I was extremely time limited last week at the lab in Washington with our joint team from Armenia and didn’t have an opportunity to expand on my recommendation for the Rig Expert models of antenna analyzers.
As everyone knows (I believe) the number after “AA” simply refers to the upper frequency limit of the unit. The nice thing about the Rig Expert unit (any of them) is you’re not limited to one impedance. The old MFJ version was limited to 50 ohms, so if you wanted to use the unit on a 75 or 100 ohm system the reading would not be correct. Also, the MFJ version did not provide the ability to calibrate the unit with a classic “short, open, load” (SOL) calibration.
The Rig Expert units provide at least three impedance options; 50, 75, and 100 and a mode to calibrate the instrument. They do not include SOL calibration standards, but those are available from a variety of other sources.
Why calibrate? It allows you to remove the effect of any interconnecting cables or connectors to obtain an accurate measurement of the “device under test” (DUT). I never conduct a test of an antenna, phasing line, or other component without first calibrating the unit to the system impedance under test.
During the past two years I’ve rarely used my antenna analyzer unit, opting now to use the nanoVNA. If you’re not familiar with the nanoVNA, or network analyzers in general, I recommend you spend a little time in study to learn about them. But that’s a topic all within itself.
73 Joel W5ZN
p.s. There are two types of network analyzers; Scalar and Vector. Scalar only measures frequency and amplitude while Vector also measures phase.
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of EJ Jones
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2025 5:32 PM
To: Steven Rutledge <[email protected]>; [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ADXA] Antenna analyzer
Thanks everybody for the advice! That gives me the information I need.
EJ
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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Steven Rutledge <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2025 4:57:36 PM
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [ADXA] Antenna analyzer
I have a Rig Expert AA-54. It knows a hell of a lot more than I do. Good product but I'd listen to Joel for the best model.
Steve, N4JQQ
On 9/15/2025 4:40 PM, Joel Harrison wrote: