NXDN

Introduction

The NXDN (Next Generation Digital Narrowband) common air interface protocol, which was developed jointly by ICOM and Kenwood, uses Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), employing a 4-level FSK modulation scheme. These companies and others together form the NXDN Forum.

Kenwood's brand for NXDN equipment is "NEXEDGE", while Icom's brand for NXDN equipment is "IDAS", or Icom Digital Advanced System.

Who are the Users?

Click on the NXDN category at the bottom of this page, and select the various regions to see if there are listings in this wiki. More information might be found in the trunking tab of your state in the RR Database.
You can use the Digital Frequency NXDN Search webtool to search by county for frequencies authorized to use NXDN (information extracted from the FCC database)
The Digital Frequency Quick Import webtool can also be used to import frequencies into several modern scanners.

Tech Info

NXDN48 uses 6.25KHz channels and will do 4.8kb/s. Icom calls this NXDN-VN (NXDN Very Narrow).
NXDN96 uses 12.5KHz channels and will do 9.6kb/s. Icom calls this NXDN-N (NXDN Narrow).

Can it be Decoded?

Apart from using an actual Kenwood or Icom radio, the following methods are possible:

BCD160DN Note: Conventional only
BCD260DN Note: Conventional only
The Uniden SDS100 and SDS200 can handle this mode with a paid upgrade.
The Uniden BCD436HP and BCD536HP can handle this mode with a paid upgrade.
- The upgrade is discussed in the NXDN Now Available for the 436, 536 Thread
- NXDN Tips for the BCDx36HP and SDS Scanners
The Uniden BCD325P2 and BCD996P2 support this via a paid upgrade (version 1.08.00)
- See the NXDN comes to BCD325P2 and BCD996P2 Thread for a discussion on this topic
- Programming the P2 Scanners for NXDN
The Whistler TRX-1 and TRX-2 can be programmed to monitor conventional NXDN systems. However, these scanners cannot trunktrack NXDN systems. Whistler never bought the licenses, which is why the upgrades are free. The best these scanners can do is to decode the audio. This may be sufficient on systems that aren't too busy, but for busier systems, this is a serious limitation. See the following threads for more information:
See our Trunked Radio Decoders article for several applications that can handle NXDN. Note that some of them are best used with Software Defined Radios

Radios with no trunking support

AOR AR5700D
AOR DV1 Note: 6.25 kHz NXDN4800 only
AOR DV10
Icom IC-R30 Note: Can decode encrypted audio if the key is known
Icom IC-R8600 Note: Can decode encrypted audio if the key is known
Uniden BCD160DN
Uniden BCD260DN

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External Links

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