Yagi

de784 · #1 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 04:49 PM

Looking to by a yagi antenna but not sure which one to buy and what is the difference between the4 and 8 element and what db do I get Thanks

FLRAILMAN · #2 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 05:17 PM

Can you give us a little more to go on? Like a band or bands to be covered, type of scanner/radio, & coax used or looking to use, price ceiling, etc. Also check thr RR antennas WIKI for additional information.

FLRAILMAN

MPSCS · #3 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 05:33 PM

The greater number of elements, the more gain the antenna will have. How much gain you need depends on your particular circumstances.

What are you hoping to gain? (no pun intended)

aharry · #4 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 06:37 PM

Yagis are both directional and designed for a specific frequency.. so you would only want/need one if you have a signal that is from a specific area and a specific frequency. Of course they are not so specific that they only receive one frequency and will receive a range of frequencies both below and above the target frequency but the range is not so wide as to cover a large spectrum.

de784 · #5 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 09:57 PM

Looking to pick up a tower apx 20 miles north of me can get two bars with just the rs 800mhz antenna hoping a yagi would help improve that

MPSCS · #6 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by de784

Looking to pick up a tower apx 20 miles north of me can get two bars with just the rs 800mhz antenna hoping a yagi would help improve that

Something like this should work fine:

Wilson Electronics 301111 800Mhz Yagi Antenna NEW - eBay (item 370240430667 end time Nov-02-09 15:48:43 PST)

de784 · #7 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 10:28 PM

One more question where is a good place to pick up some lmr 400 cable

MPSCS · #8 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 02:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by de784

One more question where is a good place to pick up some lmr 400 cable

If you can't find it locally, there's tons of that on Ebay as well. Have you considered using RG6 TV coax? It's 75 ohm, rather than 50 ohm, but for receive only, it will work just fine! It's smaller, less expensive, and low loss.

rmiller818 · #9 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MPSCS

If you can't find it locally, there's tons of that on Ebay as well. Have you considered using RG6 TV coax? It's 75 ohm, rather than 50 ohm, but for receive only, it will work just fine! It's smaller, less expensive, and low loss.

Can you buy RG6 with BNC connectors on it? (if so where?)

If not, would there be a big loss if you used an adapter to change it from the regular cable connector to BNC? What is that F type female to BNC male righ?

MPSCS · #10 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmiller818

Can you buy RG6 with BNC connectors on it? (if so where?)

If not, would there be a big loss if you used an adapter to change it from the regular cable connector to BNC? What is that F type female to BNC male righ?

You would need a Type N Male-to-F Female adapter for the antenna end, and a F Female-to-BNC Male adapter for the scanner end. The RG6 cable would have a F Male on both ends.

These adapters will not cause a big loss, and will work fine. Several members here on RR have done this with great success.

rmiller818 · #11 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MPSCS

You would need a Type N Male-to-F Female adapter for the antenna end, and a F Female-to-BNC Male adapter for the scanner end. The RG6 cable would have a F Male on both ends.

These adapters will not cause a big loss, and will work fine. Several members here on RR have done this with great success.

Sounds like a good idea, I know I have some RG6 and RG58 (or 59?) lengths laying around from various TVs etc. Go get me some of those connectors then.

MPSCS · #12 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmiller818

Sounds like a good idea, I know I have some RG6 and RG58 (or 59?) lengths laying around from various TVs etc. Go get me some of those connectors then.

Stick with the RG6, definitely not the RG58, too much loss at 800MHz.

rmiller818 · #13 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MPSCS

Stick with the RG6, definitely not the RG58, too much loss at 800MHz.

What about RG59? I can't remember which we have lying around if it is 58 or 59

MPSCS · #14 (**permalink**) 10-10-2009, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmiller818

What about RG59? I can't remember which we have lying around if it is 58 or 59

How many feet do you need to run?

rmiller818 · #15 (**permalink**) 10-11-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MPSCS

How many feet do you need to run?

Not sure yet, it will be split to go to 4 scanners. 10-25 feet probably.

MPSCS · #16 (**permalink**) 10-11-2009, 09:23 PM

RG59 should be fine. RG6 is shielded a little better.

n5ims · #17 (**permalink**) 10-11-2009, 11:03 PM

Forget about the F to BNC adapters and use a compression BNC connector for your RG-6 such as these --> BNC RG6 Compression Connector for Coax 25 Pack 201-167 - Smarthome

You will also need the compression tool as well such as this --> Universal Compression Tool F/RCA & BNC - Smarthome

MPSCS · #18 (**permalink**) 10-11-2009, 11:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by n5ims

Forget about the F to BNC adapters and use a compression BNC connector for your RG-6 such as these --> BNC RG6 Compression Connector for Coax 25 Pack 201-167 - Smarthome

You will also need the compression tool as well such as this --> Universal Compression Tool F/RCA & BNC - Smarthome

$80.00 vs. $5.00, I don't understand your logic? I could see it if he was going to be making up cables on a regular basis. But that's a big investment to make one connection.