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Some matches are made in heaven. It doesn't matter how you look at it or how
you slice it, things just don't get any better! Ask anyone who has used one of
the Optoelectronics OptoScan boards in their PRO-2005, PRO-2006, PRO-2035 or
PRO-2042 and you're liable to evoke emotions that simply can not be given
justice with the written word. But if you're a scanning enthusiast, you know
just how deep our emotions run...ah, yeah.
I've been one such hobbyist who has had great pleasure in using a PRO-2035 and PRO-2042 with the OS535 boards. Why? Because the addition of this hardware allows your monitoring regimen to be taken to a much higher level of functionality! CTCSS, DCS and DTMF codes are decoded in real-time. An S-meter is now available. The number of frequencies and the subsequent personalities with which your radio can be programmed is practically unlimited! When not under computer control, your radio acts just like it did before the interface board was ever installed. And the amount of software to choose from for controlling this combination is simply staggering. Here in the late '90s, things are taking on a more somber note. Radio Shack no longer carries any of these models and Tandy UK is closing up its shops to their walk-in scanner customers. Worse yet, Optoelectronics no longer carries the OS456 board due to lack of available components. If you want to control you're PRO-2005 or PRO-2006, you'll have to go with the OS456 Lite which loses CTCSS, DCS, DTMF and the S-meter features. With every passing year, computer control becomes increasingly important to those shopping for a new receiver. Word is getting around as to just how powerful and flexible such a setup is. What's also getting around is the prevalence of public safety agencies and municipalities migrating to expensive trunked systems for more efficient usage of their allocated frequencies. Part of this was solved by introduction of the Uniden TrunkTrackers. Unfortunately, they are limited in the scope of the systems and frequency ranges with which they can work. What's needed is a much more flexible receiver that can meet the needs of many more users. And just before the Christmas of '98, Optoelectronics and GRE began delivering a solution which had all the makings of another match made in heaven. So set aside some quality time and grab your favorite drink and a few munchies. We've got a lot of ground to cover and this ain't no one-page magazine review! What follows are my personal impressions regarding the features and performance of this receiver. This, in no way, should be viewed as an endorsement to purchase this radio nor is it intended to discourage anyone from buying it. I have no personal or business relations with Optoelectronics or GRE. These are simply thoughts offered to my fellow hobbyists who may be interested in purchasing this particular radio or simply knowing more about it. A lot of hard work and effort has gone into the testing and writing of this review. I would appreciate it if every effort is made to keep this document whole with me as the original author. Of course, it doesn't hurt that this document is copyrighted and therefore protected by US law and international treaties governing intellectual property. Except for personal use, and for the sake of brief passages quoted in reviews and given appropriate credit, no part of this work may be reproduced in any forms or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the author. And if you want to share your thoughts about this review with me or have further questions, feel free to send e-mail. Thank you and enjoy!
Rich Wells |
| Channels | 100 internal |
|---|---|
| Banks | 1 internal |
| Coverage | 25 - 520, 760 - 1300 MHz |
| Scan | 65 chan/sec |
| Search | 65 steps/sec |
| Steps | 5, 25 & 50 kHz |
| Modes | AM, FM & WFM |
| Sensitivity | As listed in the manual : 25 - 1000 MHz 1000 - 1300 MHz |
| Conversion | Triple |
| Priority | Must be provided by software |
| Search limits | Must be provided by software |
| Search skip | Must be provided by software |
| Auto-store | Must be provided by software |
| S-meter | Yes |
| Delay | Must be provided by software |
| Lockout | Must be provided by software |
| Attenuator | Yes |
| Lock | No |
| Tone codes | CTCSS, DCS & DTMF |
| Computer intf | Yes |
| Rotary control | No |
| Channel count | Must be provided by software |
| Data skip | No |
| Clock | No |
| Timers | No |
| Weather | Yes |
| Weather Alert | No |
| Light | N/A |
| Power | 12 V DC |
| Audio | 1.3 W (speaker), 1.8 W (external) |
| Size | 6.5" W x 2" H x 6.5" D |
| Weight | 2 lbs |
| Memory | non-volatile? |
The manual points out that the receiver board is manufactured by GRE who is famous for their "classic" receivers such as the PRO-2006, PRO-43, PRO-2042 and many others sold under the Realistic and Radio Shack brand names.
The manual then goes on to describe other features of this receiver. The first of which is the highly popular ability to decode GE/Ericsson EDACS trunking protocols using the optional E-Trax software.
Like other OptoScan boards, this receiver has the ability to be Reaction Tuned by one of Optoelectronics' capable frequency counters. A built-in data slicer is also included allowing the opportunity of third party software vendors to decode digital signals. Audio input and output jacks provide the ability to handle and provide discriminator level signals.
Even greater flexibility is available via the NUDEM (Nearly Universal Data DEModulator) which is a barren space on one of the receiver boards allowing additional hardware to be added and access given to the major receiver signals and interfaces.
Following sections of the manual list the front and rear panel controls and interfaces, antenna setup and grounding, frequency coverage, installation, OS535 emulation mode (so that you can use current OptoScan 535 software to control this receiver in conventional mode), Reaction Tuning, technical support contacts, cellular blockage, CI-V and CI-5 computer interface descriptions, a decent list of specifications and product warranties.
Construction and Physical
Like more and more computer-only controlled receivers (IC-PCR100, IC-PCR1000,
RX-320, WR-1000e, WR-1500e, etc.), this radio is a simple black box with
minimal external controls.
The unit is all metal, painted in black, and roughly 6.5 inches wide and deep while being 2 inches in height. In other words, its small and sturdy. The case itself is basically shaped from two metal "L" sections; the top and back panels form one while the bottom and front form the other. Opening the receiver is a simple matter of removing the four side panel screws, two serial port lug screws and the two small black screws next to the BNC jack and attenuator switch.
Looking at the front panel, we see the headphone jack, three LEDs, and the squelch and volume controls. The headphone supplies 16 mW of power and takes a normal 3.5 mm stereo plug.
The three LEDs are used for status purposes and include power (red), data (green) and squelch (yellow). The power LED is simply used to indicate when the unit is turned on via the rear panel push button. The data LED indicates that data is being sent over the serial port to the radio and flashes while doing so. The squelch LED is used to denote when a signal is being received. I like the use of three different colors for easy identification. If might not seem like much but you'll appreciate it in the long run.
The volume and squelch controls are large, plastic knobs. While black in color at the base, they contain gray inserts which house a white, plastic stripe used for setting references. While I applaud the use of these stripes, it would have been more useful had the panel under the controls been labeled around their circumference with the typical series of dots. Both of these controls can be overridden and controlled via the computer interface.
A look at the top panel shows the radio identification label and in the middle of the right hand side, the speaker grill. It is thoughtfully covered with a fine, black mesh to keep out larger dust and dirt particles. A look inside the radio reveals a plastic tube about a half-inch high which bridges the gap between the speaker itself and the top panel, thereby helping to conduct all of the speaker output straight upward and out through this grill.
Looking at the bottom panel, we see the typical four rubber feet, serial number identification sticker and FCC identification label. Near each of the four corners are screws which are used to hold the two internal PC boards in place which are separated by metal spacers and I believe are used to help ground the entire metal case thereby helping to keep receiver generated signals inside and environmental RFI outside. And I wouldn't suggest removing these unless you like to work on puzzles (don't ask me how I know!)
Finally, we have the back panel which is where the meat and potatoes lie. There are basically two rows of interfaces and connectors. The top row contains a tape recorder control jack, 2.5 mm mono jack (Reaction Tune), 3.5 mm stereo audio input/output jack (discriminator input/output), 2 3.5 mm mono CI-5 jacks, and 9-pin RS-232C serial port.
Moving to the bottom row we have the attenuator switch (0/10 dB) located on the far left hand side followed the BNC antenna jack, RCA tape recorder output jack, 3.5 mm external speaker jack (8 ohms, 1.8 watts), 12 volt DC power jack, and power push button.
Also included is a 90-degree BNC adapter allowing the TA100S to be attached to the rear panel BNC jack and be positioned vertically for best reception of most VHF/UHF signals.
To get the most out of the OptoCom receiver, I strongly suggest you work on acquiring a superior antenna such as a large discone or ground plane. Mount them outside, in an attic or unused room and connect them using the highest quality co-ax cable you can afford. LMR-400, Belden 9913 (RG-8/U), RG-11/U, RG-213/U, and RG-6/U are good choices. Try to avoid RG-174, RG-59 and RG-58 at all costs if possible.
Features
Like previous Opto interfaces, the OptoCom conforms to their CI-5 spec which
is a set of extensions to the original Icom CI-V computer interface protocol.
This original spec provided a uniform "language" for how to effectively
communicate between computer and receiver. It included nine commands for
sending and receiving frequency information as well as receive mode.
Opto extended the command set to included numerous other commands allowing it to be handle the numerous hardware functions their OptoScan boards (OS456 & OS535) supported. In so doing, the renamed the spec to be called CI-5. This spec included reading the signal strength, controlling a tape recorder, reading CTCSS, DCS and DTMF data, enabling and disabling speaker audio, etc. They also included a revolutionary technique known as pipelined tuning which allows very fast scanning and searching (100 chan/sec).
For the OptoCom, the spec was updated to handle the new capabilities of this specialized receiver. This includes handling of LTR data and trunked system decoding, setting of the remote volume and squelch controls and transferring frequency data to the on-board memory.
Included on the software diskettes is the specification for the OptoCom CI-5 protocol, version 1.0. Making use of this new protocol is the OPTOCOM.EXE utility program. Using this utility, the OptoCom can be put in OS535 emulation mode which allows it to be used in conventional mode using any of the numerous software programs that support this older OS535 interface.
As mentioned earlier, the OptoCom comes with built-in hardware to decode CTCSS and DCS tone codes, as well as DTMF data sent out over received signals. While the hardware decodes it, it's up to the selected software to use the CI-5 spec to read this data and report it to the user. With regard to tone codes, it can even be used to provide tone-coded squelch control. Good software will also allow you to build a log of all the different tones in use on noted frequencies.
One of the great untold battles is what must happen in the design of the tone decoding technology for not only CTCSS and DCS but trunked radio systems which include LTR signals. The tone decoder chip from the OS535 is used for the OptoCom with an advancement used on the OS456 to prevent overmodulated voice signals from corrupting the tone code.
Another improvement made was to use a feature of the decoder chip which helps to prevent improper tone decoding while the squelch is closing.
Changes to the firmware were also made at the request of some software developers which basically keeps a tally of the tones detected thus far for a single transmission. This effectively screens out any aberrant tones which might make it past the hardware detection and filtering thereby keeping them from being reported to software via the CI-5.
All of these enhancement are also required to operate in detecting tones in less then 250 milliseconds. This becomes crucial for trunked radio operations and the underlying operation of the software with its inherent delays due to the serial port communications.
All of these struggles with what would appear to a simple process go to show you the amount of work involved and the attention to detail that Opto has put into this receiver. It also shows how important feedback from their software vendors is to them and the success it can have on their product.
While the OptoCom provides an S-meter which is read via software just like the other Opto boards, there does appear to be a problem with it. My unit under reads severely, never giving more than a one-third deflection even on the most powerful of local signals. Opto admits that there is a problem with the lookup table designed to convert the hardware reading into the value read by software which is ultimately displayed. Opto says this will be remedied in a future firmware release to those customers with this problem for minimal cost.
I mentioned above the ability to remotely read and set both the volume and squelch controls. These controls do have encoders on them and by doing so, it allows software to read their current setting via the CI-5 interface. It can also be used to set the current volume and/or squelch thus overriding the values set by the physical controls. Input and output values for these controls appear to range between 0 and 99. Quite handy indeed!
Audio power is abundant on the OptoCom, without a doubt. The speaker is rated at 1.3 watts and is quite believable. Fidelity is another issue though. I find AM signals to be the usually higher caliber GRE product but FM signals are a bit too hollow and don't convey good voice tone qualities. Wide FM signals are definitely lacking in this department.
So do yourself a favor and get yourself a larger speaker and plug it into the rear panel speaker jack. Not only will signals sound better, but you'll have the added benefit of 1.8 watts at your disposal! Enough to send the wife and kids running for cover, allowing you to enjoy your radio uninterrupted!
Unfortunately, one of this radio's drawbacks are what I'll characterize as a longer than usual squelch tail on most signals.
And since we're using a computer-controlled radio, you'll probably want to use well-shielded co-ax cable and perhaps even some line chokes or filters to help keep computer and monitor interference to a minimum. I detected little interference in these regards but each PC and monitor provide their own, unique set of challenges. Be prepared.
Memory
The only memory for frequency data that the OptoCom has is a small one which
holds 100 frequencies. Luckily for us, this was increased from the original 28
you might have read about in early press ads.
This memory is used to implement the Store & Scan feature which will be discussed a bit later in this review.
OPTOCOM.EXE
The radio comes with an Opto utility program, OPTOCOM.EXE, which is a DOS
program and can be used to test the integrity of the serial port in no time
flat. You simply start it up and tell it which COM port the radio is attached
to your PC.
Up will pop a screen that looks like this. As you can see, there's quite a lot of information and functionality hiding behind this simple DOS program
On the upper line you'll see the program version number which might be handy to know should Opto ever release later versions. Below this is a section used to display the keypresses used to access the program's features as well as display some radio status.
The next section is used to display the data actually read from the radio. Here you will see the currently tuned frequency and receive mode, signal and squelch status, volume and squelch settings, tape recorder relay status, CTCSS, DCS and LTR data, speaker status, and signal modulation status.
Press 'F', enter the new frequency and press ENTER. The radio is now tuned to the new selection and automatically selects the appropriate receive mode. Other key presses allow you change the receive mode manually. Make sure that the Speaker status is not muted, sit back and enjoy the signals. As transmissions are received, you'll see the Squelch and Modulation status change as well as the signal strength reading. Any detected CTCSS or DCS tone codes are decoded immediately and will appear in the display.
From this panel you're also able to put the OptoCom into OS535 emulation mode so that you can use today's existing software program to control this latest Opto receiver. You also have the capability to put the unit into stand-alone mode which we'll discuss later.
Below the status and indicator panel is a small strip used to display decoded DTMF digits as they are detected. The last display row is used as a blatant advertisement for the Opto website ;-) as well as displaying a handy 24-hour clock in hour:minute:seconds format (which I find helpful when running the program in a pure DOS mode.)
All in all it's a great little utility, not only for testing the integrity of serial interface, but for putting your new radio through its first paces until you're brave enough to pioneer new software frontiers.
Be aware that this program is quite compute intensive and is constantly banging away on the serial port to read radio status to update it's displays appropriately. This has two adverse effects. The first is that it can effect the delays associated with other programs. As I am typing this, I have the program active in the background and there are very noticeable delays when I perform operations like joining, splitting and deleting lines. And I'm on a 300 MHz Pentium II!
The second problem is that this program was not designed to be run under Windows. As such, it thinks it is in total control of the system and has the full control of the serial port. Because of what I believe are inherent delays in the multiprocessing tasking of Windows, the OptoCom program can not always get the results back from the radio in a timely or orderly fashion. What this does is result in "garbage" characters showing up in the various fields on the screen for a split second until the display can be refreshed with "good" data so that it looks normal and as it should.
While this is only slightly annoying on my 300 MHz desktop machine, it tries my patience when run on my 150 MHz machine.
Otpo has made it known that interested individuals can obtain the source code for this program by request. As Bill Owen of Opto points out, "this source code is heavily commented and in reality becomes a library of "C" routines for the Optocom and anyone wanting to write Optocom software will get quite a lot of benefit from getting this!"
TrakkStar
The real guts and the glory lie within reach of the supplied TrakkStar
software. It's authored by the people at Signal Intelligence who are no
strangers when it comes to radio control. To put it delicately, TrakkStar is a
neutered version of their popular Scan*Star product. It's just been updated to
handle the new CI-5 additions to handle trunked radio tracking on 400, 500, 800
and 900 MHz systems.
At this time, Opto has an agreement with Scan*Star to provide the software for the handling of Motorola trunked radio system scanning operations. It seems that Signal Intelligence managed to unlock the mysteries of the sub-audible handshaking that goes on in the trunking radio signal traffic. With a bit of help from a decoder chip, this software tracking ability was added to the OptoCom firmware and there you have it! These same abilities are also used in Opto's OptoTrakker product.
Opto is more than willing to help other software vendors integrate their own hardware and/or software trunked radio system tracking abilities with the OptoCom receiver. By doing so, this will help the OptoCom to become even more flexible and hopefully allow hobbyists to monitor whatever system they choose with their favorite software. It will simply take some added effort from these vendors. We'll see how badly they want a piece of the OptoCom pie!
The program comes on a single 3.5" diskette and installs fairly easily. Once installed, a SETUP program is run which will prompt you for a serial number and activation key contained on a sheet of paper. DO NOT LOSE THIS PAPER! If you should ever need to re-install or upgrade the version via their web site, you will need these again.
Once done, you'll be led through a series of screens asking you to select which radio is to be controlled. The OptoCom is selected and a number of parameters are prompted for, most of which can use the default values presented. After this, various drivers are installed on your PC and icons are added to your desktop to gain access to the software. There's even an OptoCom icon which will be used to launch the main TrakkStar program. And be sure to reboot your PC after the software is installed or you won't be too successful at getting the software to run!
TrakkStar itself consists of three separate programs. The first is the Configuration utility which was run as part of the installation process to create the resources necessary to control the radio in question. You see, Scan*Star software can control a large number of radios made by AOR, Icom, Uniden and even the older Opto OS456 and OS535 boards.
Moving along, the second utility program of TrakkStar is the Data Manager. Put simply, this is the program needed to create the search and scan files you'll use to control the OptoCom. Each search file simply consists of the frequency range, step size, receive mode as well as various other parameters such as minimum and maximum squelch values, sound squelch, alarm, tape recorder control, etc.
For scan files, TrakkStar allows a free format entry so that for each file, you can define any number of banks with each bank having any number of channels. The only limitation is the 2000 channel total size. Once the number of banks and channels per bank are specified to the program, it presents an editor window used to enter all of the data.
This data consists of the bank names and types along with the typical channel information such as frequency, tone codes, LTR codes, trunking system types, receive modes, lockout, delay and comments. Since there is an import facility which can handle ASCII, ScanCat or UFDBF file formats, it can help to cut down on the amount of typing you'll need to do.
If the data to be entered is for a trunked system or bank, the type can be set to Type I, Type II or LTR. It also allows user-defined fleet maps to be defined as well. Early versions of the program had a problem with the display and conversion of Type I system IDs which has since been fixed.
Also for trunked systems is the ability to define a list of trunked IDs and their respective alpha-tags. Another list allows specified trunked IDs to be locked out and therefore not received. What I would REALLY like to see here is the ability to numerically sort these ID lists similar to another program feature that allows channel frequencies to be sorted.
After program installation, contained on your hard disk will be a few default search and scan files to help get you up and running quickly.
While you can tweak various settings once using the radio, if you want to do major changes, deletions or additions, you'll have to start up the Data Manager to do so. This is quite a departure from every other program out there and I can't say I've gotten use to switching back and forth between these two to get the job done.
The third program is the actual control program where you'll spend most of your time working with the OptoCom. After starting the program, you'll be presented with the view window which takes up the least amount of screen real estate. It can also be annoying in that it is programmed to always remain visible. Luckily, it can be minimized and once done, the text in the button will change to indicate it's scanning or channel receive status!
From the view window, we can see a number of important details including the frequency, trunking ID, alpha-tag, receive mode and signal strength. Below this area are a number of buttons to control scanning as well as trunked ID management.
To really be in control of the radio and get the most impact, you'll want to select the Tactical Display option of the Option menu pull-down. This will present a full screen window listing all of the above details as well as bank/channel and search information. As you can see from my example, you also have the ability to color code the data for easier recognition if you so desire.
Each bank name is displayed and followed underneath it by the frequencies contained therein. The little boxes next to each frequency indicate status information. A box with a check means that frequency has been active while a different color indicates a locked out frequency. The currently active frequency can also be colored differently (white in my case).
Trunking banks are differentiated from normal banks by the use of a cross hatch pattern behind the bank name. This can also be detected by allowing the mouse to float over the bank name and examining the resultant pop-up. It will tell, among other things, what type of trunking bank it is as well as the current operating mode.
If the radio stops on a frequency, the information will be displayed in the upper right corner along with any trunked ID or PL tone information. The scan can be forced to continue by clicking on the scan button or you can hold on the current frequency by clicking Pause, or holding on the trunked ID by clicking on ID hold. Additionally, the frequency or trunked ID can be locked out by clicking on Lock or Lock ID, respectively. Clicking on Edit will allow the current channel settings to be altered.
The Add ID button is useful for adding newly found trunked IDs to your list of IDs to be monitored in closed mode. Clicking this button will bring up a window displaying the current trunked ID list for the bank. If the ID is not already in the list, you will be prompted to enter an alpha-tag for it. You can also add or remove other IDs at will. If the ID is already in the list, it will be scrolled to its entry, giving you the opportunity to edit it.
When using the trunking banks, they can be operated in open or closed mode. Unfortunately, these two types aren't well documented and have caused much confusion for many users, including yours truly. I have spent a good deal of time answering questions on this very feature in my own personal e-mail, on USENET, the OptoCom mailing list and my site's message board.
Like many other users, when I first received the unit and set up this software, I defined a trunking bank to follow my local public safety system. I simply defined a small system and entered the frequencies it would need to follow it. I started the control program, loaded this trunked bank and sat back to watch it go! Problem is it didn't do anything!
You see, by default, all trunking banks are put in closed mode meaning that they will only receive transmissions which have IDs contained in the trunking ID list defined for that bank. Guess what happens if there are no IDs in this list? You got it...you receive nothing! If there are no IDs in the list, you have to put the bank into Open mode. This is done from the Tactical screen by right clicking the mouse over the bank name and clicking on 'ID open mode' if it is not checked.
Signal Intelligence REALLY needs to change the default to open mode or force it to open mode if there are no IDs detected in the list. It also wouldn't hurt if they could beef up the documentation to further point out this handy little tidbit!
In the lower left hand corner is the log history which details all of the communcations received. Each time the program exits, this information is saved allowing it to be reloaded upon invocation of your next session! There is a lot of information contained in this small pane but you must use the horizontal scroll bar to see the other fields of data. As you can see, some of the handiest pieces of info are the logged PL tones as well as the trunking IDS and their associated alpha-tags for easy identification.
When you bring up the program for the first time, there will already be some search and scan files loaded by default. To alter which banks or ranges are to be used, you'll need to press the F3 key or click on the File button and select the Scan List option.
This will bring up the window which allows up to 25 scan banks or search ranges be specified (items you defined in the Data Manager program). You can also use this to control the percentages of time each item is given for reception.
The best part about using this software is being able to download the latest version right off their web site. Simply go to their download page and click on the proper program from their FTP server to download the installation file to your PC. While I originally received version 7.19 with the OptoCom, I have version 7.30 installed on my system simply by using this web access.
All in all, a very nice program that allows us to monitor a number of different systems simultaneously not to mention being able to mix conventional and trunked systems at the same time. Marvelous!
The biggest hint I'll pass along to Signal Intelligence is to work on their software documentation. While they have great technical support and fast turn-around time, I have heard of a LOT of people having problems figuring out how to get the software to do what they want. Even I will admit that I found myself wading through the Help Index trying to find what I was looking for.
Many will grumble simply because there isn't any "real" manual; it's all embedded within Windows help files. While this may be the case for more and more software these days, that doesn't mean that it can't be well written, organized, logically structured and easier to use.
For more details on Scan*Star, stop by the Signal Intelligence web site.
One final note, on the OptoCom diskette, you will find two documents, one in Adobe PDF format and the other in Microsoft Word format, which serve as a tutorial for using TrakkStar.
Radio Manager
Also included on the OptoCom diskette is a demo program for Radio Manager. It
is an annual favorite with the monitoring crowd which probably has to due with
decent user interface and support for a large number of radios, all for the
meager registration fee of $40 plus some handling fees (plus tax if you're
lucky enough to live in Texas.)
Keep in mind that this is an evaluation copy and certain features will turn themselves off after about an hour of use. To get the full-fledged program, you'll need to pay for a registered version.
For more details, stop by Ben Saladino's Radio Manager web site.
Scanning
The ability to scan frequency data will be dependent on the program which is
used to control the OptoCom.
In the above section which covers the TrakkStar software, I mentioned how the Data Manager program is used to set up the memory layout of banks and channels as well as enter the information for each channel. The control program is then used to select which banks to scan and put the radio into scan mode.
Keep in mind that this radio can scan at least 65 channels per second. I've been able to get 100/second (measured) using other software. That is blazingly fast and will outperform the turbo-inflated numbers you'll find on pretty boxes by other manufacturers!
Store & Scan
This feature represents the ability of the OptoCom to be downloaded with up to
100 frequencies to be monitored. Once done, the radio can be disconnected from
the PC and run in a stand-alone mode.
The list of frequencies is defined using the TrakkStar Data Manager program. This list can then be downloaded into the radio and the radio can then be put in stand-alone mode to scan this list. This stand-alone mode can also be controlled via the OPTOCOM.EXE program.
There is obviously NO control over the radio in this mode as it scans the frequencies in the list. So be certain not to program it with frequencies that can have trunked data or you have found to be interfered with by images, intermod or computer/monitor RFI.
Searching
The ability to search frequency ranges will be dependent on the program which
is used to control the OptoCom.
In the above section which covers the TrakkStar software, I mentioned how the Data Manager program is used to set up search range files and enter the necessary information. The control program is then used to select which ranges to search and put the radio into search (they call it 'scan' though) mode.
PROBE
Having been a big OS535 user with my PRO-2035 and PRO-2042, I've been a very
happy PROBE user and hearty advocate whenever anyone asks. I climbed on the
bandwagon back when version 2.0 was changing to version 3.0. Since then, I've
upgraded to version 4.0 and it just keeps getting better!
The author of the program is Perry Joseph who himself is a hard-core hobbyist who works on this software all by himself. He is probably one of the finest professionals I have ever corresponded within our hobby.
He is VERY open to new ideas and welcomes any and all suggestions you may have for making the program better. I'm pleased to say that a number of my comments have ended up in version 4.0 and hopefully will with version 5.0 which he expects to have available for the Dayton Hamvention this May.
I, along with a number of other users, have been helping him to get version 5.0 ready for release. Version 5 will handle the OptoCom seamlessly with no need for having to put the radio in OS535 mode or anything! It also automatically uses the highest reliable serial port speed that it can, all on its own.
The program is blazingly fast and robust. While loaded with features, it can be intimidating at first but taken a step at a time, you will have endless hours of exploration and once you are use to it, you'll wonder how you ever survived being so unproductive without it!
As you can seem from this screen shot the amount of detail available and the control you have offer nearly limitless details and combinations. Be sure to read my review of the PRO-2035 with OS535 and PROBE that should give you all you need to know about this great combination!
The current version of Probe (4.0) will work with the OptoCom when in OS535 emulation mode. While it does not support trunking features, Perry hopes to support possibilities along these lines in future versions.
Stop by the PROBE web page if you're interested in learning more.
Reaction Tune
This patented feature of some Optoelectronics products allows their receiver to
be tuned by an Optoelectronics frequency counter such as the Scout, Super Scout
and Mini Scout.
An appropriate cable (2.5 mm mono) is used to connect the command port of the counter to the CI-V port of the receiver; the OptoCom in this case. The receiver is turned on followed by the counter, which is put into CI-V mode.
If the counter gets a "hit" on a frequency, it sends the necessary commands to the receiver via the CI-V port instructing it to tune that frequency. This allows instant reception of the receive signal and subsequent monitoring of the radio traffic on that signal.
Scanblaster Packs
Recently introduced from Optoelectronics are three pre-assembled kits
containing a number of Opto products, all bundled in their own carry case. They
have been coined the Scanblaster packs and the kits consist of the following:
For more details, stop by Opto's Scanblaster page.
GE/Ericsson Tracking
The tracking of EDACS trunked radio systems is not supported with the TrakkStar
software. In order to do this, you'll have to order the E-Trax software from
AMComm for $90.
I was supplied with a test version of this software in the hopes that I could use it and evaluate its performance. Unfortunately, when I went to look at the systems in the area that use to be EDACS formats, they were no longer in use! While that's good news for those hobbyists monitoring these systems with conventional radios, it doesn't do much good for those of us who wanted to see this software in action!
What I'll probably do is to load up the OptoCom and laptop computer, and take them for a little drive to an EDACS system in a nearby county. Once I have more details, I will update this review accordingly.
At this time, this software is available from Grove Enterprises, Lentini Communications and directly from the the E-Trax web site.
Palm Pilot Support
A recent addition to the Optocom software diskette is a beta level utility
program for the Palm Pilot PDA.
Basically, once the radio is in Store & Scan mode, this utility allows the PDA to upload the frequency list into its memory, take the OptoCom out of stand alone mode and control the radio using this list of frequencies.
For those interested in working on their own Palm Pilot interface, Opto will make this code available upon request. Opto hopes this type of third party development will continue and that it will be picked up by those wishing to port it to Windows CE devices as well.
So look for more third party PDA support coming soon!
OptoCom Mailing List
If you'd like to talk to dedicated OptoCom users, there is an OptoCom mailing
list located at www.qth.net.
If you go to the QTH site, you can subscribe to this mailing list or look through the archives for all previously posted messages. This is a great resource for new users to quickly cover the items which have already been covered and answers given to the most commonly asked questions.
To see the archives, simply select the OptoCom list and then click on the Archives button.
To subscribe to the list, select Optocom, fill in your e-mail address, select the Subscribe checkbox and click on the Submit Request button.
TRUNKER & TrunkTrac
Many users have posted on the Internet via USENET, web pages and mailing lists
that they have successfully used the OptoCom in conjunction with the
Trunker freeware and
TrunkTrac hardware/software
Details for doing so and the finer points of operation can be found by simply accessing the archives of the above mentioned OptoCom mailing list.
VHF/UHF Performance
My first test, as always, is to test for birdies, which are signals generated
by the receiver electronics and manage to be picked up as though they were
"real" radio transmissions. I detected 51 such frequencies which is pretty good
considering the wide frequency range being covered. Nearly half of them were on
VHF-lo between 26 and 49 MHz. And I only detected 3 of them on VHF-hi between
103 & 156 MHz. There were 12 in the low 200s and 1 near the mid 300s. 4 more
were detected across the 400s while the rest were above 1 GHz.
Next, I attached the stock antenna, extended it fully and searched the entire frequency range while at home, looking for image and intermod interference. Almost no problems were detected. The local NOAA weather signal on 162.55 was heard around 520 MHz. The rest of the errant signals were a mere handful which all showed up above 1.1 GHz; 1 800 MHz data, 2 cell, 1 900 MHz pager and 1 TV image.
I then removed the stock antenna and replaced it with a hook up to my external Radio Shack 7-foot high ground plane; the mother of all antennas. I again searched the entire range and was quite pleased with the results. The above signals were detected again along with 4 new TV images on VHF-lo between 45 and 53 MHz. That's it! The OptoCom is one cool cucumber under fire!
I also paid careful attention to the FM broadcast band during this last test and was surprised to find no image or intermodulation problems. There did seem to be a touch of desensitization but even so, I was still pulling in stations from Mozambique! That was a joke for all you newcomers...
It was then time to do some back-to-back testing with past GRE receivers which are quite popular for their receive performance. I connected the OptoCom along with a PRO-2042 and PRO-2006 to my Stridsberg Multicoupler which splits the signal coming from my 20-014 antenna 4 ways. It has a built in amplifier to overcome the inherent splitting loss and has circuit components to isolate the radios from each other so that the spurious signals generated by one radio won't sneak back up the co-ax cable and back down into another radio.
I then compared the reception of all three radios on a number of signals between 27 and 937 MHz. In the results table below, for each frequency, I ranked the radios from 1st to 3rd. Where there was no discernible difference, they tied for the respective position. Where there was no signal received, a '-' is listed. Here are my results:
| Freq | OptoCom | PRO-2042 | PRO-2006 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 42 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 43 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 47 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 50 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 73 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 76 | - | - | 1 |
| 117 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 119 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 124 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 132 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 151 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 153 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 155 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 162 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 258 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 308 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 348 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 388 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 451 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| 453 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 460 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 463 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 851 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 852 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 856 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 861 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| 864 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 937 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Using the above rankings, I added the results for each radio and divided by the number of frequencies tested to get an indication of the overall rank of each radio on VHF/UHF. For a test frequency that wasn't received, a value of 4 was used.
This placed the radios from first to last as follows: PRO-2006 (1.2), OptoCom (1.4) and PRO-2042 (1.6). The 2006 was the clear winner but the OptoCom and 2042 weren't far behind. On most signals I tested, there was only a slight difference in reception. Kind of what you'd expect from first, second and third generation receiver boards designed by the same company.
The only real trend that is bothersome is the sub-par performance of the OptoCom and 2042 on VHF-lo. As mentioned above, while the 2006 superiority was evident, it was only slight. Most of all keep in mind that the PRO-2006 is marked as one of the best radios ever made in terms of reception performance and strong signal interference rejection. And the OptoCom pretty much keeps right up with it!
| Category | Score | Out of |
|---|---|---|
| Sensitivity | 25 | 25 |
| Selectivity | 5 | 15 |
| Interference rejection | 20 | 20 |
| Coverage | 70 | 90 |
| Channels | 15 | 15 |
| Channels per bank | 15 | 15 |
| Ease of use | 5 | 20 |
| Scan/Search speed | 10 | 10 |
| Receive modes | 5 | 15 |
| Step sizes | 0 | 25 |
| Conversion | 10 | 10 |
| Audio | 10 | 20 |
| Antenna | 5 | 20 |
| Construction | 10 | 20 |
| Size | 10 | 15 |
| Search | 30 | 35 |
| Attenuator | 5 | 20 |
| Auto-store | 0 | 20 |
| Search frequency lockout | 15 | 15 |
| Backlight | 0 | 30 |
| Alpha-tagging | 20 | 20 |
| VFO | 5 | 10 |
| Squelch tail | 5 | 10 |
| Priority | 0 | 20 |
| Delay | 10 | 15 |
| Hold | 0 | 10 |
| Rotary Control | 0 | 10 |
| S-meter | 10 | 10 |
| Power-on resume | 10 | 10 |
| Computer Interface | 20 | 20 |
| Tone Decode | 10 | 15 |
| Battery indicator | 0 | 10 |
| Channel count | 0 | 5 |
| Tape record control | 5 | 5 |
| Clock | 0 | 5 |
| Timers | 0 | 5 |
| Weather programmed | 5 | 5 |
| Weather alert | 0 | 5 |
| Data skip | 0 | 5 |
| Bank delete | 5 | 5 |
| Bank sort | 5 | 5 |
| Total | 375 | 670 |
| Total | 56 | 100 |
Keep in mind that this rating system was not designed to handle computer-only controlled radios and that this radio's rating will suffer accordingly
For many of the features being rated, it was assumed that the TrakkStar software was used to provide banks, channels and other various features
The receiver is simply top-notch. A fine tradition in a great line of radios turned out by GRE which includes the PRO-43, PRO-2004, PRO-2005, PRO-2006, PRO-2035 and PRO-2042. The PRO-34, PRO-37, PRO-60, PRO-62, PRO-64 and PRO-2037 have large followings as well!
The features that Opto has added to this black box are also amazing. Not only do they address the issues facing us today, they provide the canvas for those who like to modify their gear as well as third party hardware and software developers who can have a field day building an endless assortment of add-ons.
At everyone's disposal are the Reaction Tune abilities as well as being able to hook together several CI-V devices. Tape recorder control is also a possibility. The audio input/output allows discriminator access as well as data input to internal, custom hardware.
The OS535 compatibility mode also allows the large install base of OS535 software to work "as is". This allows minimal effort for vendors to "officially" support this radio as well as current users to get up to speed on this new receiver with the software they are already familiar with.
It's always prudent to point out the negative aspects of a radio, but with this one, they are few and far between. The biggest will probably be what I consider lackluster audio fidelity. But we sure do have audio power out the wahzoo! And in today's world of software and firmware flexibility, there's really no need to have a manually activated attenuator.
One wonders if Opto, or anyone else, will be able to top this receiver in terms of both performance and flexibility. But I don't think they have anything to worry about for a bit as this package will do quite nicely!
Recommendations
If you can't be happy with this radio, then you should probably stop by the
coroner to check for your unknown cause of death! It's got all the hardware
you could ask for in terms of conventional and trunked scanning, not to mention
CTCSS, DCS and DTMF decoding. Don't forget that this radio's dynamic range is
great and getting harder to come by in terms of what's available in today's
market. The flexibility and control that can be achieved via software is
simply astounding and goes the ultimate distance for being able to meet the
widest range of demands by today's demanding users.
While a bit pricey, it provides much more performance and flexibility than many other receivers in this range. And even more than some that are at twice the price! Keep in mind that in the past, you needed to buy a top of the line GRE receiver from Radio Shack for about $500, an OptoScan board for about $200 and software for about $100. That's $800 folks! And you had to buy all three separately and put them all together yourself.
Even today, when buying one of these in its used form, you can expect to pay $400 - $500...many times without even getting the software in the deal. The OptoCom represents a modern advancement of the radio monitoring technology which meets today's needs and has been designed for use long into the next century. Considering all of this, I think the $470 introductory price is a STEAL!
Like the Radio Shack GRE models and OptoScan boards which preceded it, this one is going to make the all-time popularity lists amongst the monitoring circles! Regardless of who you ask! I can already see the cults marching over the crest of the hill...
With that said, I'll close by giving this receiver a BIG two antennas-up (and fully extended) rating! Way to go Opto and GRE...you've created another match made in heaven. And best of luck in keeping up with customer demand!
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If you are interested in purchasing one of these radios or simply want more information, please stop by their web site or write Kevin at sales@optoelectronics.com.
| Copyright © 2010 by Richard J. Wells |
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