning direction press or To stop scanning the channe...

Page 35: ... Service broad caster in your area broadcasts a weather alert tone To set the scanner so it sounds an alarm when a weather alert tone is broadcast press PRI ALERT while you are listening to the WX channel ALErt appears If the scanner detects the weather alert it sounds an alarm Press any key to turn off the alarm To cancel the weather alert operation press PRI ALERT again Channel Frequency MHz 1 1...

Page 36: ...cted manually select the channel then press DELAY If the scanner is searching press DELAY DLY appears and the scanner automatically adds a 2 second delay to every transmission it stops on in that band To turn off the 2 second delay in a channel or for all frequencies press DELAY while the scanner is monitoring that channel or frequency DLY disappears LOCKING OUT CHANNELS OR FREQUENCIES You can inc...

Page 37: ...ears see Reviewing Locked Out Frequencies and Removing Lockouts From All Frequencies Reviewing Locked Out Frequencies To review the frequencies you locked out hold down L O L O RVW for about 2 seconds during a search then repeatedly press or L r appears and the scanner displays all locked out frequencies as you press or When you reach the highest locked out frequency the scanner beeps twice and re...

Page 38: ...ts from all fre quencies in all service banks Or if you do not want to clear the lockouts press MON CL USING PRIORITY The priority feature lets you scan through channels and still not miss important or interesting calls on a frequency you select You can program one frequency into the priority channel As the scanner scans if the priority feature is turned on the scanner checks the priority channel ...

Page 39: ... preset to sound a tone each time you press one of its keys except LIGHT You can turn the key tone off or back on 1 If the scanner is on turn VOLUME counterclockwise until it clicks to turn the scanner off 2 While you hold down 2 and ENT turn on the scanner 3 When oFF tonE or on tonE appear release 2 and ENT USING THE KEY LOCK Once you program your scanner you can protect it from acci dental progr...

Page 40: ...ight find a service that regularly uses a frequency of 453 275 also on 474 675 MHz To see if it is an image do a little math Note the new frequency 474 675 Double the intermediate frequency of 10 7 MHz 21 400 and subtract it from the new frequency 21 400 If the answer is the regular frequency 453 275 then you have tuned to an image Occasionally you might get interference on a weak or distant chann...

Page 41: ... birdie frequencies in MHz are To find the birdies in your individual scanner begin by discon necting the antenna and moving it away from the scanner Make sure that no other nearby radio or TV sets are turned on near the scanner Use the search function and search every frequen cy range from its lowest frequency to the highest Occasionally the searching will stop as if it had found a signal often w...

Page 42: ...311 00 384 00 U S Government 406 00 420 00 70 Centimeter Amateur 420 00 450 00 Low Range 450 00 470 00 FM TV Audio Broadcast Wide Band 470 00 512 00 Activities Frequencies MHz 2 Meter Amateur Band 144 000 148 000 Government Police and Fire 153 785 155 980 Emergency Services 158 730 159 460 Railroad 160 000 161 900 Activities Frequencies MHz 70 Centimeter Amateur Band FM Repeaters 420 000 450 000 L...

Page 43: ...ional Systems CTSB Conventional Trunked Systems FIRE Fire Department HAM Amateur Ham Radio GOVT Federal Government GMR General Mobile Radio GTR General Trunked IND Industrial Services Manufacturing Construction Farming Forest Products MAR Military Amateur Radio MARI Maritime Limited Coast Coast Guard Marine Telephone Shipboard Radio Private Stations MARS Military Affiliate Radio System MED Emergen...

Page 44: ... 980 BUS IND PUB 34 010 34 990 GOVT MIL 35 020 35 980 BUS PUB IND TELM 36 000 36 230 GOVT MIL 36 230 36 990 Oil Spill Cleanup GOVT MIL 37 020 37 980 PUB IND 38 000 39 000 GOVT MIL 39 020 39 980 PUB 40 000 42 000 GOVT MIL MARI 42 020 42 940 POL 42 960 43 180 IND 43 220 43 680 TELM IND PUB 43 700 44 600 TRAN 44 620 46 580 POL PUB 46 600 46 990 GOVT TELC 47 020 47 400 PUB 47 420 American Red Cross 47...

Page 45: ...B 158 730 159 465 POL PUB ROAD 159 480 OIL 159 495 161 565 TRAN 161 580 162 000 OIL MARI RTV 162 0125 162 35 GOVT MIL USXX 162 400 162 550 WTHR 162 5625 162 6375 GOVT MIL USXX 162 6625 MED 162 6875 163 225 GOVT MIL USXX 163 250 MED 163 275 166 225 GOVT MIL USXX 166 250 GOVT RTV FIRE 166 275 169 400 GOVT BIFC 169 445 169 505 Wireless Mikes GOVT 169 55 169 9875 GOVT MIL USXX 170 000 170 150 BIFC GOV...

Page 46: ...475 750 Channel 14 481 750 Channel 15 487 750 Channel 16 493 750 Channel 17 499 750 Channel 18 505 750 Channel 19 511 750 Channel 20 Note Some cities use the 470 512 MHz band for land mobile service FREQUENCY CONVERSION The tuning location of a station can be expressed in frequency kHz or MHz or in wavelength meters The following informa tion can help you make the necessary conversions 1 MHz milli...

Page 47: ...rogrammed fre quencies are the same as birdie frequencies Avoid programming fre quencies listed under Birdie Frequencies on Page 41 or only listen to them manually Keypad does not work Keylock is turned on Turn off the keylock The scanner might need to be reset or initialized Turn the scanner off then on again or reset initialize the scanner see Resetting Ini tializing the Scanner on Page 25 Scann...

Page 48: ...onic devices and distort or melt plastic parts Keep the scanner away from dust and dirt which can cause premature wear of parts Handle the scanner gently and carefully Dropping it can damage circuit boards and cases and can cause the scanner to work improperly Wipe the scanner with a damp cloth occasionally to keep it looking new Do not use harsh chemicals cleaning solvents or strong detergents to...

Page 49: ... Operation 200 channels 20 monitor memories Sensitivity 20 dB S N 29 54 MHz 0 5 µV 108 136 9875 MHz 1 0 µV 137 174 MHz 0 5 µV 380 512 MHz 0 7 µV Spurious Rejection FM 154 MHz 50 dB Selectivity 10 kHz 6 dB 18 kHz 50 dB Search Speed Up to 50 Steps Sec Scan Speed Up to 25 Channels Sec Delay Time 2 Seconds IF Frequencies 1st IF 10 7 MHz 2nd IF 455 kHz IF Interference Ratio 10 7 MHz 70 dB at 150 MHz Sq...

Page 50: ...ched 45 mA Dimensions HWD 511 16 23 8 13 8 Inches 145 62 34 mm Weight without antenna and batteries 7 9 oz 224 g Supplied Accessories Antenna Battery Holder Rechargeable Battery Holder Specifications are typical individual units might vary Specifica tions are subject to change and improvement without notice ...

Page 51: ...51 NOTES ...

Page 52: ...event of a product defect during the warranty period take the product and the RadioShack sales receipt as proof of purchase date to any RadioShack store Ra dioShack will at its option unless otherwise provided by law a correct the defect by product repair without charge for parts and labor b replace the product with one of the same or similar design or c refund the purchase price All replaced part...

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