Baofeng UV5R Ambulance Frequency Scanning: Issues in Warsaw, Antenna & SQL Settings

Hello colleagues,

I'm an accident reporter. In my work, a radio is often useful to listen to services, in my case it is an ambulance. I know what's legal and what's not, that's not the problem.

I recently bought a Baofeng UV5R, before that I spent a few days getting to know the subject and collecting opinions. It seemed to me that listening on 136-174 MHz is not particularly complicated. Well, it is.

I live almost in the center of Warsaw, and when I scan frequencies, I catch only noise. I haven't been able to find anything but VHF noise for two days.
I bought the NA774 Nagoya fold-out antenna, no improvement. Maybe it's a bug and I should aim for 1/4GP. However, even on the factory one, I should catch anything.

SQL on 1, step 12.5.

What could be the reason?

Thanks in advance to my colleagues for help and sorry if I repeated any question, I searched google and forum with understanding, to no avail.

Hello.

canispl wrote:

I haven't been able to find anything but VHF noise for two days.

So many stations that broadcast something in the VHF band are "from the subway".

Quote:

I bought the NA774 Nagoya fold-out antenna, no improvement.

The NA-770 is a dual-band and resonant antenna.
It is not particularly suitable for scanning a wider section of the bands, especially the ends of the bands (160-175MHz).

Quote:

However, even on the factory one, I should catch anything.

you should.
It may be that you bought a broken UV5-R (it happens).


Regards.

Thanks for the answer.

When scanning the band, something "catches" every now and then, but each time it is the aforementioned noise. Maybe I screwed something up in the settings?

Assuming I'm starting from factory settings, it would be enough pro forma to turn SQL to 1 and set step to 12.5, right? Then I should hear anything.

Regards

Enter a specific frequency for the services - you will know if the radio receives correctly or not. UV5 is not Uniden 69XLT

Anyway, some services - when it comes to Warsaw, you won't listen anyway because of digital communication.

canispl wrote:

Assuming I'm starting from factory settings, it would be enough pro forma to turn SQL to 1 and set step to 12.5, right?

That's right, you should hear something, but with the squelch set to 1, you'll also catch various noise interference just like you wrote. Set it to 3 or 4 and it will be better.

Thanks a lot for the replies. I did as you said. It didn't help, but the case is still moving forward, because I'm eliminating more things.

mayla I know about the number, I count on it. Based on the Radioscanner, I typed in specific frequencies. Silence.
Can you explain to me how Uniden differs from my God Bless Baofeng? The price difference is small, I can withdraw from this equipment and add to the new one. But what will it give me besides CB?

kriss51 I turned up the squelch to 3, of course there's less noise, but I still don't pick up anything.

I did the test. I parked in the very center of Warsaw and spent an hour scanning all the frequencies on the bands covered by Baofeng. I had a few noises, a cyclical interference on one frequency, and finally I listened to Maleńczuk's poor quality on the Zet radio, which caught somewhere above 420 MHz (?) :)

It seems impossible to me that I couldn't catch absolutely nothing, unless even the security guards at Tesco went digital.

Do you have any ideas or should I send the radio back as faulty?

You won't listen to CB on Uniden anyway, it's only FM there. Uniden is a typical scanner and in my opinion the receiver is better made - unfortunately the operation of this radio is a misunderstanding. Baofeng is a bit of a "starter" toy to start the adventure, but it does its job and being in the center of Warsaw you should hear some messages, especially if you wrote down the frequencies from the website. Maybe do this: set a few PMR channels, i.e. starting from 446.00625 and go to some construction site or market and check if you can hear anything. Does the FM radio pick up stations correctly?

PMR channels work, both transmit and receive. I checked on my Midland. The FM radio receives correctly.

Today I still listen in the center on specific frequencies, but I see it black.

Since UHV and even more FM works, VHF should also - the receiver is partly common to both bands, and I have not yet received any Baofengs in which one of the bands would not work. The only thing I can try to find out from you is a problem with org. antenna - inside for one of the bands there is a tapping that can break off after bending - then the radio does not hear and does not transmit on one of the bands (unfortunately I do not remember which one) - probably this theory will fail because you have a second (admittedly quite narrow) antenna ...

If you want to go to the Avanti company for a replacement - they will check RX / TX for some symbolism, you will be 100% sure.

I drove up to Avanti. The sensitivity of the Baofeng is very good, the factory antenna too, we tested the frequency listening on another radio and it is fine.

Apparently, I must have been unlucky with listening and I just didn't find anything. Strange, but there is probably no other possibility, since the equipment is working.
I scanned today too, again only a few noises. I don't get it at all anymore. As if taxi drivers, security and the rest suddenly fell silent.

It's not weird at all, you just don't know one basic thing. In order to have a range in the towel, it must be properly placed. And it's not just about the location, but a number of interacting variables that can be divided into two groups: those around the radio and those integrated with it. Probably the most important of the last is the very wide range of variability of the antenna's electrical parameters. There are no radio beacons on VHF to find this point. And that's the pain.

Okay, two final questions remain:

1. If I invest in the right antenna and whack it on top of the roof, will I get better results on the VHF band in an urban area?

2. My Baofeng on PMR bands sense broadcasting on the channel but no audio. It's not encoded. What could be the problem?

You don't understand what I mean. You do not need to fly to the roof right away, just find the cause and somehow remedy it..

Hello.

canispl wrote:

1. If I invest in the right antenna and whack it on top of the roof, will I get better results on the VHF band in an urban area?

For this type of portable radios, where the sensitivity of the receiver is quite strained, connecting an antenna with a higher gain or higher installed - it's like the opposite effect with "clogging" of the receiver.

Quote:

2. My Baofeng on PMR bands sense broadcasting on the channel but no audio.

If you see on the indicator (the indicator in it is an abstract concept), there is a signal at the receiver input and you still do not decode the emission - then you do not have a radio in 6.25kHz raster or a radio to be repaired and if it is under warranty, it must be returned immediately ( in Avanti, let them not dim that they checked the reception in UV-5R).


Regards.

canispl wrote:

...2. My Baofeng on PMR bands sense broadcasting on the channel but no audio. It's not encoded. What could be the problem?

Have you turned on a CTCSS or other lock by chance?
Maybe do a factory reset. In the menu, it is the "RESET ALL" item.

ps TAXI from Warsaw around 428-429 MHz can be heard in Wołomin on the factory antenna

...
And, for example, Warsaw Trams from Żyrardów to Tłuszcz.
If you live in the city center, set it to 150.150MHz, there is a lot of traffic on the railway during the day (from Grodzisk Mazowiecki through Pruszków, Włochy, Zachodnia, Centralna, Wschodnia, to Olszynka).

168.525MHz - Provincial Ambulance Station - can be heard on a standard antenna throughout Warsaw without any problems.

It's best to poke around here and there and learn the frequencies where who works because, unfortunately, the "scanner" in UV5R is a rather useless function due to very slow work. For such applications, it would be better to buy a high-speed scanner ...

@canispl dude, did you manage to solve the problem because i have the same one?

Hello.
I am repeating the question because I have the same problem with the UV-82 radio. Does anyone know how to solve this because I live in Krakow.

Moderated By c2h5oh:

Regulations point 3.1.19. Do not send messages in archival topics if it is another question, especially other than the one asking. Out of respect for the questioner, start your own topic. You can only add a way to solve the problem.