The Radio Shack PRO-2006 is one of the most popular
scanners ever manufactured, and for good reason. It has many great features, along with
excellent sensitivity and selectivity. Those living in RF-congested urban areas will
appreciate the fact that it is highly impervious to intermod. With its four hundred
channel memory broken into ten storage banks and ten separate monitor banks, the radio has
everything. Well, almost everything. If you flip it around and look on the back,
you’ll find that Radio Shack forgot the serial port! That’s right; what is
touted as the most popular scanner on the market today has no factory installed computer
interface.
There have been a lot of theories why Radio Shack didn’t include a serial port on the
PRO-2005 and PRO-2006, but they all seem to have cost as the common denominator. With such
an obvious shortcoming in an otherwise excellent radio, several third party vendors moved
in to fill the void. It is now possible to retrofit the PRO-2006 with one of several
computer interfaces. The latest comer, and perhaps one of the most user-friendly, is the
OptoScan456(TM) from Optoelectronics.
Long known for their high-quality frequency counters and counter-surveillance equipment,
Optoelectronics has produced an impressive computer interface for the Realistic PRO-2005
and PRO-2006 scanners. Coupled with an OEM version of ScanStar(TM) computer interface
software (called OptoScan), and priced at $299, it looks like a combination that may be
the answer to many scanning enthusiast’s dreams.
The interface board itself is of the high quality you’d expect for Optoelectronics.
It supports both the RS-232 (serial) interface and the ICOM CI-V interface. With a bit of
extraordinary ingenuity, the engineers designed the board to fit in a vacant spot under
the scanner’s main circuit board. Installation involves removing the main circuit
board and installing the OS456 next to the PLL assembly. Then, after running the wires and
making the connections, the main circuit board goes back in over the OS456. Amazingly, all
of this is accomplished with absolutely no soldering or drilling!
Optoelectronics originally distributed the OS456 with an installation video. But it seems
most customers preferred written instructions, so they have discontinued the video in lieu
of a conventional installation manual.
Considering that the installation of the OS456 involves yanking most of the innards out of
the scanner, it really isn’t that bad. The manual, though containing a few
typographical errors and inconsistencies, is very detailed and straight-forward. Most
people to whom I talked seem to have completed their installation easily in less than an
evening.
But like any new product of this complexity, there have been a few minor glitches. The
board is a pretty tight fit, and there may be some difficulty getting the main circuit
board back in place without a small battle. Also, after the serial port assembly was
fitted on the back of the case, the cover never did quite fit right. There is still a
slight gap between the top cover and the front of the scanner. However, the problem is
strictly cosmetic, and hardly noticeable.
Optoelectronics reports that most installation problems have revolved around the numerous
connectors not being properly seated. Francis Wertz in the Technical Support department
advises that it is time well spent to double check each cable connection before
reassembling the radio. As an added precaution, you may use a small, pointed object like a
straight pin to seat each individual connection.
The other common problem is related to the tape recorder control feature. This useful
function allows the OS456 to control an external tape recorder via a sub-miniature jack.
Unfortunately, several owners of the OS456 have experienced a problem with improper
operation of the tape controller. The good news is that a fix for the problem has been
devised, and is available by calling Francis in Technical Support at (305) 771-2050.
Software Mastery
As part of the introductory offer, Optoelectronics is providing the OptoScan software free
with the purchase of the OS456.
Though the OptoScan software has many excellent features, it also has a distinct
personality all its own. As usual, I would have saved myself several hours had I taken
time to print out and read the manual first. But the appeal of playing with such a great
new toy was just more than I could bear! However, once I took the time to go through the
relatively small, concise manual (which must be printed from within the program), a lot of
things about how the program “flowed” began to make more sense.
Unlike the old saying “you can’t get there from here,” with the OptoScan
software, “you can get there from anywhere.” By making extensive use of function
keys, you can navigate quickly from one screen to another with just a few keystrokes. The
real trick is learning to use those function keys; sometimes in conjunction with an ALT or
CNTL key.
With the combination of hardware and software, the potential of what you can do with your
scanner is almost unlimited. In addition to being able to control the scanner from a PC, a
great number of functions have been added, including the ability to decode CTCSS
sub-audible tones, DCS codes, and DTMF tones. They’ve even added a digital signal
strength indicator.
For those of you lucky enough to already have an OS456, I strongly recommend that you
download the latest version of the OptoScan software (3.40 as of this writing) from the
ScanStar BBS (see article end). First, several bugs in the previous release have been
fixed (one of which could make your frequency group file look like it had been run through
a Cuisinart). In addition to the bug fixes, a feature-rich “Sound Squelch”
option has just been added. The upgrades are free for at least the first ninety days,
courtesy of Sam Dunham, author of the software.
Like the unmodified scanner, the OptoScan software provides both search and scan options.
The big difference, of course, is the logging capabilities the computer provides. In the
search mode, the frequency, time of last reception, number of hits, mode (AM, FM, FM
Wide), signal strength, and any tones or codes are logged.
When activating the search mode via the OptoScan software, you must specify a low and a
high frequency range for the search. But unlike the limited capabilities of the scanner,
you can specify practically any frequency step desired. You can also set the search to
limit the time on a particular frequency, which is handy when you are searching a range
where a lot of activity occurs on just a few channels.
If you think the search mode is something, wait ‘til you see what the scan mode can
do! With OptoScan, the old four hundred channel, ten bank limitation is gone. You can now
configure the banks in an almost limitless combination. In this mode, you can also specify
a sixteen-digit description as you enter the frequency. So now when the scanner hits an
active channel, a quick glance at the computer monitor will show the frequency,
description, and other pertinent information. You may also set up one of four audio alarms
to trigger when a selected frequency becomes active. This is a great tool when trying to
catch the action on a given frequency, but don’t want to baby-sit the scanner. It is
equally easy to set the display to one of thirteen colors for a specific frequency,
including several blinking attention-getters. Also, the tape recorder controller can be
activated on a channel-by-channel basis.
Unlike the search mode, which writes only to a flat log file, the scan mode permanently
stores all the applicable information about activity on every channel. The activity count
(number of hits), accumulated air time, and the date and time of last activity are also
recorded. There’s even a sub-category for each frequency where the DTMF digits and
timestamp are recorded. Reportedly, there are even some commercial repeater operators who
have used this function to track their customers’ airtime usage.
The search and scan mode both support the aforementioned sound squelch. This feature not
only commands the scanner to resume when a quiet channel is found (like birdies and dead
carriers), but can also be set to lock quiet frequencies out of the scan list. You can
even specify the signal strength as a criteria to exclude very strong or weak signals from
the search.
An Interesting Twist
If you want an OS456 in your radio, you may not be able to buy one installed. Why? Well,
it may be illegal! That’s right, illegal. Since the OS456 effectively bypasses the
circuit that limits access to the cellular frequencies, it may be against the law for a
dealer to sell the OS456 already installed in a scanner. That is, for now, the story Grove
Enterprises is getting from the FCC.
Finally, if you think the OptoScan software is awesome, you’ll be blown away by the
ScanStar Professional version. One of its most notable features is a built-in spectrum
analyzer. On the monitor, signal strength is shown as vertical “spikes” while
the frequency is plotted horizontally. Though not a spectrum analyzer in the true sense
(it scans the specified frequency range and performs the plot over several seconds), it
still serves essentially the same function. Another powerful feature, know as FlexScan,
allows the radio to perform a mix of up to twenty searches and scans, along with the
ability to designate the timeslice for each. There’s even a search and store mode
where frequencies found in a search are saved for future scanning. The ScanStar
Professional software is not included with the OS456, but may also be ordered from
Optoelectronics.
If you would like a demo version of OptoScan or ScanStar Professional, they may be
downloaded from the ScanStar BBS at (408) 258-6462. Set your 2400 to 9600 baud modem for
N81 and log on as “guest.” You may also use this number to obtain upgrades if
you own either version of the software. And if you would like to check out the software
but don’t have a scanner with an interface, a “simulated” receiver within
the software may be used instead.
Due to the overwhelming popularity of the Radio Shack PRO-2005 and PRO-2006 scanners, many
modifications and add-ons have been created over the years. But given the power and
flexibility of this latest hardware/software combination, the OptoScan 456 will be mighty
hard to beat!
OptoElectronics, 5821 NE 14 Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334; 800-327-5912 or
305-771-2050; V-Communications, ScanStar, 4320 Stevens Ck Blvd, Suite 275, San Jose, CA
95129; 408-296-4224, 408-258-6462 BBS. OptoScan is also carried by Grove Enterprises
(800-438-8155 or 704-837-9200) for $279.95 plus $7 shipping.
For more information about the OS456, click on the logo below.
All articles are property of Haskell L.
Moore, and may not be reproduced
in whole or in part without written permission from the author.
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