[Scan-DC] Antennas was: Scan-DC Digest, Vol 23, Issue 8

[ka3jjz at NETSCAPE.COM]

 Hi Andy...from the CHM website, put this page into your bookmarks...I'll be referring to it in detail in a moment...

http://www.radioreference.com/wiki/index.php/Scanner_Antennas

 Now, you say you are using a handheld in a fairly rural area.  You're quite right, a better external antenna, mounted nice and high will bring in more signals. Normally, I would hesitate to recommend an antenna like that for a handheld, because most handhelds are not designed to handle the much higher signal level that such an antenna would supply.  However, being in a rural area, this might not be such a problem.

 There have been many such discussions on the antennas forum on both Strong Signals and RadioReference. However, the consensus seems to be that the 20-176 RS antenna isn't all that expensive, and works reasonably well.  However, there are others that you might consider - the NilJon, ScanTenna and Diamond Discone have all been well received (pun intended) by scannists. 

 It might help if we knew your interests; that would help narrow the field down a bit. In the meantime, the page I just gave has links for these and many other antennas. Included there are reviews and other useful tips.

 The next item to consider is the coax; as you go higher in frequency, losses from the coax due to the materials used gets higher and higher. Your standard RG58U is virtually worthless at any significant length if you are interested in 800 mhz reception. Pretty much the standard cables include RG6 and the 9913 type of cables, but there are others as well.

 Next is waterproofing. Coax plugs, even when constructed correctly, can leak over time. A double coating of electrical tape, and materials such as Coax Seal are a must.

 That should get you started thinking. Let us know a bit more about where you are (city/county/state will do nicely) and your interests, and we'll see if we can help out with a bit more specific information.

 73s Mike

links editor,Capitol Hill Monitors
Utility Monitoring Central
editor, Strong Signals software page
Wiki Administrator, Radioreference.Com 

--- tigerwoods1217 at yahoo.com wrote:

From: Tiger Woods <tigerwoods1217 at yahoo.com>

I am looking to put an external scanner antenna on my
house.  I don't know anything about them and when I
went to Radio Shack they had one model type and the
sales guy din't have any clue about it at all.  Is the
model at Radio Shack decent?  If not, any suggestions.
 I live pretty rural so my rubber duckie antenna on
top of my handheld can only get so much.  Any
information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,  Andy 

 


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