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Introduced in the latter part of the 1980s, Uniden's BC200XLT rose to stardom
quite quickly and became the latest benchmark for all handheld models. It also
attracted quite a cult following and is still held in high regard by the hobby
community which is evident from the prices seen on the used market.
This sort of reputation appealed to me as a collector as well as someone who just enjoys playing with radio receivers in general. Older models like the BC200XLT represent landmarks in the history of the monitoring hobby. I find it interesting to take a step back in time and see just what this radio offered in terms of features and performance, and to note the changes that have occured after more than a decade of developments since its introduction. 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 nor business relations with Uniden America Corporation. 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 | 200 |
|---|---|
| Banks | 10 |
| Coverage | 29-54 118-174 406-512 806-956 MHz |
| Scan | 15 chan/sec |
| Search | 25 steps/sec |
| Steps | 5 & 12.5 kHz |
| Modes | AM & FM |
| Sensitivity | N/A |
| Conversion | Double |
| IFs | 1=10.8 2=0.455 MHz |
| Priority | 10 channels |
| Search limits | 1 |
| Search skip | No |
| Auto-store | No |
| S-meter | No |
| Delay | Yes |
| Lockout | Yes |
| Attenuator | No |
| Lock | Yes |
| Tone codes | No |
| Computer intf | No |
| Rotary control | No |
| Channel count | No |
| Data skip | No |
| Clock | No |
| Timers | No |
| Weather | Yes |
| Weather Alert | No |
| Light | Display |
| Power | 4.8 - 12 volts |
| Audio | 480 mW at 10% THD |
| Size | 2.75(W) x 1.25(D) x 7.5(H) inches |
| Weight | 20 ounces |
| Memory | volatile (30 day capacitor) |
Being a farily simply model, it doesn't take a lot to explain its operation. Considering that half of the 12 pages are used for the cover, registration, warranty, frequency allocations and specifications, that doesn't leave a lot of room left over for actual operating details.
The Controls and Functions section details each control and can be considered a good primer for actual operation. The Operations section explains memory, scanning, and bank selection.
The LCD Display section details the contents of the LCD which consists of the memory channel and frequency numerics along with indicators for low battery, scanning banks, priority, lockout, delay, weather and keypad lock.
The Programming section takes two paragraphs and includes two examples. The Features section explains moving about memory, channel lockout, priority operation and searching. This is followed by a single paragraph covering the low battery indicator.
The Helpful Hints page contains details on care and handling, battery maintenance, trouble shooting and optional accessories.
The last page is the Specifications which, amazingly enough, lists sensitivity figures for the four, large frequency segments it covers. There's even a selectivity figure listed (-55dB at +/- 25 kHz)!
Construction and Physical
A radio right out of Texas, this sucker is big! And at 20 ounces, it's fairly
hefty as well. Cast entirely out of black ABS plastic, the upper two thirds
compose the body of electronics and controls, while the lower third is made up
of the slide-on battery pack.
At the top of the front panel is the wide LCD. Just above it are the BANK and bank numbers printed on the plastic instead of being actually on the LCD like more recent models.
Just below the LCD is the large keypad. While the keys are generously spaced, they are on the smaller size. The exceptions would be the SCAN and MANUAL keys which are colored red and orange, respectively. The other keys are dark gray with white lettering on or light gray lettering above them. A handy feature is that the range of memory channels for each bank is printed above the appropriate number key.
Below the keypad is the speaker grill which houses a medium-sized speaker.
The top panel houses the expected BNC antenna jack, earphone jack, and volume and squelch controls. Like other Uniden models, the squelch closes in the counterclockwise direction which is the opposite of what the rest of the industry uses.
A thoughtful touch is the plastic dust cap for the earphone jack which is held into place by the plastic loop which fits over the BNC antenna connector.
The left and right sides are featureless which brings us to the back panel which is largely barren. Surprisingly, there are no screw anchors for the attachment of a belt clip which has come to be standard equipment on today's models. If you want to carry the radio along, you'll need to use the provided carry case which has a belt loop.
The only other feature of the back panel is the identification sticker which lists the radio model number, country and date of manufacture, FCC ID, and serial number.
As mentioned earlier, the bottom of this radio is really the slide on NiCd battery pack. It's rated at 7.2 volts and 600 mAh. On the back of this pack is the DC power jack which is used to supply power to the radio and charge the internal cells. The power jack terminal has a positive tip requirement and when supplied with power, it lights a large, red LED just above the jack.
Antenna
The supplied antenna is roughly 6 inches long and seems to consist of a large
gauge wire wrapped in a helical pattern. It's covered with a plastic urethane
coating and topped with a large rubberized cap.
My testing of this antenna reveals it to be average on VHF and UHF although a bit more substandard in some regions. Reception on 800 MHz is below average and quite deaf on 900 MHz.
To get the most performance out of this radio, it is strongly advised that you replace the stock unit with a better performing model as soon as possible.
Features
Starting with the LCD, it's easy to appreciate the large numerals used for the
memory channel and frequency digit displays. The other display indicators are
rather small in comparison.
The display has a 15 second backlight which is very bright but uneven in its illumination from green LEDs mounted on either side. If the backlight is turned on, a press of the LIGHT key will turn it off before the 15 second timer expries, thus helping to prevent unneeded battery drain.
The LCD has decent contrast but could be better. Off angle viewing holds up well in all direction but does "fuzz out" if read from above.
The keypad is not what I would call very user friendly. As mentioned earlier, the keys are on the small size. They are also a bit stiff when pressing and have limited feedback to confirm a good press. Even worse, there is no beep to confirm their activation!
Unlike more recent models which require the keypad lock key to be pressed and held to activate, this key is no different than the others. Luckily, the key itself is surrounded by a plastic "fence" making it hard to press it accidentally.
Audio power is very robust and the volume can be turned up to about 80% before distortion sets in. Audio fidelity is pretty good but I would personally like an audio high-pass filter to help block the high frequency hiss heard on all AM and FM signals.
A handy feature is the preprogrammed weather scan which looks for one of the 7 NOAA frequencies active in the US. If found, the scanner stops on the frequency, which is displayed, so that you can listen to the latest in weather information.
The last feature to cover is the low battery indicator. Once the battery is drained to a preset level, the battery indicator in the LCD will begin to blink. If you have a new/healthy battery, this will continue for about 10 minutes. After that time, the radio will turn itself off to avoid draining the battery to a point which is so low that it could damage the NiCd cells. Any time after you see this indicator is a good time to give the battery a full charge for about 14 hours.
Memory
Setting the new standard which is still highly used today, the BC200XLT comes
with 200 memory channels split up into 10 banks.
Moving about within memory is done in one of two ways, both of which are found on today's models. The first is to press MANUAL to sequence through the channels one at a time. The other is to key in the desired memory channel to go to followed by MANUAL.
Two interesting tidbits are as follows. First, the arrow keys can not be used to step up and down through memory as most models these days allow for. Second, when using MANUAL to step through one at a time, you can only view those channels within the banks which have been selected for scanning.
If you need get to a channel that wasn't in a bank which was being scanned the last time, you'll need to use the "go to" method. Once there, you can't use MANUAL to step within this bank because if you try, you'll get kicked out into a bank which was selected in the last scan sequence.
With the desired channel located, you simply need to key in the frequency followed by the E key to complete the programming. While there, you might also consider setting the delay and possibly the lockout setting.
When entering frequencies into memory, if you program a frequency which is already contained within another memory channel, the display will show that channel number. From there, you can press E again to finish the entry or the decimal (.) key to abort it.
One major drawback with this model is that once a frequency has been programmed into a channel, it can not be deleted! These days, most of us are use to programming a frequency value of "0" to delete the contents of a memory channel we no longer wish to monitor.
Not so with the BC200XLT! What you'll probably want to do is to program in a special frequency to let you know this is really an empty channel. Of course you'll also have to lock out this channel to keep it from wasting time during scanning!
And there's always the drastic measure of resetting the radio which will erase the contents of all memory channels! Do this by holding down the 2, 9 and MANUAL keys while powering on the radio.
And here's a couple of items I've noted from extended use of this model. If you let it sit for a while with the battery pack totally drained or removed altogether, the next time you go to use it, you'll likely find it does nothing when turned on! It can be quite a shock and probably helps to explain the small note made in the manual. Simply turn it off and back on again, and all should be fine.
Also, the removal of power for an extended time, I've found, will leave the frequency data intact, but will set all of the lockout bits for each and every memory channel! More than likely, all memory banks will be selected for scanning as well.
Scanning
A simple press of the SCAN key starts the scanning of all non-locked out
memory channels of all the selected banks. From the factory or right after a
reset, all banks will be selected for scanning as can be seen by the indicator
bars on the LCD beneath all the bank numbers across the top of the display.
Just like today's models, the number keys are used to toggle banks on and off for scanning. Simply press and key and note the change of the indicator bars at the top of the LCD.
Once stopped on a channel with activity, you can press SCAN to force it to resume or press L/O to lock out this channel from future scanning passes. If you want to hold on this channel, a press of the MANUAL key does just that. And, as one would expect, a channel's delay setting can be adjusted as well when the scan stops on an active channel.
Searching
The BC200XLT does come with a handy limit search which is quite helpful for
doing your own investigatvie work anywhere within the frequency spectrum that
this radio covers.
Like all Uniden models that followed it with a limit search, the search criteria are entered quickly and easily. One of the frequency range limits is keyed in followed by a press of LIMIT. The other limit is keyed in and also followed by LIMIT. This establishes the boundaries for which the search will work between.
Any time after this, the SEARCH key is pressed to begin the search. Any active frequency will cause the search operation to pause to listen to the signal. You can force the search to resume by pressing SEARCH, or hold on the displayed frequency by pressing HOLD.
Once paused, the arrow keys can be used to step around and examine frequencies nearby. Pressing and holding the keys will cause the frequency to change quickly in succession but it's usually quicker to just press the key manually and repeatedly. To resume the search, SEARCH is pressed.
The search always progresses in a frequency increasing direction and unfortunately can not be made to search downward in frequency. And most of the time, users find it handy to keep the delay setting active to allow them extra time to note the frequency of an active signal.
When the search stops or is paused on an active frequency, the E key can be pressed to program the frequency into the memory channel shown on the left hand side of the display. If you plan to use this feature, it's best to manually select the channel you want to store to before starting the search.
Priority
The BC200XLT does come with a priority function designed to check the contents
of the first channel of every selected bank every 2 seconds for activity.
To effectively use this feature, the most important frequency in a bank should be programmed into the first channel of that bank. Then, once scanning begins and the desired banks are selected, the PRI key is pressed. This enables the priority function and results in PRI being dispayed on the LCD.
Once activated, the priority function will check the first memory channel of each selected bank for activity every 2 seconds. If activity is found, the current scanning action will be paused to monitor this signal. Once it is gone, scanning will resume like normal.
If the radio stops on an active, "normal" memory channel and priority is active, you might hear small breaks in the audio as the scanner goes off to sample all the priority channels for activity. The more banks that are selected, the more priority channels there are to check, the longer it will take to sample them, and the longer the break in the audio.
VHF/UHF Performance
First testing of the BC200XLT revealed the expected results when only 5 birdies
were detected in its entire receive range.
I then moved on to testing it at home using the stock antenna. I swept through its entire frequency coverage looking for problems with images and intermod interference. The overall results were OK but nothing exceptional.
The biggest culprits were TV and FM broadcast images which created about half of the problem frequencies. Most of the problems occured in the 400 MHz range with one on VHF-hi and a few down on VHF-lo and on 800 MHz.
Due to its double conversion nature, public safety comms in the 450/460s were heard clearly in the 470/480s.
The start of 800 MHz saw a few cell images while such interference plagued the entire 894 - 915 MHz range. Up in the 950s saw pager images from the 930s.
Removing the stock antenna, I replaced it with a 19" whip and repeated the above exercise. The results were largely the same but magnified roughly two times due to the enhanced antenna reception.
I then decided to put it up against the current top Uniden handhled, the BC3000XLT. Using the same antenna on each, I tested a number of frequencies from VHF-lo to well over 900 MHz.
Without exception, the BC200XLT was more sensitive on VHF. As testing moved up into UHF, the BC3000XLT proved an even match. Moving up into the 800s saw the BC3000XLT pull ahead a bit and it left the BC200XLT in the dust above 900 MHz.
Like most double conversion units of today, the BC200XLT is very sensitive. Unfortunately this advantage is more than nullified by interference from strong signals which generate bothersome images and overload. While usually OK with the stock antenna, any attempt to use a superior model can prove to be quite frustrating since the added signal reception can make matters worse than better. Especially if the listener lives near an urban area rich with strong TV, FM and pager signals.
| Category | Score | Out of | Sensitivity | 15 | 25 |
|---|---|---|
| Selectivity | 5 | 15 |
| Interference rejection | 15 | 20 |
| Coverage | 30 | 90 |
| Channels | 10 | 15 |
| Channels per bank | 15 | 15 |
| Ease of use | 10 | 20 |
| Scan/Search speed | 10 | 10 |
| Receive modes | 0 | 15 |
| Step sizes | 0 | 25 |
| Conversion | 10 | 10 |
| Audio | 10 | 20 |
| Antenna | 5 | 20 |
| Construction | 5 | 20 |
| Size | 5 | 15 |
| Search | 10 | 35 |
| Attenuator | 5 | 20 |
| Auto-store | 0 | 20 |
| Search skip | 10 | 15 |
| Backlight | 15 | 30 |
| Alpha-tagging | 0 | 20 |
| VFO | 0 | 10 |
| Squelch tail | 5 | 10 |
| Priority | 10 | 20 |
| Delay | 10 | 15 |
| Hold | 0 | 10 |
| Rotary Control | 0 | 10 |
| S-meter | 0 | 10 |
| Power-on resume | 0 | 10 |
| Computer Interface | 20 | 20 |
| Tone Decode | 0 | 15 |
| Battery indicator | 0 | 10 |
| Channel count | 0 | 5 |
| Tape record control | 0 | 5 |
| Clock | 0 | 5 |
| Timers | 0 | 5 |
| Weather programmed | 5 | 5 |
| Weather alert | 0 | 5 |
| Data skip | 5 | 5 |
| Bank delete | 0 | 5 |
| Bank sort | 0 | 5 |
| Total | 240 | 670 |
| Total | 36 | 100 |
Hobbyists continue to use this radio and as such, you're always seeing them asking where they can get replacement or higher capacity battery packs for it. Not only can you get the original NiCd packs, there are also a number of dealers who sell NiMH packs which double the run time. There's even a specialty pack which is designed to hold AAs which is a dream come true for this user!
I imagine another reason it remains popular is because most units can or have been modified to scan the taboo cellular band. While it's illegal to do this modification these days in the US due to recently enacted changes by the FCC, it is still a major sellling point for those looking. The downside? The mod uses the same step size as the rest of the 800 MHz band which is 12.5 kHz and doesn't fit into the 30 kHz scheme used within the cellular band. But for some, something is better than nothing.
This is a good, solid radio with excellent sensitivity and good audio. Couple that with its ease of use, decent frequency coverage and 200 channels, and it becomes a perfect tool with which to indoctrinate a newcomer.
The downside is the use of Nicd, in my opinion, as well as a bulky size and lack of belt clip. Even if you do manage to buy a case or aftermarket clip (which sticks onto the back panel), you're likely to find this beasty constantly trying to drag your drawers down!
The other issue to consider is that in a frequency rich environment like most cities these days, the older double conversion circuitry used in this radio is bound to give fits of images and intermod. For the beginner, this can be a good source of frustration, but what better way to learn about radios and reception than the time honored gauntlet we've all had to wade through?!
| Copyright © 2010 by Richard J. Wells |
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