To determine whether the information on this page applies to your scanner, see the tags at the bottom of the page.
This menu lets you create channels and edit existing channels. All existing channels are listed in alphabetical order: select the channel you want to edit, or select New Channel to create a new one. You can have up to 1000 channels in a conventional system and 500 channels in a trunked system.
When you create a new channel, the scanner prompts you to enter the frequency (in a conventional system) or the Talk Group ID (in a trunked system) for the channel: you can edit these at any time through this menu.
Edit Frequency (conventional systems)
Enter a valid frequency for this band. If the frequency is invalid or if it already exists, the scanner sounds an error tone and prompts you enter the frequency again.
Options available for all channels:
You have the following options for channels (click on any setting for an explanation):
Edit Name
Enter a name or edit the existing one. Names can be 16 characters long, and they can contain upper and lower case letters, punctuation, and spaces. Turn the
SELECT-VOLUME-SQUELCH knob on the handheld scanners or the
SCROLL / FUNCTION knob on mobile scanners to choose the character you want, then press
6 (right cursor) to move the cursor to the next character.
Set Audio Type
Select the type of audio signal contained on this channel. Choose
Digital Only or
Analog Only according to the signal type; select
All if this channel might contain both digital and analog signals.
Set Number Tag
Assign a number to this system or channel that you can use to tune directly to a specific channel. Choose a number from
0 to
999. (For more information, see
Number Tags.)
Set Modulation
Select what type of modulation the scanner should use for this frequency or channel. (Only the modulation types available for this frequency or channel are displayed.)
Auto |
The scanner uses the default modulation type for this frequency's band. |
AM |
The scanner treats the frequency as an AM band. |
NFM |
The scanner treats the frequency as a Narrowband FM band. |
FM |
The scanner treats the frequency as an FM band. |
WFM |
The scanner treats the frequency as a Wideband FM band. |
FMB |
The scanner treats the frequency as an FM broadcast band. |
Set Attenuator
Turn on attenuation to reduce the signal strength by 20 dB. You can turn on attentuation for individual frequencies and channels or for entire sites. If you turn on attenuation for a site, all frequencies within that site will be attenuated.
Set Priority
Choose whether this channel should be flagged as a priority channel so the scanner checks it during priority scans and searches.
Set Alert
This menu lets you configure whether the scanner triggers an alert tone and light whenever this channel or frequency becomes active. (Compare this to the system setting
Emergency Alert, which triggers a tone and light when a Talk Group contains an emergency flag.) The available options for
Set Alert Tone and
Set Alert Light are common to both types of alerts.
This item lets you select whether the channel's audio is output from the RECORD OUT jack on the back of the scanner. Note that you must also set the RECORD --> Marked Channel System Option to fully enable this function.
Set Lockout
Decide whether you want to lock out the channel so the scanner will ignore it during Scan and Search modes. Choose one of the following options:
- Unlocked: The channel is not locked out.
- Temporary L/O: The channel is locked out until you turn the scanner off and back on.
- Lockout: The channel is permanently locked out.
Volume Offset
The scanner can automatically adjust the volume when it tunes to this channel or frequency. Enter one of the following options:
Softer |
No Change |
Louder |
-3, -2, -1 |
0 (default) |
+1, +2, +3 |
Copy Channel
Copy this channel and all its settings into the buffer. When a channel is stored in the buffer, the scanner adds
Paste Channel to the bottom of the
Program Channel menu whenever you are editing a compatible system (that is, a system that is the same type as the one you copied the channel from).
Delete Channel
Delete this frequency or channel and all associated settings.
New Channel
Create a new channel.
Analog channel options
The following options are available only when the Audio Type is set to
Analog .
Set CTCSS/DCS
(Conventional systems only) Choose one of the following CTCSS/DCS options for this channel:
Off |
The scanner ignores all CTCSS and DCS tones and opens squelch on any signal. |
Search |
The scanner displays any received CTCSS and DCS tones, but it opens squelch on any signal. |
CTCSS |
The scanner prompts you to enter a CTCSS code; it will only open squelch if the received signal contains a CTCSS tone that matches the one you enter here. |
DCS |
The scanner prompts you to enter a DCS code; it will only open squelch if the received signal contains a DCS tone that matches the one you enter here. |
Set Lockout |
The scanner prompts you to enter a CTCSS or DCS code that you want to lockout for this channel. The scanner will not open squelch if the received signal contains a matching CTCSS or DCS tone. |
Digital channel options
The following options are available only when the Audio Type is set to
Digital .
P25 NAC Option
Choose whether the scanner limits reception to transmissions that include a specific Network Access Code (NAC) for this system or frequency.
- Search: The scanner opens squelch for any digital signal, but displays the NAC being used.
- Set P25 NAC: The scanner opens squelch only for signals that include the NAC you enter here. Enter a hexadecimal number between 0 and FFF.