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Difference between revisions of "Antennas"

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==HF Antenna Sites (Commercial/Homebrew)==
 
==HF Antenna Sites (Commercial/Homebrew)==
* [http://www.dxzone.com/ The dxzone lists hundreds of antenna plans and links to manufacturers]
 
 
* [http://ac6v.com/swl.htm#ANT AC6V antenna links]
 
* [http://ac6v.com/swl.htm#ANT AC6V antenna links]
 
* [http://www.alphadeltacom.com/ Alpha Delta Communications]
 
* [http://www.alphadeltacom.com/ Alpha Delta Communications]
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* [http://www.monitoringtimes.com/html/ant-1.html Definition, History and Building a Random Length antenna - from the MT website]
 
* [http://www.monitoringtimes.com/html/ant-1.html Definition, History and Building a Random Length antenna - from the MT website]
 
* [http://www.dressler.com/products/antenna Dressler Active Antennas]
 
* [http://www.dressler.com/products/antenna Dressler Active Antennas]
* [http://www.dxing.info/equipment/ DXing.Info Equipment Page]  
+
* [http://www.dxing.info/equipment/ DXing.Info Equipment Page]
 +
* [http://www.dxzone.com/catalog/Antennas/ DX Zone Antennas Catalog]  
 
* [http://www.eham.net/reviews/products/13 EHam reviews of antennas (Wire,Verticals)]
 
* [http://www.eham.net/reviews/products/13 EHam reviews of antennas (Wire,Verticals)]
 
* [http://www.grove-ent.com/shortwaveantennas.html Grove SW/MW Antennas]
 
* [http://www.grove-ent.com/shortwaveantennas.html Grove SW/MW Antennas]

Revision as of 21:49, 31 January 2006

This is the Antenna Section.

Here you'll find Antenna Reviews, Pictures, and Frequently Asked Questions.

If you submit something, make sure you link to it on the appropriate page.

Loops

MW only

MW/SW coverage

SW only

HF Antenna Sites (Commercial/Homebrew)

Magnetic Longwire Baluns (MLBs)

Scanner Antennas and Topics

Choosing the right antenna is important. But it might be even more important to use the right type of coax to connect your chosen antenna to your scanner.

I'd been hearing this advice for years, but never really understood the impact of using the correct coaxial cable until I took the time to actually try different cables with one of my antennas designed for 800Mhz. I had been trying to monitor a particular local (digital) public safety frequency in the 800Mhz range for years without luck, and I had even gone to the length of getting a 7-element Yagi just for this frequency. When even the high-gain antenna didn't work, I just assumed that I was just in a bad location. Then I got up in my attic with that 800Mhz Yagi and a short length of good cable. Presto! 90% successful packet decoding. The same antenna connected to just 25 feet of what was advertised as "micro loss" RG58 good through 900Mhz... 5% successful packet decoding. Same antenna connected to 50 feet of LMR600 (see Time Microwave, manufacturer of LMR series cable), 90% successful packet decoding!

The moral of the story is: Even the best antenna is no good without the right coax.

See similar comments on the VHF/UHF Military Monitoring page.

Now, about those scanner antennas. Here are some references:

Strong Signals Pages

Yahoo Groups