Info heard on RSO just now...

[sp1989]

I think they wasted a lot of money by equipping the correctional facilities, jail maintenance, nurses, etc. with trunked radios. They could have kept their 460 mhz system, just replacing the old HT's with some new type on the same band. Instead they insisted EVERYONE switch over to the new system. Only problem is, the trunked radios can't consistently connect with the control channel inside the jail buildings because of all the metal. So the answer was to program the trunked radios to work in a conventional mode and put a repeater for that frequency on the roof. So now they have taken the expensive trunked radios, disabled the feature that makes them expensive, and they do exactly the same thing as the 460 mhz radios, only not as well. Not to mention embarrassing incidents where some nimrod jail deputy has tuned his HT to Jurupa or some other patrol station to listen, put it on scan, forgets it and then transmits some idiotic traffic over the primary dispatch channel. Or, like a deputy that used to be assigned to RGH, use it to summon Star 80 (or whatever they call it now, I forget) to check out a UFO. Or, like a sergeant that worked there, take a bunch home and use them (on one of the many unused talk groups) to work security at a golf tournament. No wonder corrections has a bad rep.......

[cvrules90]

Only problem is, the trunked radios can't consistently connect with the control channel inside the jail buildings because of all the metal. So the answer was to program the trunked radios to work in a conventional mode and put a repeater for that frequency on the roof. So now they have taken the expensive trunked radios, disabled the feature that makes them expensive, and they do exactly the same thing as the 460 mhz radios, only not as well. Not to mention embarrassing incidents where some nimrod jail deputy has tuned his HT to Jurupa or some other patrol station to listen, put it on scan, forgets it and then transmits some idiotic traffic over the primary dispatch channel. Or, like a deputy that used to be assigned to RGH, use it to summon Star 80 (or whatever they call it now, I forget) to check out a UFO. Or, like a sergeant that worked there, take a bunch home and use them (on one of the many unused talk groups) to work security at a golf tournament. No wonder corrections has a bad rep.......

It's called Star 9 now but I do think that the solution was to pay more in the beginning for a Motorola system. Motorola is used in the majority of the USA and Canada and there are many states, cities, and counties abandoning coventional or EDACS radio systems in favor of a Motorola or P-25 radio system.

I can tell you when there had been an overnight burglary in Palm Desert when I was monitoring visiting down there in December 09. 2 Tom 32 asked if 2 Tom 38 could call him on his cell phone because his radio wasn't working. It's terrible that the radios RSO has now can't even cover like half the county. I've never used a scanner to follow West or Central, but from listening live, I can see just how terrible it is.

Wonder how the system works in the Blythe area.