Well Since the last newsletter, we've
found new frequencies...
Here's a sample of what's new....
| Frequency |
Tone |
Name |
State |
County |
| 151.7300 |
d047 |
Steel Dynamics |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 152.2700 |
|
Yellow
Cab |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 153.4700 |
|
Morristown
Power MotoTRBO DIGITAL |
TN |
Hamblen |
| 153.6800 |
206.5 |
Duke Energy |
NC |
Macon |
| 154.8600 |
123.0 |
Vinton
Police (Animal Control) |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 154.8750 |
d125 |
Perry
County Sheriff |
KY |
Perry |
| 155.4150 |
118.8 |
Pittsylvania
Co Sheriff |
VA |
Pittsylvania |
| 157.1000 |
|
USCG
- Ohio Valley Broadcasts -TN River |
US |
USA |
| 158.4150 |
107.2 |
Roanoke
Electric Steel |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 158.8200 |
151.4 |
Asheville
Fire Departments |
NC |
Buncombe |
| 160.4700 |
|
Norfolk
Southern (Local Use SW-VA) |
VA |
Virginia |
| 406.9750 |
|
Oak
Ridge Nat Lab Trunk SID: B120-0004 |
TN |
Anderson |
| 451.8625 |
d026 |
Roanoke
Memorial Hospital Security |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 453.2250 |
156.7 |
Salem
PD |
VA |
Salem |
| 453.3375 |
n196 |
KSP
-Post 14 / Region 5 |
KY |
Johnson |
| 453.5250 |
79.7 |
Pulaski
Co Fire Depts |
VA |
Pulaski |
| 453.9000 |
n190 |
KSP
Post 10 / Region 4 |
KY |
Harlan |
| 460.0750 |
100.0 |
Sevierville
PD / Mutual Aid |
TN |
Sevier |
| 460.1375 |
100.0 |
Botetourt
Co Sheriff |
VA |
Botetourt |
| 460.2500 |
100.0 |
Gatlinburg PD |
TN |
Sevier |
| 460.3250 |
n270 |
KSP
Post 9 / Region 6 |
KY |
Johnson |
| 463.0250 |
d125 |
Hawkins
County EMS Mobile |
TN |
Hawkins |
| 463.6750 |
173.8 |
UHSTS Medical
Transport |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 464.9500 |
123.0 |
Roanoke
Area Community Repeater |
VA |
Roanoke |
| 857.2125 |
|
Knoxville
PS Trunk C SID: 161c |
TN |
Knox |
| 857.5375 |
|
Metro
Comm Trunk SID:4038 |
TN |
Sevier |
| 857.9625 |
|
Knox
Co Schools Trunk C SID: 3522 |
TN |
Knox |
Check out the Radio PhoneBook (link at bottom) for
more.
H.R. 607 - "shall
end their use of radio spectrum above 420 megahertz and
below 512 megahertz"
A debated
political frenzy has descended upon radio like no
other, Bandwidth is being used at rates that
physics and current technology cannot pace, and
we are running out of frequencies!
House Bill 607 AKA: "Broadband for First
Responders Act of 2011"
as introduced by Representative Peter King
(R-NY) and Representative Billy Long (R -MO)
stated purpose is to ensure emergency responders
have adequate bandwith to be able to respond to
emergencies. This bill however as currently
scripted, has a provision that indicates on
Section 23 Line 16
16 (1) REQUIRE MIGRATION BY
PUBLIC SAFETY
17 ENTITIES.—Not later than 8 years after
the date of
18 enactment of the Act, each public safety
entities
19 shall end their use of radio spectrum above
420
20 megahertz and below 512 megahertz and begin to
21 use alternative radio spectrum licensed to
public
22 safety services in the 700 megahertz and 800
mega
23 hertz bands.
If approved, this bill would basically supersede
the typical FCC gears and cogs and take radio
spectrum into the hands of politicians. Most
importantly there are not clear provisions
protecting the 70 centimeter Amateur Radio band
(420-450 MHz). The FCC has been historically
supportive of ensuring spectrum for Amateur Radio
is preserved. Amateur Radio operators across the
country are infuriated that this crucial band is
now at risk. Additionally, many public safety
agencies that have individually invested millions
of dollars upgrading their equipment in the 450
MHz bands to be 12.5 kHz narrowband compliant,
now risk losing the investment. Additional
concerns from realists are that the proposed
alternative (700 MHz band) does not have the
physical characteristics that the lower frequency
provides. These benefits among building
penetration, beneficial reflectivity in urban
areas, and longer propagation.
With the explosion of broadband internet in the
United States, the shuffle continues as
commercial companies eager to sell equipment and
resources run out of places to license their
services. Not only are ham operators, small
business's that cannot afford yet another
"radio" upgrade are under the gun but
listeners the same. If users are forced to move
to the 700 MHz region, bandwidth constraints
there will force all users to be 6.25 kHz or
less. This would mean all traffic would need to
be digital, requiring a costly upgrade for
everyone including the average scanner listener.
Please contact your congressman and tell them you
oppose HB607, tell them we need to let the FCC
decide who gets our spectrum.
Our "Bill to Kill" section will be
updated soon depending on the interim activity
associated with the bill.
Full Bill Link
Japan Disaster Relief
Operations
If you have a shortwave or HF radio tune in
Reportedly Used
|
| 7.030 |
| 7.043 |
| 7.075 |
| 7.036 |
| 7.130 |
| 14.230 |
| 21.230 |
|
IARU
Region 3 Standard Freqs
|
| 3.600 |
| 7.100 |
| 14.300 |
| 18.160 |
| 21.360 |
|
|
|
Wide Area Feed Move / Downtime
Our Wide
Area Feed is currently in the process
of moving from it's current location Johnson City, TN.
While we expect some downtime, we plan on the disruption
to be very minimal. Our new location will
provide the ability to expand our resources and possibly
add a second antenna and feed. We have ordered
a new military-grade lightning arrestor and plan on
sinking multiple ground rods at the new site. New coax
cable
and type N connectors will be used (we do hate soldering
these) to maximize water-tightness and minimize loss.
Be sure to follow our Twitter feed now so you can stay
abreast of the changes.
Wide Area Feed's Antenna
|
Phase 1 Narrowband Deadline
1/1/2013
The FCC's ever increasing
squeeze of bandwidth is underway, the first stage of the
deadline is approaching.
At the end of 2004, the FCC mandated that all
terrestrial land mobile radio users operating <512 MHz
change to
12.5 kHz narrowband emissions by January 1, 2013. Data use is also being restructured to even
tighter requirements.
What does this mean?
- 1-1-2011 - No new licenses on 25
kHz bandwidth, no new modifications to 25 kHz
licenses
- Phase 2 is still TBD (to be
determined); P25 digital (currently) is the only
widely used technology that can easily meet this
requirement.
How does this affect scanning?
- Phase 1 - there is no noticeable
difference for most if not all scanners
(Many agencies are investing in Phase 2 compliant
or easily compliant systems now)
- Phase 2 - you will need to
purchase a digital scanner capable of TDMA
Local Railroad Narrow Banding
Mandates to convert all
railroad communications to narrower channel spacing are
underway,
sources tell us that most locomotives have been fitted
with radios capable of switching back and forth on demand
between wide and narrow. This would be beneficial if the
engine was used in a area that had not upgraded to
narrowband
technology. A normal scanner can still pick up the
transmissions without any special modification or change
of settings.
The change from 25 kHz to 12.5 kHz is required to meet a
1/1/2013 FCC Mandate. Current wideband channels
are 25 kHz wide
and are spaced 15 kHz apart. The resulting 12.5 kHz
channels are spaced 7.5 kHz apart.
 |
| Top: Old
Configuration - Bottom: New
Narrowband Configuration |
Some field work is in store as news of
new frequency use has been very limited. Additionally,
Norfolk Southern and CSX usually license far more
frequencies that they actually use routinely, preventing
a
simple license search from yielding many clues.
| 161.025
Norfolk Southern - Blue Ridge District NEW 160.470 Norfolk
Southern "Road" - Pulaski District NEW
|
Drop us a line if you noticed your local
railroad chatter has moved to a new frequency.
New Online Feed
An anonymous party has
supplied a stream for this area for the Virginia State
Police; this feed was added on 3/13.
Listen Online
|
