20-310.fm Page 1 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM OWNER’S MANUAL PRO-70 50-Channel Portable Scanner Please read before using this equipment. Cat. No.
0-310.fm Page 2 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM INTRODUCTION Your new RadioShack PRO-70 50-Channel Portable Scanner lets you in on all the action. This scanner gives you direct access to over 22,000 exciting frequencies, including police and fire departments, ambulance services, and amateur radio services. You can select up to 50 channels to scan, and you can change your selection at any time.
20-310.fm Page 3 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Channel Lockout — keeps channels you select from being scanned. Key Lock — lets you lock the scanner’s keys to help prevent accidentally changing the scanner’s programming. Flexible Antenna with BNC Connector — provides excellent reception and is designed to help prevent antenna breakage. Liquid Crystal Display — makes it easy to view and change programming information. Display Backlight — makes the scanner easy to read in low light situations.
20-310.fm Page 4 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Your PRO-70 scanner contains the following preprogrammed frequencies (divided into search bands). See “Using Band Search” on Page 25. Band Frequency Search Range (in MHz) 0 29-30 10-Meter Amateur Radio 1 30-50 VHF Low 2 50-54 6-Meter Amateur Radio 3 137-144 Aircraft/Air Shows, Government 4 144-148 2-Meter Amateur Radio 5 148-174 VHF Hi 6 380-420 U.S.
20-310.fm Page 5 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM This owner’s manual also includes the section “A General Guide to Scanning,” which helps you target frequency ranges in your service area so you can search for a wide variety of broadcasts. FCC NOTICE Your scanner might cause TV or radio interference even when it is operating properly. To determine whether your scanner is causing the interference, turn off your scanner. If the interference goes away, your scanner is causing the interference.
20-310.fm Page 6 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM SCANNING LEGALLY Scanning is a fun and interesting hobby. You can hear police and fire departments, ambulance services, government agencies, private companies, amateur radio services, aircraft, and military operations. It is legal to listen to almost every transmission your scanner can receive. However, there are some electronic and wire communications that are illegal to intentionally intercept.
20-310.fm Page 7 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM CONTENTS Preparation .................................................................. 9 Power Sources ...................................................... 9 Using Batteries ............................................... 9 Using Standard AC Power ............................ 11 Using Vehicle Battery Power ........................ 12 Charging a Rechargeable Battery Pack ....... 13 Connecting the Antenna ......................................
20-310.fm Page 8 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM A General Scanning Guide ...................................... Guide to Frequencies .......................................... National Weather Frequencies ..................... Ham Radio Frequencies ............................... Birdie Frequencies ....................................... Guide to the Action Bands ................................... United States Broadcast Bands ................... Typical Band Usage ....................................
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20-310.fm Page 10 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Follow these steps to install batteries or a battery pack. 1. Press down on the battery compartment cover on the bottom of the scanner and slide the cover in the direction of the arrow to remove it. 2. Pull up and slide the battery holder or battery pack out of the battery compartment. 3. If you are installing individual batteries, insert six batteries in the battery holder as indicated by the polarity symbols (+ and –) marked on the battery holder.
20-310.fm Page 11 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 4. Slide the battery holder or battery pack into the compartment. Caution: The battery holder or battery pack fits only one way inside the battery compartment. Do not force it. 5. Replace the cover. If BATT flashes on the display, immediately replace all six non-rechargeable batteries, remove and recharge all six rechargeable batteries, or recharge the battery pack. See “Charging a Rechargeable Battery Pack” on Page 13.
20-310.fm Page 12 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Warning: Do not use an AC adapter’s polarized plug with an extension cord, receptacle, or other outlet unless the blades can be fully inserted to prevent blade exposure. Cautions: • You must use an AC adapter that supplies 9 volts and delivers at least 300 milliamps. Its center tip must be set to negative, and its plug must correctly fit the scanner’s PWR/DC 9V jack. The recommended adapter meets these specifications.
20-310.fm Page 13 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 4 3 2 1 1. Connect the DC adapter’s orange barrel plug to the adapter’s cable, with the tip set to – (negative). 2. Set the adapter’s voltage switch to 9V. 3. Insert the barrel plug into the scanner’s PWR/DC 9V jack. 4. Plug the other end of the adapter into your vehicle’s cigarette-lighter socket.
20-310.fm Page 14 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Note: A rechargeable battery pack lasts longer and delivers more power if you occasionally let it fully discharge. To do this, simply use the scanner until BATT appears on the display. Then fully charge the battery pack. Important! At the end of a rechargeable battery pack’s useful life, it must be recycled or disposed of properly.
20-310.fm Page 15 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Connecting an Optional Antenna The antenna connector on your scanner makes it easy to use the scanner with a variety of antennas. Instead of the supplied antenna, you can attach a different one, such as an external mobile antenna or outdoor base station antenna. Your local RadioShack store sells a variety of antennas. Always use 50-ohm coaxial cable, such as RG-58 or RG8, to connect an outdoor antenna.
20-310.fm Page 16 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM CONNECTING AN EARPHONE/ HEADPHONES For private listening, you can plug an earphone or mono headphones (such as Cat. No. 33-175 or 20-210) into the jack on top of your scanner. This automatically disconnects the internal speaker. Listening Safely To protect your hearing, follow these guidelines when you use an earphone or headphones: • Do not listen at extremely high volume levels. Extended high-volume listening can lead to permanent hearing loss.
20-310.fm Page 17 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Even though some earphones and headphones let you hear some outside sounds when you listen at normal levels, they still can present a traffic hazard. CONNECTING AN EXTENSION SPEAKER In a noisy area, an extension speaker (such as Cat. No. 21-549) or an amplified speaker (such as Cat. No. 21541), positioned in the right place, might provide more comfortable listening. Plug the speaker cable’s 1/8-inch mini-plug into your scanner’s jack.
20-310.fm Page 18 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM UNDERSTANDING THE PRO-70 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. WX — scans through the 10 preprogrammed weather channels. BAND — selects a preprogrammed search band. SCAN — scans through the programmed channels. MANUAL — stops scanning and lets you directly enter a channel number.
20-310.fm Page 19 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM A LOOK AT THE DISPLAY The display has indicators that show the scanner’s current operation. A quick look at the display will help you understand how to operate your scanner. MAN — appears when you manually select a channel. SCAN — appears when you scan channels. WX — appears when you scan or manually search the 10 preprogrammed weather channels. MON — appears when you listen to the monitor memory. BATT — appears when the batteries are low.
-310.fm Page 20 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM ch — the digits that precede this indicator (1—50) show which channel the scanner is tuned to. –d — appears during a direct frequency search. 000.0000 — the digits in the middle of the display show which frequency the scanner is tuned to. Error — appears when you make an entry error. dUPL — (duplicate) appears when you try to store a frequency that is already stored in another channel.
20-310.fm Page 21 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM OPERATION TURNING ON THE SCANNER AND SETTING SQUELCH 1. Turn SQUELCH fully counterclockwise before you turn on the scanner. VOL UME OFF SQUELCH M A X MIN MA X 2. Turn VOLUME clockwise until you hear a hissing sound. VOL UME SQUELCH OFF M A X MIN MA X 3. Turn SQUELCH clockwise, just until the hissing sound stops. Note: To listen to a weak or distant station, turn SQUELCH counterclockwise.
20-310.fm Page 22 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM SEARCHING FOR AND STORING ACTIVE FREQUENCIES Your scanner can store up to 51 frequencies. Each frequency can be stored in either a memory called a channel, or the temporary memory called a monitor. This scanner has 50 channels and one monitor memory. You can store frequencies using any of these methods. • Manually enter and store a specific frequency (see “Storing Frequencies” on Page 23).
20-310.fm Page 23 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Storing Frequencies Follow these steps to store frequencies into your scanner’s channels. 1. Press PGM. PGM appears on the display to indicate the scanner is in the programming mode. 2. Use the number keys to enter the channel number (1-50) where you want to store the frequency, then press PGM again. Or, repeatedly press PGM until the desired channel number appears. Notes: • If you enter an invalid channel number, Error appears on the display.
20-310.fm Page 24 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 4. Press E/L-OUT to store the frequency. The selected channel number stops flashing, indicating that the selected channel is stored. Notes: • If you entered an invalid frequency in Step 3, Error appears on the display after you press E/ L-OUT. Simply repeat Steps 3 and 4 and enter a valid frequency in Step 3. • Your scanner automatically rounds the entered frequency down to the nearest valid frequency.
20-310.fm Page 25 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Using Band Search If you do not know of a frequency to store, you can search your scanner’s preprogrammed search bands for active frequencies, then store any that you find into your scanner’s channels. Follow these steps to search for and store active frequencies using band search. 1. Press BAND. The last selected band number ( b followed by a number, such as b2) and the associated frequency search range appear on the display. 2.
20-310.fm Page 26 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM • To reverse the rapid search direction at any time, press and hold or for about 1second. • To search the selected band upward or downward in small increments (in steps of 5 or 12.5 kHz, depending on the band), press and release or so or disappears from the display. See “Specified Intervals” on Page 39. 3. When the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops scanning and displays that frequency’s number.
20-310.fm Page 27 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Using Direct Search During a direct search, the scanner searches upward or downward, starting from a frequency you specify. Follow these steps to use direct search. 1. Press MANUAL or PGM, then enter the frequency you want to use as a starting point for the search. Note: To start from a frequency already stored in one of your scanner’s channels, press MANUAL or PGM, enter the desired channel number, then press MANUAL or PGM again. 2.
20-310.fm Page 28 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM USING THE MONITOR MEMORY After you store a frequency in the scanner’s monitor memory during a direct search, you can recall it and move it to one of your scanner’s channel memories. Listening to the Monitor Memory To recall a frequency stored in the monitor memory, simply press MANUAL then 0/MON. MAN then MON and the stored frequency appear on the display. Moving a Frequency from the Monitor Memory to a Channel 1.
20-310.fm Page 29 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM SCANNING THE STORED CHANNELS To set the scanner to continuously scan through all channels with stored frequencies, simply press SCAN. SCAN and appear on the display, and the scanner begins to rapidly scan upward until it finds an active frequency. If the scanner finds an active frequency, it stops and displays that channel and frequency number, then it automatically begins scanning again when the transmission ends on that frequency.
20-310.fm Page 30 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM MONITORING A STORED CHANNEL You can continuously monitor a specific channel without scanning. This is useful if you hear an emergency broadcast on a channel and do not want to miss any details — even though there might be periods of silence — or if you simply want to monitor that channel. Follow these steps to manually select a channel. 1. Press MANUAL. 2. Enter the channel number. 3. Press MANUAL again.
20-310.fm Page 31 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM CLEARING A STORED CHANNEL If you no longer want a frequency stored in a channel (and you do not want to replace that frequency with a different one), follow these steps to clear the stored frequency. 1. Select the channel that you want to clear. 2. Press PGM. PGM appears on the display. 3. Press CLEAR . The frequency number flashes on the display. 4. Press E/L-OUT.
20-310.fm Page 32 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM SPECIAL FEATURES USING THE KEYLOCK Once you program your scanner, you can protect it from accidental program changes by turning on the keylock feature. When the keypad is locked, the only controls that operate are LIGHT (see “Using the Display Backlight” on Page 34), VOLUME, and SQUELCH. Note: The keylock does not prevent the scanner from scanning channels or monitoring a single channel, whichever feature you last selected.
20-310.fm Page 33 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM To remove the lock-out from a channel, select that channel again, then press E/L-OUT so L/O disappears from the display. Notes: • You can manually select locked-out channels. • Your scanner automatically locks out empty channels. USING A 2-SECOND DELAY Many agencies use a two-way radio system that has a period of several seconds between a query and a reply. To avoid missing a reply, you can program a 2-second delay into any channel or frequency.
20-310.fm Page 34 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM • If the scanner is in the search mode, press ./DLY while the scanner is searching. DELAY appears on the display and the scanner automatically adds a 2second delay to every transmission it stops on. To turn off the 2-second delay, press ./DLY while the scanner is monitoring the channel or frequency. DELAY disappears from the display. USING THE DISPLAY BACKLIGHT You can turn on the display’s backlight for easy viewing in the dark.
20-310.fm Page 35 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM To hear your local forecast and regional weather information, simply press WX. Your scanner begins to scan through the weather band, and and WX appear on the display. To reverse the scanning direction, press or . Your scanner should stop within a few seconds on your local weather broadcast. If the broadcast is weak, you can press or again to resume scanning.
20-310.fm Page 36 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM A GENERAL SCANNING GUIDE Reception of the frequencies covered by your scanner is mainly “line-of-sight.” This means you usually cannot hear stations that are beyond the horizon. GUIDE TO FREQUENCIES National Weather Frequencies 161.650 162.440* 162.525 161.775 162.450 162.550 162.400 162.475 163.275 162.425 162.500 *Not preprogrammed in this scanner, but you can manually program it.
20-310.fm Page 37 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 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 frequencies, you hear only noise on that frequency. If the interference is not severe, you might be able to turn SQUELCH clockwise to cut out the birdie. The birdie frequencies on this unit to watch for are: 29.900 32.090 51.
20-310.fm Page 38 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 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 U.S. Government 2-Meter Amateur High Range 29.00–29.70 MHz 29.70–29.90 MHz 30.00–50.00 MHz 50.00–54.00 MHz 137.00–144.00 MHz 144.00–148.00 MHz 148.00–174.00 MHz UHF Band(300.00 MHz–3.0 GHz) Military Aircraft 380.00–384.00 MHz U.S. Government 406.00–420.00 MHz 70-Centimeter Amateur 420.00–450.00 MHz Low Range 450.00–470.
20-310.fm Page 39 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM UHF Band Activities Land-Mobile “Paired” Frequencies Base Stations Mobile Units Relay Repeater Units Remote Control Stations Frequencies (MHz) 450.000–470.000 451.025–454.950 456.025–459.950 460.025–464.975 465.025–469.975 Note: Remote control stations and mobile units operate at 5 MHz higher than their associated base stations and relay repeater units. Specified Intervals Frequencies in different bands are accessible only at specific intervals.
20-310.fm Page 40 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 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 Police Call Radio Guide Including Fire and Emergency Services, available at your local RadioShack store. Abbreviations Services AIR...................................................
20-310.fm Page 41 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM PTR ..........................................................Private Trunked ROAD................................Road & Highway Maintenance RTV ......................... Radio/TV Remote Broadcast Pickup TAXI .............................................................Taxi Services TELB .....................................................Mobile Telephone (Aircraft, Radio Common Carrier, Landline companies) TELC..........................................
20-310.fm Page 42 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 47.020–47.400...........................................................PUB 47.420.............................................. American Red Cross 47.440–49.580...................................................IND, PUB 49.610–49.990................................................. MIL, TELC 6-Meter Amateur Band — (50–54 MHz) 50.00–54.00.............................................................. HAM U.S. Government Band (138–144 MHz) 137.000–144.000.
20-310.fm Page 43 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 159.480 ....................................................................... OIL 159.495–161.565 .................................................... TRAN 161.580 ....................................................................... OIL 161.600–162.000 ............................................MARI, RTV 162.0125–162.35 ................................ GOVT, MIL, USXX 162.400–162.550 ................................................... WTHR 162.
20-310.fm Page 44 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 453.0125–453.9875...................................................PUB 454.000....................................................................... OIL 454.025–454.975..................................................... TELB 455.050–455.925....................................................... RTV 457.525–457.600.......................................................BUS 458.025–458.175...................................................... MED 460.
20-310.fm Page 45 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM AVOIDING IMAGE FREQUENCIES You might discover one of your regular stations on another frequency that is not listed. This might be what is known as an image frequency. For example, you might find a service that regularly uses a frequency of 453.275 also on 474.675. 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.
20-310.fm Page 46 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM FREQUENCY CONVERSION The tuning location of a station can be expressed in frequency (kHz or MHz) or in wavelength (meters). The following information can help you make the necessary conversions. 1 MHz (million) = 1,000 kHz (thousand) To convert MHz to kHz, multiply the number of MHz by 1,000: 30.62 MHz × 1000 = 30,620 kHz To convert from kHz to MHz, divide the number of kHz by 1,000. 127,800 kHz ÷ 1000 = 127.
20-310.fm Page 47 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM TROUBLESHOOTING If your scanner is not working as it should, these suggestions might help you eliminate the problem. If the scanner still does not operate properly, take it to your local RadioShack store for assistance. PROBLEM POSSIBLE CAUSES REMEDIES The batteries are dead. Replace the batteries with fresh ones or recharge the battery pack. The optional AC or DC power adapter is not connected.
20-310.fm Page 48 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM PROBLEM Keys do not work or display changes. Scanner is on but will not scan. In the scan mode, the scanner locks on frequencies that have an unclear transmission. 48 POSSIBLE CAUSES Undetermined error. SQUELCH correctly adjusted. Birdies. is not REMEDIES Turn the scanner off then on again, or reset the scanner (see “Resetting/Initializing the Scanner” on Page 49).
20-310.fm Page 49 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM 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 problems, first try to reset the scanner (see “Resetting the Scanner”). If that does not work, you can initialize the scanner (see “Initializing the Scanner” on Page 50); however, this clears all information stored in your scanner’s memory.
20-310.fm Page 50 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Initializing the Scanner Caution: 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. Press and hold CLEAR. 3.
20-310.fm Page 51 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM CARE AND MAINTENANCE To enjoy your RadioShack PRO-70 50-Channel Portable Scanner for a long time: Keep the scanner dry. If it gets wet, wipe it dry immediately. Liquids can contain minerals that can corrode the electronic circuits. Use only fresh batteries of the recommended size and type. Always remove old and weak batteries. They can leak chemicals that destroy electronic circuits. Handle the scanner gently and carefully.
20-310.fm Page 52 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM SPECIFICATIONS Frequency Coverage: Ham ............................... 29–30 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) VHF Lo .......................... 30–50 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) Ham ............................... 50–54 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) Government ............... 137–144 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) Ham ........................... 144–148 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) VHF Hi ....................... 148–174 MHz (5.0 kHz steps) Ham/Government .... 380–450 MHz (12.5 kHz steps) UHF Lo .........
20-310.fm Page 53 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Audio Output Power (10%THD)........... 200 mW Nominal Built-in Speaker 13/8 Inch (36 mm) 8 ohm, Dynamic Type Power Requirements ..................+9 V DC, 6 AA batteries AC Adapter (Cat. No. 273-1665) DC Adapter (Cat. No. 270-1560) Rechargeable Battery Pack (Cat. No. 23-288) Current Drain (Squelched) ......................................50 mA Dimensions (HWD) ................... 6 3/4 × 27/16 × 19/16 Inches (171 × 62 × 40 mm) Weight ....................
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20-310.fm Page 56 Wednesday, August 4, 1999 10:49 AM Limited One-Year Warranty This product is warranted by RadioShack against manufacturing defects in material and workmanship under normal use for one (1) year from the date of purchase from RadioShack company-owned stores and authorized RadioShack franchisees and dealers.
